TARDY RESPONSE TO LETTER FROM CONGRESSMAN JAMES C. AUCHINCLOSS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80B01676R003100300024-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: April 22, 2002
• Sequence Number: 24
• Publication Date: March 14, 1961
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Release 2002/08/21 : CIA-RDP80B01676R003100300024-1
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MEMORANDUM FOR: Director of Central Intelligence
SUBJECT . Tardy Response to Letter from
Congressman James C. Auchincloss
1. I wish to express my apologies for the embarrassment and
chagrin caused by the failure of my office to prepare promptly the
necessary reply to Congressman Auchincloss. We received the letter
on 23 February and forwarded a draft reply on 6 March--clearly an
unacceptable performance.
2. The incident in question does not in any way represent
our normal performance nor lack of awareness of good manners and
public relations in the handling of correspondence. Responsibility
for preparing responses to correspondence to be signed by you or
other senior officers on matters pertaining to personnel has been
centralized in the office of the Director of Personnel and assigned
to a single senior staff officer. In the instant case this officer
was absent on several days leave when the Auchincloss letter arrived.
This simple fact set the scene for a series of attempts by conscien-
tious but less experienced personnel to prepare the necessary reply
with the ultimate result of the delinquent response.
3. To prevent recurrence of such incidents, the Legislative
Counsel and I have developed special controls and timetables which.
should assure that final or interim replies, if necessary, to
congressional correspondence are ready for signature within five
working days of arrival. Secondary controls will ensure that final
replies to interim acknowledgments are prepared on a timely basis.
4. Within the Office of Personnel I am formalizing assign-
ments of responsibility, procedures, action timetables, and moni-
toring methods to ensure that replies to congressional and comparable
external correspondence are prepared within two working days.
STAT
Emmett D. Ec o _Ls
Approved For Release 2002/08/21 : CIA-RDP80B01676R003100300024-1