National Archive and Records Administration. The Information Security Oversight Office’s (ISOO) Report for Fiscal Year 2013, as required by Executive Order 13526, “Classified National Security Information” (the Order).

“Original classification authorities, also called original classifiers, are those individuals designated in writing, either by the President, by selected agency heads, or by designated senior agency officials with Top Secret original classification authority, to classify information in the first instance. Only original classifiers are authorized to determine what information, if disclosed without authorization, could reasonably be expected to cause damage to national security. Original classifiers must be able to identify or describe the damage. Agencies reported 2,269 OCAs in FY 2013; a 2 percent decrease from the 2,326  reported in FY 2012.”