formation or material shall be exercised as follows:

(1) Information or material may be downgraded or declassified by the official authorizing the original classification, by a successor in capacity, or by a supervisory official of either.

(2) In the case of classified information or material officially transferred by or pursuant to statute or Executive order in conjunction with a transfer of function and not merely for storage purposes, the receiving Department shall be deemed to be the originating Department for all purposes, including downgrading and declassification.

(3) In the case of classified information or material not officially transferred within subparagraph (2) of this paragraph, but originated in a Department which has since ceased to exist, each Department in possession shall be deemed to be the originating Department for all purposes. Such information or material may be downgraded and declassified by the Department in possession after consulting with any other Departments having an interest in the subject matter in accordance with § 9.15(b).

(4) All information and material classified after the effective date of the Executive order and determined in accordance with Chapter 21, 44 U.S.C. (82 Stat. 1287), to be of sufficient historical or other value to warrant preservation shall be systematically reviewed on a timely basis by each Department for the purpose of making such information and material publicly available in accordance with the determination regarding declassification made by the classifier under section 5 of the Executive order. During each calendar year each Department shall segregate to the maximum extent possible all such information and material warranting preservation and becoming declassified at or prior to the end of such year. Promptly after the end of such year the Department responsible, or the Archives of the United States if transferred thereto, shall make the declassified information and material available to the public to the extent permitted by law.

(5) Each Department shall undertake to establish a data index system for Top Secret, Secret, and Confidential information in selected categories approved by the Interagency Classification Review Committee as having sufficient historical or other value appropriate for preservation. The index system shall contain the

following data for each document indexed: (i) Identity of classifier; (ii) Department of origin; (iii) addressees; (iv) date of classification; (v) subject/area; (vi) classification category and whether subject to or exempt from the General Declassification Schedule; (vii) if exempt, which exemption category is applicable; (viii) date or event set for declassification; and (ix) file designation. Information and material shall be indexed into the system at the earliest practicable date during the course of the calendar year in which it is produced and classified, or in any event no later than March 31 of the succeeding year. Each Department shall undertake to establish such a data index system no later than July 1, 1973, which shall index the selected categories of information and material produced and classified after December 31, 1972.

(a) Declassification instructions. Classified information and material shall be declassified as soon as there are no longer any grounds for continued classification within the classification category definitions set forth in § 9.5. At the time of origination the classifier shall, whenever possible, clearly mark on the information or material a specific date or event upon which downgrading or declassification shall occur. Such dates or events shall be as early as is permissible without causing damage to the national security. Whenever earlier dates or events cannot be determined, the General Declassification Schedule set forth in § 9.11 shall apply. If the information or material is exempted under § 9.12 from the General Declassification Schedule, the classifier shall clearly mark the material to show that it is exempt and indicate the applicable exemption category. Unless impossible, the exempted information or material shall be assigned and clearly marked by the classifier with a specific date or event upon which declassification shall occur. Downgrading and declassification dates or events established in accordance with the foregoing, whether scheduled or nonscheduled, shall to the extent possible be carried forward and applied whenever the classified information or material is incorporated in other documents or material.

(b) Changes in classification. Any recipient of a classified document which

bears a classification control which in the judgment of the recipient should be more or less restrictive must be referred to the office of origin or office of primary interest or action. When the action office concurs with the review, a new designation or notation should be substituted by the initiating officer. The date and the approving authority for this change must be identified on the face of the document. The approving officer then must notify the custodian of the record copy and all original addressees of the change. The custodian and all original addressees must also notify all to whom they have made a subsequent distribution.

§ 9.11 General Declassification Schedule.

(a) Top Secret. Information or material originally classified "Top Secret" shall become automatically downgraded to "Secret" at the end of the second full calendar year following the year in which it was originated, downgraded to "Confidential" at the end of the fourth full calendar year following the year in which it was originated, and declassified at the end of the 10th full calendar year following the year in which it was originated.

(b) Secret. Information and material originally classified "Secret" shall become automatically downgraded to "Confidential" at the end of the second full calendar year following the year in which it was originated, and declassified at the end of the eighth full calendar year following the year in which it was originated.

(c) Confidential. Information and material originally classified "Confidential" shall become automatically declassified at the end of the sixth full calendar year following the year in which it was originated.

(d) Applicability of the General Declassification Schedule to previously classified material. Information or material classified before the effective date of Executive Order 11652 (June 1, 1972) and which is assigned to Group 4 under Executive Order No. 10501 of November 5, 1953, as amended by Executive Order No. 10964 of September 20, 1961, shall be subject to the General Declassification Schedule. All other information or material classified before the effective date of Executive Order 11652, whether or not assigned to Groups 1, 2, and 3 of the Executive Order No. 10501,

as amended, shall be excluded from the General Declassification Schedule. However, at any time after the expiration of 10 years from the date of origin it shall be subject to a mandatory classification review and disposition under the same conditions and criteria that apply to classified information and material created after the effective date of Executive Order 11652.

§ 9.12

Exemptions from General Declassification Schedule.

Certain classified information or material may warrant some degree of protection for a period exceeding that provided in the General Declassification Schedule. An official authorized to originally classify information or material "Top Secret" may exempt from the General Declassification Schedule any level of classified information or material originated by or under such official's supervision if it falls within one of the categories described below. In each case, the official shall specify in writing on the material the exemption category being claimed, and, unless impossible, a date or event for automatic declassification. The use of the exemption authority shall be kept to the absolute minimum consistent with national security requirements and shall be restricted to the following categories:

(a) Category 1. Classified information or material furnished by foreign governments or international organizations and held by the United States on the understanding that it be kept in confidence.

(b) Category 2. Classified information or material specifically covered by statute, or pertaining to cryptography, or disclosing intelligence sources methods.

or

(c) Category 3. Classified information or material disclosing a system, plan, installation, project, or specific foreign relations matter the continuing protection of which is essential to the national security.

(d) Category 4. Classified information or material the disclosure of which would place a person in immediate jeopardy. § 9.13 Mandatory review of exempted material.

All classified information and material originated after the effective date of Executive Order 11652 which is exempted under § 9.12 from the General Declassification Schedule shall be subject to a

classification review by the originating department at any time after the expiration of 10 years from the date of origin: Provided,

(a) A department or member of the public requests a review;

(b) The request describes the record with sufficient particularity to enable the department to identify it; and

(c) The record can be obtained with only a reasonable amount of effort. Information or material which no longer qualifies for exemption under § 9.12 shall be declasified. Information or material continuing to qualify under § 9.12 shall be so marked and, unless impossible, a date for automatic declassification shall be set.

§ 9.14 Review of classified material for declassification purposes.

(a) Review of classified material over 10 years old. Members of the public or departments may direct requests for mandatory review for declassification to the Chief, Record Services Division, for the State Department, the Director, Office of Public Affairs, for A.I.D., and the Assistant Director, Office of Public Information, for USIA, which shall in turn assign the request to the appropriate office for action. In addition, the office which has been assigned action shall immediately acknowledge receipt of the request in writing. If the request requires the rendering of services for which fair and equitable fees should be charged pursuant to title 5 of the Independent Offices Appropriations Act, 1952 (65 Stat. 290; 31 U.S.C. 483a), the requester shall be so notified. The office which has been assigned action shall thereafter make a determination within 30 days of receipt or shall explain the reasons why further time is necessary. If at the end of 60 days from receipt of the request for review no determination has been made, the requester may apply to the appropriate departmental committee provided in § 9.3 for a determination. Should the office assigned action on a request for review determine that under the criteria set forth herein continued classification is required, the requester shall promptly be notified, and, whenever possible, provided with a brief statement why the requested information or material cannot be declassified. The requester may appeal any such determination to the appropriate departmental committee and

the notice of determination shall advise the requester of this right.

(b) Departmental committee. The departmental committee shall establish procedures to review and act within 30 days upon all applications and appeals regarding requests for declassification. If the department or agency head, acting through the departmental committee, determines that continued classification is required hereunder it shall promptly so notify the requester and advise that the denial may be appealed to the NSC Interagency Classification Review Committee.

(c) Declassification of classified information or material after 30 years. All classified information or material which is 30 years old or more, whether originating before or after the effective date of Executive Order 11652, shall be declassified under the following conditions:

(1) All information and material classified after the effective date of Executive Order 11652 shall, whether or not declassification has been requested, become automatically declassified at the end of 30 full calendar years after the date of its original classification, except for such specifically identified information or material which the head of the originating department personally determines in writing at that time to require continued protection because such continued protection is essential to the national security or disclosure would place a person in immediate jeopardy. In such case, the head of the department shall also specify the period of continued classification.

(2) A request by a member of the public or by a Department to review for declassification documents more than 30 years old shall be referred directly to the Archivist of the United States, who shall have the requested documents reviewed for declassification in accordance with the above. If the information or material requested has not been transferred to the General Services Administration for accession into the Archives, the Archivist shall, together with the head of the Department having custody, have the requested documents reviewed for declassification. Classification shall be continued in either case only where the head of the Department concerned makes at the time the personal determination required above. The Archivist shall promptly notify the requester of such determination and that right of the requester to appeal the denial to the

NSC Interagency Classification Review Committee.

(d) Burden of proof for administrative determinations. For purposes of administrative determinations under paragraph (a), (b), or (c) of this section, the burden of proof is on the originating Department to show that continued classification is warranted.

(e) Availability of declassified material. Upon a determination under paragraph (a), (b), or (c) of this section that the requested material no longer warrants classification, it shall be declassified and made promptly available to the requester, if not otherwise exempt from disclosure under 5 U.S.C. 552(b) (Freedom of Information Act), or other provisions of law.

(f) Classification review requests. A request for classification review must describe the document with sufficient particularity to enable the Department to identify it and obtain it with a reasonable amount of effort. Whenever a request is deficient in its description of the record sought, the requester should be asked to provide additional identifying information whenever possible. Before denying a request on the ground that it is unduly burdensome, the requester should be asked to limit the request to records that are reasonably obtainable. If, nonetheless, the requester does not describe the records sought with sufficient particularity, or the record requested cannot be obtained with a reasonable amount of effort, the requester shall be notified of the reasons why no action will be taken and of the right to appeal such decision.

(g) Redesignating material. (1) If an official having original Top Secret classification authority at any time determines that information or material for which they are responsible falls within one of the four exempt categories described in § 9.12, the fact that such information or material was previously placed under the General Declassification Schedule, or marked for earlier downgrading and declassification, shall not prevent it being redesignated as falling within an exempt category.

(2) Likewise, such an official may determine that exempted information and material should be subject to the General Declassification Schedule. In either case, such a determination shall be based on a finding either that the original designation was in error, or that the material or

(a) Extracts and compilations. When classified information or material from more than one source is incorporated into a new document or other material, the document or other material shall be classified, downgraded, or declassified in accordance with the provisions hereunder applicable to the information requiring the greatest protection.

(b) Material not officially transferred. When a Department holding classified information or material under the circumstances described in § 9.9 notifies another Department of its intention to downgrade or declassify, it shall allow the notified Department 30 lays in which to express its objections before taking action.

(c) Notification of expedited downgrading or declassification. When classified information or material is downgraded or declassified in a manner other than originally specified, whether scheduled or exempted, the classifier shall, to the extent practicable, promptly notify all addressees to whom the information or material was originally officially transmitted. In turn, the addressees shall any other known recipient of the classified information or material.

Schedule, the following stamp shall be used:

(Top Secret, Secret or Confidential) Classified by subject to General Declassification Schedule of Executive Order 11652 automatically downgraded at two-year intervals and declassified on Dec. 31 (insert year)

(2) Accelerated declassification schedule. For marking documents which are to be automatically declassified on a given event or date earlier than the General Declassification Schedule, the following stamp shall be used:

(Top Secret, Secret or Confidential) classified by

automatically declassified on (effective date or event)

(3) Exemptions. For marking documents which are exempt from the General Declassification Schedules the following stamp shall be used:

(Top Secret, Secret or Confidential) Classified by Exempt From General Declassification Schedule of Executive Order 11652 Exemption Category (§ 5B (1), (2), (3), or (4)) Automatically Declassified on (effective date or event, if any)

(b) Should the classifier inadvertently fail to mark a document with one of the foregoing markings, the recipient shall take appropriate action to mark it properly, either by direct action or by referral to the originator. The person who signs or finally approves a document or other material containing classified information shall be deemed to be the classifier. If the classifier is another person, the individual shall be identified on the stamp as indicated.

(c) The "Restricted Data" and "Formerly Restricted Data" stamps (see section 9.18) are, in themselves, evidence of exemption from the General Declassification Schedule.

(d) Overall marking and page marking: The overall classification of a document, whether or not permanently bound, or any copy or reproduction thereof, shall be conspicuously marked or stamped at the top and bottom of the outside of the front cover (if any), on the title page (if any), on the first page, on the back page, and on the outside of the back cover (if any). Each interior page of a document which is not permanently bound shall be conspicuously marked or stamped at the top and bottom according to its own content, including the designation "Unclassified" when appropriate.

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(e) Physically connected documents: The classification assigned to a file or group of physically connected documents must be at least as high as that of the most highly classified document in it. Documents separated from the file are handled in accordance with their individual classification or control designation. A cover sheet, JF-18, Classified or Controlled File, may be placed on the front of each file or group of physically connected documents, marked to indicate the highest classification it covers, or the front and back of the folder must be stamped or marked according to the highest classification of the combined information contained in it.

(f) Paragraph marking: Whenever a classified document contains either more than one security classification category or unclassified information, each section, part, or paragraph should be marked to the extent practicable to show its classification category or that it is unclassified. When appropriate, the classification of each paragraph (including "Unclassified") may be indicated by closing the paragraph with the appropriate classification symbol for that paragraph, as follows: (TS), (S), (C), (UNCLAS).

(g) Material other than documents: If classified material cannot be marked, written notification of the information otherwise required in markings shall accompany such material.

(1) Books or pamphlets. Permanently bound books or pamphlets are to be conspicuously marked with the assigned classification or control designation at the top and bottom on the outside of the front cover, on the title page, on the first page, on the back page, and on the outside of the back cover. Other required markings must be placed on the outside of the front cover.

(2) Reproducible masters. Reproducible masters such as airgrams, mimeograph stencils, hectograph masters, photostatic negatives, or multilith plates used in the reproduction of classified or administratively controlled documents are to be marked so that each copy made from them will show the classification or control designation and other required markings. Preprinting of paper with classification control designation, or other pertinent markings, is authorized.

(3) Photographic negatives, prints, slides, and films. Whenever possible, photographic negatives and slides are to be marked with the assigned classification