[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 186 (Wednesday, September 27, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45072-45073]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-20706]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2017-0191]
Requirements Regarding Mandatory Review for Declassification
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Mandatory Review for Declassification; notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is updating its
requirements regarding Mandatory Review for Declassification pursuant
to Section 3.5 of Executive Order (E.O.) 13526, ``Classified National
Security Information.'' The NRC's requirements regarding Mandatory
Review for Declassification were previously published in the Federal
Register on November 5, 1996. This notice informs the public of these
updates. This notice also presents instructions for submitting
suggestions or questions regarding the NRC's information security
program.
DATES: The requirements are available as of September 27, 2017.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0191 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may obtain publicly available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2017-0191. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this document.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly available documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and
then select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS,
please contact the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at
1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by email to [email protected]. The
ADAMS accession number for each document referenced (if it is available
in ADAMS) is provided the first time that it is mentioned in this
document.
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Darryl H. Parsons, Office of Nuclear
Security and Incident Response, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-7751, email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Purusant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13526,
issued on December 29, 2009, and published in the Federal Register on
January 5, 2010 (75 FR 707), and part 2001 of title 32 of the Code of
Federal Regulations, ``Classified National Security Information,''
published June 28, 2010 (75 FR 37254), the NRC is updating its
mandatory review for declassification requirements to read as follows:
I. Mandatory Review for Declassification Requirements
A. NRC information classified under E.O. 13526 or predecessor
orders shall be subject to a review for declassification by NRC, if:
1. The request for a review describes the document or material
containing the information with sufficient specificity to enable the
agency to locate it with a reasonable amount of effort;
2. The document or material containing the information responsive
to the request is not contained within an operational file exempted
from search and review, publication, and disclosure under section 552
of title 5, United States Code in accordance with law; and
3. The information is not the subject of pending litigation.
B. Any person desiring a mandatory review for declassification of
NRC documents containing classified information should address these
requests to the Director, Division of Security Operations, Office of
Nuclear Security and Incident Response, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.
C. Requests need not be made on any special form, nor does the
requested information have to be identified by date or title, but
shall, as specified in E.O. 13526, describe the information with
sufficient specificity to enable the NRC to locate the records
containing the information sought with a reasonable amount of effort.
Requests for broad types of information, entire file series of records,
or similar non-specific requests may be denied a mandatory review for
declassification by the NRC.
D. The Director, Division of Security Operations, Office of Nuclear
Security and Incident Response, will acknowledge receipt of the request
and initiate action to obtain the requested information.
E. If the information contained in the requested matter has been
reviewed for declassification within the past 2 years, another review
need not be conducted, but instead the NRC may inform the requester of
this fact and of the results of the prior review decision and advise
the requester of appeal rights.
F. Documents required to be submitted for pre-publication review or
other administrative process pursuant to an approved nondisclosure
agreement are not subject to mandatory declassification review (MDR).
G. The NRC performs an MDR as follows:
1. Conducts a line-by-line review of the matter.
2. Withholds any information that meets the standards for
classification under E.O. 13526.
3. Declassifies National Security Information under the NRC's
purview that no longer meets the standards for classification under
E.O. 13526 or successor orders.
4. If the matter is originated by another agency, the NRC will
refer the request and pertinent records to the originating agency,
unless the originating agency has agreed that the NRC may review its
records in
[[Page 45073]]
accordance with the declassification guides or guidelines provided by
the originating agency. If referred, the originating agency will
process the request in accordance with its agency's procedures for
mandatory review for declassification and communicate its determination
to the NRC. The NRC will be responsible for collecting all agency
review results and informing the requester of any final decision
regarding the declassification of the requested information unless a
prior arrangement has been made with the originating agency. Requests
for an MDR made to an element of the Intelligence Community by anyone
other than a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted
for permanent residence may be denied by the receiving Intelligence
Community element.
5. If the matter is marked as, or potentially contains, Restricted
Data, Formerly Restricted Data, or Transclassified Foreign Nuclear
Information, then the MDR is processed in accordance with 10 CFR part
1045, ``Nuclear Classification and Declassification.''
6. If the matter contains cryptologic information then the NRC
shall process the MDR in accordance with special procedures issued by
the Secretary of Defense and, when cryptologic information pertains to
intelligence activities, the Director of National Intelligence.
7. If the matter contains information pertaining to intelligence
sources, methods, and activities then the NRC shall process the MDR in
accordance with the special procedures issued by the Director of
National Intelligence.
8. If the matter contains foreign government information and the
NRC initially received or classified the foreign government
information, then the NRC shall be responsible for making a
declassification determination after consultation with concerned
governments/agencies. If the NRC did not initially receive or classify
the foreign government information, the NRC shall refer the request to
the agency that received or classified the foreign government
information for appropriate action. In all instances, the NRC may
consult with the foreign government(s) through appropriate channels
prior to declassification.
9. If the matter also contains unclassified information that is
potentially exempt from release under the Freedom of Information Act,
the matter is further processed to ensure unclassified information that
is exempt from public release is identified and that the appropriate
officials responsible for denying any classified portion of the matter
are provided and listed with the notice of denial.
10. When information cannot be declassified in its entirety, the
NRC will make reasonable efforts to release, consistent with other
applicable laws, those declassified portions of the requested
information that constitute a coherent segment.
11. A final determination shall be made on each request within 1
year from the date of receipt.
12. Upon completion of the review, the NRC releases the information
to the requester, unless that information is prohibited from release
under the provisions of a statutory authority.
13. Upon denial, in whole or in part, of an initial request, the
NRC's response shall also notify the requester of the right to an
administrative appeal.
H. When the Director, Division of Security Operations, Office of
Nuclear Security and Incident Response, denies the release of
classified matter requested under an MDR, the requester may appeal the
determination to the NRC within 60 days of receipt of the denial.
I. The appeal must be in writing and submitted to the Office of the
Executive Director for Operations, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001. The appeal:
1. Must include reference to the determination being appealed; and
2. Should specify why the requester believes the information does
not warrant classification.
J. The NRC shall normally make a determination within 60 working
days following the receipt of an appeal. If additional time is required
in rendering a decision, the NRC will notify the requester of the
additional time needed and the reason for the extension.
K. The NRC will notify the requester in writing of the final
decision and of the reason(s) for any denial. The NRC may refuse to
confirm or deny the existence or nonexistence of the requested
information whenever the fact of its existence or nonexistence is
itself classified under E.O. 13526 or successor orders.
L. If the appeal has been denied, the NRC shall notify the
requester in writing of the right to appeal the final NRC decision to
the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel (ISCAP). The
rules and procedures for bringing mandatory declassification appeals
before the ISCAP are published in ``The Interagency Security
Classification Appeals Panel (ISCAP) Bylaws, Rules, and Appeal
Procedures,'' dated July 9, 2012 (77 FR 40261). The appeal to the ISCAP
must be filed within 60 days of:
1. The date of the final agency decision;
2. The agency's failure to provide an initial decision on the
request for an MDR from the agency within 1 year of its filing; or
3. The agency's failure to provide a final decision on an agency-
level appeal within 180 days of the filing of the appeal.
M. Charges for services (e.g., locating and reproducing copies of
records) will be made, when deemed applicable, in accordance with NRC
regulations and will be consistent with charges for information
requested under section 9701 of title 31, United States Code and the
NRC's regulations implementing the Freedom of Information Act (10 CFR
9.35--Duplication Fees), or the Privacy Act (10 CFR 9.85--Fees).
II. Instructions for Submitting Suggestions or Questions Regarding the
NRC's Classified Information Security Program
Requirements regarding the NRC's Classified Information Security
Program are contained in NRC Management Directive 12.2, ``NRC
Classified Information Security Program,'' which is available for
review and printing in ADAMS under Accession No. ML14142A085.
Suggestions or questions regarding NRC's Classified Information
Security Program should be submitted in writing to the U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Director, Division of Security Operations,
Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission Washington, DC 20555-0001.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 18th day of September, 2017.
For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Michael R. Johnson,
Acting Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2017-20706 Filed 9-26-17; 8:45 am]
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