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105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2635
To provide a process for declassifying on an expedited basis certain documents
relating to human rights abuses in Guatemala and Honduras.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OCTOBER 8, 1997
Mr. LANTOS (for himself, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. MCGOV-
ERN, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. SABO, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. FURSE, Mr. SAND-
ERS, and Mr. MEEHAN) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight
A BILL
To provide a process for declassifying on an expedited basis
certain documents relating to human rights abuses in
Guatemala and Honduras.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Human Rights Infor-
mation Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Agencies of the Government of the United
States have information on human rights violations
in Guatemala and Honduras.
(2) Members of both Houses of Congress have
repeatedly asked the Administration for information
on Guatemalan and Honduran human rights cases.
(3) The Guatemalan peace accords, which the
Government of the United States firmly supports,
has as an important and vital component the estab-
lishment of the Commission for the Historical Clari-
fication of Human Rights Violations and Acts of Vi-
olence which have Caused Suffering to the Guate-
malan People (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Clari-
fication Commission’’). The Clarification Commis-
sion will investigate cases of human rights violations
and abuses by both parties to the civil conflict in
Guatemala and will need all available information to
fulfill its mandate.
(4) The National Commissioner for the Protec-
tion of Human Rights in the Republic of Honduras
has been requesting United States Government doc-
umentation on human rights violations in Honduras
since November 15, 1993. The Commissioner’s re-
quest has been partly fulfilled, but is still pending.
The request has been supported by national and
international human rights nongovernmental organi-
zations as well as members of both Houses of Con-
gress.
(5) Victims and survivors of human rights vio-
lations, including United States citizens and their
relatives, have also been requesting the information
referred to in paragraphs (3) and (4). Survivors and
the relatives of victims have a right to know what
happened. The requests have been supported by na-
tional and international human rights nongovern-
mental organizations as well as members of both
Houses of Congress.
(6) The United States should make the infor-
mation it has on human rights abuses available to
the public as part of the United States commitment
to democracy in Central America.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) 
HUMAN
RIGHTS
RECORD.—The 
term
‘‘human rights record’’ means a record in the pos-
session, custody, or control of the United States
Government containing information about gross
human rights violations committed after 1944.
(2) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means any
agency of the United States Government charged
with the conduct of foreign policy or foreign intel-
ligence, including the Department of State, the
Agency for International Development, the Depart-
ment of Defense (and all of its components), the
Central Intelligence Agency, the National Reconnais-
sance Office, the Department of Justice (and all of
its components), the National Security Council, and
the Executive Office of the President.
SEC. 4. IDENTIFICATION, REVIEW, AND PUBLIC DISCLO-
SURE OF HUMAN RIGHTS RECORDS REGARD-
ING GUATEMALA AND HONDURAS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of law, the provision of this Act shall govern the de-
classification and public disclosure of human rights
records by agencies.
(b) IDENTIFICATION OF RECORDS.—Not later than
120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, each
agency shall identify, review, and organize all human
rights records regarding activities occurring in Guatemala
and Honduras after 1944 for the purpose of declassifying
and disclosing the records to the public. Except as pro-
vided in section 5, all records described in the preceding
sentence shall be made available to the public not later
than 30 days after a review under this section is com-
pleted.
disclosure would be so harmful that it outweighs the
public interest.
(b) SPECIAL TREATMENT
OF CERTAIN INFORMA-
TION.—It shall not be grounds for postponement of disclo-
sure of a human rights record that an individual named
in the human rights record was an intelligence asset of
the United States Government, although the existence of
such relationship may be withheld if the criteria set forth
in subsection (a) are met. For purposes of the preceding
sentence, the term an ‘‘intelligence asset’’ means a covert
agent as defined in section 606(4) of the National Security
Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 426(4)).
SEC. 6. REQUEST FOR HUMAN RIGHTS RECORDS FROM OF-
FICIAL ENTITIES IN OTHER LATIN AMERICAN
CARIBBEAN COUNTRIES.
In the event that an agency of the United States re-
ceives a request for human rights records from an entity
created by the United Nations or the Organization of
American States similar to the Guatemalan Clarification
Commission, or from the principal justice or human rights
official of a Latin American or Caribbean country who is
investigating a pattern of gross human rights violations,
the agency shall conduct a review of records as described
in section 4 and shall declassify and publicly disclose such
records in accordance with the standards and procedures
set forth in this Act.
SEC. 7. REVIEW OF DECISIONS TO WITHHOLD RECORDS.
(a) DUTIES OF THE APPEALS PANEL.—The Inter-
agency Security Classification Appeals Panel (referred to
in this Act as the ‘‘Appeals Panel’’), established under Ex-
ecutive Order No. 12958, shall review determinations by
an agency to postpone public disclosure of any human
rights record.
(b) DETERMINATIONS OF THE APPEALS PANEL.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Appeals Panel shall di-
rect that all human rights records be disclosed to the
public, unless the Appeals Panel determines that
there is clear and convincing evidence that—
(A) the record is not a human rights
record; or
(B) the human rights record or particular
information in the human rights record quali-
fies for postponement of disclosure pursuant to
section 5.
(2) TREATMENT
IN
CASES
OF
NONDISCLO-
SURE.—If the Appeals Panel concurs with an agency
decision to postpone disclosure of a human rights
record, the Appeals Panel shall determine, in con-
sultation with the originating agency and consistent
with the standards set forth in this Act, which, if
any, of the alternative forms of disclosure described
in paragraph (3) shall be made by the agency.
(3) ALTERNATIVE
FORMS
OF
DISCLOSURE.—
The forms of disclosure described in this paragraph
are as follows:
(A) Disclosure of any reasonably seg-
regable portion of the human rights record
after deletion of the portions described in para-
graph (1).
(B) Disclosure of a record that is a sub-
stitute for information which is not disclosed.
(C) Disclosure of a summary of the infor-
mation contained in the human rights record.
(4) NOTIFICATION OF DETERMINATION.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon completion of its
review, the Appeals Panel shall notify the head
of the agency in control or possession of the
human rights record that was the subject of the
review of its determination and shall, not later
than 14 days after the determination, publish
the determination in the Federal Register.
(B) NOTICE TO PRESIDENT.—The Appeals
Panel shall notify the President of its deter-
mination. The notice shall contain a written un-
classified justification for its determination, in-
cluding an explanation of the application of the
standards contained in section 5.
(5) 
GENERAL
PROCEDURES.—The 
Appeals
Panel shall publish in the Federal Register guide-
lines regarding its policy and procedures for adju-
dicating appeals.
(c) PRESIDENTIAL
AUTHORITY
OVER
APPEALS
PANEL DETERMINATION.—
(1) PUBLIC
DISCLOSURE
OR
POSTPONEMENT
OF DISCLOSURE.—The President shall have the sole
and nondelegable authority to review any determina-
tion of the Appeals Board under this Act, and such
review shall be based on the standards set forth in
section 5. Not later than 30 days after the Appeals
Panel’s determination and notification to the agency
pursuant to subsection (b)(4), the President shall
provide the Appeals Panel with an unclassified writ-
ten certification specifying the President’s decision
and stating the reasons for the decision, including in
the case of a determination to postpone disclosure,
the standards set forth in section 5 which are the
basis for the President’s determination.
(2) RECORD
OF
PRESIDENTIAL
POSTPONE-
MENT.—The Appeals Panel shall, upon receipt of
the President’s determination, publish in the Federal
Register a copy of any unclassified written certifi-
cation, statement, and other materials transmitted
by or on behalf of the President with regard to the
postponement of disclosure of a human rights
record.
SEC. 8. REPORT REGARDING OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS
RECORDS.
Upon completion of the review and disclosure of the
human rights records relating to Guatemala and Hon-
duras, the Information Security Policy Advisory Council,
established pursuant to Executive Order No. 12958, shall
report to Congress on the desirability and feasibility of
declassification of human rights records relating to other
countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The report
shall be available to the public.
SEC. 9. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.
(a) FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.—Nothing in
this Act shall be construed to limit any right to file a re-
quest with any executive agency or seek judicial review of
a decision pursuant to section 552 of title 5, United States
Code.
(b) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Nothing in this Act shall be
construed to preclude judicial review, under chapter 7 of
title 5, United States Code, of final actions taken or re-
quired to be taken under this Act.
SEC. 10. CREATION OF POSITIONS.
For purposes of carrying out the provisions of this
Act, there shall be 2 additional positions in the Appeals
Panel. The positions shall be filled by the President, based
on the recommendations of the American Historical Asso-
ciation, the Latin American Studies Association, Human
Rights Watch, and Amnesty International, USA.
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