HW 53217 CIA SPECIAL, COLLECTIONS RELEA J FULL CST~ 0340/93 15 November 1993 2000 MEMORANDUM FOR: Director of Central Intelligence Deputy Director of Central Intelligence VIA: Executive Director Director, Center for the Study of Intelligence FROM: John F. Pereira Chief, Historical Review Group SUBJECT: Status Report--Declassification of Kennedy Assassination Records 1. This memorandum is for your information. It provides an update on the Agency's efforts to declassify records related to the assassination of President Kennedy. 2. During your testimony before HPSCI on 28 September, you mentioned that we expected to release within the next month 80-90 percent of the 10,000 pages of JFK documents initially denied in full. In fact, the pace has proceeded more slowly than expected, partly due to the complexity of these documents, which include many lengthy forms. We have completed about sixty percent of the review. On 12 November we transferred approximately 1,700 pages--comprising the remaining Oswald materials--to the National Archives. (Only a handful of previously withheld documents in this batch remain denied.) Our target date for completion is late December, but additional batches will reach the Archives before then. 3. Regarding the 150,000 pages of microfilm material, which you also discussed during the hearing, we have completed review of nearly 30 percent of these records. We expect to complete review of the microfilm in January 1994, but will still need to coordinate and redact before releasing the records to the National Archives. This could take up to six weeks. In order to speed up the declassi- fication of the microfilm, we have added 11 contract personnel and have obtained additional office space. Our ability to accelerate the pace has been hampered by the poor quality of the microfilm printouts, caused by unclear camera focus. It has also taken considerable time to train new employees and to acquire additional equipment. DoclId: 3274044354 Page 2?
HW 53217 SUBJECT: Status Report--Declassification of Kennedy Assassination Records 4. We have also been requested to divert personnel to review JFK documents containing CIA-originated information in several substantial sets of records outside the Agency. These include the holdings of the SSCI, the House Assassi- nations Committee, the National Archives, and three Presidential Libraries. This will have an impact on the pace of our internal review. 5. We have been advised that on 17 November Congressman Conyers' Subcommittee on Legislation and National Security will hold an open hearing on the processing of JFK assassination records. The National Archives is the only Executive Branch agency to be invited to testify. To our knowledge, CIA has not been asked to provide anything for the hearing. 6. The President has yet to appoint the Review Board, which will have full authority on questions of release and withholding of JFK assassination records. The absence of a Review Board is forcing us to use resources to review material that the Board may well allow us to withhold. The FBI has yet to release its records on the assassination. CIA is the only federal agency with large JFK holdings that complied with the original 22 August deadline and is continuing to send additional material to the National Archives. yy J Z finecea John F. Pereira DoclId: 327404434 Page 3
HW 53217 SUBJECT: Status Report--Declassification of Kennedy Assassination Records DCI/CSI/HRG/JFPereira:hfs/30335 (15 Nov 93) Distribution: Original - DCI \ - DDCcI - ExDir - ER D/CSI - C/HRG - HRG files ee 1 DoclId: 327404434 Page 4