§122 — Title 6 Domestic Security | U.S. Code

Summary

The Secretary must be able to see any federal information needed about terrorism threats and U.S. vulnerabilities unless the President says otherwise. That includes raw intelligence, reports, assessments, analyses, and other material held by any federal agency. The Secretary can ask for material, make routine sharing agreements, and get access to broad categories or electronic databases. All federal agencies must promptly provide reports, analyses, and information about terrorism threats and infrastructure or other vulnerabilities, and any other material the President directs. The Secretary is treated like a federal law enforcement, intelligence, protective, national defense, immigration, and national security official and must get the same law-enforcement information given to the Director of National Intelligence under the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, section 2517(6) of title 18, and Rule 6(e)(3)(C) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. The Secretary and the Director of National Intelligence must work to share terrorism-related information with intelligence elements and, as appropriate, with state and local governments.

Title 6, §122

Domestic Security — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)Except as otherwise directed by the President, the Secretary shall have such access as the Secretary considers necessary to all information, including reports, assessments, analyses, and unevaluated intelligence relating to threats of terrorism against the United States and to other areas of responsibility assigned by the Secretary, and to all information concerning infrastructure or other vulnerabilities of the United States to terrorism, whether or not such information has been analyzed, that may be collected, possessed, or prepared by any agency of the Federal Government.

(2)The Secretary shall also have access to other information relating to matters under the responsibility of the Secretary that may be collected, possessed, or prepared by an agency of the Federal Government as the President may further provide.

(b)Except as otherwise directed by the President, with respect to information to which the Secretary has access pursuant to this section—

(1)the Secretary may obtain such material upon request, and may enter into cooperative arrangements with other executive agencies to provide such material or provide Department officials with access to it on a regular or routine basis, including requests or arrangements involving broad categories of material, access to electronic databases, or both; and

(2)regardless of whether the Secretary has made any request or entered into any cooperative arrangement pursuant to paragraph (1), all agencies of the Federal Government shall promptly provide to the Secretary—

(A)all reports (including information reports containing intelligence which has not been fully evaluated), assessments, and analytical information relating to threats of terrorism against the United States and to other areas of responsibility assigned by the Secretary;

(B)all information concerning the vulnerability of the infrastructure of the United States, or other vulnerabilities of the United States, to terrorism, whether or not such information has been analyzed;

(C)all other information relating to significant and credible threats of terrorism against the United States, whether or not such information has been analyzed; and

(D)such other information or material as the President may direct.

(c)The Secretary shall be deemed to be a Federal law enforcement, intelligence, protective, national defense, immigration, or national security official, and shall be provided with all information from law enforcement agencies that is required to be given to the Director of National Intelligence, under any provision of the following:

(1)The USA PATRIOT Act of 2001 (Public Law 107–56).

(2)section 2517(6) of title 18.

(3)Rule 6(e)(3)(C) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.

(d)(1)Nothing in this subchapter shall preclude any element of the intelligence community (as that term is defined in section 3003(4) of title 50,11 So in original. There probably should be a closing parenthesis after “50”. or any other element of the Federal Government with responsibility for analyzing terrorist threat information, from receiving any intelligence or other information relating to terrorism.

(2)The Secretary, in consultation with the Director of National Intelligence, shall work to ensure that intelligence or other information relating to terrorism to which the Department has access is appropriately shared with the elements of the Federal Government referred to in paragraph (1), as well as with State and local governments, as appropriate.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, referred to in subsec. (c)(1), is Pub. L. 107–56, Oct. 26, 2001, 115 Stat. 272, known as the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 or the USA PATRIOT Act. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

of 2001 Amendment note set out under section 1 of Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure, and Tables. The Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, referred to in subsec. (c)(3), are set out in the Appendix to Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure. This subchapter, referred to in subsec. (d)(1), was in the original “this title”, meaning title II of Pub. L. 107–296, Nov. 25, 2002, 116 Stat. 2145, which enacted this subchapter, amended section 1030, 2511, 2512, 2520, 2701 to 2703, and 3125 of Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure, section 10102 and 10122 of Title 34, Crime Control and Law

Enforcement

, and section 3003 of Title 50, War and National Defense, and enacted provisions set out as a note under section 101 of this title and listed in a Provisions for Review, Promulgation, or Amendment of Federal Sentencing Guidelines Relating to Specific Offenses table set out under section 994 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure. For complete classification of title II to the Code, see Tables.

Amendments

2018—Subsecs. (c), (d)(2). Pub. L. 115–278 substituted “Director of National Intelligence” for “Director of Central Intelligence”.

§122 Access to information