[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5375 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5375
To provide for records preservation processes for certain at-risk
Afghan allies.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
August 7, 2026
Mr. Rounds (for himself, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Tillis, and Mr. Coons)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Armed Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for records preservation processes for certain at-risk
Afghan allies.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Afghan Ally Records and Credential
Heritage of 2026'' or ``ARCH Act''.
SEC. 2. RECORDS PRESERVATION PROCESSES FOR CERTAIN AT-RISK AFGHAN
ALLIES.
(a) Definition of Afghan Ally.--In this section and only for the
purpose of the Department of Defense records preservation processes
established by this section, the term ``Afghan ally'' means an alien
who is a citizen or national of Afghanistan, or in the case of an alien
having no nationality, an alien who last habitually resided in
Afghanistan, who--
(1) was--
(A) a member of--
(i) the special operations forces of the
Afghanistan National Defense and Security
Forces;
(ii) the Afghanistan National Army Special
Operations Command;
(iii) the Afghan Air Force; or
(iv) the Special Mission Wing of
Afghanistan;
(B) a female member of any other entity of the
Afghanistan National Defense and Security Forces,
including--
(i) a cadet or instructor at the
Afghanistan National Defense University; and
(ii) a civilian employee of the Ministry of
Defense or the Ministry of Interior Affairs;
(C) an individual associated with former Afghan
military and police human intelligence activities,
including operators and Department of Defense sources;
(D) an individual associated with former Afghan
military counterintelligence, counterterrorism, or
counternarcotics;
(E) an individual associated with the former Afghan
Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Interior Affairs, or
court system, and who was involved in the
investigation, prosecution, or detention of combatants
or members of the Taliban or criminal networks
affiliated with the Taliban;
(F) an individual employed in the former justice
sector in Afghanistan as a judge, prosecutor, or
investigator who was engaged in rule of law activities
for which the United States provided funding or
training; or
(G) a senior military officer, senior enlisted
personnel, or civilian official who served on the staff
of the former Ministry of Defense or the former
Ministry of Interior Affairs of Afghanistan; and
(2) provided service to an entity or organization described
in paragraph (1) for not less than 1 year during the period
beginning on December 22, 2001, and ending on September 1,
2021, and did so in support of the United States mission in
Afghanistan.
(b) Inclusions.--For purposes of this section, the Afghanistan
National Defense and Security Forces includes members of the security
forces under the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Interior
Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, including the
Afghanistan National Army, the Afghan Air Force, the Afghanistan
National Police, and any other entity designated by the Secretary of
Defense as part of the Afghanistan National Defense and Security Forces
during the relevant period of service of the applicant concerned.
(c) Afghan Allies Records Preservation Program.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall
establish a process by which an individual may apply to the
Secretary of Defense for classification as an Afghan ally.
(2) Application system.--The process established under
paragraph (1) shall--
(A) include the development and maintenance of a
secure online portal through which applicants may
provide information verifying their status as Afghan
allies and upload supporting documentation; and
(B) allow--
(i) an applicant to submit his or her own
application;
(ii) a designee of an applicant to submit
an application on behalf of the applicant; and
(iii) the submission of an application
regardless of where the applicant is located,
provided that the applicant is outside the
United States.
(3) Review process.--As soon as practicable after receiving
a request for classification described in paragraph (1), the
Secretary of Defense shall--
(A) review--
(i) the service record of the applicant, if
available;
(ii) if the applicant provides a service
record or other supporting documentation, any
information within the internal or contractor-
held records of the Department of Defense that
helps verify the service record concerned,
including information or an attestation
provided by any current or former official of
the Department of Defense who has personal
knowledge of the eligibility of the applicant
for such classification; and
(iii) available data holdings in the
possession of the Department of Defense or any
contractor of the Department of Defense,
including as applicable biographic and
biometric records, iris scans, fingerprints,
voice biometric information, hand geometry
biometrics, other identifiable information, and
any other information related to the applicant,
including relevant derogatory information; and
(B)(i) in a case in which the Secretary of Defense
determines that the applicant is an Afghan ally without
significant derogatory information, the Secretary shall
preserve a complete record of such application for
potential future use by the applicant or a designee of
the applicant; and
(ii) include with such preserved record--
(I) any service record concerned, if
available;
(II) if the applicant provides a service
record, any information that helps verify the
service record concerned; and
(III) any biometrics for the applicant.
(4) Review process for denial of request for records
preservation.--
(A) In general.--In the case of an applicant with
respect to whom the Secretary of Defense denies a
request for classification and records preservation
based on a determination that the applicant is not an
Afghan ally or based on derogatory information--
(i) the Secretary shall provide the
applicant with a written notice of the denial
that provides, to the maximum extent
practicable, a description of the basis for the
denial, including the facts and inferences, or
evidentiary gaps, underlying the individual
determination; and
(ii) the applicant shall be provided an
opportunity to submit not more than one written
appeal to the Secretary for each such denial.
(B) Deadline for appeal.--An appeal under clause
(ii) of subparagraph (A) shall be submitted--
(i) not more than 120 days after the date
on which the applicant concerned receives
notice under clause (i) of that subparagraph;
or
(ii) on any date thereafter, at the
discretion of the Secretary of Defense.
(C) Request to reopen.--
(i) In general.--An applicant who receives
a denial under subparagraph (A) may submit a
request to reopen a request for classification
and records preservation under the process
established under paragraph (1) so that the
applicant may provide additional information,
clarify existing information, or explain any
unfavorable information.
(ii) Limitation.--After considering one
such request to reopen from an applicant, the
Secretary of Defense may deny subsequent
requests to reopen submitted by the same
applicant.
(5) Termination.--The application process under this
subsection shall terminate on the date that--
(A) is not earlier than 10 years after the date of
the enactment of this Act; and
(B) on which the Secretary of Defense makes a
determination that such termination is in the national
interest of the United States.
(6) General provisions.--
(A) Prohibition on fees.--The Secretary of Defense
may not charge any fee in connection with a request for
a classification or records preservation under this
section.
(B) Defense personnel.--Any limitation in law with
respect to the number of personnel within the Office of
the Secretary of Defense, the military departments, or
a Defense Agency (as defined in section 101(a) of title
10, United States Code) shall not apply to personnel
employed for the primary purpose of carrying out this
section.
(C) Representation.--An alien applying for records
preservation under this section may be represented
during the application process, including at relevant
interviews and examinations, by an attorney or other
accredited representative. Such representation shall
not be at the expense of the United States Government.
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