WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) today released the following statement after the Intelligence Authorization Act (IAA) for Fiscal Year 2026 passed out of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence:

“The U.S. Intelligence Community and congressional intelligence committees play vital roles in keeping Texans safe and secure in an increasingly complex threat environment at home and around the globe,” said Sen. Cornyn. “This legislation will ensure our intelligence agencies are equipped with the tools to confront foreign espionage, enhance counternarcotics efforts, and bolster our cybersecurity all while prioritizing transparency and efficiency, and I was glad to support it.”

 Sen. Cornyn’s Legislation Included in the Bill:

• Intelligence Community Technology Bridge Act: Would enable the Intelligence Community (IC) to streamline acquisition processes and prioritize small business and nontraditional defense contractor solutions.
• Counternarcotics Enhancement Act: Would direct the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to submit to the congressional intelligence committees an action plan to enhance counternarcotics collaboration, coordination, and cooperation between the U.S. and Mexico.
• Strengthening Prosecution Integrity for Espionage Statutes (SPIES) Act: Would help hold foreign spies who commit espionage crimes against the U.S. accountable by removing the statute of limitations for certain offenses such as gathering or delivering classified information to aid foreign governments.

Other Key Provisions Include:

• Requiring the DNI to assess the counterintelligence vulnerabilities of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA);
• Requiring the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to assess and share the counterintelligence risks to commercial spaceports;
• Reforming and improving efficiencies and effectiveness within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the broader IC;
• Requiring that visas be denied to certain nationals applying to work at the United Nations if they are known or suspected of being foreign intelligence officers or committing intelligence or espionage activities;
• Prohibiting the IC from contracting with Chinese military companies engaged in biotechnology research, development, or manufacturing;
• Codifying tour and travel restrictions for Chinese, Russian, Iranian, and North Korean diplomats in the United States;
• Enhancing protections for, and congressional oversight of, IC whistleblowers;
• Prohibiting IC contractors from collecting or selling IC personnel location data;
• And promoting transparency by requiring the DNI to conduct a declassification review and publish intelligence relating to the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.