SAPs can range from black projects to routine but especially-sensitive operations, such as COMSEC maintenance or presidential transportation support.
Shortly before America's involvement in World War II Franklin D. Roosevelt signs Executive Order 8381, creating the three security levels for his country's most important documents – Restricted, Confidential, and Secret.
[2] After the conclusion of World War II, President Harry S. Truman issues Executive order 10104, and creates the "Top Secret classification" designation.
There are now explicit guidelines for the remaining three classification levels to prevent a systematic flood of classified documents coming from the Pentagon and other agencies.
An unacknowledged SAP (or USAP) is made known only to authorized persons, including members of the appropriate committees of the United States Congress.
Defense Department sources usually state that it is,[11][12] and at least one publication refers to a separate SCI-SAP category alongside the three listed above.
[13] The Intelligence Community, drawing on the DNI's statutory responsibility to protect intelligence sources and methods, finds a legal basis for SCI separate from that of SAPs, and consequently consider SCI and SAPs separate instances of the more general controlled access program.
The words SPECIAL ACCESS REQUIRED, followed by the program nickname or codeword, are placed in the document's banner line.