Documents / FOIA release

Action to Safeguard Information Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction and Other Sensitive Documents Related to Homeland Security (W/Attachments)

Central Intelligence Agency · 2002-03-19 · 10 pages · text by GLM-OCR

This document package is a March 19, 2002 White House memorandum from Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card, Jr., released by the Central Intelligence Agency. It tells agencies to protect records on weapons of mass destruction and other sensitive homeland security information. Attached is guidance from the Information Security Oversight Office and the Justice Department on classifying such records and handling them under FOIA. The package also contains the CIA response from Chief Information Officer Alan C. Wade, which describes enhancements to its review and release procedures.

Read from the scan by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word.

700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20408

March 19, 2002

MEMORANDUM FOR DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

Information Security Oversight Office

RICHARD L. HUFF

DANIEL J. METCALFE

Co-Directors

Office of Information and Privacy

Department of Justice

SUBJECT: Safeguarding Information Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction and Other Sensitive Records Related to Homeland Security

At the request of the Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, we have prepared this memorandum to provide guidance for reviewing Government information regarding weapons of mass destruction, as well as other information that could be misused to harm the security of our nation or threaten public safety. It is appropriate that all federal departments and agencies consider the need to safeguard such information on an ongoing basis and also upon receipt of any request for records containing such information that is made under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. $ 552 (2000). Consistent with existing law and policy, the appropriate steps for safeguarding such information will vary according to the sensitivity of the information involved and whether the information currently is classified.

## I. Classified Information

- If the information currently is classified and is equal to or less than 25 years old, it should remain classified in accordance with Executive Order 12958, Sec. 1.5 and Sec. 1.6. Although classified information generally must be declassified within 10 years of its original classification, classification or reclassification may be extended for up to 25 years in the case of information that could reasonably be expected to "reveal information that would assist in the development or use of weapons of mass destruction." Id., Sec. 1.6(d)(2).

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About this file

FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. The text was read from the page images by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word. 10 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.