Documents / Official release
This file comes from the Clinton Presidential Library's National Security Council records. It holds Presidential Determination No. 96-54, dated September 1996, together with the memoranda that led to it. The determination renews for one year an exemption under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act for the Air Force's operating location near Groom Lake, Nevada. The exemption shields classified information from disclosure during the Kasza v. Browner and Frost v. Perry litigation, which was on appeal, but it does not waive environmental standards.
“The Pentagon”1 page
65051 September 27, 1996 ACTION MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT THROUGH: FROM: SUBJECT: requirements concerning the inspection and inventory of hazardous Background issued an exemption under the ResourceOn September 29, 1995, you issued an exemption under tne Kesour Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) protecting from disclosure While ruling Justice, Environmental and Natural Resources Division concur in cc: Vice President Chief of Staff THE WHITE HOUSE WASH INGTON Purpose To continue to exempt the Air Force from public disclosure waste*at"the Air Force^"operating location near Groom Lake. THE EXECUTIVE CLERK ANTHONY L Presidential Determination on RCRA Exemption tor the Operating Location at Groom Lake this recommendation as does Katie McGinty. As with last year s exemption, the attached document is worded narrowly, to exempt the location only from disclosure requirements and not from applicable environmental standards. classified information regarding an Air Force facility near Groom Lake, Nevada. By statute, the exemption is effective for one year, unless renewed. As a result, the attached exemption should be signed by September 29. The exemption was necessitated by litigation over RCRA compliance at the facility. that the information in question was appropriately classified, the Federal district court ruled that under RCRA classified information could only be protected from public disclosure pursuant to a Presidential exemption. That ruling is now being appealed, as is plaintiffs' challenge to the sufficiency of your original exemption. In the interim, Deputy Secretary of Defense White and Secretary of the Air Force Widnall recommend that you renew the exemption to provide continued protection for national security information while the matter is on appeal. EPA Administrator Browner and Department of
Not linked to a story yet.
Official release, from the nara collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 13 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.