10 U.S.C. § 2254a: Data files of military…

Summary

The Secretary of Defense can block release of certain military flight safety files under the Freedom of Information Act. To do this, the Secretary must write a decision saying the information is sensitive about aircraft, units, or crews and that public interest does not outweigh keeping it secret. A "data file" means MFOQA files, including raw databases and any analysis or reports made from that data. The protection applies to exempt information even if it sits inside a larger file that is not fully exempt. Only a later law that specifically says so can change this rule. The Secretary must write rules so all military departments apply this the same way. Every decision must be written, explain the reason, and be available to the public if someone asks.

Title 10, §2254a

Armed Forces, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Authority to Exempt Certain Data Files From Disclosure Under FOIA.—

(1)The Secretary of Defense may exempt information contained in any data file of the military flight operations quality assurance system of a military department from disclosure under section 552(b)(3) of title 5, upon a written determination that—

(A)the information is sensitive information concerning military aircraft, units, or aircrew; and

(B)the public interest consideration in the disclosure of such information does not outweigh preventing the disclosure of such information.

(2)In this section, the term “data file” means a file of the military flight operations quality assurance (in this section referred to as “MFOQA”) system that contains information acquired or generated by the MFOQA system, including—

(A)any data base containing raw MFOQA data; and

(B)any analysis or report generated by the MFOQA system or which is derived from MFOQA data.

(3)Information that is exempt under paragraph (1) from disclosure under section 552(b)(3) of title 5 shall be exempt from such disclosure even if such information is contained in a data file that is not exempt in its entirety from such disclosure.

(4)The provisions of paragraph (1) may not be superseded except by a provision of law which is enacted after the date of the enactment of this section and which specifically cites and repeals or modifies those provisions.

(b)Regulations.—

The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations for the administration of this section. Such regulations shall ensure consistent application of the authority in subsection (a) across the military departments.

(c)Transparency.—

Each determination of the Secretary under subsection (a) shall be made in writing and accompanied by a statement of the basis for the determination. All such determinations and statements of basis shall be available to the public, upon request.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The date of the enactment of this section, referred to in subsec. (a)(4), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 112–81, which was approved Dec. 31, 2011.

Amendments

2023—Subsecs. (c), (d). Pub. L. 118–31 redesignated subsec. (d) as (c), struck out “, or the Secretary’s designee,” after “Secretary” and “, through the Office of the Director of Administration and Management” after “request”, and struck out former subsec. (c). Prior to amendment, text of subsec. (c) read as follows: “The Secretary of Defense may delegate the authority to make a determination under subsection (a) to the Director of Administration and Management of the Department.”

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Pub. L. 112–81, div. A, title X, § 1082(b), Dec. 31, 2011, 125 Stat. 1601, provided that: “Section 2254a of title 10, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply to any information entered into any data file of the military flight operations quality assurance system before, on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 31, 2011].”

§2254a Data Files of Military Flight Operations Quality Assurance Systems: Exemption From Disclosure Under Freedom of Information Act