FINANCING OF THE ITALIAN COMMUNIST PARTY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80M01066A000800240004-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 4, 2004
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: February 6, 1975
• Content Type: MF

S y C SET
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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20505
MEMORANDUM FOR: The Honorable Henry A. Kissinger
Assistant to the President for
National Security Affairs
SUBJECT: Financing of the Italian Communist Party
1. We estimate that the income of the Italian Communist
Party (PCI) from all sources for the year 1974 was in the range
of $40,000,000 to $44,000,000. In its recently published annual
budget the PCI admits to having received a total income of
$36,635,254 in 1974. Based on our reporting over the past
five years we roughly estimate that some four to seven-and-one
half million dollars of undeclared funds can reasonably be
added to figures published by the Party for 1974.
2. In April 1974 legislation was passed by the Italian
Parliament establishing public financing for political parties.
The PCI's share of these public fund's for 1974 was more than
$16,000,000 which is approximately 4E% of the total income
acknowledged by the Party. This figure is included in the PCI
budget published in the 26 January 1975 issue of its official
organ L'Unita which also cites amounts claimed to have been
received from membership dues, returns of portions of salaries
received by PCI deputies and senators, rents, interest, income
from special events, et cetera. This published version of the
PCI budget notes that there were no contributions from trade
unions, organizations or commercial enterprises.
3. We have no current information on financing of the
PCI by the CPSU or by other Communist Bloc parties. In the
mid-1950s our reporting indicated that of a total PCI budget
of some $11,000,000 the Soviet Bloc provided $7,500,000 in
cash, kind and trading commissions. Since 1968 the figures
have ranged from $4,500,000 to $7,500,000. With the receipt
by the PCI of substantial public funds now authorized by
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Italian law it is possible that the financial input from
Communist countries may have been decreased. Nonetheless,
available evidence suggests that some funds may still be
received from these sources. In this connection, we know
that toward the end of each calendar year a PCI representation
visits the Soviet Union to negotiate the terms of the CPSU's
financial assistance for the comming year. For at least the
last five years PCI Political Bureau member Armando Cossutta
has made this pilgrimage, sometimes accompanied by other PCI
high ranking Party officials, sometimes alone. (He travelled
alone to Moscow on this mission in the fall of 1974.) On the
Soviet side the negotiators have generally been such important
personages as the CPSU General Secretary Brezhnev and Party
Secretaries Suslov and Ponomarev. These annual negotiations
set figures for CPSU subsidies to the Party in addition to
establishing other forms of assistance such as scholarships,
travel payments and indirect subsidies in the form of contracts
for various PCI-controlled firms.
4. CPSU's covert cash contributions have been described
at times as Coming via Swiss banking mechanisms and, at other
times, as being handed over in cash by officers from the Rome
Soviet Embassy. These monies appear to be under the exclusive
control of PCI President Luigi Longo, Secretary Enrico Berlinguer
and Secretariat member Cossutta.
5. Attached herewith is the PCI declared statement of
income and expenses for 1974 published by L'Unita, 26 January 1975.
'Jill pill
W. E. Colby
Director
Attachment
CONCUR:
,`_ 75
Acting Deputy Director for Operations Date
DDO/EUR/I
6 February 1975)
Distribution:
Orig. - Addressee
1 - DCI
1 - DDCI
pel - Ex Reg
2 - DDO
1 - 'ADDO
3 - C/EUR
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PCI BUDGET - 1974
Publishes in the 26 January 1975 issue of L'UNITA, the official organ of
the Italian Communist Party
(NOTE: Budget figured in Italian Lire. Dollar equivalents in parentheses
calculated at 650 Italian lire equal to one U.S. dollar.)
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1974
INCOME
a) Annual membership dues (av 3,008 {: per
member)
b) Portion of parliamentary salaries
contributed by PCI deputies and
senator as prescribed by Party statutes
Total
Received from Government: (NOTE: as called
II
.
for by law of 17 April 74)
a) for election expenses
b) annual contribution for activities
of parliamentary group in Chamber
of Deputies
c) annual contribution for activities
of parliamentary group in Senate
d) annual contribution to parliamentary
groups in Chamber and Senate
of the groups
- repayment of loans, etc.
4,964,000,000
1,530,987,220
b, 94,987,220
($9,992,288)
75,000,000
37,500,000
10 559 ,155 ,077
Total
10,671,655,077
($16,417,930)
a) rents, dividends and interest on stocks
and bonds
b) interest on bank accounts
c) other income:
- from Chamber and Senate groups to
reimburse salaries to the personnel
Total
None
401,440,249
55,000,000
112,724,868
569,165,117
($875,638)
IV,
Misc
ellaneous income
:
a)
b)
from publishing activity
from special events:
(see note)
- UNITA Festival
to PCI press
and subscriptions
4,560,000,000
- contributions
to campaign for
divorce referendum
1,500,000,000
6,060,000,000
($9,323,076)
(NOTE: The Party showed no profit from its publishing
activities. As can be seen from Expenses, IV,
the Patty=:i ad_ to pay out I arge sums for this
activity.)
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a)
Members` extraordinary contributions
17,108,000
b)
Contributions from non-members
(individuals, private associations,
divers private organizations, from
trade unions and category unions.
See note) Total
17,108,000
($26,320)
(NOTE: There were no contributions from associations,
other organizations or from trade unions and category
unions.
Gifts from private citizens, not members of
the Party, are included in the amounts collected for press
subscriptions and for the divorce referendum campaign.)
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EXPENSES
1)
Personnel (salaries, wages, for political
& technical collaborators of the
Central Committee
775,212,115
2)
Social welfare contributions
219,604,350
3)
Termination payments
51,310,270
4)
Payments to retirement fund
200,000,000
Total
1,246,126,735
II.
General Expenses
($1,91.7,118)
a)
Costs of activities of offices
at national headquarters
level
Total
776,829,300
(Ed. Note: These expenses are broken down
into 26 categories from the
Secretariat thru parking lot
& prizes for placing member-
ship cards.)
b) Divers expenses and rents:
(Ed. Note: 11 categories including
taxes, insurance, stationary) Total
c) Office expenses:
maintenance
renovation
Total
d) Political contributions:
- national activities
- international activities
203,021,308
155,251,850
1,124,497,185
288,928,737
1,413,425,922
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EXPENSES
e) Various contributions:
- solidarity fund for Party 43,070,274
members & organizations
- permanent contributions to
aged comrades 98,043,000
- contributions to pensions
of retired members of the 69,018,880
central apparatus
- back payments to social
welfare fund 40,585,000
Total 250,717,154
f) Cost of unitary
demonstrations and
initiatives
g) Payment to Chamber & Senate
parliamentary groups (as
required by Law #195 of
2 May '74) of 2%
contribution
h) Payment of central debts
295,819,108
112,500,000
262,893,438
Total 3,470,458,080
($5,339,166)
III. Contributions to periferal offices
and organizations
(Ed. Nbte: 9 categories covering
federations, regions,
cultural, youth &
women) Total 13,450,030,118
($20,692,354)
IV. Expenses for publishing,information
& propaganda
(Ed. Note: 6 categories covering all
Party pubs plus general
publicity) Total 4,081,995,893
($6,279,993)
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V. Extraordinary expenses for electoral
campaigns
a)
Referendum divorce
1,350,300,662
b)
To federations for administrative-
elections
214,003,926
1,564,304,588
($2,406,622)
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SUMMARY
INCOME
I.
6,494,987,220
(27.27%)
($9,992,288)
11.
10,671,655,077
(44.82%)
($16,417,930)
III.
569,165,117 (2.39%) ($875,638)
IV.
6,060,000,000 (25.45%) ($9,323,076)
V.
17,108,000 (.07%) ($26,320)
TOTAL = 23,812,915,414 (100%) ($36,635,254)
EXPENSES
1.
1,246,126,735
(5.23%)
($1,917,118)
II.
3,470,458,080
(14.57%)
($5,339,166)
III.
13,450,030,118
(56.49%) ($20,692,354)
IV.
4,081,995,893
(17.14%)
($6,279,993)
V.
1,564,304,588
(6.57%)
($2,406,622)
TOTAL = 23,812,915,414 (100%) ($36,635,254)
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