The Declassification Process at NARA

Allen Weinstein

Earlier this year, I was astonished to learn of actions that seriously threaten these traditions of openness, accountability, and transparency. Previously declassified records in the National Archives had been quietly removed from our open shelves by their originating agencies with an eye toward reclassification—without public notice and without reasons being cited. Affected were records that researchers had already used, in some cases for decades.

A subsequent audit, which I ordered, found that, since 1999, more than 25,000 publicly available records, previously unclassified, had been withdrawn from NARA’s stacks by their originating agencies. A random sample of 1,353 records revealed that a stunningly large portion of them—more than one-third—were wrongly reclassified.

The audit also found that in some cases, unclassified records were withdrawn to obfuscate, or hide, the reclassified records that the originating agency was actually attempting to protect. These practices, which undermine one of NARA’s basic missions—to preserve the authenticity of files under its stewardship—must not be repeated.  (See the report and other related documents at <http://www.archives.gov/declassification/>.)

In 1995, President Clinton signed an executive order that required the declassification of all records that were at least twenty-five years old, with the exception of sensitive documents pertaining to national security. This concept of “automatic declassification” was later retained when President Bush amended the 1995 order in March 2003. However, by 1999, some of the originating agencies believed this material had been improperly declassified. Since they asserted legal control over the information within these documents, because that material remained purportedly classified, they began to withdraw the documents from open shelves at NARA. Many of the record withdrawals were made in accordance with two written, classified agreements with NARA that I and the public became aware of only this spring—one with the Central Intelligence Agency signed in 2001, the other with the U.S. Air Force in 2002. These agreements are now public and are posted on NARA’s web site.

At NARA, we are in the business of assuring access. Classified agreements are the antithesis of our reason for being, and NARA will never again be a party to such agreements. Of course, agencies can classify their requests to NARA if disclosure of the reasons would compromise national security. While we focus on preserving records and ensuring their availability to the American public, we also know the public expects us to safeguard classified records that, if made public, could expose the nation to serious threats and potential harm. However, if any records are removed in the future for defensible reasons of national security, the American people will always, at the very least, know when that occurs and how many records are affected.

To ensure that the kind of activity I have described is both rare and transparent, we are taking several steps that have both short-range and long-range implications. During a sixty-day moratorium on records withdrawals in the spring, NARA staff met with officials of the agencies involved and agreed on new guidelines for such activity in the future. These guidelines are now being written as official regulations in a process that will include a period for public comment. Moreover, the guidelines will ensure that any future activity of this sort will be transparent and will provide for clear accountability.

NARA’s Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) and Office of Records Services are working with the affected agencies to see that improperly removed documents are back on the shelves as soon as possible. With ISOO and the affected agencies, NARA staff is developing a pilot National Declassification Initiative, which will seek to address the timely and appropriate declassification and release of federal records of all types held by NARA that contain national security information. I will be getting a report on these actions later this summer.

Also, we intend to do everything possible within our budgetary constraints to expedite the processing of both paper and electronic classified files so we can begin to reduce the unconscionable backlog of unprocessed documents. As we continue to deal with this matter, we welcome your interest, and if there are new developments, you will be informed sooner rather than later. 

Sidebar

Proposed Changes Limit Access at NARA Research Facilities

NARA recently announced changes to its research room hours at both the Washington, D.C., and College Park, Maryland facilities.

Effective October 2, 2006, research rooms in both facilities will no longer be open on Saturday or in the evenings. There will be a public comment period on the proposed changes until September 8, 2006. To learn more and to submit a comment, visit: <http://www.regulations.gov> and search using keyword/ID NARA-06-0007-0001.