United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
Presidential Policy Directive 19, signed by
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
, is designed to ensure that employees who serve in the Intelligence Community or have access to
classified information
Classified information is confidential material that a government deems to be sensitive information which must be protected from unauthorized disclosure that requires special handling and dissemination controls. Access is restricted by law or ...
can effectively report waste, fraud, and abuse, while protecting classified information. It is the executive order establishing standards for all Federal agencies with employees covered by the Directive, including those under Defense Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection and the U.S. Department of Defense Whistleblower Program. It also prohibits retaliation against these employees for their reports.The White House, Washington, D.C. Presidential Policy Directive 19 October 10, 2012. PPD-19 accordingly establishes a system of Intelligence community whistleblowing and source protection under the Office,
Director of National Intelligence
The director of national intelligence (DNI) is a Cabinet of the United States#Current Cabinet and Cabinet-rank officials, cabinet-level Federal government of the United States, United States government intelligence and security official. The p ...
and supervised by the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community (IC IG).
National security directive
National security directives are presidential directives issued for the National Security Council (NSC). Starting with Harry Truman, every president since the founding of the National Security Council in 1947 has issued national security directi ...
s are used by the Executive Branch, specifically the White House, to disseminate presidential decisions on matters of national security. The Obama Administration called them Presidential Policy Directives or PPDs.
Goals
PPD-19, as written, states that it:
*Prohibits retaliation against any officer or employee of a covered agency within the Intelligence Community.
*Prohibits retaliation by affecting eligibility for access to classified information.
*Allows for employees who allege reprisal to request an external review by a three-member Inspector General panel if the applicable review process is exhausted. However, the Panel can only make recommendations back to the head of the agency and cannot require agencies to correct retaliation.
PPD-19 did not originally protect national security contractors like
Edward Snowden
Edward Joseph Snowden (born June 21, 1983) is a former National Security Agency (NSA) intelligence contractor and whistleblower who leaked classified documents revealing the existence of global surveillance programs.
Born in 1983 in Elizabeth ...
from any form of reprisal except decisions connected to their security clearance. According to whistle-blower lawyer Mark Zaid, excluding contractors was "a remarkable and obviously intentional oversight, given the significant number of contractors who now work within the intelligence community." The procedures for this directive did not go into effect until July 2013, after
Edward Snowden
Edward Joseph Snowden (born June 21, 1983) is a former National Security Agency (NSA) intelligence contractor and whistleblower who leaked classified documents revealing the existence of global surveillance programs.
Born in 1983 in Elizabeth ...
made his disclosures. Protections for intelligence community contractors were codified within the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA, , ) is a Law of the United States, United States federal law that establishes procedures for the surveillance and collection of foreign intelligence on domestic soil.
Parts of PPD-19 were codified into law in the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014.