	Recent Heightened Interest

President Barack H. Obama issued Executive Order 13526 on "Classified National Security Information" on December 29, 2009. 13526, multiple incidents have further heightened congressional, media, and public interest in the issue of classified information policy: 
1. 2. This report addresses classified information policy, including its history, costs, and the agencies assigned a role in it. The report focuses on Executive Order 13526, which establishes the current policy, and identifies possible classified information policy oversight issues for Congress. Overview: Classified Information Policy

		Definition

Many authorities and policies limit access to information held by the federal government. This report focuses on one of these policies—classified information policy, which also is called security classification policy and classified national security information policy . Federal law has defined classified information as
information or material designated and clearly marked or clearly represented, pursuant to the provisions of a statute or Executive order (or a regulation or order issued pursuant to a statute or Executive order), as requiring a specific degree of protection against unauthorized disclosure for reasons of national security (50 U.S.C. 426(1)). Executive Orders

Since 1940, Presidents regularly have issued executive orders to set classified information policies ( Table 1 ). Typically, these directives have defined
who in the federal government may classify information, what levels of classification and classification markings (e.g., "top secret") may be used, who may access classified information, and how and when classified information is to be declassified. 12937), or established new agencies to implement aspects of classified information policy (E.O. Most recently, Congress enacted P.L. 111-258 , the Reducing Over-Classification Act, which President Obama signed into law on October 9, 2010. The Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO), an agency within the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), annually releases a report on agencies' estimated classified information policy costs. The ISOO reports that total government classified information policy costs were $8.8 billion in FY2009. 12958) regarding
(i) Establishment of a National Declassification Center to bring appropriate agency officials together to perform collaborative declassification review under the administration of the Archivist of the United States;
(ii) Effective measures to address the problem of over classification, including the possible restoration of the presumption against classification, which would preclude classification of information where there is significant doubt about the need for such classification, and the implementation of increased accountability for classification decisions; 
(iii) Changes needed to facilitate greater sharing of classified information among appropriate parties; 
(iv) Appropriate prohibition of reclassification of material that has been declassified and released to the public under proper authority; 
(v) Appropriate classification, safeguarding, accessibility, and declassification of information in the electronic environment, as recommended by the Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction and others; and
(vi) Any other measures appropriate to provide for greater openness and transparency in the Government's security classification and declassification program while also affording necessary protection to the Government's legitimate interests. 13526

E.O 13526 revoked E.O. 13526) requiring agencies to make significant revisions to their security classification policies and practices. The terms damage and national security are inherently broad concepts. 3. 4. 13526, the President ordered the National Declassification Center to clear the more than 400 million pages of classified records more than 25 years old by December 31, 2013. Congress may consider examining whether agencies have faced any challenges in implementing the new law and the executive order consonantly. The Reducing Over-Classification Act aims to increase information-sharing among agencies.
Recently, there have been multiple high-profile incidents involving the release of classified government information. Perhaps most prominent was Wikileaks.org's unauthorized publication of more than 600,000 classified Department of Defense documents. Such incidents have further heightened congressional, media, and public interest in classified information policy.
President Barack H. Obama issued Executive Order 13526 on "Classified National Security Information" on December 29, 2009, and Congress enacted P.L. 111-258, the Reducing Over-Classification Act, which President Obama signed into law on October 9, 2010.
This report provides information on classified information policy, which also is called security classification policy and national security classification information policy. It discusses the history, costs, and agencies assigned roles in classified information policy. The report focuses on Executive Order 13526, which establishes much of the current policy, and the report identifies possible oversight issues for Congress.
In broad terms, classified information policy aims to decrease the probability of persons or foreign nations accessing government-held information without authorization and using it to harm the national security of the United States. To this end, many authorities and policies limit access to information held by the federal government. Federal law defines "classified information" as "information or material designated and clearly marked or clearly represented, pursuant to the provisions of a statute or Executive order (or a regulation or order issued pursuant to a statute or Executive order), as requiring a specific degree of protection against unauthorized disclosure for reasons of national security (50 U.S.C. 426(1))." According to the Information Security Oversight Office, government security classification costs were $8.8 billion in FY2009, although this figure excludes intelligence agencies' expenditures.
Congress has enacted statutes to set aspects of classified information policy. More regularly, Presidents have issued executive orders to establish classified information policies and procedures. Typically, these directives have defined (1) who in the federal government may classify information; (2) what levels of classification and classification markings (e.g., "top secret") may be used; (3) who may access classified information; and (4) how and when classified information is to be declassified.
E.O. 13526 revised the previous policies on these matters and established a National Declassification Center. This center, located at the National Archives and Records Administration, is tasked with eliminating a more than 400 million-page backlog of classified records that are 25 years old and older.
Congress may opt to examine the implementation of E.O. 13526, including issues such as its mandate for agencies to review their security classification guides for fealty to current policy. Additionally, the practice of permitting the executive branch to set much of classified information policy may be subject to examination. Similarly, the enactment of the Reducing Over-Classification Act came less than a year after the issuance of E.O. 13526. Congress may choose to examine to what degree classifying agencies have implemented the new law and the executive order consonantly.
This report will be updated to reflect significant developments.