Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) - Members

The PIDB consists of nine members, five appointed by the President, and one each by the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House, and the Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate. The PIDB’s founding statute requires the appointment of U.S. citizens who are preeminent in the fields of history, national security, foreign policy, intelligence policy, social science, law, or archival science.

Acting Chair and Vice Chair Alissa M. Starzak was appointed on February 27, 2018, to serve on the Board by Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer. The current authorizing legislation extends her term to February 15, 2022. On July 1, 2020, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed John F. Tierney to a new three-year term on the Board until June 30, 2023. On August 24, 2020, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) appointed Harold W. (“Trey”) Gowdy, III to a three-year term on the Board. On October 8, 2020, the President of the United States Donald Trump appointed Ben Powell and Michael G. Lawrence to three-year terms on the Board.

Current Members Biographies

Presidential Appointees

Michael G. Lawrence

On October 9, 2020, President Donald J. Trump appointed Michael G. Lawrence to a three-year term on the Board. Mr. Lawrence entered the Senior Executive Service in 1999. He retired in June 2019 after a 20+ year career in the Intelligence Community (IC) where he held leadership positions at several IC components. In his last assignment, he set up and then served as the Director of the Enterprise Functional Team at the National Security Agency (NSA). Previously, he served at the Senior Advisor to the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) from 2013 to 2018. In this role, he was responsible for advising the DNI and other IC senior leaders on capabilities, policy, coordination, and oversight relating to Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Between 2008 and 2013, Mr. Lawrence served as the National Security Agency Chair at the National Defense University (NDU) at Ft. McNair. In this role, he was the highest-ranking Intelligence Officer at NDU. As a member of the faculty he taught courses on Strategic Leadership and Executive Communication for Strategic Leaders, Space and Industry, Media and Industry, and courses on regional security issues. Mr. Lawrence was awarded the Meritorious Civilian Award by the Joint Chiefs of Staff for instructing the next generation of Senior Military leaders. Mr. Lawrence served as the Director in the Office of Strategic Communications, Business Plans, and Operations at the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) from 2007 to 2008 where he was responsible for directing and implementing all NRO interactions with the Congress, IC and other Executive branch agencies, the press, and the private sector. Mr. Lawrence received the NRO’s Distinguished Service Medal for his work. Between 2001 and 2007, he served as the Principal Director for Legislative Affairs at the NSA and provided critical leadership in shepherding critical legislation through Congress to support the NSA’s post-9/11 Mission. He received the Director’s Distinguished Service Medal for this work to support NSA’s mission. Mr. Lawrence began his career at the Office of National Drug Control Policy in the legislative affairs office, rising to become the Acting Director. Mr. Lawrence graduated with honors from John Jay College, with a BS in Criminal Justice. He also attended Western Michigan University Law School. Currently, Mr. Lawrence is a volunteer with Sowing Seeds in Marshfield, MA.

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Benjamin A. Powell

On October 9, 2020, President Donald J. Trump appointed Benjamin A. Powell to a three-year term on Board. Mr. Powell is currently a partner at WilmerHale, where he co-chairs the cybersecurity and privacy practice. Mr. Powell was confirmed by the Senate as General Counsel of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in 2006. He served as General Counsel to the first three Directors of National Intelligence. He served as Special Assistant to the President and Associate White House Counsel from 2002 to 2006, where he was responsible for Intelligence Community-related legislation and intelligence transformation initiatives. This included efforts related to the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, National Counterterrorism Center, enhancing Central Intelligence Agency capabilities, and terrorism information sharing. He was the White House representative to the President’s Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction. The Commission examined issues related to the Intelligence Community’s approach to threats from Iraq, North Korea, Iran, Libya, Al-Qaeda, and other entities. Mr. Powell clerked on the United States Supreme Court for Justices John Paul Stevens and Byron White, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit for Judge John M. Walker, Jr. Mr. Powell served in the United States Air Force prior to law school and also worked for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. As an officer in the Air Force, Mr. Powell supported intelligence missions of the United States Space Command Joint Space Intelligence Center, Fleet Intelligence Centers, National Maritime Intelligence Center, United States Central Command, Air Combat Command, and counter-narcotics tactical intelligence centers. Mr. Powell received degrees in applied science from the School of Engineering and Applied Science and in finance from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his J.D. degree from Columbia Law School.

Congressional Appointees

Harold W. ("Trey") Gowdy​

On August 24, 2020, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy appointed Harold W. (“Trey”) Gowdy, III to a three-year term on the Board. Mr. Gowdy served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina’s 4th congressional district from 2011-2019. In Congress, Rep. Gowdy’s committee assignments included the Judiciary Committee, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the Education and Workforce Committee, and the Ethics Committee. He chaired the Oversight and Government Reform Committee and the U.S. House Select Committee on Events Surrounding the 2012 Terrorist Attacks in Benghazi. Prior to entering Congress, he served for 16 years as a prosecutor in South Carolina, including six years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and federal prosecutor, and ten years as the elected 7th Circuit Solicitor for Cherokee and Spartanburg Counties. Mr. Gowdy holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Baylor University (1986), and Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina (1989). He clerked for John Gardner on the South Carolina Court of Appeals and for U.S. District Judge George Anderson, Jr. After retiring from Congress, Mr. Gowdy returned to Greenville, SC where he is a Partner in the law firm Nelson, Mullins, Riley and Scarborough. Mr. Gowdy is a public speaker and the author of Doesn’t Hurt to Ask: Using the Power of Questions to Communicate, Connect, and Persuade (August 18, 2020).

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Alissa M. Starzak​ (Acting Chair and Vice Chair)

Alissa M. Starzak was appointed on February 27, 2018, by Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer. She has served as Acting Chair and Vice Chair since June 5, 2020. The current authorizing legislation extends her term to February 15, 2022. Presently, Ms. Starzak is Head of Public Policy at Cloudflare, a web security and optimization company. Prior to joining Cloudflare, Ms. Starzak worked for the U.S government in a variety of national security positions. Most recently, she served as the 21st General Counsel of the U.S. Department of the Army, after confirmation by the Senate. As General Counsel of the Army, she was the primary legal counsel to the Secretary of the Army and the Army’s chief legal officer. Her appointment as Army General Counsel followed service as the Deputy General Counsel for Legislation at the U.S. Department of Defense, where she advised on legal issues with a legislative or congressional component, and managed an office of attorneys responsible for developing the Department of Defense legislative program. Prior to moving to the Department of Defense, Ms. Starzak served as Counsel to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, focusing on legal issues relating to intelligence collection and covert action, and as an Assistant General Counsel at the Central Intelligence Agency’s Office of General Counsel. She also worked in private practice in Washington, D.C., and clerked for The Honorable E. Grady Jolly, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She graduated from Amherst College and the University of Chicago Law School, where she served as an editor of the University of Chicago Law Review. Ms. Starzak is serving her first term on the PIDB.

John F. Tierney

On July 1, 2020, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed John F. Tierney to a new three-year term on the Board. He previously was appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives on July 11, 2017, for a three-year term that was extended to June 29, 2021 in the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act. He resigned his position on the Board on June 30, 2020 to realign the House of Representatives appointments. His current three-year term will end on June 30, 2023. He is presently Executive Director at the Center for Arms Control & Non-Proliferation and its sister organization, The Council for a Livable World. His work focuses on national security issues, nuclear non-proliferation, missile defense and areas concerning peace and security. Mr. Tierney is a former nine-term Massachusetts Congressman who served on the House Intelligence Committee and chaired the National Security and Foreign Affairs Subcommittee of the Government Oversight and Reform Committee. His 18-year career included oversight of the Government Accountability Office’s annual assessment of the Pentagon’s Weapons Selection Programs and reform of overall Pentagon spending. Additionally, Mr. Tierney was a senior member of the Education and Workforce Committee of the House, where he served as Ranking Member on the Health, Employment, Labor and Pension Subcommittee, and served on the Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee where he had a prominent role in several Higher Education Reauthorization and Workforce Opportunity Reauthorization Acts and related legislation. Prior to being elected to Congress, Mr. Tierney was a Partner in the law firm Tierney, Kalis and Lucas, counsel for several community governments, a Trustee of Salem State College (now University) and member and President of the local Chamber of Commerce. He holds a B.A. from Salem State College and J.D. from Suffolk University Law School.

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