Documents / Official release
This Clinton Presidential Library file from the National Security Council holds Presidential Determination 95-45, signed September 29, 1995. The determination exempts the Air Force's operating location near Groom Lake, Nevada, from hazardous waste disclosure rules that would require releasing classified information. It came out of the lawsuits Kasza v. Browner and Frost v. Perry. The file also includes Anthony Lake's decision memo, Secretary Sheila Widnall's declaration claiming the military and state secrets privilege, and a Deputy Secretary of Defense recommendation.
RECOMMENDATION That you sign the exemption at Tab A. environmental standards. October 2. Tab C Tab D The proposed exemption is worded narrowly, to exempt the location only from disclosure requirements and not from applicable It needs to be filed with the court by 2 Attachments Tab A Tab B UNCLASSIFIED with Tef-SECRET/CODEWeRB- Attachment Draft Presidential Determination Unclassified Declaration of Secretary Widnall to the Court Classified Declaration of Secretary Widnall Incoming Recommendation from Deputy Secretary White The Justice Department and Air Force believe the RCRA statute should be read to include an implicit exception for classified information, and they are appealing the judge's decision on that basis. However, given the uncertainties of an appeal and the sensitivity of the information at stake, Deputy Secretary of Defense White and the Secretary of the Air Force have recommended that you provide a statutory exemption to the operating location. EPA Administrator Browner has concurred on the basis of the Air Force's determination that the information must remain classified. I concur in the recommendation, as do Ab Mikva and Katie McGinty. The classified declaration of Air Force Secretary Widnall at Tab C elaborates on the need to keep the information concerning the operating location at Groom Lake classified. and vulnerability of materials analyzed. The court agreed the information was appropriately classified but found that it could only be protected from disclosure if you invoked authority under RCRA to exempt the location from RCRA's disclosure requirements. UNCLASSIFIED with TGP SECRET/CODEWORD- Attachment
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Official release, from the nara collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 35 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.