About the Board

The Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) is an advisory board established by Congress to promote the fullest possible public access to a thorough, accurate, and reliable documentary record of significant U.S. national security decisions and activities. The PIDB’s mandate includes advising the President and other government officials on policies deriving from the issuance by the President of executive orders regarding the classification and declassification of national security information. 

The PIDB consists of nine members, five appointed by the President, and one each by the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House, and the Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate. The PIDB’s statute requires the appointment of U.S. citizens who are preeminent in the fields of history, national security, foreign policy, intelligence policy, social science, law, or archives. Information about the members, including appointments and biographies, is available on the Board’s website: https://www.archives.gov/declassification/pidb/members.html