For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
June 28, 2005
Executive Order: Strengthening Processes Relating to Determining Eligibility for Access to Classified National Security Information
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the
laws of the United States of America, and in order to assist in
determining eligibility for access to classified national security
information, while taking appropriate account of title III of Public Law
108-458, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Policy. To the extent consistent with safeguarding the security of the United States and protecting classified national
security information from unauthorized disclosure, agency functions
relating to determining eligibility for access to classified national
security information shall be appropriately uniform, centralized,
efficient, effective, timely, and reciprocal.
Sec. 2. Functions of the Office of Management and Budget. The Director
of the Office of Management and Budget (Director):
may, to ensure the effective implementation of the policy set forth
in section 1 of this order, assign, in whole or in part, to the head of
any agency (solely or jointly) any process relating to determinations of
eligibility for access to classified national security information, with
the agency's exercise of such assigned process to be subject to the
Director's supervision and to such terms and conditions (including
approval by the Office of Management and Budget) as the Director
determines appropriate;
shall carry out any process that the Director does not assign to
another agency (or agencies) under subsection (a);
may, after consultation with the Secretary of State, Secretary of
Defense, the Attorney General, the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of
Homeland Security, the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), and the
Director of the Office of Personnel Management, issue guidelines and
instructions to the heads of agencies to ensure appropriate uniformity, centralization, efficiency, effectiveness, and timeliness in processes relating to determinations by agencies of eligibility for access to classified
national security information;
may, with regard to determining eligibility for access to Sensitive
Compartmented Information (SCI) and "special access programs pertaining
to intelligence activities; including special activities, but not
including military operational, strategic, and tactical programs"
(Intelligence SAPs) under section 4.3(a) of Executive Order 12958 of
April 17, 1995, as amended, issue guidelines and instructions with the
concurrence of the DNI to the heads of agencies to ensure appropriate
uniformity, centrali-zation, efficiency, effectiveness, and timeliness
in making such determinations relating to those programs;
may, with regard to determining eligibility for access to special
access programs (SAP) as defined in Executive Order 12958 other than
Intelligence SAPs, issue guidelines and instructions with the
concurrence of the agency head with responsibility for the SAP to ensure
appropriate uniformity, centralization, efficiency, effectiveness, and
timeliness in making such determinations relating to those programs;
may report periodically to the President on implementation by
agencies of the policy set forth in section 1; and
shall submit reports to the Congress relating to the subject matter
of this order to the extent required by law.
Sec. 3. Functions of the Heads of Agencies.
Heads of agencies shall:
carry out any process assigned to the agency head by the Director
under subsection 2(a) of this order, and shall assist the Director in
carrying out any process under subsection 2(b);
implement guidelines and instructions issued by the Director under
subsections 2(c), 2(d), and 2(e) of this order;
to the extent permitted by law, make available to the Director
such information as the Director may request to implement this order;
ensure that all actions taken under this order take appropriate
account of the counterintelligence interests of the United States; and
ensure that all actions taken under this order are consistent with
the DNI's responsibility to protect intelligence sources and methods.
The Director and other heads of agencies shall ensure that all
actions taken under this order are consistent with the President's
constitutional authority to (i) conduct the foreign affairs of the
United States, (ii) withhold information the dis-closure of which could
impair the foreign relations, the national security, the deliberative
processes of the Executive, or the performance of the Executive's
constitutional duties, (iii) recommend for congressional con-sideration
such measures as the President may judge necessary or expedient, and
(iv) supervise the unitary executive branch.
Sec. 4. Definitions. As used in this order:
the term "agencies" means: (i) any "executive department" as
defined in section 101 of title 5, United States Code, as well as the
Department of Homeland Security; (ii) any "military department" as
defined in section 102 of title 5, United States Code; (iii) any
"government corporation" as defined in section 103 of title 5, United
States Code; and (iv) any "independent establishment" as defined in
section 104 of title 5, United States Code, but excluding the Government Accountability Office and including the United States Postal Service and the Postal Rate Commission.
the term "classified national security information" means
information that is classified pursuant to Executive Order 12958;
the term "counterintelligence" has the meaning specified for that
term in section 3 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 401a);
and
the term "process" means: (i) oversight of determinations of
eligibility for access to classified national security infor-mation,
including for SCI and SAPs made by any agency, as well as the
acquisition of information through investigation or other means upon
which such determinations are made; (ii) developing and implementing
uniform and consistent policies and procedures to ensure the effective,
efficient, and timely completion of access eligibility determinations,
to include for SAPs; (iii) designating an authorized agency for making
access eligibility determinations and an authorized agency for
collecting information through investigation upon which such
determinations are made; (iv) ensuring reciprocal recognition of
determinations of eligi-bility for access to classified information
among the agencies of the United States Government, including resolution
of disputes involving the reciprocity of security clearances and access
to SCI and SAPs; (v) ensuring the availability of resources to achieve
clearance and investigative program goals regarding the making of access
determinations as well as the collection of information through
investigation and other means upon which such determinations are made;
and (vi) developing tools and techniques for enhancing the making of
access eligibility determinations as well as the collection of
information through investigation and other means upon which such
determinations are made.
Sec. 5. General Provisions.
Nothing in this order shall be
construed to supersede, impede, or otherwise affect:
Executive Order 10865 of February 20, 1960, as amended;
Executive Order 12333 of December 4, 1981, as amended;
Executive Order 12958, as amended;
Executive Order 12968 of August 2, 1995;
Executive Order 12829 of January 6, 1993, as amended;
subsections 102A(i) and (j) of the National Security Act of 1947
(50 U.S.C. 403-1(i) and (j)); and
sections 141 through 146 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42
U.S.C. 2161 through 2166).
Executive Order 12171 of November 19, 1979, as amended, is further
amended by inserting after section after 1-215 the following new
section: "1-216. The Center for Federal Investigative Services, Office
of Personnel Management."
Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise
affect any authority of the Director, including with respect to budget,
legislative, or administrative proposals. The Director may use any
authority of the Office of Management and Budget in carrying out this
order.
Existing delegations of authority to any agency relating to
granting access to classified information and conducting investi-gations
shall remain in effect, subject to the authority of the Office of
Management and Budget under section 2 of this order to revise or revoke
such delegation.
This order is intended solely to improve the internal management of
the executive branch and is not intended to, and does not, create any
right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in
equity by a party against the United States, its departments, agencies,
entities, officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
Sec. 6. Submission of Report and Expiration of Order.
The Director shall submit a report to the President, on or before
April 1, 2006, on the imple-mentation of this order and the policy set
forth in section 1 of this order.
Unless extended by the President, this order shall expire on July
1, 2006.