CIA DIRECTOR OPPOSES ANY BUDGET EXPOSURE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP99-00418R000100100024-5
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 21, 2012
• Sequence Number: 24
• Publication Date: August 4, 1975
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

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Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/11/21 : CIA-RDP99-00418R000100100024-5
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. ,
Washington?William E.
Colby, director of the Central
Intelligence Agency, said in an
interview he would flatly op-
pose even a broad disclosure of
the intelligence budget on the
grounds that it would yield in-
formation about sensitive oper-
ations.
"I could learn a lot about the?
KGB !the Soviet secret police!
budget by studying year-to-year
changes in its annual overall to-
tal," Mr. Colby said recently in
his office at CIA headquarters
at Langley, Va.
The CIA director is sched-
uled to testify today before the
House intelligence committee
as it continues its probe of the
fiscal operations of espionage
agencies.
He emphasized that he
would not soften his obtections
to any changes in the current
top-secret status of the CIA
budget. Mr. Colby rejected the
suggestion by members of Con-
gress that at least the gross to-
tal be revealed, if not a line-by-
line of expendi-
tures. ?
According to Mr. Colby, a
careful analysis of an overall
!figure would be dangerously re-
vealing to those who knew pre-
cisely what they were looking
for.
"A little bounce in the total
from year to year can tell a lot.
To disclose that figure would be
explaining a great deal about
the intelligence structure," the
CIA director said.
He noted that there lied h4tel
comparisons between the CIA
budget and that of the now-de-
fund, Atomic Energy Commis-
sion. r)(...lning to the grow:! i of
AEC disclosure over the years,
he commented, "In B47, the
AEC had a one-line item. Last
year it had 15 pages."
The CIA director added that
he doubted that there would be
as mueh attention paid to de-
tails revealed by the AKC as to
information about the
gence agency.
CIA director opposes
any budget exposure
By itIVR. 1EL DOBBTN
Washington Bureau of The Sun
"At this time, the AEC could "The general doesn't tell. the
print the formula for the atom- major whether to walk on the
ic bomb without arousing the right or the left side of the road.
same interest as there would be Some decisions are delegated.
in anything at all about the It may be a detail at the bine.
CIA," he said wryly. . It may not be a detail in hind-
Mr. Colby, the first director sight." he said obliquely.
who had to take to what might Regarding the possibility of
criminal prosecutions arising
from any -mistakes" made by
the CIA, Mr. Colby said he had
"come across things that gave
me problems." He had checked
with Edward H. Levi, the Attor-
ney. General, and certain mat-
ters had been turned over to the
Justice Department.
He indicated' that among
time for a re-examination of
those matters was the testimo-
American intelligence needs. ny on CIA involvement in Chile
The CIA, Mr. Colby said. had given. by Richard M. Helms.
responded to the policy require-
former CIA director, to the
merits of different administra-
Louse Armed Services Corn-
tions for the last three decades, .
ttee. There have been con-
e termed the congressional
speech circuit as the defender
of his agency, said that it was
"a strange way to run an intel-
ligence operation."
His departure from the tra-
ditional secrecy of the espio-
nage community, he conceded,
was legitimate in that it was
operating a,s he put it, "under
pressure and without very
much control or supervision on
some occasions."
Yet the director refused to
agree with a recent prediction
by Senator Frank Church (D.,
tieuing reports that Mr. Helms
was less than candid in that
sworn testimony.
Jr. Colby added, however,
that he "did not think there was
anything for which anyone
eteeld be convicted of a crime."
Idaho), chairman of the Senate Trying to identify who did
intelligence committee, tl.t:et what, and precisely where re-
the forthcoming report on pont- spggsibility not easy
ice! assassinations was likely to for the CIA in its self-examine-
thow the agency had acted like tion ,any more than for Con-
.4. "runaway rogue elephant.. eres in its investigation, the
"We took our policy divee ieirector said.
feepa the political leadership .of ' "What we have now," Mr.
the country," Mr. Coloy said. Colby said, "is the new America
Ha thus reiterated the problem coking at the old intelligence
of chain of commar.cl, which structure and corJemolating
congressional- changes which need to be made
liav; found so difficult to e.ttab, in The hardest chore I have
lish, especially in relation oo is to bring out clearly the
any involvement of presidents changes that have occurred in ;
in political-assassination plots. the intelligence service as well
The CIA director refused ?gs to America.,
discuss the subject of ieyolve- He admitted there were
latent in iIvhet Senator Cniirch male
pre.-,o7rns at home, and
hs toriiied "rolirdel i.?!oLi. the it -ioece ?
ycod pointing to a_ directivek-iceas a result ot what ie
lemming the agency irom euelt termed the ..sonionatized?
activity. ispacts of the congressional
Yet in reference to the cur- prohe.
rP:It post-nyvierns on
congressional
c.f the conduct of co,,-:..rt
Mr. Colll od
the alf..y.-1 of a geaeral
iives a major a:I order to ts.lie a
. certain road.
;
"If we had not had very
strong minded people, this stru-
ture would have been shat-
tered" Mr Colby said.
He made no attempt to deny
"mistakes and misdeeds," such,
as mail interception and drug
experimentatiion programs
now being publicized.
The mail opening. Mr. Colby
said, was an example of a mis-
guided belief. by intelligence
personnel that the practice lay
within the general policy being
followed.
But he singled out the drug
:experimentation, specifically
the 1953 administering of LSD
to Dr. Frank Pe Olson, thetFred-
., crick biechemist who later
!killed himself, as "a tragedy."
"The Olson case was
wrong," said the CIA director.
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/11/21 : CIA-RDP99-00418R000100100024-5