September 25, 1951
I HAVE today signed an Executive order to strengthen our safeguards against divulging to potential enemies information harmful to the security of the United States.
This order provides, for the first time, uniform standards for classifying and protecting security information throughout the executive branch of the Government. At the same time, the order prohibits the classification of any information by any agency unless it can show affirmatively that disclosure of the information would harm the national security. Therefore, some agencies will never have occasion to institute classification and many of the others will have only infrequent need to do so.
The necessity for this order arises from the fact that security information occasionally involves, and must be handled by, agencies which normally do not handle security matters. The order requires them to protect security matters in the same manner as they would be protected in one of the key defense agencies which have traditional classification systems. On the other hand, the order prohibits any agency from classifying nonsecurity matters.
The American people have a fundamental right to information about their Government, and there is no element of censorship, either direct or implied, in this order. The order applies only to officials and employees of the executive branch of the Government. The public is requested to cooperate, but is under no compulsion or threat of penalty to do so as a result of this order. Furthermore, I have directed every agency to keep constant watch over its classification activities for the purpose of reducing or eliminating classifications wherever and whenever conditions permit. I expect each department head or his designated subordinate to investigate promptly and carefully any alleged instance of unjustified use of security classifications. As the result of these policies, and as the result of the clear segregation of security from nonsecurity information, I hope that the American people will receive more, rather than less, information about their Government as a result of this Executive order.
Under the order, any agency which originates an item of security information is directed to mark it with the words "security information" plus one of the four following classifications: "top secret, .... secret, .... confidential," or "restricted." The Order specifies the precautions then to be taken in accordance with these classifications, ranging from the most stringent precautions for "top secret" to the minimum precautions for "restricted." The four classifications are the standard marking used by the Departments of Defense and State and no new security classifications are authorized.
To assure that this order is carried out in the spirit in which it was issued I have also directed the National Security Council, through its Interdepartmental Committee on Internal Security, to maintain a continuing review of classification activities in all agencies with a view to achieving uniform compliance with this order, both as to safeguarding security information and to prevent the classification procedure from being used to withhold information which can be divulged without harm to the national security.
NOTE: The President referred to Executive Order 10290, dated September 24, 1951, and entitled "Prescribing Regulations Establishing Minimum Standards for the Classification, Transmission, and Handling by Departments and Agencies of the Executive Branch, of Official Information Which Requires Safeguarding in the Interest of the Security of the United States" (3 CFR, 1949-1953 Comp., p. 789).
See also Items 234, 247 [1], 248, 302.
I HAVE today signed an Executive order to strengthen our safeguards against divulging to potential enemies information harmful to the security of the United States.
This order provides, for the first time, uniform standards for classifying and protecting security information throughout the executive branch of the Government. At the same time, the order prohibits the classification of any information by any agency unless it can show affirmatively that disclosure of the information would harm the national security. Therefore, some agencies will never have occasion to institute classification and many of the others will have only infrequent need to do so.
The necessity for this order arises from the fact that security information occasionally involves, and must be handled by, agencies which normally do not handle security matters. The order requires them to protect security matters in the same manner as they would be protected in one of the key defense agencies which have traditional classification systems. On the other hand, the order prohibits any agency from classifying nonsecurity matters.
The American people have a fundamental right to information about their Government, and there is no element of censorship, either direct or implied, in this order. The order applies only to officials and employees of the executive branch of the Government. The public is requested to cooperate, but is under no compulsion or threat of penalty to do so as a result of this order. Furthermore, I have directed every agency to keep constant watch over its classification activities for the purpose of reducing or eliminating classifications wherever and whenever conditions permit. I expect each department head or his designated subordinate to investigate promptly and carefully any alleged instance of unjustified use of security classifications. As the result of these policies, and as the result of the clear segregation of security from nonsecurity information, I hope that the American people will receive more, rather than less, information about their Government as a result of this Executive order.
Under the order, any agency which originates an item of security information is directed to mark it with the words "security information" plus one of the four following classifications: "top secret, .... secret, .... confidential," or "restricted." The Order specifies the precautions then to be taken in accordance with these classifications, ranging from the most stringent precautions for "top secret" to the minimum precautions for "restricted." The four classifications are the standard marking used by the Departments of Defense and State and no new security classifications are authorized.
To assure that this order is carried out in the spirit in which it was issued I have also directed the National Security Council, through its Interdepartmental Committee on Internal Security, to maintain a continuing review of classification activities in all agencies with a view to achieving uniform compliance with this order, both as to safeguarding security information and to prevent the classification procedure from being used to withhold information which can be divulged without harm to the national security.
NOTE: The President referred to Executive Order 10290, dated September 24, 1951, and entitled "Prescribing Regulations Establishing Minimum Standards for the Classification, Transmission, and Handling by Departments and Agencies of the Executive Branch, of Official Information Which Requires Safeguarding in the Interest of the Security of the United States" (3 CFR, 1949-1953 Comp., p. 789).
See also Items 234, 247 [1], 248, 302.