Congress

Two bills target over-classification of information

Some members of Congress say the over-classification of documents in the intelligence community is causing miscommunication and confusion -- leading to two bill...

Federal News Network Staff

September 29, 2010 4:22 pm

< a min read

It’s important to keep sensitive information secret. But have we gone too far in some cases?

Some members of Congress say the over-classification of documents in the intelligence community is causing miscommunication and confusion.

This week Congress passed two pieces of homeland security legislation.

The “Reducing Over-Classification Act” (H.R. 553) addresses the over-classification of information that, bill sponsors say, slow down the information-sharing process between federal, state, local, and private partners.

Rep. Jane Harman (D-Cal.), a sponsor of that bill, said over-classification impedes efforts to give first responders real-time intelligence so they can prevent and disrupt terror plots.

The second bill — the “Redundancy Elimination and Enhanced Performance for Preparedness Grants Act” (H.R. 3980) — would help determine the effectiveness of homeland security grants given to state and local governments.

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