CLAUSE I.69B – CLASSIFICATION/DECLASSIFICATION (SEP 1997)
(a) Responsibility. It is the Contractor’s duty to protect all classified information, special nuclear material, and other DOE property. The Contractor shall, in accordance with DOE security regulations and requirements, be responsible for protecting all classified information and all classified matter (including documents, material and special nuclear material) which are in the Contractor’s possession in connection with the performance of work under this contract against sabotage, espionage, loss or theft. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this contract, the Contractor shall, upon completion or termination of this contract, transmit to DOE any classified matter or special nuclear material in the possession of the Contractor or any person under the Contractor’s control in connection with performance of this contract. If retention by the Contractor of any classified matter is required after the completion or termination of the contract, the Contractor shall identify the items and classification levels and categories of matter proposed for retention, the reasons for the retention, and the proposed period of retention. If the retention is approved by the Contracting Officer, the security provisions of the contract shall continue to be applicable to the classified matter retained. Special nuclear material shall not be retained after the completion or termination of the contract.
(b) Regulations. The Contractor agrees to comply with all security regulations and contract requirements of DOE as incorporated into the contract.
(c) Definition of classified information. The term Classified Information means information that is classified as Restricted Data or Formerly Restricted Data under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, or information determined to require protection against unauthorized disclosure under Executive Order 12958, Classified National Security Information, as amended, or prior executive orders, which is identified as National Security Information.
(d) Definition of restricted data. The term Restricted Data means all data concerning design, manufacture, or utilization of atomic weapons; production of special nuclear material; or use of special nuclear material in the production of energy, but excluding data declassified or removed from the Restricted Data category pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 2162 [Section 142, as amended, of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954].
(e) Definition of formerly restricted data. The term ”Formerly Restricted Data” means information removed from the Restricted Data category based on a joint determination by DOE or its predecessor agencies and the Department of Defense that the information – (1) Relates primarily to the military utilization of atomic weapons; and (2) can be adequately protected as National Security Information. However, such information is subject to the same restrictions on transmission to other countries or regional defense organizations that apply to Restricted Data.
(f) Definition of national security information. The term “National Security Information” means information that has been determined, pursuant to Executive Order 12958, Classified National Security Information, as amended, or any predecessor order, to require protection against unauthorized disclosure, and that is marked to indicate its classified status when in documentary form.
(g) Definition of special nuclear material. The term “special nuclear material” means – (1) Plutonium, uranium enriched in the isotope 233 or in the isotope 235, and any other material which, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 2071 [section 51 as amended, of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954] has been determined to be special nuclear material, but does not include source material; or (2) any material artificially enriched by any of the foregoing, but does not include source material.
(h) Access authorizations of personnel.
(1) The Contractor shall not permit any individual to have access to any classified information or special nuclear material, except in accordance with the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, and the DOE’s regulations and contract requirements applicable to the particular level and category of classified information or particular category of special nuclear material to which access is required.
(2) The Contractor must conduct a thorough review, as defined at 48 CFR 904.401, of an uncleared applicant or uncleared employee, and must test the individual for illegal drugs, prior to selecting the individual for a position requiring a DOE access authorization.
(i) A review must – Verify an uncleared applicant’s or uncleared employee’s educational background, including any high school diploma obtained within the past five years, and degrees or diplomas granted by an institution of higher learning; contact listed employers for the last three years and listed personal references; conduct local law enforcement checks when such checks are not prohibited by state or local law or regulation and when the uncleared applicant or uncleared employee resides in the jurisdiction where the Contractor is located; and conduct a credit check and other checks as appropriate.
(ii) Contractor reviews are not required for an applicant for DOE access authorization who possesses a current access authorization from DOE or another Federal agency, or whose access authorization may be reapproved without a federal background investigation pursuant to Executive Order 12968, Access to Classified Information (August 4, 1995), Sections 3.3(c) and (d).
(iii) In collecting and using this information to make a determination as to whether it is appropriate to select an uncleared applicant or uncleared employee to a position requiring an access authorization, the Contractor must comply with all applicable laws, regulations, and Executive Orders, including those – (A) Governing the processing and privacy of an individual’s information, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; and (B) prohibiting discrimination in employment, such as under the ADA, Title VII and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, including with respect to pre- and post-offer of employment disability related questioning.
(iv) In addition to a review, each candidate for a DOE access authorization must be tested to demonstrate the absence of any illegal drug, as defined in 10 CFR 707.4. All positions requiring access authorizations are deemed testing designated positions in accordance with 10 CFR part 707. All employees possessing access authorizations are subject to applicant, random or for cause testing for use of illegal drugs. DOE will not process candidates for a DOE access authorization unless their tests confirm the absence from their system of any illegal drug.
(v) When an uncleared applicant or uncleared employee receives an offer of employment for a position that requires a DOE access authorization, the Contractor shall not place that individual in such a position prior to the individual’s receipt of a DOE access authorization, unless an approval has been obtained from the head of the cognizant local security office. If the individual is hired and placed in the position prior to receiving an access authorization, the uncleared employee may not be afforded access to classified information or matter or special nuclear material (in categories requiring access authorization) until an access authorization has been granted.
(vi) The Contractor must maintain a record of information concerning each uncleared applicant or uncleared employee who is selected for a position requiring an access authorization. Upon request only, the following information will be furnished to the head of the cognizant local DOE Security Office:
(A) The date(s) each Review was conducted;
(B) Each entity that provided information concerning the individual;
(C) A certification that the review was conducted in accordance with all applicable laws, regulations, and Executive Orders, including those governing the processing and privacy of an individual’s information collected during the review;
(D) A certification that all information collected during the review was reviewed and evaluated in accordance with the Contractor’s personnel policies; and
(E) The results of the test for illegal drugs.
(i) Criminal liability. It is understood that disclosure of any classified information relating to the work or services ordered hereunder to any person not entitled to receive it, or failure to protect any classified information, special nuclear material, or other Government property that may come to the Contractor or any person under the Contractor’s control in connection with work under this contract, may subject the Contractor, its agents, employees, or Subcontractors to criminal liability under the laws of the United States (see the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, 42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.; 18 U.S.C. 793 and 794).
(j) Foreign ownership, control, or influence.
(1) The Contractor shall immediately provide the cognizant security office written notice of any change in the extent and nature of foreign ownership, control or influence over the Contractor which would affect any answer to the questions presented in the Standard Form (SF) 328, Certificate Pertaining to Foreign Interests, executed prior to award of this contract. The Contractor will submit the Foreign Ownership, Control or Influence (FOCI) information in the format directed by DOE. When completed the Contractor must print and sign one copy of the SF 328 and submit it to the Contracting Officer. In addition, any notice of changes in ownership or control which are required to be reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, or the Department of Justice, shall also be furnished concurrently to the Contracting Officer.
(2) If a Contractor has changes involving foreign ownership, control, or influence, DOE must determine whether the changes will pose an undue risk to the common defense and security. In making this determination, DOE will consider proposals made by the Contractor to avoid or mitigate foreign influences.
(3) If the cognizant security office at any time determines that the Contractor is, or is potentially, subject to foreign ownership, control, or influence, the Contractor shall comply with such instructions as the Contracting Officer shall provide in writing to protect any classified information or special nuclear material.
(4) The Contracting Officer may terminate this contract for default either if the Contractor fails to meet obligations imposed by this clause or if the Contractor creates a foreign ownership, control, or influence situation in order to avoid performance or a termination for default. The Contracting Officer may terminate this contract for convenience if the Contractor becomes subject to foreign ownership, control, or influence and for reasons other than avoidance of performance of the contract, cannot, or chooses not to, avoid or mitigate the foreign ownership, control, or influence problem.
(k) Employment announcements. When placing announcements seeking applicants for positions requiring access authorizations, the Contractor shall include in the written vacancy announcement, a notification to prospective applicants that reviews, and tests for the absence of any illegal drug as defined in 10 CFR 707.4, will be conducted by the employer and a background investigation by the Federal government may be required to obtain an access authorization prior to employment, and that subsequent reinvestigations may be required. If the position is covered by the Counterintelligence Evaluation Program regulations at 10 CFR part 709, the announcement should also alert applicants that successful completion of a counterintelligence evaluation may include a counterintelligence-scope polygraph examination.
(l) Flow down to subcontracts. The Contractor agrees to insert terms that conform substantially to the language of this clause, including this paragraph, in all subcontracts under its contract that will require subcontractor employees to possess access authorizations. Additionally, the Contractor must require such subcontractors to have an existing DOD or DOE facility clearance or submit a completed SF 328, Certificate Pertaining to Foreign Interests, as required in 48 CFR 952.204-73, Facility Clearance, and obtain a foreign ownership, control and influence determination and facility clearance prior to award of a subcontract. Information to be provided by a subcontractor pursuant to this clause may be submitted directly to the Contracting Officer. For purposes of this clause, subcontractor means any subcontractor at any tier and the term “Contracting Officer” means the DOE Contracting Officer. When this clause is included in a subcontract, the term “Contractor” shall mean subcontractor and the term “contract” shall mean subcontract.
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