CIA REQUEST HALTS RIGHTS BILL ACTION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00149R000200600002-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: November 11, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 9, 1999
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: September 13, 1967
• Content Type: NSPR

Sanitized - Approved For Release : CIA-RDP75-00149R0
The Weekly Newspaper for Civilians in Government
Vol. 3, No. 29
sJ I'd
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1 I.1 ^sx f l ,'a
WASHINGTON Follov~-
riH a last-minute request from
he C e n t r a l Intelligenc
,gency,the Senate postponed
onsideration of the federal
--mployees' rights, bill. Although
he bill was scheduled for floor de-
,ate just days before the Labor
)ay recess, the CIA asked that it
,e granted a secret hearing before
he Judiciary Committee. The CIA
mid National Security Agency want
-:o be totally excluded from the
provisions of the bill. It is now
Oxpected that the hill will not be
,:ctcd on until mid-September at
'ie earliest.
L In an address protesting the
senate's action, Sen. Sang J. Ervin)
(1)-N.C.), sponsor of S. 1035, said
that the CIA's request is without
precedent. "I see no practical or
:;olicy reasons for granting this
?cquest and I find no constitutional
,rounds for it," Ervin said. "It is
neither necessary nor reasonable,"
to added.
Ervin pointed out to the Senate
'hat this is the first time during
he past year that the CIA has
-ven attempted to appear before
he committee. Representatives of
"IA and NSA, he said, informed
sim when his constitutional rights
-ubcommittee held hearings on the
SEPTEMBER 13, 1967
SEPTEMBER 13, 1967
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r,rvin, who quoted the statute at
the outset of his remarks, said that
he was suggesting that "if the CIA
could leave its polygraph machine
long enough" it might have time to
determine if officials were violating
the lobbying statute. However, he
said, despite information which he
has received, he hopes "that the
presumption of innocence will con-
tinue to surround the CIA."
Both Senators supported the in-
,tent of the bill to protect federal
employees "from the good inten-
tions of the government." The bill
r .is designed to guarantee individ-
uals their constitutional rights and
to prevent unwarranted %overn-
mental invasions of privacy. The
language', of the bill specifically
prohibits oral and written ques-
tions on the subject of race, re-
ligion, national origin, personal be-
liefs and off-duty conduct. It also
prohibits agencies from requiring
employees to donate time or money
to projects and fund drives.
Sen. IIruska pointed out that the
bill does more than declare the
sense of Congress. The bill not
only contains the guarantee of
constitutional rights but it also has
effective enforcement provisions
which protect both the employee
and the employer.
"It is designed to insure the
employee an effective remedy for a
wrong while still protecting the
employer from unjustified
charges," Hruska said. He added
that the employee can go either to
the court or to the Employee
Rights Board which would be cre-
ated under this bill.
In Opposing CIA's action, Ervin
said the basic premise of his bill
"is that a man who works for the
federal government, even if he
works for the CIA or NSA, sells
his services, and not his soul."
bill that the agencies did not de-
sire a hearing. However, he added,
the agencies have been in constant
communication with him and the
subcommittee staff to keep abreast
of all the developments.
The North Carolina Senator said
that he "would welcome nothing
with more delight" than for CIA
officials to appear at an open hear-
ing before the committee. In this
way, Ervin said, he could make it
clear that his "bill of rights" for
federal employees has been amend-
ed "to meet every valid objection
the CIA voiced to the original ver-
sion." He said that CIA submitted
a ten-page statement marked
"Secret" to his subcommittee.
The rights bill which the Senate
is to consider has already been
amended by the Judiciary Commit-
tee to give some exemptions to the
CIA and NSA, Ervin said. He em-
phasized that these exemptions
should not have been granted. As
amended, the bill allows CIA and
NSA to ask employees to disclose
information regarding their finan-
cial assets if the agencies deter-
mine that such information is
necessary to protect the national
security.
Ervin stressed that he is com-
pletely opposed to any secret meet-
ing with the CIA to hear "reasons
which cannot be divulged to the
American people why their em-
ployees should be robbed of the
dignity and the freedom which all
Americans enjoy." He said that
such testimony is not compatible
with a free society. It should not
be the basis for any legislation
which affects the rights of Ameri-
cans, he added.
"Taken all together, their argu-
ments for complete exemption sug-
gest only one conclusion-that they
want the unmitigated right to kick
federal employees around, deny
them respect for individual privacy
and the basic rights which belong
to every American regardless of
the mission of his agency," Ervin
said.
Senator Roman L. Hruska (R-
Nebr.), one of the bill's 55 co-
sponsors, wanted to know if CIA's
action was to gain time to persuade
Senate members to support its
position. He pointed out that such
lobbying by federal employees is
prohibited by law.
(See CIA, Page 29) CPYRGHT
Sanitized - Approved For Release : CIA-RDP75-00149R000200600002-5