CNSS FOIA LITIGATION: DOCUMENT PROCESSING TIMETABLE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83T00573R000200240001-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 27, 2001
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: December 15, 1980
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Release 2002/05/07 : CIA-RDP83T005731W00200240001-6
OGC 80-10691
15 December 1980
MEMORANDUM FOR: See Distribution
Office of General Counsel
SUBJECT CNSS FOIA Litigation: Document Processing
Timetable
1. This is to advise you this Office may enter into
a formal agreement with Plaintiff's counsel in the CNSS
litigation--an agreement which will establish document
processing timetables for each of the seven FOIA requests
at issue 4/this case whose processinq 'zas not yet been
completed.-- The processing timetable likely to be
established by this agreement is indicated below:
FOIA Request
Processing Completion Date
Family Jewels
January 16-31,
1981
60 Footnotes
January 16-31,
1981
Village Voice Leak of
Pike Committee Report
January 16-31,
1981
Welch Assassination
January-February 198121
Project II
March 1-15, 1981
1953 Iranian Coup
June-August 1981
I/ The remaining FOIA requests at issue in this litigation,
five in all, require little additional action at this time.
This is so because this Agency has filed affidavits regarding
its refusal to release the documents requested.
?/ The timetable for processing the Welch request will be
determined according to a specified formula depending upon
the number of responsive documents located.
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2. This timetable will be established as part of
a compromise agreement. The gist of this compromise is
that Plaintiffs will hold their various motions, discovery
requests, and other objections in abeyance, in exchange for
this Agency's formal commitment to complete the processing
of responsaiye documents in accordance with a specified
timetable.-
3. I believe such an agreement is advantageous to
this Agency. This is so because of the status of the
first four requests at issue in this litigation--requests
filed several years ago. The delays associated with the
processing of these requests may prove difficult to justify
fully and persuasively and might serve as a basis for
discovery against this Agency. It must be remembered that
some of the first four FOIA requests have been pending for
some time. For example, Morton Halperin's Family Jewels
Request was sent to CIA by letter dated January 19, 1976--
almost five years ago.
4. In order to persuade Plaintiff's counsel to agree
not to litigate the Agency's failure to complete the processiri
of such requests--requests that have been outstanding 4 or 5
years--a relatively short processing timetable is essential.
This is especially true with regard to the Family Jewels, 60
Footnotes and Village Voice (Pike Committee) requests.
5. I realize that processing these requests in accordance
with the proposed timetable will require your support.
Frankly speaking, I do not believe the Agency has much of
a choice in this matter, especially ,with regard to Halperin's
older FOIA requests. If such an agreement is not reached, it
is likely that Plaintiff's counsel will move vigorously and
immediately for z. court-established processing timetable and
will seek discovery aimed at uncovering the reasons underlying
the delays these requests have encountered.
6. In my opinion, the Agency is better served in this
case by this proposed agreement--especially on the facts of
several of the individual FOIA requests.
3/ A document will have completed "processing" when it
has been reviewed for releasability at the component level,
coordination with OGC, and a response dispatched to Plaintiff.
The processing of a particular document is "completed" when it
is dispatched to Plaintiff in sanitized form or when Plaintiff
is advised that the document is released in 'full or withheld
in its entirety.
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7. Although I have spoken with many of you regarding
the proposed timetables--particularly those individuals
with the largest number of responsive documents to process--
I know I have not spoken with everyone concerned. Accordingly,
you should advise me immediately if you cannot meet the
processing timetables indicated in paragraph 1. Particular
care should be given to those timetables which require
processing to be completed sometime between January 16-31.
8. Since proposed deletions must also be reviewed by
OGC, you must allow time in your calculations for the review
of responsive documents by this Office.
9. With regard to documents associated with the Family
Jewels, 60 FootnC) es, and Village Voice FOIA requests, either
I o will be consulting with each of you
indi ua y wit regard to the processing of documents which
must be reviewed for releasability. In order to ensure
compliance with the proposed timetables, it is clear that
your processing must be completed on a priority basis and
within relatively short and inflexible time frames. You
should, of course, begin work on such processing immediatel-v
and not await OGC consultation.
10. If an agreement is reached with Plaintiff's counsel,
the proposed timetables will be submitted to the court and,
as such, should be considered to be equivalent to court
established processing deadlines--deadlines which must be
met. If you believe you cannot complete the processing of
any of the requests in accordance with the proposed
timetables set forth in paragraph 1, particularly the
first three timetables which indicate processing must be
completed no later than the end of January 1981, please call
me or immediately and in no event later than
close o usiness on December 18, 1980.
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STATINTL
Distribution:
1 - C/DDO/IMS
1 - NFAC/FIO
1 - DDS&T/FIO
1 - DDA/C/ISS
1 - OC/FIO
1 - OF/FIO
- ODP/FIO
1 - OL/FIO
1 C/OS/IRG
1 - OTR/FIO
1 - IC/FIO
1 - DCI/FIO
1 - NI/FIO
1 - OLC/FIO
1 - IG/FIO
1 - Exec. Registry
1 - QPPPM/FIO
1 - OPA/FIO
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