20060527F 001 014 2023

FOIA RELEASE

AI Summary

This document is an administrative marker related to a report to Congress regarding the Presidential exemption for the Air Force's operating location near Groom Lake, Nevada. It discusses the exemption from hazardous and solid waste laws that require disclosure of classified information.

Key Findings

- The document is an administrative marker, not a textual record. - It pertains to a report to Congress on exemptions granted under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). - The exemption was granted to protect national security and prevent the disclosure of classified information. - The operating location near Groom Lake has been determined to be classified. - The report was coordinated with various government departments including Defense and Justice.

OCR Text

2006-0527-F FOI MARKER Document ID: 9700471 Row: 45 Shelf: 4 Section: 2 Position: 3 This is not a textual record. This is used as an administrative marker by the Clinton Presidential Library Staff. Stack: v Original OA/ID Number: 1599 TO: PRESIDENT KEYWORDS: DEFENSE POLICY PERSONS: SUBJECT: ACTION: PRESIDENT SGD PER WH EXEC CLERK DUE DATE: 28 JAN 97 STATUS: C STAFF OFFICER: BAKER LOGREF: FILES: WH NSCP: CODES: DOCUMENTDISTRIBUTION FOR ACTION FOR CONCURRENCE COMMENTS: W/ATTCH DISPATCHED BY DATE BY HAND OPENED BY: NSTSMCLOSED BY: NSDRSDOC 2 OF 2 UNCLASSIFIED LEGAL ISSUES CONGRESSIONAL UNCLASSIFIED NSC/RMO PROFILE RPT TO CONGRESS ON PRES EXEMPTION RE OPERATION LOCATION NEAR GROOM LAKE FROM: BERGER HILLEY, J DOC DATE: 31 JAN 97 SOURCE REF: BAKER DANVERS FICKLIN KRECZKO NSC CHRON SANDALOW SESTAK RECORD ID: 9700471 RECEIVED: 24 JAN 97 14 RECORD ID: 9700471 DOC ACTION OFFICER CAO ASSIGNED ACTION REQUIRED DISPATCH DATA SUMMARY REPORT DOCDATEDISPATCH FOR ACTION DISPATCH_FO_R_.INFO UNCLASSIFIED 002 002 Z Z X 970131 970131 UNCLASSIFIED ACTION DATA SUMMARY REPORT 97013018 FWD TO PRESIDENT FOR SIG 97013119 FOR SIGNATURE 97013120 PRESIDENT SGD PER WH EXEC CLERK VICE PRESIDENT WH CHIEF OF STAFF 001 BERGER 002 PRESIDENT 002 LOG# PROOFED BY: NSC INT ARS SYSTEM URGENT NOT PROOFED: A/O DOCLOG BYPASSED WW DESK: DISPOSITION INITIAL/DATE SEQUENCE TO I .Harmon Dohse Kerrick Steinberg Berger Situation Room West Wing Desk Records Mgt. N = No Further Action R = Retain D = Dispatch I = Information A = Action cc: COMMENTS: A. Al. ’97 JAN 30 ph 64? Exec Sec Office has diskette Oop^ Natl Sw? Advisor NationcSTSecurity Council The White House JU n „ \\a/vy LOG# PROOFED BY: NSC INT ARS SYSTEM URGENT NOT PROOFED: A/O DOCLOG BYPASSED WW DESK: DISPOSITION INITIAL/DATE SEQUENCE TO I .Harmon I Dohse Kerrick Steinberg Berger Situation Room % < West Wing Desk Records Mgt. N = No Further Action R = Retain D = Dispatch I = Information A = Action cc: COMMENTS: ch^JL 'hl ’97 JAN 30 pm 64? Exec Sec Office has diskette National Security Council The White House G ’4S^\ 1? 0471 THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON January 31, 1997 ACTION MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT > e THROUGH: THE EXECUTIVE CLERK FROM: SUBJECT: Purpose Background RECOMMENDATION That you sign the attached letters. Letter to Speaker of the House Letter to President of the Senate Report to Congress on the Presidential Exemption Concerning the Operating Location Near Groom Lake Attachments Tab A Tab B t:;dForW\/3l/H7 -----L— To report to the Congress pursuant to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). cc: Vice President Chief of Staff This report has been coordinated with CEQ as well as the Departments of Defense and Justice and the EPA. Under RCRA, you are required to report each January to the Congress all exemptions granted during the previous year and the reasons for doing so. In addition to noting that the exemption was necessary to protect national security (without providing details) the report indicates that the exemption was not intended to limit the applicability or enforcement of any requirement of law applicable to the operating location except those provisions, if any, that would require disclosure of classified information. SAMUEL R. BERGE: JOHN HILLEY On September 28, you exempted the Air Force operating location near Groom Lake, Nevada, (the operating location) "from any Federal, State, interstate or local provision respecting control and abatement of solid waste or hazardous waste disposal that would require the disclosure of classified information" to unauthorized persons. You first granted such an exemption in 1995 in the context of litigation over the Government's compliance with RCRA at the location. THE WHITE HOUSE WAS HIN GTON Dear Mr. Speaker: Sincerely, Presidential Determination No. 96-54 exempted the U.S. Air Force's operating location near Groom Lake, Nevada from any Federal, State, interstate or local hazardous or solid waste laws that might require the disclosure of classified information concerning that operating location to unauthorized persons. Information concerning activities at the operating location near Groom Lake has been properly determined to be classified, and its disclosure would be harmful to national security. Continued protection of this information is, therefore, in the paramount interest of the United States. The Determination was not intended to imply that in the absence of a Presidential exemption RCRA or any other provision of law permits or requires the disclosure of classified information to unauthorized persons, but rather to eliminate any potential uncertainty arising from a decision in pending litigation, Kasza v. Browner (D. Nev. CV-S-94-795-PMP). The Determination also was not intended to limit the applicability or enforcement of any requirement of law applicable to the Air Force's operating location near Groom Lake except those provision…

Metadata

Agency
—
Classification
UNCLASSIFIED
Department
NARA
Confidence85
Credibility90

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