Summary

Requires the Department of Justice to add a new data field to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) indicating whether a missing person’s last known location was confirmed or suspected to be on Federal land and to permit entry of unit-level Federal land details. It also requires the Attorney General to deliver an annual report to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees counting NamUs cases from the prior calendar year whose last known location was confirmed or suspected to be on Federal land, with the first report due by January 15 of the second calendar year after enactment.

Key Points

• Adds a new NamUs data field to indicate if a missing person’s last known location was confirmed or suspected to be on Federal land.
• The NamUs field must allow entry of unit-level Federal land details (specific park/forest/unit, etc.).
• Defines key terms including who counts as the Attorney General and what counts as Federal land, with an exclusion for land held in trust for an Indian Tribe.
• Requires the Attorney General to send an annual report to House and Senate Judiciary Committees counting NamUs cases tied to Federal land.
• First report due by January 15 of the second calendar year after enactment; then annually.
• Focuses on data collection and reporting; it does not create new investigative powers or specify new funding.
• Affects federal data systems, law enforcement users of NamUs, families of missing persons, and federal land managers.
• May improve tracking and interagency coordination for cases that occur on or near Federal land.

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