LETTER TO THE HONORABLE STANSFIELD TURNER FROM RICHARDSON PREYER

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP81M00980R000200020009-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Sequence Number: 9
• Content Type: LETTER

Fd CIIAMOSON PRRYER N.C., CHAIRMAN
LEU 1. RYA,:, CAL.IL-.Approved For Release 2006/08/02: CIA-RDP81 M0 .gRO000,1O. 0'(
JOHN F. MOSS CALIF'. . .--..: I
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LES ASPIN, WIS.
PETER H. KOSTMAYER, PA.
TED WEISS, N.Y.
DARFARA JORDAN, TEX.
(.ongras. of tti ait t to
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GOVERNMENT INFORMATION AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS
SUBCOMMITTEE
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS
RAYBURN HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING, ROOM B-349-B-C
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20515
December 4, 1978
Honorable Stansfield Turner
Director
Central Intelligence Agency
Washington, DC 20505
JOFIN N. ERLFNRIRN, ILL.
As part of our ongoing oversight of the Freedom of Information Act,
this subcommittee has begun a study of the application of the third
exemption of the Act. As you know, the third exemption incorporates into
the FOIA other laws that require the withholding of information.
One of the major missing pieces of freedom of information law is an
itemization of all statutes that qualify under the third exemption. As a
first step toward the possible codification of these laws,-I ask that you
prepare a list of all statutes available to your agency that in your opin-
ion qualify under exemption three. Since it is not always clear whether
a statute qualifies under the exemption as amended by the 1976 Government
in the Sunshine Act, you may wish to list separately those laws about
which there is doubt. Please include this data with your 1978 annual report
on the Freedom of Information Act, due on March 1, 1979. Prompt submission
of this report will enable the subcommittee to complete its study early in
the 96th Congress.
Our review of 1977 annual reports revealed a number of careless prac-
tices in the use of exemption three to deny requests. The most common
mistakes included citation of an inappropriate law, citation of regulations
rather than statutes, and failure to specify which law was relied upon
when the third exemption was invoked. When contacted by the subcommittee,
agencies were cooperative in correcting these errors and we anticipate the
1978 reports will be much improved.
Cordially,
Richardson Preyer
Chairman
,MORI/CDF,
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