The Bring Our Heroes Home Act establishes a new independent Review Board to locate, review, and publicly release federal government records related to missing U.S. military personnel and civilians dating back to December 7, 1941. Federal agencies have one year to search their files and send relevant documents to the National Archives, with a strong presumption toward public disclosure unless release would cause grave national security harm. The five-member Review Board, appointed with Senate confirmation and bipartisan input, will have broad authority to access classified records, compel testimony, and make final decisions on what can be released, though the President may postpone disclosure for up to 30 days on national security grounds. Any records withheld must be fully disclosed within 10 years unless the President certifies severe national security risks, and the Board will be terminated after four years with remaining work transferred to the National Archives for permanent public access. The bill also requires annual congressional reports on progress and directs the State Department to contact Russia, China, North Korea, and other nations to seek their records on missing U.S. service members.
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