The following text reproduces the entire "Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement (Standard Form 312) Briefing Booklet" issued by the Information Security Oversight Office.
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FAS Note: This Briefing Booklet pertains to the 2000 edition of the
SF-312 issued by ISOO. It was superseded and replaced in July 2013 by
the SF312 issued by the Director of National Intelligence.
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Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement
(Standard Form 312)
Briefing Booklet
This booklet provides you with information about the "Classified
Information Nondisclosure Agreement," also known as the "SF 312." It
includes a brief discussion of the background and purpose of the SF
312; the text of pertinent legislative and executive authorities; a
series of questions and answers on its implementation; and a copy of
the SF 312. Each organization may wish to supplement this booklet
with additional guidance that addresses problems or circumstances
unique to it.
This booklet should be available in the offices of those persons who
brief individuals about the SF 312, e.g., security managers,
security education specialists, or supervisors. Further, all persons
who are asked to execute the SF 312, or have executed it or its
predecessors, the SF 189 or SF 189-A, should have the opportunity to
receive or borrow a copy upon request.
For additional guidance, please contact your security manager,
supervisor or legal counsel within your organization. If questions
concerning the SF 312 cannot be answered within your organization,
please bring them to the attention of ISOO, 700 Pennsylvania Avenue,
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20408, telephone number (202) 219-5250.
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BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
As an employee of the Federal Government or one of its contractors,
licensees, or grantees who occupies a position which requires access
to classified information, you have been the subject of a personnel
security investigation. The purpose of this investigation was to
determine your trustworthiness for access to classified information.
When the investigation was completed, your employing or sponsoring
department or agency granted you a security clearance based upon a
favorable determination of the investigation results. By being
granted a security clearance, you have met the first of three
requirements necessary to have access to classified information.
The second requirement that you must fulfill is to sign a
"Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement," the SF 312. The
President first established this requirement in a directive that
states: "All persons with authorized access to classified
information shall be required to sign a nondisclosure agreement as a
condition of access." This requirement is reiterated in the
executive order on classified national security information. The SF
312 is a contractual agreement between the U.S. Government and you,
a cleared employee, in which you agree never to disclose classified
information to an unauthorized person. Its primary purpose is to
inform you of (1) the trust that is placed in you by providing you
access to classified information; (2) your responsibilities to
protect that information from unauthorized disclosure; and (3) the
consequences that may result from your failure to meet those
responsibilities. Additionally, by establishing the nature of this
trust, your responsibilities, and the potential consequences of
noncompliance in the context of a contractual agreement, if you
violate that trust, the United States will be better able to prevent
an unauthorized disclosure or to discipline you for such a
disclosure by initiating a civil or administrative action.
The third and final requirement for access to classified information
is the "need-to-know;" that is, you must have a need to know the
information in order to perform your official duties. The holder of
classified information to which you seek access is responsible for
confirming your identity, your clearance, and your "need-to-know."
As a holder of classified information, you are responsible for
making these same determinations with respect to any individual to
whom you may disclose it.
As a cleared employee you should receive, according to paragraph No.
2 of the SF 312, a "security indoctrination briefing concerning the
nature and protection of classified information, including
procedures to be followed in ascertaining whether other persons to
whom you contemplate disclosing this informationhave been approved
for access to it...." After you receive such a briefing, you should
have a basic understandingof the following:
* What is classified information?
* How do you protect it?
* Who may have access to it?
* How does the classification system function?
A variety of educational materials are available that provide
answers to these questions. Several training methods may be used to
convey this information, including briefings, interactive videos,
and dissemination of instructional materials. Contact your security
manager for more information.
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LEGISLATIVE AND EXECUTIVE AUTHORITIES
Title 18, United States Code
Section 641. Public money, property or records
Whoever embezzles, steals, purloins, or knowingly converts his use
or the use of another, or without authority, sells, conveys or
disposes of any record, voucher, money, or thing of value of the
United States or of any department or agency thereof, or any
property made or being made under contract for the United States or
any department or agency thereof; or
Whoever receives, conceals, or retains the same with intent to
convert it to his use or gain, knowing it to have been embezzled,
stolen, purloined or converted--
Shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than ten
years, or both; but if the value of such property does not exceed
the sum of $100, he shall be fined not more than $1,000 or
imprisoned not more than one year, or both.
The word "value" means face, par, or market value, or cost price,
either wholesale or retail, whichever is greater.
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Title 18, United States Code
Sec. 793. Gathering, transmitting or losing defense information
(a) Whoever, for the purpose of obtaining information respecting the
national defense with intent or reason to believe that the
information is to be used to the injury of the United States, or to
the advantage of any foreign nation, goes upon, enters, flies over,
or otherwise obtains information concerning any vessel, aircraft,
work of defense, navy yard, naval station, submarine base, fueling
station, fort, battery, torpedo station, dockyard, canal, railroad,
arsenal, camp, factory, mine, telegraph, telephone, wireless, or
signal station, building, office, research laboratory or station or
other place connected with the national defense owned or
constructed, or in progress of construction by the United States or
under the control of the United States, or of of its officers,
departments, or agencies, or within the exclusive jurisdiction of
the United States, or any place in which any vessel, aircraft, arms,
munitions, or other materials or instruments for use in time of war
are being made, prepared, repaired, stored, or are the subject of
research or development, under any contract or agreement with the
United States, or any department or agency thereof, or with any
person on behalf of the United States, or otherwise on behalf of the
United States, or any prohibited place so designated by the
President by proclamation in time of war or in case of national
emergency in which anything for the use of the Army, Navy, or Air
Force is being prepared or constructed or stored, information as to
which prohibited place the President has determined would be
prejudicial to the national defense; or
(b) Whoever, for the purpose aforesaid, and with like intent or
reason to believe, copies, takes, makes, or obtains, or attempts to
copy, take, make, or obtain, any sketch, photograph, photographic
negative, blueprint, plan, map, model, instrument, appliance,
document, writing, or note of anything concerned with the national
defense; or
(c) Whoever, for the purpose aforesaid, receives or obtains or
agrees or attempts to receive or obtain from any person, or from any
source whatever, document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch,
photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model,
instrument, appliance, or note, of anything connected with the
national defense, knowing or having reason to believe, at the time
he receives or obtains, or agrees or attempts to receive or obtain
it, that it has been or will be obtained, taken, made. or disposed
of by any person contrary to the provisions of this chapter; or
(d) Whoever, lawfully having possession of, access to, control over,
or being entrusted with any document, writing, code book, signal
book, sketch, photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan,
map, model, instrument, appliance, or note relating to the national
defense, or information relating to the national defense which
information the possessor has reason to believe could be used to the
injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign
nation, willfully communicates, delivers, transmits or causes to be
communicated, delivered, or transmitted or attempts to communicate,
deliver, transmit or cause to be communicated, delivered or
transmitted the same to any person not entitled to receive it, or
willfully retains the same and fails to deliver it on demand to the
officer or employee of the United States entitled to receive it; or
(e) Whoever, having unauthorized possession of, access to, or
control over any document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch,
photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model,
instrument, appliance, or note relating to the national defense, or
information relating to the national defense which information the
possessor has reason to believe could be used to the injury of the
United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully
communicates, delivers, transmits or causes to be communicated,
delivered, or transmitted, or attempts to communicate, deliver,
transmit or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted the
same to any person not entitled to receive it, or willfully retains
the same and fails to deliver it to the officer or employee of the
United States entitled to receive it; or
(f) Whoever, being entrusted with or having lawful possession or
control of any document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch,
photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model,
instrument, appliance, note, or information, relating to the
national defense, (1) through gross negligence permits the same to
be removed from its proper place of custody or delivered to anyone
in violation of his trust, or to be lost, stolen, abstracted, or
destroyed, or (2) having knowledge that the same has been illegally
removed from its proper place of custody or delivered to anyone in
violation of its trust, or lost, or stolen, abstracted, or
destroyed, and fails to make prompt report of such loss, theft,
abstraction, or destruction to his superior officer--
Shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than ten
years, or both.
(g) If two or more persons conspire to violate any of the foregoing
provisions of this section, and one or more of such persons do any
act to effect the object of the conspiracy, each of the parties to
such conspiracy shall be subject to the punishment provided for the
offense which is the object of such conspiracy.
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Title 18, United States Code
Section 794. Gathering or delivering defense information to aid
foreign government
(a) Whoever, with intent or reason to believe that it is to be used
to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of a foreign
nation, communicates, delivers, or transmits, or attempts to
communicate, deliver, or transmit, to any foreign government, or to
any faction or party or military or naval force in a foreign
country, whether recognized or unrecognized by the United States, or
to any representative, officer, agent, employee, subject, or citizen
thereof, either directly or indirectly, any document, writing, code
book, signal book, sketch, photograph, photographic negative,
blueprint, plan, map, model, note, instrument, appliance, or
information relating to the national defense, shall be punished by
death or by imprisonment for any term of years or for life.
(b) Whoever, in time of war, with intent that the same shall be
communicated to the enemy, collects, records, publishes, or
communicates, or attempts to elicit any information with respect to
the movement, numbers, description, condition, or disposition of any
of the Armed Forces, ships, aircraft, or war materials of the United
States, or with respect to the plans or conduct, or supposed plans
or conduct of any naval or military operations, or with respect to
any works or measures undertaken for or connected with, or intended
for the fortification or defense of any place, or any other
information relating to the public defense, which might be useful to
the enemy, shall be punished by death or by imprisonment for any
term of years or for life.
(c) If two or more persons conspire to violate this section, and one
or more of such persons do any act to effect the object of the
conspiracy, each of the parties to such conspiracy shall be subject
to the punishment provided for the offense which is the object of
such conspiracy.
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Title 18, United States Code
Section 798. Disclosure of classified information
(a) Whoever knowingly and willfully communicates, furnishes,
transmits, or otherwise makes available to an unauthorized person,
or publishes, or uses in any manner prejudicial to the safety or
interest of the United States or for the benefit of any foreign
government to the detriment of the United States any classified
information--
(1) concerning the nature, preparation, or use of any code, cipher,
or cryptographic system of the United States or any foreign
government; or
(2) concerning the design, construction, use, maintenance, or repair
of any device, apparatus, or appliance used or prepared or planned
for use by the United States or any foreign government for
cryptographic or communication intelligence purposes; or
(3) concerning the communication intelligence activities of the
United States or any foreign government; or
(4) obtained by the process of communication intelligence from the
communications of any foreign government, knowing the same to have
been obtained by such processes--
Shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than ten
years, or both.
(b) As used in subsection (a) of this section--
The term "classified information" means information which, at the
time of a violation of this section, is, for reasons of national
security, specifically designated by a United States Government
Agency for limited or restricted dissemination or distribution;
The terms "code," "cipher," and "cryptographic system" include in
their meanings, in addition to their usual meanings, any method of
secret writing and any mechanical or electrical device or method
used for the purpose of disguising or concealing the contents,
significance, or meanings of communications;
The term "foreign government" includes in its meaning any person or
persons acting or purporting to act for or on behalf of any faction,
party, department, agency, bureau, or military force of or within a
foreign country, or for or on behalf of any government or any person
or persons purporting to act as a government within a foreign
country, whether or not such government is recognized by the United
States;
The term "communication intelligence" means all procedures and
methods used in the interception of communications and the obtaining
of information such communications by other than the intended
recipients;
The term "unauthorized person" means any person who, or agency
which, is not authorized to receive information of the categories
set forth in subsection (a) of this section, by the President, or by
the head of a department or agency of the United States Government
which is expressly designated by the President to engage in
communication intelligence activities for the United States.
(c) Nothing in this section shall prohibit the furnishing, upon
lawful demand, of information to any regularly constituted committee
of the Senate or House of Representatives of the United States of
America, or joint committee thereof.
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Title 18, United States Code
Section 952. Diplomatic codes and correspondence
Whoever, by virtue of his employment by the United States, obtains
from another or has or has had custody of or access to, any official
diplomatic code, or any matter prepared in any such code, or which
purports to have been prepared in any such code, and without
authorization or competent authority, willfully publishes or
furnishes to another any such code or matter, or any matter which
was obtained while in the process of transmission between any
foreign government and its diplomatic mission in the United States,
shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than ten
years, or both.
Section 1924. Unauthorized removal and retention of classified
documents or material
(a) Whoever, being an officer, employee, contractor, or consultant
of the United States, and, by virtue of his office, employment,
position, or contract, becomes possessed of documents or materials
containing classified material of the United States, knowingly
remove such documents or materials without authority and with the
intent to retain such documents or materials at an unauthorized
location shall be fined not more than $1,000, or imprisoned for not
more than one year, or both.
(b) For purposes of this section, the provision of documents and
materials to the Congress shall not constitute an offense under
subsection (a).
(c) In this section, the term "classified information of the United
States" means information originated, owned, or possessed by the
United States Government concerning the national defense or foreign
relations of the United States that has been determined pursuant to
law or Executive order to require protection against unauthorized
disclosure in the interests of national security.
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Title 50, United States Code
Section 783. Offenses
(b) Communication of classified information by Government officer or
employee
It shall be unlawful for any officer or employee of the United
States or of any department or agency thereof, or of any corporation
the stock of which is owned in whole or in major part by the United
States or any department or agency thereof, to communicate in any
manner or by any means, to any other person whom such officer or
employee knows or has reason to believe to be an agent or
representative of any foreign government or an officer or member of
any Communist organization as defined in paragraph (5) of section
782 of this title, any information of a kind which shall have been
classified by the President (or by the head of any such department,
agency, or corporation with the approval of the President) as
affecting the security of the United States, knowing or having
reason to know that such information has been so classified, unless
such officer or employee shall have been specifically authorized by
the President, or by the head of the department, agency, or
corporation by which this officer or employee is employed, to make
such disclosure of such information.
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Title 5, United States Code
Section 2302. Prohibited personnel practices
(b) Any employee who has authority to take, direct others to take,
recommend, or approve any personnel action, shall not, with respect
to such authority--
(8) take or fail to take, or threaten to take or fail to take, a
personnel action with respect to any employee or applicant for
employment because of
(A) any disclosures of information by an employee or applicant which
the employee or applicant reasonably believes evidences--
(i) a violation of any law, rule, or regulation, or
(ii) gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of
authority, or a substantial and specific danger to public health or
safety, if such disclosure is not specifically prohibited by law
and if such information is specifically required by Executive order
to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or the
conduct of foreign affairs; or
(B) any disclosure to the Special Counsel of the Merit Systems
Protection Board, or to the Inspector General of an agency or
another employee rated by the head of the agency to receive such
disclosures, of information the employee or applicant reasonably
believes evidences--
(i) a violation of any law, rule, or regulation, or
(ii) gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of
authority, or a substantial and specific danger to public health
and safety;
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Title 5, United States Code
Section 7211. Employees' right to petition Congress
The right of employees, individually or collectively, to petition
Congress or a Member of Congress, or to furnish information to
either House of Congress, or to a committee or Member thereof, may
not be interfered with or denied.
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Title 10, United States Code
Section 1034. Communicating with a Member of Congress or Inspector
General; prohibition on retaliatory personnel actions
(a) Restricting communications with Members of Congress and
Inspector General prohibited.
(1) No person may restrict a member of the armed forces in
communicating with a Member of Congress or an Inspector General.
(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply to a communication that is
unlawful.
(b) Prohibition of retaliatory personnel actions. No person may take
(or threaten to take) an unfavorable personnel action, or withhold
(or threaten to withhold) a favorable personnel action, as a
reprisal against a member of the armed forces for making or
preparing a communication to a Member of Congress or an Inspector
General that (under subsection (a)) may not be restricted. Any
action prohibited by the preceding sentence (including the threat to
take any action and the withholding or threat to withhold any
favorable action) shall be considered for the purposes of this
section to be a personnel action prohibited by this subsection.
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TITLE VI-- PROTECTION OF CERTAIN NATIONAL SECURITY INFORMATION*
[* Title VI was added by the Intelligence Identities Protection Act
of 1982 (Public Law 97-200)]
PROTECTION OF IDENTITIES OF CERTAIN UNITED STATES UNDERCOVER
INTELLIGENCE OFFICERS, AGENTS, INFORMANTS, AND SOURCES
Sec. 601.(a) Whoever, having or having had authorized access to
classified information that identifies a covert agent, intentionally
discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any
individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing
that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and
that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal
such covert agent's intelligence relationship to the United States,
shall be fined not more than $50,000 or imprisoned not more than ten
years, or both.
(b) Whoever, as a result of having authorized access to classified
information, learns the identity of a covert agent and intentionally
discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any
individual not authorized to receive classified information knowing
that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and
that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal
such covert agent's intelligence relationship to the United States,
shall be fined not more than $25,000 or imprisoned not more than
five years, or both.
(c) Whoever, in the course of a pattern of activities intended to
identify and expose covert agents and with reason to believe that
such activities would impair or impede the foreign intelligence
activities of the United States, discloses any information that
identifies an individual as a covert agent to any individual not
authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the
information disclosed so identifies such individual and that the
United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such
individual's classified intelligence relationship to the United
States, shall be fined not more than $15,000 or imprisoned not more
than three years, or both.
DEFENSES AND EXCEPTIONS
Sec. 602.(a) It is a defense to a prosecution under section 601 that
before the commission of the offense with which the defendant is
charged, the United States had publicly acknowledged or revealed the
intelligence relationship to United States of the individual the
disclosure of whose intelligence relationship to the United States
is the basis for the prosecution.
(b)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), no person other than a person
committing an offense under section 601 shall be subject to
prosecution under section by virtue of section 2 or 4 of title 18,
United States Code, or shall be subject to prosecution for
conspiracy to commit an offense under such section.
(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply (A) in the case of a person who
acted in the course of a pattern of activities intended to identify
and expose covert agents and with reason to believe that such
activities would impair or impede the foreign intelligence
activities of the United States, or (B) in the case of a person who
has authorized access to classified information.
(c) It shall not be an offense under section 601 to transmit
information described in such section directly to the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate or to the Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives.
(d) It shall not be an offense under section 601 for an individual
to disclose information that solely identifies himself as a covert
agent.
REPORT
Sec. 603.(a) The President, after receiving information from the
Director of Central Intelligence, shall submit to the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate and the Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives an annual
report on measures to protect the identities of covert agents, and
on any other matter relevant to the protection of the identities of
covert agents.
(b) The report described in subsection (a) shall be exempt from any
requirement for publication or disclosure. The first such report
shall be submitted no later than February 1, 1983.
EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION
Sec. 604. There is jurisdiction over an offense under section 601
committed outside the United States if the individual committing the
offense is a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully
admitted to the United States for permanent residence (as defined in
section 101(a)(20) of the Immigration and Nationality Act).
PROVIDING INFORMATION TO CONGRESS
Sec. 605. Nothing in this title may be construed as authority to
withhold information from the Congress or from a committee of either
House of Congress.
DEFINITIONS
Sec. 606. For the purposes of this title:
(1) The term "classified information" means information or material
designated and clearly marked or clearly represented, pursuant to
the provisions of a statute or Executive order (or a regulation or
order issued pursuant to a statute or Executive order), as requiring
a specific degree of protection against unauthorized disclosure for
reasons of national security.
(2) The term "authorized", when used with respect to access to
classified information, means having authority, right, or permission
pursuant to the provisions of a statute, Executive order, directive
of the head of any department or agency engaged in foreign
intelligence or counterintelligence activities, order of any United
States court, or provisions of any Rule of the House of
Representatives or resolution of the Senate which assigns
responsibility in the respective House of Congress for the oversight
of intelligence activities.
(3) The term "disclose" means to communicate, provide, impart,
transmit, transfer, convey, publish, or otherwise make available.
(4) The term "covert agent" means--
(A) an officer or employee of an intelligence agency or a member of
the Armed Forces assigned to duty with an intelligence agency--
(i) whose identity as such an officer, employee, or member is
classified information, and
(ii) who is serving outside the United States or has within the
five years served outside the United States; or
(B) a United States citizen whose intelligence relationship to the
United States is classified information, and--
(i) who resides and acts outside the United States as an agent of, or
informant or source of operational assistance to, an intelligence
agency, or
(ii) who is at the time of the disclosure acting as an agent of, or
informant to, the foreign counterintelligence or foreign
counterterrorism components of the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
or
(C) an individual, other than a United States citizen, whose past or
present intelligence relationship to the United States is classified
information and who is a present or former agent of, or a present or
former informant or source of operational assistance to, an
intelligence agency.
(6) The term "intelligence agency" means the Central Intelligence
Agency, a foreign intelligence component of the Department of
Defense, or the foreign counterintelligence or foreign
counterterrorism components of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(6) The term "informant" means any individual who furnishes
information to an intelligence agency in the course of a
confidential relationship protecting the identity of such individual
from public disclosure.
(7) The terms "officer" and "employee" have the meanings given such
terms by section 2104 and 2105, respectively, of title 5, United
States Code.
(8) The term "Armed Forces" means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine
Corps, and Coast Guard.
(9) The term "United States," when used in a geographic sense, means
all areas under the territorial sovereignty of the United States and
the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.
(10) The term "pattern of activities" requires a series of acts with
a common purpose or objective.
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Executive Order 12958 of April 17, 1995
60 Fed. Reg. 19825
CLASSIFIED NATIONAL SECURITY INFORMATION
_______________________________________________________________
Implementing Rule of the
"Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement"
Subpart B--Prescribed Forms
Sec. 2003.20 Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement: SF 312;
Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement: SF 189; Classified
Information Nondisclosure Agreement
(Industrial/Commercial/Non-Government): SF 189-A.
(a) SF 312, SF 189, and SF 189-A are nondisclosure agreements
between the United States and an individual. The prior execution of
at least one of these agreements, as appropriate, by an individual
is necessary before the United States Government may grant that
individual access to classified information. From the effective date
of this rule, the SF 312 shall be used in lieu of both the SF 189
and the SF 189-A for this purpose. In any instance in which the
language in the SF 312 differs from the language in either the SF
189 or SF 189-A, agency heads shall interpret and enforce the SF 189
or SF 189-A in a manner that is fully consistent with the
interpretation and enforcement of the SF 312.
(b) All employees of executive branch departments, and independent
agencies or offices, who have not previously signed the SF 189, must
sign the SF 312 before being granted access to classified
information. An employee who has previously signed the SF 189 is
permitted, at his or her own choosing, to substitute a signed SF 312
for the SF 189. In these instances, agencies shall take all
reasonable steps to dispose of the superseded nondisclosure
agreement or to indicate on it that it has been superseded.
(c) All Government contractor, licensee, and grantee employees, or
other non-Government personnel requiring access to classified
information in the performance of their duties, who have not
previously signed either the SF 189 or the SF 189-A, must sign the
SF 312 before being granted access to classified information. An
employee who has previously signed either the SF 189 or the SF 189-A
is permitted, at his or her own choosing, to substitute a signed SF
312 for either the SF 189 or the SF 189-A. In these instances,
agencies, with the cooperation of the pertinent contractor, licensee
or grantee, shall take all reasonable steps to dispose of the
superseded nondisclosure agreement or to indicate on it that it has
been superseded.
(d) Agencies may require other persons, who are not included under
paragraphs (b) or (c) of this section, and who have not previously
signed either the SF 189 or the SF 189-A, to execute SF 312 before
receiving access to classified information. A person in such
circumstances who has previously signed either the SF 189 or the SF
189-A is permitted, at his or her own choosing, to substitute a
signed SF 312 for either the SF 189 or the SF 189-A. In these
instances, agencies shall take all reasonable steps to dispose of
the superseded nondisclosure agreement or to indicate on it that it
has been superseded.
(e) The use of the "Security Debriefing Acknowledgement" portion of
the SF 312 is optional at the discretion of the implementing agency.
(f) An authorized representative of a contractor, licensee, grantee,
or other non-Government organization, acting as a designated agent
of the United States, may witness the execution of the SF 312 by
another non-Government employee, and may accept it on behalf of the
United States. Also, an employee of a United States agency may
witness the execution of the SF 312 by an employee, contractor,
licensee or grantee of another United States agency, provided that
an authorized United States Government official or, for government
employees only, a designated agent of the United States subsequently
accepts by signature the SF 312 on behalf of the United States.
(g) The provisions of the SF 312, the SF 189, and the SF 189-A do
not supersede the provisions of Section 2302, Title 5, United States
Code, which pertain to the protected disclosure of information by
Government employees, or any other laws of the United States.
(h) (1) Modification of the SF 189.
The second sentence of Paragraph 1 of every executed copy of the is
SF 189 is clarified to read:
As used in this Agreement, classified information is marked or
unmarked classified information, including oral communications, that
is classified under the standards of Executive Order 12356, or under
any other Executive order or statute that prohibits the unauthorized
disclosure of information in the interest of national security; and
unclassified information that meets the standards for classification
and is in the process of a classification determination as provided
in Sections 1.1(c) and 1.2(e) of Executive Order 12356, or under any
other Executive order or statute that requires protection for such
information in the interest of national security.
(2) Scope of "classified information"
As used in the SF 312, the SF 189, and the SF 189-A, "classified
information" is marked or unmarked classified information, including
oral communications and unclassified information that meets the
standards for classification and is in the process of a
classification determination, as provided in Section 1.1(c) and
1.2(e) of Executive Order 12356 or any other or Executive order that
requires interim protection for certain information while a
classification determination is pending. "Classified information"
does not include unclassified information that may be subject to
possible classification at some future date, but is not currently in
the process of a classification determination.
(3) Basis for liability.
A party to the SF 312, SF 189, or SF 189-A may be liable for
disclosing "classified information" only if he or she knows or
reasonably should know that: (i) the marked or unmarked information
is classified, or meets the standards for classification and is in
the process of a classification determination; and (ii) his or her
action will result, or reasonably could result in the unauthorized
disclosure of that information. In no instance may a party to the SF
312, SF 189 or SF 189-A be liable for violating its nondisclosure
provisions by disclosing information when, at the time of the
disclosure, there is no basis to suggest, other than pure
speculation, that the information is classified or in the process of
a classification determination.
(4) Modification of the SF 312, SF 189, and SF 189-A
(i) Each executed copy of the SF 312, SF 189 and SF 189-A, whether
executed prior to or after the publication of this rule, is amended
to include the following Paragraphs 10 and 11.
10. These restrictions are consistent with and do not supersede,
conflict with or otherwise alter the employee obligations, rights or
liabilities created by Executive Order 12356; Section 7211 of Title
5, United States Code (governing disclosures to Congress); Section
1034 of Title 10, United States Code, as amended by the Military
Whistleblower Protection Act (governing disclosure to Congress by
members of the military); Section 2302 (b)(8) of Title 5, United
States Code, as amended by the Whistleblower Protection Act
(governing disclosures of illegality, waste, fraud, abuse or public
health or safety threats); the Intelligence Identities Protection
Act of 1982 (50 U.S.C. 421 et seq.) (governing disclosures that
could expose confidential Government agents), and the statutes which
protect against disclosure that may compromise the national
security, including Sections 641, 793, 794, 798, and 952 of Title
18, United States Code, and Section 4(b) of the Subversive
Activities Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. Section 783(b)). The definitions,
requirements, obligations, rights, sanctions and liabilities created
by said Executive Order and listed statutes are incorporated into
this Agreement and are controlling.
11. I have read this Agreement carefully and my questions, if any,
have been answered. I acknowledge that the briefing officer has made
available to me the Executive Order and statutes referenced in this
Agreement and its implementing regulation (32 CFR Section 2003.20)
so that I may read them at this time, if I so choose.
(ii) The first sentence of Paragraph 7 of each executed copy of SF
312, SF 189 and SF 189-A, whether executed prior to or after the
publication of this rule, is amended to read:
I understand that all classified information to which I have access or
may obtain access by signing this Agreement is now and will remain
the property of, or under the control of the United States
Government unless and until otherwise determined by an authorized
official or final ruling of a court of law.
The second sentence of Paragraph 7 of each executed copy of the SF
312 (September 1988 version), SF 189 and SF 189-A, which reads, "I
do not now, nor will I ever, possess any right, interest, title or
claim whatsoever to such information," and whether executed prior to
or after the publication of this rule is deleted.
(i) Points of clarification.
(1) As used in Paragraph 3 of SF 189 and SF 189-A, the word
"indirect" refers to any situation in which the knowing, willful or
negligent action of a party to the agreement results in the
unauthorized disclosure of classified information even though the
party to the agreement does not directly communicate, deliver or
transmit classified information to a person who is not authorized to
receive it.
(2) As used in Paragraph 7 of SF 189, "information" refers to
"classified information," exclusively.
(3) As used in the third sentence of Paragraph 7 of SF 189 and 3-A,
the words "all materials which have, or may have, come into my
possession," refer to "all classified materials which have or may
come into my possession," exclusively.
(j) Each agency must retain its executed copies of the SF 312, SF
189, and SF 189-A in file systems from which an agreement can be
expeditiously retrieved in the event that the United States must
seek its enforcement or a subsequent employer must confirm its prior
execution. The original, or a legally enforceable facsimile that is
retained in lieu of the original, such as microfiche, microfilm,
computer disk, or electronic storage medium, must be retained for 50
years following its date of execution. For agreements executed by
civilian employees of the United States Government, an agency may
store the executed copy of the SF 312 and SF 189 in the United
States Office of Personnel Management's Official Personnel Folder
(OPF) as a long-term (right side) document for that employee. An
agency may permit its contractors, licensees and grantees to retain
the executed agreements of their employees during the time of
employment. Upon the termination of employment, the contractor,
licensee or grantee shall deliver the original or legally
enforceable facsimile of the executed SF 312, SF 189 or SF 189-A of
that employee to the Government agency primarily responsible for his
or her classified work. A contractor, licensee or grantee of an
agency participating in the Defense Industrial Security Program
shall deliver the copy or legally enforceable facsimile of the
executed SF 312, SF 189 or SF 189-A of a terminated employee to the
Defense Industrial Security Clearance Office. Each agency shall
inform ISOO of the file systems that it uses to store these
agreements for each category of affected individuals.
(k) Only the National Security Council may grant an agency's request
for a waiver from the use of the SF 312. To apply for a waiver, an
agency must submit its proposed alternative nondisclosure agreement
to the Director of ISOO, along with a justification for its use. The
Director of ISOO will request a determination about the alternative
agreement's enforceability from the Department of Justice prior to
making a recommendation to the National Security Council. An agency
that has previously received a waiver from the use of the SF 189 or
the SF 189-A need not seek a waiver from the use of the SF 312.
(l) The national stock number for the SF 312 is 7540-01-280-5499.
[53 FR 38279, Sept. 29, 1988, as amended at 56 FR 2645, Jan. 23,
1991; 56 FR 27559, June 14, 1991]
_______________________________________________________________
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
This section includes a series of questions and answers that relate
to the background and implementation of the SF 312.
Question 1: What is the Information Security Oversight Office?
Answer:
Under Executive Order 12958, "Classified National Security
Information," the Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) is
responsible for monitoring the security classification programs of
all executive branch departments and agencies that create or handle
national security information. In National Security Decision
Directive No. 84, March 11, 1983, the President directed ISOO to
develop and issue a standardized classified information
nondisclosure agreement to be executed by all cleared persons as a
condition of access to classified information.
Question 2: What is the purpose of the SF 312?
Answer:
The primary purpose of the SF 312 is to inform employees of (a) the
trust that is placed in them by providing them access to classified
information; (b) their responsibilities to protect that information
from unauthorized disclosure; and (c) the consequences that may
result from their failure to meet those responsibilities. Secondly,
by establishing the nature of that trust, those responsibilities,
and those consequences in the context of a contractual agreement, if
that trust is violated, the United States will be in a better
position to prevent an unauthorized disclosure or to discipline an
employee responsible for such a disclosure by initiating a civil or
administrative action.
Question 3: Upon what legal authority is the SF 312 based?
Answer:
The direct legal bases for the issuance of SF 312 are Executive
Order 12958, in which the President authorizes the Director of ISOO
to issue standardized security forms; and National Security Decision
Directive No. 84 (NSDD 84), in which the President directs ISOO to
issue a standardized classified information nondisclosure agreement.
Both E.O.. 12958 and NSDD 84 are based on the President's
constitutional responsibilities to protect national security
information. These responsibilities derive from the President's
powers as Chief Executive, Commander-in-Chief, and the principal
architect of United States foreign policy.
Nondisclosure agreements have consistently been upheld by the
Federal courts, including the Supreme Court, as legally binding and
constitutional. At every stage of the development and implementation
of the SF 312 and its predecessors, the SF 189 and the SF 189-A,
experts in the Department of Justice have reviewed their
constitutionality and enforceability under existing law. The most
recent litigation over the SF 189 resulted in a decision that upheld
its basic constitutionality and legality.
Question 4: Who must sign the SF 312?
Answer:
Executive Order 12958 dated April 17, 1995, requires that a person
may have access to classified information provided that that person
meets three requirements, one of which is signing an approved
nondisclosure agreement. National Security Decision Directive No.
84, dated March 11, 1983, also provides that: "All persons with
authorized access to classified information shall be required to
sign a nondisclosure agreement as a condition of access." Therefore,
each person at the time that he or she is cleared for access to
classified information, or each person who has been cleared
previously and continues to require access to classified information
must sign the SF 312, unless he or she has previously executed one
or more of the following:
(a) The SF 189, for cleared employees in both Government and industry;
(b) The SF 189-A, for cleared employees within industry; or
(c) A nondisclosure agreement for which the National Security
Council has granted a waiver from the use of the SF 312, the SF 189
or the SF 189-A, as provided in 32 CFR 2003.20.
By tradition and practice, United States officials who hold
positions prescribed by the Constitution of the United States are
deemed to meet the standards of trustworthiness for eligibility for
access to classified information. Therefore, the President, the Vice
President, Members of Congress, Supreme Court Justices, and other
federal judges appointed by the President and confirmed by the
Senate need not execute the SF 312 as a condition of access to
classified information.
Question 5: Are all Members of Congress entitled to unlimited access
to classified information?
Answer:
No. Access to classified information is a function of three
preconditions: (1) A determination of a person's trustworthiness,
i.e., the security clearance; (2) the signing of an approved
nondisclosure agreement; and (3) the exercise of the "need-to-know"
principle, i.e., access is necessary in order to perform one's job.
Members of Congress, as constitutionally elected officials, are not
ordinarily subject to clearance investigations nor does ISOO's rule
implementing the SF 312 require that Members of Congress sign the SF
312 as a condition of access to classified information. Members of
Congress are not exempt, however, from fulfilling the "need-to-know"
requirement. They are not inherently authorized to receive all
classified information, but agencies provide access as is necessary
for Congress to perform its legislative functions, for example, to
members of a committee or subcommittee that oversees classified
executive branch programs. Frequently, access is governed in these
situations by ad hoc agreements or rules to which the agency head
and the committee chairman agree.
The three basic requirements for access to classified information
mentioned in the opening paragraph apply to congressional staffs as
well as executive branch employees. ISOO's regulation implementing
the SF 312 provides that agency heads may use it as a non-disclosure
agreement to be signed by non-executive branch personnel, such as
congressional staff members. However, agency heads are free to
substitute other agreements for this purpose.
Question 6: Is an employee who signed an SF 312, SF 189 or SF 189-A
in a prior position required to sign an SF 312 in a new position
that also involves access to classified information?
Answer:
The SF 312 and its predecessors have been purposely designed so that
new nondisclosure agreements need not be signed upon changing jobs
Therefore, ordinarily the answer is no. However, if the location and
retrieval of a previously signed agreement cannot be accomplished in
a reasonable amount of time or with a reasonable amount of effort,
the execution of the SF 312 may be practicable or even necessary.
Also, a person who has signed the SF 189-A, which was designed
exclusively for non-Government employees, would be required to sign
the SF 312 if he or she began working for a Government agency in a
position that required access to classified information.
Question 7: Should a person who does not now have a security
clearance but who may very well have such a clearance in the future
sign the SF 312?
Answer:
No. The SF 312 should be signed only by persons who already have a
security clearance or are being granted a security clearance at that
time. It is inappropriate to have any uncleared person sign the SF
312, even if that person may have a need to be cleared in the near
future.
Question 8: Should a person who has a security clearance but has no
occasion to have access to classified information be required to
sign the SF 312?
Answer:
Since every cleared person must sign a nondisclosure agreement, the
routine answer to this question is "yes." However, there are
employees who have questioned executing a nondisclosure agreement on
the basis that they have not had access to classified information
over a lengthy period of time. Persons who do not require access to
classified information should not have or retain security
clearances. Therefore, the agency or contractor in such a situation
should first determine the need for the retention of the security
clearance. If its retention is unnecessary or speculative, the
clearance should be withdrawn through established procedures and the
employee should not sign the SF 312. If the agency or contractor
determines a legitimate, contemporaneous need for the employee's
clearance, the employee must sign the SF 312.
Question 9: Must an employee execute the SF 312 at the time he or
she is briefed about the requirement to do so?
Answer:
No. An employee who requests additional time to consider his or her
decision to execute the SF 312 should be provided a reasonable
amount of time to do so. The particular circumstances of the
situation must govern what is a reasonable amount of time. In every
situation, however, the agency or contractor should give the
employee a written determination of the additional time that he or
she shall have to make that decision. Also, in any situation in
which there is a delay in the execution of the SF 312, the employee
should be advised of the criminal, civil or administrative
consequences that may result from the unauthorized disclosure of
classified information, even though the individual has not yet
signed the nondisclosure agreement.
Question 10: What happens if a person who has not signed either the
SF 189 or SF 189-A refuses to sign the SF 312?
Answer:
As provided by presidential directive and executive order, the
execution of an approved nondisclosure agreement shall be a
condition of access classified information. Therefore, an agency
shall take those steps that are necessary to deny a person who has
not executed an approved nondisclosure agreement any further access
to classified information. In accordance with agency regulations and
procedures, the affected party's security clearance she either be
withdrawn or denied. For purposes of meeting this condition for
access, the approved nondisclosure agreements include any of the
following:
(a) The SF 312, for cleared employees in both Government and industry;
(b) The SF 189, for cleared employees in both Government and
industry;
(c) The SF 189-A, for cleared employees within industry; or
(d) A nondisclosure agreement for which the National Security
Council has granted a waiver from the use of the SF 312, the SF 189
or the SF 189-A, as provided in 32 CFR 2003.20.
While the refusal to sign a required nondisclosure agreement
directly affects the withdrawal or denial of a security clearance,
this, in turn, may also lead to adverse employment actions,
including removal. The agency or contractor should advise each
affected employee of the particular consequences that will or may
result from his or her refusal to sign a required nondisclosure
agreement.
Question 11: How does the SF 312 differ from the SF 189 and SF
189-A?
Answer:
The most obvious difference between the SF 312 and the SF 189 and
the SF 189-A is that the SF 312 has been designed to be executed by
both Government and non-Government employees. The SF 312 differs
from the SF 189 and SF 189-A in several other ways as well.
First, the term "classifiable information," which has now been removed
from paragraph 1 of the SF 189 by regulation, does not appear in
the 312.
Second, the modifiers "direct" and "indirect," which appear in
Paragraph 3 of both the SF 189 and SF 189-A, do not appear in the
new nondisclosure agreement.
Third, the "Security Debriefing Acknowledgement," which appears in
the SF 189-A but not the SF 189, is included in the SF 312. Its use
is optional at the discretion of the implementing agency.
Fourth, the SF 312 includes specific references to marked or
unmarked classified information and information that is in the
process of a classification determination. These references have
now been added to the SF 189 by regulation.
Fifth, the SF 312 specifically references a person's responsibility
in situations of uncertainty to confirm the classification status
of information before disclosure.
The SF 312 also contains several other editorial changes which
clarify perceived ambiguities in the predecessor forms.
Notwithstanding these changes, the SF 312 does not in any way differ
from the SF 189 and SF 189-A with respect to the substance of the
classified information that each has been designed to protect.
Question 12: For purposes of the SF 312, what is "classified
information?"
Answer:
As used in the SF 312, the SF 189, and the SF 189-A, "classified
information" is marked or unmarked classified information, including
oral communications; and unclassified information that meets the
standards for classification and is in the process of a
classification determination, as provided in Sections 1.2 and 1.4(e)
of Executive Order 12958 or under any other Executive order or
statute that requires interim protection for certain information
while a classification determination is pending. "Classified
information" does not include unclassified information that may be
subject to possible classification at some future date, but is not
currently in the process of a classification determination.
The current Executive order and statute under which "classified
information," as used in the SF 312, is generated are Executive
Order 12958, "Classified National Security Information," and the
Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended.
Question 13: What is the threshold of liability for violating the
nondisclosure provisions of the SF 312?
Answer:
A party to the SF 312, SF 189 or SF 189-A may be liable for
disclosing "classified information" only if he or she knows or
reasonably should know that: (a) the marked or unmarked information
is classified, or meets the standards for classification and is in
the process of a classification determination; and (b) his or her
action will result, or reasonably could result in the unauthorized
disclosure of that information. In no instance may a party to the SF
312, SF 189 or SF 189-A be liable for violating its nondisclosure
provisions by disclosing information when, at the time of the
disclosure, there is no basis to suggest, other than pure
speculation, that the information is classified or in the process of
a classification determination.
Question 14: May the language of the SF 312 be altered to suit the
preferences of an individual signer?
Answer:
No. The SF 312 as drafted has been approved by the National Security
Council as meeting the requirements of NSDD 84, and by the
Department of Justice as an enforceable instrument in a court of
law. An agency may not accept an agreement in which the language has
been unilaterally altered by the signer.
Question 15: Why are there separate entries on the SF 312 for the
person who witnesses its execution by the employee and the person
who accepts the agreement on behalf of the Government? Must
different persons perform each function?
Answer:
In most circumstances, one person may serve as both the witness and
acceptor of the SF 312, and, in these cases, both entries should be
affixed to the SF 312 at the time of execution. Different persons
must perform each function only when a person authorized to witness
the execution of the SF 312 in a particular situation is not
authorized to accept it on behalf of the United States in that same
situation. Then, the entry as witness should be affixed to the SF
312 at the time of execution, and the entry as acceptor should be
affixed by an authorized person as soon as possible after execution.
Any executive branch employee may witness the execution of the SF
312 by a Government or non-Government employee.
An agency employee specifically authorized to do so may accept on
behalf of the United States an SF 312 executed by either an employee
of that agency or a non-Government employee whose clearance is
granted through that agency.
An authorized representative of a contractor, licensee, grantee, or
other Government organization, designated to act as an agent of the
United States may witness and accept an SF 312 executed by an
employee of that same organization.
Question 16: Does the SF 312 conflict with the "whistleblower"
statute?
Answer:
The SF 312 does not conflict with the "whistleblower" statute (5
U.S.C. sec. 2302). The statute does not protect employees who
disclose classified information without authority. If an employee
knows or reasonably should know that information is classified,
provisions of the "whistleblower statutes" should not protect that
employee from the consequences of an unauthorized disclosure.
In addition, Executive Order 12958, Sec. 1.8(a), specifically
prohibits classification "in order to: (1) conceal violations of
law, inefficiency, or administrative error; (2) to prevent
embarrassment to a person, organization, or agency; (3) to restrain
competition; or (4) to prevent or delay the release of information
that does not require protection in the interest of national
security." This provision was included in the Order to help prevent
the classification of information that would most likely be the
concern of whistleblowers.
Finally, there are remedies available to whistleblowers that don't
require the unauthorized disclosure of classified information. There
are officials within the Government who are both authorized access
to classified information and who are responsible for investigating
instances of reported waste, fraud, and abuse. Further, each agency
must establish procedures under which authorized holders of
information are encouraged and expected to challenge the
classification of information that they believe is improperly
classified or unclassified. These procedures must ensure that: (1)
individuals are not subject to retribution for bringing such
actions; (2) an opportunity is provided for review by an impartial
official or panel; and (3) individuals are advised of their right to
appeal agency decisions to the Interagency Security Classification
Appeals Panel established by section 5.4 of Executive Order 12958.
Question 17: Must a signatory to the SF 312 submit any materials
that he or she contemplates publishing for prepublication review by
the employing or former employing agency?
Answer:
No. There is no explicit or implicit prepublication review
requirement in the SF 312, as there is none in the SF 189 and SF
189-A. However, if an individual who has had access to classified
information is concerned that something he or she has prepared for
publication may contain classified information, that individual
should be encouraged to submit it to his or her current or last
employing agency for a voluntary review. In this way the individual
will minimize the possibility of a subsequent action against him or
her as a result of an unauthorized disclosure.
Question 18: Why do the obligations to protect classified
information under the SF 312 extend beyond the duration of an
employee's clearance?
Answer:
The terms of the SF 312 specifically state that all obligations
imposed on the signer "apply during the time [the signer is] granted
access to classified information, and at all times thereafter." This
provision recognizes that the duration of the national security
sensitivity of classified information rarely has any relationship to
the duration of any particular individual's clearance. The injury to
the United States that may result from an unauthorized disclosure is
not dependent on the current status of the discloser.
The obligations imposed by the SF 312 apply to classified
information. If particular information has been declassified, under
the terms of the SF 312 there is no continuing nondisclosure
obligation on the part of the signer. Further, the signer of the SF
312 may initiate a mandatory review request to seek the
declassification of specified classified information, including
information to which the signer has access.
Question 19: If information that a signer of the SF 312 knows to
have been classified appears in a public source, for example, in a
newspaper article, may the signer assume that the information has
been declassified and disseminate it elsewhere?
Answer:
No. Information remains classified until it has been officially
declassified. Its disclosure in a public source does not declassify
the information. Of course, merely quoting the public source in the
abstract is not a second unauthorized disclosure. However, before
disseminating the information elsewhere or confirming the accuracy
of what appears in the public source, the signer of the SF 312 must
confirm through an authorized official that the information has, in
fact, been declassified. If it has not, further dissemination of the
information or confirmation of its accuracy is also an unauthorized
disclosure.
Question 20: What civil and administrative actions may the
Government take to enforce the SF 312?
Answer:
Among the civil actions that the Government may bring in Federal
court are the application for a court order enjoining the
publication or other disclosure of classified information; suits for
money damages to recompense the United States for the damages caused
by an unauthorized disclosure; and suits to require the forfeiture
to the United States of any payments or other monetary or property
gains that have resulted or may result from an unauthorized
disclosure.
The scope of prospective administrative actions depends on whether
the person alleged to have violated the SF 312 is a Government or
non-Government employee. A Government employee would be subject to
the entire range of administrative sanctions and penalties,
including reprimand, suspension, demotion or removal, in addition to
the likely loss of the security clearance.
In situations involving an unauthorized disclosure by a
non-Government employee, the action will focus on the relationship
between the Government and the organization that employs the
individual. The Government cannot remove or otherwise discipline a
non-Government employee, but it can, and in all likelihood will
revoke the security clearance of that employee, and prevent the
employing organization from using that employee on classified
projects. The Government may also move against the employing
organization in accordance with the terms of their relationship. For
example, in a Government contract situation, the Government may move
to terminate the contract or to seek monetary damages from the
contractor, based on the terms of the contract.
Although the enforcement of the SF 312, as a contractual instrument,
is limited to civil or administrative actions, the Government may
also criminally prosecute individuals or organizations that are
alleged to have violated a criminal statute that involves the
unauthorized disclosure of classified information. These criminal
statutes are listed in the SF 312, and are reprinted in this
booklet.
Question 21: How long must executed copies of the SF 312 be
retained? Where must they be stored? Can they be retained in a form
other than the original paper copy?
Answer:
The originals or legally enforceable facsimiles of the SF 312 must
be retained for 50 years following the date of execution.
Ordinarily, microforms and other reproductions, such as computer
disks or electronic storage media, are legally enforceable in the
absence of the originals. Each agency must retain its executed
copies of SF 312 in a file system from which the agreement can be
expeditiously retrieved in the event that the United States must
seek their enforcement. For agreements executed by civilian
employees of the United States Government, an agency may store the
executed copy of the SF 312 and the SF 189 in the United States
Office of Personnel Management's Official Personnel Folder(OPF) as a
long-term (right side) document for that employee.
An agency may permit its contractors, licensees and grantees to
retain the executed agreements of their employees during the time of
employment. Upon termination of employment, the contractor, licensee
or grantee shall deliver the original or legally enforceable
facsimile of the executed SF 312, SF 189 or SF 189-A of that
employee to the Government agency primarily responsible for his or
her classified work. A contractor, licensee or grantee of an agency
participating in the National Industrial Security Program, for which
the Department of Defense is acting as the Cognizant Security
Agency, shall deliver the copy of the legally enforceable facsimile
of the executed SF 312, SF 189 or SF 189-A of a terminated employee
to the Defense Industrial Security Clearance Office.
Question 22: May the signer keep a copy of the executed SF 312?
Answer:
Ordinarily, a signer of the SF 312 who requests a copy of the
executed form may keep one. Only in the extraordinary situation in
which one of the signatures on the agreement reveals a classified
relationship, resulting in the classification of that particular
form, may the signer not keep a copy.
Question 23: Are Restricted Data and Formerly Restricted Data,
classified under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, included
in the definition for "classified information," as used in the SF
312?
Answer:
Yes.
_______________________________________________________________
Standard Form 312
CLASSIFIED INFORMATlON NONDISCLOSURE AGREEMENT
(SF 312; Rev. 1-00)
AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN (Name of Individual) AND THE UNITED STATES
1. Intending to be legally bound, I hereby accept the obligations
contained in this Agreement in consideration of my being granted
access to classified information. As used in this Agreement,
classified information is marked or unmarked classified information,
including oral communications, that is classified under the
standards of Executive Order 12958, or under any other Executive
order or statute that prohibits the unauthorized disclosure of
information in the interest of national security; and unclassified
information that meets the standards for classification and is in
the process of a classification determination as provided in
Sections 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 and 1.4(e) of Executive Order 12958, or under
any other Executive Order or statute that requires protection for
such information in the interest of national security. I understand
and accept that by being granted access to classified information,
special confidence and trust shall be placed in me by the United
States Government.
2. I hereby acknowledge that I have received a security
indoctrination concerning the nature and protection of classified
information, including the procedures to be followed in ascertaining
whether other persons to whom I contemplate disclosing this
information have been approved for access to it, and that I
understand these procedures.
3. I have been advised that the unauthorized disclosure,
unauthorized retention, or negligent handling of classified
information by me could cause damage or irreparable injury to the
United States or could be used to advantage by a foreign nation. I
hereby agree that I will never divulge classified information to
anyone unless: (a) I have officially verified that the recipient has
been properly authorized by the United States Government to receive
it: or (b) I have been given prior written notice of authorization
from the United States Government Department or Agency (hereinafter
Department or Agency) responsible for the classification of the
information or last granting me a security clearance that such
disclosure is permitted. I understand that if I am uncertain about
the classification status of information I am required to confirm
from an authorized official that the information is unclassified
before I may disclose it, except to a person as provided in (a) or
(b) above. I further understand that I am obligated to comply with
laws and regulations that prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of
classified information.
4. I have been advised that any breach of this Agreement may result
in the termination of any security clearances I hold; removal from
any position of special confidence and trust requiring such
clearances; or the termination of my employment or other
relationships with the Departments or Agencies that granted my
security clearance or clearances. In addition, I have been advised
that any unauthorized disclosure of classified information by me may
constitute a violation, or violations, of United States criminal
laws, including the provisions of Sections 641, 793, 794, 798, 952,
and 1924, Title 18, United States Code, the provisions of Section
783(b), Title 50, United States Code, and the provisions of the
Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982. I recognize that
nothing in this Agreement constitutes a waiver by the United States
of the right to prosecute me for any statutory violation.
5. I hereby assign to the United States Government all royalties,
remunerations, and emoluments that have resulted, will result or may
result from any disclosure, publication, or revelation of classified
information not consistent with the terms of this Agreement.
6. I understand that the United States Government may seek any
remedy available to it to enforce this Agreement including, but not
limited to, application for a court order prohibiting disclosure of
information in breach of this Agreement.
7. I understand that all classified information to which I have
access or may obtain access by signing this Agreement is now and
will remain the property of, or under the control of the United
States Government unless and until otherwise determined by an
authorized official or final ruling of a court of law. I agree that
I shall return all classified materials which have, or may come into
my possession or for which I am responsible because of such access:
(a) upon demand by an authorized representative of the United States
Government; (b) upon the conclusion of my employment or other
relationship with the Department or Agency that last granted me a
security clearance or that provided me access to classified
information; or (c) upon the conclusion of my employment or other
relationship that requires access to classified information. If I do
not return such materials upon request, I understand that this may
be a violation of Section 793, Title 18, United States Code, a
United States criminal law.
8. Unless and until I am released in writing by an authorized
representative of the United States Government, I understand that
all conditions and obligations imposed upon me by this Agreement
apply during the time I am granted access to classified information,
and at all times thereafter.
9. Each provision of this Agreement is severable. If a court should
find any provision of this Agreement to be unenforceable, all other
provisions of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.
10. These restrictions are consistent with and do not supersede,
conflict with or otherwise alter the employee obligations, rights or
liabilities created by Executive Order 12958; section 7211 of Title
5, United States Code (governing disclosures to Congress); section
1034 of Title 10,United States Code, as amended by the Military
Whistleblower Protection Act (governing disclosure to Congress by
members of the military); section 2302(b)(8) of Title 5, United
States Code, as amended by the Whistleblower Protection Act
(governing disclosures of illegality, waste, fraud, abuse or public
health or safety threats); the Intelligence Identities Protection
Act of 1982 (50 U.S.C. 421 et seq.) (governing disclosures that
could expose confidential Government agents), and the statutes which
protect against disclosure that may compromise the national
security, including Sections 641, 793, 794, 798, 952, and 1924 of
Title 18, United States Code, and Section 4(b) of the Subversive
Activities Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. Section 783(b)). The definitions,
requirements, obligations, rights, sanctions and liabilities created
by said Executive Order and listed statutes are incorporated into
this Agreement and are controlling.
11. I have read this Agreement carefully and my questions, if any,
have been answered. I acknowledge that the briefing officer has made
available to me the Executive Order and statutes referenced in this
Agreement and its implementing regulation (32 CFR Section 2003.20)
so that I may read them at this time, if I so choose.
Signature
Date
Social Security Number
Organization (If Contractor, Licensee, Grantee or Agent, Provide:
Name, Address, and If Applicable, Federal Supply Code Number)
WITNESS
The Execution of this Agreement was witnessed by the Undersigned:
Signature
Date
Name and Address
ACCEPTANCE
The Undersigned Accepted this Agreement on Behalf of the United
States Government:
Signature
Date
Name and Address
_______________________________________________________________
SECURITY DEBRIEFING ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I reaffirm that the provisions of the espionage laws, other federal
criminal laws and executive orders applicable to the safeguarding of
classified information have been made available to me; that I have
returned all classified information in my custody; that I will not
communicate or transmit classified information to any unauthorized
person or organization; that I will promptly report to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation any attempt by an unauthorized person to
solicit classified information, and I (have) (have not) (strike out
inappropriate word or words) received a security debriefing.
Signature of Employee
Date
Name of Witness
Signature of Witness