Executive Order 13526 is the U.S. executive order governing the classification of national security information, signed by President Obama on December 29, 2009. It remains in force and serves as the primary legal framework under which UAP-related records are classified and protected from FOIA release.
Key Provisions
- Permits classification of information concerning “military plans, weapons systems, or operations” and related national-security matters.
- Under FOIA Exemption (b)(1), records classified under EO 13526 are exempt from disclosure; agencies have “no discretion” to release them once an Original Classification Authority (OCA) classifies them.
- FOIA appellate authorities cannot override the OCA: “I have no authority to tell the OCA otherwise.”
- A president may declassify information under this framework, but doing so via executive directive does not automatically override individual agency OCA decisions in pending FOIA proceedings.
UAP Relevance
Cited by the Navy (February 24, 2026) as the binding legal authority for denying 78 UAP photographs despite donald-trump’s public calls for UAP transparency. The same framework that enables presidential declassification also insulates OCA decisions from FOIA appellate override — a structural tension at the heart of the pursue disclosure effort.
Illustrates why public executive-branch rhetoric favoring UAP release does not necessarily translate into FOIA outcomes: the classification determination rests with the OCA, not the political appointees above them.