May 27, 2014

Dr. Andrew Weston-Dawkes
Office of Classification
Department of Energy

Dear Dr. Weston-Dawkes:

This is a proposal for declassification pursuant to 10 C.F.R. 1045.20 regarding
information classified under the Atomic Energy Act.

We request that the Department of Energy (and the Department of Defense) authorize
the categorical declassification of the size of the U.S. nuclear stockpile and
the number of weapons dismantled annually as of the end of each fiscal year.

As you know, the Departments of Energy and Defense have previously declassified
such information for each fiscal year through FY 2013.  But it seems that each
declassification was treated as a discrete action for that specific year, and
that it did not entail or imply any subsequent declassification in future years.

Therefore, we are now requesting that this information be categorically removed
from controls under the Atomic Energy Act. If approved, this would mean that
stockpile size information would be eligible for disclosure each year without
requiring a new declassification decision.

The reasons for the proposed declassification are the same as the reasons for
the Department's previous declassification of stockpile information:  Nuclear
transparency can strengthen non-proliferation efforts, and can lay a foundation
for future arms control efforts.

Furthermore, as a matter of principle, information should remain classified
only when doing so serves a valid and compelling national security purpose.
We suggest that continued classification of the size of the nuclear stockpile
does not meet that criterion.

If, in extraordinary circumstances, stockpile size information were deemed
newly sensitive in some future year, I understand that such information
could still be classified as national security information. So such a
speculative scenario provides no basis to maintain unnecessary controls
under the Atomic Energy Act.

We therefore request that the Department consider declassifying this
information, as provided in 10 C.F.R. 1045.20.

Thank you for your consideration.

Steven Aftergood
Project on Government Secrecy
Federation of American Scientists
1725 DeSales Street NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC  20036

email: [email protected]
voice: (202)454-4691