Strengthening the Sharing of Terrorism 
                Information To Protect Americans

                By the authority vested in me as President by the 
                Constitution and laws of the United States of America, 
                and in order to further strengthen the effective 
                conduct of United States intelligence activities and 
                protect the territory, people, and interests of the 
                United States of America, including against terrorist 
                attacks, it is hereby ordered as follows:

                Section 1. Policy. To the maximum extent consistent 
                with applicable law, agencies shall, in the design and 
                use of information systems and in the dissemination of 
                information among agencies:

                    (a) give the highest priority to (i) the detection, 
                prevention, disruption, preemption, and mitigation of 
                the effects of terrorist activities against the 
                territory, people, and interests of the United States 
                of America, (ii) the interchange of terrorism 
                information among agencies, (iii) the interchange of 
                terrorism information between agencies and appropriate 
                authorities of States and local governments, and (iv) 
                the protection of the ability of agencies to acquire 
                additional such information; and
                    (b) protect the freedom, information privacy, and 
                other legal rights of Americans in the conduct of 
                activities implementing subsection (a).

                Sec. 2. Duty of Heads of Agencies Possessing or 
                Acquiring Terrorism Information. To implement the 
                policy set forth in section 1 of this order, the head 
                of each agency that possesses or acquires terrorism 
                information:

                    (a) shall promptly give access to the terrorism 
                information to the head of each other agency that has 
                counterterrorism functions, and provide the terrorism 
                information to each such agency in accordance with the 
                standards and information sharing guidance issued 
                pursuant to this order, unless otherwise directed by 
                the President, and consistent with (i) the statutory 
                responsibilities of the agencies providing and 
                receiving the information, (ii) any guidance issued by 
                the Attorney General to fulfill the policy set forth in 
                subsection 1(b) of this order, and (iii) other 
                applicable law, including section 103(c)(7) of the 
                National Security Act of 1947, section 892 of the 
                Homeland Security Act of 2002, Executive Order 12958 of 
                April 17, 1995, as amended, and Executive Order 13311 
                of July 29, 2003;
                    (b) shall cooperate in and facilitate production of 
                reports based on terrorism information with contents 
                and formats that permit dissemination that maximizes 
                the utility of the information in protecting the 
                territory, people, and interests of the United States; 
                and
                    (c) shall facilitate implementation of the plan 
                developed by the Information Systems Council 
                established by section 5 of this order.

                Sec. 3. Preparing Terrorism Information for Maximum 
                Distribution within Intelligence Community. To assist 
                in expeditious and effective implementation by agencies 
                within the Intelligence Community of the policy set 
                forth in section 1 of this order, the Director of 
                Central Intelligence shall, in consultation with the 
                Attorney General and the other heads of agencies within 
                the Intelligence Community, set forth not later than 90 
                days after the date of this order, and thereafter as 
                appropriate, common standards for the sharing of 
                terrorism information by agencies within the 
                Intelligence Community with (i) other agencies within 
                the Intelligence Community, (ii) other agencies having 
                counterterrorism functions, and (iii) through or in

[[Page 53600]]

                coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, 
                appropriate authorities of State and local governments. 
                These common standards shall improve information 
                sharing by such methods as:

                    (a) requiring, at the outset of the intelligence 
                collection and analysis process, the creation of 
                records and reporting, for both raw and processed 
                information including, for example, metadata and 
                content, in such a manner that sources and methods are 
                protected so that the information can be distributed at 
                lower classification levels, and by creating 
                unclassified versions for distribution whenever 
                possible;
                    (b) requiring records and reports related to 
                terrorism information to be produced with multiple 
                versions at an unclassified level and at varying levels 
                of classification, for example on an electronic 
                tearline basis, allowing varying degrees of access by 
                other agencies and personnel commensurate with their 
                particular security clearance levels and special access 
                approvals;
                    (c) requiring terrorism information to be shared 
                free of originator controls, including, for example, 
                controls requiring the consent of the originating 
                agency prior to the dissemination of the information 
                outside any other agency to which it has been made 
                available, to the maximum extent permitted by 
                applicable law, Executive Orders, or Presidential 
                guidance;
                    (d) minimizing the applicability of information 
                compartmentalization systems to terrorism information, 
                to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, 
                Executive Orders, and Presidential guidance; and
                    (e) ensuring the establishment of appropriate 
                arrangements providing incentives for, and holding 
                personnel accountable for, increased sharing of 
                terrorism information, consistent with requirements of 
                the Nation's security and with applicable law, 
                Executive Orders, and Presidential guidance.

                Sec. 4. Requirements for Collection of Terrorism 
                Information Inside the United States. (a) The Attorney 
                General, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the 
                Director of Central Intelligence shall, not later than 
                90 days after the date of this order, jointly submit to 
                the President, through the Assistants to the President 
                for National Security Affairs and Homeland Security, 
                their recommendation on the establishment of executive 
                branch-wide collection and sharing requirements, 
                procedures, and guidelines for terrorism information to 
                be collected within the United States, including, but 
                not limited to, from publicly available sources, 
                including nongovernmental databases.

                    (b) The recommendation submitted under subsection 
                (a) of this section shall also:

  (i) address requirements and guidelines for the collection and sharing of 
other information necessary to protect the territory, people, and interests 
of the United States; and

  (ii) propose arrangements for ensuring that officers of the United States 
with responsibilities for protecting the territory, people, and interests 
of the United States are provided with clear, understandable, consistent, 
effective, and lawful procedures and guidelines for the collection, 
handling, distribution, and retention of information.

                Sec. 5. Establishment of Information Systems Council. 
                (a) There is established an Information Systems Council 
                (Council), chaired by a designee of the Director of the 
                Office of Management and Budget, and composed 
                exclusively of designees of: the Secretaries of State, 
                the Treasury, Defense, Commerce, Energy, and Homeland 
                Security; the Attorney General; the Director of Central 
                Intelligence; the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
                Investigation; the Director of the National 
                Counterterrorism Center, once that position is created 
                and filled (and until that time the Director of the 
                Terrorism Threat Integration Center); and such other 
                heads of departments or agencies as the Director of the 
                Office of Management and Budget may designate.

                    (b) The mission of the Council is to plan for and 
                oversee the establishment of an interoperable terrorism 
                information sharing environment to facilitate automated 
                sharing of terrorism information among appropriate 
                agencies to implement the policy set forth in section 1 
                of this order.

[[Page 53601]]

                    (c) Not later than 120 days after the date of this 
                order, the Council shall report to the President 
                through the Assistants to the President for National 
                Security Affairs and Homeland Security, on a plan, with 
                proposed milestones, timetables for achieving those 
                milestones, and identification of resources, for the 
                establishment of the proposed interoperable terrorism 
                information sharing environment. The plan shall, at a 
                minimum:

  (i) describe and define the parameters of the proposed interoperable 
terrorism information sharing environment, including functions, 
capabilities, and resources;

  (ii) identify and, as appropriate, recommend the consolidation and 
elimination of current programs, systems, and processes used by agencies to 
share terrorism information, and recommend as appropriate the redirection 
of existing resources to support the interoperable terrorism information 
sharing environment;

  (iii) identify gaps, if any, between existing technologies, programs, and 
systems used by agencies to share terrorism information and the parameters 
of the proposed interoperable terrorism information sharing environment;

  (iv) recommend near-term solutions to address any such gaps until the 
interoperable terrorism information sharing environment can be established;

  (v) recommend a plan for implementation of the interoperable terrorism 
information sharing environment, including roles and responsibilities, 
measures of success, and deadlines for the development and implementation 
of functions and capabilities from the initial stage to full operational 
capability;

  (vi) recommend how the proposed interoperable terrorism information 
sharing environment can be extended to allow interchange of terrorism 
information between agencies and appropriate authorities of States and 
local governments; and

  (vii) recommend whether and how the interoperable terrorism information 
sharing environment should be expanded, or designed so as to allow future 
expansion, for purposes of encompassing other categories of intelligence 
and information.

                Sec. 6. Definitions. As used in this order:

                    (a) the term ``agency'' has the meaning set forth 
                for the term ``executive agency'' in section 105 of 
                title 5, United States Code, together with the 
                Department of Homeland Security, but includes the 
                Postal Rate Commission and the United States Postal 
                Service and excludes the Government Accountability 
                Office;
                    (b) the terms ``Intelligence Community'' and 
                ``agency within the Intelligence Community'' have the 
                meanings set forth for those terms in section 3.4(f) of 
                Executive Order 12333 of December 4, 1981, as amended;
                    (c) the terms ``local government,'' ``State,'' and, 
                when used in a geographical sense, ``United States,'' 
                have the meanings set forth for those terms in section 
                2 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101); 
                and
                    (d) the term ``terrorism information'' means all 
                information, whether collected, produced, or 
                distributed by intelligence, law enforcement, military, 
                homeland security, or other United States Government 
                activities, relating to (i) the existence, 
                organization, capabilities, plans, intentions, 
                vulnerabilities, means of finance or material support, 
                or activities of foreign or international terrorist 
                groups or individuals, or of domestic groups or 
                individuals involved in transnational terrorism; (ii) 
                threats posed by such groups or individuals to the 
                United States, United States persons, or United States 
                interests, or to those of other nations; (iii) 
                communications of or by such groups or individuals; or 
                (iv) information relating to groups or individuals 
                reasonably believed to be assisting or associated with 
                such groups or individuals.

                Sec. 7. General Provisions. (a) This order:

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  (i) shall be implemented in a manner consistent with applicable law, 
including Federal law protecting the information privacy and other legal 
rights of Americans, and subject to the availability of appropriations;

  (ii) shall be implemented in a manner consistent with the authority of 
the principal officers of agencies as heads of their respective agencies, 
including under section 199 of the Revised Statutes (22 U.S.C. 2651), 
section 201 of the Department of Energy Reorganization Act (42 U.S.C. 
7131), section 102(a) of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 
403(a)), section 102(a) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 
112(a)), and sections 301 of title 5, 113(b) and 162(b) of title 10, 1501 
of title 15, 503 of title 28, and 301(b) of title 31, United States Code; 
and

  (iii) shall not be construed to impair or otherwise affect the functions 
of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budget, 
administrative, and legislative proposals.

                    (b) This order is intended only to improve the 
                internal management of the Federal Government and is 
                not intended to, and does not, create any rights or 
                benefits, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law 
                or in equity by a party against the United States, its 
                departments, agencies, instrumentalities, or entities, 
                its officers, employees, or agents, or any other 
                person.

                    (Presidential Sig.)B

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    August 27, 2004.