WASHINGTON — Lawmakers in the U.S. Senate have taken action to reform federal records-keeping and storage of sensitive documents.
The move came days after federal prosecutors indicted former President Donald Trump on 37 counts of risking some of the country's most sensitive security secrets with his handling of unclassified documents.
Trump was accused of illegally retaining national defense records and obstructing the government's efforts to retrieve them. He entered a plea of not guilty at his arraignment in Miami.
READ MORE | Trump pleads not guilty to all 37 federal charges that he illegally hoarded classified docs
As Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Virginia) has been pushing for reforms to the U.S. classification and security clearance process as part of the Intelligence Authorization Act.
That panel this week unanimously approved the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024, reducing overclassification, preventing mishandling of classified information, and utilizing technology for declassification.
Warner said it was high time.
"And then we did something that should have been a no-brainer, which was to say any president or vice president before they leave office and fill all these documents in a box, the archivists ought to be able to go through and clear what documents are taken, and which remain the property of the United States," Warner said.
Typically, the Intelligence Authorization bill has been attached to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
Both the Senate and House Armed Services Committees are expected to pass their versions of the NDAA next week.
