I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2534
To promote human rights, democracy, and the rule of law by providing 
a process for executive agencies for declassifying on an expedited basis 
and disclosing certain documents relating to human rights abuses in 
countries other than the United States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 19, 2003
Mr. LANTOS (for himself, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. WAX-
MAN, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. LAHOOD, Mr. 
KUCINICH, Ms. NORTON, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. COOPER, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, 
Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. 
ABERCROMBIE, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. SANDLIN, Mr. 
BROWN of Ohio, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. STARK, Mr. 
OLVER, and Mr. FILNER) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Government Reform 
A BILL 
To promote human rights, democracy, and the rule of law 
by providing a process for executive agencies for declas-
sifying on an expedited basis and disclosing certain docu-
ments relating to human rights abuses in countries other 
than the United States.
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.
The Congress finds the following: 
(1) The commitment to the promotion and pro-
tection of human rights, democracy, and the rule of 
law around the world has led the United States to 
undertake tremendous diplomatic, economic, and 
military efforts to end systematic gross human 
rights violations abroad, consistent with the national 
interests and international leadership role of the 
United States. Such efforts are thwarted if the cycle 
of impunity for human rights violations in countries 
other than the United States is not broken, and the 
likelihood of the need for renewed United States en-
gagements in those countries remains. 
(2) The United States has a significant interest 
that newly established or reestablished democratic 
societies take credible steps to fully investigate and 
prosecute human rights violations. Such steps could 
include the creation of a national or international 
truth commission or tribunal, the appointment of a 
human rights officer, or the leading of official na-
tional investigations by credible sections of the civil
society, including religious institutions and non-
governmental organizations. 
(3) Executive agencies are in possession of doc-
uments pertaining to gross human rights violations 
abroad that are needed by foreign authorities to doc-
ument, investigate, and subsequently prosecute in-
stances of continued and systematic gross human 
rights violations, including those directed against 
citizens of the United States. 
(4) The overwhelming importance to the United 
States of investigations by foreign authorities of 
gross human rights violations and the urgency of re-
quests for legal assistance which the United States 
will continue to receive from foreign entities require 
a systematic process of expedited declassification 
and disclosure of documents pertaining to such gross 
human rights violations. 
(5) After a 36-year history of being open to for-
eign requesters, the Freedom of Information Act 
(section 552 of title 5, United States Code) was 
amended in the 107th Congress by the Intelligence 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 (Public Law 
107–306) to prohibit agencies within the intelligence 
community from making records available to foreign 
entities or their representatives.
(6) Only an expedited systematic process can 
help ensure timely investigations of perpetrators of 
gross and systematic human rights violations and 
provide families with urgently needed information 
regarding the fate of relatives, including information 
making possible the location, identification, and bur-
ial of the remains of family members who have been 
killed, helping to bring closure for those families and 
beginning the process of national reconciliation. 
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 vio-
lations of internationally recognized human rights 
committed in a country other than the United 
States, except that such term does not include any 
record submitted to or compiled by the Immigration 
and Naturalization Service or its successors (includ-
ing the Bureau of Border Security and the Bureau 
of Citizenship and Immigration Services). 
(2) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means the 
National Archives and Records Administration (and 
all the Presidential libraries it maintains), the Na-
tional Security Council, the Office of National Drug 
Control Policy, and any executive agency of the 
United States Government charged with the conduct 
of foreign policy or foreign intelligence, including,
but not limited to, the Department of State, the De-
partment of Justice, the Department of Defense, the 
Central Intelligence Agency, the Agency for Inter-
national Development, and the National Reconnais-
sance Office, except that such term does not include 
the Immigration and Naturalization Service or its 
successors (including the Bureau of Border Security 
and the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration 
Services). 
(3) APPEALS
PANEL.—The term ‘‘Appeals 
Panel’’ means the Interagency Security Classifica-
tion Appeals Panel created by Executive Order num-
ber 12958 (or any successor entity or review proce-
dure).
(4) GROSS VIOLATIONS OF INTERNATIONALLY 
RECOGNIZED HUMAN RIGHTS.—The term ‘‘gross vio-
lations of internationally recognized human rights’’ 
has the meaning given that term in section 
502B(d)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
(22 U.S.C. 2304(d)(1)).
(5) INTERNATIONAL
BONA
FIDE
REQUEST.—
The term ‘‘international bona fide request’’ means a 
request for a human rights record from an indi-
vidual or entity (such as an entity created by the 
United Nations, a regional international organiza-
tion, a national truth commission, or the principal 
justice or human rights official of a country) that is 
carrying out an official mandate to investigate a pat-
tern of gross violations of internationally recognized 
human rights, pursuant to a proceeding that—
(A) is a credible examination or investiga-
tion conducted in accordance with the mandate 
of the entity or official; 
(B) is carried out in accordance with inter-
national law, including laws regarding appro-
priate jurisdiction of the person or entity car-
rying out the proceeding; and 
(C) does not threaten to violate due proc-
ess or other internationally recognized human 
rights. 
(6) INTERNATIONAL
LAW.—The term ‘‘inter-
national law’’ means the rules and principles of gen-
eral application dealing with the conduct and rela-
tions of nations and international organizations.
SEC. 4. DETERMINATIONS REQUIRED REGARDING RE-
QUESTS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS RECORDS.
(a) DETERMINATION REQUIRED.—If the President 
or the head of an agency receives a request for a human 
rights record from an individual or entity (such as an enti-
ty created by the United Nations, a regional international 
organization, a national truth commission, or the principal 
justice or human rights official of a country) that is car-
rying out an official mandate to investigate a pattern of 
gross violations of internationally recognized human 
rights, not later than 60 days after the receipt of such 
request the President (or the Attorney General on behalf 
of the President) shall make a determination whether such 
request is an international bona fide request. 
(b) PROCEDURES IN CASE OF POSITIVE DETERMINA-
TION.—If the President (or the Attorney General on be-
half of the President) makes a determination that a re-
quest under subsection (a) is an international bona fide 
request, not later than 120 days after the date that the 
President or Attorney General makes such determination, 
the heads of the appropriate agencies shall identify, re-
view, and organize all human rights records with respect 
to such request for the purpose of declassifying and dis-
closing the records to the public. Except as provided in 
section 5 and subsection (d), all records described in the 
preceding sentence shall be made available to the public
not later than 30 days after the date that a review under 
this subsection is completed. 
(c) PROCEDURES IN CASE OF NEGATIVE DETER-
MINATION.—If the President (or the Attorney General on 
behalf of the President) makes a determination that a re-
quest under subsection (a) is not an international bona 
fide request, such determination, and a detailed expla-
nation regarding such determination, shall be published 
in the Federal Register not later than 90 days after the 
date that such request is received. 
(d) CONFIDENTIALITY TO PROTECT ONGOING IN-
VESTIGATIONS.—
(1) DISCLOSURE OF RECORDS ON CONFIDEN-
TIAL
BASIS.—The head of an agency disclosing 
human rights records as a result of a positive deter-
mination under subsection (b) may, at the agency 
head’s initiative or at the request of the individual 
or entity that submitted the request for records, dis-
close such records to the individual or entity on a 
confidential basis if the agency head determines that 
confidential disclosure is necessary to avoid jeopard-
izing an ongoing investigation. 
(2) 
DELAYED
PUBLIC
DISCLOSURE
OF 
RECORDS.—If the agency head determines that con-
fidential disclosure of records under paragraph (1) is