Today, Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Jim Risch (R-ID) introduced new legislation, the "Preserving American Access to Information Act," aimed at reforming the security classification system. The bipartisan bill focuses on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the system while increasing transparency for users of the system and the public. In introducing the bill, Senator … Continue reading PIDB Recommendations Included in Bi-Partisan Legislation Designed to Transform Classification
PIDB Congratulates NATO for Declassifying Cold War historical retrospectives of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE)
The Public Interest Declassification Board congratulates the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and its member nations for its work in declassifying the Cold War historical retrospectives of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) and posting them on its website. The histories detail the origins of SHAPE and document its activities and decisions as a … Continue reading PIDB Congratulates NATO for Declassifying Cold War historical retrospectives of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE)
Support for the PIDB’s Recommendations Continues to Grow
The Public Interest Declassification Board received recognition at a recent academic conference titled The Legal and Civil Policy Implications of “Leaks” at the American University Washington College of Law. A panel focusing on the legislative response to “leaks” discussed what impact over-classification and the current state of the security classification system have on the prevalence … Continue reading Support for the PIDB’s Recommendations Continues to Grow
What We Heard and Learned during Sunshine Week
The members and staff of the Public Interest Declassification Board attended and participated in many events last week to commemorate Sunshine Week. We would like to thank the representatives from agencies, civil society and open government advocacy groups, the Congress, the public and all the attendees who participated in these panels and events. The Board … Continue reading What We Heard and Learned during Sunshine Week
Public Interest Declassification Board Commemorates James Madison’s Birthday and Sunshine Week
Sunshine Week is an annual initiative, which coincides with national Freedom of Information Day and James Madison’s birthday (March 16), designed to raise awareness of the importance of citizen access to Government records. As we commemorate Sunshine Week, we reaffirm the principle of an Open Government. The Public Interest Declassification Board believes that our democratic … Continue reading Public Interest Declassification Board Commemorates James Madison’s Birthday and Sunshine Week
PIDB Chair to Discuss Transforming the Security Classification System at Secrecy Event Hosted by the Brennan Center for Justice
Please join the chair of the PIDB, Ambassador Nancy Soderberg, for a discussion about Secrecy and Security: The Future of Classification Reform. Ambassador Soderberg will discuss the PIDB report and the Board’s future work at a forum hosted by the Brennan Center for Justice on Thursday, March 14, 2013 from 12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. … Continue reading PIDB Chair to Discuss Transforming the Security Classification System at Secrecy Event Hosted by the Brennan Center for Justice
Thank you!
Photographs courtesy of the National Archives On behalf of the Board, I want to thank all those who came to our public meeting yesterday at the National Archives. We delivered our Report to the President on Transforming the Security Classification System last week and released it on our website yesterday. I also wish to … Continue reading Thank you!
NEW ANNOUNCEMENT: The Public Interest Declassification Board Publicly Releases its Report to the President on Transforming the Security Classification System
Photo courtesy of the National Archives Today, the Public Interest Declassification Board released online its recommendations to the President on Transforming the Security Classification System. It recommends fundamental changes that ensure the classification system will function fully to protect our nation’s security and to allow for democratic discourse in the 21st century. The full … Continue reading NEW ANNOUNCEMENT: The Public Interest Declassification Board Publicly Releases its Report to the President on Transforming the Security Classification System
Recommendation 14: Using Technology to Modernize Classification and Declassification
Photographs courtesy of the National Archives The classification system was created seventy years ago in an era of paper and later copier paper. Secret information was meant to be shared sparingly and disseminated to only those few Federal Government officials with a “need to know.” With the end of the Cold War, the classification … Continue reading Recommendation 14: Using Technology to Modernize Classification and Declassification
Recommendation 7: Implementing a Process for the Systematic Declassification Review of Formerly Restricted Data (FRD) Information
Documents courtesy of the National Archives and the photograph is courtesy of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. It is time to allow certain types of historical nuclear information to be reviewed for declassification and public access. In the aftermath of World War II, the Government recognized the need to keep nuclear weapons information … Continue reading Recommendation 7: Implementing a Process for the Systematic Declassification Review of Formerly Restricted Data (FRD) Information