Congress funds U.S.-Israel PTSD research to help veterans and trauma survivors.

What it does

This bill directs the Secretary of Defense to establish a grant program funding collaborative PTSD research between U.S. and Israeli academic institutions and nonprofits. Eligible U.S. entities can apply for grants to conduct joint research projects with Israeli partners, with the program operating under a 1972 U.S.-Israel science agreement and terminating 7 years after the first grant is awarded.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core function is establishing a grant program for collaborative PTSD research between U.S. and Israeli institutions. It is a straightforward research-funding mechanism with no deregulation, liability shield, or private carve-out—routine legislative authorization for scientific cooperation.

What the text implies

• Grant recipients may include both academic institutions and nonprofits; nonprofits with ties to Israeli entities could receive federal funding, creating potential for mission drift or political sensitivity if research priorities diverge from stated PTSD focus.
• The bill permits the Secretary of Defense to accept private gifts for the grant program, deposited in the DoD General Gift Fund. This creates a secondary funding stream outside normal appropriations oversight, potentially allowing private donors (including foreign entities or their U.S. proxies) to influence research priorities.
• The 1972 U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation agreement is incorporated by reference but not reproduced in the bill text. The actual governance, IP ownership, and data-sharing terms are external to this legislation and not subject to congressional amendment.
• No explicit requirement for peer review, publication standards, or public access to research results. Findings could remain classified or proprietary, limiting public benefit from taxpayer-funded research.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

The bill funds medical research addressing a significant public health problem (PTSD affects millions of Americans and veterans) through international scientific collaboration. No restrictions on citizen rights, no liability shields, no private carve-outs—the mechanism is straightforward grant-making for research that may improve treatment options for veterans and civilians suffering from PTSD.

Who stands to gain

• U.S. academic institutions (universities, research centers)
• U.S. nonprofit research entities
• Israeli academic and research institutions (indirect beneficiaries via U.S. grant recipients)

Named in the bill

Secretary of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of State, U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation, Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Research Program, Tel Aviv University National Center for Traumatic Stress and Resilience

Where it stands

12 cosponsors: 11 Republicans, 1 Democrats.

• Jul 23, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Jul 23, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Armed Services · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

2 lobbying clients named this bill on 3 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $130,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 64 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 41% of bills with at least one filing.

Randy Fine, the sponsor, reported $439,660 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, Inc. — $120,000 on 2 filings
• A New Policy Inc. — $10,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.