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Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
USAID staff told to shred and burn classified documents
Staff at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) have been told to shred and burn classified documents and personnel files. The request raised alarm among employees and labour groups amid the ongoing dismantling of the agency. Acting Executive Secretary Erica Y Carr sent an email that thanked staff for clearing out classified safes and personnel documents from a Washington DC office and told them to meet in the building's lobby for an all-day disposal event on Tuesday. "Shred as many documents first, and reserve the burn bags for when the shredder becomes available or needs a break," her email to staff read. Typically, documents placed in burn bags for disposal are sealed and then taken to a secure site for incineration. The email asked staff not to overfill the burn bags and label them with the words "SECRET" and "USAID (B/IO)" - which stands for bureau, or independent office - using permanent markers. The BBC has viewed a copy of the email, which was also reported by its US partner, CBS News. It was first reported by ProPublica. The US State Department did not immediately return a request for comment. It was not immediately clear if the agency had preserved copies of the documents marked for destruction. The American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), a union representing USAID staff, was aware employees had been asked to shred documents, spokesperson Nikki Gamer told the BBC. The union said it was "alarmed" by the reports and warned that such documents "may be relevant to ongoing litigation regarding the termination of USAID employees and the cessation of USAID grants". The Trump administration faces multiple lawsuits over its dismantling of USAID, which began shortly after Trump took office in January. Unions and other groups have challenged the administration's power to shut down an agency and freeze funds that had been established and approved by the US Congress. AFSA noted that federal law dictates that government records must be preserved as they are "essential to transparency, accountability, and the integrity of the legal process". The union warned that " the unlawful destruction of federal records could carry serious legal consequences for anyone directed to act in violation of the law." Government agencies do occasionally destroy paper records of classified materials and other documents, but strict procedures govern the process. The Federal Records Act of 1950 sets out guidelines for the proper disposal of documents and creating backup or archival records, including electronic records. The email sent by Carr did not contain some of the details traditionally found in a records disposal request, raising concerns about procedure, experts told the BBC. "There is no indication in this email order that any thought is being given to proper retention or even identifying which records can be destroyed and which records cannot," said Kel McClanahan, executive director of the National Security Counselors, a non-profit law firm in Washington. Mr McClanahan filed a complaint with the National Archives and Records Administration, asking them to "take immediate measures" to stop the destruction of records. The loss of personnel records could also cause serious complications for federal employees who need to verify or process their employment benefits. USAID was one of the first targets of the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which was established by the Trump administration to root out what they view as waste and fraud in the federal bureaucracy. Billionaire Elon Musk is helping lead the agency. Musk referred to the agency as "evil" and the White House has argued that the agency's international programmes were a wasteful use of taxpayer dollars. Over a few dramatic weeks, the agency was essentially shut down, with thousands of employees being laid off or placed on administrative leave. Many foreign service officers stationed abroad received little to no instructions for how to return home. Many USAID staff remain on administrative leave, which allows them to receive pay but keeps their lives and careers in limbo. The Trump administration named Secretary of State Marco Rubio the acting head of USAID in February and announced that Pete Marocco, who works at the State Department, would oversee its daily operations. The Trump administration also ordered a temporary freeze on foreign aid that included funds distributed by USAID, which sent shockwaves through the international development community and forced some private companies and nonprofits to lay off staff. On Monday, Rubio announced on X that the administration was cancelling "83% of the programmes at USAID." "The 5200 contracts that are now cancelled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States," he wrote. The State Department would administer the roughly 1,000 remaining grants. 'We're pawns in a game': US aid workers left in limbo overseas as agency slashed How a US freeze upended global aid in a matter of days
BBC News
12-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
USAID staff told to shred and burn classified documents
Staff at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) have been told to shred and burn classified documents and personnel files. The request raised alarm among employees and labour groups amid the ongoing dismantling of the Executive Secretary Erica Y Carr sent an email that thanked staff for clearing out classified safes and personnel documents from a Washington DC office and told them to meet in the building's lobby for an all-day disposal event on Tuesday. "Shred as many documents first, and reserve the burn bags for when the shredder becomes available or needs a break," her email to staff read. Typically, documents placed in burn bags for disposal are sealed and then taken to a secure site for email asked staff not to overfill the burn bags and label them with the words "SECRET" and "USAID (B/IO)" - which stands for bureau, or independent office - using permanent BBC has viewed a copy of the email, which was also reported by its US partner, CBS News. It was first reported by US State Department did not immediately return a request for comment. It was not immediately clear if the agency had preserved copies of the documents marked for American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), a union representing USAID staff, was aware employees had been asked to shred documents, spokesperson Nikki Gamer told the union said it was "alarmed" by the reports and warned that such documents "may be relevant to ongoing litigation regarding the termination of USAID employees and the cessation of USAID grants".The Trump administration faces multiple lawsuits over its dismantling of USAID, which began shortly after Trump took office in January. Unions and other groups have challenged the administration's power to shut down an agency and freeze funds that had been established and approved by the US noted that federal law dictates that government records must be preserved as they are "essential to transparency, accountability, and the integrity of the legal process".The union warned that " the unlawful destruction of federal records could carry serious legal consequences for anyone directed to act in violation of the law."Government agencies do occasionally destroy paper records of classified materials and other documents, but strict procedures govern the process. The Federal Records Act of 1950 sets out guidelines for the proper disposal of documents and creating backup or archival records, including electronic email sent by Carr did not contain some of the details traditionally found in a records disposal request, raising concerns about procedure, experts told the BBC."There is no indication in this email order that any thought is being given to proper retention or even identifying which records can be destroyed and which records cannot," said Kel McClanahan, executive director of the National Security Counselors, a non-profit law firm in McClanahan filed a complaint with the National Archives and Records Administration, asking them to "take immediate measures" to stop the destruction of loss of personnel records could also cause serious complications for federal employees who need to verify or process their employment was one of the first targets of the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which was established by the Trump administration to root out what they view as waste and fraud in the federal bureaucracy. Billionaire Elon Musk is helping lead the agency. Musk referred to the agency as "evil" and the White House has argued that the agency's international programmes were a wasteful use of taxpayer a few dramatic weeks, the agency was essentially shut down, with thousands of employees being laid off or placed on administrative leave. Many foreign service officers stationed abroad received little to no instructions for how to return USAID staff remain on administrative leave, which allows them to receive pay but keeps their lives and careers in Trump administration named Secretary of State Marco Rubio the acting head of USAID in February and announced that Pete Marocco, who works at the State Department, would oversee its daily Trump administration also ordered a temporary freeze on foreign aid that included funds distributed by USAID, which sent shockwaves through the international development community and forced some private companies and nonprofits to lay off Monday, Rubio announced on X that the administration was cancelling "83% of the programmes at USAID.""The 5200 contracts that are now cancelled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States," he wrote. The State Department would administer the roughly 1,000 remaining grants.
The Guardian
11-03-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
USAid employees told to destroy classified documents, email shows
Officials at the US Agency for International Development (USAid) have begun a large-scale destruction of classified documents at their headquarters in the Ronald Reagan Building including with shredders and using 'burn bags', according to an internal email seen by the Guardian. The email, sent by Acting USAid Secretary Erica Y Carr, instructs staff on procedures for clearing 'classified safes and personnel documents' through shredding and the use of 'burn bags' marked 'SECRET' throughout the day on Tuesday. 'Shred as many documents first, and reserve the burn bags for when the shredder becomes unavailable or needs a break,' Carr wrote in the email, which provides detailed instructions on how to properly seal and label the burn bags. The timing of this document purge comes amid ongoing controversy over what is essentially the shuttering of USAid following the Trump administration's attempts to reshape the independent agency through the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (Doge). Doge is headed by Elon Musk, the world's richest man, and he has been tasked with slashing the number of jobs at the federal government and the amount of money it spends. Amid the huge turmoil that has gripped the US government as the Musk-led Doge carries out its activities, USAid has been among the worst-hit government agencies. The huge cuts at USAid have impacted projects across the globe as vast numbers of projects are paused, shuttered or have their funding slashed. There has been widespread outcry at the move from USAid workers but also across the international development sector as they warn of the detrimental impact it will have on some of the world's most vulnerable populations. When federal agencies are dissolved or restructured, their records are typically transferred to successor agencies or the National Archives and Records Administration (Nara) in accordance with the Federal Records Act (Fra). During the US' hasty exit out of Afghanistan in 2021, the Nara sent a reminder to safely and lawfully discard the sensitive documents. But compliance with the Fra in this situation is deeply in question, since the law explicitly prohibits the destruction of government records before their designated retention period – typically a minimum of three years. There's also lingering concern that it risks permanently eliminating evidence needed for ongoing Freedom of Information Act (Foia) requests and future oversight investigations. Democratic members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio in February demanding answers about Doge's access to USAid headquarters and agency records, though they did not specifically address potential document destruction. It's unclear whether proper records management protocols are being followed during this process, or if documents that should be preserved are being destroyed. 'If you need additional burn bags or sharpie markers, please let me or the SEC InfoSec Team know,' the email said. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment.
