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USCIB: 5.4/12 

15 June 1954 

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MEMORANDUM FOR THE MEMBERS OF USCIBEC: 

Subject: Annual Report of the Executive Secretaey, USCIB. 

1. The enclosed annual report of activities of the Office of 

the Executive Secretary is forwarded for information. It is 

contemplated that this report will be considered at the Sixteenth 

Meeting of USCIBEC, to be held on 25.June 1954. 

2. THE ENCLOSURE WITH THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS COMMUNICATIONS 

INTELLIGENCE INFORMATION AND SHALL BE HANDLED ONLY IN CHANNELS 

EXPRESSLY PROVIDED FOR COMINT. 

Enclosure 

a/s 

USCIB: 5.4/l2 

Captain, U. • Navy 

Executive Secretary, USCIB 

Declassified and approved for release by NSA on 07-23-2014 pursuantto E.O. 1352a 

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ANNUAL REPORT 

OF 

THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY, USCIB 

Reference: USCIB 5.4/7 of 15 January 1954 (Semiannual Report of the 

Executive Secretary, USCIB). 

I. COMPOSITION AND ORGANIZATION OF THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARIAT. 

A. NARRATIVE. 

1. The Executive Secretariat has now been in operation one full 

year. There has been no change in the size or the Secretariat since 

the last report, the strength and organization remaining as listed in 

paragraph I.A.5. or the reference. However, the addition of a 

Lt. Colonel, Army for USCSB matters has not materialized and the idea or 

such an assignment has been dropped for the present. 

2. Word has been received that the Assistant Executive 

Secretary for Security Matters, Major Culmer, will be assigned to the 

Army Command and General Starr School for a four months course beginning 

in mid-August. Arrangements are being made to have Major Culmer returned 

to duty in the Secretariat upon completion of this schooling. The 

Chairman of the Intelligence Committee, Lt. Colonel Simmons, will 

endeavor to assume Major Culmer's primary duties during the latter's 

absence. 

3. Logistic support and transportation arrangements remain as 

before, the year:cy- cost being appro.xima.te:cy- as stated in paragraph I.A.6. 

or the reference. 

B. COMMENTS. 

1. · The present strength and organization or the Secretariat is 

considered to be the minim.um adequate for the job. 

2. The demands of USCSB upon th~ personnel and facilities of 

the USCIB Secretariat have not, as yet, been beyond normal capacity of 

the Secretariat to handle. However, if USCSB should meet as often and 

Enclosure with USCIB 5.4/12 dtd 15 June 1954. 

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as lengthily as USCIB, the Secretariat would be unable to meet, with its 

present staff, the requirements of both Boards. It is considered, 

though, that with the addition of 1 Recording Secretary and 1 Assistant 

Executive Secretary for COMSEC, foreseeable normal requirements of both 

USCIB and USCSB could be met. 

3. The transfer of the incmnbent Assistant for Security, 

whether temporary or permanent, will delay at least one important project four to six months. This is regrettable. However, it is felt that· 

seizure of an opportunity to improve Major Culmer 1 s professional 

potential is more important than delay of the projects at present under 

consideration by the USCIB Secretariat. 

4. Logistic support to the Secretariat is in all respects 

satisfactory. 

C, RECOMMENDATIONS. 

1. The current composition, organization and support arrangements for the Executive Secretariat should remain as is. 

II. FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES. 

A. NARRATIVE. 

1. No changes· in the routine duties being performed by the 

Secretariat have occurred since the last report. 

2. Considerable progress has been made on the project of codification of USCIB directives, policies and decisions. Card indexing 

of agenda items and decisions thereon at USCIB meetings since the first 

one on ll+ March 1945 is about 75% complete. When this phase of the 

codification project is complete, decisions taken by vote sheet·and 

interregnUm. procedure will 'be added,'the whole indexed and. then"iss'ued 

in the· form of a digest with listings in one part by meeting number and 

in• a second part by subject. It is nbt•·anticipated that this project 

can be completed before fall.of this·year at the earliest. 

3. Revision of Board directives and policy papers in the 

light of the recent reorganization of the Board has been completed. 

4. Security is still not satisfactory. 

a. Although directives have been issued to achieve the 

security aims set forth in the Brownell Committee Report, and there is 

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every evidence of compliance with these directives on the part of the 

members, a serious source of weakness still exists, namely, ineffective 

communications which have been producing compromises at the average 

rate of slightly more than five per month since May of 1953. Approximately half of these compromises involve inadvertent plain text 

transmissions many cases of which have revealed TOP SECRET codeword 

information on readily interce..E..table radio circuits. As soon as it can 

be f'ully applied., USCIB Directive Number 9 is expected to materially 

assist in amelioration of this situation. As yet, the minimum standards 

provided under SECTION III, paragraph 1, have not been submitted for 

USCIB approval. However, a step in that direction has been taken by 

approval of USCIB 13.5/42. In addition, detailed rules for the elements 

under the operational or technical control of the Director, NSA have 

been issued. Meanwhile, the matter of communications compromises has 

been brought to attention of the Director, NSA as it involves mainly 

those elements under his operational or technical control. 

b. Full :implementation of the new Appendix "B" has been 

delayed beyond the expected time owing to delays in achieving 

categorization of COMINT. Other necessary actions have either been 

completed or are so well advanced that they can be completed on short 

notice. It is hoped that an agreed listing of material for the various 

categories will be ready for consideration by USCIB in July. 

3. A project to consolidate and issue in one document all 

USCIB directives and policy statements covering the policy and procedures approved by the Board with regard to the security of COMINT has 

been initiated in the Secretariat. A completion date cannot be 

estimated at this time. 

B. COMMENT. 

1. Leakage of C<l4.INT information due to ineffective communications is considered to be our most dangerous security weakness. If not 

corrected, this weakness can render all other security efforts null and 

void. 

2. Categorization of CG1INT should be expedited. An emergency 

involving hostilities before Appendix "B" can be fully implemented 

would f:ind us without the basis for executing policies to which we have 

committed ourselves. This will lead to either undue delay in effective 

utilization of COMINT or an anarchy of expediency that cannot fail to 

weaken security. 

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3. Members are reminded that implementation of Appendix "B" 

will require issuance of revised security reg'Q].ations in accord therewith and that copies of these regulations should be filed with this 

Secretariat. This action need not await agreement on categories. 

C. RECOMMENDATIONS. 

1. That the Director, NSA should expedite submission of the 

minimum standards required by SECTION III, paragraph 1, of CIBD #9 so 

that early action can be taken by the members to institute the inspection and reporting procedures required. 

2. The Director, NSA be asked to prepare and forward in time 

for USCIB consideration at its September meeting a status report on 

action taken to improve COMSEC in the Co.MINT elements under his 

operational or technical control together with any recommendations he 

may deem appropriate. 

3. Set 16 August 1954 as the outside target date for full 

implementation of the new Appendix 11B11 and notify LSIB and CRC of our 

desires in this respect. 

III. GENERAL COMMENTS. 

1. The Executive Secretariat as presently conceived and 

operating is believed to be worth its cost in manpower and money as an 

office of consultation and coordination. It has not thus far performed 

any true executive functions. Nor is it believed that such functions 

are intended by its Charter. Operating on the principle that implementation of Board policy is a function which can be performed 

effectively only by the member departments and agencies of the Board, a 

conscious effort has peen made to avoid any exercise of such executive 

functions and instead, the activities of the Secretariat have been 

confined to suggesting, persuading, advising and reminding. In so doing 

measures necessar.v to improve security have received the lion's share 

of attention. To this extent it has been necessary to delve into what 

is normally the individual business of the members. This is regrettable 

but considered necessary as a service of comm.on concern. It is considered that an independent activity such as the Executive Secretariat 

is justified for that purpose alone. In addition the Executive 

Secretariat as an independent organ is considered useful and desirable 

as a means of keeping the affairs of the Board under undivided surveillance not subject to diversion by other cares. In short, it is felt 

that the Executive Secretariat is justified as a permanent appendage of 

the Board on its present basis, with its present composition and with 

its present concept as contained in CIBD #3 and interpreted above. 

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2. In the previous report of the Executive Secretary doubt was 

expressed.as to the worth of the Executive Committee. It is believed 

that the Executive Committee has by now demonstrated a usefulness 

commensurate with the time and effort devoted to its deliberations. It 

was previously argued that its functions could be just as well performed 

by the Executive Secretary and the Standing Committees. Except for the 

words "just as well" this argument still has merit. However, the forum 

provided by the Executive Committee is considered a valuable leaven while 

the authority it can exercise (and has on at least two occasions in the 

past six months) without troubling the Board is considered sufficient to 

recommend its retention as part of the permanent organization of the 

Board. Last, but not least, the batting average of the Executive 

Cormnittee during the past year is remarkably high. It has handled more 

than twice as many agenda items than has the Board itself (thus saving 

much valuable time for the members thereof), has rendered only one 

split decision, has had no unanimous decision rejected by the Board and 

has little or no unfinished business before it at this writing • 

.3. The reports of the Chairmen of the Intelligence and Security 

Committees are attached hereto. They are self-explanatory and will serve 

to provide the detail deliberately omitted above. 

Enclosures 

1. INT #CXJ02 dtd 15 JUl'le 1954. 

2. SEC #OCXJ8 dtd 15 June 1954. 

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Captain, U. s. Navy 

Executive Secretary, USCIB 

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