Kirsten Gillibrand

New York senator whose 2021 NDAA amendment created AARO; has pressed the Pentagon on UAP incursions, reporting and the office's briefings since.

Current role: U.S. Senator for New York (D); member of the Armed Services, Intelligence and Appropriations committees

Former roles:

Chair, Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities (118th Congress)

Background

Lawyer and politician, the junior U.S. Senator from New York since 2009. Her amendment to the FY2022 NDAA, developed with Sen. Rubio, created the office that became the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) and gave it access to Defense Department and Intelligence Community data. She chaired the Armed Services Emerging Threats subcommittee in the 118th Congress, where AARO's directors testified, and has used Armed Services hearings since to question Pentagon leaders on incursions over military and nuclear sites. She has not been a sponsor of the UAP Disclosure Act, though she welcomed the 2026 PURSUE releases.

On the record

2026-08-15 – Ask a Pol – on AARO: "Supposed to have another briefing" and "I don't know when — it's on the schedule, though." Asked whether the UAP Disclosure Act was in the Senate's FY2027 NDAA: "Wait — is it not in our version?" Ask a Pol
2026-05-08 – statement on the first PURSUE release – "Transparency is the only path to truth." and "This is another important step, but there is much more work to do. I will continue to fight to ensure the administration finally meets its legal obligation to the American people." Fox News
2025-12-13 – Ask a Pol – on the FY2026 NDAA's use of "UAS" and "drones" rather than "UAP": "We know they're drones. They're not unidentified. So they're unmanned aerial systems." Asked about the terminology: "It's the same thing." Also: "I didn't work on any UAP provisions for this NDAA". Ask a Pol counted zero mentions of "UAP" or "UFO" and 33 of "UAS" in the final text. Ask a Pol
2025-08-06 – Ask a Pol – said she was co-developing legislation with Senate Intelligence Chair Tom Cotton to authorise the Pentagon to shoot down UAP over military installations and other high-security sites, calling for "more money and more focus and more attention". Ask a Pol
2025-06-18 – Senate Armed Services hearing – questioned Defense Secretary Hegseth on repeated aerial incursions over secure military and nuclear installations: "I'm concerned about our posture with regard to Unmanned Aerial Systems". Video
2023-07-31 – WXXI interview, after the House Oversight hearing – "They are very serious allegations. [...] Those pilots were retaliated against, and their careers were derailed, which is how I got involved in the issue. We want our pilots and our service members to come forward when they see things that they cannot identify, which is why I created the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office to review all of these unidentified aerial phenomena in a scientific and thorough way." On AARO: "If there are special access programs – they are called SAP programs – that Congress was not read in on, we put an amendment in the defense bill to say they can't be funded. We do not want to be misled." WXXI
2021-12-09 – press release on the final FY2022 NDAA – "Our national security efforts rely on aerial supremacy and these phenomena present a challenge to our dominance over the air. Staying ahead of UAP sightings is critical to keeping our strategic edge and keeping our nation safe". Release

Timeline of involvement

2021-12-09 – her UAP amendment, with Rubio, included in the final FY2022 NDAA
2022-07 – AARO established under that authority
2023-07-31 – defends AARO and the hearing witnesses after the House Oversight hearing
2025-06-18 – questions Hegseth on incursions at Armed Services
2025-08-06 – announces shoot-down legislation with Cotton
2025-12-13 – says she worked on no UAP provisions in the FY2026 NDAA
2026-05-08 – welcomes the first PURSUE release
2026-08-15 – says an AARO briefing is on the schedule; no Emerging Threats UAP hearing since 2024-11-19

Relevant links

Part of the Key People in Disclosure series. Verified 2026-10-10. Spotted an error? Reach out.