The recent publication of the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) in 6 CFR part 27 created a new class of sensitive documents. These documents will contain Chemical-Terrorism Vulnerability Information (CVI) that must be protected from disclosure to unauthorized personnel. The Department of Homeland Security has established rules for how this information is supposed to be protected and an integral part of this protection is the way the document is marked.

Each company that is covered by CFATS is going to be required to develop, submit, receive and file documents containing CVI. These records will be subject to inspection by DHS. This means that it will be important to have all of the documents on file properly marked in accordance with the DHS rules for protecting CVI (Section 27.400).

All documents must be protected by a cover sheet. A copy of this cover sheet can be downloaded from the DHS CVI page. A cover sheet must be placed before the first sheet and after the last sheet of any document. This is done so that anyone picking up the document can see that it contains sensitive information. This means that the printing on both cover sheets must be facing outwards. If the document also contains classified information, the security classification cover sheet must be over the CVI coversheet since classified information requires more protection. Electronically stored documents will include a copy of the Cover Sheet as the first page in the document.

Each page of the document will have the following heading at the top of the page. If the document is classified this heading will go immediately below the document security classification.

Chemical-terrorism Vulnerability Information

At the bottom of each page of the document will be the distribution limitation statement. If the document contains classified information, this statement will go immediately above the security classification marking.

WARNING: This record contains Chemical-terrorism Vulnerability Information controlled by 6 CFR 27.400. Do not disclose to persons without a "need to know" in accordance with 6 CFR 27.400(e). Unauthorized release may result in civil penalties or other action. In any administrative or judicial proceeding, this information shall be treated as classified information in accordance with 6 CFR 27.400(h) and (i).

Each paragraph of the document that contains CVI information will be marked at the start of the paragraph with "(CVI)". If the paragraph contains classified information, this marking will go immediately behind the security classification marking for the paragraph.

Finally each document will have a tracking number assigned to it. This tracking number will consist of the Facility Identification number assigned during the CSAT registration process. The remaining numbers will identify the source of the information within the system. A detailed explanation can be found in Appendix A of the "DHS Procedural Manual for Safeguarding Information Designated as CVI". If a document containing CVI is not specifically listed in this appendix, it must be derived from one of the listed documents. In that case it utilizes the same tracking number as the source document. The tracking number will be included as an endnote to the document.

While proper marking of CVI documents is not that difficult, it is very important. The CVI program was designed to protect sensitive business information against unauthorized release to competitors and to protect all information concerning the security of matters at chemical facilities from anyone not authorized access to that data. It is in the best interest of each chemical facility to protect its own information.