Reading Room Document
Application of State Law to CIA's Proposed Administration of Polygraph Examinations of Its Contractors' Employees
This document discusses the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) authority to conduct polygraph examinations on employees of U.S. corporations with classified contracts with the CIA. The conclusion reached is that the CIA has the authority to conduct these examinations in order to protect the confidentiality of classified information. The document also addresses the question of whether a Massachusetts law prohibiting lie detector tests can be applied to the CIA or its contractors, and concludes that the law may not be legitimately applied to either the CIA or its contractors to preclude authorized polygraph examinations. The document emphasizes that the application of State law to Federal contractors is dependent on the specific circumstances and may result in litigation.
The OLC's Opinions
Opinions published by the OLC, including those released in response to our FOIA lawsuit