[Federal Register: February 28, 1995 (Volume 60, Number 39)]

[Presidential Documents]               

[Page 10789-10790]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr28fe95-133]









                        Presidential Documents 









____________________________________________________________________



Title 3--

The President  

[[Page 10789]] 





                Executive Order 12951 of February 22, 1995



 

                Release of Imagery Acquired by Space-Based 

                National

                Intelligence Reconnaissance Systems



                By the authority vested in me as President by the 

                Constitution and the laws of the United States of 

                America and in order to release certain scientifically 

                or environmentally useful imagery acquired by space-

                based national intelligence reconnaissance systems, 

                consistent with the national security, it is hereby 

                ordered as follows:



                Section 1. Public Release of Historical Intelligence 

                Imagery. Imagery acquired by the space-based national 

                intelligence reconnaissance systems known as the 

                Corona, Argon, and Lanyard missions shall, within 18 

                months of the date of this order, be declassified and 

                transferred to the National Archives and Records 

                Administration with a copy sent to the United States 

                Geological Survey of the Department of the Interior 

                consistent with procedures approved by the Director of 

                Central Intelligence and the Archivist of the United 

                States. Upon transfer, such imagery shall be deemed 

                declassified and shall be made available to the public.



                Sec. 2. Review for Future Public Release of 

                Intelligence Imagery. (a) All information that meets 

                the criteria in section 2(b) of this order shall be 

                kept secret in the interests of national defense and 

                foreign policy until deemed otherwise by the Director 

                of Central Intelligence. In consultation with the 

                Secretaries of State and Defense, the Director of 

                Central Intelligence shall establish a comprehensive 

                program for the periodic review of imagery from systems 

                other than the Corona, Argon, and Lanyard missions, 

                with the objective of making available to the public as 

                much imagery as possible consistent with the interests 

                of national defense and foreign policy. For imagery 

                from obsolete broad-area film-return systems other than 

                Corona, Argon, and Lanyard missions, this review shall 

                be completed within 5 years of the date of this order. 

                Review of imagery from any other system that the 

                Director of Central Intelligence deems to be obsolete 

                shall be accomplished according to a timetable 

                established by the Director of Central Intelligence. 

                The Director of Central Intelligence shall report 

                annually to the President on the implementation of this 

                order.



                    (b) The criteria referred to in section 2(a) of 

                this order consist of the following: imagery acquired 

                by a space-based national intelligence reconnaissance 

                system other than the Corona, Argon, and Lanyard 

                missions.



                Sec. 3. General Provisions. (a) This order prescribes a 

                comprehensive and exclusive system for the public 

                release of imagery acquired by space-based national 

                intelligence reconnaissance systems. This order is the 

                exclusive Executive order governing the public release 

                of imagery for purposes of section 552(b)(1) of the 

                Freedom of Information Act.



                    (b) Nothing contained in this order shall create 

                any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, 

                enforceable by any party against the United States, its 

                agencies or instrumentalities, its officers or 

                employees, or any other person. [[Page 10790]] 



                Sec. 4. Definition. As used herein, ``imagery'' means 

                the product acquired by space-based national 

                intelligence reconnaissance systems that provides a 

                likeness or representation of any natural or man-made 

                feature or related objective or activities and 

                satellite positional data acquired at the same time the 

                likeness or representation was acquired.



                    (Presidential Sig.)<Clinton1>><Clinton2>



                THE WHITE HOUSE,



                    February 22, 1995.



[FR Doc. 95-5050

Filed 2-24-95; 2:13 pm]

Billing code 3195-01-P