Classified national security information, or classified information, means information that has been determined under Executive Order 13526 or any predecessor order to require protection against unauthorized disclosure and is marked to indicate its classified status when in documentary form.

Declassification means the authorized change in the status of information from classified information to unclassified information.

Equity refers to information:

(1) Originally classified by or under the control of an agency;

(2) In the possession of the receiving agency in the event of transfer of function; or

(3) In the possession of a successor agency for an agency that has ceased to exist.

File series means file units or documents arranged according to a filing system or kept together because they relate to a particular subject or function, result from the same activity, document a specific kind of transaction, take a particular physical form, or have some other relationship arising out of their creation, receipt, or use, such as restrictions on access or use.

Integral file block means a distinct component of a file series, as defined in this section, that should be maintained as a separate unit in order to ensure the integrity of the records. An integral file block may consist of a set of records covering either a specific topic or a range of time such as presidential administration or a 5-year retirement schedule within a specific file series that is retired from active use as a group. For purposes of automatic declassification, integral file blocks shall contain only records dated within 10 years of the oldest record in the file block.

Mandatory declassification review means the review for declassification of classified information in response to a request for declassification that meets the requirements under section 3.5 of Executive Order 13526.

Records means the records of an agency and Presidential materials or Presidential records, as those terms are defined in title 44, United States Code, including those created or maintained by a government contractor, licensee, certificate holder, or grantee that are subject to the sponsoring agency's control under the terms of the contract, license, certificate, or grant.

Referral means that information in an agency's records that was originated by or is of interest to another agency is sent to that agency for a determination of its classification status.

Systematic declassification review means the review for declassification of classified information, including previously exempted information, contained in records that have been determined by the Archivist of the United States to have permanent historical value in accordance with 44 U.S.C. 2107.