The Public Interest Declassification Board will host an open meeting on Thursday, December 6, 2012 to discuss its recommendations to the President on Transforming the Security Classification System. The full Report to the President will be published online on December 6th at http://www.archives.gov/declassification/pidb. The meeting will focus on the Board’s fourteen recommendations for transformation. The … Continue reading NEW ANNOUNCEMENT: The Public Interest Declassification Board Announces its December 6, 2012 Meeting
The PIDB Announces the Upcoming Public Release of its Report to the President on Transforming the Security Classification System
The Public Interest Declassification Board is pleased to announce the completion of its report, Transforming the Security Classification System. The President asked that we study the security classification system and make recommendations for its transformation to better meet the needs of users in the digital age. The report will be released to the public on … Continue reading The PIDB Announces the Upcoming Public Release of its Report to the President on Transforming the Security Classification System
Thank You
Thank you for participating in the Transforming Classification Blog. The Blog is now closed for comments. The Board appreciates all of the comments and submissions that were received. We will continue to evaluate the comments and submissions you posted on the blog as we consider what changes to make on how best to transform the classification system in … Continue reading Thank You
Comments from Trudy Huskamp Peterson, Former Acting Archivist of the United States
I read the PIDB papers as well as the submissions from the seven commentators. Rather than comment through a blog on each of the proposals, I decided to summarize my reactions and raise a few additional issues. I am numbering the paragraphs to make it easier to see the separate topics. 1. In general, I … Continue reading Comments from Trudy Huskamp Peterson, Former Acting Archivist of the United States
The Public Weighs In
On April 26th the Public Interest Declassification Board invited you to submit your ideas on transforming the national security classification system. The Board received the following papers. They appear in the order in which they were received: Steven Aftergood, Federation of American Scientists: "Set a Mandatory Performance Goal to Catalyze Transformation" Harry Cooper: "Transforming the … Continue reading The Public Weighs In
Steven Aftergood, Federation of American Scientists: “Set a Mandatory Performance Goal to Catalyze Transformation”
In order to induce a transformation of the national security classification system, the President should set a performance goal that will advance the desired transformation, and then mandate its achievement by executive branch agencies. Instead of trying to specify each and every one of the policy and procedural changes needed for an effective transformation, this … Continue reading Steven Aftergood, Federation of American Scientists: “Set a Mandatory Performance Goal to Catalyze Transformation”
Harry Cooper: “Transforming the National Security Classification Process: A Perspective On the Way Ahead”
How We Got Here In signing Executive Order 13526 – the 10th Executive Order on National Security Classification signed since Roosevelt’s Order in 1940 – President Obama also stated that he looks forward to “…reviewing recommendations from the study that the National Security Advisor will undertake in cooperation with the Public Interest Declassification Board to … Continue reading Harry Cooper: “Transforming the National Security Classification Process: A Perspective On the Way Ahead”
Sharon Bradford Franklin and Alison Roach, The Constitution Project: “Reining in Excessive Secrecy: Recommendations for Reform of the Classification System”
In July 2009, The Constitution Project’s (TCP) bipartisan Liberty and Security Committee published a report entitled Reining in Excessive Secrecy: Recommendations for Reform of the Classification and Controlled Unclassified Information Systems. This report included fifteen specific recommendations to the Executive Branch and three specific recommendations for Congress, all designed to reform the classification regime. In … Continue reading Sharon Bradford Franklin and Alison Roach, The Constitution Project: “Reining in Excessive Secrecy: Recommendations for Reform of the Classification System”
Mike German, American Civil Liberties Union: “Reducing Overclassification and Protecting the Public’s Right to Know”
The American Civil Liberties Union commends the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) for recognizing the need to transform our broken national security classification system and for creating a public forum to solicit new and innovative ideas from the American people. The ACLU, a non-partisan organization dedicated to preserving the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution and … Continue reading Mike German, American Civil Liberties Union: “Reducing Overclassification and Protecting the Public’s Right to Know”
Bill Burr and Nate Jones, National Security Archive: “Three Ideas for Transformation: Classification Tax, Equity Reform, and Sunshine Dates”
The Public Interest Declassification Board has offered some excellent proposals to improve the broken security classification system. To reverse the disturbing trends of massive overclassification and decreasing openness, to put declassification activities on a firmer budgetary foundation, and to focus resources toward protecting true national security secrets, the National Security Archive proposes levying a classification … Continue reading Bill Burr and Nate Jones, National Security Archive: “Three Ideas for Transformation: Classification Tax, Equity Reform, and Sunshine Dates”