§ 4a.5 - Duration of classification.

§ 4a.5 Duration of classification.

(a) Information shall remain classified no longer than ten years from the date of its original classification, except as provided in § unless, in accordance with section 1.65(db) of E.O. 12958. Under E.O. 12958, information may be exempted from declassification within ten years if the unauthorized disclosure of such information could reasonably be expected to cause damage to the national security for more than ten years and meets one of the eight criteria listed in § 1.6 (d).

(b)

13526, the original classification authority otherwise determines that the sensitivity of the information requires that it be marked for declassification for up to 25 years from the date of the original decision.

(b) For Department of Commerce originally classified information marked for an indefinite duration of classification under predecessor orders to E.O. 12958 which contains incomplete declassification instructions, or lacks them entirely:

(1) The information shall be declassified in accordance with E.O. 13526 as soon as it no longer meets the standards for classification under E.O. 13526, or

(2) if the standards for classification under E.O. 13526 are met, the information shall be declassified after

twenty years. Classified information contained in archive records determined to have permanent historical value under Title 44 of the United States Code shall be automatically declassified no longer than

10 years from the date of the original classification, unless the original classification authority determines that the sensitivity of the information requires that it remain classified for up to 25 years from the date of

its

the original classification,

except

as provided in

§ 3.4(d

section 1.5.(b) of E.O.

12958.

13526.

[85 FR 35375, June 10, 2020]