Author: Katie Colten

Pacific Security Scholars Policy Papers March 31, 2014

Pacific Security Scholars (PSS) policy papers are now available, examining  security issues and policy implications of emerging security issues in the Pacific region. Lora Vaioleti examines the impact of…

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FAS Roundup: March 31, 2014 March 31, 2014

Hard to access declassified satellite images, Nuclear Security Summit, Air Force scandal and more. From the Blogs Intelligence Whistleblower Law Has Been Used Infrequently: Per a recently released report from the Inspector General of ODNI from 2009, the Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act (ICWPA) has rarely been relied upon by intelligence agency whistleblowers. From 1999 to 2009, intelligence agency Offices of Inspector General (OIGs) said that only ten whistleblower complaints had been filed. Security-Cleared Population Rises to 5.1 Million: The number of Americans who have been investigated and deemed eligible for access to classified information rose last year to a total of 5,150,379 as of October 2013. It was the fourth consecutive year of growth in the security-cleared population. Of the 5.1 million persons who were found eligible for access to classified information, 60% had access in fact.

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FAS Roundup: March 24, 2014 March 24, 2014

Missing U.S. military nuclear materials, Ukraine and nuclear proliferation, ODNI rethinks openness in intelligence and more. CIA's Refusal to Release Softcopy Records Challenged in Court: Even when the CIA possesses a releasable document in a softcopy format, the Agency typically refuses to release the softcopy version in response to Freedom of Information Act requests, and insists on providing a hardcopy version of the document instead. A federal judge said last week that that may be a violation of law. The issue arose in a FOIA lawsuit seeking electronic copies of 419 articles from the in-house CIA journal Studies in Intelligence. The lawsuit was brought by Jeffrey Scudder, an information technology specialist who has worked in the intelligence community for 23 years. Climate Change Legislation and More from CRS: Secrecy News has obtained recently released CRS reports on topics such as nuclear energy, climate change legislation and NASA appropriations. ODNI Rethinks Secrecy and Openness in Intelligence: By leaking classified intelligence documents, Edward Snowden transformed public awareness of the scale and scope of U.S. intelligence surveillance programs. But his actions are proving to be no less consequential for national security secrecy policy. “These leaks have forced the Intelligence Community to rethink our approach to transparency and secrecy,” said Robert S. Litt, General Counsel at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. He spoke at a March 18 Freedom of Information Day program. Steven Aftergood takes a look at Litt's comments and writes that  spontaneous gestures of openness and transparency, are imperfect substitutes for systemic change and external accountability.

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