The Order also requires that agencies establish and conduct a program for systematic declassification review, based on the new and narrower criteria.

While there is room for improvement, I take issue with your assertion that a large obstacle to declassification review is the "bunker mentality of keepers of the secrets."

Effective declassification review in the State Department developed only after Congress passed a law in 1991.

The agency will take accountability seriously only when public and political pressure become overwhelming, and when Congress mandates timely and systematic declassification review.

The involvement of agencies like the N.S.C. in declassification reviews was described by current and former government officials as standard practice in cases involving those agencies.

The declassification review is done in consultation with other agencies of the Intelligence Community, particularly those who participated in producing the assessments.

(5) Prior consent of the originating agency is not required when referring records for declassification review that contain information originating in more than one agency.

Permanent records are transferred to NARA upon declassification review and in accordance with their records disposition schedules.

He said it was "arbitrary" to confine the declassification review of agency analytical reports to those dealing with the former Soviet Union 10 or more years ago.

After 25 years declassification review is automatic, with nine narrow exceptions that allow information to continue to be classified.