IG SURVEY OF RECORDS PROGRAM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP72-00038R000100210001-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 93
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 23, 2006
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: March 15, 1967
• Content Type: MF

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MEMORANDUM FOR
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CLASSIFICATION DOWNGRADING AND
DECLASSIFICATION '
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MEM NDUM FOR: Deputy Direr for Support
SUBJECT
Agency.-Wide Records Management Survey
RE? IXWCE : DDS Me*orandum 6E--1607, dated 7 April 1965
1. At your request (see reference) this office re-
cently completed a comprehensive survey (Headquarters) of
the records management (fit) function in the Agency. The
survey covered the Office of the Director, the four Direc-
torates, the central Records Administration Staff (BAa),
and the Agency Records Center l I Because of
the complex and far-reaching nature of the AH function in
the Agency, the survey limited its fact finding to the
interview of key personnel involved in this activity. In
all, about 75 such persons in grades GS-7 to G5-15 were
interviewed. With most of these people the RM function
is only a part-time endeavor.
2. Our summary findings and recommendations appear
on page seven of this report. In some respects these will
duplicate points already made in the five separate reports
that have been prepared to cover our inquiry in each of the
four Directorates and the Records Administration Staff. Be-
cause this report in based almost exclusively on person
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interviews (there was no inspection. of files or analysis
of specific records handling systems), our findings and.
recommendations are tentative.
General Observations
3. In the U.S. Goverment community CIA is considered
a leader in the RM field. This distinction is based on
positive Ply achievements, particularly during the last ten
years, when the Agency first established, then gradually
improved its RM system so that today this system functions
fairly effectively, despite certain obvious flaws. In
this report we address ourselves primarily to these flaws,
notwithstanding the fact that most of them stem from well
known causal factors such as the low level of Agency interest
in Rai, the low working priority accorded to this function,
lack of personnel, and the like.
4. The greatest single Agency failure with respect
to the RM function stems from the tendency to regard this
activity largely as an exercise in paper volume control.
On this false notion have been built a number of other
erroneous impressions such as the belief that the records
function is a routine clerical task to be handled by low
level clerical personnel; that the function rates low pri-
ority as against other Agency business; that it requires
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no special planning or direction; and that the problem in.
any case is not of major concern to operating officials.
In our inspection we found a general lack of understanding
among top level officials about the nature of records and
their value in the Agency's working scheme. While most
operating officials and senior officers in the Agency seem
to profess an interest in good records, few translate this
attitude into positive courses of action on which effective
records systems can be built. The lack of real interest
in good records on the pact of the Agency's top management
coupled with its failure to acknowledge the importance of
the records function itself is probably our most signifi-
cant inspection finding. We consider this finding impor-
tant because it lies at the root of all records management
problems. The general apathy and disinterest in records,
which prevails in virtually every Agency component, becomes
more and more pronounced as one ascends the managerial
ladder.
5. Our next important finding has to do with the fun-
damental defect in the Agency's organization of the records
management function. As presently constituted, this func-
tion is decentralized, that is, each Directorate and Office
is itself responsible for the conduct of its own RM activity.
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This decentralization was accomplished in 1961 when the
Agency's former Management Staff was dissolved and the
Records Administration Staff (8AS) . ~crcated in the Deputy
Directorate of Support, The dhfect in this new organiza-
tional arrangement is discussed in Part n of this report
which deals specifically with the present Records Adminis-
tration Staff (RAS). The decentraliz tion action is formal-
25X1 ized in
of*15 April 1964 (revised) which, despite
certain manifest weaknesses, constitutes the only existing
mandate for the Agency's widespread and very costly EM
activities.
provides no specific guidelines for
decentralized RU organization and as a result each
Directorate has solved the problem in its own way, either
by default or dame form of loose RM organization that is
neither orthodox nor effective. As an example, DDP runs
its RM program out of its
(auto-
matic data processing unit) even though its records keeping
function is and will continue to be primarily a manual opera-
tion. Needless to say, the RM function in DDP is very much
machine oriented. Another flaw in the DDP setup is that the
Agency's
Records Administration Staff has little to
do with DDP's RM activity ostensibly because of the security
problem.' The contact is now largely confined to establishing
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Recor * A Control Schedules tad to forms and equip-
iient problems. In DDI, DOS, and DD/S&T, the responsibility
for the RM function has b"m decentralized to the point
where it usually devolves on the Individual components,
some of which have virtual autonomy in the conduct of this
activity. The effectiveness of the individual RM programs
in these components varies in accordance with the abilities
and degree of interest of the person in charge. In many
of these components the GS grade and experience level of
the RM officers is low. In others the general level of
interest in RM is quite shallow, notably on the supervisory
level. In almost every component, the records management
officer (or records administration officer) has collateral
duties, some of which have nothing to do with records.
6. We also found that the RU regulatory structure
throughout the Agency is either weak or non-existent. As
already stated, ---]constitutes the basic Agency man-
date for this activity. This regulation is too broadly
phrased to provide any effective guidelines for RU work
in the individual components. As an example, Odds
not define either the status or the functions of the RA:.
It fails to define the standing of RAR in terms of its
staff or command responsibilities and thus leaves this
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important question is doubt. As a result the RAS staff
has no compulsive power and its advice w.nd counsel is often
ignored. In most cases RAS has to "sell" its services.
Some Agency components have translated the most Important
provisions of I into an internal regulatory Issuance
which redefines the RM program in terms of the cent
itself and establishes some guidelines for its general con-
duct. This type of internal interpretation, however, has
only been accomplished in a few of the components. Also,
where it has been done, the interpretation is not uniform
and conspicuous lacunae are evident. In the Office of
Personnel, for example, in Internal regulation (OPM 70-1-1,
dated 19 March 1965) defines RM activity in terms of four
major functions: records maintenance, records disposition,
vital records administration, and forms administration.
The regulation fails to pay heed to the full spectrum of
RM activities as outlined in0 and thus by implica_ 25X1
tion declares certain significant RM functions null and
void.
7. The weak regulate
ructure plus the low priority
generally ascribed to the Agency RM function is reflected
in the personnel organization that now surrounds this acti-
vity. In this respect three significant weaknesses are
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evident: the disparity in the grade level of RN officers
throughout the Agency in comparison with their working re-
usibilities; the dilution of the RM effort with other
working assignments, some of which have higher priority;
the assignment of the RX function to clerical personnel
on the lowest Agency level, or to personnel with inade-
quate training or interest in the function; the failure
to establish satisfactory inducements (such as an Rg
career structure) to RM officers with the result that
most RM specialists find themselves low on the promotion
ladder and with little other career prospect.
Recommendations
8. To correct the defects cited above, several or-
tional and RM policy changes should be made, and
to this end
It is recommended that
(a) The Records management function in the Agency be
revitalized and interest in the program stimulated, espe-
cially on top management levels. This revitalization effort
should spring from the highest possible Agency level, pref-
erably from the Office of the DCI.
(b) Senior operating and administrative officials be
made more acutely aware of the importance of the function
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and the need for their a ctivc participation.
(c) The Records Management function be redefined for
the whole Agency,, ,-t -nnly in terms of the broad spectrum
of activity that it entails, but also with respect to prac-
tical and reasonably attainable goals. This redefinition
should also be made on the highest possible Agency level
in order to break through the inertia and lack of interest
that presently characterizes some aspects of the RU endeavor.
(d) The records management function be reorganized as
a pyramidical structure with the Records Administration
Staff transferred from its present anomalous position in
the Deputy Directorate for Support to the Office of the
Director. In this organizational structure the Chief of
the Records Administration Staff would be the do facto
records authority for the Agency. This senior Records
Administration Officer would be represented in each of
the four Directorates
by a senior Records Management Officer who in turn will
be the officially appointed RMO for that component. The
relationship between the chief Records Administration
Officer in the Office of the Director and the senior )'s
in the individual Directorates should have a staff character.
Jurisdiction over the Agency's Records Center
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in R M work should be given other assignments. Employees
who are already performing well or who demonstrate good
prospect for EM work should be carefully screened and, viherc=
necessary, further trained for their jobs.
Present RM. officers with little ability or interest
working priorities.
(f) The personnel structure in the Agency's EM acti-
vity be surveyed to determine whether the complement is
too large or too small for the job. The qualifications
of individual officers should likewise be re-examined
with a view to achieving the best possible stafiin_ for the
accordance with current and future developments and
ine its goals
ponsibility, establish
wor'.insy priorities, and provide for continuity and change
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sferred to the Of?fi
eontinuii* y in cha
egulatory
c ;overning the RM func-
tion in the Agency revamped. This should begin. with
25X1 a revision of
which is now obsolete. The revised
__~hould be used as a basis for individual internal
uctio which will formalize the establishment of the
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(:) The possibility of establishin a career program
RM personnel should be, carefully studied.
9. None of the observations or recom end t ions above
have addressed themselves specifically to the problem of
automatic data processing ( p) in the Agency. We d+elib-
crately have avoided this issue in our survey because it
involves many com;plcx records haudlin-& (also stor".,-e and
disposition) considerations that are outside our competence.
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It should be underlined, however, that JWP impinges directly
on virtually every E.1 problem
he Agency.
nents txac existence
side by side with hard
copy records has created a variety of problems owing; to
duplication of records on a wide scale. When rnd to what
d copy records will yield to MW files and thus
permit detstruction of the former is a question for which
the Agency still has no ready answer. Some DDP area divi-
this duplication of records as a dilemma for which
there is no solution. The Agercy's top level direction will
have to cope with this enormor paper accumulation problem
in the very near future.
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Records Administration Staff
Introduction
1. This is the first section of what eventually will be a
several part report covering our inspection of the records manage-
ment (RM) function in the Agency. It deals primarily with the
Records Administration Staff (RAS) which is the guiding, coordinat-
ing and advisory element in this activity. This part of the,survey
consisted of interviews of all personnel in RAS; an examination of
pertinent Agency regulations and directives; and an inspection of
the downtown Washington offices of RAS from which the bulk of its
work is conducted. A one-day tour of the Records Center
II
for which RAS is responsible, also constituted part of this
survey. Because the work of RAS represents only one segment of the
.total Agency records management effort, the conclusions and recom-
mendations in this report are tentative.
Organization and Functions
2. Until 1950 records management in the Agency was a fairly
weak and disorganized effort. In this year the 81st Congress
passed Public law 754 (Federal Records Act) which required each
government agency to establish an RM program to suit its own needs.
25X1 ted 15 April 1964 (revised), the Agency mandate for the
RM function, has its roots in this legislation.
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terms of six principal elements: (1) Reports Administration--the
analysis, improvement, and control of administrative reporting;
(2) Correspondence Administration--the application of improved
standards and procedures for preparing and handling of correspon-
dence; (3) Forms Administration--the analysis, design, and control
of forms; (4) Records Maintenance--the establishment of standard
procedures, systems, equipment and supplies for records mainten-
ance; (5) Records Disposition--the economical and systematic dis-
position of Agency records including their preservation, retention,
transfer, protection, and disposal according to approved schedules;
and (6) Vital Records Administration--the timely selection of vital
records and their prompt transfer to and secure maintenance in a
designated Agency repository. While this program comprehends most
Agency records activities, it is actually only a blueprint. In
practice the Agency RM program is considerably narrower and in most
components focusses on document storage (Records Maintenance), paper
volume control (Records Disposition), and the management of forms
(Forms Administration). There is a Vital Materials Program (Vital
Records Administration) of sorts in the Agency but it suffers from
lack of an adequate policy basis, especially criteria for. document
selection. Real interest in the program is also lacking. Similarly,
there is little substantive interest in reports and correspondence
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administration, two important RM fields which are virtually ignored
in the Agency. These voids in the RM program exist in spite of
energetic RAS efforts aimed at stimulating interest in this activity.
These efforts are continuous and take the form of various types of
publicity, handbooks and guidelines covering every important aspect
of the RM effort.
4+. Originally the RM effort in the Agency was conducted by the
Management Staff of DDS. In 1961 this Staff was liquidated and its
RM function was decentralized. The objective of the decentralization
was to shift the day to day responsibility for RM work to the indivi-
dual directorates where it was felt the problems and-needs were better
understood. The decentralization was accompanied by a sizeable
personnel reduction. From a previous strength
was gradually reduced
force then became the Records Administration Staff whose main res-
ponsibility was to assist the individual directorates and offices
in organizing and maintaining their respective RM programs, to
establish overall policy, and to provide guidance and RM expertise
whenever and wherever it was needed. The Staff was and continues
to be administratively,responsible to the Deputy Director for Support.
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Problems
5. Since its inception in 1961, RAS has labored under certain
organizational and functional disadvantages. Theoretically RAS is
subordinate to the Deputy Director for Support. This organizational
link, however, is very tenuous because in its day to day activities,
RA6 functions fairly independently. Its tie to DDS actually consists
of little more than the routine submission of a monthly progress
report. The DDS in no way responds to this report; nor does he
disseminate any of its useful statistical or factual content. The
organizational relationship between DDS and RAS is perhaps best
(dated 22 December 1961, which
delineates the organization and functions of all components in
DDS, makes no mention of RAS. The negative implications of this
omission are fairly obvious.
It is recommended that:
The Deputy Director for Support
a. Revise to that it clearly defines the organizational
link of the Records Management Staff with the Deputy Directorate for
.Support; and delineates the Staff's responsibilities and functions;
b. Clarify the precise.role of the Records Administration
Officer in the Agency's overall records management function,
c. Establish an improved system for maintaining close working
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purposes of providing this officer with the type of higher level
guidance and support that he needs for effective performance of
his work.
6. Having no firm organizational attachment and lacking. any
real direction from above, RAS functions in somewhat of a vacuum.
Its operational mandate is only generally phrased
doctrine is self-generated and the dimensions of its role in the
Agency's paper management program is largely the product of its own
interpretation. Under normal conditions this loose organizational
and functional condition would seem conducive to a high degree of
disorganization and waste. Fortunately in RAS it has worked in
reverse. Despite its small size and physical isolation from the
mainstream of the Agency's activity, and in the face of obstacles
such as the pronounced Agency apathy toward records, RAS has con-
sistently demonstrated a high degree of skill and resourcefulness
in the Agency RM problem. Largely through its efforts CIA has come
to be identified in government as a leader in the RM field. Within
the Agency itself RAS is frequently called upon to act as trouble
shooter in records problems and its RM expertise is readily avail-
able to any Agency component that needs it.
7. But while the achievements of RAS are noteworthy and its
work is rated highly, its labors receive little formal recognition.
To begin with, RM work has very low priority in the Agency and the
RM job in almost every component is held in fairly low repute. The
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problem is traceable in part to the lukewarm attitude of top level
Agency management toward RM. There is at best only aperfunctory
interest in records among higher level officers in the Agency.,
There is also the problem of the fragmentation of the RM effort
that resulted from the 1961 decentralization. This shift in BM
responsibility has created certain artificial barriers between
RAS and some of its Agency customers. In some components RAS
has only limited RM access: usually it must wait until its ser-
vices are requested. In others, DDP for example, RAS is virtually
excluded from the RM problem. To some extent RAS has overcome
these barriers by aggressively keeping itself in the records fore-
front, maintaining pace with RM developments in other government
agencies, adroitly selling its services to apathetic Agency custo-
mers, demonstrating its skills in a broad spectrum of RM problems,
and proving in actual work situations that it can help save time,
money, equipment and manpower in what is essentially a very expen-
sive but highly neglected Agency activity. The ability of RAS to
sell itself is commendable and certainly accounts for much of its
RM progress. The selling process, however, should not be necessary
and could be eliminated if RAS was backstopped with a clear statement
of policy emanating from the highest Agency level and specifying
a. where the records management effort stands in the scheme
of working priorities in the Agency;
b. the desired scope of the effort;
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c. the number of people that should be committed to the
effort;
d. the staff and command relationships between RAS and
other Agency components.
Answers to these fundamental questions are not simple but they are
sorely needed. This absence of a clear policy for the RM function
is in fact our most significant finding in the inspection of RAS.
Some aspect of this shortcoming is at the hub of every RM problem
in the Agency.
It is recommended that
The Deputy Director for Support request, on the DDCI,level,
a clarification of basic Agency policy for the records management
function that would enable the Records Administration Staff to
determine
a. its. organizational standing in terms of jurisdiction
and staff and command relationships;
b. the practical scope of its effort;
c. the relationship of this effort to the now decentralized
.records management activity in the four Agency directorates
and the various staffs and groupings in the Office of the
Director.
Earlier in this paper it was brought out that the Agency RM
effort has been focussed on paper volume control. This focus has
been deliberate owing to the phenomenal growth of Agency records
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holdings during the past fifteen years. From 1960 to 1964 the
rate of growth (in cubic feet) was as follows:
Fiscal Year
Headquarters
Archives and
Records Center
Total Holdings
1960
188,565
59,491
248,056
1961
155,472
70,066
225,538
1962
163,837
78,046
241,883
1963
163,221
80,847
244,068
1964
193,274
82,452
275,726
The total holdings for 1964 (275,726 cubic feet) required the equiva-
lent storage space of 34,465 four drawer safes. The growth has been
steady since 1950 despite periodic records destruction drives. The
trend is toward even greater increases with no satisfactory solution
yet in sight.
8. The dimensions of the paper volume problem is also evident
in the field of forms management. A recent (1965) inventory shows
that there are about 2400 "active" forms in the Agency. In addition
CIA uses some 200 additional forms printed by other agencies. Each
year the total number of forms used by the Agency increases. In
1964 200 new forms were introduced (printed) while 100 forms were
withdrawn either because they were obsolete, or because they dupli-
cated forms already in use. The total Agency outlay in 1964 for the
printing of forms alone was over $250,000. The cost of using these
forms is about 20 times their original printing-cost.
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9. The Agency's forms management program has been moderately
successful in that there is now greater control over the printing
and issue of forms than ever before. This control, however, reaches
only those forms that are well known and in constant use. It has
little bearing on the multitude of lesser forms that come into being
outside the forms management program. As an example the Agency is
the creator and user of an inordinate number of so-called "bootleg"
forms, the kind that are drawn up by individuals or offices on a
limited volume basis, usually on readily available duplicating
machines, to facilitate some special aspect of the work. The rough
count of such bootleg forms now in use is 24,000. DDP's Records
Integration Division alone uses about 500 such forms. The forms
management program then, even with its impressive past recordy has
only begun to whittle at a problem that costs the Agency handsomely
each year because of the steady proliferation of time-consuming and
frequently costly paper.
.10. The field of vital materials is another sizeable RM problem
largely because it is so badly neglected. Each Agency directorate
and office has a Vital Materials Program and some of the programs
are considered by their sponsors to be fairly effective. Essentially
the program consists of the systematic earmarking and retirement to
the Agency's Records Center in Warrenton of those Agency records which
are considered vital in case of national emergency when it might be
necessary to relocate at some site outside of Headquarters. Many
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problems are inherent in such a program which by its nature is based
on several imponderables. The problem boils down to establishing
a hypothetical base or concept of such an emergency and then planning
for it. Until now the establishment of such a base has been generally
unsuccessful. Each Agency directorate has tried to solve the problem
on the basis of its own interpretation and no two interpretations
appear to be the same. Lacking a clear picture of what problems and
factors will come into play when the emergency occurs, and not know-
ing when it might occur or who will be on hand to reconstitute the
records, the attempts to develop an effective Vital Materials Program
have been largely ineffectual. One of the key issues is deciding
what criteria are to be used in the labeling of documents and materials
as vital. In the absence of reliable criteria, most of the Agency's
existing Vital Materials Programs have lost ground and in some cases
are virtually of no use. There was a flurry of interest in the pro-
gram I-tr~n/
during the 1962 Cuban crisis but since S.the program has languished.
.11. As the coordinator of the RM effort in the Agency, RAS is
responsible for the control of paper volume in every Agency directorate
and office. Such control is accomplished with a variety of proven
records management devices. These include periodic surveys of records
in the various components, analysis of paper handling procedures and
systems, close consultation with personnel responsible for the handl-
ing of records, the organization of workshops and seminars aimed at
developing records handling skills, Agency-wide drives aimed at
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divesting files of useless paper, and various]ong-term educational
programs directed at keeping down paper volume and increasing paper
handling efficiency. The backbone of the system is the Records
Control Schedule, which is used by RAS to record the type and volume
of paper holdings in every Agency component. This schedule estab-
lishes specific dates for retirement of infrequently used paper to
the Records Center, periodic re-examination of files to determine
their further usefulness, scheduled return for review purposes of
specific records holdings to the owner component, and, where possible,
disposition by archival storage or destruction. The built-in tickler
aspect of the Records Control Schedule serves to keep every Agency
component aware of the status of its records and acts as a reminder
for various types of records action. Except for OSA and NPIC all
paper holdings in the Agency are now accounted for by Records Control
Schedules. Some of the schedules, notably those in DDP, are not very
effective because they have been drawn up in very general terms,
ostensibly to preserve their sensitive content. In these cases the
schedule has less RM impact than when the individual categories of
records are clearly identified. The success of the Records Control
Schedule as a device to keep down paper volume has been amply demon-
strated since it was first put into use. Since then 165,470 cubic
feet of records have been retired to the Records Center of which
82,611 cubic feet were destroyed. The cumulative tangible dollar
savings in this and related RM operations during the past ten years
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77.
12. The Agency's Records Center s an above ground
records storage facility with temperature and humidity control and
a capacity for 103,380 cubic feet of records. Its holdings in FY 1965
were 82,859 cubic feet. The effectiveness of the Records Center stems
from the fact that it provides a rapid document retrieval system
which makes it possible for every component in the Agency to store
any records at the Center for short or long periods of time with
the possibility of being able to retrieve them on short notice.
A headquarters customer, for example, can obtain retrieval service
in a matter of four or five hours if the request is filed early
in the day, and overnight if the document is asked for late in
the day. In case of urgency, records can be delivered up to
headquarters in as little as two hours after the request is placed.
The Records Center is also a repository for Vital Materials. In
this respect the Center does little more than provide a records
safe deposit box for its Agency customer. The Center is manned
storage facilities of the Records Center were occupied at 80 percent
of full capacity in mid-1965. The 20 percent space reserve has
been maintained through vigorous and persistent efforts on the
part of the Records Administration Staff to hold down a steady
increase in record holdings by accelerated document destruction
programs based on Records Control Schedules.
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13. As already mentioned, the main problem confronting the
Records Administration Staff, as well as records officers in
other Agency components, is the low regard in which the RM func-
tion is held. 'RM officers offer several explanations for this.
Some state that the specialized nature.of the Agency's work places
premium on individuals with a high degree of technical ability, and
that this type of professional generally shows little inclination
toward paper work. Another view is that many senior officers see
the Agency as a unique government organization with a special
mission and therefore considerable working autonomy; it should
be able to handle its paper problems in any way it pleases. There
is also the opinion that inside and outside pressures on the Agency
tolroduce more and better intelligence have forced it to gear every
possible resource to projects that yield tangible results. In the
face of such pressures top level management tends to support only
those programs that contribute directly to the achievement of pri-
mary goals.
Recent personnel cuts and the imposition of a personnel ceil-
ing also have had a deleterious effect on RM work. These develop-
ments have given rise to defensive slogans such as "lack of time"
and "lack of people" which hamstring any records improvement effort.
In some respects top level management in the Agency has itself nur-
tured these negative attitudes. When the decision was made recently
to reduce the average salary in the Agency to bring it in line with
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with government averages, the effort was focussed on lowering
the grade level of records personnel. The Salary and Wage Divi-
sion's recent arbitrary cuts in the slot structure for records
officers in DDP is a case in point. It will also be recalled that
the 701 Program in 1962 resulted in a large number of casualties
among records management officers. A good example of the lukewarm
attitude of the Agency's direction towards the RM function was the
Agency's recent failure to nominate a candidate for the annual inter-
Agency records management award. Although the Medical Staff proposed
an Agency candidate for this award,, no action was taken on the pro-
posal nor any explanation given for not following through on the
nomination.
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RECORDS MMt 1TTr ? DDI
I. IN`TRODUCTION
I The problem of records management (RM) in the DDI varies
from office to office. Some of the DDI components, such as the
Office of National B timates and the Office of Current Intelligence,
do not engage in the type of work that brings with it" serious prcbleml
In recor .s management. . Other components,, notably the Office of Easic
Intelligence (OBI),. the Office of Research and Reports (ORR), the
Office of Central Reference (OCR), and National Photographic Intelli-
genes Center (NPIC), are constantly Involved with records msnageenent
problems.* Occasionally, because of reorganizations, many records
problems are transferred from one office to another. This recently
happened the Office of Basic' Intelligence acquired the former
ORR Geographic Research Area with its approximately 20,000 cubic
feet, of records. Rather than' considering in detail these special
,problem: of the separate offices this report is concerned with the
more general, across-the-board problems of the DDI complex In crest-
ing,'maintaining and disposing of its records.
2. It should be noted that there are various special reference
systems, such as OCR's intellofax, which are intended to reduce the
* of June 1965 the I)DI records at Headquarters totaled )28,609 cubic
feet; OCR held almost half of this and NPIC was second with about
35,,000 cubic feet.
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need for analysts to have,extensive'.eference files of their own.*
However,.these systems, although subject to continuing improvement,
have, not been developed to the point where they now substantially
reduce the need for private reference files. For purposes of this
report they are considered instruments of records management repre-
seating a hope and potential for. future records reduction.
CIA complies with the provisions of the Federal Records Act
of 1950, Public Law 754, and the resulting regulations of GSA.
Although our intelligence operations exempt us from complying with
some Federal laws and regulations, our records problems are similar
to.those.in other agencies. Consequently, we adopt basic standards,
guides, and procedures of GSA and modify these, where necessary, to
suit our needs.
25X1 4.
last revised 15 April 1964) provides for a continu-
ing Agency records administration program to control and improve
records from their creation or receipt to their disposition and pre-
scribes policies and responsibilities for effectively carrying out
the Program. It delineates the duties of the CIA Records Administra?
tl. sn, .,Officer. It defines the Records Administration Program in terms
of: (1) the analysis, improvement, and control of administrative
reporting; (2) the application of improved standards and procedures
*TheIntelltfax system is designed to provide access to documents by
subject and area and is built around special machine techniques.
Bibliographic ends are printed on punched cards, than proceoaod
and filed by subject through mechanical facilities. Upon reguacs t the
system locates pertinent entries, arranges them in proper sequence,
and prdduces for retmntion a, series of cards each one of which contains
bibliographic information.
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for preparing and handling correspondence; (3) the analysis, design,
and. control of forms; (4) the establishment of standard procedures,
systems, equipment and supplies for records maintenance; (5) the
economical and systematic disposition of Agency records including
their preservation, retention,, transfer, protection, and disposal
according to approved schedules; and (6) the timely selection of
vital records and their prompt transfer to and secutq maintenance in
an Agency repository.
'?5a The DDI has no counterpart.-.to
However,
offices In the Directorate with difficult R1 problems, issue their
regulations. These provide detailed instructions for Implementing
the Records Program. An example of this is Office Regulation 70-2
issued by the Office of Research and. Reports. This regulation svpple-
ments Oared sets forth policy and procedures to be followed by
personnel in requesting new,forms and reprints or revisions of
existing forms. This regulation refers to those forms and form
letters which are initiated by or are for the primary use of am.
IL ORGA,'~IZATION AND HISTORY OF DDI RECORDS MANAOEM T
6. When the Agency's records management function was assigned
in 1961- to the immediate Office of the Deputy Director (Support),. one
important result. of this was the decentralization of the Program.
The effectiveness of the Program since then has varied substantially.
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SECRET
Sow of this has depended upon the Area Record Officer's (ARO)*
initiative and ability while some of the most mexked improvements
in records performance have resulted from the periodic stimuli that
top management has given the Program. The amount of time AR Officers
have ;spent on the DDI Program has varied from 100% in NPIC to about
65% in MR,, under 10% in the Office of the DDI, and about 2% in OBI
before its acquisition of the Geographic Area, Such wide differences
appear to have reflected the magnitude of the records problems involved.
7. All DDI offices, except 1V3?IC, have part-time AR Officers.
Those in the Agency who devote their'entire time to RM problems,are
G8>13s, the part-time are GS*l2s. Consequently, a number of officers
in the latter &xoup-are anxious to change jobs because of the grade
'l miteLtions that they believe accompany a part-time RT~~ responsibility.
There never has been any statement clarifying the status of a part-
time% ARO.
8. The criteria that determine the assignment of a full-tom AR
Officer to a DDI component may also seem vague and inconsistent. A
case in point is OCR that has almost half the DDI holdings but -.s
without a full-time AR Officer. NPIC, on the other hand, with sub-
stantially less material, does have a full-time AR Officer. Such an
arrangement, however, is by no means indefensible or unexplainable.
4Recordsofficers in the DDI are generally known as ARO's but the Office
of` T'ersonne1 has designated them an Record Administrativ3 Officers (RAO's).
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9. The records management problem in the Office of Central
Reference is quite different from that of other Agency components. It
is by definition the central respository for both the Agency and the
com'=ity of a wide range of intelligence reference material. This
material is both from open and classified sources, some of which
requires special handling. A. large volume of records held by OCR is
to met the. reference requirements of other componenAs. As a result
its holdings, when judged by the cubic foot standards employed in
describing the records of other organizations, seem large. Compared
with the Library of Congress this volume must appear small, but the
number of separate items in OCR is high according to any comparable
standard of measurement. In the Documents Division, for example, 900,000
different documents were received last year in 18,000,000 copies. The
task was further complicated by the fact that whereas 10,000,000 copies
were collateral $,000,000 needed special handling.
10.- All of OCR's files do not lend themselves to the volume
controls applicable to .her offices. In fact, the existence of its
reference capability is supposed to make possible the reduction of
the private holdings. The problem that OCR faces in the management
of Its referenced holdings is primarily that of qualitative controls.
The office has a program of soliciting other components concerning
the eligibility of old material for retirement or destruction. It is
also engaged in an extensive and far.reaching operation known as the
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tiozi of existing multiple files,in different divisions through a
ELM
CHIVE System4 that is designed to bring about an, eventual consolida?
single rwtcrofilm, document system. It is believed that eventually
MM will be able to provide better statistical information on file
activity and document use than anything now available. This will be
of s.ubstanti.al assistance in deciding which files or docurants should
be selected for retirement. This should be the most Important develop.
-pent ever nude in CIA in the field of records management.
11. The selecting out probleiis, has been with the OCR since its
beginning. The person who selects the current books is also enjoined
significant documents are indexecd, but about 50% are not considered
to, weed out the obsolete whenever the opportunity arises. The more
worthy of indexing. All of this activity is for the expert- in his
particular OCR area, The AR? Is not usually cited /tx aining for
making such selections. Once the decision is made, however, to select
certain items out of OCR the ARO should see to it that the decision is
cased out. }
In t-th-z OCR individual registers have established
selection criteria, some more formalized than others. An attempt to
summarize these criteria for compatibility, or to establish common
criteria to be used by all registers, was not deemed necessary. With
proposed CHIVE System is an attempt to integrate several (but not
aU) of the activities of OCR Into one system, applying advanced info--
mation processing techniques and management tools to achieve a oiguif i..
cant increase in processing offectlveneso.
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the coming of CHIVE a generally agreed upon set of selection criteria
will. be essential. However, thie determination will be made by dozens
of experts and not by an RM officer.
13. There are., however, other activities in OCR that call for the
continual assistance of the ARO.. OCR officers, acknowledge that in
the Graphic Register, Biographic Register, and Foreign Installation
Branch* there is an opportunity for- a more energetic purging of files.
Recent photography of specific subject matter frequently permits the
elimination of outdated material.. - ;`.Mora recent pictures of persons on
whom there is old material permits reitirement of the outdated mate.
rial. Biographic data are also. frequebtly corrected by a periodic.
review of the dossiers. Incorrect or obsolete material is regularly
enacted from installation target folders as prepared in FIB. A
full time ARO, however$ is probably not needed for this so much as
continuous attention from top management in the operating divisions.
OCR has always held a leading position in the intelligence community
.in seeking Improvement in the rapid handling of large quantities of
information.
14. RAS and OCR have worked together effectively within a
.restricted area. In 1964 a files campaign, largely the result of
working on forms and files management, brought about the destruction
of 1,333 cubic feet material, retired 304 cubic feet of material to
wn-va most important services performed by FIB are compiling city and
town dosaiers and contributing to mapping and tar eating. efforts.
.. 7,.
ilk
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Records Center and 17 safes and file cabinets. .'hero 3s no Intention
or deniiTs.ting such an effort by adding the reminder that, such a
quantity of records represents 1y a minuscule part of the tptal
QPfICe holdings, fof+ever,, PAS~in this limited area of OCR L8: an
important one and the Records Staff is continual y giving valuable
advine to OCR on records management equipment and methods.
15. In summary, we do not believe that a full
Officer Is competent to make
much of a dent in the ].irger part of
OCR reference holdings. An ARO., however, still has on important
part to play in a few of the restrtc ed areas of OCR as previously
described. The development of CH ' wtll push the present OCR systems
into obsolescence and require at some future date a reappraisal of
'the OCR records problem
16. This inspection ha4 ascertained that the DDI decentralized
system of records management i.s nerally satisfactory. Yet, it has
aleq revealed that as a result: of the absence of central responsi-
bility there are certain defic ncies. We have no desire to upset
a sjstem that is basically sound9 but also believe that its defects
can be remedied by a minor adjustment of existing practices and
regulations. The defects are in detail rather than general function.
They are found in absence of established qualifications for the
offices' records management officers limits set for their promotions
and standards to be followed in their work. Each office, for excmple.,
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is responsible for establishing Its own minimum training reciuiremz nts.
Consequently, some of the l)D1( of 'fivers have had considerable GSA and
academic .training, scm have had little or none. If the Chief of
the DDDX Administration aasu d '6, responsibility for requiring adequate
trai.aling for the records manage=nt officers of the various o 'Aic3a,
and established certain standarc&e that could be followed in the
conduct of their work., this would tend to remedy th? "'defects we have
noted, above < Not least of the advantages might be that of increazing
the. ~restiM of the AItO'e and giving them the feeling that their work
Is appreciated by the T)AX as well as the individual office for which
they worI.
,. r.. It is recomnded that;
the Deputy Director (Intelligence) assign to the
Chief of DDI Administration the responsibility for
regL.ring adequate training for the AR0's and clarify
other standards designed to improve the morale and
prestige of ARO's.
17, 10rience has proved, the importance of top managemsntts
participation in the !Records Program. In 1960, in anticipation of
Agency's move to McLean, the DDZ, in order to adjust to the
Headquarters space requirements issued a strongly.,worded z tice
urging all personnel to destroy obsolete or superfluous paper. A
substantial reduction in the volume of headquarters material follo,ied,
and on all-time record for an annual retirement to the Canter* wa a
established in 1960 when almost 11,000 cubic feet of roco d;s were sent
there.
total atncaun of 'A, euey recorrde at the Center= is about: 84,5QO cubic feet.
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.8. More recently, in January' 1965, the President d9.reetod that
a l 'tgencies conduct a critical, aie...e atlon of their records
dispo,sa3. programs with the pri3 ry objectives of retiring inactive
record and reducing to the m:Lni=m the retention period for all
records. This was re-inrorced for the Agency by a DDS notice; in
the 't )I an additional one was issued by the Assistant Deputy Director
(intelligence). The President's directive contributed heavily to
the favorable 'statistics for 1965 when 14,361 cubic feet of records
were received at the Records Center .n comparison with 13,955 cubic feet
aestroyed. This smal.l.. percentage of rowth was unprecedented. In
1.960y or example,. 17,817 cubic feet of ' record., were received at the
Center and only 5,a46 cubic feet Were destroyed.
19. Aided by such m stimulus from top management, all -DD1
off'ices,, with the exception of NPIC,, have been reasonably well satisY
fieatl,with their efforts is keep don their records holdings to
mea able proportions.. In April 1965 NPIC brought in a f .1-tt e
professional records officer. Although EPIC had had a number of separate
actions uaderta1 en by divisions and staffs tQ reduce or eliminate
inactive records, these actions were without benefit of an NPIC records
control schedule.* We believe that NPIC's disposal record will become
as ttisfaotory as that in other ADI offices. Such a prediction is
JCoz -trol schedules includes (1) Description of records and how f ilad;
(2) volt < number of cubic feet; (3) disposition - whether to destroy
in office, retire to b cords center and destroy later, or I mop these
_o nently.
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based partly upon the competence of the IM Officer in NP $ and
partly IkPO-41 the strong backing th Records Management is ,get'ti rZ
20. The Rec orde AdmLniatratiof Staff (RAS) has been able
.to wcris eff'ectivelj snd barruntOue:L1 with DDS o 3cials. One rc sul.t
of this has been that even though the DDI material'3 1d iu the
Ag ncy Records Center corzni as to a its rate of growth has been
subitantiallY reduced. DDt off'ic is and the fAS recognize' bcwevera
that the problem of records grovtb is never perrmnentl y solved but
asst, be. constantly worked on. Fiscal Year 1965 was a year of remark-
ally small growth at the Rwords Center but it should be, remembered
t4a,tthe influence of the President's directive was one of the major
factors In the destruction of Inactive records.
from the N Director.
l."t .REI.ATI( OP RECORDS AD N 5'7 iATION STAFF G1T1'.'II DDI
2l. heavy emphasis On the destruction of records has led
may to believe that this constitutes the entire Records Tag=mqnt
P.ro.gamr. At least equally ortant is the problem of what -records
should be .Created. Soros have rated :tt the nwaber one problem.,
especially since it is now so easy to make multiple copies. DiecrUd"
nation Lu deciding on what should be included in the records
putting-the main emphasis where it belongs It. is obvious that with.
out the creation of records no problems of intenance and disposition
cold exist.
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22. The most coon ways f o r cre ting records are throu&
correspondence, forms-, and reports. 1Au has eonsis+ently cited
a. restraining influence on the p; li.feratton of reports by asking
such questions as ., Are the reports necessary? Are they doing the
,job for which they were intended? Is it all worth the cost? Is it
supplying the information that pis necessary and useful? Are any
of the reports duplicative? Are the approximate, l2 ..l.lion pieces
of paper created annually frox reports necessary?
:23. Forms management develops' guides and ste.ndard.s to controll,
t creation of for ms; elissti tes unxlecessaxyy' forms, copies end items
forms; standardizes form.? sizes,. papers and other physical esptctsg
coxsoiidates forme; coordinates :rorms
design and control with systems
and procedures; improves funotional efficiency and appearance of
i'or ts; and develops detailed specifications for construction of
forms
24, The importance and nature of forms managewnt can better
be understood by looking at an actual and recent survey that involved
a :nlnber of, RAS cooperating with the CPR Administrative Staff. As
always in the DDI the Records Officer in (R acted in an advisory
or staff capacity in discussing the forms and procedures Frith each
braneb and staff. The ARO frequently overcame the objee4tou of
analysts to the destruction of certain forms and came up with a grea it s
that rccstalted in new oncc3. SOW specific, resultr of this ou y tzra
as follows:
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25. About 100 unofficial or so-called bootleg forms* Mere re.
paired with 23 official A ncy' forms. Some of these were already in
existence but their availability was not known to CSR. Twisty.nine
of'fi,cial forms$ Which initially had been developed exclusively for
;tie, ? ere abolished and removed from the Agency forms system as
requirements no longer existed, for such forms, Over 100,000 copies
of Ox of these obsolete forms were removed from stage and destroyed.
Bering the survey 25k.bootleg forms out of a 392 total were found, to
be in use. Some were justified beeauae of limited application while
nvn r others were permanently eliminated.
26: These new forms were needed not only to bring about the
prevention of some records and the destruction of others but because
they oftentiia offered (a) ov rall improvement in design of f ermas;
(b), information rearranged. to fit the need of users; (c) professional
app r ance; (d) easier readability; (e) items amen d in more ice-Ica
sego nee; (f) and caption headings that were mss, accurate in
indent.fg their usage.
27- or better correspondence management RAS develops guides
and standards for writing and typing letters; reviews operating pro-
cedures for use of form and guide letters; applies machenized methods
to expedite proce3sing time; eliminates unnecessary copies to reduce
Mootleg forms are devised by individuals usually unacquainted with
the rules for superior forma. Consequently they are poorly &init-ned
and cannot be used. e copt for ca arimentct.i ptwpouv:i or a limited
number of projects.
13
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space and, equipnt; and simplifies procedures and thereby reduces
cvsrtPsponuence volume and cost
28. There are solid reascSna for hoping that the CIARecords
Center can satisfy the storage' needs of the Agency for many years
to Guar r. Not only have there been substantial reductions in the
grow4-h of CIA records r but GSA Is building a new Records Center at
Suitlahd, f .ryland, to house 4 million cubic feet of records. when
completed it is now believed that approximately 25,000 cubic feet
of A, ricy*-produced intelligence can be stored in Suitland. Moreover,
the existence and use of such cgaon central storage may help in
encoutraging the destruction rat multiple copies.
The
29 -. DAI complex tai th the advice of RAS has taken advantage
of some of the more notable advances in filing systems. One of
those in the Graphic Regis ter a power mna.chi.ne that is ued for
tiling photographs. AnotPtier, known as a ConserY,Ra-File V, has been re-
cently. Installed the Office of the DDI. It consists of a series
}
of cradle-type filing units that results in an increase of filing
capacity beyond anything heretofore possible. It is an engineered
filing system of such flexibility that it will meet the specific
needs of any filing installation. It almost doubles the previous
capacity of the filing area.,
30? The DDI decentralization of authority in records manager nt,
with the ultimate authority resting with the Director of each off-,Oar,
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has on the whole brought -saatisractoxy results. It has procluced,
bou ver - a need for certain DDI directives establishing uniform
stands ID minimum training requirements and B;4 promotion policies.
Although the recent reduction -records growth has been substantial,
the extent of It has owed a great: deal to the prodding of top manage.,
i, at starting with the Presidency, RAS has been 4kctive1y engaged
14,p qvIdina guidelines for record2 management and h~a had the
.eooporation of DPI ofticial.s. 4s the authority and prestige o,--,' top
nag cent combined -r ,th the pro-resdional guidance of RRAS and coopara-
tion of UDI have produced in recent de rs a commendable record of ?
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` AL MCORDS - -- -__- IN THE DDT
The Vital Records Progr= is desig d to maw possible
the Continuation of DDI work in the event of a serious emergency
star. '. as a nuclear attack on the. United States Records considered
vital in the DDI are those that acre regarded as essential, for tb
use of any surviving group in order for them to car?wr on the DDI
mission and f'unctiono. The effort allocated to selection and resin-
tenance of, vital materials must be bal anced against estimated
f Ut jtre neec the likely degree of d.1struction of headquarters
reccards, and the estimated availability of personnel capable of
s )tploiting the materials.
32, The conscientiOue efforts in DDI to maintain the Vital
Records ? ogram seem somewhat removed from the likely realities
o future r n `. An ea mple of this is the absence of
1*rderzed site for contain.nn .the DDt vital records. Thus the mf:t
SS ,rtant element in avoiding the destruction of Agency records is
missing. Consequently,, the Vital Records Program takes on an
appearance of unreality with aU Agency directorates being victims
of a lack of established standards for procedures needed in a :Nturo
emergency.
334 S-'veral years ago each DDI office had a roster or persormol
who (~ ru to be relocated during or before an umorgency. They h,sc3: me
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day of briefing on the files at the Vital Materials Repository plus
t140 days of practice retrieval. from -the files emphasizing those, with
which.they did not work in their normal daily asatnts. l creo'rer,
members of the Records Center staff participated in the training
exere es in order to increase to effectiveness of their support in
an emergency. No such preparatIons, are now being made for possible
future developments even though DDI offices are genie ally current in
preparing Vital Records Deposit Schedules and transferring records
to the ~ repository,
34. Despite the lack of a harrie d. site, a future tuclear
attack would not be likely to destroy all our records ho matter what
happened to the Records Center.' This is partly because there has
been a deliberate dispersion of soma vital records in distant loca,?
tion?. Several years ago the Vital Materials Officer of CM developed
a file of selected finished intelligence and placed one set at
a. hardened site, A dispersion of other published. material
results from the routine assemination practices of the Agency. This
includes HIS's and daily FBIS summaries that go to every part of the
country.
35. There is some question, however, that urgency conditions
would allow.for carrying on the DDI mission and functions even if
the Records Center were not destroyed. This is because the accuaala-
tion of records in the pant few years has not been accompanied by wiy
practice exercise desi ed to acquaint the aur,lyyt with the location
G
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of vital materials and system of filing- Consequentl;f, the sub-
stan;tial,. Increase in vital records has made the collectitr. too
cumberuoms for efficient use.
36. The Vital Records Program needs help beyond anything
posoiible frc ra RAS or Records Center. As presently constituted, it is
=11ealistic because of (a) lac% of a hardened 4te; (b) a failure
..in recent years to en go in practice exercises; (c :,the accumulation
of records has made the collectta4 unwieldy to use; (d) the almost
total lack of recent planning in providing the appropriate personnel
in ' case of ar emergency.
37- The Vital Records program is a necessary part of itecords
! nagemcnt planning. Consequently, it is not logical in the DDI for
Vital Records problem, to be' handled by those who are not Involved
in other RAS, matters. All AXt Officers in the DDT should be conscious
It is recomr ended that: No
aa. All AR officers who are associated with the Records
Administration Staff Program in the DDI: be also asst ed the
rwiponaaibility for the Vital Records Program of their MI
csxaonent
b. All AR officers in the DDT be instructed to conduct
periodic reviews of vital records at the Center in order
to keep the materials to efficient and useable proportions;
and
c. The Agency consider the more extensive use of
hardened sites now available or the construction of an Agency
site.
'~' ,SW M
i t
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ti::.ord 3 Vl anngern2nt D1)S
:n 'odtac t ion
1. This report sets forth the results of a recent
inspection survey of t the records management (R '1) function
in the Deputy Directorate for Support (DDS). The survey
was based chiefly on interviews of DDS officers who ho7 d
!.cey records positions in the several DDS components. `:'here
are eight such officers and they are assigned to the Di's'c.
of the Deputy Di_r~~ctor for Support, Logistics, Po-so-n):79
Security, Training, Medical, Finance and Commun .cati_on.s.
the seven records specialists in the Records Admin4straticn
Staff=-of DDS also were interviewed for purposes of -thin;
: vey, and our flndr.ngs with respect to this
cove-red in a separate, report.
2. In this survey we made no attempt to inspect DDS
fibs car to look into specific document handling prceo(.?,.res
and systems that control the flow of paper in and out rf
the individual DDS components. We also made no e.f''cr;; to
ns?ess the imr ac 4 of DDS paper on other A{rene;y com ;ono s
,.rte?I `:'!mot gh t1i `S ';9 'C b em has ccns .de ^~!')~ C hone ng o.n ~ o
in all the eom open ri~ a i. ee .god We
wee fairly involved and t'ou .C n^!j'!:~--?' J
time than we originally allotted to th:,s survey.
interest of saving time we also set aside the quest-lon c."
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how the Agency's rapidly deve_. optng automatic data process?
_.ng (AD?) systems will affect present and future DDS paper
hoed 1ngs , This is a special problem with many still un f ore?-
seen imal4cations, especially in light of the fact that
the DDS entry into the AD? field is only fairly recen ,
we
)esni_te these omissions in the survey,/s :.11 encountered.
a s f _.C en :; numb. r of first t_ J n.e flM rrobll.Cms in DJ2S f
give substance to our _nqui_ry. . Those problems ^C c ':!':' YAM
ne icy, the personnel and regulatory structure, preva'_lirg
??M a "M!41-Y.-des, partticul arty on the ,pop DDS level, and certain
RU weaknesses and shortcomings that are appl_icable to the
individual DDS components . Y3ecauso o t' the c:..'P :,ms -c?ii.t- e:7
J. J` Jj'1"~. tact- JI_.hG~t Y i.t r-L~.1 t.~~ r r'
o ;. ,s i~~c-S4/t?y and t ~.!.7,~ ln ~. t'%~`~r's, ~J r
err ?n -4. ~ r c ti/.
.
n 7r?c) _ _m .A1, pro?ofi~v into ?h:' TIM ."~!r,c;: -o?,a .1 f,F''? . 'VI-1
our concl(!s ^_ons and rccommc;i..-Ca l,`_c.~s are
Records Management Policy
3. Wn DDS, as in other parts of the Agency, the PM
n- :~_cn has its policy foundation n gated if A r STAT
:m v '!5/13 1'! 1 i
every -.4/ :nIT q..L agency 41O 'fit_s a.1(.. Ira
an RM program to suit ito own needs. r _m am _._y STAT
serves the purpose of formally establishing the RM _r unct__; n
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7
in terms of broad areas of ac t4 v ty and establishes pcli-.,
ces for the accomplishment of certain RM objectives. it
also delineates the Agency'-wide staff responsibilities of
the CIA Records Administration Officer in terms of the RM
guidance, ass_s:,a:ace, and coordination that he is expected
to pr ov-`_de . t9h le the pa ovi` s ions of
oTcvo a vc:~ry
useful purpose, they can be const-rued only as goner?a?. I M
gu4_dance, When t'ne document was first drawn up, it was
probably expected that as the RM function became more a.nd
more decen tra7_i_Ze _l, every lesser Agency component wou-! c1
set vp its own detailed RM instruction patterned en
Wna teve the original T ntent m . go t have boon
7_ , c o ?..n _.i.a t very ew components ". . D1i i have t 1!{e 1.
i s not adeq,.nate to the RM regulatory task in
B"S,
o for that matto-, ..n any other
status or the organizational relationship of the central
Administration Staff to DDS or to other parts e-?
?n' 1 e Age Jh 1cn , this 1 SA ~ does e We _-ency with L J. tv`~._a i` dcl ~1 s:n ssa
W o~~
have in ADS "h? t amounts to several independent RM
each pb act-_ca?_ly .gun by itself, and obtaining ^.n.ce m
the Records Administration Staff only on a sporadic, unorga~nizod.
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..4.,
basis . The net result is that the RM activity in T).-003 _'.S
a h ghly d - us 1 e:c L ort- with no real focal point of au'~;ho?--
rity, direction or coordination. `.there is no senior records
administration o; icer within the DDS structure to who-In
individual RM officers can turn for day to day guidance
on routine -issues. The need for a clearer out1_5n.e of the
`JM 'l;.-,?.et o-,n in te'.'ms of a comprehensive an; det`?"_~C egu.
~.atory issuance _'-1a t re .ches into ovary
O'wiOU.9S.
General Problems and Considerations
We found a variety of RM problems in virtual _.T
eve%~y DDS component. In many respects these problems
YM no,,,,, bein experienced elsewhere
in the A.;oncy. . C ntra? among these :'s t7' w(t rd
"Is a
5'^ `'CThe a' t tud`' J s, ln.o:; p 'eva gilt ,)i 'r.!1O h1:'g ~'':
supervisory levels. Many supervisors defend i h ?.s nega."
'.; ve view in terms of working p% io es, that :.s, the
need to take ? ~. rs t things Yi.-rst and to -`_ ncL. , ? s on i;ias e
that s r l,.z7 t ` f T
^s.s that mz:s1.. ? wozcy o t she r JCS e~ _ o=^fi , i
my.z1dS off' men DDS sup 'v:l. ;ers, TIM vior?k ., ; a very ow
p" ority function, Whether o, not- ~t _-'s
view more than any other seriously depresses the RM function.
In pact, it lies at the base.of most RM weaknesses, and
i'a..l_??
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 nos in the RM of "ort now being conducted within.
the :_ndividual DDS components.
Office of Security
5.As the producer and keeper of a very large volume of
DDS records (13,2,-S cub; c feet on 30 June 1955), the C:
of Security (OS) has a sizeable IM problem. These holdings
represent an increase of 2Y767 cubic feet
r,27%) ov-'? f:_scal_
yea and m~'1_ rlK ,, th^,. second cora:rcc ~, tt-~:.?'.v.,n ~~.. ea ,.-^ ',,
r 1-0-54 tzrn-~n ,,,-
overal CS (.,rowth exceeded 2000 ~ uh:i.c foot, Nest c , ;.
this na7e ? volume increase was the largest in, the Af.-071f,y.
actual count, the Office of Secu" :_ty has more
the von' ume of records in any DDS component. The Of s:_ce
of Logistics is next in line with holdings of 5,37.6 c Thic
et 0 June 3 935) S o The 11M organization in 03 is not
t. is e 'rmous records tas; k. I~...'_o, to 2! M
Per,r
/65 OS S had a 'u.'_-._ time Ml of f ico- to handle th _s wc:-':~.
This GS ;.3 officer spent most of the aft year working on
a systems analysis (ADD) project in IM S and the l:kel_ r.ccc?
o-L- M .s returning to h _s old job I s fa y remote, Ia1
")'S5 I I)o TIM
was to ansferred to the Chic.f of the Records Security T 1 r4..
lion. This senior officer, who is probably competent fn
most other respects, has had no previoL.s experience in RM
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work and has delegated most of the tasks to a subordinate
n r~
o'_':.4Lcer,/1GS;9 records clerk. This last officer also has
collateral working respons billt_es In the Security Records
__v=si_on and spends only a fraction of his time on pure
MJ work. These last two RM appointments also have had the
ec : of transferring the RM responsibility out of the
Executive Office of the Office of SecurT ty and placing
9
it in the security Records D4.,JS__on, that on a con
-?
sip derabl y lower authority level i n the OS structure.n
Ut~`_' view this org'?n:i.?a s onal Change tonds fu_ thcr C..err'e s
the Mfunction in OS,
7. Among the principal weaknesses in the RM effort
An OS is the tendency to keep records for i.,~:,rdi.nate .y long
periods, Until recently, for examp e, the retention. par:o~7
^r' CS ycase t'i7 es was 3.25 years, A few months ago =.t cr^.
Cl.~~'. 1 ~~.o to F' \dI1.' ~). s ~.dol d 3 iig ?~i'".?.()C E) .)~l :vea ?E) fill)
Con tr:'ol S~3hcdulei3 : of OS we-,-, on t,.I n.a ,.'_Y j~ C'?3':i nd
in 1_0,35`4 and although some were revised in the last s_ :Tear's,
many are sti.li out of date.
3. While the Office of Security makes a cons n-'-. fou.s
%."N `"'X1)'?')"w to keep
s form pncb i em 11?ldol- r-ont ' . , :. -:F4
w; ;1w..tk p~i YIII+. s! is;o ' 71 . 11'; ?')i1 ro'79
to date inventory of forms and controlling the p o r i_ t e~
t ion of "bootleg" forms. It is our understanding that
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-7-
recently the Office of Security has taken it upon it-
self to approve the reprinting of forms, thereby remov-
ing this responsibility from the central Records Adminis-
tration Staff where it previously has been vested. Unless
there are overriding security or other reasons for placing
this authority for approval of reprint of forms in the
Office of Security, it should be returned to the central
Records Administration Staff.
9. It has already been mentioned that the present
FM officer in OS has had no previous training in the
records field. in recent months the central Records
Adm istration Staff has proposed RA'I training courses
,annd work shops for records officers in OS in order to
;m1): n?,;~; ~hc it l.nrnv~ed ~e ?nd skills in th~i.s field . Until
ha.,-.3 boon 110 rc _;pofSo In OS to any of (,hcse
Oft. e of Finance
:10. While the Office of Finance (OF) is not the holder
of a large volume of records (3,529 cubic feet on 30 June
its overall paper accumulations are increasing at
a z < one (actor iT,
dc:_itior of
tiota 1 addition-: to
nclude tf of l ice of Cozy uter
4f f ice o" Zn c I. P rojec
The r o : e recent or -an
on Still sad4le=
reeor holdings
is emphatically
lar vo1w;
occupation with
.tnc' proycct , o f Villa/SW'; components
a )ve cat yet rez1i-:? cone to
ith the bulk of their
oble s . + 1 fs tae riossible ezcE ption.
lzation and
T ere in no formal 1W or ,ani tion in DD/_
m ? the r
nation consists of four individunl Fit
officers. one each for OS1, t A an OCZ , and ono -dith co m-
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bleed responsibility fo;
do level of these off`ic
Only the 03I officer c
;er and in this cnnt the r
undcrstu d y ; o . contras
bility i also vented
virtually no n ? etiv?ity,
lez~ a prep
OSP and P AC. The
ed a full-t
rds ai.tua tion
here the re n-
er, there is
kl: such
Initial Records Control
ul 0: , which make siLlc An orderly stora. a and di.s
In other D)/&T c a nts Such as %S A, the 1
nds le; than ``s Percent of hip time
on k work
ximatel)
port of the records
record at the d% cncy's ecords Center In
to the
press of other duties. S k
ended by a m
d whose normal tour lasts
before he is again rotated, The
udes
develo anent o nn y real intere
rel
3p and }'N
idelines
The
:unction
cer who
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; ivo virtu-
duct
it midi-?
obably a
U+G dS` 1ce Q. su s
i ut itt ter. ; of
;d iiadi ei p
it DD/`" .T r'_.tiit Lain some coat;?' t
"a ir1 teaous.
to 'fit' '
zi;- records
I'. Myftermis
dispo it
15tnce, however,
o hip to is
4' tries to provido uidh uace and dia ec-
R'y=tnc Lion
cers
.;ei cyts central
obler involv-
without rm~
cee of
compone r t for t #.
example, has been
.. ~~~;-;z ? it Yea veral tit : by RA with offer of help in
and rep? in up-to-date Records Control
e- Irf
,P i ul+ . Until nom. `. 'S has not t. -x , v nt a o1 # ?
o.
all A?'euoy co ponentzi
onla form mar,, a ent, ,.n d
purposes DD/S T
V T
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within the r'c?u
mentary
auz vices off: (revived
t serves vh A:,~a A`o j of pre-
f or anization and r n-
n the four A v.:qe ncy i e top. n es .
on that would expand
En order to put 25X1
ad blueprint into better. orlon perspective 1
1i sup l e estt-3:r re