The Mutant Registration Act was a debated law proposed to Congress by Senator Robert Kelly, advocating for all mutants to be identified in an official census documenting their numbers, abilities and whereabouts circa 2003.
History
The Mutant Watch
At a US Senate Congressional committee meeting, Senator Robert Kelly addresses the panel about what he sees as "menace" of mutants, people who are born with genetic encoded superpowers, especially that secret militia known as The X-Men. Interspersed with Senator Kelly's presentation are documentary pieces about the creation of the comic book characters and the creation of the major feature film.
X-Men
Jean Grey and Senator Kelly debated on it, with Senator Kelly on the side to force mutants to expose themselves and Jean Grey against it.
Kelly's promotion of the Mutant Registration Act led to Magneto singling him out, and he ordered Toad and Sabretooth to capture him. After Senator Kelly died, Mystique impersonated him and called off the Registration Act.
X2: X-Men United
Following the Liberty Island incident and the capture of Magneto, William Stryker's planned assassination of President McKenna by using Nightcrawler is theorized by Storm to potentially be responsible for a reintroduction of the Mutant Registration Act, or worse, the placement of every mutant under arrest. Stryker meets with President McKenna at the White House following the botched assassination, he is introduced to Senator Kelly (Mystique still posing as the deceased Senator), whereupon he comments that Kelly used to be a staunch supporter of the Registration Act, but his ideas on the mutant problem have since changed.
