10 U.S.C. § 1506 — Personnel files

(a) Information in Files. Except as provided in subsections (b), (c), and (d), the responsible Secretary must ensure, as far as reasonably practicable, that a missing person's personnel file contains all information held by the United States about the person's disappearance, whereabouts, and status.

(b) Classified Information^*.

(1) The responsible Secretary may withhold classified information from a personnel file under this section. If the Secretary withholds it, the Secretary must ensure that the file contains:

(A) A notice that the withheld information exists; and

(B) A notice of the date when the classification of the withheld information was most recently reviewed.

(2)(A) If classified information withheld under this subsection concerns one or more unnamed missing persons, the Secretary must make a notice of that information, and a notice of the date of its most recent classification review, reasonably accessible to the primary next of kin, immediate-family members, and the previously designated person of every missing person^* from the conflict or wartime period to which the classified information relates. This section does not define "reasonably accessible."

(B) The information is considered reasonably accessible if it is placed in a separate, distinct file. The people listed in subparagraph (A) must be able to review that file when any of them asks either to review the separate file or to review the concerned missing person's personnel file.

(c) Protection of Privacy. The responsible Secretary must maintain these personnel files, and must allow their disclosure or access, according to section 552a of title 5 and other applicable laws and regulations about the privacy of the people covered by the files. This section does not define "applicable laws and regulations."

(d) Privileged Information.

(1) The responsible Secretary must withhold as privileged information any debriefing report provided by a missing person who returned to United States control, if the report was obtained under a promise of confidentiality made to ensure the fullest possible disclosure of information.

(2) The responsible Secretary must withhold as privileged information any "survival, evasion, resistance, and escape debriefing^* report" provided by a person described in section 1501(c) of this title who returned to United States control, if the report was obtained under a promise of confidentiality made to ensure the fullest possible disclosure of information. This section does not define that quoted term.

(3) If a debriefing report contains information that is not derogatory about the status or whereabouts of a missing person other than the report's source, or about unnamed missing persons, the responsible Secretary must prepare an extract of that information. After the source reviews the extract, it must be placed in the personnel file of each missing person named in the report in a way that protects the identity of the source. Any information in the extract about unnamed missing persons must be made reasonably accessible to the primary next of kin, immediate-family members, and the previously designated person.

(4) Whenever the Secretary withholds all or part of a debriefing report from a personnel file under this subsection, the Secretary must ensure that the file contains a notice that withheld information exists.

(e) Availability of Information. When the primary next of kin, another immediate-family member, or another previously designated person asks, the responsible Secretary must make the contents of the missing person's personnel file available to that person.

(f) Nondisclosure of Certain Information. A record of the contents of a debriefing of a missing person who returned to United States control between July 8, 1959, and February 10, 1996, is privileged information if an authorized United States official conducted the debriefing. Despite sections 552 and 552a of title 5, the record may not be disclosed in whole or in part under either section. However, this subsection does not limit the Secretary's duty under paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (d) to put extracts of information that is not derogatory, or a notice that such information exists, in a missing person's personnel file.