LETTER TO WILLIAM E. COLBY FROM BELLA ABZUG

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP76M00527R000700150003-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 23, 2003
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: January 14, 1975
• Content Type: LETTER

clt1 S. ABZUG
ORK
+ 20TH .-,.T, NEW
Aaaroved
COMMITTEES:
GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS
PUBLIC WORKS
SA 7~_ Clot
WASHINGTON OFFICE,
For Release 2003/11/05 CIA-RDP76M00527R0007001500(}$0-?NOWOR7 OFFICE BUILDING
ASHINGTON, D.C. 20515 ~? y/67-
Concre of the Initeb
3oue of 3epreoentatibto
O fngton, O.C. 20515
January 14, 1975
William E. Colby
Director
Central Intelligence Agency
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. Colby:
tateo
DISTRICT OFFICES,
252-7TH AVENUE
NEW YORK, N.Y. 10001
725 WEST 181sT STREET
NEW YORK, N.Y. 10033
720 COLUMEUS AVENUE
NEW YORK, N.Y. 10025
4 Exeeas;i~r ~a:iFtE i
7.5"- ; G
~Q?C_
In view of recent allegations that the-Central Intelligence Agency
has gathered and maintained lists and dossiers on thousands of
Americans as part of a domestic spying operation, in violation of
its 1947 enabling legislation, i am writing to ask that you make
immediate restitution to those individuals whose, Constitutional
rights have been violated.
The CIA can begin to do so by informing each individual whose name
is on a list or dossier illegally held by the CIA, by providing that.
individual with access to his or her file, and by permitting expunge-
ment of any material or. data which is illegally maintained if the
individual so requests.
An individual's right of access to files and records containing
personal information on him or her that are maintained by Federal
agencies has been established by the Privacy Act of 1974. Although
the law allows CIA records to be exempted, the exemption is not
mandatory and is discretionary with the director of the agency.
Certainly it was not the intent of Congress that an agency director
should deny an individual access to files that the agency had no legal
right to maintain in the first place.
Moreover, under Sec., 3(e)(7) of the Privacy Act, the CIA records may
not be exempted from a provision that prohibits the maintenance of
records "describing how any individual exercises rights guaranteed
by the First Amendment unless expressly authorized by statute or by
the individual about whom the record is maintained, or unless pertinent
to and within the scope of an authorized law enforcement activity."
Clearly, there is no basis either in the Constitution or in the law
for the CIA's gathering or maintaining such files. I, therefore, urge
you to act immediately to make these files available to the individuals
involved so that they may request and effect expungement of any illegally
collected data.
CRC, 9/29/2003
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THIS STATIONERY PRINTED ON PAPER MADE WITH RECYCLED FIBERS
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William E. Colby
January 14, 1975
Page 2
Also, I would like to know, in general, whether the CIA has gathered
or maintained lists or dossiers on Members of Congress, as part of its
domestic surveillance operation, and, in particular, whether you have
gathered or maintained a listing and/or dossier on me. If so, I would
appreciate your allowing me the right to inspect this file and determine
its disposition.
ELLA S. ABZUG
Member of Congress
BSA/ja
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Orig - file
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Individuals invited to attend Director's meeting with Chairman
William S. Moorhead (D., Pa.), House Government Operations Committee,
Thursday, 23 January 1975, 2:00 p.m.
John E. Moss (D., Calif.)
Torbert H. MacDonald (D., Mass. )
Jim Wright (D., Tex.)
Bella S. Abzug (D., N. Y. )
James V. Stanton (D., Ohio)
Bill Alexander (D., Ark.)
Gilbert Gude (R., Md.)
Paul N. McCloskey, Jr. (R., Calif.)
Charles Thone (R. , Nebr. )
Ralph S. Regula (R., Ohio)
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