COMMITTEE DRAFT REPORT ON S. 1324--CONTENTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP89B00236R000200120001-8
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 97
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 8, 2008
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: October 7, 1983
• Content Type: REPORT

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October 07, 1983
C?MMITTEE DRAFT REPORT ON S. 1324 -- CONTENTS
Amendments .........................................4 f~/a 3 /0.J
Purpose .................................. .-........3
Committee Action ...................................14
Hist~r.y of the Bill ...............................16
C:ener:~l Sl'~t-emc'nt.... ...... :........:..........25
Introduction and Overview ....................25
Benefits of S. 1324 .." . ......................27
Findings and Purposes.. ......................35
Actions to Improve CIA Responsiveness........38
Historians........ . ...........................43
Judicial R.eview ................ ............45
Section-by-Section Analysis .......................47
Sect on 701.'_'~ .......................... ....47
Sec. 701(a) -- Standards for Designation.....48
Proviso Regarding Disseminated Information...54
Proviso Regarding Special Activi~ties.........57
Proviso Regarding Improprieties ..............61
Sec. 701(b) .................. ..............67
Sec. 701(c) -- First Person Requests.......:.68
Sec. 701(d)~ ............... ...........70
Sec. 701(e)(1) ...............................71
Sec. 701(e)(2)........ ...... ..............74
Position of the Administration....... ............75
Cost Estimate of Congressional Budget Office......77
.~--'~
Table of Contents .............. .................78
Effective Date ........... ........................79
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MR. GOLDWATER, for the Select Committee on Intelligence,
submitted the, following
[To accompany S. 1324]
The Select Committee on Intelligence, having considered
(S. 1324), a bill to amend the National Security Act of
1947 to regulate public disclosure of information held by
the Central Intelligence Agency, reports favorably with
amendments and recommends that the bill as amended do
pass.
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The purpose of S. 1324, :as reported, is to relieve the
Central Intelligence Agency (CIAO from undue burdens of
searching and rev.iewin~ certain operational-files for
information in response to Freedom of Information Act
requests and thereby enable the A~ency~to respond to other
requests under the Act in a more timely and efficient
manner.
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That this Act may be cited a the "Intelligence
Information Act of 1983".
FINDINGS AND PURPOSES
Sec. 2(a) The Congress finds that --
(1) the Freedom of Information Act is
providing the people of the United States with
an important means of acquiring information
concerning, thc~ workings and decisionmakin~;
processes of their Government, including the
Central Intelligence Agency;
(2) the full application of the Freedom
of Information Act to the Central Intelligence
Agency is, however, imposing unique and serious
burdens on this agency;
(3) the processing of 2 Freedom of Informa-
tion Act reouest by the Central Intelligence
Agency normally requires the search of numerous
systems of records for information responsive
to the request;
(4) the review of responsive information
located in operational files which concerns
sources and methods utilized in intelligence
operations can only be accomplished by senior
intelligence officers having the necessary
operational training and expertise;
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(5) the Central Intelligence Agency must .
fully process all requests for information, even
when the requester?seeks information which clearly
cannnot be released for reasons of .:national
security; ~ ?
(6) release of information out of operational
files risks the compromise of intelligence sources
and methods;
(7) eight years of experience under the
amended Freedom of Information Act has demonstrated
that this time-consuming and burdensome _search and
review of operational files has resulted in the
proper withholding of information contained in
such files. The Central Intelligence Agency
should, therefore, no longer be~required to expend
valuable manpower and other resources in the search?
and. review of information in these files;
(8) the full application of the Freedom of
Information Act to the Central Intelligence Agency
is perceived by those who cooperate _wi_th the United
States Government as constituting a means by which
their cooperation and the information they provide
may be disclosed;
(9) information concerning the means by which
intelligence is gathered generally is not necessary
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for public debate on the defense and foreign
policies of the United States; but information
~,athered by the Central Intelligence Agency
should remain accessible to requesters, subject
to existing exemptions under law;
(10) the organization of Central Intelli-
gence Agency records allow the exclusion of
operational files from the search and review
requirements of the Freedom of Information
Act while leaving files containing information
gathered through intelligence operations_
accessible to requesters, subject to existing
exemptions under law; and
(11) the full application of the Freedom
of Information Act to the Central Intelligence
Agency results in inordinate delays and the
inability of these agencies to respond to
requests for information in a timely fashion.
(b) The purposes of this Act are --
(1) to protect the ability of the public
to request information from the Central Intel-
ligence Agency under the Freedom of, Information
Act to the extent that such requests do not
require the search and review of operational
files;
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(2) to protect the right of individual
United States citizens and permanent resident
{
aliens to request information on themselves
contained in all categories of files of the
Central Intelligence Agency; and
(3) to provide relief to-the Central
Intelligence Rgency fT om the burdens of
sc:.~rchinr, r~n~i revic~win~, nPer.~tinn:rl filcg.,
so as to improve protection for intelligence
sources and methods and enable this agency to
respond to the public's requests for informa-
tion in a more timely and efficient manner.
Sec. 3(a) The National Security Act of 1947
is amended by adding at the end thereof the following
new title:
TITLE VII -- RELEASE OF REQUESTED INFORMATION TO
THE PUBLIC BY THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY.
"Designation of Files by the Director of Central
Intelligence as Exempt from Search, Review,
Publication, or Disclosure
"Sec. 701(a) In furtherance of the responsi-
bility of the Director of Central Intelligence to
protect intelligence sources and methods from un-
authorized disclosure as set forth in section
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102(d) (3) of this Act (50 U.S.C. 403 (d) (3)) and
section 6 of the Central Intelligence Agency Act
of 1949 (50 U.S.C. 403g), operational files located
in the Directorate of Operations, Directorate for
Science and Technology, and Office of Security of
the Central Intelligence Agency shall be exempted
from the provisions of the Freedom of Information
Act which require publication or disclosure, or
search or review in connection therewith, if
such files have been specifically designated by
.the Director of Central Intelligence to be --
"{1) files of the Directorate of
Operations which document foreign intelli-
gence or counterintelligence operations or
intelligence or security liaison arrange-
ments or information exchanges with foreign
governments or their intelligence or
security services; or
"(2) files of the Directorate for
Science and Technology which document the
means by which foreign intelligence-or
. counterintelligence is collected through
scientific and technical systems;
"(3) files of the Office of Security
which, document investigations concluctecl to
determine the suitability of potential foreign
intelligence or counterintelligence sources;
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Provided, however, That.nondesignated files which
may contain information derived or disseminated
4
from designated operational .files shall be subject
to search and review. The inclusion of,~information
from operational files in nondesignated files shall
not a f. fect the designation of. ~ the or.i g. i nat ing
operational files as exempt from search, review,
publication, or disclosure: Provided further,. That
the designation of any operational files shall not
prevent the search and review of such files for
information concerning any special activity t-he
existence of which is no,t exempt from disclosure
under the provisions of the Freedom of Information
Act or for information reviewed and relied upon in
an investigation by the intelligence committees of
the Congress, the .Intelligence Oversight Board,
the Office of General Counsel of .the Central Intelli-
gence Agency, the Office of Inspector General of the
Central Intelligence Agency, or the Office of the
Director of Central Intelligence for any impropriety,
violation of law, Executive Order, or Presidential
directive in the conduct of an intelligence activity.
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"(b) The provisions of this section shall
not be superseded except by a provision of law
which is enacted after the date of enactment of
this section and which specifically cites and
repeals or modifies its provisions.
"(c) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this
section, proper requests by United States citizens,
or by aliens lawfully admitted for permanent
residence in the United States', for information
.concerning themselves, made pursuant to the Privacy
Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a) or the Freedom of
.Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), shall be pro-
cessed in accordance with those Acts.
"(d) The Director of Central Intelligence
. shall promulgate regulations to implement this
section as follows:
"(1) Such regulations shall require
the appropriate Deputy Directors or. Office
Head to:
(A) specifically identify categories of files
under their control which they recommend for
designation;
(B) explain the basis for their re~ommenda-
tions; and
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(C) set forth procedures consistent with the
statutory criteria in subsection (a) which
would govern the inclusion of~documents in
designated files. Recommended designations,
portions of which .may.~be c-lassified', shall
become effective upon written approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence.
"(2) Such regulations shall further provide
procedures and criteria for the review of each
designation not less than once every ten years
to determine whether such designation ma-y be
removed from any category of files or any portion
thereof. Such criteria shall include considera-
tion of the historical value or other public
interest in the subject matter of the particular ~~
category of f files or port ion thereof and the
potential for declassifying.a significant part
of the information contained therein.
"(e)(1) On the complaint under section 552
(a) (4) (B) of title 5 that the Agency- h.as improperly
withheld records because of improper designation
of files or improper placement of records solely
in designated files, the court's review shall be
limited to a determination whether the Agency
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regulations implementing subsection (a) conform
to the statutory criteria set forth in that
subsection for designating files unless the
complaint is supported by an affidavit, based
on personal knowledge or .otherwise admissable
evidence, which makes a prima facie showing,
that (A ). a specific file containing the records
requested was improperly designated; or (B) the
records requested were improperly placed solely
in designated files. If the court finds a prima
facie showing has been made under this subsection,
it shall order the Agency to file a sworn response,
which may be filed in camera and ex parte, and
the court shall make its determination based upon
these submissions and submissions by the plaintiff.
If the court finds under this subsection that the
Agency's regulations implementing subsection (a) of
this section do not conform to the statutory
criteria set forth in .that subsection for designa-
ting files, or finds that the Agency has improperly -
designated a file or improperly placed records
solely in designated files, the Court shall order
the Agency to search the particular designated
file for the requested records in accordance with
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the provisions of the Freedom of Information
Act and to review such records under the exemp-
tions pursuant to section 552(b) of title
5 . I f at any t ime dur inp, such proceedings the
ti
CIA agrees to search .designated files for the
requested records, the court shall dismiss the
cause of action based on this subsection.
"(e)(2) On complaint under section 552 (a)
(4)(R) of~title 5 that the Agency has improperly
withheld records because of failure to comply
with the regulations adopted pursuant to sub-
section (d)(2), the Court's review shall be
limited to determining whether the Agency
cons idered~ the criteria set forth in such
regulations."
(b) The table of contents at the beginning of such
Act is amended by adding at the end there of the following:
"TITLE VII--RELEASE OF REQUESTED INFORMATION TO
THE PUBLIC BY THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
"Sec. 701. Designation of files by the Director of Central
Intelligence as exempt from search, review, publica-
tion, or disclosure".
Sec. 4. The amendments made by section 3 shall be
effective upon enactment of this Act and shall apply with
respect to any requests for records, whether or not such
request was made prior to such enactment, and shall apply
to all cases and proceedings pending before a court of the
United States on the date of such enactment.
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COMMITTEE ACTION
On October 4, 1983, the Select Committee on Intelligence,
a quorum being present, approved the bill with an amendment
and ordered it favorably reported by a unanimous vote.
The purpose of the amendment adopted by the Select Com-
mittee has been to clarify the legislative intent and to
provide greater assurance that the bill will be implemented
in accordance with the legislative intent. The third purpose
of the Act as stated in section 2(h)(3) is revised to express
the intent to improve protection for intelligence sources
and methods.
Other changes are made in a new section 701 to be added
by the bill to the National Security Act of 1947. First,
criteria for designation of operational files by the Director
of Central Intelligence are specified more precisely for
each affected CIA component -- the Directorate of Operations,
the Directorate for. Science and Technology, and the Office of
Security. Second, additional language in the second proviso
to section 701(a) preserves access for search and review of
information in designated operational files that was reviewed
and relied upon in official investigations for impropriety or -
illegality in the conduct of an intelligence activity. Third,
new subsection (d) is added to require the promulgation of
regulations by the Director of Central Intelligence to
implement section 701. These regulations have two separate
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~~~
purposes. The regulations under .subsection (d)(1) require
the appropriate Deputy Directors or Office Head to identify
categories of files recommended for designation, explain
the basis for their recommendation, and-set forth criteria
governing the inclusion of documents in designated files.
The regulations under subsection (d);(2) provide procedures
.and criteria for the review of designations at least once
every ten years to determine whether the designation may
be removed from a category of files or portion thereof.
Such criteria are to include consideration of the historical
value or other public interest in the subject matter of the
particular file or category of files and th.e potential for
.declassifying a significant part of the information contained
therein.
The final change in section 701 is the' addition of a new'
subsection (e) establishing procedures for judicial review..
The procedures under subsection (e)(1) apply to cases of
alleged improper withholding. of records because of improper
designation of files or improper placement of records solely
in designated files. The procedures under subsection (e)(2)
apply to cases of alleged improper withholding of records
because of failure to comply with the regulations adopted
under subsection (d)(2) for periodic review of file designations.
A more detailed explanation of each of these changes in
the proposed section 701 is contained in the section-by-section
analysis of -this report..
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HISTORY OF THE BILL
Concern over the burdens imposed on intelligence agencies
under the freedom of lnformation Act (FOIA) is not new. Congress
considered the FOIA's impact on the Central Intelligence Agency QS
as 1977, three years after the Act was amended to
provide for de novo review of the withholding of classified
information. _
In September, 1977, the Subcommittee on Administrative
Practice and .Procedure of the Senate Judiciary Committee heard
CIA officials testify about the effects of the 1974 amendments
on the Agency. Acting CIA Director John F. Blake; who was
chairman of the CIA's Information Review Committee, stated that
the 1974 amendments had "constituted a somewhat traumatic
experience" and had "required a considerable adjustment in
attitude and practice." He added, "We have been able to ma~Ce
the necessary adjustments. I am .pleased to report that, in
fact, I think the Agency is better off for it."1
.96th Congress
By 1979, however, CIA's position changed. Testifying
before the House Intelligence Committee, Deputy Director of
Central Intelligence Frank Carlucci declared that "the .total
Freedom of Information Act, Hearings before the Subcommittee
on A ministrative Practice and Procedure of. the Committee on
the Judiciary, United States Senate, 95th Cong., ls_t Sess.
' (1977) , p.' 69. ~ .
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application of public disclosure statutes like FOIA to the.
CIA is seriously damaging our ability to do our job." ~,~`:(~,
Carlucci did not seek total exemption from FOIA for the
CIA. Instead, he proposed an exemption for certain designat-
ed operational files, with a provision allowing U.S. citi-
zens and resident aliens to continue to use FOIA to obtain
~f -.'.
information about themselves. Carlucci described this
approach as "fully consistent with the spirit and letter of
national security exemptions already in the Freedom of
Information act."2
This CIA proposal was included as Section 3 of S. 2216,
introduced in the 96th Congress by several Members, including
Senators Moynihan, Wallop, Jackson, and Chafee of the Select
Committee on Intelligence. A similar provision was included
as Section 421 (d) of S. 2284, the National Intelligence Act?~of
1980, introduced in the 96th Congress by Senators Huddleston,~
Mathias, Bayh, and Goldwater. The bills differed in that
S. 2216 would have exempted designated files of all U.S. intel-
ligence agencies, while S. 2284 would have exempted designated
~I
~
C
A only.
files of
a
Im act of the Freedom of Information Act and the Privac
Act on Irate i ence Activities, Hearing a ore t e u commit- .
tee on Legislation o the Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence, House of Representatives, 96th Cong., 1st
Sess. (1979), pp. 3, 7, 162.
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During hearings on S. 2284, Director of Central Intelli-
Bence Stansfield Turner stated the Carter Administration's support
of the wider scope of S. 2216. However, the Carter Administration
subsequently supported a different proposal by the Department
of .Tustice which would have permitted the CIA to exempt by Agency
certification certain types of information from disclosure
with no judicial review. This proposal, H.R. 7056., was introduced
by Rep. Richardson Preyer.
Numerous witnesses testified for and against these various
proposals during Senate and House Intelligence Committee hearings
on the National Intelli~,ence Act of 1,980.3 However, no action
was taken on any of these measures in the 96th Congress.
97th Congress
In 1981 Senators Chafee and Goldwater introduced S. 1273,
a bill identical to the CIA's original proposal previously con-
sidered as Section 3 of S. 221b. It would have allowed the
Director of Central Intelligence to designate as exempt from
search and review, publication or disclosure, those files
maintained by any U.S. intelligence agency which fell .within
certain. operational categories. Admiral Bobby R. Inman, then
National Intelligence Act of. 1980, Hearings before the
Select Committee on Intelligence, United States Senate,
96th Cong., 2d Sess. (1980).; H.R. 6588, The National
Intelli ence Act of 1980, Hearings before the Subcommit-
tee on LeRis anon o the Permanent Select Committee
on Intelligence, House of Representa[ives, 96th Co.ng., 2d.
Sess. (1980).
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~ ~ ~`R ~ .
Deputy Directo ~estified at an open hearing, July 21,
1981 before the Senate Intelligence Committee. His testi-
mony stressed the unique problems the FOIA places on Intel=
ligence agencies which operate under compartmented records
systems and restricted access to records based on a "need to
know" principle. In addition, CIA expressed, concern that
reviewing documents responsive to an~FOIA request frequently
req wires the time and expertise of~traned intelligence
officers who would otherwise b~ focusing on current intelli-
gence requirements. Other arguments for relief were CIA's
large amount of FOIA litigation, the risk of court-ordered
disclosure of. classified information, the possibility of
human error in release decisions and processing, and foreign
governme~ts~ perception that the United States Government c~
aR;NNo
maintain ~ the confidentiality or the lnrorma-
tion entrusted to it. In his written statement, Admiral
Inman expressed the view that while partial relief via the
file designation process was a "promising approach" which
"would have a major positive impact," only~a total exclu-
sion of CIA's records from the requirements of the FOIA
could resolve all the problems caused by the Act.
Other witnesses included General Faurer,~Di:rector of the
National Security Agency, General Larkin, Director of the
Defense-Intelligence Agency, and representatives of the news
media, civil liberties groups, and historians.
Representatives of groups opposed to the legislation
testified that valuable information had been released through
the FOIA process, and the public interest in receiving
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Jam' -
Unt~l
dgci
r 5
82-196
the rel
.ability
(3 ) exemp
decisions
50 U.S.C. ?
and, in doin
agencies abil
ons in a relate
(D.C. Cir. 198
(D. C. Cir. Ju
o protect so
ion was wel
hreaten th
03 (d) (3 )
so, imp
y to g
issue
disc
ga
formation alr
source's rel
source prov
this same i
someone els
Rather than acce ting
istory of 50 U. C.
ju Tally create a
_ an in ' dual' s ide
source: f'I~t, a co
tion an indivi"'t3~1 ~p
court must detQsm~:
" oo-rrabTy ~E b e ]
teeing the confi,~
The Sims court~'~sa d t
between the ~~~genc and
sufficient~Co ma' tain
impos
possibly
gards~ som
eying suc
such information outweighed any burdens in complying
i
with the Act. The witnesses emphasized that current FOIA
exempti~nns (h)(1), protecting classified information and
s
(b)(3)3 protecting information specifically covered by other
statutes, e?~.-, intelligence sources and. methods, were
adequate.to meet CIA's needs 4 However,
Sims I and II make the passage of this legislation all
the~more ecessary.
and Sim
e 10,
rces an
-found
Dire
to pr
it t
th~ plaice'" language and legislative
03(d~l?(3), the Sims courts
-p~?ong test to~etermine whether
y;,ris protected as an intelligence
,'must look at the kind of informa-
ided the _.Ag~nc.y..__and-s~e~cn~t~id ; a-"'
'~tTi'a~t +kind of information could
ed] to be obtain[ed] without guaran-
to the individual provider.
vim, a specific agreement
urce~s not necessarily
conf~denti~ty.
`s a district
years a ter th
of the ~asic ru
as Laski g a new
ady acqul;ed in ord
bility an
es informa
formation c
to a newspa
Qa Court of Appeals
r, Sims v. CIA, 642
t ~ (~ /. S
v_. C1A, Nos
S ims I a
methods un
or's stat
needed
Sims II),
ligence's~
r the (b)
the Sims
ory duty under
es and methods
other intelligence
ntelligence.
ourt's ju ment of these
event. I totally
s of Intel igence
urce to provide in-
to test the new
at if a high level
oreign country and
also leaked by
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the witnesses did not rule out the possibility of a more
carefully and narrowly framedQ ~G~~elieve some of
the burdens on the CIA. For example, M~~rk Lynch of the
American Civi]. Liberties Union suggested adopting "a random
sample procedure" t-o allevi~~te document-by-document review
in response to requests on extremely sensitive subjects.
Without amending FOIA itself, the courts could use such a
procedure when "no information or very little information"
on a subject could actually be released. Recognizing the
CIA's special personnel and resource problems, Mr. Lynch
urged "a careful and constructive approach ... to examining
the administrative procedure to see if it cannot be stream-
lined" before turning to a legislative solution.
On November 24, 1981,. Admiral Inman testified in closed
session before the Select Committee regarding the Freedom of
Information Act's impact on the CIA's ability to collect
intelligence and to maintain its relationships with friendly
intelligence services. The purpose~of this hearing was to
examine specific examples of damage that could not be
discussed in open session. Admiral Inman stated that
the "real damage" was not the personnel and resource burden
or releases due to administrative error. Instead, he
t .Intelligence Reform Act of 1981,. Hearing Before the Select
Committee on Intelligence, United States Senate, 97th. Cong.,
1st Session. (1981), see esp. pp. 16-17, 44-48, 67.
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eu;phasized the damage(in terms of "lost collection opportu-
nity" 4~here both individuals and foreign governments have
been reluctant to provide information to CIA. He cited
particular cases of CIA responses where, even though no
documents were released, sensitive information appeared to
he cJisclc~sc:d. 'Ch is occurred Lec:~use the C1A in certuin cases
could not classify the fact that it possessed documents
o ~c
on a particular subject.. The Agency's mere,~cknowledgement
o +~
of possessing, documents on a subject was~haracterized by
the press as ,confirmation of controversial alleged CIA
activity. Such inferences were almost always erroneous, but
individuals' and governments' confidence in the CIA's
ability to maintain secrecy was undermined.
At the closed hearing, Admiral Inman repeated his testimony
favoring a "total exemption" as the only way t.o "restore confi-
dence of the foreign intelligence sources and other[s] who would.
collaborate with us ...that they are not running a risk ... in
providing information to us ...." He added that, if a total
exemption were impossible, "certainly one that at least limits
the scope of the cases ... would be a substantial improvement
over the situation in which we find ourselves:"
No further legislative action occurred in connection with
S. .T 273 in the 97th Congress.
98th Congress
Senator Goldwater, Chairman of the Select Committee,
introduced S. 1324,.the Intelligence Information Act, of
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?
-23-~
-.
1~,~~ i ~.
1983 on May 18, 1983. ~}~'earings were held on June 21 and 28,
1983. At the June 21 hearing, Senator Strom Thurmond,
Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and` co-sponsor of S.
1324, testified in support of the legislation. He was
followed by CIA Deputy Director John M. McMahon and other
p K.
senior CIA officials including Deputy General Counse~rnest
Mayerfeld, Deputy Director for Operations John Stein, Deputy
Director for Science and Technology Evan"N~neman, D' ctor ~-
of Security William Kotapish, and the Chief of the Informa-
tion and Privacy Division, Larry Strawderman. Mr. McMahon
urged enactment of S. 1324 as a, carefully balanced effort
?to benefit both CIA's intelligence mission and the public's
access to government information. He stated that the bill
"will send a clear signal to our sources and to those we ?
hope to recruit that the information which puts them at risk.
wi?11 no longer be subject to the [FOIA~ process." At the
same time, he emphasized that the "public would receive
improved service from the Agency under the FOIA without any
meaningful loss of information now released under the
Act.-' _ ;? ~.'~' ~~
At the hearing on June 28, 1983, S. 1324. was endorsed
by Major General Richard Larkin, President of the Associa-
tion of Former Intelligence Officers, and two members
of the ~4i3'~, University of ~~irRinia Law Professor John
2 ~S
~ ~Gtw l~,,,rC.. tia~~
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p. 23
Ourin}; ncputy 1)l.r.ector. McM.~hon's testimony, members
oL the Select Committee asked whether the hill might be a
prelude to later r.cclucsts Cor hr.o:~der exemhti_on Cr.om the rOIA
for the intelligence community. Deputy Director McMahon
replied that the CIA recognized "it cannot have total exemption
and must seek something that protects our sources, yet at the
ssmc Li,nc lives with the: splriL and tlic intent of Freedom c~L
Information." The Chairman also described his communication
with the President in which the President had indicated his
support for this approach. The CIA subsequently advised the
Committee that the Administration "has no intention to seek
additional FOIA relief for the Agency."
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Norton.Moore, and former ,Associate Attorney General John
Shenefield Mary Lawton, Counsel for Intelligence Policy
in the Department of Justice, expressed "wholehearted
support" for S. 1324 and indicated that the.Department
considered it appropriate to consider the CIA exemption "as
separate and distinct from efforts to secure Government-wide
amendments to the Freedom of .Information Act itself."
Mark Lynch of the ACLU stiessed three key principles that
would Prevent any meaninp,fu] ]oss of information curr.entl.y '
available: (1) "all gathered intelligence" would continue to be ~~
subject to search and review?~(2) U.S. citizens and permanent
resident aliens could still'use FOIA to request information
concerning themselves,' e~ur~ (3~ covert act ion operations (or
"spe.cial activities") would continue to be access~ible~ if /their
existence can be disclosed under the FOIA~~ ~(~?~b~it~
Othe wit
e es w e Cha les.S. Ro e, edito~ end ~o-~ublasher
~
,~
of the Frede\ sburg, Virg' ia, Fr L e Star,
on behalf of th American N sp er Pub ers Ass~~cia
`" At the time of the hearing, the ABA had not taken a
a stand on a proposed FOIA Resolution. Subsequent .to
the hearing, on August 3, 1983, the ABA adopted a
Resolution calling for "significant relief from the
FOIA for the intelligence agencies," limiting judicial
review in FOIA to "determining whether there is non-
frivolous certification that the material has been
properly classified," and~a specific exemption for
sources and Methods. The ABA resolution also encouraged
intelligence agencies to "experiment with modifications
in current administrative practices for handling FOIA .
.requests. '
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Insert , p . `'2~3~.~'~
and (4) information relevant to investigations of illegal
or improper intelligence activities would be subject to
search and review, even if the information were located in
operational files.~-
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ADDITIONAL REPORT LANGUAGE FOR P~'_24-25
Mr. Lynch went on to state, however, that the ACLU could not
suJ~~x~r~~. I-h~~ hi 11 withrn~t c:ert,~i.n
~~mc~nclmc'nts .
Essential
J 1
operations th~~t had been the subjoct of. "abuse" investigations and'
judicial review of whether a file has been improperly
characterized as an operational file.
The press was represented by Charles S. Rowe, editor and
ca-NuLlishur cif. l.li~ l~r'ec7~ricksLur