H.R.8809 - American Insists on Political Agency Clarity Act (AIPAC) Act
H.R. 8809 was introduced on May 14, 2026 by Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY). It has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee.
Related legislation:
Bill Summary: H.R. 8809, the Americans Insist on Political Agency Clarity Act (AIPAC) Act AIPAC Act, would amend the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (FARA) to clarify and expand the definition of “foreign principal.” The Bill adds a new category of foreign principal that captures domestic organizations, associations, corporations, or other entities organized under U.S. or State law that do not directly receive funding or instruction from a foreign government, but whose lobbying activities or stated mission is, in whole or in part, to influence U.S. public policy or government action in furtherance of the political or economic interests of a foreign country or recognized state-affiliated political entity.
Context: H.R. 8809 addresses a long-recognized gap in the statute. Under current law, organizations that do not receive instruction from a foreign government generally fall outside the definition of a foreign principal, even when their advocacy is structurally aligned with the diplomatic objectives of a foreign state. The legislative history of FARA itself illustrates this gap: in November 1962, the Department of Justice under Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy ordered the American Zionist Council (AZC) to register as a foreign agent on the basis of funding it received from the Jewish Agency for Israel. Shortly thereafter, former AZC personnel reorganized the entity’s lobbying activities under a newly incorporated organization, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), and the registration order was ultimately not enforced. Successive efforts over the following decades to revisit that determination have not resulted in registration. The success of AIPAC in lobbying for Israel centric legislation, following its reorganization from AZC, has led to a plethora of organizations lobbying on behalf of Israel and other foreign governments increasing concerns of adversaries such as Russia and China covertly lobbying through the same loopholes that AIPAC operates.
By introducing a category of foreign principal that focuses on the substance and direction of advocacy rather than solely on the source of funds, the Bill seeks to align the statute’s reach with its original intent. The criteria set out in the Bill of repeated alignment with a foreign government's stated diplomatic objectives; coordination with foreign officials; advisory participation by persons operating abroad; and the use of a foreign nation's name in the namesake of the lobbying activity - allow for FARA designation based on the intent of an organization and its activities, not solely its finances.
American Values Analysis: H.R. 8809 advances core American values of transparency, self-government, and the rule of law. The American public has a legitimate interest in knowing when advocacy directed at Congress and the Executive Branch is undertaken in furtherance of the interests of a foreign state, and disclosure of such relationships, without prohibiting the underlying speech, strengthens rather than constrains democratic deliberation.
American Interest Analysis: H.R. 8809 advances American interests by strengthening oversight of foreign influence in U.S. policymaking and helping to ensure that decisions affecting national security and foreign assistance are made on the basis of American interests rather than the undisclosed advocacy of foreign-aligned actors.
A New Policy’s Recommendation: SUPPORT
A New Policy supports H.R. 8809 because it strengthens transparency in U.S. policymaking by closing a loophole that ensures that organizations whose advocacy is principally directed at advancing the interests of a foreign state are subject to the same disclosure obligations as other agents of foreign countries.
For more information please contact: Josh Paul, (202) 770-0055, info@anewpolicy.org
