SUMMARY OF RECENT LEGISLATION AFFECTING CIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP77M00144R001100180008-6
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 6, 2005
• Sequence Number: 8
• Content Type: SUMMARY

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Summary of Recent Legislation Affecting CIA
The final few months of the 93rd Congress brought action on a
number of matters directly affecting CIA. Following is a summary of
pertinent congressional action.
COVERT ACTION
1. Hughes and Ryan sections of the Foreign Assistance Act (S. 3394)
Summary: Senator Hughes and Representative Ryan authored
similar provisions to restrict covert action by CIA. They passed the authors'
respective houses of Congress, and differences were settled in conference.
The conference version bars the expenditure of any funds by CIA or any
other Government agency for operations in foreign countries, except purely
intelligence gathering operations, unless and until the President finds that
each such operation is important to the national security, and reports, in a
timely fashion, a description of such operation to the appropriate committees
of Congress. The "appropriate committees" specifically include the House
Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
These requirements would be suspended duringa war. A House floor
amendment offered by Representative Holtzman to change the "important
to the National security" language to "vital to the national defense" was
defeated by voice vote.
Status: Both houses of Congesss gave final approval to the
Foreign Aid bill in mid-December, and the President signed the bill on
December 30. The restriction on intelligence activities is section 662 of
the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended.
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2. Holtzman amendment
Summary: Representative Holtzman introduced a House floor
amendment to the 1975 Continuing Appropriations Resolution (H. J. Res. 1131).
The amendment, which was prompted by the disclosure of CIA activities
in Chile, would have banned the use of any money appropriated under the
joint resolution for use by CIA to "destabilize" or undermine any government.
Status: The amendment was defeated 291-108 on 24 September.
3. Abourezk amendment to the Foreign Assistance Act
Summary: Senator Abourezk introduced a floor amendment to the
Foreign Assistance Act which would have prohibited funds being used by any
U. S. Governmental agency to carry out any activities which would violate
or encourage violation of the laws of the U. S. or the country involved.
Excluded were activities necessary to national security which were intended
solely for intelligence collection.
Status: Defeated on Senate floor on 2 October by a vote of
CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT PROPOSALS
The long-standing congressional oversight procedure of reporting on
our operations only to the Armed Services and Appropriations Committees of
both houses has already been altered by the Foreign Aid bill amendments
requiring reporting on covert action to the Foreign Affairs Committees. This
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means six committees will now receive reports on covert operations. Other,
more far-reaching proposals have been considered by this Congress, and
may receive major attention in the 94th Congress. The Senate Subcommittee
on Intergovernmental Relations of the Committee )on Government Operations
held hearings on 9 and 10 December regarding CIA oversight. Senator Muskie
is Chairman of this Subcommittee. Senators Baker, Mathias, Nelson and
Weicker and Dr. Ray Cline were among those testifying. Additional hearings
are planned for early in 1975; Senator Muskie has announced that a representative
of CIA will be invited to testify at that time.
The bills and resolutions introduced this past Congress and changes in
congressional rules concerning CIA oversight reflect three distinct approaches:
bills which attempt to supplement (A below), supplant (B below) or study (C below)
existing oversight procedures.
A. S"upplement
1. BollinHansen House Committee Reform Amendments
Summary: Representative Zablocki introduced a floor amendment
providing the Committee on Foreign Affairs a special oversight
function of reviewing and studying "intelligence activities relating
to foreign policy. IT The chairman of the Armed Services Intelligence
Subcommittee, Representative Nedzi, supported the amendment as
conforming to a prior agreement between Dr. Kissinger, Mr. Colby,
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and the leadership of the House Armed Services and House Foreign
Affairs Committees (Representatives Hebert and Morgan).
Status: The Zablocki amendment passed by voice vote, and the
entire Committee Reform Amendments were agreed to by the
House on 8 October. These amendments were reinforced by the
Foreign Aid amendments. Representative Morgan, Chairman of the
Committee on Foreign Affairs, stated his view on the House floor that
the intelligence activities section of the Foreign Assistance Act
amendments provide a statutory basis for the agreement between
Dr. Kissinger, Mr. Colby and Chairmen Hebert and Morgan.
B. Supplant
1. Baker/Weicker bill (S. 4019)
Summary: This bill would create a Senate-House Joint
Committee on Intelligence Oversight to supplant Armed Services
Committee jurisdiction. The Committee would have 14 members,
appointed by the leadership, and the chairmanship would alternate
between the House and Senate for each Congress. The jurisdiction
of the Committee would extend to CIA, FBI, Secret Service, DIA,
NSA, and all other Governmental activities pertaining to intelligence
gathering or surveillance of persons. Chiefs of all named departments
would be required to keep the Committee fully and currently informed
of all activities.
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Status: Referred to Committee on Government Operations;
Senators Baker and Weicker supported their bill during the Muskie
hearings.
2. Harrington Resolutions (H. Res. 552 and 1231)
Summary: These alternative resolutions would transfer to
a new House committee jurisdiction over. the Central Intelligence Agency
or over the entire intelligence community and all matters relating
to foreign intelligence.
Status: Referred to the House Rules Committee.
3. Hathaway bill (S. Con. Res. 23)
Summary: This resolution would create a Senate/House Joint
Committee which would have oversight of CIA and all other intelligence
and information agencies of the U. S. Government.
Status: Referred to Armed Services Committee.
C. Study
1. Mondale Resolution (S. Res. 404)
Summary: This resolution would create a Senate Select
Committee on Intelligence Policy, composed of five members of
Armed Services, five members of Foreign Relations, and five other
Senators. The Select Committee would be authorized to examine U. S.
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intelligence policies and operations, to determine the role of
intelligence decisionmaking, and evaluate the impact of intelligence
on national security and foreigh policy. The Committee is to report
to the Senate by June 30, 1975.
Status: Referred to Armed Services Committee.
2. Mathias and Mansfield Resolution (S. Res. 419)
Summary: This resolution would create an eight member
(selected at-large) Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations
With Respect to Intelligence Activities. The Committee is instructed
to study and investigate all domestic and foreign intelligence
activities of the U. S. Government and past effect and future role
of such activities. The Committee's report is due two years after
enactment.
Status: Referred to Committee on Government Operations.
Senator Mathias spoke in favor of this resolution during the December
Muskie hearings.
3. Humphrey bill547)
Summary: This bill would create a Joint Committee on
National Security, consisting of the Speaker, Majority and Minority
members of each house, the chairman and ranking Minority members
of the Armed Services, Appropriations, Foreign Affairs, Joint Atomic
Energy Committees, three other Representatives and three other
Senators. Functions of the Committee are to study foreign, domestic,
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and military national security policies, study the National Security
Council, and study Government classification practices, and report
periodically to each House on the Committee's fi.ndings.
Status: This bill was transferred from the Armed Services
to the Government Operations Committee at Senator Humphrey's
request, and was considered during the Muskie hearings in December.
Dr. Ray Cline spoke in favor of this proposal.
4. Harrington Resolution (H. Res. 1232)
Summary: This resolution would authorize the House
Committee on Foreign Affairs to conduct a complete investigation of CIA.
Status: Referred to Committee on Rules.
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
The Freedom of Information Act was originally passed in 1966. It was
amended this past year to eliminate barriers to public access to Government
information. The change most significantly affecting the intelligence community
is the new provision authorizing a judge to review in private a contested
document to determine if it has been properly classified. In effect, all Agency
material is now subject to court review.
If an individual asks a. Federal agency for a particular document, one
of the approved reasons for denying the request is that the document is
classified under Executive Order. An individual who is not satisified that
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the document is classified, can sue in Federal court to force release of the
document. Under the Supreme Court decision in the Patsy Mink case, a
j udge under these circumstances could only determine if the requested
document carried a classification. However, the new law overrules this
decision and allows the judge to determine if the document is properly
classified. If he feels that the Government has not satisified its burden to
prove the document is properly classified, the judge can order an agency
to release it.
The legislative history of the Act recognizes that intelligence sources
and methods material may not only be classified pursuant to Executive Order,
but could also come under a separate exemption, i. e. , information protected
from disclosure by statute. Accordingly, the discretionary authority to
classify established under the Executive Order would not apply to intelligence
sources and methods.
PRIVACY
Congress passed and sent to the President on December 18 landmark
privacy legislation. The bill grants to American citizens or permanent resident
aliens access to Government records concerning them. It also requires
agencies to establish procedures for the protection of such information and
the correction of inaccurate information, and restricts dissemination of
information without prior approval of the individual. The legislation was a
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result of reports that inaccurate information maintained in certain files
had damaged individuals' employment prospects, credit rating, etc.
In drafting the legislation, Congress recognized that certain records
must be exempted for national security reasons. Accordingly, CIA was
provided an exemption from most of the provisions of the law, including
granting access to our records, by following standard Federal Government
rule-making procedures. The Agency must develop rules governing access
to records to be published in the Federal Register. The public will be given
thirty days to submit written comments for Agency consideration, before the
rules are .final.
The provisions of the law applicable to CIA require the Agency to
disseminate records on individuals only for specific enumerated purposes,
maintain a listing of each disclosure of a record for at least five years, and
publish in the Federal Register annually a general description of our systems
of personal records. The records of all Federal agencies (including CIA)
are subject to inspection by the Privacy Protection Study Commission, a non-
regulatory two-year study commission established by the law. The House floor
statement on final passage acknowledged that the Commission is not to impair
the responsibility of the Director of Central Intelligence to protect intelligence
sources and methods from unauthorized disclosure.
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Representative Nedzi, Senator Stennis, Senator Proxmire, and
others introduced proposals during the 93rd Congress to amend the
National Security Act of 1947. Senator Proxmire, with Senator Stennis'
acquiesence, won Senate approval of the language of his measure last June
as an amendment to the Fiscal 1975 Defense Authorization bill. However,
the amendment was rejected in conference on the point of germaneness.
Representative Nedzi held hearings on his bill last July, but his CIA
subcommittee has not yet reported out a bill. He has expressed interest in
the Director's Intelligence Sources and Methods legislation, but is not
committed to including it in his bill. Senator Stennis has scheduled hearings
for January 15 and 16, and will consider National Security Act amendments
in conjunction with hearings on past CIA domestic activities.
Following are the specific proposed amendments to the Act which
appear in one or more of the bills which were introduced in the 93rd Congress.
Attached are copies of the three major proposals.
1. Insert the word "foreign" before the word "intelligence"
in the Act, wherever it refers to the activities authorized to
be undertaken by the Central Intelligence Agency (all three bills);
2. Reiterate existing prohibitions against CIA -assuming any
police. or law-enforcement powers, or internal - security functions
(all three bills);
3. Enumerate permissable activities for the CIA in the United
States:
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 (a) Protect CIA installations?
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(b) Conduct personnel investigations of employees
and applicants, and others with access to CIA information;
(c) Provide information resulting from foreign
intelligence activities to other appropriate agencies and
departments;
(d) Carry on within the United States activities necessary
to support its foreign intelligence responsibilities;
All three bills include (a), (b), and (c), but only the Nedzi and
Stennis bills include item (d);
4. Require the CIA to report to Congress on all activities
undertaken pursuant to section l02(d)(5) of the National Security Act;
5. Require the Director to develop plans, policies, and
regulations in support of the present statutory requirement to
protect intelligence sources and methods from unauthorized disclosure,
and report to the Attorney General for appropriate action any violation
of such plans, policies, or regulations. This requirement shall not
be construed to authorize CIA to engage_ in expressly prohibited
domestic activity (no police, subpoena, or law-enforcement powers,
or internal-security functions), (Nedzi and Stennis bills only);
6. Prohibit CIA from participating, directly or indirectly,
in any illegal activity within the United States (Proxmire bill only);
7. Prohibit transactions between the Agency and former
employees, except for purely official matters (Nedzi bill only).
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