When President-Elect Joe Biden takes office at noon on January 20, 2021, Executive Order 13526 (E.O.) will be over 10 years old. The E.O. “prescribes a uniform system for classifying, safeguarding, and declassifying national security information, including information relating to defense against transnational terrorism”— but a lot has changed over the past decade. Transnational terrorism … Continue reading PIDB Wants You to Shape Classification, Declassification and Information Security Reform
Category: Declassification
Four Archivist and Records Management Organizations Embrace Calls for Improving Declassification by PIDB
Recommendations on Federal Archives and Records Management Issues, a report submitted last Tuesday (December 1, 2020) to President-Elect Joe Biden by four leading professional organizations of archivists and records managers records managers, cite the call for Government-wide declassification reform presented in the 2020 report to the President of the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB). The … Continue reading Four Archivist and Records Management Organizations Embrace Calls for Improving Declassification by PIDB
Gen. Hyten Finds Over-classification of Space Information Undermines National Security, Promises Reform
Speaking at the Schriever Space Futures Forum on November 20, 2020, Gen. John Hyten, Vice Chairman of the Joint Staff, argued that the over-classification of space information by the Department of Defense (DOD) delays the appropriate information sharing required to partner with U.S. allies and industry, and to deter adversaries in space. At the recent … Continue reading Gen. Hyten Finds Over-classification of Space Information Undermines National Security, Promises Reform
SSCI Members Embrace Need for Declassification Reform, Discuss PIDB Recommendations at Senate Hearing
The Board would like to thank Acting Chairman Marco Rubio (R-FL), Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA), and members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) for their invitation to testify yesterday (September 9, 2020) at the open hearing on “Declassification Policy and Prospects for Reform.” At the hearing, PIDB Member John Tierney responded … Continue reading SSCI Members Embrace Need for Declassification Reform, Discuss PIDB Recommendations at Senate Hearing
Confirmation Testimony of New U.S. Space Force Commander Reiterates Concerns about Over-classification in Space, Calls for Review
On his way to becoming the new Commander of the U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM), Lt. Gen. James Dickinson discussed the problem of over-classification in space operations at his confirmation hearing on July 28, 2020, before the Senate Armed Services Committee. In his testimony, Lt. Gen. Dickinson called for “a review of classification for collection data … Continue reading Confirmation Testimony of New U.S. Space Force Commander Reiterates Concerns about Over-classification in Space, Calls for Review
ODNI, NGA Officials Tout Modernization During the Current Pandemic
At an industry-sponsored webinar on Wednesday, August 12, officials from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the National Geospatial Agency (NGA) discussed how during the current COVID-19 pandemic their agencies: “innovate and deploy new technologies and methodologies to drive digital transformation for efficiency and cost savings.” La’Naia Jones, acting Chief Information … Continue reading ODNI, NGA Officials Tout Modernization During the Current Pandemic
Forward Progress: Congress Requires DOD to Develop Machine Readable DD-214 Military Service Records by December 31, 2023
By requiring the Secretary of Defense to implement machine readable and electronically transferable DD-214s (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) by December 31, 2023, the Fiscal Year 2020 (FY 2020) National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) supports digital transformation as recommended by the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB). The PIDB continues to recommend digital transformation … Continue reading Forward Progress: Congress Requires DOD to Develop Machine Readable DD-214 Military Service Records by December 31, 2023
FY2020 NDAA Requires Pentagon Report on Declassification Backlog
The Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) requires the Secretary of Defense to submit an unclassified “report on reducing the backlog in legally required historical declassification obligations of the Department of Defense” to the Armed Services Committees of the House and the Senate (P.L. 116-92, Sec. 1759). The report is due to these … Continue reading FY2020 NDAA Requires Pentagon Report on Declassification Backlog
Public Panels Scheduled Next Week to Discuss Priorities in Declassification Review
On Thursday, March 12, 2020, officials from several Intelligence Community (IC) agencies and three offices within the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) will join in two public panels at NARA’s William G. McGowan Theater, 700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20408. Panelists will discuss issues concerning the recent past, current state, and future prospects … Continue reading Public Panels Scheduled Next Week to Discuss Priorities in Declassification Review
Katyn Massacre Records Show Need to Prioritize Disclosure of Historical Information with Significant Public Interest
On February 25, 2020, the Wilson Center commemorated the 80th anniversary of the executions by Soviet intelligence forces of over 22,000 Polish prisoners in the Russian provinces of Smolensk, Kalinin, and Kharkiv in Ukraine. The prisoners represented a majority of Poland’s governing elite—military, police, and civil society leaders captured in 1939, when the Soviet Union … Continue reading Katyn Massacre Records Show Need to Prioritize Disclosure of Historical Information with Significant Public Interest