CIPC REVIEW OF THE COMMUNITY'S ORGANIZATION FOR MASINT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88G01116R000200140007-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 14
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 15, 2011
• Sequence Number: 7
• Publication Date: January 31, 1986
• Content Type: MEMO

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DCI/ICS 86-3708
31 January 1986
MEMORANDUM FOR: Director of Central Intelligence
VIA: Deputy Director of Central Intelligence
Director, Intelligence Community Staff
FROM: Eloise R. Page
Chairman, Critical Intelligence Problems Committee
SUBJECT: CIPC Review of the Community's Organization for MASINT (U)
1. The attached report documenting the Critical Intelligence Problems
Committee's (CIPC) review of the Community's organization for MASINT is
provided for your information and action. (U)
2. The CIPC recommends the establishment of a MASINT Committee with the
responsibility for the efficient and timely management of the MASINT issue.
This view reflects a consensus within the Community. The report importantly
notes that the successful implementation of this recommendation will require
the new committee to address a number of special issues, in particular, its
relationship with the other DCI committees and the cooperative arrangements
between NFIP and non-NFIP MASINT collection assets. (S/NF)
This memorandum may be downgraded-to
SECRET/NOFORN upon removal of attachment.
Director of Central Intelligence
12 F t i:irt6
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Date: Date:
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SUBJECT: CIPC Review of the Community's Organization for MASINT (U)
Distribution: DCI/ICS 86-3708 w/ attachment
orig - addressee w/attachment #1
1 - Executive Registry #2
1 - C/CIPC (OD/ICS) #3
1 - ES/CIPC #4
1 - CIPC #5
1 - CIPC/Subj #6
1 - CIPC/Chrono #7
1 - ICS Registry #8
1 - C/SIGINT #9
DCI/ICS/CIP
1
- C/IHC & FIPC
#10
1
- C/COMIREX
#11
1
- C/HUMINT
#12
1
- D/PPS
#13
1
- D/PBS
#14
1
- ICS/Exec Ofcr
#15
X28 Jan 86)
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Measurements and Signature Intelligence (MASINT):
A Review of the Intelligence Community's Organization for Collection
1. In late 1985, the D/ICS received memoranda from the Director, DIA, the
Executive Director, CIA, and the chiefs of intelligence for the Army, Navy,
and Air Force recommending the constitution of a separate and independent
MASINT Committee. The D/ICS, with DCI approval, tasked the CIPC with
undertaking a study to examine whether or not a full DCI committee was
warranted. (U)
2. The MASINT Subcommittee of the SIGINT Committee was established as a
result of a CIPC recommendation in a study dated 19 August 1983. This study
was undertaken in response to a mid-1983 request of the Assistant Chief of
Staff for Intelligence, USAF, with the concurrence of the DDCI, for the views
of the Community on the need for a new DCI committee for the management of
collection and processing requirements for "non-SIGINT, non-IMINT, and
non-HUMINT." The CIPC report found that there was a general consensus
favoring the establishment of a MASINT Subcommittee of the SIGINT Committee.
The CIPC recommended: (U)
? The formation of a MASINT Subcommittee within the SIGINT Committee
on a trial basis. The subcommittee would formulate and validate
requirements, assign national priorities, evaluate performance of
the MASINT system, and develop out-year guidance. (U)
? A review of the subcommittee at a later date to determine whether
it should be continued as a subcommittee of the SIGINT Committee on
a permanent basis or elevated to full DCI committee status. (U)
The ADCI approved the CIPC's recommendations on 23 August 1983. (U)
B. WORK OF THE MASINT SUBCOMMITTEE
1. The Subcommittee's Beginnings
The first formal meeting of the subcommittee took place on 4 January
1984. The subcommittee's membership includes representatives from the DIA,
CIA, Army, Navy, Air Force, DOE, State, NSA, and the NRO. Its part-time
Chairman is provided by the DIA, and the full-time Executive Secretary is
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furnished by the Air Force Foreign Technology Division. The SIGINT Committee
provides administrative support.
The subcommittee's initial tasks emphasized development of the means
for identifying, validating, and assigning national requirements for MASINT
collection. It also took steps to define its interests and responsibilities
by codifying formal definitions of many of the collection techniques
comprising MASINT (see Appendix A). These definitions are employed in the
formation of subcommittee working groups for each of the techniques. The
working groups review collection requirements in their respective areas for
validation at the national level. Available MASINT collectors are diverse in
technique and are deployed worldwide. Appendix B is a representative list.
2. Activities and Accomplishments
In its activities to date, the subcommittee's approach has, in effect,
complemented the collection-related and other activities of the DCI production
committees. The subcommittee has "translated" the requirements of these
committees into technical terms directly related to the MASINT collector's
task. (For example, a requirement of a production committee for a specific
parameter of a certain target may be satisfied by the measurement of other
target parameters determined by the subcommittee.)
Among its notable accomplishments to date, the subcommittee has:
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3. The Subcommittee's Current Agenda
The subcommittee has been requested by various Community components to
undertake the following tasks:
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1. Notwithstanding the accomplishments and progress of the MASINT
Subcommittee in a number of important areas, the preponderant view within the
Community is that MASINT should be the responsibility of a separate DCI
collection committee. In many respects, the subcommittee already is
conducting its business autonomously, although it has continued to rely on the
SIGINT Committee for administrative support.
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1. A generally expressed overriding concern is that the emergence of a
separate committee for MASINT would mean more intelligence bureaucracy--"yet
another committee." Specifically, there is an expectation that it would
introduce confusion by requiring a lot of additional coordination with the
2. The resources for establishing a separate committee are also of
concern; a modestly sized staff at the outset is likely to grow. A related
concern is that the committee's chairman might become a "czar" of MASINT,
gathering unwarranted influence and responsibilities.
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The "pros" argue persuasively for the establishment of a separate MASINT
Committee. The arguments to the contrary can substantially be met by
addressing the following special considerations. (U)
1. Relationship With Other DCI Committees
3. Committee Personnel
The general view is that full-time leadership (Chairman and Executive
Secretary) and a full-time analytical staff of two or three for the
preparation of requirements documents are required, given the extent and
nature of the Community's MASINT agenda (as described in paragraph B. 3.).
This could be revisited after the committee has been in operation for about
six months to a year. (U)
4. "MASINT" in Intelligence Argot
There is a virtually universal view within the Community that, even
after a number of years of its usage, MASINT is a commonly misunderstood and
uninformative acronym. An alternative term that better captures the disparate
means of collection comprising MASINT should be sought once again. There is
some support for the term "TECHINT"--technical intelligence--already used in
finished intelligence by some components and whose meaning is less obscure.
(U)
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E. RECOMMENDATIONS
1. It is therefore recommended that a MASINT Committee be established as
a DCI collection committee operating under IC Staff auspices in essentially
the same manner as the three existing DCI collection committees. To ensure
that all Community requirements and equities are adequately represented, its
chairman should be a member (cadre or on detail) of the IC Staff. (U)
2. If the above recommendation is approved, within 30 days after the
appointment of the Chairman of the MASINT Committee, that person in concert
with the D/ICS should provide the DCI an implementing plan for the MASINT
Committee. This should include a proposed DCID, a statement of staffing
requirements, and a recommendation for committee membership. (U)
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