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(Page  1) 
The  Director  7  May  194  8 
General  Counsel 
National  Security  Act  of  1947 
1.    The  following  notes  are  submitted  in  connection  with  a 
discussion  of  problems  arising  in  operation  under  the  National 
Security  Act  of  1947: 
a.  From  an  administrative  point  of  view,  the  primary 
difficulty  experienced  was  lack  of  detailed  enabling 
legislation  to  support  CIA's  unusual  adminstrative 
problems.   It  was  thought,  and  properly  so,  that  so 
much  detail  should  not  be  put  in  legislation  of  the 
broad  policy  nature  of  the  National  Security  Act.   This 
problem  has  now  been  met  by  submission  to  the  Congress 
of  detailed  enabling  legislation.   It  is  believed  that 
this  Bill,  as  submitted,  will  have  the  support  of  all 
the  executive  departments  and  substantial  support  in 
Congress. 
b.  It  has  been  generally  agreed  in  most  discussions 
that  it  would  be  desireable,  if  feasible,  to  have 
CIA's  basic  authorization  provide  for  a  Deputy  Director 
as  well  as  a  Director.   Such  a  provision  was  discussed 
again  in  connection  with  the  CIA  enabling  act,  and  it 
was  decided  that  in  view  of  the  current  attitude  towards 
military  appointments,  no  such  provision  would  be  sub- 
mitted.  A  check  indicated  that  no  practical  difficul- 
ties have  arisen,  or  are  expected  to  arise,  for  lack  of 
statutory  authority  for  a  Deputy  Director. 
c.  In  its  performance  of  the  intelligence  functions 
outlined  in  the  National  Security  Act,  the  primary 
difficulty  experienced  by  CIA  has  been  in  certain 
weakness  of  language  in  paragraph  102  (d)  concerning 
the  meaning  of  coordination  of  intelligence  activities. 
Where  the  Act  states  "it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the 
Agency... to  advise  the  National  Security  Council. .. (and) 
to  make  recommendations  to  the  National  Security  Council 
for  the  coordination  of  such  intelligence  activities" 
it  has  been  strongly  argued  that  this  places  on  the 
Director  a  responsiblity  merely  to  obtain  cooperation 
among  the  intelligence  agencies.   This  weakness  of
(Page  2) 
language  and  the  ensuing  controversy  might  have  been 
eliminated  by  the  insertion  after  the  phrase  "it  shall  be 
the  duty  of  the  Agency"  the  following  words:  "and  the 
Director  is  hereby  empowered"  or  some  other  such  phrase 
indicating  the  intent  of  Congress  that  the  Director  was 
to  have  a  controlling  voice  in  the  coordination,  subject 
to  the  direction  of  the  National  Security  Council. 
d.  The  collection  functions  of  CIA  are  provided  for  only 
in  the  general  provision,  "to  perform,  for  benefit 
of  existing  intelligence  agencies,  such  additional  ser- 
vices of  common  concern  as  the  National  Security  Council 
determines  can  be  more  efficiently  accomplished  centrally 
and  to  perform  such  other  functions  and  duties  related  to 
intelligence  affecting  the  National  Security  as  the  National 
Security  Concil  may  from  time  to  time  direct."   It  is 
known  that  Congress  intended  by  these  phrases  to  insure 
control  of  clandestine  intelligence  by  CIA  but  considered 
that  security  aspects  prevented  its  being  spelled  out  in 
the  language  of  the  law.   Lack  of  such  specific  direction 
may  be  considered  a  weakness  in  the  National  Security  Act 
of  1947  that  deserves  further  consideration  by  the  Congress. 
LAWRENCE  R.  HOUSTON