In an uncommon victory for the objectivity of the scientific advisory process, the Office of Management and Budget said that it would not implement a proposed new policy on regulatory risk assessments after a National Academy of Sciences panel said the policy was “fundamentally flawed.” Last January the OMB issued a proposed “bulletin” (pdf) that […]
A bill to amend and strengthen the Whistleblower Protection Act was introduced yesterday by Senator Daniel Akaka (D-HI) and several bipartisan Senate colleagues. “Our legislation ensures that Federal whistleblowers are protected from retaliatory action when notifying the public and government leaders of waste, fraud, and abuse,” Senator Akaka said. “If we fail to protect whistleblowers, […]
Some noteworthy, newly updated products of the Congressional Research Service that are not readily available in the public domain include the following (all pdf). “Congressional Oversight Manual,” updated January 3, 2007. “Paperwork Reduction Act Reauthorization and Government Information Management Issues,” updated January 4, 2007. “Nuclear Arms Control: The Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty,” updated January 3, […]
Representatives Lowey (D-NY) and Emanuel (D-IL) are circulating a Dear Colleague letter to be delivered to the President asking him to update the Congress on the National Strategy on Pandemic Influenza. Released 8 months ago, the strategy includes over 300 activities designed to prepare the nation for a potential influenza pandemic. However, many of the […]
The growing military presence at U.S. embassies abroad is arousing suspicion among some foreign officials and producing friction between civilian foreign service officers and military personnel, according to a new staff report from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “There is evidence that some host countries are questioning the increasingly military component of America’s profile overseas,” […]
A recent Presidential signing statement on the Postal Reform Act “has resulted in considerable confusion and widespread concern about the President’s commitment to abide by the basic privacy protections afforded sealed domestic mail,” said Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine). “For some, it raised the specter of the Government unlawfully monitoring our mail in the name of […]
A redacted version of the National Reconnaissance Office Congressional Budget Justification Book for Fiscal Year 2006 was released to the Federation of American Scientists last week in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit and in compliance with a court order. The more intelligible portions of the document are now posted here (pdf). Jargon-heavy […]
The recovery of American personnel who are lost or captured in the course of military operations abroad is the subject of a new Department of Defense doctrinal publication (pdf). “The President of the United States can choose to exercise military, diplomatic, or civil options, or a combination thereof, to recover isolated personnel” and each of […]
Some recent products of the Congressional Research Service obtained by Secrecy News and not readily available in the public domain include the following (all pdf). “Maritime Security: Potential Terrorist Attacks and Protection Priorities,” January 9, 2007. “The Protection of Classified Information: The Legal Framework,” updated December 21, 2006. “Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of […]
With the war against Islamist fighters drawing to a close, Somalia’s transitional government and its foreign allies now face several Herculean tasks: bringing to heel the warlords and militias that have terrorized the country for fifteen years, winning over the various clans and sub-clans that dominate Somali politics, rebuilding the nation’s devastated infrastructure, etc, etc, […]
The December 31, 2006 deadline for automatic declassification of historically valuable 25 year old classified records has come and gone. Was anything automatically declassified? Yes, said Bill Leonard, director of the Information Security Oversight Office. “Hundreds of millions of pages of records were automatically declassified at the FBI alone,” he said yesterday. Numerous other records […]
In response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, the National Reconnaissance Office last week released to the Federation of American Scientists the unclassified portions of the NRO Congressional Budget Justification Book for Fiscal Year 2006. “You have joined a very exclusive club of people who not only win FOIA cases but actually get some […]