The Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) has noted that the executive branch has been developing and implementing artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies for a variety of use cases at an accelerated rate. However, federal agencies too often develop these innovations without internal or interagency coordination. Recommendations of the PIDB have long emphasized … Continue reading New DOD Position Realigns AI and Data Management — Can Support Improved Classification and Declassification
Author: PIDB
PIDB Submits Letter to Congress
On January 10, 2022, Ezra Cohen, Chair of the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) submitted letters on behalf of the Board to Congress, outlining its work in 2021. Recipients of the PIDB’s letter included: The four Congressional Leaders andThe Chair and Ranking Member of the following committees:Senate Select Committee on IntelligenceHouse Permanent Select Committee on … Continue reading PIDB Submits Letter to Congress
FY2022 NDAA Mandates Feasibility Study of Declassification Review for Marshall Islands Weapons Tests
President Joseph Biden signed the Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law on December 27, 2021. Section 1685 of the NDAA includes a requirement that the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) conduct “a study on the feasibility of carrying out a declassification review relating to nuclear weapons, chemical weapons, or ballistic missile … Continue reading FY2022 NDAA Mandates Feasibility Study of Declassification Review for Marshall Islands Weapons Tests
JFK Assassination Records Release, December 15, 2021
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) on December 15, 2021, released 1,491 documents from the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection and posted them online. These documents were previously released in redacted form. This release was required by President Biden’s October 22, 2021 memorandum to agencies on the public disclosure of records in … Continue reading JFK Assassination Records Release, December 15, 2021
President Biden Issues Memorandum on the Public Release of Withheld JFK Assassination Records, Sets New Disclosure Deadline
On October 22, 2021, President Biden issued a memorandum that sets new deadlines for the public disclosure of about 14,000 records that remain classified in the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection (JFK Records) at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Originally scheduled for release on October 25, 2017, then-President Trump certified agency requests … Continue reading President Biden Issues Memorandum on the Public Release of Withheld JFK Assassination Records, Sets New Disclosure Deadline
Press Coverage of PIDB Efforts to Reduce Over-Classification, Increase Government Transparency
Two news reports published last week highlighted last year’s recommendations as well as ongoing activities of the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) to promote the modernization of classification and declassification systems. Both reports cited the PIDB’s continuing advocacy for new policies and processes to reduce over-classification. (The PIDB’s 2020 Report to the President recommended policies … Continue reading Press Coverage of PIDB Efforts to Reduce Over-Classification, Increase Government Transparency
PIDB Submits Letter to President Biden Supporting Transparency in Public Release of JFK Assassination Records
On September 27, 2021, the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) submitted a letter to President Biden unanimously encouraging the maximum public release of records under the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act (JFK Act). Passed in 1992, the JFK Act required all federal agencies and offices to identify, organize, and transfer copies of all … Continue reading PIDB Submits Letter to President Biden Supporting Transparency in Public Release of JFK Assassination Records
FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act Recognizes the Need for a New Classification Policy for Space Information to Reduce Over-Classification
The Armed Services Committee in the House of Representatives included a provision in the Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that directs the Chief of Space Operations for the U.S. Space Force to oversee a classification review of space information with the intent of either declassifying or reducing the classification levels of space … Continue reading FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act Recognizes the Need for a New Classification Policy for Space Information to Reduce Over-Classification
PIDB Comments on the National Archives Draft Strategic Plan
The Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) was established to promote “the fullest possible access to a thorough, accurate, and reliable documentary record of significant ... national security decisions and … activities.” This mandate reflects an underlying premise of representative democracy: citizens’ access to information about Government is essential to their informed decisions and their ability … Continue reading PIDB Comments on the National Archives Draft Strategic Plan
PIDB Recommends the Prioritized Declassification of 9/11 Records
The Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) promotes the fullest possible public access to a thorough, accurate, and reliable documentary record of significant U.S. national security decisions and activities. The PIDB reviews and makes recommendations to the President for the identification, collection, and review for declassification of information of extraordinary public interest. In anticipation of the … Continue reading PIDB Recommends the Prioritized Declassification of 9/11 Records