INFORMATION CONTROL -- ARCHIVES, HISTORY, AND RECORDS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP05-01476R000100010003-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 17
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 12, 2013
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: May 26, 1972
• Content Type: MEMO

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MEMORANDUM. FOR: ? Deputy Director for Intelligence
Deputy Director for Plans
? ?.??? ^,
DDAv
26 May 1972
Deputy Dirc-ctor for Science and Technology
Deputy Director for Support
SUBJECT Information Control-- Archives, History,
and Records
1. Executive Order 11652 and the implementing National Security
Council Directives governing the classification/declassification of national
security information must be implemented by 1 June 1972. It is also clear
that new pressures are building under the Freedom of Information Act
toward declassification of events in U.S. history 1.Tiherein. CIA played a
significant role. The implications of these developments clearly require
the fullest coordination of information control procedures, including
records management, histories, and archives administration. ? It follows
that we should provide a single mechanism for the exe atio of these ro-;
grams.
2. In essence, the three elements of Information Control: Records.
Management, Archives, and History, all record our experience to make
it available for future use as required. This use includes Ide searches
for current operational support, ? briefing and training new personnel, and
answering press or congressional questions as to the Agency's role
earlier events.- The problem is to design 'a system which vill satisf -
answer the needs of the future in these fields with. a minimum expenc.. ure
of man-hours and funds at present. In these days of declining personnel
ceilings, we obviously cannot dedicate large amounts of current manpower
to making immediately available detailed answers to all coni:ingent ques-
tions. At the same time, We must constantly protect the sensitive sources-
and methods of intelligence in the national interest and respect our fiduciary'
responsibility for the safety of many of our sources.
\
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3. In our approach to this problem in this internally compartmented
? Agency, it is essential to decentralize much of the responsibility and most
-'?? ? Tel.:the actual effort. At the 'same time, this decentralization needs to be
y matched by a system which will indicate the degree to Whiehminimum
.? standards are Met by all units, and a mechanism by which. Units can profit
, .
interchange of experience' and. by sharing. solutionS...' ?
. .4. In our analysis we must clearly recognize different kind's of infprrriatio
material and the different purposes we expect them to serve. Some of our
. records are .important basic reference tools, e. g., CI files. Samc. are
analyst working files of moderate life requirements.. Some are formal
publications of the Agency distributed elsewhere.in the. government with
source .sanitization. Some are operational records and docurrients,. and.
some of these are highly sensitive and must remain compartmented as well
as classified. Some of our reviews of past events are essentially chronicles
of these events,. which have value to new arrivals. Some should be analytical..
.. reviews drawing lessons and conclusions. Our system should reflect these
differences if it is to do the job needed... ? ?
?
5. The following overall approach to this situation has been developed
.for implementation through the mechanisms indicated:
. Records Management
:11). Effective records management is..the foundation stone of
any satisfactory aCtion in these fields, as well as current operations
depending Upon effective .records. It must be the subject of continuing ?
, and serious attention at all levels of the Agency and is the direct and
' full responsibility of ,each Directorate and subordinate unit with respect.,
to its own records. The Executive Director will report on the Agency
program periodiaally to the Director and Deputy Director, and it will
:be reviewed semiannually with the Deputies.
(2) Therefore, a new Records Management Board is hereby
established with senior officer representation from the Office of the
? Director and each of the Directorates. The Office of the Director
representative will be. the Chairman and the Agency Records Manage-
ment Officer. The Directorate representatives will be of senior grade,
will be the Directorate Records Management Officer, and will be
assisted by full time Technical Assistants if they have other respon-
sibilities. This Board will serve as the internal Agency Classification/
Declassification Review Committee in compliance with Executive Order
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11652. The Board -will be supported by a Technical Committee of
full-time Records Officer representatives from each Directorate
and such panels as may be required.
(3) The first order of business for this Board will be the devel-
opment of a system and structure for the integrated administration and
management of our archives, history, and records declassification
systems, following the general principles outlined in this memorandum.
Regulations developed for publication in time to meet the 1 June deadline
of the Executive Order and implementing instructions are to be regarded
as interim measures to satisfy the immediacy of the deadline and serve
to highlight the importance of immediate concerted effort to establish
orderliand meaningful long-term programs.
(4) The Records Management Board \yin report its conclusions,
recommendations, etc., (with any dissents) directly to the Executive
Director. The Records Management Board will make semiannual reports
to the Executive Director, outlining the status of the Agency's Records
Management Program, any problems it-is experiencing, and its recom-
mendations for improvement of the program (including reports on records
management to be submitted by the Directorates). The Executive Direc-
tor will consult with the Deputy Directors bef6re implementing any such
recommendations. The present CIA Records Administration Branch,
Support Services Staff, DDS, will be transferred to the Office of the
'Executive Director-Comptroller and will become a Secretariat for the
"CIA Records Management Board. The CIA Records Center will remain
under the supervision of the Chief, Records Administration Branch in
the Office of the Executive Director.
(5) The Records Management Board will furnish a nonvoting
member to the Agency Information Processing Board, with authority ?
to submit agenda items and recommendations to the Information Pro-
cessing Board. will particularly bring to the attention of the Infor-
mation Processing Board those aspects of the Agency's Records Manage-
ment Program which should be considered by the Information Processing
Board, with any recommendations for support of the Agency Records
Management Program requiring Information Processing Board action.
He will similarly make available to the Records Management Board all '
information coming before the Information Processing Board which
?might be of value or be appropriately considered by the Agency Records.
Management Board and its members.
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(6) The Records Management Board will develop recommen-
dations as to categories of Agency records (such as the categories
in paragraph 6 above, plus any others deemed appropriate) and as
to specific guidelines for the selection, retention, and declassifica-
tion of records in these categories. These guidelines should also,
where appropriate, include time periods for retention and declassi-
fication by category and indicate disposition thereafter, and include
appropriate measures to comply with legal and executive require-
ments for retention and declassification.. In particular, recommen-
dations should be made as to the identification of cate ()ries which
ight appropriately be retired as classitie government documents
nder GSA. auspices or passed tothe National Archives, rather than...'
held solelyunder CIA control to protect intelligence sources and.
ethods.
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---(7) The Records IvIa.nagement Board will serve as the forum.
for recommendations for declassification, Agency contributions to
other Agency historical programs and other interagency problems
involving the Agency's records. -In this process, coordination will
be made as appropriate with the General Counsel, the Director of
Security, etc.
Imo
b. Archives
(1) Each unit submitting an annual report (see below) will.
identify its key documents and files for permanent inclusion in Agency- -
Archives. The Records Management Board will develop the system
or systems by which such documents will be identified on a systerr..5
basis during the year and indexed for later access and declassification.
review as an element of the Records Management Program. Annually,
each unit will make an overall review to ensure that the documents ?
Marked for archival retention are neither excessive in detail, inappro-
priately classified nor incomplete through omissions. A certificate.to
this effect will accompany the unit's Annual Report,. and the Agency
Archivist will report any problems in this process to the-Executive
Director throughthe Records Management Board.
(Z) The'Agency Records Management Officer will also be
appointed as the Agency Archivist, to supervise the Agency's .Archives ?
. Program. He will coordinate the execution of the Archives Program
through the. Agency Records Management Board. Ile' will work in close
coordination with the Agency Historian. ? The Deputy: Directors in their ?
? Directorate d will appoint their Records Manageinefit. Officers also as
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Directorate Archivists, to supervise this program in the Directorate.
The Agency and Directorate Archivists will supervise compliance
with overall Agency Archives regulations to be drawn up and issued
, after consultation with the Deputy Directors: A semiannual report
to the Executive Director on the Archives Program will be prepared
?
by the Records Management Board.
c. History
The major thrust of the.Agency Historical Program N,vill be
placed on the development of analytical histories of important Agency
activities 'and operations. The "Office History" approach to date, ?
.which has been largely successful in bringing our history up to 1965,
? will no longer be the major focus of the program, as the chronicling
of future Agency activity will take place under the Annual Report
system outlined below. Thus, future Agency histories will take major
subjects of Agency activity and analyze the ways in which the various
elements of the Agency worked together to produce the overall co-ntri-
..bution to the operation in question. There will be some situations in
which a single element of the Agency provided all or most of the Agency
.participation in any one activity. There will be Occasions also when
'sensitivity will require that any analytical review of an operation be
conducted in a most restricted fashion. This will apply to many
Clandestine Service histories. Priority will be given to establishing
the basic Agency history of the more prominent operations and acti-
vities in which the Agency has been engaged, e. g., Cuban Missile
Crisis, Bay of Pigs, War in Vietnam, War in Laos, Congo Operations,
U-2 Operations, etc., with particular attention to lessons derived from ?
these .experiences. These histories should also be indexed in a fashion .
to permit their use to provide immediate response to public or con-
gressional inquiries on these prominent events* to the extent feasible.
Histories will in the future depend upon Annual Reports for general
chronicle and upon the Archives. Program for identification of key
documents. The Agency Historian .will be an ex officio member of
, the Records Management Board, will report directly to the Executive
...Director, and will work in close coordination with the Agency Archi-
vist/Records Management Officer and; the Directorate Historians who
will be fully consulted on all matters 'affecting histories concerning
their Directorates.
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d. Annual Reports
(1) TO provide the necessary chronicle of the Agency's acti-
vities at minimum expenditure of.effort, a system of annual reports
of the units .and offices of the Agency will be developed. These will
be submitted to the next senior command level for review and then
held by the originating unit, with a copy incorporated in the Agency's
Archives. . The requirement for these annual reports will be timed
and coordinated with the submission of the Agency's Annual Report
to the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board and the Agency's
Annual Program submissions to avoid duplication of effort. The identi-
fication of the elements to submit these annual reports and an outline ?
of their format will be developed by the Agency Historian for the Execu-?
tive Director, in coordination with the Deputy Directors. These may ?
include significant contractor units, when these played a significant
role in Agency programs or operations. These annual reports should
highlight .major accomplishments, .major problems and overall con ?
-
- elusions and recommendations for future action, in the unit itself or
by elements supporting or associated with it. As required, compart-
mented annexes can be compiled and held separately covering parti-
cularly sensitive events.
(2) In many areas it will be essential to produce one-time
reports to cover the years from 1965 (or the most recent history) to
the current Annual Report. This will be undertaken by units identi-
fied to submit future Annual Reports. In th6se situations in which an
overall Agency history to be produced will cover the period in question, .
a separate Annual Report need not be developed (e. g., the War in.LaoS, .
the War in Vietnam), as the necessary chronicle and Archives can be? -
developed at the same time as the analytical history. In other cases,
'however, a. one-time effort to catch up to the current annual report,
system will be necessary, and this 'will be undertaken by the unit in ?
question. Staff supervision of this activity will be provided by the ?
Agency Historian and Archivist.
e. Classification and Decla.ssification
The Records Management Board will be the focal point for the
Agency's implementation of the classification and declassification
procedures required by. Executive Order 11652. The Board will coordi-
nate ,as required with the General Counsel, the Director of Security,
and others in carrying out this responsibility. The Agency Represent.z...-
tive to the Interageitcy 'Classification Review Committee under Section
. -71???.!-7.:11: ?
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? 7 of this Order will work through the Agency Records Management
Board in carrying out his responsibilities.
1. A Special Assistant for Information Control will be appointed
? by the Executive Director to serve as Agency Records Management
Officer, ?Agency Archivist, Chairman of the Agency Records Manage-
ment Board, and perform such other duties in the field of Information
, Control as ?the Executive Director may prescribe.
W. E. Colby
Executive Director-C.
? cc: Inspector General
? General Counsel
Director of Security
tr".1.n
? ?
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Problems
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1. as of the opinion that he needed some type of
index to Agency-produced publications - -no such index had been
available to the Archives since the demise of the IPI. He
suggested that CRS might be able to furnish listings, by year,
of all CIA and foreign documents indexed (apparently he wanted
both finished intelligence and raw reports). It was my opinion
that t1?-cle. 1,istirgs would be very bulky to store and difficult
-to use*. l'Arliita'as CRS maintains the index records as kzastc.
of the active AEGIS data base, he could be provida with-Aistings
on an ad hoc bans if he really required them. When and if
CRS plaiar.-te,retiresa portion of the automated index (e.g.,
purging all entries over 10 years of age), then the retired
index records could be put on COM and stored in Archives.
This would be of some value. It could be checked against actual
holdings, e.g., to determine gaps in the Archives collections.
It might also prove of some help when the time rolled around to
review all classified documents approaching their 30th anniversary
to determine whether conti-hued classifivation was necessary.
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2.
maintains that the Agency is required to retain
perxnanentl.y negatives of egguTill photograph accessioned.
claim He based this on theIHNARS attitud25expressed comaavalaig
OSS photographs. (I would persohilIy-question the need to
retain photographs acquired from commercial sources - -and probably
sone of_t_hp_ethers_as we11.4 A number of things related to
-PHOtOgiaphs bother He feels that the negatives are
relatively worthless unless he also has an index to them.
The Graphics Register did mainttin an index to both personality
and ground photographs. Following the CRS reorganization of 19672
all indexing of photographs was discontinued except for those
round phtthographs accessioned kockinvillitialbciazioithrtil on
subjects and, of course, this indexing ceased in December
1971 with thWranaFer of the ground photography collection to
NPIC. For epe44:18.nal purposes, the CRS files'of personality
prints servee-as a.a. indextsto theApersonality negative file.
The grouhd phdtography collection in NPIC has a logical filing
scheme, augmented by colorioding to facilitate searching.
ro
In-bra4h-Iastanevs, th4prill s reference.sale corresponding
negativel, Inasmuch as the rint filebrare constantly subject
to purging, however, there are many negatives which are indexed
in no fashion. In addition to the negatives, Archives receives
many prints (which may or may not have been accessioned into the
Agency photo collections) as attachments to information reports.
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Problems
Archives (contd.)
3. said that Archives was obtaining copies of most
of the formal biographic publications (though he suspected, from
gaps in the numbers, that his collection was far from being
complete). He raised the question of ad hoc biographic reports
which receive only a limited dissemination. He drew a parallel
between these and tr_adlioc intelligence memoranda prepared by
production offices; said that OCI furnishes Archives with
carbon copies of its informal production. My personal opinion is
that Archives should receive copies of only those ad hoc biographies
which were imPortant because of their use?e.g., biographies
prepared in support of a trip abroad by the President. Most ad hoc
biographies are nothing but updated versions of reports issued
in other series (such as the BH series), formatted in a different
manner and perhaps abbreviated.
4. Certain of the production offices furnish Archives
with supplementary or background papers connected with itrs4-c
formal production. ONE does this consistently in the case of
the NIEs. refers to these as "research project" files.
The folders incltde such things as preliminary drafts,mmt
contributions reciived from other components, and the scope
papers. (This, incidentally, duplicates some of the submissions
--from other components.) OCI apparently sends to Archives the
source evaluation sheets which are required by IRS (as a servicez
to the DDP). It seems to me that if any organization were to
preserve these evaluation sheets, it should be IRS. I doubt
if they wo e to be of any long?term valuze. In this
connection, also asked me if I knew anything about
production offices maintaining lists of the sources used in
published reports?my knowledge was limited rimarily to the
premetilmaz procedures followed in CRS. felt certain that
the availability of a list of the source socuments used in the
preparation of a report would greatly facilitate the process of
reviewing them for possible declassification. In addition to
the Publication Source Survey (Form 3492), OCI provides Archives
with an Authorization Sheet (Form 2024), and a Standard Distribution
List for its publications.
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5. Archives is not getting copies of sanitized versions of
CIA publicatiohs. feels that it should, and the matter is
mentioned in the model Records Retention Plan. From a practical
standpoint, said that the availability of the sanitized
version of the report might be a factor in later determining whether
or not the publication could be declassified for public release.
6. thought that it might be useful ifOrchives
to?loe?titeed as the depository for classified materials for the
presidential libraries. Of,poge, Archives does have the
materials for the LBJ and EiaiE4wer libraries. What he has in
mind is, in anticipation of future requirements, the Agency should
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Archives (contd.)
start collecting presidential library materials at the outset
of each administration. Question: Are we convinced that every
president will have a library? Also, I suspect that to a certain
extent documents are being collected on a current basis for
deposit in presidential libraries at a later date--certainly
the DDI accumulated the support materials for the Nixon visits
to Peking and Moscow.
7. feels that the official record copy of each
document should indicate on its face all officialx actions
taken with regard to it. This, 4?92prs4 would not be possible
in the case of microfilm records ,.4e early in the information
handling cycle.
8. On 2 December 1970 prppared a memo specifying
the archival requirements for motion picture films and the types
of copies needed. A copy of this memo went to on
t.04 kT4,7
2 February 1971. There-ha.s.beem.te-Agency compliance thus fa. c.44,z
The OSS films are, of course, in the custody of SSU--and this ba? 41e, ,
104 44,
collection could be viewed as essentially anextension of the
Agency Archives. Other films which
feels should be
C
deposited in Archives include Agency-produced films (training,
public relations, etc.),
(The 1970 CAS Records Control Schedule had
listed all films as temporary.)
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ISSUE: ARCHIVISTS
Question: Would it be a viable solution to abandon the policy
of maintaining separate Agency Archives, turning over custody
of CIA's records of enduring value to the National Archives
in lieu thereof? Does the National Archives have sufficient
space to accommodate these records and would the National
Archives be willing to accept the records?
Discussion: In point of fact, the National Archives does
have custody and legal control of a considerable volume
of records of the CIA and its predecessor organizations.
For example, Record Group 2260Dffice Of Strategic Services)
consists of 935 cubic feet of records, primarily the records
of the Research and Analysis Branch of OSS, which were
given to the Department of State at the time of the
dissolution of OSS and subsequently turned over to the
National Archives by the Department; Record Group 262
(Foreign Broadcast Intelligence Service) contains 702
cubic feet of records which were turned over to the
National Archives at the time that FBIS was a component
of the Federal Communications Commission; RecordsGroup 263
(Central Intelligence Agency) is also comprised of FBIS
records, 133 cubic feet of which were turned over to the
National Archives after FBIS became a unit of the CIA
(the latest accessioning action occurred in 1951). In
addition, large quantities of OSS records are to be
found intermingled with the records of the Department of
State, the various defense agencies, and the now-defunct
World War II emergency agencies. Relatively few CIA
records, on the other hand, would be found in the National
Archives record groups. Many such records are stored
by 11:Vher Government agencies at the Washington National
Records Center, but until such time as these records
are offered to the National Archives for final appraisal
and accessioning, they are the property of the agency
which deposited them at the Records Center.
There is little doubt that the National Archives
would be willing, even eager, to accept custody of
the Agency's records. It would causeproblems, to be
sure, but nothing that the National Archives could not
resolve through the expenditure of public funds. The
problems would include space, secure storage facilities,
additional staff, and special clearances for the current
staff. The National Archives Building is essentially
filled to capacity, and the organization was forced to
store many record groups at the Washington National
Records Center. This Records Center is now pressed
for space; moreover, the environmental conditions there
are not up to normal archival standards. The National
Archives is hopeful of acquiring another building in
ADMINISTRATIVE?INTERNAL USE ONLY -7
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the future, to be located at the site of the present Kann's
department store. Something will have to be done soon, but
no definite commitment has been received from OMB or Congress.
records are stored at the Washington National
Records Center, but, as far as is known to this office, none
are to be found at the National Archives Building or, indeed,
in the legal and physical custody of the National Archives-'
(i.e., accessioned into the National Archives). The Presidential
Library system, of course, does include among its
holdings, but this is another matter. Only a handful of National
Archives staff members are cleared for and appropriate
secure storage areas are minimal.
It is not unusual for intelligence and security agencies
to retain custody and control over their records. Some of
them store semicurrent records in the Washington National
Records Center, whereas the Agency even maintains its own
records center, but very few noncurrent records are offered
by them to the National Archives for accessioning. For
example, the National Archives has virtually no records
from the AEC, the NSA, or the DIA, although there are
records groups for each of these agencies. The record
group for the FBI consists of only 28 cubic feet of records.
The Agency chose to operate its own records center and
archives in order to control access to sensitive records.
National Archives personnel are no doubt as loyal and
trustworthy as our own employees, but the fact remains that
theipot indoctrinated with the necessity for protecting
sensitive sources and methods--if indeed they could even
recognize them. The prime motivation for the archivist is
to provide maximum access to requesters. This can be seen
today in the service activities of the Presidential Libraries,
in particular. The requester is virtually provided with a
"shbpping list" of classified or otherwise restricted documents,
and every effort is made to assist him in levying mandatory
review requests on the agency of origin.
The present philosophy of the Agency does not envisage
retaining custody of its archival materials indefinitely.
When they have been reviewed and declassified, they will be
turned over to the National Archives in order to afford
maximum access to researchers. Some materials, OSS operational
records pertaining to China and French Indochina, have already
been accessioned by the National Archives from the Agency
holdings. There are sizable quantities of other OSS records--
still and motion picture photography, e.g.--which could be
safely offered to the National Archives if approval could
be obtained from Agency management.
The maintenance of separate Agency Archives--and the
same situation prevails with respect to the Agency Records
Center--represents an expense to the Agency, and is probably
more costly to the taxpayer than would be the case if
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this were not done. The benefits in terms of convenilence
to operating components and historical researchers from the
Agency, and the added security which derives from maintaining
physical custody over the records probably warrant the added
expense. What sort of price tag can you place on the safeguarding
of information which, if released, might result in the death
of an agent?
So strongly has the Agency management felt concerning
the necessity for intelligence officerstto control access to
intelligence records, that the Agency decided to detail
personnel to the National Archives to review the OSS records
up for declassification--this despite the fact that the
Agency does not "own" the records and did not even turn
them over to the National Archives. The Records Declassification
Division of the National Archives would have been willing
to perform this task, but Agency management was unwilling
to trust their judgments.
Question: Shouldn't there be an Agency policy drafted on
Archives and an Archivist's role in an Archives Program?
Where should it be located organizationally? What is
the relationship of the Historical Staff with the Archives
Program? Are new "empires" beginning to be formed?
Discussion: These questions have been batted around in
the Agency for a long time. After considerable soul-searching
and compromising, an Agency Archives Regulation has finally
been drafted and is now in the process of final coordination.
A copy of the draft of is attached. As you will
note, it calls for the designation of a total of five
Archivists, an Agency Archivist (who will also function
as the Archivist for the Office of the DCI) and an Archivist
for each of the four directorates. An earlier, more detailed
version of the Archives Regulation specified that the title
of Archtvist and the corresponding duties could be assigned
to individuals already wearing another hat, such as a
Directorate-level Records Management Officer. It is
therefore wholly possible that a formal Agency Archives
Program may be established without the creation of any
additional slots.
As you noted, the Special Assistant for Information
Control was vested with the title of Agency Archivist at
the time that his position was created by the Executive
Director-Comptroller. It was recognized by Mr. Colby that
the time that the Special Assistant for Information Control
could devote to archival matters would be limited. Thought
was given to the feasibility of obtaining the services of
an archivist from the staff of the National Archives, but
some opposition surfaced to this course of action, particularly
from the then-DDP. Another alternative considered was to
select a veteran Agency employee and provide him with training
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in archives philiosophy and administration. Mr. Colby approved
in principle the proposal that a slot be established for an
assistant to the Special Assistant for Information Control,
with this assistant serving, after suitable training, as an
advisor on archives matters. This slot, which was never
established due to the subsequent reorganization of the Agency,
it was recognized,might fivolve into that of Agency Archivist.
An intelligence officer from the DDI was assigned to
the Office of the Special Assistant for Information Control.
He received orientation in the Agency Records Management
Program, operation of the Agency Archives and the Agency
Records Center, and various Agency information handling
systems..W.Aolitical scientist by training, his Agency
work experience had been limited to DDI assignments, but
had included such things as intelligence production, information
storage and retrieval, EDP systems analysis, and service on
interagency information processing study groups. From
Jamuary to Mid-March 1973, he'attended a formal archivists'
training course at the National Archives. When not actually
attending classes, he visited various components of the
Office of National Archives, ?the Office of Records Management,
the Office of Federal Records Centers, and the Office of
Prstidential Libraries for briefings, tours, and general
discussions. The contacts thereby established have proved
extremely useful since then, and were probably of greater
value that the formal lecture sessions and the assigned
readings.
Upon the completion of his assignment to the National
Archives, he began functioning as Staff Assistant for Archives.
He spent a considerable amount of time working with the
Chief/Agency Archives in refiningthe criteria for "permanent"
records, utilizing his contacts in the Records Appraisal
Division of the National Archives for guidance. Some solid
results were achieved, but the press of work in the Office
of the Special Assistant for Information Control necessitated
that his time be diverted to other activities--management
analysis and, more particularly, declassification matters.
The current thinking is that he should serve with the new
Classification Programs Branch, with achival responsibilities
as a collateral assignment. Needless to say, declassification
and archives are closely related matters.
The Historical Staff has a legitimate interest in the
Agency Archives Program. Indeed, members of the Staff,
along with the component historians, constitute the principal
Agency clientele of the Agency Archives. Recognition is
accorded the archives role of the Historical Staff in its
basic regulation, viz., that the Staff is to provide guidance
as to which Agency records are of historical value. Mr. Colby,
in establishing the position of Special Assistant for Information
Control, stressed the close relationship of the Agency historical,
records management, archival, and classification/declassification
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STAT
activities. It is probably impolitic to hint at empire-building,
but it was our understanding that Mr. Colby was strongly considering
placing the HisboticAl Staff organizationally under the Special
Assistant for Information Control to ensure that the two activities--
archives and history--were properly meshed.
We were unaware that the Historical Staff had an "archivist."
The term "archivist," of course, can be applied to any professionally
trained person usually engaged in one or more of the following
archival activities: appraisal and disposition, accessioning,
repair, description, reference service, exhibits, and publication.
It is doubtful if these activities are carried on much by the
Historical Staff (publication,in the archival sense, refers to
the publication and editing of historical documents). The Historical
Staff does maintain a Source Document Index, This consists of
approximately 150,000 file card entries, plus some 10,000 documents.
The Source Document Index was started by the DDP, and later taken
over by the Historical Staff and expanded to include other
directorates' materials. The documents held by the Historical
Staff are understood to be copies, and not the archival record
copies.
It was noted that position title was that
of Archivist. That is correct. He was given the standard
title of Archivist because his duties include many of those
enumerated in the paragraph above. Vitually all professional
employees of the custodial divisions of the National Archives
are Archivists. The nonprofessionals are Archival Technicians,
a pattern also followed in the Agency Archives. One point
should be made. There is no academic discipline called
"archives." A few universities, such as American University,
offer courses in archives administration, but nowhere can
one obtain a degree in archives. Most of the staff members
at the National Archives have degrees in the social sciences,
with backgrounds in American history preponderant. They are
historians (or political scientists, or economists, or sociologists,
etc.) by way of academic training; they are archivists simply
because they are employed by an archival facility to engage in
the traditional archival tasks. To perform his job effectively,
the archivist must first of all be familiar with the basic
principles of archival arrangement, description, etc. Secondly,
he must be intimately acquainted with the administrative history
of the organizations whose records he is administering and the
missions of those organizations. Finally, he must try to anticipate
the interests of the historians and other researchers of the
future.
Empire-building seems like a rather harsh term when applied
to the proposed Agency Archives Program. It would be a rather
small empire. Four positions, which were approved long ago,
are being added to the staff of the Agency Archives. These
archival technician slots will be used to accomplish the
inspection, repair, and arrangement of records for microfilming,
and in addition titirrtthe actual filming and verification.
4
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STAT
The Agency Archivist and the four Directorate Archivists,
as provided for in the draft were not expected to
be fulltime positions--certainly not so in the case of the
Directorate Archivists. The Agency Archivist's duties would
include establishing guidelines for the selection of records
of enduring value, the arrangement and description of the
records in accordance with established archival practices,
and conducting liaison with the National Archives. He would
be expected to work closely with mrklu of the Historical
Staff, 'particularly with respect t4the'criteria for
preserving records of historical value. (Incidentally,
many of these matters are rigidly controlled by the
General Records Schedules and other regulations promulgated
by the National Archives. The National Archives exercises
final appraisal authority.) The DirecbOrate Archivists--
and the Agency Archivist would perform similar finctions
for the'Office of the DCI--would be responsible for the
preparation of Records Retention Plans for their areas,
i.e., descriptions of the record series produced by their
components which must be preserved in view of their
evidential or informational values (archivist jargon).
The Records Retention Plans would be, and have been in
the past, submitted to the Historical Staff for review
and comments--the final decisions wbuld be the responsibility
of the Agency Archivist. The Directorate Archivists would
also be responsible for ensuring that all permanent records
were transferred to Agency Archives as soon as practicable,
and that they were properly arranged, labeled, and in good
state of repair. The Chief/Agency Archives would arrange
them in properly labeled archives boxes, publish inventories
of record holdings to facilitate research, and provide
reference services to authorized researchers.
The new Classifications Programs Branch will interface
with the Agency Archives Program in several ways. For example,
it will be responsible for informing Chief/Archives of downgrading
actions taken so that the archival copy of the document can
be properly marked to reflect changes in classification.
In connection with the requirement that records be reviewed
for possible declassification prior to their attaining 30
years of age, Agency Archives and the Classification Programs
Branch will be required to work very closely in segregating
records subject to review, packaging them and shipping them
to the offices of the declassification officers, logging
actions taken, marking the documents, and returning them to
Agency Archives or, if then unclassified, offering them to
the National Archives for accessioning.
Summary: The Agency is working on the development of a modest
Archives Program, one that will not result in the creation of
an "empire." An independent Agency Archives and Records Center
are considered essential to the continued security of sensitive
sources and methods. The Historical Staff's interests in the
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Archives Program &re legitimate, and the Staff has a definite
role in the identification of records of historical and other
enduring values. The Archives Program, however, is related
much more closely to the Agency's Records Management and
Classification Programs and should therefore properly be
placed under the same organization umbrella, viz., what is
to become the Information Systems Analysis Staff. (If a
bit of obiter dicta is to be permitted, it could be mentioned
that the functionsassigned .to the Regulations Control Branch
are among the traditioraal records management activities.
If it is Agency policy that like activities should be grouped
together, then the Regulations Control Branch should also
fall under the jurisdiction 6f the Information Systems
Analysis Staff.)
Addendum: Nothing was said of the fact that there is no
single Agency archival holding. I believe that there
should be. The separate administration of the SSU archives,
and bits and pieces such as the Donovan papers held by
the Historical Intelligence Collection, will only serve
to complicate declassification programs, etc.
Arl.,?TTIIMTIAMTIVE/ TmmvomAT_ im,g! nuLl
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