A Republican bill with 6 Democratic cosponsors · See all 11 cosponsors
Last activity — Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 235.
Cleared committee, waiting for its first floor vote
A committee approved it and it is on the calendar of the chamber it started in.
This is further than most bills get, and still no promise of a vote: the calendar is a queue, and the majority leadership decides what is called. A bill can sit here until the Congress ends.
Its path through Congress
- Introduced
- On Calendar
What this bill would do
The AUKUS Improvement Act of 2025 aims to improve the AUKUS partnership. It modifies the Arms Export Control Act to provide more flexibility regarding defense articles. Specifically, it allows for the reexport, retransfer, or temporary import of certain defense articles exclusively between the Governments of Australia and the United Kingdom. The bill also authorizes certain intra-company, intra-organizational, and intra-governmental transfers. Additionally, it eliminates specific certification requirements for certain commercial technical assistance or manufacturing license agreements involving Australia and the United Kingdom.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
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Increased Flexibility in Defense Transfers: Defense articles sold by the United States can be reexported, retransferred, or temporarily imported between the Governments of Australia and the United Kingdom without requiring presidential consent (Section 2).
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Authorized Organizational Transfers: The bill allows for intra-company, intra-organizational, and intra-governmental transfers related to certain defense articles and services between specific officers, employees, and agents (Section 2).
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Streamlined Licensing Processes: Certain Manufacturing Licensing Agreements and Technical Licensing Agreements for Australia and the United Kingdom will no longer be subject to congressional notification requirements (Section 3).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
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Changes to Oversight: The bill removes the requirement for presidential consent for specific defense article transfers between the Governments of Australia and the United Kingdom (Section 2).
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Changes to Notification Requirements: The bill eliminates the requirement for congressional notification for certain commercial technical assistance or manufacturing license agreements involving Australia and the United Kingdom (Section 3).
- 10/30/2025
- Committee on Foreign Relations. Reported by Senator Risch with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
- Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 235.
- 10/22/2025
- Committee on Foreign Relations. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- 9/16/2025
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 7/29/2025
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 7/17/2025
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 7/8/2025
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 6/18/2025
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
- 7 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in Senate
One bill Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
Michael BennetDemocrat · Colorado
John CornynRepublican · Texas
Christopher CoonsDemocrat · Delaware
Joni ErnstRepublican · Iowa
Deb FischerRepublican · Nebraska
Timothy KaineDemocrat · Virginia
Christopher MurphyDemocrat · Connecticut
Gary PetersDemocrat · Michigan
Jacky RosenDemocrat · Nevada
Dan SullivanRepublican · Alaska
Rick ScottRepublican · Florida