Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 209 / Tuesday, October 31, 2017 / Presidential Documents 50307 

Memorandum of October 26, 2017 

Temporary Certification for Certain Records Related to the 

Assassination of President John F. Kennedy 

Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies 

The American public expects—and deserves—its Government to provide 

as much access as possible to the President John F. Kennedy Assassination 

Records (records) so that the people may finally be fully informed about 

all aspects of this pivotal event. Therefore, I am ordering today that the 

veil finally be lifted. At the same time, executive departments and agencies 

(agencies) have proposed to me that certain information should continue 

to be redacted because of national security, law enforcement, and foreign 

affairs concerns. I have no choice—today—but to accept those redactions 

rather than allow potentially irreversible harm to our Nation’s security. 

To further address these concerns, I am also ordering agencies to re-review 

each and every one of those redactions over the next 180 days. At the 

end of that period, I will order the public disclosure of any information 

that the agencies cannot demonstrate meets the statutory standard for continued postponement of disclosure under section 5(g)(2)(D) of the President 

John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992 (44 U.S.C. 

2107 note) (the ‘‘Act’’). 

Accordingly, by the authority vested in me as President and Commander 

in Chief by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, 

I hereby certify that all information within records that agencies have proposed for continued postponement under section 5(g)(2)(D) of the Act must 

be temporarily withheld from full public disclosure until no later than 

April 26, 2018, to allow sufficient time to determine whether such information warrants continued postponement under the Act. This temporary withholding from full public disclosure is necessary to protect against harm 

to the military defense, intelligence operations, law enforcement, or the 

conduct of foreign relations that is of such gravity that it outweighs the 

public interest in immediate disclosure. 

I hereby direct all agencies that have proposed postponement of full disclosure to review the information subject to this certification and identify 

as much as possible that may be publicly disclosed without harm to the 

military defense, intelligence operations, law enforcement, or conduct of 

foreign relations. 

Any agency that seeks to request further postponement beyond this temporary 

certification shall adhere to the findings of the Act, which state, among 

other things, that ‘‘only in the rarest cases is there any legitimate need 

for continued protection of such records.’’ The need for continued protection 

can only have grown weaker with the passage of time since the Congress 

made this finding. Accordingly, each agency head should be extremely circumspect in recommending any further postponement of full disclosure 

of records. Any agency that seeks further postponement shall, no later than 

March 12, 2018, report to the Archivist of the United States (Archivist) 

on the specific information within particular records that meets the standard 

for continued postponement under section 5(g)(2)(D) of the Act. Thereafter, 

the Archivist shall recommend to me, no later than March 26, 2018, whether 

the specific information within particular records identified by agencies 

warrants continued withholding from public disclosure after April 26, 2018. 


srobinson on DSKBC5CHB2PROD with PRES DOCS
50308 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 209 / Tuesday, October 31, 2017 / Presidential Documents 

The Archivist is hereby authorized and directed to publish this memorandum 

in the Federal Register. 

THE WHITE HOUSE, 

Washington, October 26, 2017 

[FR Doc. 2017–23795 

Filed 10–30–17; 8:45 am] 

Billing code 7515–01–P 


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