Today ISOO released new guidance on procedures for the Information Security Classification Appeals Panel, also known as the ISCAP, which serves as the court of last resort for whether information merits continued protection on grounds of national security.
The rules for national security classification – that is, information protected as Confidential, Secret, or Top Secret due to the potential damage to national security that would occur if released – are defined by Executive Order 13526. This includes methods to compel the review of specific information for potential declassification.
The ISCAP, a panel of experts and senior government officials, provides a final determination on declassification decisions, ruling on appeals of both classification challenges, which are an internal mechanism, and mandatory declassification review requests, which are, primarily, a public vehicle for prompting the release of once-classified information.
On August 17, 2026, as Director of ISOO, I signed Notice 2026-05, “Appeal Procedures for the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel,” which brings critical, long-called-for reforms to the ISCAP. These reforms are consistent with E.O. 13526, which defines the ISCAP’s role and structure, and 32 CFR 2003, which further elaborates and refines the ISCAP’s operation.
Case Management
The ISCAP currently has a docket of over 1,200 appeals awaiting adjudication. Under the guidance issued today by ISOO, ISCAP staff will institute additional measures to ensure that this docket is managed for greater impact and efficiency. Appeals will be regularly evaluated for potential precedent-setting opportunities, with the intent of resolving multiple appeals where possible when an overarching decision relating to a category of information can be rendered.
Many appeals before the ISCAP have never received an initial decision. In fact, more than half of the ISCAP docket is the result of an agency not meeting required time periods for providing either an initial response or a final decision to an appellant. The ISCAP will identify such cases and vote on whether to remand the cases back to the agencies for decision. ISCAP staff will track the status of these appeals to ensure agencies are rendering decisions in a timely manner.
Classification Guidance
ISCAP decisions on declassification are binding for the whole of government, appealable only to the President. Agencies are obligated to abide by these decisions and to incorporate ISCAP precedents into their security classification guidance, both that which is used every day to appropriately mark information in the course of agency business, and other specialized guidance which is used to assess the potential declassification of information under review.
Under the guidance issued today, ISCAP staff will ensure that ISCAP rulings on declassification, which are always public, will be thorough in their direction to agencies on how each decision impacts agency-level classification guidance. ISCAP staff will further require confirmation that ISCAP precedents have been appropriately incorporated and will coordinate with ISOO’s on-site compliance inspection teams to ensure that agency classification guidance is up to date.
Towards Openness, Efficiency, and Accountability
The ISCAP is an essential institution, providing a fair and final hearing on what secrets the U.S. government must continue to keep in the interest of national security, and those secrets which the government has endeavored to keep too long. Every case before the ISCAP deserves a decision, rendered as promptly and expansively as possible. The guidance we’ve issued today, providing for a more open, efficient, and accountable ISCAP is intended to serve those ends and provide greater accountability and transparency for the American people.
Michael D. Thomas
Director, Information Security Oversight Office