Some types of correspondence require particular formats, special handling procedures, or that particular information be included. A few of these specific types of correspondence—gift fund letters, White House correspondence, transmittals for Resolutions of Advisory Boards and Councils, and briefing memoranda—are discussed below.

(Note: Some types of documents, such as Congressional Appropriations Committee Reports, committee management packages, and personnel packages, require special formats and processing. These documents should be coordinated through your Institute or Center (IC) budget, committee management, or personnel office to be sure they are handled correctly.)

Frequently, the NIH receives requests from the Office of the Secretary (OS) to prepare briefing materials for the Secretary relating to a scheduled meeting or an official social event. Assembling a briefing package involves preparing a memorandum to the Secretary for signature by the Director, NIH, with attachments to provide extensive background information if needed.

The Executive Secretariat (ES) will assign an OS briefing request to the IC most closely associated with the subject matter or nature of the meeting or event.

In general, a briefing package should include information on who will be participating in the event, any support NIH has provided to the individuals or organizations involved (contact the Center for Scientific Review for a one-page summary; do not include a full computer printout), and any sensitive or controversial issues associated with the participants or organizations (note, for example, if an affiliated researcher is under investigation for scientific misconduct).

Keep the following points in mind when preparing a briefing package:

	Shorter is better. Be sure to include all necessary information but try to limit the memo to two or three pages. If more extensive material is essential, include it as an attached Tab and merely cite it in the memo.
	The preparing office is responsible for finding out who will be participating in the event and what their concerns or interests are.
	If the memo or attachments include budget or policy information, allow time for ES to get clearances from within the Office of the Director, NIH (OD). Sending a draft to ES for review before putting the package in final form can sometimes be helpful.
	A summary statement is not needed with a briefing package.
	Provide an electronic file (or electronic files) of as much of the briefing package as possible (memo and attachments). If an attachment is not available electronically, consult with the ES Program Analyst tracking the assignment regarding how best to furnish multiple copies.

Occasionally the NIH receives correspondence addressed to the White House and must prepare a reply for signature by the President, Vice President, or other White House official. In such cases, prepare the reply, which will always be a letter, in draft form: double-spaced on plain white paper, undated, clearly labeled as a draft, and with no signer's name following the complimentary close, Sincerely.

Draft letters for signature by White House officials also require an accompanying memorandum transmitting the draft letter to the White House. Unless you receive other specific instructions, type the memorandum on Office of the Secretary letterhead; the Executive Secretary of the Department will sign the transmittal.

See samples of a draft letter for White House signature and a transmittal memorandum, with further preparation instructions.

The NIH also receives letters addressed to the White House for which a DIRECT REPLY (D/R) is to be signed by the appropriate IC Director. If your office receives one of these letters, it will be accompanied by a pink control form, showing D/R for the ACTION REQUIRED. After a response has been prepared, signed, and sent to the writer of the incoming letter, return to ES the number of copies indicated on the control form.

The NIH Director sometimes receives letters containing checks designated for specific ICs or IC programs, for specific program areas in the OD, or for the NIH in general. NIH Manual 1130, Delegations of Authority, distinguishes between conditional and unconditional gifts in designating who may accept these gifts; NIH Manual 1135 defines conditional and unconditional gifts. IC Directors are authorized to accept conditional and unconditional gifts designated for their particular ICs or IC programs. The Deputy Director, NIH, is authorized to accept conditional and unconditional gifts to the NIH in general or to specific program areas in the OD.

The NIH Executive Secretariat assigns these gift acceptance letters for direct reply or for signature by the Deputy Director, NIH, depending on whether the gifts are for an IC or particular IC program, or are for the NIH in general or a program area in the OD.

The acceptance letter (see sample) must cite the section of the Public Health Service Act, as amended, through which authority to accept the gift has been delegated (section 497 for the NIH Deputy Director's or IC Director's acceptance of a conditional gift).

The advisory boards and councils of the ICs sometimes wish to send resolutions based on their deliberations to the NIH Director or higher officials. Such a resolution must be transmitted by a memorandum from the chairperson of the advisory body (if the IC Director is the chairperson, he or she should sign the memorandum as the chairperson, not as the IC Director), and in some cases the IC concerned must also prepare a response for signature by the recipient of the resolution.

	If the advisory body wishes to send its resolution to the Secretary, the transmittal memorandum should be addressed directly to the Secretary and should not be sent through ES. If, ultimately, a response to the advisory body is needed, NIH will receive an assignment from the Office of the Secretary requesting that the response be prepared.
	When a resolution is sent to the Director, NIH, it must be sent, with its transmittal memorandum, through ES. (ES should not appear in a Through: line on the memo, however.) The IC concerned must also prepare a memorandum for signature by the Director, NIH, thanking the advisory body and saying whatever else is appropriate.
	ES does not need an official file box copy of the memorandum transmitting the resolution (but your IC will need to keep an official file copy). For the memorandum to be signed by the NIH Director in response to the resolution, you need to prepare the following copies:
	original, on NIH letterhead official file box copy any additional copies required by your organization. (Remember that the signed original will come back through your IC for forwarding to the advisory board or council.)

Occasionally, the NIH receives a request to prepare the text of a presidential proclamation in connection with, for example, National Trauma Awareness Month or National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The Executive Secretariat will send such a request to the appropriate IC as an OTHER assignment; the REMARKS section of the control form will include instructions to prepare a presidential proclamation.

If you are preparing a presidential proclamation, keep the following points in mind:

	Always prepare a presidential proclamation as a double-spaced draft on plain white paper.
	Include a detailed typing legend on all copies so the writer can be contacted easily by a reviewer at any point in the process.
	Be sure to keep complete files on any presidential proclamations. Most proclamations must be prepared each year; background information in the file will be very helpful, especially in avoiding identical wording from year to year. ES does not keep file copies of presidential proclamations prepared by the ICs.
	The final three paragraphs of any proclamation must include some specific wording. The third paragraph from the end includes a statement of the congressional action establishing the event that the proclamation concerns. The second paragraph from the end contains the following as its first sentence: "Now, therefore, I, [President's name], President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim [month and year] as [name designated]." And the final paragraph states the following: "In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this [ordinal number] day of [month], in the year of our lord [year spelled out; for example, two thousand and three], and of the Independence of the United States of America the [ordinal number of complete years since July 4, 1776, spelled out; for a date after July 4 in 2005, for example, two hundred and twenty-ninth]."
	In addition to the proclamation itself, prepare a transmittal memorandum, addressed to the person who has originated the request for the proclamation, for signature within your organization.

Some incoming letters, most often from members of Congress, ask for answers to a series of specific, usually numbered, questions. In preparing the reply to these letters, use boldface (or underscoring if you cannot produce boldface type) to type each question, exactly as asked, then type the answer in your normal font, immediately following the question. Follow the format shown in the sample of letters answering a series of specific questions.

An invitation to the Secretary must be received by ES, ready for the Director's signature—error free, including any necessary tabs as attachments—at least eight weeks before the scheduled event. As with all documents going to the Secretary, the memo must be accompanied by a one-page summary statement.

For an invitation going outside the Department, to be signed by the Secretary, ES must receive the complete package, ready for the Director, NIH, to sign the transmittal memorandum, at least 11 weeks before the scheduled event. Again, the memo to the Secretary must be accompanied by a summary statement.

Documents prepared for publication in the Federal Register include rules or regulations, notices of actions and proposed actions under the NIH Guidelines for Research Involving Recombinant DNA Molecules, notices of intent to grant exclusive licenses, notices concerning inventions available for licensing, notices concerning opportunities for Cooperative Research and Development Agreements, and notices concerning meetings or conferences.

In general, notices having to do with components of the OD or with two or more Institutes or Centers (ICs) should be prepared for signature by the Deputy Director, NIH. Notices involving one IC should be prepared for signature by that IC's Director or Executive Officer. Notices about establishment of advisory committees or statements of organization changes at certain levels must be prepared for signature by the Director, NIH; notices announcing workshops or meetings of NIH-chartered advisory committees must be prepared for signature by the NIH Committee Management Officer and processed through NIH Committee Management Office channels. These and other specific exceptions are listed in NIH Manual 1130, Delegations of Authority, dated January 2, 2001.

Type Federal Register notices on plain white paper, following the format exactly as shown and described in the sample.

Copy requirements for notices to be signed by the Director or Deputy Director, NIH, which must be processed through ES, are as follows:

	An original (on plain white paper) and two identical copies. On these two copies, type "Certified To Be A True Copy" below the signature line (see sample).
	One official file box copy, including a typing legend indicating the preparing office and designating the official file location. The official file location for all Federal Register notices is the Office of Management Assessment (OMA). The file box copy must show the appropriate clearances from within your IC or OD Staff office before you send the package to ES. To save time, you may also obtain OMA clearance before sending the package to ES.
	Three additional copies, each including the typing legend.

If possible, also provide a computer diskette with the notice text in either WordPerfect or Word format. Doing so will reduce the publication cost for the NIH. If you do provide a diskette, indicate in the NIH Billing Code the format of the text. (See the first line in the sample)

After notices processed through ES are signed, ES will send the original, the two certified copies, the box copy, and the diskette, if provided, to OMA, to be forwarded to the Federal Register. At that time, if you have provided an additional copy (other than those specified above) with your name and address written on it, ES will send you that copy, date and signature stamped, so that you are aware the document has been signed and forwarded.