CONGRESSIONAL COMMENTS RELATING TO THE CIA BUDGET

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79-00957A000100090012-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 27, 2005
• Sequence Number: 12
• Publication Date: November 24, 1999
• Content Type: BULL

d For Release
CONGRESSIONAL COMMENTS RELATING TO THE CIA BUDGET
1. The purpose of this bulletin. is to keep employees
informed on recent events in the Congress of the United
States which affect the Agency.
2. On 4 June 1974 the Senate by a vote of 55 to.33
defeated an amendment to the Defense Procurement Authoriza-
tion bill (S..3000) which would have required the Director
of Central Intelligence to submit an annual unclassified
report to the Congress disclosing the total amount of funds
requested in the budget.for the National Intelligence Program.
3. A number of Senators 3 including the Chairm.n of the
Agency's Oversight Committees in the Senate, strongly opposed
the amendment on the basis that such disclosures would
provide valuable assistance to our adversaries by virtue of
the trends disclosed over the years and that the publication
of the total figure would only stimulate further inquiry for
greater detail on foreign intelligence activities, for
explanations of changes or trends, and for the component
elements of the total figure.
4. They also pointed out that the four committees
charged with oversight of the Agency in the Congress are
fully aware of the details of the foreign intelligence
budget and inquire into these matters deeply. The point was
also made that if any member of the Senate wished to know
what the total figure was it would be furnished to him on a
classified basis.
5. The discussion on the amendment is covered on pages
S. 9601-9613 in the Congressional Record of 4 June 1974.
Excerpts follow:
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 Senator Stenuls : 't
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ope,-l Society ana, SO
far, we Nava been able to carry, on an
intelti^ence prcgr^.m
has been worth to us billions and millions
and billions of doitars in saving's. I;r:.t, if
we are going to abandon the idea of
keeping these figures from being cl?,s-
closed, then. in my humble opinion. we
might as well abolish the agency. It
would be lice saying, in etTect. that we
do not want this secret intelligence after
all, that we do not need it, and that we
will abandon it.
We will pay an awful price for that.
I am familiar with the CTf budget.
I can satisfy most any Senator in the
cloakroom. talking to him some about
this, but I will publicly say that it is a
clean budget and they have justified
many times over the expenditure of the
money. u
Senator t o , t-0 know
what they are doing. -'so we can know
what we have to do in order to guarantee.
`he security of our ow-n count-,;r.
So we cannot come out here and tell
the whole world, "WVe spent $1 billion or
$2 billion for the Central Intell'.gence
Agency." What does that mean to any-
one else, except that perhaps some people
think they are spending too muc:hh. And
the minute the question is asked where
they are spending it we are in serious
trouble.
So what happens to your children and
my children, -Mr President? '%Vhat hap-
pens to you when you go home tonight?
What happens tomorrow? What hap-
pens to the security of our country?
Can we afford to tell them? Oh yes, I
would like to tell the public everything it
is possible to tell them. I believe in that.
I have been in public life continually for
40 Year. I believe in the right of the
public to know. But I certainly would
not come to the floor of the Senate and
tell you, Mr. President, how to put to-
gether an atom bomb. I would not tell
you that. I would not tell you how far
our nuclear subs are able to travel; I
would not tell you how we can detect an
enemy sub; and I would not tell you how
they might detect ours.'.t would not tell
you that. Why would I not tell you that?
I would not tell you that becau.>e the
minute I told you that. I would jeopardize
the future of your children.
I have sat down with the senator from
Wisconsin (Mr. Pro r?nza), the Senator
from California (.-r. Ce.10rsro:r), to find
a solution, and I have sat down with 11.1r.
Colby. who is a great American. He said,
"Please do not do tiiis. If you want to
make my job easier, please do not do
this." I cannot sit there after that ad-
monition and exhortation and turn
around and say. "Mr. Colby, I do not
believe what you have to say." If I be-
lieved that for 1 minute, I would. say.
"You ought to give up your job.'-' . .
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ti4r llcpshd nt
Agency, during tine `r.ennedy years and
the Johnson years, was engaged in ac-
Yis? to commend tie Senator from Rhode
Eland acid to associate mvseif fully with
his comment,;, The Senator pointed out
very properly that the Central inteili-
genee Agency has in the past engaged in
activities that have been looked upon by
certain Members of the Congress as un-
desirable: but 1 want to mane it clear
that every one of those activities had
been ordered by a President. The Can-
tral intelligence Agency does no. Just
engage in activities for the love of work.
T know that the Central Intelligence
Agency is possibly the most important
agency in this Government. By and large,
it is made up of people who are com-
petent, able, and who have served this
country well and faithfully. To be sure,
there are times when it has engaged in
activities, as we have said, that are
looked upon with suspicion; but I think
it would be folly for us to publicize all of
its activities, to publicize the amounts it
receives, particularly when there are
ways and mesms within this body and'
within the other body o: Congress to
supervise it-and to keep a check rein.
upon it.
serving on the National Security CDuncii,
and I v;ant to tell my colleagues that the
Central Intelligence Agency was the most
accurate and effective instrument of
Government for that council. Its reports
were most accurate, and had we followed
the advice of the Central Tntel`rtgence
Agency in many areas, we would have
been better off, but at least it was there.
But just as surely as we are In this
body today debating whether or not we
ought to have a release of the fgure,
next year it will be whether it is too big
or too little, and then it will be what is
in it. Then when we start to say what is
in.it, we are going to have to e: