ZELLMER REQUEST ABOUT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CONSISTENT REQUIREMENTS PRIORITIES SYSTEM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP02S05213R000200240002-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 14, 2012
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: October 23, 1979
• Content Type: MEMO

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/11/14: CIA-RDP02505213R000200240002-2
23 October 1979
MEMORANDUM FOR: Acting Director, Tasking Architecture Office
FROM:
SUBJECT:
Chief, Policy Division
Request about the Establishment of
Consistent Requirements Priorities System
1. At this point in time, I have had conversations with HTO
and PTO about the desirability of a requirements priorities system
that is consistent across disciplines, but I have not had a formal
reply from either office. Both PTO and HTO are open to considering
the possible advantage of such a system.
2. My preliminary assessment is that it is feasible to establish
a cross-discipline requirements priorities system. For such a system
to work, it is necessary that collection target entities be equatable
to DCID 1/2 country-topic priorities in a systematic way. This can
bedone fairly easily with both HUMINT and SIGINT target systems.
Even in those instances where a target or group of targets involves
several DCID 1/2 priorities, it is possible to select an appropriate
priority by inspection of the relevant priorities. This is what is
done today within the NSRL priority assignment process.
3. PHOTINT collection presents a special problem tecause,
regardless of whether the collection is being done in the search or
surveillance mode, the complex of targets at a geographic location
of interest often represents such a mix of priorities that the appro-
priate priority cannot be selected by inspection. What is required
to make DCID 1/2 priorities explicitly relevant to PHOTINT tasking
is the development of an algorithm for aggregating relevant DCID 1/2
priorities. Such an algorithm is available, but it will need refine-
ment for particular applications.
4. A common requirements priorities system would have three
advantages over present arrangements that I can think of. First of
all, it would make PHOTINT and HUMINT more responsive to NITs/DCID 1/2
priorities guidance. Both HTO and PTO favor systems that move Chem
in that direction. Secondly, it would facilitate description and
assessment of results of collection efforts in terms of the DCID 1/2
categories and topics. Third, it would give a unity and coherence
to the overall management of the various collection efforts that
would appeal to those outside the Intelligence Community who review
the collection prOcess.
STATi;
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/11/14: CIA-RDP02505213R000200240002-2
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/11/14: CIA-RDP02505213R000200240002-2
5. Without specific inputs from HTO and PTO I cannot tell you
yet about the difficulties and costs of establishing a common require-
ments priorities system. I guess that it would be relatively simple
for HTO, but relatively complex for PTO.
Distribution:.
1 - AD/TAO A,
1 - DZTP Priorities file
1 - TAO Chrono .
1 - PD Chrono
DCl/CTS/TAO/PD
(23 Oct 79)
STAT:
STAT
STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/11/14: CIA-RDP02505213R000200240002-2