ARCHIVES, HISTORY, AND RECORDS

Document Type: 
Collection: 
Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 
CIA-RDP83-00764R000400030020-4
Release Decision: 
RIFPUB
Original Classification: 
K
Document Page Count: 
5
Document Creation Date: 
November 17, 2016
Document Release Date: 
July 5, 2000
Sequence Number: 
20
Case Number: 
Content Type: 
MF
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PDF icon CIA-RDP83-00764R000400030020-4.pdf342.95 KB
Body: 
Approve.For Release 2000/08/04: CIA-RDP83-00764R0004000,P20-4 _-,MC.~ANDUNi FOR D,:puty Dir actor for Intelligence Deputy Director -for Planer Deputy Director for Science & Technology Deputy Director for Support SUBJECT Archives, History, and Records 1. Considerable study and discussion has taken place of the Agency Historical Program, and the Records Management and Arch,i-ves Programs. This memorandum will outline a basic approach to the interrelationship of these three subjects in an effort to improve the Agency's performance in all these fields. 2. In essence, the three subjects all record our experience to make it available for future use as required. This use includes file searches for current operational support, briefing and training new personnel, answering press or Congressional questions as to the Agency's role in earlier events, etc. The problem is to design a system which will satisfactorily answer the needs of the future in these fields with a minimum expenditure of man hours and funds at present. In these days of declining personnel ceilings, we obviously cannot dedicate large amounts of current manpower to making imrn,e- diately available detailed answers to all contingent questions. On the other hand, some records have direct value to future operations and certainly our need to handle press or' Congressional questions warns us of the need to devote an appropriate effort in this direction. 3. In our approach to this problem in this internally compart- mented Agency, it is essential to decentralize much of the responsibil- ity and most of the actual effort. At the same time, this decentraliza- Lion needs to, be matched by a reporting system Which will indicate the degree to winch minimum standards are met by all units, and a mecha- nism by which units can .profit by interchange of experience and by shar- ing solutions. 4. In our analysis, we must clearly recognize different kinds of records material and the different purposes we expect them to serve. Some of our records are important basic reference tools, e. g. , CI, files. Approved For Release 2000/08/0.4: ~IA-RDP83-00764R000400030020-4 Approved For Release 2000/08/04 :CIA-RDP83700764R00040003Q 20-4 rll. .l: t. ul.llyal \~~~tlcilll; tilnt+ of' rilclclc:r;its: life, requircnicirit:1. ;;orr,' .irk' 1"OV111,11 i)lih1ic:itiun:: Of (he Agellcy diutrihuted cli;e:w}cr.:rc.: Ili the govern- '201-11c \~ .th :;curet 1::111itI a. Li~>n, Heil-11e .ere. ol,ei?ietion;ll rc:c(-)relii and r;ocu ;11.' i1 . tio111e of [ittl? reviewa Of past events are euscntially chronicles of 411C 5C C\'elii;i, \vhiCh 11:1Ve value to new. arrivals. Some should be ana- lytical reviews drawing lessons and conclu sion;s,. Our system should re- f1ect these differences if it is to do the job needed. 5. The following over-all approach to this situation has been dc- veloped, for implementation through the mechanisms indicated, (a) Records Managerncnt (1-1R 70-1) (1) : The Records Management Board, with representa- tion from each Directorate, will report its conclusions, recom- mendations, etc. , (with any dissents) directly to the Executive Director. The Deputy Director for Support will remain adrnin- istratively responsible for the over-all Records Management Program while each Directorate will remain responsible for the Records Management Program within its own Directorate. The Chairman of the Records Management Board will be the Agency Records Adn-diiistration Officer, administratively rd- sponsible to the DDS through the Support Services Staff. The Records Management Board will make semi-annual reports to the Executive Director, outlining the status of the Agency's Records Management Program, any problems it is experiencing and its recommendations for improvement of the program (in- cluding reports on Records Management to be submitted by the Directorates). The Executive Director will consult with the ,i... Deputy Directors before implementing any such recommenda- tions. (2) The Agency Records Administration Officer will be a non-voting member of the Agency Information Processing Board, with authority to submit agenda items and recommenda- tions to the Information Processing Board. He will particular- ly bringS to the attention of the Information Processing Board those aspects of the Agency's Record Management Program which should be considered by the Information Processing Board, with any recommendations for support of the Agency Record Management Program requiring Information Processing Board action. He will similarly make available to.the Records Man agement Board all information coming before the Information Approved For Release 2000/08/04: CIA-RDP83-00764R000400030020-4 Approved For Release 2000/0, 8/04: CIA-RDP83-00764R00040QO30QP-4 l3o. rcl Which i7iight be of value or be :xl;pr~ipri:~tely .:E>:a::i(iered by the A.?ency Records Management Board and iti Inclabcr s . (3) The Records Management 1 card will develop recorn- I-nendations as to categories of Agency record:: (such as t e Cate- gories in Para 4 above, plus any others. deemed .pprr.priate). and as tospCCific guidelines for the ticlcction and retention of records in these Categgories. These guidclines should also where appropriate' include time periods for retention rjy cate- gory and indicate /disposition thcrea-fter, and include appropri- ate measures to 'omply with legal and Executive requirements for retention and/declassification. In particular, rccomrnenda- tions-should be made as to the identification of categories which might appropria/ ~ely :be retired as classified Government docu- ments under GSA auspices or passed to the National Archives, rather than held solely under CIA control to protect. intelligence sources and methods. (b) Annual Reports. To provide the necessary chronicle of the Agency's activities at minimum expenditure of effort, a sys - tein of annual reports of the units and offices of the Agency will be developed. These will be' a part of the annual program proposal submitted by these units in response to the program call, covering significant events within. the unit during the previous year. The identification of the elements to submit these annual reports and an outline of their format will be developed by the Office of PPB in coordination with the Deputy Directors. These annual reports should highlight major accomplishments, major problems and over all conclusions and recommendations for future action in the unit jtself or by elements supporting' or associated with it. (c) Archives (1) In the process of compiling its Annual Report, each unit submitting such a report will identify its key documents for the Year in question for permanent inclusion in Agency Archives. The Records Management Board vi:l develop the system br systems by which such documents can be identified on a systematic basis during the year for reference in the Annual Report., The Annual Report will provide an occasion for an over-all'review to insure that the documents marked for archival retention are neither excessive in detail nor in- complete through omissions. Approved For Release 2000/08/04: CIA-RDP83-00764R000400030020-4 Approved For Release 2000/08/04: CIA-RDP83-00764R000400.03 0 -0-4 NOPe - l - (?:) An Agency Archivist will be a~)~)oint(,d t() r~~~i,c:r visc the Agency's .Archives Pro ram, and willrc!,)ort dircr.ti y to the IB xceutive Director. Ire will be a rnernber of the A; c:ney, R cords Tanagcn1ent Board and will coordinate the Cxccution of. the Archives Program through this Board. lie wi11 also work in close coordination with the Agency Records Mana;cw ment Officer and the Agency Historian. Archivists will be appointed by the Deputy Directors in their Directoratcr.~ to supervise this program in the Directorate. No additional spaces. will be made available for these. Directorate posts and initially they need not be full-time if the functions can be ' handled on a part-time basis (e. g*. , by the Directorate Records ,Management Officers). The Agency and Directorate Archivists. lations to be drawn up and issued after consultation with the Deputy Directors. A semi-annual report to the cecutive Director on the Archives Program will be prepared and coor- dinated with the Records Management Board.. (3) Arrangements will be made for the segregation of archival documents from those held for Records purposes, in order to permit the automatic retirement and disposition of records without loss of the key archival documents. Archives will be physically held by the Records Management Officer in the Records Center, under guidelines established by the Agency Archivist. (4) The Annual Reports will provide basic indices of archival documents for future reference. (d) History (HR 1-2 (4)) The major thrust of the Agency Historical Program will be placed on the development of analytical }ustoricc of impor- tant Agency activities and operations. The "Office Ilistory" approach to date, which has been largely successful in bring1 ing our history up to 1965, will no longer be the major, focus of the program, as the chronicling of future Agency activity will take place under the annual report system outlined above. Thus, future Agency histories will take major subjects of Agency. activity and analyze the ways in which the various elements of the Agency worked together to produce the over- all Agency contribution to the operation in question. There will be some situations in which a single element of the Agency Approved For Release 2000108/04: CIA-RDP83-00764R000400030020-4 Approved For Release 20(08104 : CIA-RDP83-00764R000a40003 t0-4 all ()I ino::t. of the Agency parlicipatio,, in any one iit1ivlty. The e will lie OCC:L:;ions alldo when l; r; l.~Lli'/~ty will rcquire that any anal'y'tical revlevi of an oiler 4tion tit, Cr,n- .;ril:t:l:,l in a. most re,;Lricted fa,;hion. This will apply to rnany Clandestine Services historic:;. Priority will be given to establishing the basic Agency history of the more prornir.ent operations and activities in which the Agency has been en,,aged, e. g. , Cuban Missile Crisis, Day of Pigs, War in Viet narn,. War in Laos, Congo Operations, U-2 Operation.,;, ctc. , with particular ~Lttcntion to ler:;onls derived from the:;e er.t)r;rirsncr.r; :roll r:.t.lbliuhirl); a colivenient nic:i:horl of innnc:dli.rtr, rc:r.;,r)nr.e to liulilie or cl~u1;~-l::i:iii)nal inllltir'iera oil tJLr::ic prr,rErir,d:,.t r,ve.rjtn. lli,itories will in the future depend upon the Annual ltcportt. for much raw material and identification of key docurnent& through the Archives Program. The Agency Historian will be an cx-officio member of the Records Management. Board, will report directly to the ]executive Director, and will work in close coordination with the Agency Archivist end the Agency Records Management Officer. 6. Interim Period. ? In many areas it will be essential to produce one-time reports to cover the years from 1965 (or. the most recent history) to the current Annual Report. This will be undertaken by each unit identified to submit future Annual Reports. In those situations in which an over-all Agency history to be produced will cover the period in question, a separate Annual Rcport need not be developed, (c. g. , the War in Laos, the War in Vietnam), as the necessary chronic.lo and Archives can be developed at the same time as the analytical history. In other cases, however, a one-time effort to ~catch up to the current annual report system will be necessary and this will be undertaken by the unit in question. This activity will be super- vised by the Agency Historian and Archivist. W. E. Colby Executive Director -Comptroller Approved For Release 2000/08/04: CIA-RDP83-00764R000400030020-4