44 U.S.C. § 2902 — Objectives of records management

Page 121 TITLE 44—PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS § 2902 (A) categorizing and locating records; (B) ensuring that records are retained as long as necessary; (C) identifying records that are due for dis- position; and (D) ensuring the storage, retrieval, and disposition of records. (Added Pub. L. 94–575, § 2(a)(1), Oct. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 2723; amended Pub. L. 98–497, title I, § 107(b)(13), Oct. 19, 1984, 98 Stat. 2287; Pub. L. 107–217, § 3(l)(2), Aug. 21, 2002, 116 Stat. 1301; Pub. L. 113–187, § 8(6), Nov. 26, 2014, 128 Stat. 2012; Pub. L. 116–283, div. H, title XCVI, § 9602(b)(5), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4829.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 2901, Pub. L. 90–620, Oct. 22, 1968, 82 Stat. 1295, related to definitions, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 94–575, § 2(a)(1). AMENDMENTS 2021—Pars. (15), (16). Pub. L. 116–283 added pars. (15) and (16) and struck out former par. (15) which defined ‘‘Administrator’’. 2014—Par. (11). Pub. L. 113–187 substituted ‘‘the Archi- vist’s’’ for ‘‘his’’. 2002—Par. (13). Pub. L. 107–217 substituted ‘‘section 102 of title 40’’ for ‘‘section 3(a) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 472(a))’’. 1984—Pub. L. 98–497, § 107(b)(13)(A), struck out ref- erence to chapter 27 in provisions preceding par. (1). Par. (2). Pub. L. 98–497, § 107(b)(13)(B), inserted ‘‘in order to achieve adequate and proper documentation of the policies and transactions of the Federal Govern- ment and effective and economical management of agency operations’’. Pars. (6), (9), (11). Pub. L. 98–497, § 107(b)(13)(C), sub- stituted ‘‘Archivist’’ for ‘‘Administrator’’. Par. (12). Pub. L. 98–497, § 107(b)(13)(D), substituted ‘‘Archivist’’ and ‘‘Archivist of the United States’’ for ‘‘Administrator’’ and ‘‘Administrator of General Serv- ices’’, respectively. See par. (15) of this section. Par. (13). Pub. L. 98–497, § 107(b)(13)(D), struck out ref- erences to ‘‘Federal agency’’ and to subsec. (b) of sec- tion 3 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949. See par. (14) of this section. Pars. (14), (15). Pub. L. 98–497, § 107(b)(13)(D), added pars. (14) and (15). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1984 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 98–497 effective Apr. 1, 1985, see section 301 of Pub. L. 98–497, set out as a note under section 2102 of this title. RECORDS CENTER REVOLVING FUND Pub. L. 106–58, title IV, [(a)–(e)], Sept. 29, 1999, 113 Stat. 460, 461, as amended by Pub. L. 108–383, § 3, Oct. 30, 2004, 118 Stat. 2218, provided that: ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF FUND.—There is hereby estab- lished in the Treasury a revolving fund to be available for expenses (including expenses for uniforms or allow- ances for uniforms as authorized by subchapter I of chapter 59 of title 5 [United States Code]) and equip- ment necessary to provide for storage and related serv- ices for all temporary and pre-archival Federal records, which are to be stored or stored at Federal National and Regional Records Centers by agencies and other in- strumentalities of the Federal Government. The Fund shall be available without fiscal year limitation for ex- penses necessary for operation of these activities. ‘‘(b) START-UP CAPITAL.— ‘‘(1) There is appropriated $22,000,000 as initial cap- italization of the Fund. ‘‘(2) In addition, the initial capital of the Fund shall include the fair and reasonable value at the Fund’s inception of the inventories, equipment, re- ceivables, and other assets, less the liabilities, trans- ferred to the Fund. The Archivist of the United States is authorized to accept inventories, equip- ment, receivables and other assets from other Federal entities that were used to provide for storage and re- lated services for temporary and pre-archival Federal records. ‘‘(c) USER CHARGES.—The Fund shall be credited with user charges received from other Federal Government accounts as payment for providing personnel, storage, materials, supplies, equipment, and services as author- ized by subsection (a). Such payments may be made in advance or by way of reimbursement. The rates charged will return in full the expenses of operation, including reserves for accrued annual leave, worker’s compensation, depreciation of capitalized equipment and shelving, and amortization of information tech- nology software and systems. ‘‘(d) FUNDS RETURNED TO MISCELLANEOUS RECEIPTS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY.— ‘‘(1) In addition to funds appropriated to and assets transferred to the Fund in subsection (b), an amount not to exceed 4 percent of the total annual income may be retained in the Fund as an operating reserve or for the replacement or acquisition of capital equip- ment, including shelving, and the improvement and implementation of the financial management, infor- mation technology, and other support systems of the National Archives and Records Administration. ‘‘(2) Funds in excess of the 4 percent at the close of each fiscal year shall be returned to the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts. ‘‘(e) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.—The National Ar- chives and Records Administration shall provide quar- terly reports to the Committees on Appropriations and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, and the Commit- tees on Appropriations and Government Reform [now Committee on Oversight and Accountability] of the House of Representatives on the operation of the Records Center Revolving Fund.’’ FEDERAL RECORDS MANAGEMENT PROVISIONS WITHOUT EFFECT ON AUTHORITIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF ADMINISTRATOR OF GENERAL SERVICES, JOINT COM- MITTEE, OR GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE Pub. L. 94–575, § 5, Oct. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 2727, as amended by Pub. L. 113–235, div. H, title I, § 1301(b), Dec. 16, 2014, 128 Stat. 2537, provided that: ‘‘(a) The provisions of this Act [see Short Title of 1976 Amendment note set out under section 101 of this title] relating to the authority of the Administrator of Gen- eral Services do not limit or repeal additional authori- ties provided by statute or otherwise recognized by law. ‘‘(b) The provisions of this Act do not limit or repeal the authority or responsibilities of the Joint Com- mittee on Printing or the Government Publishing Of- fice under chapters 1 through 19 of title 44, United States Code.’’ § 2902. Objectives of records management It is the purpose of this chapter, and chapters 21, 31, and 33 of this title, to require the estab- lishment of standards and procedures to assure efficient and effective records management. Such records management standards and proce- dures shall seek to implement the following goals: (1) Accurate and complete documentation of the policies and transactions of the Federal Government. (2) Control of the quantity and quality of records produced by the Federal Government. Page 122 TITLE 44—PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS § 2902 (3) Establishment and maintenance of mech- anisms of control with respect to records cre- ation in order to prevent the creation of un- necessary records and with respect to the ef- fective and economical operations of an agen- cy. (4) Simplification of the activities, systems, and processes of records creation, mainte- nance, transfer, and use. (5) Judicious preservation and disposal of records. (6) Direction of continuing attention on records from their initial creation to their final disposition, with particular emphasis on the prevention of unnecessary Federal paper- work and the transfer of records from Federal agencies to the National Archives of the United States in digital or electronic form to the greatest extent possible. (7) Establishment and maintenance of such other systems or techniques as the Archivist or the Administrator considers necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter, and chapters 21, 31, and 33 of this title. (Added Pub. L. 94–575, § 2(a)(1), Oct. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 2724; amended Pub. L. 98–497, title I, § 107(b)(14), Oct. 19, 1984, 98 Stat. 2288; Pub. L. 113–187, § 9(a), Nov. 26, 2014, 128 Stat. 2012; Pub. L. 115–85, § 2(a)(1), Nov. 21, 2017, 131 Stat. 1274.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 2902, Pub. L. 90–620, Oct. 22, 1968, 82 Stat. 1296, related to activities of the Administrator of General Services with respect to records management, surveys, and reports, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 94–575, § 2(a)(1). See section 2904 of this title. AMENDMENTS 2017—Par. (7). Pub. L. 115–85, § 2(a)(1), amended Pub. L. 113–187, § 9(a)(3). See 2014 Amendment note below. 2014—Par. (4). Pub. L. 113–187, § 9(a)(1), substituted ‘‘creation, maintenance, transfer, and use’’ for ‘‘cre- ation and of records maintenance and use’’. Par. (6). Pub. L. 113–187, § 9(a)(2), inserted before pe- riod at end ‘‘and the transfer of records from Federal agencies to the National Archives of the United States in digital or electronic form to the greatest extent pos- sible’’. Par. (7). Pub. L. 113–187, § 9(a)(3), as amended by Pub. L. 115–85, § 2(a)(1), substituted ‘‘the Archivist or the Ad- ministrator’’ for ‘‘the Administrator or the Archivist’’. 1984—Par. (7). Pub. L. 98–497 inserted ‘‘or the Archi- vist’’ after ‘‘Administrator’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2017 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 115–85, § 2(b), Nov. 21, 2017, 131 Stat. 1275, pro- vided that: ‘‘The amendments made by this section [amending this section and sections 2904, 2906, and 3102 of this title] shall take effect as if included in the Pres- idential and Federal Records Act Amendments of 2014 (Public Law 113–187).’’ EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1984 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 98–497 effective Apr. 1, 1985, see section 301 of Pub. L. 98–497, set out as a note under section 2102 of this title. ACCESS FOR VETERANS TO RECORDS Pub. L. 117–263, div. E, title LIII, § 5301, Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3248, provided that: ‘‘(a) PLAN TO ELIMINATE RECORDS BACKLOG AT THE NA- TIONAL PERSONNEL RECORDS CENTER.— ‘‘(1) PLAN REQUIRED.—Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 2022], the Archivist of the United States shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a comprehen- sive plan for reducing the backlog of requests for records from the National Personnel Records Center and improving the efficiency and responsiveness of operations at the National Personnel Records Center, that includes, at a minimum, the following: ‘‘(A) An estimate of the number of backlogged record requests for veterans. ‘‘(B) Target timeframes to reduce the backlog. ‘‘(C) A detailed plan for using existing funds to improve the information technology infrastructure, including secure access to appropriate agency Fed- eral records, to prevent future backlogs. ‘‘(D) Actions to improve customer service for re- questers. ‘‘(E) Measurable goals with respect to the com- prehensive plan and metrics for tracking progress toward such goals. ‘‘(F) Strategies to prevent future record request backlogs, including backlogs caused by an event that prevents employees of the Center from report- ing to work in person. ‘‘(2) UPDATES.—Not later than 90 days after the date on which the comprehensive plan is submitted under paragraph (1), and biannually thereafter until the re- sponse rate by the National Personnel Records Center reaches 90 percent of all requests in 20 days or less, not including any request involving a record damaged or lost in the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973 or any request that is subject to a fee that has not been paid in a timely manner by the requestor (provided the National Personnel Records Center issues an invoice within 20 days after the date on which the request is made), the Archivist of the United States shall submit to the appropriate con- gressional committees an update of such plan that— ‘‘(A) describes progress made by the National Per- sonnel Records Center during the preceding 90-day period with respect to record request backlog re- duction and efficiency and responsiveness improve- ment; ‘‘(B) provides data on progress made toward the goals identified in the comprehensive plan; and ‘‘(C) describes any changes made to the com- prehensive plan. ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION REQUIREMENT.—In carrying out paragraphs (1) and (2), the Archivist of the United States shall consult with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. ‘‘(4) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE- FINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘appropriate con- gressional committees’ means— ‘‘(A) the Committee on Oversight and Reform [now Committee on Oversight and Accountability], the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and the Com- mittee on Appropriations of the House of Rep- resentatives; and ‘‘(B) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate. ‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL FUNDING TO ADDRESS RECORDS BACK- LOG.— ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi- tion to amounts otherwise available, there is author- ized to be appropriated to the National Archives and Records Administration, $60,000,000 to address back- logs in responding to requests from veterans for mili- tary personnel records, improve cybersecurity, im- prove digital preservation and access to archival Fed- eral records, and address backlogs in requests made under section 552 of title 5, United States Code (com- monly referred to as the Freedom of Information Act). Such amounts may also be used for the Federal Records Center Program. Page 123 TITLE 44—PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS § 2904 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT TO MAINTAIN IN-PERSON STAFFING LEVELS.—Subject to the availability of appropria- tions, and not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 2022], the Archivist of the United States shall ensure, to the extent prac- ticable, that the National Personnel Records Center maintains staffing levels and telework arrangements that enable the maximum processing of records re- quests possible in order to achieve the performance goal of responding to 90 percent of all requests in 20 days or less, not including any request involving a record damaged or lost in the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973 or any request that is sub- ject to a fee that has not been paid in a timely man- ner by the requestor (provided the National Per- sonnel Records Center issues an invoice within 20 days after the date on which the request is made). ‘‘(3) INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORTING.—The Inspector General for the National Archives and Records Ad- ministration shall, for two years following the date of the enactment of this Act, include in every semi- annual report submitted to Congress pursuant to the Inspector General Act of 1978 ([former] 5 U.S.C. App.) [see 5 U.S.C. 401 et seq.], a detailed summary of— ‘‘(A) efforts taken by the National Archives and Records Administration to address the backlog of records requests at the National Personnel Records Center; and ‘‘(B) any recommendations for action proposed by the Inspector General related to reducing the back- log of records requests at the National Personnel Records Center and the status of compliance with those recommendations by the National Archives and Records Administration.’’ § 2903. Custody and control of property (a) The Archivist shall have immediate cus- tody and control of the National Archives Build- ing and its contents, and may design, construct, purchase, lease, maintain, operate, protect, and improve buildings used by him for the storage of records of Federal agencies in the District of Co- lumbia and elsewhere. (b) When the Archivist considers it to be in the public interest, the Archivist may charge and collect reasonable fees from the public for the occasional, non-official use of rooms and spaces, and services related to such use, in the buildings subject to this section. Fees collected under this subsection shall be paid into an ac- count in the National Archives Trust Fund and shall be held, administered, and expended for the benefit and in the interest of the national archi- val and records activities administered by the National Archives and Records Administration, including educational and public program pur- poses. (Pub. L. 90–620, Oct. 22, 1968, 82 Stat. 1296; Pub. L. 98–497, title I, § 107(b)(15)(A), Oct. 19, 1984, 98 Stat. 2288; Pub. L. 108–383, § 4(b), Oct. 30, 2004, 118 Stat. 2218.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on 44 U.S. Code, 1964 ed., § 392 (June 30, 1949, ch. 288, title V, § 502, as added Sept. 5, 1950, ch. 849, § 6(d), 64 Stat. 583). Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2004—Pub. L. 108–383 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsec. (b). 1984—Pub. L. 98–497 substituted ‘‘Archivist’’ for ‘‘Ad- ministrator’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1984 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 98–497 effective Apr. 1, 1985, see section 301 of Pub. L. 98–497, set out as a note under section 2102 of this title. § 2904. General responsibilities for records man- agement (a) The Archivist shall provide guidance and assistance to Federal agencies with respect to ensuring— (1) economical and effective records manage- ment; (2) adequate and proper documentation of the policies and transactions of the Federal Government; and (3) proper records disposition. (b) The Administrator shall provide guidance and assistance to Federal agencies to ensure ec- onomical and effective processing of mail by Federal agencies. (c) In carrying out the responsibilities under subsection (a), the Archivist shall have the re- sponsibility— (1) to promulgate standards, procedures, and guidelines with respect to records manage- ment and the conduct of records management studies; (2) to conduct research with respect to the improvement of records management prac- tices and programs; (3) to collect and disseminate information on training programs, technological develop- ments, and other activities relating to records management; (4) to establish such interagency committees and boards as may be necessary to provide an exchange of information among Federal agen- cies with respect to records management; (5) to direct the continuing attention of Fed- eral agencies and the Congress on the need for adequate policies governing records manage- ment; (6) to conduct records management studies and, in the Archivist’s discretion, designate the heads of executive agencies to conduct records management studies with respect to establishing systems and techniques designed to save time and effort in records manage- ment; (7) to conduct inspections or surveys of the records and the records management programs and practices within and between Federal agencies; (8) to report to the appropriate oversight and appropriations committees of the Congress and to the Director of the Office of Manage- ment and Budget in January of each year and at such other times as the Archivist deems de- sirable— (A) on the results of activities conducted pursuant to paragraphs (1) through (7) of this section, (B) on evaluations of responses by Federal agencies to any recommendations resulting from inspections or studies conducted under paragraphs (6) and (7) of this section, and (C) to the extent practicable, estimates of costs to the Federal Government resulting from the failure of agencies to implement such recommendations.