LETTER TO THE HONORABLE JAMES R. SCHLESINGER FROM ALBERT C. HALL

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82M00531R000400010022-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: April 22, 2005
• Sequence Number: 22
• Publication Date: March 29, 1973
• Content Type: LETTER

Executive Registryw
ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
WASHINGTON, D. C. 20301
29 MAP 1973
The Honorable James R. Schlesinger
Director of Central Intelligence
Washington, D. C. 20505
As you will recall from my correspondence of 20 February,
we have recently completed a review of the usefulness of the Community
On-Line Intelligence System (COINS). The committee tasked with the
review concluded that COINS serves a community need, but was notably
weak in several areas. The review group offered recommendations in-
tended to alleviate these deficiencies, and enhance the future effective-
ness of automated information exchange.
The review was enlightening in that it indicated a high interest
in exchange of intelligence information throughout the user community,
although roughly 95% of COINS-attributable expenditures for FY 73
were made by Defense Department agencies. We are prepared to pro-
ceed with an approach to improving the system and at the same time
controlling its costs, but I particularly feel your support is necessary
to maintain and enhance cooperative interchange between the Defense
agencies and those under your control.
Since the review, some progress has been made against cer-
tain of the COINS weaknesses. In order to proceed with the problem
of file selection, I would like to convene a working group comprised
of members from each of the major COINS participating agencies,
(including NPIC), under the chairmanship of my representative.
Participation from your staff would be appreciated. The represen-
tatives should be capable of examining the files which the previous
review pinpointed as being of high community interest, and establish
the procedures necessary to assure their timely inclusion in COINS.
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I would like the working group to have its organizational
meeting on 10 April. I have enclosed a copy of the General Terms
of Reference for their review.
Sincerely,
Attachment
a/s
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The COINS Review Group evaluation, completed 1 February
1972 pinpointed inadequacies in the file selection as being a weakness
of the present COINS system. This Working Group will focus on
those Washington Area intelligence files, both within and without
the COINS system, which were identified by the COINS Review
Group as being of high interest to community users. The Working
Group will determine the most desirable file selection for COINS,
and derive substantive procedures for the implementation of the
desired file selection.
Given below are the general guidelines that should be employed
by the Working Group. The specific details of the procedure will be
the first order of business for the Group.
1. Determination of Storage Capacity - The data storage of each
host's system will be examined to determine its ability to add new
files and the requirement to purge old files.
2. File Prioritization - The desired file selection for each host will
be prioritized on the basis of internal and community need for each
file as well as technical factors relating to its ease of incorporation
in the data base.
3. Data Base Delineation - A revised COINS file formation will be
delineated, based on host storage capacity and priorities, established
from items 1 and 2, above. It may be necessary to propose alterna-
tive arrangements in the event of priority uncertainties or disputes
over internal vs external requirements. The Group should also ad-
dress cost and schedule implications of each alternative.
4. Implementation Plan - The Working Group will propose a de-
tailed plan for the rapid and orderly implementation of the data base
arrangement(s) delineated in Item 3. The plan will address factors
such as update and maintenance schedule and responsibilities,
software requirements, etc. The plan should be written in such a
manner as to insure the implementation of the new data bases with
a minimum of disruption to existing COINS operations.
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