1743 - KEEPING AND DESTROYING RECORDS
Issuing Office: OA/OMA 301-496-4606
CHANGES
A. Purpose: This chapter provides instructions for specific NIH
records. All previous authorizations for the disposition of NIH records are hereby
superseded.
This schedule must be used in conjunction with the General Records Schedule (GRS) of
the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The GRS provides for the
disposition of records generally used in Government offices, such as personnel records or
general administration records.
B. Scope: These instructions ensure that necessary and
useful records are retained in the files of NIH offices and laboratories for as long as
required and reasonable; that information can be retrieved efficiently from these files
because unnecessary records have been weeded out; that valuable space is not taken up by
records not needed for current business; and that records with lasting historical, legal
or scientific value are preserved.
C. Background and References: Recordkeeping by Federal
agencies is controlled by laws and regulations which require that (1) government records
be kept only for authorized periods of time; (2) no government records be destroyed,
mutilated or removed from government custody without authorization; (3) records which are
valuable enough to be preserved permanently be kept intact and be transferred to the
National Archives as appropriate; (4) records which are not in active use, but which
cannot be destroyed for some time, be transferred to a Federal Records Center.
D. Application:
The NIH Records Control Schedule, which is Appendix 1 to this chapter, contains
specific instructions as to how long records of any given type may be kept and what must
be done with them after the specified period. These instructions are legally binding.
Records may not be destroyed before the authorized time, and they may not be kept for
periods longer than those specified in the schedule. Records scheduled for permanent
retention should be offered to the National Archives at the time specified.
E. NIH Staff Responsibilities:
1. The NIH Records Management Officer, Office of Management Assessment (OMA), Office of
Administration (OA), is responsible for:
a. developing, maintaining and revising the NIH Records Control Schedule;
b. assisting and advising NIH offices on interpreting or applying the records control
schedule within NIH;
c. providing liaison with DHHS and higher authorities regarding all aspects of records
keeping and disposal.
2. It is the responsibility of each IC Records Management Officer and/or records
liaison to implement the policies and procedures as stated in both the NIH Records Control
Schedule (NIH Manual 1743, "Keeping and Destroying Records," as the General
Records Schedule (GRS), including:
a. ensuring that the records control schedule is implemented within each IC;
b. assisting and advising IC personnel on interpretation of the schedules;
c. ensuring that all employees know the difference between personal and agency records;
d. assisting IC personnel in retiring inactive records to the Washington National
Records Center (WNRC) by reviewing, signing off on and transmitting to
the NIH RMO, the Records Transmittal and Receipt, Form SF 135; and
e. reviewing and transmitting reference requests to the WNRC, Form OF
11, for withdrawing records from the WNRC.
3. NIH IC and OD Office Directors:
a. designate an IC/OD Office records management official;
b. integrate the NIH records management program into IC/OD Office operations and ensure
compliance;
c. apply the recordkeeping and disposal instructions from the NIH Records Control
Schedule to IC/OD Office files; and
d. ensure that adequate records management training is provided to all staff.
4. Each office:
a.
is responsible for applying the recordkeeping
and disposal instructions from the NIH Records Control Schedule to its
files;
b. initiates requests to transfer records to WNRC
or withdraw records from WNRC;
c.
boxes its records and marks the boxes, as instructed in the 1742
Transfer, Withdrawal And Destruction of
Records At The Washington National Records Center Section E.5.b.
and 5.c., before transfer to WNRC; and
d.
prepares forms and other paperwork necessary for sending, withdrawing or
disposing of records at the WNRC and transmits the paperwork to their
respective IC Records Officer for review and clearance.
5. All employees are warned that destruction or removal of government records other
than as authorized in an approved records schedule is a serious offense that could lead to
adverse action against the individual.
F. Records: Records may have any physical form
or characteristics. Records may be on paper, microfilm, magnetic tapes, cards, disks, or
any other material. They may be letters, memoranda, reports or other materials commonly
found in office files. They may also be laboratory notebooks, instrument readings,
photographs, sound recordings, motion pictures, maps, books, drawings, data bases or in
any other form or format.
The official records of the National Institutes of Health are created by or for NIH or
received by NIH in the course of doing business. The essential point about these records
is (1) that they contain information about the organization, functions, policies,
procedures, decisions or other activities of NIH or any of its components, or (2) that
they contain information, such as biomedical data, which is useful to NIH in carrying out
its mission. These records are the property of the U.S. Government. They do not belong to
individuals.
G. Non-Records Materials: Certain documentary
materials are specifically excluded by law (44 U.S.C. 3301) from the records of the
Federal Government. Such materials are called "non-record." Any one or more of
these three factors may determine whether something is a record or non-record: (1) the
nature of the material; (2)the relationship to records; and (3) the use of the material.
(1) Nature: Some items by their very nature are non-record. They include blank
forms, routing sheets, transmittal sheets and reproduction materials such as stencils and
offset plates.
(2) Relationship to records: Documents such as transcribed stenographic
materials, working papers and drafts, that are used in creating official records are
non-record. Identical duplicates of all records maintained in the same file are
non-record. Follow-up materials, such as "tickler" or suspense copies of
correspondence, that are used to facilitate operations but not to document those
operations are non-record. Note: indexes and other finding aids to records are themselves
record material.
(3) Use: Any materials used exclusively for reference purposes are non-record.
They include library collections, vendors catalogs, journals and similar materials. Copies
of records which are maintained solely for reference purposes are also non-record if no
administrative action is taken on them.
Materials used solely for exhibit or display are non-record, unless they describe the
operations, policies, procedures or accomplishments of NIH.
Stocks of publications and processed documents kept for distribution are non-record,
but one copy of each publication must be kept as a record in the office responsible for
issuing it.
Documents created or used in fringe activities, such as carpool locators, charitable
fund drives and employee recreation and welfare activities are not government records.
Non-record materials should be removed from NIH files as soon as they are no longer
needed.
Caution should be used in applying the term non-record. Improper application of this
qualification may be equivalent to the illegal disposition of government records.
When removing or destroying non-record materials, take care that any documents which
are sensitive, confidential, or subject to the Privacy Act are protected from unauthorized
disclosure.
H. Personal Files: Personal files are those that
relate only to an individual's personal affairs and do not affect the conduct of agency
business. Papers or other documents that a person creates or receives in connection with
the performance of official duties are government records and must be treated as such.
Even correspondence marked "personal," "confidential" or
"private" is an official record if it relates to official activities. If
private, personal correspondence contains portions which require official action or
response, those portions which require official action or response must be extracted and
made a part of official files. Research notes and reports created by
scientists working at NIH are official records that belong to the government, not the
individual researcher. In some cases, even diaries, appointment books and other
schedules of personal activities are considered government records.
Personal files kept in NIH offices or other facilities must be designated as personal
and must be maintained apart from official records.
I. Privacy Act Records: Contact your IC Privacy Act Coordinator
or the NIH Privacy Act Officer, (see also HHS General Administration Manual
Chapter 45-10, page 886.)
J. Micrographics: All permanent records on
microfilm must follow the standards for the Storage, Use and Disposition of Microform
Records, 36 CFR 1230 subpart D.
K. Inactive Records: Inactive records which must
be retained for three or more years according to the disposition specified in this
schedule or the GRS, may be retired to a Federal Records Center. See NIH Manual 1742.
L. Additional Information: For more information
on this chapter, call the Division of Management Support (DMS), Office of Management
Assessment (OMA), on 301-496-4606.
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