OF DEFENSE CRITERIA FOR AND GUIDANCE ON IDENTIFICATION AND INTERNAL TRANSMISSION OF CRITICAL INFORMATION.

SEC. 932. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CRITERIA FOR AND GUIDANCE ON IDENTIFICATION AND INTERNAL TRANSMISSION OF CRITICAL INFORMATION.(a) Criteria for Critical Information.—(1) The Secretary of Defense shall establish criteria for determining categories of critical information that should be made known expeditiously to senior civilian and military officials in the Department of Defense. Those categories should be limited to matters of extraordinary significance and strategic impact to which rapid access by those officials is essential to the successful accomplishment of the national security strategy or a major military mission. The Secretary may from time to time modify the list to suit the current strategic situation.(2) The Secretary shall provide the criteria established under paragraph (1) to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretaries of the military departments, the commanders of the unified and specified commands, the commanders of deployed forces, and such other elements of the Department of Defense as the Secretary considers necessary.(b) Matters To Be Included.—The criteria established under subsection (a) shall include, at a minimum, requirement for identification of the following:(1) Any incident that may result in a contingency operation, based on the incident’s nature, gravity, or potential for significant adverse consequences to United States citizens, military 118 STAT. 2032 personnel, interests, or assets, including an incident that could result in significant adverse publicity having a major strategic impact.(2) Any event, development, or situation that could be reasonably assumed to escalate into an incident described in paragraph (1).(3) Any deficiency or error in policy, standards, or training that could be reasonably assumed to have the effects described in paragraph (1).(c) Requirements for Transmission of Critical Information.—The criteria under subsection (a) shall include such requirements for transmission of such critical information to such senior civilian and military officials of the Department of Defense as the Secretary of Defense considers appropriate.(d) Time for Issuance of Criteria.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish the criteria required by subsection (a) not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.