,,ii #aadth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #baba ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,october #a1 #bjae ,mrs4 ,shaheen introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,homeland ,security and ,governmental ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to facilitate and enhance the declassification of information1 including in the ,legislative ,branch1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,preserving ,american ,access to ,information ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,the #aiid ,joint ,security ,commission1 convened at the request of the ,secretary of ,defense and the ,director of the ,central ,intelligence ,agency stated that the classification system1 largely unchanged since the ,eisenhower administration has grown out of control4 ,more information is being classified and for extended periods of time4 ,security rules proliferate1 becoming more complex yet remaining unrelated to the threat4 4 4 4 ,indeed1 the classification system is not trusted on the inside any more than it is on the outside4 ,insiders do not trust it to protect information that needs protection4 ,outsiders do not trust it to release information that does not need protection4 7#b7 ,the ,public ,interest ,declassification ,board1 notes in its #bjab report that agencies are currently creating petabytes of classified information annually1 which quickly outpaces the amount of information the ,government has declassified in total in the previous seventeen years since ,executive ,order #abieh established the policy of automatic declassification for #be year old records4 ,without dramatic improvement in the declassification process1 the rate at which classified records are being created will drive an exponential growth in the archival backlog of classified records awaiting declassification1 and public access to the nation's history will deteriorate further4 #c4 ,enhancement of the ,national ,declassification ,center 7a7 ,in general ,the ,president shall take appropriate actions to enhance the authority and capacity of the ,national ,declassification ,center under ,executive ,order ,no4 #acebf1 or any successor ,executive order1 in order to facilitate1 enhance1 and advance a government-wide strategy for the declassification of information4 7b7 ,required actions ,the actions taken under subsection 7a7 shall include the following3 7#a7 ,a requirement that ,federal agencies complete the review of ,presidential and ,federal records proposed for declassification1 in accordance with priorities established by the ,national ,declassification ,center1 within eighteen months of the start of the declassification process1 except that agencies may complete such review within two years of the start of the declassification process upon the written approval of the ,director of the ,national ,declassification ,center4 7#b7 ,a requirement that ,federal agencies with authority to classify information share their declassification guidance with other such ,federal agencies and with the ,national ,declassification ,center4 #d4 ,public consultation with advisory panel to the ,national ,declassification ,center 7a7 ,in general ,the ,director of the ,national ,declassification ,center shall provide for consultation between the advisory panel to the ,national ,declassification ,center and the public4 7b7 ,frequency ,consultations under subsection 7a7 shall occur not less frequently than the frequency of the regular meetings of the advisory panel to the ,national ,declassification ,center and1 to the extent practicable1 shall occur concurrently with the meetings of the advisory panel4 #e4 ,preservation and access to historically valuable records ,federal agencies shall make every effort to identify and designate historically valuable records during the initial classification process in order to ensure preservation and timely access to such documents and records following eventual declassification4 #f4 ,reports on pilot programs on improvements to the declassification processes 7a7 ,reports ,the ,public ,interest ,declassification ,board shall1 in consultation with the heads of ,federal agencies that classify and review classified information as well as the ,director of the ,national ,declassification ,center1 submit to ,congress reports setting forth options for various pilot programs to assess the feasibility and advisability of mechanisms to improve the current declassification capabilities of such agencies1 including updates of software and procedures relating to declassification of information4 7b7 ,mechanisms ,in selecting mechanisms to be assessed pursuant to the pilot programs for purposes of subsection 7a71 an emphasis shall be afforded to the selection of current technologies and practices that could improve current declassification capabilities1 including commercial1 off the shelf-technologies and current best practices of ,federal agencies and the private sector4 #g4 ,review of declassification procedures regarding information controlled by ,congress ,the ,public ,interest ,declassification ,board shall review the rules of the ,senate and of the ,house of ,representative regarding the declassification of classified ,committee records1 including hearings1 meetings1 and reports1 and make recommendations to improve the consistency and timeliness of declassification efforts4 #h4 ,reports ,not later than #a year after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the head of each ,federal agency that classifies information shall submit to ,congress a report that sets forth the following3 7#a7 ,an assessment of feasibility and advisability of replacing the current classification system of such agency with a two-tiered system1 including an analysis and assessment of restructuring necessary to align the level of protection with the level of harm anticipated in the event of unauthorized release of sensitive information4 7#b7 ,if such agency possesses records with classified ,formerly ,restricted ,data 7,,frd71 an assessment of the feasibility and advisability of declassifying such records4