The purpose of this part is to set forth Department of Commerce policy and procedure relating to employee responsibilities and conduct.

(a) This part implements the following:

(1) The provisions of law cited in this part;

(2) Executive Order 11222 of May 8, 1965 (3 CFR, 1965 Supp. p. 130);

(3) Part 735 of the Civil Service regulations (5 CFR 735.101-735.412, inclusive).

(b) This part prescribe additional standards of ethical and other conduct and reporting requirements deemed appropriate in the light of the particular functions and activities of this Department.

This part applies to all persons included within the term “employee” as defined in § 0.735-4, except as otherwise provided in this part.

For purposes of this part, except as otherwise indicated in this part:

(a) Employee. (1) Shall include: (i) Every officer and employee of the Department of Commerce (regardless of location), including commissioned officers of the Environmental Science Services Administration; and

(ii) Every other person who is retained, designated, appointed, or employed by a Federal officer or employee, who is engaged in the performance of a function of the Department under authority of law or an Executive act, and who is subject to the supervision of a Federal officer or employee while engaged in the performance of the duties of his position not only as to what he does but also as to how he performs his duties, regardless of whether the relationship to the Department is created by assignment, detail, contract, agreement or otherwise.

(2) Shall not include: (i) Members of the Executive Reserve except when they are serving as employees of the Department under the circumstances described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section;

(ii) Members of crews of vessels owned or chartered to the Government and operated by or for the Maritime Administration under a General Agency Agreement; or

(iii) Any other person who is determined legally not to be an officer or employee of the United States.

(b) Special Government employee shall mean an employee as defined in paragraph (a) of this section who is retained, designated, appointed, or employed to perform with or without compensation, for not to exceed 130 days during any period of 365 consecutive days, temporary duties on either a full-time or intermittent basis.

(c) Personnel officer means a personnel official to whom the power of appointment is redelegated under Administrative Order 202-250.

(d) Operating unit means, for purposes of this part, primary and constituent operating units designated as such in the Department Order Series of the Department of Commerce and, in addition, the Office of the Secretary.

(e) Head of an operating unit, for the purposes of this part, includes the Assistant Secretary for Administration with respect to the performance of functions under this part for the Office of the Secretary.

Apart from statute, there are certain principles of fair dealing which have the force of law and which are applicable to all officers of the Government. A public office is a public trust. No public officer can lawfully engage in business activities which are incompatible with the duties of his office. He cannot, in his private or official character, enter into engagements in which he has, or can have, a conflicting personal interest. He cannot allow his public duties to be neglected by reason of attention to his private affairs. Such conflicts of interest are not tolerated in the case of any private fiduciary, and they are doubly proscribed for a public trustee. (40 Ops. Atty. Gen. 187, 190.)

5 CFR 735.101 states: “The maintenance of unusually high standards of honesty, integrity, impartiality, and conduct by Government employees and special Government employees is essential to assure the proper performance of the Government business and the maintenance of confidence by citizens in their Government.”

It is the policy of the Department to place as few limitations as possible on private activities or interests consistent with the public trust and the effective performance of the official business of the Department. There is no general statutory or regulatory limitation on the conduct of private activities for compensation by officers or employees of the Department, when the private activity is not connected with any interest of the Government. When the private activity does not touch upon some interest, it may be conducted if it falls outside applicable statutory limitations and regulatory limitations.

Each employee and special Government employee has a positive duty to acquaint himself with the numerous statutes relating to the ethical and other conduct of employees and special employees of the Department and of the Government Appendix A of this part contains a listing of the more important statutory provisions of general applicability. In case of doubt on any question of statutory application to fact situations that may arise, the employee should consult the text of the statutes, which will be made available to him by his organization unit, and he should also avail himself of the legal counseling provided by this part.

The provisions of the statutes identified in this part which relate to the ethical and other conduct of Federal employees are adopted and will be enforced as administrative regulations, violations of which may in appropriate cases be the basis for disciplinary action, including removal. The fact that a statute which may relate to employee conduct is not identified in this part does not mean that it may not be the basis for disciplinary action against an employee.

An employee shall avoid any action, whether or not specifically prohibited by this subpart, which might result in, or create the appearance of:

(a) Using public office for private gain;

(b) Giving preferential treatment to any person;

(c) Impeding Government efficiency or economy;

(d) Losing complete independence or impartiality;

(e) Making a government decision outside official channels; or

(f) Affecting adversely the confidence of the public in the integrity of the Government.

(a) General limitations. Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (f) of this section, an employee shall not solicit or accept, directly or indirectly, any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan, payment of expenses, fee, compensation, or any other thing of monetary value, for himself or another person, from a person who:

(1) Has, or is seeking to obtain, contractual or other business or financial relations with the Department of Commerce;

(2) Conducts operations or activities that are regulated by the Department of Commerce; or

(3) Has interests that may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the employee's official duty or by actions of the Department.

(b) Exceptions. The following exceptions are authorized to the limitation in paragraph (a) of this section:

(1) Acceptance of a gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan, payment of expenses, fee, compensation, or other thing of monetary value incident to obvious family or personal relationships (such as those between the employee and the parents, children, or spouse of the employee) when the circumstances make it clear that it is those relationships rather than the business of the persons concerned which are the motivating factors.

(2) Acceptance of food and refreshments of nominal value on infrequent occasions in the ordinary course of a luncheon or dinner meeting or other meeting or on an inspection tour where an employee may properly be in attendance. For the purpose of this section, “nominal value” means that the value of the food or refreshments shall not be unreasonably high under the circumstances.

(3) Acceptance of loans from banks or other financial institutions on customary terms and on security not inconsistent with paragraph (a) of this section, to finance proper and usual activities of employees, such as home mortgage loans.

(4) Acceptance of unsolicited advertising or promotional material, such as pens, pencils, note pads, calendars, and other items of nominal intrinsic value.

(5) Acceptance of a gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan, payment of expenses, fee, compensation, or other thing of monetary value when such acceptance is determined by the head of the operating unit concerned to be necessary and appropriate in view of the work of the Department and the duties and responsibilities of the employee. A copy of each such determination shall be sent to the counselor of the Department.

(6) Special Government employees are covered by this section only while employed by the Department or in connection with such employment.

(c) [Reserved]

(d) Gifts to superiors. An employee shall not solicit a contribution from another employee for a gift to an official superior, make a donation as a gift to an official superior, or accept a gift from an employee receiving less pay than himself (5 U.S.C. 7351). However, this paragraph does not prohibit a voluntary gift of nominal value or donation in a nominal amount made on a special occasion such as marriage, illness, or retirement. An employee who violates these requirements shall be removed from the service.

(e) Gifts from a foreign government. An employee shall not accept a gift, present, decoration, or other thing from a foreign government unless acceptance is (1) authorized by Congress as provided by the Constitution and in Pub. L. 89-673, 80 Stat. 952, and (2) authorized by the Department of Commerce as provided in Administrative Order 202-739.

(f) Reimbursement for travel expenses and subsistence. Neither this section nor § 0.735-12 precludes an employee from receipt of bona fide reimbursement, unless prohibited by law, for expenses of travel and such other necessary subsistence as is compatible with this part for which no Government payment or reimbursement is made. However, this paragraph does not allow an employee to be reimbursed, or payment to be made on his behalf, for excessive personal living expenses, gifts, entertainment, or other personal benefits, nor does it allow an employee to be reimbursed by a person for travel on official business under agency orders when reimbursement is proscribed by Decision B-128527 of the Comptroller General dated March 7, 1967. (Requirements applicable to Department of Commerce employees are set forth in Department of Commerce Administrative Order 203-9.)

(a) Incompatible outside employment or other outside activity. An employee shall not engage in outside employment or other outside activity not compatible

(1) With the full and proper discharge of the duties and responsibilities of his Government employment,

(2) With the policies or interests of the Department, or

(3) With the maintenance of the highest standards of ethical and moral conduct. Incompatible activities include but are not limited to:

(i) Acceptance of a fee, compensation, gift, payment of expense, or any other thing of monetary value in circumstances in which acceptance may result in, or create the appearance of, a conflict of interest;

(ii) Outside employment which tends to impair the employee's mental or physical capacity to perform his Government duties and responsibilities in an acceptable manner;

(iii) Employment with any foreign government, corporation, partnership, instrumentality, or individual unless authorized by the Department;

(iv) Employment by, or service rendered under contract with, any of the persons listed in § 0.735-11(a);

(v) Receipt by an employee, other than a special Government employee, of any salary or anything of monetary value from a private source as compensation for his services to the Government. (18 U.S.C. 209).

(b) Improper benefit from official activity. (1) No employee of the Department shall receive compensation (e.g., an honorarium) or anything of monetary value, other than that to which he is duly entitled from the Government, for the performance of any activity during his service as such employee of the Department and within the scope of his official responsibilities.

(2) As used in this paragraph, “within the scope of his official responsibilities” means in the course of or in connection with his official responsibilities. (See 29 Comp. Gen. 163; 30 id. 246; 32 id. 454; 35 id. 354; B-131371, July 17, 1957.)

(3) An activity shall ordinarily be considered to be in the course of or in connection with an employee's official responsibilities if it is performed as a result of an invitation or request which is addressed to the Department or a component thereof, or which is addressed to an employee at his office at the Department, or which there is reason to believe is extended partly because of the official position of the employee concerned. (When in doubt, it may be asked whether it is likely that the invitation would have been received if the recipient were not associated with the Department.) Whether an employee is on leave while performing an activity shall be considered irrelevant in determining whether an activity is performed in the course of or in connection with the employee's official responsibilities.

(4) Acceptance of a gift or bequest on behalf of the Department shall be made in accordance with Department Order 3 and Administrative Order 203-9.

(c) Teaching, lecturing, and writing. Employees are encouraged to engage in teaching, lecturing, and writing that is not prohibited by law. Executive Order 11222, 5 CFR Part 735, or the regulations in this part and Administrative Order 201-4, “Writing for Outside Publication,” subject to the following conditions:

(1) An employee shall not, either for or without compensation, engage in teaching, lecturing, or writing, including teaching, lecturing, or writing for the purpose of the special preparation of a person or class of persons for an examination of the Office of Personnel Management or the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service, that depends on information obtained as a result of his Government employment, except when that information has been made available to the general public or will be made available on request, or when the Assistant Secretary for Administration or his designee gives written authorization for the use of nonpublic information on the basis that the use is in the public interest.

(2) No employee shall receive compensation or anything of monetary value for any consultation, lecture, discussion, writing, or appearance, the subject matter of which is devoted substantially to the responsibilities, programs, or operations of the Department of Commerce, or which draws substantially on official data or ideas which have not become part of the body of public information. As used in this paragraph, “the body of public information” shall mean information which has been disseminated widely among segments of the public which may be affected by or interested in the information concerned, or which is known by such segments of the public to be freely available on request to a Government agency.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Application of the limitations. This section does not preclude an employee from:

(1) [Reserved]

(2) Participation in the activities of National or State political parties not proscribed by law.

(3) Participation in the affairs of, or acceptance of an award for a meritorious public contribution or achievement given by a charitable, religious, professional, social, fraternal, nonprofit educational and recreational, public service, or civic organization.

(a) An employee shall not: (1) Have a direct or indirect financial interest that conflicts substantially, or appears to conflict substantially, with his Government duties and responsibilities; or

(2) Engage in, directly or indirectly, a financial transaction as a result of, or primarily relying on, information obtained through his Government employment.

(b) No employee shall participate in any manner, on behalf of the United States, in the negotiation of contracts, the making of loans, and grants, the granting of subsidies, the fixing of rates, or the issuance of valuable permits or certificates, or in any investigation or prosecution, or in the transaction of any other official business, which affects chiefly a person with whom he has any economic interest or any pending negotiations concerning a prospective economic interest, except with express prior authorization as provided for in subpart G of this part.

(c) This section does not preclude an employee from having a financial interest or engaging in financial transactions to the same extent as a private citizen not employed by the Government so long as it is not prohibited by law, Executive order, Civil Service regulations (5 CFR Part 735), or regulations in this part.

(d) The financial (or economic) interests described below are too remote or too inconsequential to affect the integrity of an employee's services in any matter involving them, and are thereby exempted from the prohibitions of 18 U.S.C. 208(a), and do not exclude such employee's participation in the transaction of any official business involving such financial or economic interests:

(a) An employee shall not directly or indirectly use, or allow the use of, Government time or property of any kind, including property leased to the Government, for other than officially approved activities.

(b) Each employee shall protect and conserve Government property, including equipment, supplies, and other property entrusted or issued to him.

(a) Use of Government employment. An employee shall not use his Government employment for a purpose that is, or gives the appearance of being, motivated by the desire for private gain for himself or another person, particularly one with whom he has family, business, or financial ties.

(b) Use of inside information. For the purpose of furthering a private interest, an employee shall not, except as provided in § 0.735-12(c), directly or indirectly use, or allow the use of, information which has been or has the appearance of having been obtained through or in connection with his Government employment and which has not been made available to the general public.

(c) Coercion. An employee shall not use his Government employment to coerce, or give the appearance of coercing, a person to provide financial benefit to himself or another person, particularly one with whom he has family, business, or financial ties.

(d) Disclosure of restricted information. No employee shall divulge restricted commercial or economic information, or restricted information concerning the personnel or operations of any Government agency, or release any such information in advance of the time prescribed for its authorized release.

(e) Discrimination. No employee, acting in his official capacity, shall, directly or indirectly, authorize, permit, or participate in any act or course of conduct which, on the ground of race, color, creed, national origin, or sex, excludes from participation, denies any benefit to, or otherwise subjects to discrimination any person under any program or activity administered or conducted by the Department or one of its units, or such employee. (See Department Order 195.)

(a) An employee shall pay each just financial obligation in a proper and timely manner, especially one imposed by law such as Federal, State, or local taxes. For purposes of this section, “a just financial obligation” means one acknowledged by the employee or reduced to judgment by a court, and “in a proper and timely manner” means in a manner which, in the view of the Department, does not, under the circumstances, reflect adversely on the Government as his employer.

(b) In the event of dispute between an employee and an alleged creditor, this section does not require the Department to determine the validity or amount of the disputed debt.

An employee shall not participate while on Government-owned or leased property or while on duty for the Government, in any gambling activity including the operation of a gambling device, in conducting a lottery or pool, in a game for money or property or in selling or purchasing a numbers slip or ticket. However, this section does not preclude activities

(a) Necessitated by an employee's law enforcement duties, or

(b) Under section 3 of Executive Order 10927 (relating to solicitations conducted by organizations composed of civilian employees or members of the armed forces among their own members for organizational support or for benefit or welfare funds for their own members) and similar agency-approved activities.

(a) General policy. Officers and employees of the Federal Government are servants of the people. Because of this, their conduct must, in many instances, be subject to more restrictions and to higher standards than may be the case in certain private employments. They are expected to conduct themselves in a manner which will reflect favorably upon their employer. Although the Government is not particularly interested in the private lives of its employees, it does expect them to be honest, reliable, trustworthy, and of good character and reputation. They are expected to be loyal to the Government, and to the department or agency in which they are employed.

(b) Specific policy. An employee shall not engage in criminal, infamous, dishonest, immoral, or notoriously disgraceful conduct, or other conduct prejudicial to the Government.

(c) Regulations applicable to public buildings and grounds. Each employee is responsible for knowing and complying with regulations of the General Services Administration and of the Department of Commerce applicable to public buildings and grounds.

Each employee shall report to his superior any instance in which another person inside or outside the Federal Government uses or attempts to use undue influence to induce, by reason of his official Government position, former Government employment, family relationship, political position, or otherwise, the employee to do or omit to do any official act in derogation of his official duty.

(a) In order to carry out the purpose of this part, certain employees of the Department, specified in or pursuant to this part, will be required to submit statements of outside employment and financial interests for review designed to disclose conflicts of interest, apparent conflicts of interest on the part of employees, and other matters within the purview of this part.

(b) When a conflict or apparent conflict of interest on the part of an employee or other question of compliance with the provisions of this part arises and is not resolved at a lower level within the Department, e.g., by appropriate remedial action, the information concerning the matter shall be reported to the Secretary through the counselor for the Department designated in § 0.735-38.

(c) In the event of a conflict or apparent conflict of interest on the part of an employee or other question of compliance with the provisions of this part, the employee concerned shall be provided an opportunity to explain the matter. After consideration of the conflict or apparent conflict of interest or other question of compliance, and the employee's explanation thereof, appropriate action shall be taken.

(a) Statements of employment and financial interests shall be submitted as far as practicable on one of the following forms, as appropriate:

(1) Form CD-220, “Confidential Statement of Employment and Financial Interests (For Use by Government Employees Other Than Special Government Employees)”; or

(2) Form CD-219, “Confidential Statement of Employment and Financial Interests (For Use by Special Government Employees).”

(b) Each of the foregoing forms shall contain, as a minimum, the information required by the formats prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management in the Federal Personnel Manual. Questions on a statement of employment and financial interests that go beyond, or are in greater detail than, those included on the Office's formats may be included on a statement only with the approval of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and the Office.

(c) [Reserved]

(d) The employee will not be required to reveal precise amounts of financial interest when such information is not necessary for a proper determination as to whether there is any apparent conflict of interest.

Except as provided in § 0.735-23, a statement of employment and financial interests shall be submitted by the following employees other than special Government employees:

(a) Employees paid at a level of the Executive Schedule in Subchapter II of Chapter 53 of Title 5, United States Code.

(b) Employees classified at GS-13 or above under section 5332 of Title 5, United States Code, or at a comparable pay level under another authority, who are in positions the basic duties and responsibilities of which are determined by the head of the operating unit concerned to require the incumbent to make a Government decision or to take a Government action in regard to:

(1) Contracting or procurement;

(2) Administering or monitoring grants or subsidies;

(3) Regulating or auditing private or other non-Federal enterprise; or

(4) Other activities where the decision or action has an economic impact on the interests of any non-Federal enterprise.

(c) The following employees classified at GS-13 or above under section 5332 of Title 5, United States Code, or at a comparable pay level under another authority, not otherwise subject to paragraph (b) of this section:

(1) Employees in grade GS-16 or above, or in comparable or higher positions.

(2) Employees in Schedule C positions.

(3) Employees in hearing examiner or hearing officer positions.

(4) Persons employed as experts, consultants, or advisers.

(5) Employees in positions or categories of positions, regardless of their official title, identified in Appendix B of this part.

(d) Employees classified below GS-13 under section 5332 of Title 5, United States Code, or at a comparable pay level under another authority, who are in positions or categories of positions, regardless of their official title, identified in Appendix C to this part.

(e) Appendices B and C. (1) Appendix B to this part shall be maintained and changes made therein in accordance with the criteria in 5 CFR 735.403(c) and in accordance with the procedure in this paragraph. Appendix C to this part shall be maintained and changes made therein in accordance with the criteria in 5 CFR 735.403(d) and in accordance with the procedure in this paragraph.

(2) Heads of operating units and heads of offices in the Office of the Secretary shall, in conformity with the above-cited criteria, recommend changes in Appendix B and Appendix C to the Assistant Secretary for Administration for approval. Changes in Appendix C shall be submitted, with specific justification, to the Office of Personnel Management for further prior approval.

(3) Incumbents of positions added to Appendix B or to Appendix C shall become subject to the reporting requirements of this part upon receipt of notification that their position is subject to such requirements. Appendix B and Appendix C shall be republished annually to reflect changes in the lists.

An employee shall have an opportunity for review through the Department of Commerce grievance procedure, as provided by Administrative Order 202-770, of a complaint by him that his position has been improperly included under the regulations of the Department as one requiring the submission of a statement of employment and financial interests.

(a) Employees in positions that meet the criteria in paragraph (b), (c), or (d) of § 0.735-22 may be excluded from the reporting requirement when the head of the operating unit concerned determines that:

(1) The duties of a position are such that the likelihood of the incumbent's involvement in a conflicts-of-interest situation is remote; or

(2) The duties of a position are at such a level of responsibility that the submission of a statement of employment and financial interests is not necessary because of the degree of supervision and review over the incumbent or the inconsequential effect on the integrity of the Government.

(b) A statement of employment and financial interests is not required by this part from the Secretary of Commerce, from the head of an independent agency for which the Department of Commerce performs administrative services, or from a full-time member of a committee, board, or commission appointed by the President. These employees are subject to separate reporting requirements under section 401 of Executive Order 11222.

(a) An employee required to submit a statement of employment and financial interests under this part shall submit that statement not later than:

(1) Ninety days after the effective date of this part if the employee is employed by the Department on or before the effective date of this part; or

(2) Thirty days after the employee's entrance on duty date, but in no case earlier than 90 days after the effective date of this part.

(b) Statements shall be submitted to a personnel officer specified by the head of the operating unit or to such other person as the head of the operating unit, with the approval of the Secretary, may specify. Secretarial officers and heads of operating units shall submit their statements to the Secretary or to such person as the Secretary may designate.

Changes in, or additions to, the information contained in an employee's statement of employment and financial interests shall be reported in a supplementary statement as of June 30 each year, except when the Office of Personnel Management authorizes a different date on a showing by the Department of necessity therefor. (The Commission has authorized filing of the supplementary statement for 1967 as of September 30, 1967.) If no changes or additions occur, a negative report is required. Notwithstanding the filing of the annual report required by this section, each employee shall at all times avoid acquiring a financial interest that could result, or taking an action that would result, in a violation of the conflicts-of-interest provisions of section 208 of Title 18, United States Code, or subpart D of this part.

The interest of a spouse, minor child, or other member of an employee's immediate household is considered to be an interest of the employee. For the purpose of this section, “member of an employee's immediate household” means those blood relations who are members of the employee's household.

If any information required to be included on a statement of employment and financial interests or supplementary statement, including holdings placed in trust, is not known to the employee but is known to another person, the employee shall request that other person to submit information in his behalf.

This part does not require an employee to submit on a statement of employment and financial interests or supplementary statement any information relating to the employee's connection with, or interest in, a professional society or a charitable, religious, social, fraternal, recreational, public service, civic, or political organization or a similar organization not conducted as a business enterprise. For the purpose of this section, educational and other institutions doing research and development or related work involving grants of money from or contracts with the Government are deemed “business enterprises” and are required to be included in an employee's statement of employment and financial interests.

(a) No employee may have access to a statement of employment and financial interests, or a supplementary statement, unless his official duties make access necessary. Each employee who has access to such a statement is responsible for maintaining it in confidence and shall not allow access to, or allow information to be disclosed from, a statement except to an employee of the Department of Commerce or the Office of Personnel Management to carry out the purpose of this part or to other persons as the Office of Personnel Management or the Assistant Secretary for Administration may determine for good cause shown. (The foregoing limitations do not apply to release of information by an employee with respect to a statement he has submitted under this section.)

(b) The employees designated in paragraph (b) of § 0.735-24 to receive statements are authorized to review and retain the statements and are responsible for maintaining the statements in confidence, as provided in this section.

(a) Special Government employees shall be required to report:

(1) All other employment; and

(2) Financial interests specified on Form CD-219.

(b) A waiver may be granted to the requirements of this section in the case of a special Government employee who is not a consultant or expert (as defined in Chapter 304 of the Federal Personnel Manual) when a determination is made that the duties of the position held by that special Government employee are of such a nature and at such a level of responsibility that the submission of the statement by the incumbent is not necessary to protect the integrity of the Government. Any such waiver shall be approved by the head of the operating unit concerned or his designee. A copy of the waiver shall be filed with the deputy counselor for the organization unit concerned.

(c) The original statement of employment and financial interests required to be submitted by a special Government employee shall be submitted not later than his entry on duty. Each special employee shall keep his statement current throughout his employment with the Department by the submission of supplementary statements.

The Assistant Secretary for Administration may prescribe supplementary instructions consistent with this part.

Each operating unit is hereby authorized and directed to prescribe, after approval by the Assistant Secretary for Administration, such additional regulations not inconsistent with this part as may be necessary to effectuate the general purpose of this part in the light of its individual operating requirements, including but not limited to pertinent statutory provisions, such as:

(a) 35 U.S.C. 4, 122 (Patent Office);

(b) 46 U.S.C. 1111(b) (Maritime Administration);

(c) Certain provisions of the Defense Production Act of 1950, e.g., 50 U.S.C. App. 2160(b)(2) (avoidance of conflicts of interest), 50 U.S.C. App. 2160(b)(6) (financial statements), and 50 U.S.C. App. 2160(f) (prohibition of use of confidential information for purposes of speculation) (Business and Defense Services Administration and any other primary operating unit affected); and

(d) Certain provisions of Pub. L. 89-136, the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, e.g., section 711 (restriction on employing certain EDA employees by applicants for financial assistance), and section 710(b) (embezzlement), false book entries, sharing in loans, etc., and giving out unauthorized information for speculation).

Supplementary regulations prescribed pursuant to § 0.735-33, shall become effective upon approval by the issuing officer unless a different date is required by law or a later date is specified therein.

(a) These regulations establish procedures for imposing sanctions against a former employee for violating the post-employment restrictions of the conflict of interest laws and regulations set forth in 18 U.S.C. 207 and 5 CFR Part 737. These procedures are established pursuant to the requirement in 18 U.S.C. 207(j). The General Counsel is responsible for resolving questions on the legal interpretation of 18 U.S.C. 207 or regulations issued thereunder and for advising employees on these provisions.

(b) For purposes of this subpart, (1) “Former employee” means a former Government employee as defined in 5 CFR 737.3(a)(4) who had served in the Department;

(2) “Lesser included sanctions” means sanctions of the same type but more limited scope as the proposed sanction; thus a bar on communication with an operating unit is a lesser included sanction of a proposed bar on communication with the Department and a bar on communication for one year is a lesser included sanction of a proposed five year bar;

(3) “Assistant Secretary” means the Assistant Secretary for Administration or designee;

(4) “Director” means the Director for Personnel and Civil Rights, Office of the Secretary, or designee;

(5) “Inspector General” and “General Counsel” include any persons designated by them to perform their functions under this subpart; and

(6) “Days” means calendar days except that a dead-line which falls on a weekend or holiday shall be extended to the next working day.

(a) If an employee has information which indicates that a former employee has violated any provisions of 18 U.S.C. 207 or regulations thereunder, that employee shall report such information to the Inspector General.

(b) Upon receiving information as set forth in paragraph (a) of this section from an employee or any other person, the Inspector General, upon a determination that it is nonfrivolous, shall expeditiously provide the information to the Director, Office of Government Ethics, and to the Criminal Division, Department of Justice. The Inspector General shall coordinate any investigation under this subpart with the Department of Justice, unless the Department of Justice informs the Inspector General that it does not intend to initiate criminal prosecution.

(c) All investigations under this subpart shall be conducted in such a way as to protect the privacy of former employees. To ensure this, to the extent reasonable and practical, any information received as a result of an investigation shall remain confidential except as necessary to carry out the purposes of this subpart, including the conduct of an investigation, hearing, or judicial proceeding arising thereunder, or as may be required to be released by law.

(d) The Inspector General shall report the findings of the investigation to the Director.

If the Director determines, after an investigation by the Inspector General, that there is reasonable cause to believe that a former employee has violated post-employment statutes or regulations, the Director shall initiate administrative proceedings under this subpart by proposing sanctions against the former employee and by providing notice to the former employee as set forth in § 0.735-45.

(a) Examiner. (1) Upon timely receipt of a request for a hearing, the Director shall refer the matter to the Assistant Secretary who shall appoint an examiner to conduct the hearing and render an initial decision.

(2) The examiner shall be impartial, shall not be an individual who has participated in any manner in the decision to initiate the proceedings, and shall not have been employed under the immediate supervision of the former employee or have been employed under a common immediate supervisor. The examiner shall be admitted to practice law and have suitable experience and training to conduct the hearing, reach a determination and render an initial decision in an equitable manner.

(b) Time, date, and place. The hearing shall be conducted at a reasonable time, date, and place as set by the examiner. In setting the date, the examiner shall give due regard to the need for both parties to adequately prepare for the hearing and the importance of expeditiously resolving allegations that may be damaging to the former employee's reputation.

(c) Former employee's rights. At a hearing, the former employee shall have the right:

(1) To represent himself or herself or to be represented by counsel,

(2) To introduce and examine witnesses and to submit physical evidence,

(3) To confront and cross-examine adverse witnesses,

(4) To present oral argument, and

(5) To receive a transcript or recording of the proceedings, on request.

(d) Procedure and evidence. In a hearing under this subpart, the Federal Rules of Evidence and Civil Procedure do not apply but the examiner shall exclude irrelevant or unduly repetitious evidence and all testimony shall be taken under oath or affirmation. The examiner may make such orders and determinations regarding the admissibility of evidence, conduct of examination and cross-examination, and similar matters which the examiner deems necessary or appropriate to ensure orderliness in the proceedings and fundamental fairness to the parties. There shall be no discovery unless agreed to by the parties and ordered by the examiner. The hearing shall not be open to the public unless the former employee or the former employee's representative waives the right to a closed hearing, in which case the examiner shall determine whether the hearing will be open to the public.

(e) Ex-parte communications. The former employee, the former employee's representative, and the agency representative shall not make any ex-parte communications to the examiner concerning the merits of the allegations against the former employee prior to the issuance of the initial decision.

(f) Initial decision. (1) The proposed sanctions shall be sustained in an initial decision upon a determination by the examiner that the preponderance of the evidence indicated a violation of post-employment statutes or regulations.

(2) The examiner shall issue an initial decision which is based exclusively on the transcript of testimony and exhibits together with all papers and requests filed in connection with the proceeding and which sets forth all findings of fact and conclusions of law relevant to the matter at issue.

(3) The initial decision shall become final thirty days after issuance if there has been no appeal filed under § 0.735-48.

(a) If the former employee does not request a hearing in a timely manner, the Director shall make an initial decision on the basis of information compiled in the investigation, and any submissions made by the former employee.

(b) The proposed sanction or a lesser included sanction shall be imposed if the record indicates a violation of post-employment statutes or regulations by a preponderance of the evidence.

(c) The initial decision shall become final thirty days after issuance if there has been no appeal filed under § 0.735-48.

(a) Within 30 days after issuance of the initial decision, either party may appeal the initial decision or any portion thereof to the Assistant Secretary. The opposing party shall have 20 days to respond.

(b) If an appeal is filed, the Assistant Secretary shall issue a final decision which shall be based solely on the record, or portions thereof cited by the parties to limit issues, and the appeal and response. The Assistant Secretary shall also decide whether to impose the proposed sanction or a lesser included sanction.

(c) If the final decision modifies or reverses the initial decision, it shall state findings of fact and conclusions of law which differ from the initial decision.

(a) If there has been a final determination that the former employee has violated post-employment statutes or regulations, the Director shall impose, subject to the authority of the Assistant Secretary under § 0.735-48(b), the sanction which was proposed in the notice to the former employee or a lesser included sanction.

(b) Sanctions which may be imposed include:

(1) Prohibiting the former employee from making, on behalf of any other person except the United States, any formal or informal appearance before or, with the intent to influence, any oral or written communication to the Department or any organizational sub-unit thereof on any matter of business for a period not to exceed five years; and

(2) Other appropriate disciplinary action.

(c) The Director may enforce the sanctions of paragraph (b)(1) of this section by directing any or all employees to refuse to participate in any such appearance or to accept any such communication. As a method of enforcement, the Director may establish a list of former employees against whom sanctions have been imposed.

Any former employee found to have violated 18 U.S.C. 207, or regulations issued thereunder, by a final administrative decision under this subpart may seek judicial review of the administrative determination.

(a) The information in this part is furnished for the guidance of the public and in compliance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), as amended (5 U.S.C. 552). This part sets forth the procedures the Department of Commerce (Department) and its components follow to make publicly available the materials and indices specified in 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(2) and records requested under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(3). Information routinely provided to the public as part of a regular Department activity (for example, press releases issued by the Office of Public Affairs) may be provided to the public without following this part.

(b) As used in this subpart, component means any office, division, bureau or other unit of the Department listed in Appendix A to this part (except that a regional office of a larger office or other unit does not constitute a separate component).

(a) The Department maintains public reference facilities (listed in Appendix A to this part) that contain the records the FOIA requires to be made regularly available for public inspection and copying; furnishes information; receives and processes requests for records under the FOIA; and otherwise assists the public concerning Department operations under the FOIA.

(b) Each component of the Department shall determine which of its records are required to be made available for public inspection and copying, and make those records available either in its own public reference facility or in the Department's Central Reference and Records Inspection Facility. Each component shall maintain and make available for public inspection and copying a current subject-matter index of its public inspection facility records. Each index shall be updated regularly, at least quarterly, with respect to newly included records. In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(2), the Department has determined that it is unnecessary and impracticable to publish quarterly or more frequently and distribute copies of the index and supplements thereto.

(c) Each component shall make public inspection facility records created on or after November 1, 1996 available electronically through the Department's “FOIA Home Page” link found at the Department's World Wide Web site (http://www.doc.gov). Information available at the site shall include:

(1) Each component's index of its public inspection facility records, which indicates which records are available electronically; and

(2) The general index referred to in paragraph (d)(3) of this section.

(d) The Department shall maintain and make available for public inspection and copying:

(1) A current index providing identifying information for the public as to any matter that is issued, adopted, or promulgated after July 4, 1997, and that is retained as a record and is required to be made available or published. Copies of the index are available upon request after payment of the direct cost of duplication;

(2) Copies of records that have been released and that the component that maintains them determines, because of their subject matter, have become or are likely to become the subject of subsequent requests for substantially the same records;

(3) A general index of the records described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section;

(4) Final opinions and orders, including concurring and dissenting opinions made in the adjudication of cases;

(5) Those statements of policy and interpretations that have been adopted by a component and are not published in the Federal Register; and

(6) Administrative staff manuals and instructions to staff that affect a member of the public.

(a) Records under the FOIA include all Government records, regardless of format, medium or physical characteristics, and include electronic records and information, audiotapes, videotapes, and photographs.

(b) Under the FOIA, the Department has no obligation to create, compile, or obtain from outside the Department a record to satisfy a request. In complying with a request for electronic data, whether the Department creates or compiles records (as by undertaking significant programming work) or merely extracts them from an existing database may be unclear. The Department shall in any case undertake reasonable efforts to search for the information in electronic format.

(c) Department officials may, upon request, create and provide new records pursuant to user fee statutes, such as the first paragraph of 15 U.S.C. 1525, or in accordance with authority otherwise provided by law. Such creation and provision of records is outside the scope of the FOIA.

(d) Components shall preserve all correspondence pertaining to the requests they receive under this subpart, as well as copies of all requested records, until disposition or destruction is authorized by Title 44 of the United States Code or the National Archives and Records Administration's General Records Schedule 14. Components shall not dispose of records while they are the subject of a pending request, appeal, or lawsuit under the FOIA.

(a) A request for records of the Department which are not customarily made available to the public as part of the Department's regular informational services must be in writing (and may be sent by mail, facsimile, or E-mail), and shall be processed under the FOIA, regardless whether the FOIA is mentioned in the request. Requests should be mailed to the Department component identified in Appendix A to this part that maintains those records, or may be sent by facsimile or E-mail to the numbers or addresses, respectively, listed at the Department's “FOIA Home Page” link found at the Department's World Wide Web site (http://www.doc.gov).1 If the proper component cannot be determined, the request should be sent to the central facility identified in Appendix A to this part. The central facility will forward the request to the component(s) it believes most likely to have the requested records. For the quickest handling, the request (and envelope, if the request is mailed) should be marked “Freedom of Information Act Request.”

(b) For requests for records about oneself, § 4.24 contains additional requirements. For requests for records about another individual, either a written authorization signed by the individual permitting disclosure of his or her records to the requester or proof that the individual is deceased (for example, a copy of a death certificate or an obituary) facilitates processing the request.

(c) The records requested must be described in enough detail to enable Department personnel to locate them with a reasonable amount of effort. If possible, a request should include specific information about each record sought, such as the date, title or name, author, recipient, and subject matter of the record, and the name and location of the office where the record is located. Also, if records about a court case are sought, the title of the case, the court in which the case was filed, and the nature of the case should be included. If known, any file designations or descriptions of the requested records should be included. In general, the more specifically the request describes the records sought, the greater the likelihood that the Department will be able to locate those records. If a component determines that a request does not reasonably describe records, it shall inform the requester what additional information is needed or how the request is otherwise insufficient, to enable the requester to modify the request to meet the requirements of this section.

(a) In general. Components ordinarily shall respond to requests according to their order of receipt.

(b) Initial response and appeal. Subject to paragraph (c)(1) of this section, an initial response shall be made within 20 working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) of the receipt of a request for a record under this part by the proper component identified in accordance with § 4.5(a), and an appeal shall be decided within 20 working days of its receipt by the Office of the General Counsel.

(c) Unusual circumstances. (1) In unusual circumstances as specified in paragraph (c)(2) of this section, an official listed in Appendix B to this part may extend the time limits in paragraph (b) of this section by notifying the requester in writing as soon as practicable of the unusual circumstances and of the date by which processing of the request is expected to be completed. If the extension is for more than ten working days, the component shall provide the requester an opportunity either to modify the request so that it may be processed within the applicable time limit, or to arrange an alternative time frame for processing the request or a modified request.

(2) As used in this section, unusual circumstances means, but only to the extent reasonably necessary to properly process the particular request:

(i) The need to search for and collect the requested records from field facilities or other establishments separate from the office processing the request;

(ii) The need to search for, collect, and appropriately examine a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records that are the subject of a single request; or

(iii) The need for consultation, which shall be conducted with all practicable speed, with another component or Federal agency having a substantial interest in the determination of the request.

(3) If a component reasonably believes that multiple requests submitted by a requester, or by a group of requesters acting in concert, constitute a single request that would otherwise involve unusual circumstances, and the requests involve clearly related matters, the component may aggregate them. Multiple requests involving unrelated matters will not be aggregated.

(d) Multitrack processing. (1) A component may use two or more processing tracks by distinguishing between simple and more complex requests based on the number of pages involved, or some other measure of the amount of work and/or time needed to process the request, and whether the request qualifies for expedited processing as described in paragraph (e) of this section.

(2) A component using multitrack processing may provide requesters in its slower track(s) with an opportunity to limit the scope of their requests in order to qualify for faster processing. A component doing so shall contact the requester by telephone, E-mail, or letter, whichever is most efficient in each case.

(e) Expedited processing. (1) Requests and appeals shall be taken out of order and given expedited treatment whenever it is determined that they involve:

(i) Circumstances in which the lack of expedited treatment could reasonably be expected to pose an imminent threat to the life or physical safety of an individual;

(ii) The loss of substantial due process rights;

(iii) A matter of widespread and exceptional media interest involving questions about the Government's integrity which affect public confidence; or

(iv) An urgency to inform the public about an actual or alleged Federal Government activity, if made by a person primarily engaged in disseminating information.

(2) A request for expedited processing may be made at the time of the initial request for records or at any later time. For a prompt determination, a request for expedited processing should be sent to the component listed in Appendix A to this part that maintains the records requested.

(3) A requester who seeks expedited processing must submit a statement, certified to be true and correct to the best of that person's knowledge and belief, explaining in detail the basis for requesting expedited processing. For example, a requester within the category described in paragraph (e)(1)(iv) of this section, if not a full-time member of the news media, must establish that he or she is a person whose main professional activity or occupation is information dissemination, though it need not be his or her sole occupation. A requester within the category described in paragraph (e)(1)(iv) of this section must also establish a particular urgency to inform the public about the Government activity involved in the request, beyond the public's right to know about Government activity generally.

(4) Within ten calendar days of its receipt of a request for expedited processing, the proper component shall decide whether to grant it and shall notify the requester of the decision. Solely for purposes of calculating the foregoing time limit, any request for expedited processing shall always be considered received on the actual date of receipt by the proper component. If a request for expedited processing is granted, the request shall be given priority and processed as soon as practicable, subject to § 4.11(i). If a request for expedited processing is denied, any appeal of that decision shall be acted on expeditiously.

(a) Grants of requests. If a component makes a determination to grant a request in whole or in part, it shall notify the requester in writing. The component shall inform the requester in the notice of any fee to be charged under § 4.11 and disclose records to the requester promptly upon payment of any applicable fee. Records disclosed in part shall be marked or annotated to show the applicable FOIA exemption(s) and the amount of information deleted, unless doing so would harm an interest protected by an applicable exemption. The location of the information deleted shall also be indicated on the record, if feasible.

(b) Adverse determinations of requests. If a component makes an adverse determination regarding a request, it shall notify the requester of that determination in writing. An adverse determination is a denial of a request in any respect, namely: a determination to withhold any requested record in whole or in part; a determination that a requested record does not exist or cannot be located; a determination that a record is not readily reproducible in the form or format sought by the requester; a determination that what has been requested is not a record subject to the FOIA (except that a determination under § 4.11(j) that records are to be made available under a fee statute other than the FOIA is not an adverse determination); a determination against the requester on any disputed fee matter, including a denial of a request for a reduction or waiver of fees; or a denial of a request for expedited processing. Each denial letter shall be signed by an official listed in Appendix B to this part, and shall include:

(1) The name and title or position of the denying official;

(2) A brief statement of the reason(s) for the denial, including applicable FOIA exemption(s);

(3) An estimate of the volume of records or information withheld, in number of pages or some other reasonable form of estimation. This estimate need not be provided if the volume is otherwise indicated through deletions on records disclosed in part, or if providing an estimate would harm an interest protected by an applicable FOIA exemption; and

(4) A statement that the denial may be appealed, and a list of the requirements for filing an appeal under § 4.10(b).

In processing a request for information classified under Executive Order 12958 or any other executive order concerning the classification of records, the information shall be reviewed to determine whether it should remain classified. Ordinarily the component or other Federal agency that classified the information should conduct the review, except that if a record contains information that has been derivatively classified by a component because it contains information classified by another component or agency, the component shall refer the responsibility for responding to the request to the component or agency that classified the underlying information. Information determined to no longer require classification shall not be withheld on the basis of FOIA exemption (b)(1) (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(1)), but should be reviewed to assess whether any other FOIA exemptions should be invoked. Appeals involving classified information shall be processed in accordance with § 4.10(c).

(a) In general. Business information obtained by the Department from a submitter will be disclosed under the FOIA only under this section.

(b) Definitions. For the purposes of this section:

(1) Business information means commercial or financial information, obtained by the Department from a submitter, which may be protected from disclosure under FOIA exemption (b)(4) (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4)).

(2) Submitter means any person or entity outside the Federal Government from which the Department obtains business information, directly or indirectly. The term includes corporations; state, local and tribal governments; and foreign governments.

(c) Designation of business information. A submitter of business information should designate by appropriate markings, either at the time of submission or at a reasonable time thereafter, any portions of its submission that it considers protected from disclosure under FOIA exemption (b)(4). These designations will expire ten years after the date of the submission unless the submitter requests, and provides justification for, a longer period.

(d) Notice to submitters. A component shall provide a submitter with prompt written notice of a FOIA request or administrative appeal that seeks its business information whenever required under paragraph (e) of this section, except as provided in paragraph (h) of this section, in order to give the submitter an opportunity under paragraph (f) of this section to object to disclosure of any specified portion of that information. Such written notice shall be sent via certified mail, return receipt requested, or similar means. The notice shall either describe the business information requested or include copies of the requested records containing the information. If notification of a large number of submitters is required, notification may be made by posting or publishing the notice in a place reasonably likely to accomplish notification.

(e) When notice is required. Notice shall be given to the submitter whenever:

(1) The submitter has designated the information in good faith as protected from disclosure under FOIA exemption (b)(4); or

(2) The component has reason to believe that the information may be protected from disclosure under FOIA exemption (b)(4).

(f) Opportunity to object to disclosure. A component shall allow a submitter seven working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) from the date of receipt of the written notice described in paragraph (d) of this section to provide the component with a statement of any objection to disclosure. The statement must identify any portions of the information the submitter requests to be withheld under FOIA exemption (b)(4), and describe how each qualifies for protection under the exemption: that is, why the information is a trade secret, or commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential. If a submitter fails to respond to the notice within the time specified, the submitter will be considered to have no objection to disclosure of the information. Information a submitter provides under this paragraph may itself be subject to disclosure under the FOIA.

(g) Notice of intent to disclose. A component shall consider a submitter's objections and specific grounds under the FOIA for nondisclosure in deciding whether to disclose business information. If a component decides to disclose business information over a submitter's objection, the component shall give the submitter written notice via certified mail, return receipt requested, or similar means, which shall include:

(1) A statement of reason(s) why the submitter's objections to disclosure were not sustained;

(2) A description of the business information to be disclosed; and

(3) A statement that the component intends to disclose the information seven working days from the date the submitter receives the notice.

(h) Exceptions to notice requirements. The notice requirements of paragraphs (d) and (g) of this section shall not apply if:

(1) The component determines that the information should not be disclosed;

(2) The information has been lawfully published or has been officially made available to the public;

(3) Disclosure of the information is required by statute (other than the FOIA) or by a regulation issued in accordance with Executive Order 12600; or

(4) The designation made by the submitter under paragraph (c) of this section appears obviously frivolous, in which case the component shall provide the submitter written notice of any final decision to disclose the information seven working days from the date the submitter receives the notice.

(i) Notice to submitter of FOIA lawsuit. Whenever a requester files a lawsuit seeking to compel the disclosure of business information, the component shall promptly notify the submitter.

(j) Corresponding notice to requester. Whenever a component provides a submitter with notice and an opportunity to object to disclosure under paragraph (d) of this section, the component shall also notify the requester. Whenever a submitter files a lawsuit seeking to prevent the disclosure of business information, the component shall notify the requester.

(a) If a request for records is initially denied in whole or in part, or has not been timely determined, or if a requester receives an adverse initial determination regarding any other matter under this subpart (as described in § 4.7(b)), the requester may file a written appeal, which must be received by the Office of General Counsel within thirty calendar days of the date of the written denial or, if there has been no determination, may be submitted anytime after the due date, including the last extension under § 4.6(c), of the determination.

(b) Appeals shall be decided by the Assistant General Counsel for Administration (AGC-Admin), except that appeals from requests initially denied by the AGC-Admin shall be decided by the General Counsel. Appeals should be addressed to the AGC-Admin, or the General Counsel if the records were initially denied by the AGC-Admin. The address of both is: U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of General Counsel, Room 5875, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230. Both the letter and the appeal envelope should be clearly marked “Freedom of Information Appeal”. The appeal must include a copy of the original request, the initial denial, if any, and a statement of the reasons why the records requested should be made available and why the initial denial, if any, was in error. No opportunity for personal appearance, oral argument or hearing on appeal is provided.

(c) Upon receipt of an appeal involving records initially denied on the basis of FOIA exemption (b)(1), the records shall be forwarded to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Security (DAS) for a declassification review. The DAS may overrule previous classification determinations in whole or in part if continued protection in the interest of national security is no longer required, or no longer required at the same level. The DAS shall advise the AGC-Admin, or the General Counsel, as appropriate, of his or her decision.

(d) If an appeal is granted, the person who filed the appeal shall be immediately notified and copies of the releasable documents shall be made available promptly thereafter upon receipt of appropriate fees determined in accordance with § 4.11.

(e) If no determination on an appeal has been sent to the requester within the twenty working day period specified in § 4.6(b) or the last extension thereof, the requester is deemed to have exhausted all administrative remedies with respect to the request, giving rise to a right of judicial review under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(C). If the requester initiates a court action against the Department based on the provision in this paragraph, the administrative appeal process may continue.

(f) The determination on an appeal shall be in writing and, when it denies records in whole or in part, the letter to the requester shall include:

(1) A brief explanation of the basis for the denial, including a list of the applicable FOIA exemptions and a description of how they apply;

(2) A statement that the decision is final for the Department;

(3) Notification that judicial review of the denial is available in the district court of the United States in the district in which the requester resides, or has his or her principal place of business, or in which the agency records are located, or in the District of Columbia; and

(4) The name and title or position of the official responsible for denying the appeal.

(a) In general. Components shall charge for processing requests under the FOIA in accordance with paragraph (c) of this section, except when fees are limited under paragraph (d) of this section or when a waiver or reduction of fees is granted under paragraph (k) of this section. A component shall collect all applicable fees before sending copies of requested records to a requester. Requesters must pay fees by check or money order made payable to the Treasury of the United States.

(b) Definitions. For purposes of this section:

(1) Commercial use request means a request from or on behalf of a person who seeks information for a use or purpose that furthers his or her commercial, trade, or profit interests, which can include furthering those interests through litigation. Components shall determine, whenever reasonably possible, the use to which a requester will put the requested records. If it appears that the requester will put the records to a commercial use, or if a component has reasonable cause to doubt a requester's asserted non-commercial use, the component shall provide the requester a reasonable opportunity to submit further clarification.

(2) Direct costs means those expenses a component incurs in providing a particular service. Such expenses would include, for example, the labor costs of the employee performing the service (the basic rate of pay for the employee, plus 16 percent of that rate to cover benefits). Not included in direct costs are overhead expenses such as the costs of space, heating, or lighting of the facility in which the service is performed.

(3) Duplication means the making of a copy of a record, or of the information contained in it, necessary to respond to a FOIA request. Copies may take the form of paper, microform, audiovisual materials, or electronic records (for example, magnetic tape or disk), among others. A component shall honor a requester's specified preference of form or format of disclosure if the component can reproduce the record in the requested form or format with reasonable effort.

(4) Educational institution means a preschool, a public or private elementary or secondary school, an institution of undergraduate higher education, an institution of graduate higher education, an institution of professional education, or an institution of vocational education, that operates a program of scholarly research. To be in this category, a requester must show that the request is authorized by and is made under the auspices of a qualifying institution, and that the records are sought to further scholarly research rather than for a commercial use.

(5) Noncommercial scientific institution means an institution that is not operated on a “commercial” basis, as that term is defined in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, and that is operated solely for the purpose of conducting scientific research, the results of which are not intended to promote any particular product or industry. To be in this category, a requester must show that the request is authorized by and is made under the auspices of a qualifying institution and that the records are sought to further scientific research rather than for a commercial use.

(6) Representative of the news media, or news media requester means any person actively gathering news for an entity that is organized and operated to publish or broadcast news to the public. The term “news” means information that is about current events or that would be of current interest to the public. Examples of news media entities include television or radio stations broadcasting to the public at large and publishers of periodicals (but only if they can qualify as disseminators of “news”) that make their products available for purchase or subscription by the general public. For “freelance” journalists to be regarded as working for a news organization, they must demonstrate a solid basis for expecting publication through that organization. A publication contract would be the clearest proof, but components shall also look to the past publication record of a requester in making this determination. To be in this category, a requester must not be seeking the requested records for a commercial use. However, a request for records supporting the news-dissemination function of the requester shall not be considered to be for a commercial use.

(7) Review means the examination of a record located in response to a request in order to determine whether any portion of it is exempt from disclosure. It also includes processing any record for disclosure, for example, redacting it and marking any applicable exemptions. Review costs are recoverable even if a record ultimately is not disclosed. Review time does not include time spent resolving general legal or policy issues regarding the application of exemptions.

(8) Search means the process of looking for and retrieving records or information responsive to a request. It includes page-by-page or line-by-line identification of information within records and also includes reasonable efforts to locate and retrieve information from records maintained in electronic form or format. Components shall ensure that searches are done in the most efficient and least expensive manner reasonably possible.

(c) Fees. In responding to FOIA requests, components shall charge the fees summarized in chart form in paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(2) of this section and explained in paragraphs (c)(3) through (c)(5) of this section, unless a waiver or reduction of fees has been granted under paragraph (k) of this section.

(1) The four categories and chargeable fees are:

(2) Uniform fee schedule.

(3) Search. (i) Search fees shall be charged for all requests—other than requests made by educational institutions, noncommercial scientific institutions, or representatives of the news media—subject to the limitations of paragraph (d) of this section. Components shall charge for time spent searching even if they do not locate any responsive records or if they withhold any records located as entirely exempt from disclosure. Search fees shall be the direct costs of conducting the search by the involved employees.

(ii) For computer searches of records, requesters will be charged the direct costs of conducting the search, although certain requesters (as provided in paragraph (d)(1) of this section) will be charged no search fee and certain other requesters (as provided in paragraph (d)(3) of this section) are entitled to the cost equivalent of two hours of manual search time without charge.

(4) Duplication. Duplication fees shall be charged to all requesters, subject to the limitations of paragraph (d) of this section. For a paper photocopy of a record (no more than one copy of which need be supplied), the fee shall be $.16 cents per page. For copies produced by computer, such as tapes or printouts, components shall charge the direct costs, including operator time, of producing the copy. For other forms of duplication, components shall charge the direct costs of that duplication.

(5) Review. Review fees shall be charged to requesters who make a commercial use request. Review fees shall be charged only for the initial record review, in which a component determines whether an exemption applies to a particular record at the initial request level. No charge shall be imposed for review at the administrative appeal level for an exemption already applied. However, records withheld under an exemption that is subsequently determined not to apply may be reviewed again to determine whether any other exemption not previously considered applies, and the costs of that review are chargeable. Review fees shall be the direct costs of conducting the review by the involved employees.

(d) Limitations on charging fees.

(1) No search fee shall be charged for requests from educational institutions, noncommercial scientific institutions, or representatives of the news media.

(2) No search fee or review fee shall be charged for a quarter-hour period unless more than half of that period is required for search or review.

(3) Except for requesters seeking records for a commercial use, components shall provide without charge:

(i) The first 100 pages of duplication (or the cost equivalent); and

(ii) The first two hours of search (or the cost equivalent).

(4) If a total fee calculated under paragraph (c) of this section is $20.00 or less for any request, no fee shall be charged. If such total fee is more than $20.00, the full amount of such fee shall be charged.

(5) The provisions of paragraphs (d) (3) and (4) of this section work together. This means that for requesters other than those seeking records for a commercial use, no fee shall be charged unless the cost of search in excess of two hours plus the cost of duplication in excess of 100 pages totals more than $20.00.

(e) Notice of anticipated fees over $20.00. If a component determines or estimates that the total fee to be charged under this section will be more than $20.00, the component shall notify the requester of the actual or estimated fee, unless the requester has stated in writing a willingness to pay a fee as high as that anticipated. If only a portion of the fee can be estimated readily, the component shall advise the requester that the estimated fee may be only a portion of the total fee. If the component has notified a requester that the actual or estimated fee is more than $20.00, the component shall not consider the request received for purposes of calculating the time limit in § 4.6(b) to respond to a request, or process it further, until the requester agrees to pay the anticipated total fee. Any agreement to pay should be memorialized in writing. A notice under this paragraph shall offer the requester an opportunity to contact Departmental personnel to discuss modifying the request to meet the requester's needs at a lower cost.

(f) Charges for other services. Apart from the other provisions of this section, if a component decides, as a matter of administrative discretion, to comply with a request for special services, the component shall charge the direct cost of providing them. Such services could include certifying that records are true copies or sending records by other than ordinary mail.

(g) Charging interest. Components shall charge interest on any unpaid bill starting on the 31st calendar day following the date of billing the requester. Interest charges shall be assessed at the rate provided in 31 U.S.C. 3717 and accrue from the date of the billing until the component receives payment. Components shall take all steps authorized by the Debt Collection Act of 1982, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996, to effect payment, including offset, disclosure to consumer reporting agencies, and use of collection agencies.

(h) Aggregating requests. If a component reasonably believes that a requester or a group of requesters acting together is attempting to divide a request into a series of requests for the purpose of avoiding fees, the component may aggregate those requests and charge accordingly. Among the factors a component shall consider in deciding whether to aggregate are the closeness in time between the component's receipt of the requests, and the relatedness of the matters about which the requests are made. A component may generally presume that multiple requests that involve related matters made by the same requester or a closely related group of requesters within a 30 calendar day period have been made in order to avoid fees. If requests are separated by a longer period, a component shall aggregate them only if a solid basis exists for determining that aggregation is warranted under all the circumstances involved. Multiple requests involving unrelated matters shall not be aggregated.

(i) Advance payments. (1) For requests other than those described in paragraphs (i)(2) and (3) of this section, a component shall not require the requester to make an advance payment: a payment made before work is begun or continued on a request. Payment owed for work already completed (i.e., a payment before copies are sent to a requester) is not an advance payment.

(2) If a component determines or estimates that a total fee to be charged under this section will be more than $250.00, the component shall not consider the request received for purposes of calculating the time limit in § 4.6(b) to respond to a request, or process it further, until it receives payment from the requester of the entire anticipated fee.

(3) If a requester has previously failed to pay a properly charged FOIA fee to any component or other Federal agency within 30 calendar days of the date of billing, a component shall require the requester to pay the full amount due, plus any applicable interest, and to make an advance payment of the full amount of any anticipated fee, before the component begins to process a new request or continues to process a pending request from that requester. For purposes of calculating the time limit in § 4.6(b) to respond to a request, the component shall not consider the request received until it receives full payment of all applicable fees and interest in this paragraph.

(4) Upon the completion of processing of a request, if a specific fee is determined to be payable and appropriate notice has been given to the requester, a component shall make records available to the requester only upon receipt of full payment of the fee.

(j) Other statutes specifically providing for fees. The fee schedule of this section does not apply to fees charged under any statute (except for the FOIA) that specifically requires an agency to set and collect fees for particular types of records. If records responsive to requests are maintained for distribution by agencies operating such statutorily based fee schedule programs, components shall inform requesters how to obtain records from those sources. Provision of such records is not handled under the FOIA.

(k) Requirements for waiver or reduction of fees. (1) Records responsive to a request will be furnished without charge, or at a charge reduced below that established under paragraph (c) of this section, if the requester asks for such a waiver in writing and the responsible component determines, after consideration of information provided by the requester, that the requester has demonstrated that:

(i) Disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the Government; and

(ii) Disclosure of the information is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.

(2) To determine whether the first fee waiver requirement is met, components shall consider the following factors:

(i) The subject of the request: whether the subject of the requested records concerns the operations or activities of the Government. The subject of the requested records must concern identifiable operations or activities of the Federal Government, with a connection that is direct and clear, not remote or attenuated.

(ii) The informative value of the information to be disclosed: whether the disclosure is “likely to contribute” to an understanding of Government operations or activities. The disclosable portions of the requested records must be meaningfully informative about Government operations or activities in order to be “likely to contribute” to an increased public understanding of those operations or activities. The disclosure of information that already is in the public domain, in either a duplicative or a substantially identical form, would not be likely to contribute to such understanding.

(iii) The contribution to an understanding of the subject by the public likely to result from disclosure: whether disclosure of the requested information will contribute to the understanding of a reasonably broad audience of persons interested in the subject, as opposed to the individual understanding of the requester. A requester's expertise in the subject area and ability and intention to effectively convey information to the public shall be considered. It shall be presumed that a representative of the news media satisfies this consideration. Merely providing information to media sources is insufficient to satisfy this consideration.

(iv) The significance of the contribution to public understanding: whether the disclosure is likely to contribute “significantly” to public understanding of Government operations or activities. The public's understanding of the subject in question prior to the disclosure must be significantly enhanced by the disclosure.

(3) To determine whether the second fee waiver requirement (i.e., that disclosure is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester) is met, components shall consider the following factors:

(i) The existence and magnitude of a commercial interest: whether the requester has a commercial interest that would be furthered by the requested disclosure. Components shall consider any commercial interest of the requester (with reference to the definition of “commercial use request” in paragraph (b)(1) of this section), or of any person on whose behalf the requester may be acting, that would be furthered by the requested disclosure. Requesters shall be given an opportunity to provide explanatory information regarding this consideration.

(ii) The primary interest in disclosure: whether any identified commercial interest of the requester is sufficiently great, in comparison with the public interest in disclosure, that disclosure is “primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.” A fee waiver or reduction is justified if the public interest standard (paragraph (k)(1)(i) of this section) is satisfied and the public interest is greater than any identified commercial interest in disclosure. Components ordinarily shall presume that if a news media requester has satisfied the public interest standard, the public interest is the primary interest served by disclosure to that requester. Disclosure to data brokers or others who merely compile and market Government information for direct economic return shall not be presumed to primarily serve the public interest.

(4) If only some of the records to be released satisfy the requirements for a fee waiver, a waiver shall be granted for those records.

(5) Requests for the waiver or reduction of fees should address the factors listed in paragraphs (k)(2) and (3) of this section, insofar as they apply to each request.

(a) This subpart establishes policies and procedures for implementing the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552a). The main objectives of the subpart are to facilitate full exercise of rights conferred on individuals under the Act, and to protect the privacy of individuals on whom the Department maintains records in systems of records under the Act.

(b) The Department shall act promptly and in accordance with the Act upon receipt of any inquiry, request or appeal from a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence into the United States, regardless of the individual's age. Further, the Department shall maintain only such information on individuals as is relevant and necessary to the performance of its lawful functions; maintain that information with such accuracy, relevancy, timeliness, and completeness as is reasonably necessary to assure fairness in determinations made by the Department about the individual; obtain information from the individual to the extent practicable; and take every reasonable step to protect that information from unwarranted disclosure. The Department shall maintain no record describing how an individual exercises rights guaranteed by the First Amendment unless expressly authorized to do so by statute or by the individual about whom the record is maintained, or unless to do so is pertinent to and within the scope of an authorized law enforcement activity. An individual's name and address shall not be sold or rented by the Department unless such action is specifically authorized by law.

(c) This subpart applies to all components of the Department. Components may promulgate supplementary orders and rules not inconsistent with this subpart.

(d) The Assistant Secretary for Administration is delegated responsibility for maintaining this subpart, for issuing such orders and directives internal to the Department as are necessary for full compliance with the Act, and for publishing all required notices concerning systems of records.

(e) Matters outside the scope of this subpart include:

(1) Requests for records that do not pertain to the requester, or to the individual about whom the request is made if the requester is the parent or guardian of the individual;

(2) Requests involving information pertaining to an individual that is in a record or file but not within the scope of a system of records notice published in the Federal Register;

(3) Requests to correct a record if a grievance procedure is available to the individual either by regulation or through a provision in a collective bargaining agreement with the Department or a component of the Department, and the individual has initiated, or expressed in writing the intention of initiating, such a grievance procedure; and

(4) Requests for employee-employer services and counseling that were routinely granted prior to enactment of the Act, including, but not limited to, test calculations of retirement benefits, explanations of health and life insurance programs, and explanations of tax withholding options.

(f) Any request for records that pertains to the requester, or to the individual about whom the request is made if the requester is the parent or guardian of the individual, shall be processed under the Act and this subpart and under the Freedom of Information Act and the Department's implementing regulations at subpart A of this part, regardless whether the Act or the Freedom of Information Act is mentioned in the request.

(a) All terms used in this subpart which are defined in 5 U.S.C. 552a shall have the same meaning herein.

(b) As used in this subpart:

(1) Act means the “Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552a)”.

(2) Appeal means a request by an individual to review and reverse an initial denial of a request from that individual for correction or amendment.

(3) Component means any office, division, bureau or other unit of the Department listed in Appendix A to this part (except that a regional office of a larger office or other unit does not constitute a separate component).

(4) Department means the Department of Commerce.

(5) Inquiry means either a request for general information regarding the Act and this subpart or a request from an individual (or that individual's parent or guardian) that the Department determine whether it has any record in a system of records that pertains to that individual.

(6) Person means any human being and also shall include, but is not limited to, corporations, associations, partnerships, trustees, receivers, personal representatives, and public or private organizations.

(7) Privacy Officer means those officials, identified in Appendix B to this part, who are authorized to receive and act upon inquiries, requests for access, and requests for correction or amendment.

(8) Request for access means a request from an individual or an individual's parent or guardian to see a record pertaining to that individual in a particular system of records.

(9) Request for correction or amendment means a request from an individual or an individual's parent or guardian that the Department change (by correction, amendment, addition or deletion) a particular record pertaining to that individual in a system of records.

(a) Any individual, regardless of age, who is a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence into the United States may submit an inquiry to the Department. The inquiry should be made either in person or by mail addressed to the appropriate component identified in Appendix A to this part or to the official identified in the notification procedures paragraph of the systems of records notice published in the Federal Register.2 If an individual believes the Department maintains a record pertaining to him or her but does not know which system of records might contain such a record and/or which component of the Department maintains the system of records, assistance in person or by mail will be provided at the first address listed in Appendix A to this part.

(b) Inquiries submitted by mail should include the words “PRIVACY ACT INQUIRY” in capital letters at the top of the letter and on the face of the envelope. If the inquiry is for general information regarding the Act and this subpart, no particular information is required. The Department reserves the right to require compliance with the identification procedures appearing at § 4.24(d). If the inquiry is a request that the Department determine whether it has a record pertaining to the individual, the following information should be submitted:

(1) Name of individual whose record is sought;

(2) Statement that individual whose record is sought is either a U.S. citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence;

(3) Identifying data that will help locate the record (for example, maiden name, occupational license number, period or place of employment, etc.);

(4) Record sought, by description and by record system name, if known;

(5) Action requested (that is, sending information on how to exercise rights under the Act; determining whether requested record exists; gaining access to requested record; or obtaining copy of requested record);

(6) Copy of court guardianship order or minor's birth certificate, as provided in § 4.24(d)(3), but only if requester is guardian or parent of individual whose record is sought;

(7) Requester's name (printed), signature, address, and (optional) telephone number;

(8) Date; and,

(9) Certification of request by notary or other official, but only if

(i) Request is for notification that requested record exists, for access to requested record, or for copy of requested record;

(ii) Record is not available to any person under 5 U.S.C. 552; and

(iii) Requester does not appear before an employee of the Department for verification of identity.

(c) Any inquiry which is not addressed as specified in paragraph (a) of this section or which is not marked as specified in paragraph (b) of this section will be so addressed and marked by Department personnel and forwarded immediately to the responsible Privacy Officer. An inquiry which is not properly addressed by the individual will not be deemed to have been “received” for purposes of measuring the time period for response until actual receipt by the Privacy Officer. In each instance when an inquiry so forwarded is received, the Privacy Officer shall notify the individual that his or her inquiry was improperly addressed and the date the inquiry was received at the proper address.

(d)(1) Each inquiry received shall be acted upon promptly by the responsible Privacy Officer. Every effort will be made to respond within ten working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal public holidays) of the date of receipt at the proper address. If a response cannot be made within ten working days, the Privacy Officer shall send an acknowledgment during that period providing information on the status of the inquiry and asking for such further information as may be necessary to process the inquiry. The first correspondence sent by the Privacy Officer to the requester shall contain the Department's control number assigned to the request, as well as a statement that the requester should use that number in all future contacts with the Department. The Department shall use that control number in all subsequent correspondence.

(2) If the Privacy Officer fails to send an acknowledgment within ten working days, as provided in paragraph (d)(1) of this section, the requester may ask the Assistant General Counsel for Administration to take corrective action. No failure of a Privacy Officer to send an acknowledgment shall confer administrative finality for purposes of judicial review.

(e) An individual shall not be required to state a reason for or otherwise justify his or her inquiry.

(f) Special note should be taken that certain agencies are responsible for publishing notices of systems of records having Government-wide application to other agencies, including the Department. The agencies known to be publishing these general notices and the types of records covered therein appear in Appendix C to this part. These general notices do not identify the Privacy Officers in the Department to whom inquiries should be presented or mailed. The provisions of this section, and particularly paragraph (a) of this section, should be followed in making inquiries with respect to such records. Such records in the Department are subject to the provisions of this part to the extent indicated in Appendix C to this part. The exemptions, if any, determined by the agency publishing a general notice shall be invoked and applied by the Department after consultation, as necessary, with that other agency.

(a) Any individual, regardless of age, who is a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence into the United States may submit a request to the Department for access to records. The request should be made either in person or by mail addressed to the appropriate office listed in Appendix A to this part.

(b) Requests submitted by mail should include the words “PRIVACY ACT REQUEST” in capital letters at the top of the letter and on the face of the envelope. Any request which is not addressed as specified in paragraph (a) of this section or which is not marked as specified in this paragraph will be so addressed and marked by Department personnel and forwarded immediately to the responsible Privacy Officer. A request which is not properly addressed by the individual will not be deemed to have been “received” for purposes of measuring time periods for response until actual receipt by the Privacy Officer. In each instance when a request so forwarded is received, the Privacy Officer shall notify the individual that his or her request was improperly addressed and the date the request was received at the proper address.

(c) If the request follows an inquiry under § 4.23 in connection with which the individual's identity was established by the Department, the individual need only indicate the record to which access is sought, provide the Department control number assigned to the request, and sign and date the request. If the request is not preceded by an inquiry under § 4.23, the procedures of this section should be followed.

(d) The requirements for identification of individuals seeking access to records are:

(1) In person. Each individual making a request in person shall be required to present satisfactory proof of identity. The means of proof, in the order of preference and priority, are:

(i) A document bearing the individual's photograph (for example, driver's license, passport or military or civilian identification card);

(ii) A document, preferably issued for participation in a Federally-sponsored program, bearing the individual's signature (for example, unemployment insurance book, employer's identification card, national credit card, and professional, craft or union membership card); and,

(iii) A document bearing neither the photograph nor the signature of the individual, preferably issued for participation in a Federally-sponsored program (for example, Medicaid card). If the individual can provide no suitable documentation of identity, the Department will require a signed statement asserting the individual's identity and stipulating that the individual understands the penalty provision of 5 U.S.C. 552a(i)(3) recited in § 4.32(a). In order to avoid any unwarranted disclosure of an individual's records, the Department reserves the right to determine the adequacy of proof of identity offered by any individual, particularly if the request involves a sensitive record.

(2) Not in person. If the individual making a request does not appear in person before a Privacy Officer or other employee authorized to determine identity, a certification of a notary public or equivalent officer empowered to administer oaths must accompany the request under the circumstances prescribed in § 4.23(b)(9). The certification in or attached to the letter must be substantially in accordance with the following text:

(3) Parents of minors and legal guardians. An individual acting as the parent of a minor or the legal guardian of the individual to whom a record pertains shall establish his or her personal identity in the same manner prescribed in either paragraph (d)(1) or (d)(2) of this section. In addition, such other individual shall establish his or her identity in the representative capacity of parent or legal guardian. In the case of the parent of a minor, the proof of identity shall be a certified or authenticated copy of the minor's birth certificate. In the case of a legal guardian of an individual who has been declared incompetent due to physical or mental incapacity or age by a court of competent jurisdiction, the proof of identity shall be a certified or authenticated copy of the court's order. For purposes of the Act, a parent or legal guardian may represent only a living individual, not a decedent. A parent or legal guardian may be accompanied during personal access to a record by another individual, provided the provisions of § 4.25(f) are satisfied.

(e) If the provisions of this subpart are alleged to impede an individual in exercising his or her right to access, the Department will consider, from an individual making a request, alternative suggestions regarding proof of identity and access to records.

(f) An individual shall not be required to state a reason for or otherwise justify his or her request for access to a record.

(a)(1) The responsible Privacy Officer shall act promptly upon each request. Every effort will be made to respond within ten working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal public holidays) of the date of receipt. If a response cannot be made within ten working days due to unusual circumstances, the Privacy Officer shall send an acknowledgment during that period providing information on the status of the request and asking for any further information that may be necessary to process the request. “Unusual circumstances” shall include circumstances in which:

(i) A search for and collection of requested records from inactive storage, field facilities or other establishments is required;

(ii) A voluminous amount of data is involved;

(iii) Information on other individuals must be separated or expunged from the particular record; or

(iv) Consultations with other agencies having a substantial interest in the determination of the request are necessary.

(2) If the Privacy Officer fails to send an acknowledgment within ten working days, as provided in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the requester may ask the Assistant General Counsel for Administration to take corrective action. No failure of a Privacy Officer to send an acknowledgment shall confer administrative finality for purposes of judicial review.

(b) Grant of access: (1) Notification. An individual shall be granted access to a record pertaining to him or her, unless the provisions of paragraph (g)(1) of this section apply. The Privacy Officer shall notify the individual of a determination to grant access, and provide the following information:

(i) The methods of access, as set forth in paragraph (b)(2) of this section;

(ii) The place at which the record may be inspected;

(iii) The earliest date on which the record may be inspected and the period of time that the records will remain available for inspection. In no event shall the earliest date be later than thirty calendar days from the date of notification;

(iv) The estimated date by which a copy of the record will be mailed and the fee estimate pursuant to § 4.31. In no event shall the estimated date be later than thirty calendar days from the date of notification;

(v) The fact that the individual, if he or she wishes, may be accompanied by another individual during personal access, subject to the procedures set forth in paragraph (f) of this section; and,

(vi) Any additional prerequisites for granting access to a specific record.

(2) Methods of access. The following methods of access to records by an individual may be available depending on the circumstances of a given situation:

(i) Inspection in person may be had in the office specified by the Privacy Officer granting access, during the hours indicated in Appendix A to this part;

(ii) Transfer of records to a Federal facility more convenient to the individual may be arranged, but only if the Privacy Officer determines that a suitable facility is available, that the individual's access can be properly supervised at that facility, and that transmittal of the records to that facility will not unduly interfere with operations of the Department or involve unreasonable costs, in terms of both money and manpower; and,

(iii) Copies may be mailed at the request of the individual, subject to payment of the fees prescribed in § 4.31. The Department, at its own initiative, may elect to provide a copy by mail, in which case no fee will be charged the individual.

(c) Access to medical records is governed by the provisions of § 4.26.

(d) The Department shall supply such other information and assistance at the time of access as to make the record intelligible to the individual.

(e) The Department reserves the right to limit access to copies and abstracts of original records, rather than the original records. This election would be appropriate, for example, when the record is in an automated data medium such as tape or disc, when the record contains information on other individuals, and when deletion of information is permissible under exemptions (for example, 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2)). In no event shall original records of the Department be made available to the individual except under the immediate supervision of the Privacy Officer or his or her designee.

(f) Any individual who requests access to a record pertaining to that individual may be accompanied by another individual of his or her choice. “Accompanied” includes discussing the record in the presence of the other individual. The individual to whom the record pertains shall authorize the presence of the other individual in writing. The authorization shall include the name of the other individual, a specific description of the record to which access is sought, the Department control number assigned to the request, the date, and the signature of the individual to whom the record pertains. The other individual shall sign the authorization in the presence of the Privacy Officer. An individual shall not be required to state a reason or otherwise justify his or her decision to be accompanied by another individual during personal access to a record.

(g) Initial denial of access: (1) Grounds. Access by an individual to a record that pertains to that individual will be denied only upon a determination by the Privacy Officer that:

(i) The record is exempt under § 4.33 or 4.34, or exempt by determination of another agency publishing notice of the system of records, as described in § 4.23(f);

(ii) The record is information compiled in reasonable anticipation of a civil action or proceeding;

(iii) The provisions of § 4.26 pertaining to medical records temporarily have been invoked; or,

(iv) The individual unreasonably has failed to comply with the procedural requirements of this part.

(2) Notification. The Privacy Officer shall give notice of denial of access to records to the individual in writing, and the notice shall include the following information:

(i) The Privacy Officer's name and title or position;

(ii) The date of the denial;

(iii) The reasons for the denial, including citation to the appropriate section of the Act and this part;

(iv) The individual's opportunities, if any, for further administrative consideration, including the identity and address of the responsible official. If no further administrative consideration within the Department is available, the notice shall state that the denial is administratively final; and,

(v) If stated to be administratively final within the Department, the individual's right to judicial review provided under 5 U.S.C.552a(g)(1), as limited by 5 U.S.C. 552a(g)(5).

(3) Administrative review. If a Privacy Officer issues an initial denial of a request, the individual's opportunities for further consideration shall be as follows:

(i) As to denial under paragraph (g)(1)(i) of this section, two opportunities for further consideration are available in the alternative:

(A) If the individual contests the application of an exemption to the records, the review procedures in § 4.25(g)(3)(ii) shall apply; or,

(B) If the individual challenges the validity of the exemption itself, the individual must file a petition for the issuance, amendment, or repeal of a rule under 5 U.S.C. 553(e). If the exemption was determined by the Department, such petition shall be filed with the Assistant Secretary for Administration. If the exemption was determined by another agency (as described in § 4.23(f)), the Department will provide the individual with the name and address of the other agency and any relief sought by the individual shall be that provided by the regulations of the other agency. Within the Department, no such denial is administratively final until such a petition has been filed by the individual and disposed of on the merits by the Assistant Secretary for Administration.

(ii) As to denial under paragraphs (g)(1)(ii) of this section, (g)(1)(iv) of this section or (to the limited extent provided in paragraph (g)(3)(i)(A) of this section) paragraph (g)(1)(i) of this section, the individual may file for review with the Assistant General Counsel for Administration, as indicated in the Privacy Officer's initial denial notification. The individual and the Department shall follow the procedures in § 4.28 to the maximum extent practicable.

(iii) As to denial under paragraph (g)(1)(iii) of this section, no further administrative consideration within the Department is available because the denial is not administratively final until expiration of the time period indicated in § 4.26(a).

(h) If a request is partially granted and partially denied, the Privacy Officer shall follow the appropriate procedures of this section as to the records within the grant and the records within the denial.

(a) No response to any request for access to medical records from an individual will be issued by the Privacy Officer for a period of seven working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal public holidays) from the date of receipt.

(b) For every request from an individual for access to medical records, the Privacy Officer shall:

(1) Inform the individual of the waiting period prescribed in paragraph (a) of this section;

(2) Seek from the individual the name and address of the individual's physician and/or psychologist;

(3) Seek from the individual written consent for the Department to consult the individual's physician and/or psychologist, if the Department believes such consultation is advisable;

(4) Seek written consent from the individual for the Department to provide the medical records to the individual's physician or psychologist, if the Department believes access to the record by the individual is best effected under the guidance of the individual's physician or psychologist; and,

(5) Forward the individual's medical record to the Department's medical officer for review and a determination on whether consultation with or transmittal of the medical records to the individual's physician or psychologist is warranted. If consultation with or transmittal of such records to the individual's physician or psychologist is determined to be warranted, the Department's medical officer shall so consult or transmit. Whether or not such a consultation or transmittal occurs, the Department's medical officer shall provide instruction to the Privacy Officer regarding the conditions of access by the individual to his or her medical records.

(c) If an individual refuses in writing to give the names and consents set forth in paragraphs (c)(2) through (c)(4) of this section, the Department shall give the individual access to said records by means of a copy, provided without cost to the requester, sent registered mail, return receipt requested.

(a) Any individual, regardless of age, who is a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence into the United States may submit a request for correction or amendment to the Department. The request should be made either in person or by mail addressed to the Privacy Officer who processed the individual's request for access to the record, and to whom is delegated authority to make initial determinations on requests for correction or amendment. The offices of Privacy Officers are open to the public between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays).

(b) Requests submitted by mail should include the words “PRIVACY ACT REQUEST” in capital letters at the top of the letter and on the face of the envelope. Any request that is not addressed as specified in paragraph (a) of this section or that is not marked as specified in this paragraph will be so addressed and marked by Department personnel and forwarded immediately to the responsible Privacy Officer. A request that is not properly addressed by the individual will not be deemed to have been “received” for purposes of measuring the time period for response until actual receipt by the Privacy Officer. In each instance when a request so forwarded is received, the Privacy Officer shall notify the individual that his or her request was improperly addressed and the date the request was received at the proper address.

(c) Since the request, in all cases, will follow a request for access under § 4.25, the individual's identity will be established by his or her signature on the request and use of the Department control number assigned to the request.

(d) A request for correction or amendment should include the following:

(1) Specific identification of the record sought to be corrected or amended (for example, description, title, date, paragraph, sentence, line and words);

(2) The specific wording to be deleted, if any;

(3) The specific wording to be inserted or added, if any, and the exact place at which it is to be inserted or added; and,

(4) A statement of the basis for the requested correction or amendment, with all available supporting documents and materials that substantiate the statement. The statement should identify the criterion of the Act being invoked, that is, whether the information in the record is unnecessary, inaccurate, irrelevant, untimely or incomplete.

(a)(1)(i) Not later than ten working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal public holidays) after receipt of a request to correct or amend a record, the Privacy Officer shall send an acknowledgment providing an estimate of time within which action will be taken on the request and asking for such further information as may be necessary to process the request. The estimate of time may take into account unusual circumstances as described in § 4.25(a). No acknowledgment will be sent if the request can be reviewed, processed and the individual notified of the results of review (either compliance or denial) within the ten working days. Requests filed in person will be acknowledged in writing at the time submitted.

(ii) If the Privacy Officer fails to send the acknowledgment within ten working days, as provided in paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section, the requester may ask the Assistant General Counsel for Administration to take corrective action. No failure of a Privacy Officer to send an acknowledgment shall confer administrative finality for purposes of judicial review.

(2) Promptly after acknowledging receipt of a request, or after receiving such further information as might have been requested, or after arriving at a decision within the ten working days, the Privacy Officer shall either:

(i) Make the requested correction or amendment and advise the individual in writing of such action, providing either a copy of the corrected or amended record or, in cases in which a copy cannot be provided (for example, erasure of information from a record maintained only in magnetically-recorded computer files), a statement as to the means by which the correction or amendment was effected; or,

(ii) Inform the individual in writing that his or her request is denied and provide the following information:

(A) The Privacy Officer's name and title or position;

(B) The date of the denial;

(C) The reasons for the denial, including citation to the appropriate sections of the Act and this subpart; and,

(D) The procedures for appeal of the denial as set forth in § 4.29, including the address of the Assistant General Counsel for Administration.

(3) The term promptly in this section means within thirty working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal public holidays). If the Privacy Officer cannot make the determination within thirty working days, the individual will be advised in writing of the reason for the delay and of the estimated date by which the determination will be made.

(b) Whenever an individual's record is corrected or amended pursuant to a request from that individual, the Privacy Officer shall notify all persons and agencies to which the corrected or amended portion of the record had been disclosed prior to its correction or amendment, if an accounting of such disclosure required by the Act was made. The notification shall require a recipient agency maintaining the record to acknowledge receipt of the notification, to correct or amend the record, and to apprise any agency or person to which it had disclosed the record of the substance of the correction or amendment.

(c) The following criteria will be considered by the Privacy Officer in reviewing a request for correction or amendment:

(1) The sufficiency of the evidence submitted by the individual;

(2) The factual accuracy of the information to be corrected or amended;

(3) The relevance and necessity of the information in terms of the purpose for which it was collected;

(4) The timeliness and currency of the information in light of the purpose for which it was collected;

(5) The completeness of the information in terms of the purpose for which it was collected;

(6) The degree of risk that denial of the request could unfairly result in determinations adverse to the individual;

(7) The character of the record sought to be corrected or amended; and,

(8) The propriety and feasibility of complying with the specific means of correction or amendment requested by the individual.

(d) The Department will not undertake to gather evidence for the individual, but does reserve the right to verify the evidence the individual submits.

(e) Correction or amendment of a record requested by an individual will be denied only upon a determination by the Privacy Officer that:

(1) The individual has failed to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, the propriety of the correction or amendment in light of the criteria set forth in paragraph (c) of this section;

(2) The record sought to be corrected or amended is part of the official record in a terminated judicial, quasi-judicial or quasi-legislative proceeding to which the individual was a party or participant;

(3) The information in the record sought to be corrected or amended, or the record sought to be corrected or amended, is the subject of a pending judicial, quasi-judicial or quasi-legislative proceeding to which the individual is a party or participant;

(4) The correction or amendment would violate a duly enacted statute or promulgated regulation; or,

(5) The individual unreasonably has failed to comply with the procedural requirements of this part.

(f) If a request is partially granted and partially denied, the Privacy Officer shall follow the appropriate procedures of this section as to the records within the grant and the records within the denial.

(a) If a request for correction or amendment is denied initially under § 4.28, the individual may submit a written appeal within thirty working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal public holidays) of the date of the initial denial. If an appeal is submitted by mail, the postmark is conclusive as to timeliness.

(b) An appeal should be addressed to the Assistant General Counsel for Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, Room 5875, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230. An appeal should include the words “PRIVACY APPEAL” in capital letters at the top of the letter and on the face of the envelope. An appeal not addressed and marked as provided herein will be so marked by Department personnel when it is so identified, and will be forwarded immediately to the Assistant General Counsel for Administration. An appeal which is not properly addressed by the individual will not be deemed to have been “received” for purposes of measuring the time periods in this section until actual receipt by the Assistant General Counsel for Administration. In each instance when an appeal so forwarded is received, the Assistant General Counsel for Administration shall notify the individual that his or her appeal was improperly addressed and the date on which the appeal was received at the proper address.

(c) The individual's appeal shall be signed by the individual, and shall include a statement of the reasons why the initial denial is believed to be in error, and the Department's control number assigned to the request. The Privacy Officer who issued the initial denial shall furnish to the Assistant General Counsel for Administration the record the individual requests to be corrected or amended, and all correspondence between the Privacy Officer and the requester. Although the foregoing normally will comprise the entire record on appeal, the Assistant General Counsel for Administration may seek any additional information necessary to ensure that the final determination is fair and equitable and, in such instances, disclose the additional information to the individual to the greatest extent possible, and provide an opportunity for comment thereon.

(d) No personal appearance or hearing on appeal will be allowed.

(e) The Assistant General Counsel for Administration shall act upon the appeal and issue a final determination in writing not later than thirty working days (i.e., excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal public holidays) from the date on which the appeal is received, except that the Assistant General Counsel for Administration may extend the thirty days upon deciding that a fair and equitable review cannot be made within that period, but only if the individual is advised in writing of the reason for the extension and the estimated date by which a final determination will issue. The estimated date should not be later than the sixtieth working day after receipt of the appeal unless unusual circumstances, as described in § 4.25(a), are met.

(f) If the appeal is determined in favor of the individual, the final determination shall include the specific corrections or amendments to be made and a copy thereof shall be transmitted promptly to the individual and to the Privacy Officer who issued the initial denial. Upon receipt of such final determination, the Privacy Officer shall promptly take the actions set forth in § 4.28(a)(2)(i) and (b).

(g) If the appeal is denied, the final determination shall be transmitted promptly to the individual and state the reasons for the denial. The notice of final determination also shall inform the individual that:

(1) The individual has a right under the Act to file with the Assistant General Counsel for Administration a concise statement of reasons for disagreeing with the final determination. The statement ordinarily should not exceed one page and the Department reserves the right to reject an excessively lengthy statement. It should provide the Department control number assigned to the request, indicate the date of the final determination and be signed by the individual. The Assistant General Counsel for Administration shall acknowledge receipt of such statement and inform the individual of the date on which it was received;

(2) Any such disagreement statement submitted by the individual would be noted in the disputed record, and filed with it;

(3) The purposes and uses to which the statement would be put are those applicable to the record in which it is noted, and that a copy of the statement would be provided to persons and agencies to which the record is disclosed subsequent to the date of receipt of such statement;

(4) The Department would append to any such disagreement statement a copy of the final determination or summary thereof, which also would be provided to persons and agencies to which the disagreement statement is disclosed; and

(5) The individual has a right to judicial review of the final determination under 5 U.S.C. 552a(g)(1)(A), as limited by 5 U.S.C. 552a(g)(5).

(h) In making the final determination, the Assistant General Counsel for Administration shall employ the criteria set forth in § 4.28(c) and shall deny an appeal only on the grounds set forth in § 4.28(e).

(i) If an appeal is partially granted and partially denied, the Assistant General Counsel for Administration shall follow the appropriate procedures of this section as to the records within the grant and the records within the denial.

(j) Although a copy of the final determination or a summary thereof will be treated as part of the individual's record for purposes of disclosure in instances where the individual has filed a disagreement statement, it will not be subject to correction or amendment by the individual.

(k) The provisions of paragraphs (g)(1) through (g)(3) of this section satisfy the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(3).

(a) The Department may disclose a record pertaining to an individual to a person other than the individual to whom it pertains only in the following instances:

(1) Upon written request by the individual, including authorization under § 4.25(f);

(2) With the prior written consent of the individual;

(3) To a parent or legal guardian under 5 U.S.C. 552a(h);

(4) When required by the Act and not covered explicitly by the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a(b); and

(5) When permitted under 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(1) through (12), as follows:3

(i) To those officers and employees of the agency that maintains the record who have a need for the record in the performance of their duties;

(ii) Required under 5 U.S.C. 552;

(iii) For a routine use as defined in 5 U.S.C. 552a(a)(7);

(iv) To the Bureau of the Census for purposes of planning or carrying out a census or survey or related activity pursuant to the provisions of Title 13 of the U.S. Code;

(v) To a requester who has provided the agency with advance adequate written assurance that the record will be used solely as a statistical research or reporting record, and the record is to be transferred in a form that is not individually identifiable;

(vi) To the National Archives and Records Administration as a record that has sufficient historical or other value to warrant its continued preservation by the United States Government, or for evaluation by the Archivist of the United States, or the designee of the Archivist, to determine whether the record has such value;

(vii) To another agency or to an instrumentality of any governmental jurisdiction within or under the control of the United States for a civil or criminal law enforcement activity if the activity is authorized by law, and if the head of the agency or instrumentality has made a written request to the agency which maintains the record, specifying the particular portion desired and the law enforcement activity for which the record is sought;

(viii) To a person pursuant to a showing of compelling circumstances affecting the health or safety of an individual if upon such disclosure notification is transmitted to the last known address of such individual;

(ix) To either House of Congress, or, to the extent of matter within its jurisdiction, any committee or subcommittee thereof, any joint committee of Congress or subcommittee of any such joint committee;

(x) To the Comptroller General, or any of his or her authorized representatives, in the course of the performance of the duties of the General Accounting Office;

(xi) Pursuant to the order of a court of competent jurisdiction; or

(xii) To a consumer reporting agency in accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3711(e).

(b) The situations referred to in paragraph (a)(4) of this section include the following:

(1) 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(4) requires dissemination of a corrected or amended record or notation of a disagreement statement by the Department in certain circumstances;

(2) 5 U.S.C. 552a(d) requires disclosure of records to the individual to whom they pertain, upon request; and

(3) 5 U.S.C. 552a(g) authorizes civil action by an individual and requires disclosure by the Department to the court.

(c) The Privacy Officer shall make an accounting of each disclosure by him of any record contained in a system of records in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(1) and (2). Except for a disclosure made under 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(7), the Privacy Officer shall make such accounting available to any individual, insofar as it pertains to that individual, upon any request submitted in accordance with § 4.24. The Privacy Officer shall make reasonable efforts to notify any individual when any record in a system of records is disclosed to any person under compulsory legal process, promptly upon being informed that such process has become a matter of public record.

(a) The only fee to be charged to an individual under this part is for duplication of records at the request of the individual. Components shall charge a fee for duplication of records under the Act in the same way in which they charge a duplication fee under § 4.11, except as provided in this section. Accordingly, no fee shall be charged or collected for: search, retrieval, or review of records; copying at the initiative of the Department without a request from the individual; transportation of records; or first-class postage.

(b) The Department shall provide an individual one copy of each record corrected or amended pursuant to the individual's request without charge as evidence of the correction or amendment.

(c) As required by the United States Office of Personnel Management in its published regulations implementing the Act, the Department shall charge no fee for a single copy of a personnel record covered by that agency's Government-wide published notice of systems of records.

(a) The Act provides, in pertinent part:

(b) A person who falsely or fraudulently attempts to obtain records under the Act also may be subject to prosecution under such other criminal statutes as 18 U.S.C. 494, 495 and 1001.

(a) Individuals may not have access to records maintained by the Department but which were provided by another agency which has determined by regulation that such information is subject to general exemption under 5 U.S.C. 552a(j). If such exempt records are within a request for access, the Department will advise the individual of their existence and of the name and address of the source agency. For any further information concerning the record and the exemption, the individual must contact that source agency.

(b) The general exemptions determined to be necessary and proper with respect to systems of records maintained by the Department, including the parts of each system to be exempted, the provisions of the Act from which they are exempted, and the justification for the exemption, are as follows:

(1) Individuals identified in Export Transactions—COMMERCE/ITA-1. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2), these records are hereby determined to be exempt from all provisions of the Act, except 5 U.S.C. 552a(b), (c)(1) and (2), (e)(4) (A) through (F), (e) (6), (7), (9), (10), and (11), and (i). These exemptions are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of the law enforcement activity, to protect confidential sources of information, to fulfill promises of confidentiality, to maintain the integrity of the law enforcement process, to avoid premature disclosure of the knowledge of criminal activity and the evidentiary bases of possible enforcement actions, to prevent interference with law enforcement proceedings, to avoid disclosure of investigative techniques, and to avoid endangering law enforcement personnel. Section 12(c) of the Export Administration Act of 1979, as amended, also protects this information from disclosure.

(2) Fisheries Law Enforcement Case Files—COMMERCE/NOAA-5. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2), these records are hereby determined to be exempt from all provisions of the Act, except 5 U.S.C. 552a (b), (c) (1) and (2), (e) (4) (A) through (F), (e) (6), (7), (9), (10), and (11), and (i). These exemptions are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of the law enforcement activity, to protect confidential sources of information, to fulfill promises of confidentiality, to prevent interference with law enforcement proceedings, to avoid the disclosure of investigative techniques, to avoid the endangering of law enforcement personnel, to avoid premature disclosure of the knowledge of criminal activity and the evidentiary bases of possible enforcement actions, and to maintain the integrity of the law enforcement process.

(3) Investigative and Inspection Records—COMMERCE/DEPT-12. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2), these records are hereby determined to be exempt from all provisions of the Act, except 5 U.S.C. 552a (b), (c) (1) and (2), (e)(4) (A) through (F), (e) (6), (7), (9), (10), and (11), and (i). These exemptions are necessary to ensure the proper operation of the law enforcement activity, to protect confidential sources of information, to fulfill promises of confidentiality, to prevent interference with law enforcement proceedings, to avoid the disclosure of investigative techniques, to avoid the endangering of law enforcement personnel, to avoid premature disclosure of the knowledge of criminal activity and the evidentiary bases of possible enforcement actions, and to maintain the integrity of the law enforcement process.

(a)(1) Certain systems of records under the Act that are maintained by the Department may occasionally contain material subject to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(1), relating to national defense and foreign policy materials. The systems of records published in the Federal Register by the Department that are within this exemption are:

(2) The Department hereby asserts a claim to exemption of such materials wherever they might appear in such systems of records, or any systems of records, at present or in the future. The materials would be exempt from 5 U.S.C. 552a (c)(3), (d), (e)(1), (e)(4) (G), (H), and (I), and (f), because the materials are required by Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of the national defense and foreign policy.

(b) The specific exemptions determined to be necessary and proper with respect to systems of records maintained by the Department, including the parts of each system to be exempted, the provisions of the Act from which they are exempted, and the justification for the exemption, are as follows:

(1) Exempt under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(1). The systems of records exempt hereunder appear in paragraph (a) of this section. The claims for exemption of COMMERCE/DEPT-12, COMMERCE/ITA-1, and COMMERCE/NOAA-11 under this paragraph are subject to the condition that the general exemption claimed in § 4.33(b)(3) is held to be invalid.

(2)(i) Exempt under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2). The systems of records exempt (some only conditionally), the sections of the Act from which exempted, and the reasons therefor are as follows:

(A) Individuals identified in Export Administration compliance proceedings or investigations—COMMERCE/ITA-1, but only on condition that the general exemption claimed in § 4.33(b)(1) is held to be invalid;

(B) Individuals involved in export transactions—COMMERCE/ITA-2;

(C) Fisheries Law Enforcement Case Files—COMMERCE/NOAA-11, but only on condition that the general exemption claimed in § 4.33(b)(2) is held to be invalid;

(D) Investigative and Inspection Records—COMMERCE/DEPT-12, but only on condition that the general exemption claimed in § 4.33(b)(3) is held to be invalid;

(E) Investigative Records—Persons Within the Investigative Jurisdiction of the Department—COMMERCE/DEPT-13;

(F) Litigation, Claims and Administrative Proceeding Records— COMMERCE/DEPT-14; and

(ii) The foregoing are exempted from 5 U.S.C. 552a (c)(3), (d), (e)(1), (e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), and (f). The reasons for asserting the exemption are to prevent subjects of investigation from frustrating the investigatory process; to ensure the proper functioning and integrity of law enforcement activities; to prevent disclosure of investigative techniques; to maintain the ability to obtain necessary information; to fulfill commitments made to sources to protect their identities and the confidentiality of information; and to avoid endangering these sources and law enforcement personnel. Special note is taken that the proviso clause in this exemption imports due process and procedural protections for the individual. The existence and general character of the information exempted shall be made known to the individual to whom it pertains.

(3)(i) Exempt under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k) (4). The systems of records exempt, the sections of the Act from which exempted, and the reasons therefor are as follows:

(A) Agriculture Census Records for 1974 and 1978—COMMERCE/CENSUS-1;

(B) Individual and Household Statistical Surveys and Special Census Studies Records— COMMERCE/CENSUS-3;

(C) Minority-Owned Business Enterprises Survey Records— COMMERCE/CENSUS-4;

(D) Population and Housing Census Records of the 1960 and Subsequent Censuses—COMMERCE/ CENSUS-5;

(E) Population Census Personal Service Records for 1900 and All Subsequent Decennial Censuses—COMMERCE/CENSUS-6; and

(F) Special Censuses of Population Conducted for State and Local Government—COMMERCE/CENSUS-7.

(G) Statistical Administrative Records System—COMMERCE/CENSUS-8.

(ii) The foregoing are exempted from 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3), (d), (e)(1), (e)(4)(G) (H), and (I), and (f). The reasons for asserting the exemption are to comply with the prescription of Title 13 of the United States Code, especially sections 8 and 9 relating to prohibitions against disclosure, and to avoid needless consideration of these records whose sole statistical use comports fully with a basic purpose of the Act, namely, that no adverse determinations are made from these records as to any identifiable individual.

(4)(i) Exempt under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(5). The systems of records exempt (some only conditionally), the sections of the Act from which exempted, and the reasons therefor are as follows:

(A) Applications to U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA)—COMMERCE/MA-1;

(B) USMMA Midshipman Medical Files—COMMERCE/MA-17;

(C) USMMA Midshipman Personnel Files—COMMERCE/MA-18;

(D) USMMA Non-Appropriated fund Employees—COMMERCE/MA-19;

(E) Applicants for the NOAA Corps—COMMERCE/NOAA-4;

(F) Commissioned Officer Official Personnel Folders—COMMERCE/NOAA-7;

(G) Conflict of Interest Records, Appointed Officials—COMMERCE/DEPT-3;

(H) Investigative and Inspection Records—COMMERCE/DEPT-12, but only on condition that the general exemption claimed in § 4.33(b)(3) is held to be invalid;

(I) Investigative Records—Persons Within the Investigative Jurisdiction of the Department—COMMERCE/DEPT-13; and

(J) Litigation, Claims, and Administrative Proceeding Records— COMMERCE/DEPT-14.

(ii) The foregoing are exempted from 5 U.S.C. 552a (c)(3), (d), (e)(1), (e)(4) (G), (H), and (I), and (f). The reasons for asserting the exemption are to maintain the ability to obtain candid and necessary information, to fulfill commitments made to sources to protect the confidentiality of information, to avoid endangering these sources and, ultimately, to facilitate proper selection or continuance of the best applicants or persons for a given position or contract. Special note is made of the limitation on the extent to which this exemption may be asserted. The existence and general character of the information exempted will be made known to the individual to whom it pertains.

(c) At the present time, the Department claims no exemption under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k) (3), (6) and (7).

The purpose of these Title IX regulations is to effectuate Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended (except sections 904 and 906 of those Amendments) (20 U.S.C. 1681, 1682, 1683, 1685, 1686, 1687, 1688), which is designed to eliminate (with certain exceptions) discrimination on the basis of sex in any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance, whether or not such program or activity is offered or sponsored by an educational institution as defined in these Title IX regulations. The effective date of these Title IX regulations shall be September 29, 2000.

As used in these Title IX regulations, the term:

Administratively separate unit means a school, department, or college of an educational institution (other than a local educational agency) admission to which is independent of admission to any other component of such institution.

Admission means selection for part-time, full-time, special, associate, transfer, exchange, or any other enrollment, membership, or matriculation in or at an education program or activity operated by a recipient.

Applicant means one who submits an application, request, or plan required to be approved by an official of the Federal agency that awards Federal financial assistance, or by a recipient, as a condition to becoming a recipient.

Designated agency official means with respect to any program receiving Federal financial assistance, the Secretary or other official of the Department who by law or by delegation has the principal authority within the Department for the administration of a law extending such assistance. Designated agency official also means any officials so designated by due delegation of authority within the Department to act in such capacity with regard to any program under these Title IX regulations.

Educational institution means a local educational agency (LEA) as defined by 20 U.S.C. 8801(18), a preschool, a private elementary or secondary school, or an applicant or recipient that is an institution of graduate higher education, an institution of undergraduate higher education, an institution of professional education, or an institution of vocational education, as defined in this section.

Federal financial assistance means any of the following, when authorized or extended under a law administered by the Federal agency that awards such assistance:

(1) A grant or loan of Federal financial assistance, including funds made available for:

(i) The acquisition, construction, renovation, restoration, or repair of a building or facility or any portion thereof; and

(ii) Scholarships, loans, grants, wages, or other funds extended to any entity for payment to or on behalf of students admitted to that entity, or extended directly to such students for payment to that entity.

(2) A grant of Federal real or personal property or any interest therein, including surplus property, and the proceeds of the sale or transfer of such property, if the Federal share of the fair market value of the property is not, upon such sale or transfer, properly accounted for to the Federal Government.

(3) Provision of the services of Federal personnel.

(4) Sale or lease of Federal property or any interest therein at nominal consideration, or at consideration reduced for the purpose of assisting the recipient or in recognition of public interest to be served thereby, or permission to use Federal property or any interest therein without consideration.

(5) Any other contract, agreement, or arrangement that has as one of its purposes the provision of assistance to any education program or activity, except a contract of insurance or guaranty.

Institution of graduate higher education means an institution that:

(1) Offers academic study beyond the bachelor of arts or bachelor of science degree, whether or not leading to a certificate of any higher degree in the liberal arts and sciences;

(2) Awards any degree in a professional field beyond the first professional degree (regardless of whether the first professional degree in such field is awarded by an institution of undergraduate higher education or professional education); or

(3) Awards no degree and offers no further academic study, but operates ordinarily for the purpose of facilitating research by persons who have received the highest graduate degree in any field of study.

Institution of professional education means an institution (except any institution of undergraduate higher education) that offers a program of academic study that leads to a first professional degree in a field for which there is a national specialized accrediting agency recognized by the Secretary of Education.

Institution of undergraduate higher education means:

(1) An institution offering at least two but less than four years of college-level study beyond the high school level, leading to a diploma or an associate degree, or wholly or principally creditable toward a baccalaureate degree; or

(2) An institution offering academic study leading to a baccalaureate degree; or

(3) An agency or body that certifies credentials or offers degrees, but that may or may not offer academic study.

Institution of vocational education means a school or institution (except an institution of professional or graduate or undergraduate higher education) that has as its primary purpose preparation of students to pursue a technical, skilled, or semiskilled occupation or trade, or to pursue study in a technical field, whether or not the school or institution offers certificates, diplomas, or degrees and whether or not it offers full-time study.

Recipient means any State or political subdivision thereof, or any instrumentality of a State or political subdivision thereof, any public or private agency, institution, or organization, or other entity, or any person, to whom Federal financial assistance is extended directly or through another recipient and that operates an education program or activity that receives such assistance, including any subunit, successor, assignee, or transferee thereof.

Student means a person who has gained admission.

Title IX means Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Public Law 92-318, 86 Stat. 235, 373 (codified as amended at 20 U.S.C. 1681-1688) (except sections 904 and 906 thereof), as amended by section 3 of Public Law 93-568, 88 Stat. 1855, by section 412 of the Education Amendments of 1976, Public Law 94-482, 90 Stat. 2234, and by Section 3 of Public Law 100-259, 102 Stat. 28, 28-29 (20 U.S.C. 1681, 1682, 1683, 1685, 1686, 1687, 1688).

Title IX regulations means the provisions set forth at §§ 8a.100 through 8a.605.

Transition plan means a plan subject to the approval of the Secretary of Education pursuant to section 901(a)(2) of the Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. 1681(a)(2), under which an educational institution operates in making the transition from being an educational institution that admits only students of one sex to being one that admits students of both sexes without discrimination.

(a) Remedial action. If the designated agency official finds that a recipient has discriminated against persons on the basis of sex in an education program or activity, such recipient shall take such remedial action as the designated agency official deems necessary to overcome the effects of such discrimination.

(b) Affirmative action. In the absence of a finding of discrimination on the basis of sex in an education program or activity, a recipient may take affirmative action consistent with law to overcome the effects of conditions that resulted in limited participation therein by persons of a particular sex. Nothing in these Title IX regulations shall be interpreted to alter any affirmative action obligations that a recipient may have under Executive Order 11246, 3 CFR, 1964-1965 Comp., p. 339; as amended by Executive Order 11375, 3 CFR, 1966-1970 Comp., p. 684; as amended by Executive Order 11478, 3 CFR, 1966-1970 Comp., p. 803; as amended by Executive Order 12086, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 230; as amended by Executive Order 12107, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264.

(c) Self-evaluation. Each recipient education institution shall, within one year of September 29, 2000:

(1) Evaluate, in terms of the requirements of these Title IX regulations, its current policies and practices and the effects thereof concerning admission of students, treatment of students, and employment of both academic and non-academic personnel working in connection with the recipient's education program or activity;

(2) Modify any of these policies and practices that do not or may not meet the requirements of these Title IX regulations; and

(3) Take appropriate remedial steps to eliminate the effects of any discrimination that resulted or may have resulted from adherence to these policies and practices.

(d) Availability of self-evaluation and related materials. Recipients shall maintain on file for at least three years following completion of the evaluation required under paragraph (c) of this section, and shall provide to the designated agency official upon request, a description of any modifications made pursuant to paragraph (c)(2) of this section and of any remedial steps taken pursuant to paragraph (c)(3) of this section.

(a) General. Either at the application stage or the award stage, Federal agencies must ensure that applications for Federal financial assistance or awards of Federal financial assistance contain, be accompanied by, or be covered by a specifically identified assurance from the applicant or recipient, satisfactory to the designated agency official, that each education program or activity operated by the applicant or recipient and to which these Title IX regulations apply will be operated in compliance with these Title IX regulations. An assurance of compliance with these Title IX regulations shall not be satisfactory to the designated agency official if the applicant or recipient to whom such assurance applies fails to commit itself to take whatever remedial action is necessary in accordance with § 8a.110(a) to eliminate existing discrimination on the basis of sex or to eliminate the effects of past discrimination whether occurring prior to or subsequent to the submission to the designated agency official of such assurance.

(b) Duration of obligation. (1) In the case of Federal financial assistance extended to provide real property or structures thereon, such assurance shall obligate the recipient or, in the case of a subsequent transfer, the transferee, for the period during which the real property or structures are used to provide an education program or activity.

(2) In the case of Federal financial assistance extended to provide personal property, such assurance shall obligate the recipient for the period during which it retains ownership or possession of the property.

(3) In all other cases such assurance shall obligate the recipient for the period during which Federal financial assistance is extended.

(c) Form. (1) The assurances required by paragraph (a) of this section, which may be included as part of a document that addresses other assurances or obligations, shall include that the applicant or recipient will comply with all applicable Federal statutes relating to nondiscrimination. These include but are not limited to: Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended (20 U.S.C. 1681-1683, 1685-1688).

(2) The designated agency official will specify the extent to which such assurances will be required of the applicant's or recipient's subgrantees, contractors, subcontractors, transferees, or successors in interest.

If a recipient sells or otherwise transfers property financed in whole or in part with Federal financial assistance to a transferee that operates any education program or activity, and the Federal share of the fair market value of the property is not upon such sale or transfer properly accounted for to the Federal Government, both the transferor and the transferee shall be deemed to be recipients, subject to the provisions of §§ 8a.205 through 8a.235(a).

(a) Effect of other Federal provisions. The obligations imposed by these Title IX regulations are independent of, and do not alter, obligations not to discriminate on the basis of sex imposed by Executive Order 11246, 3 CFR, 1964-1965 Comp., p. 339; as amended by Executive Order 11375, 3 CFR, 1966-1970 Comp., p. 684; as amended by Executive Order 11478, 3 CFR, 1966-1970 Comp., p. 803; as amended by Executive Order 12087, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 230; as amended by Executive Order 12107, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264; sections 704 and 855 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 295m, 298b-2); Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.); the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (29 U.S.C. 206); and any other Act of Congress or Federal regulation.

(b) Effect of State or local law or other requirements. The obligation to comply with these Title IX regulations is not obviated or alleviated by any State or local law or other requirement that would render any applicant or student ineligible, or limit the eligibility of any applicant or student, on the basis of sex, to practice any occupation or profession.

(c) Effect of rules or regulations of private organizations. The obligation to comply with these Title IX regulations is not obviated or alleviated by any rule or regulation of any organization, club, athletic or other league, or association that would render any applicant or student ineligible to participate or limit the eligibility or participation of any applicant or student, on the basis of sex, in any education program or activity operated by a recipient and that receives Federal financial assistance.

The obligation to comply with these Title IX regulations is not obviated or alleviated because employment opportunities in any occupation or profession are or may be more limited for members of one sex than for members of the other sex.

(a) Designation of responsible employee. Each recipient shall designate at least one employee to coordinate its efforts to comply with and carry out its responsibilities under these Title IX regulations, including any investigation of any complaint communicated to such recipient alleging its noncompliance with these Title IX regulations or alleging any actions that would be prohibited by these Title IX regulations. The recipient shall notify all its students and employees of the name, office address, and telephone number of the employee or employees appointed pursuant to this paragraph.

(b) Complaint procedure of recipient. A recipient shall adopt and publish grievance procedures providing for prompt and equitable resolution of student and employee complaints alleging any action that would be prohibited by these Title IX regulations.

(a) Notification of policy. (1) Each recipient shall implement specific and continuing steps to notify applicants for admission and employment, students and parents of elementary and secondary school students, employees, sources of referral of applicants for admission and employment, and all unions or professional organizations holding collective bargaining or professional agreements with the recipient, that it does not discriminate on the basis of sex in the educational programs or activities that it operates, and that it is required by Title IX and these Title IX regulations not to discriminate in such a manner. Such notification shall contain such information, and be made in such manner, as the designated agency official finds necessary to apprise such persons of the protections against discrimination assured them by Title IX and these Title IX regulations, but shall state at least that the requirement not to discriminate in education programs or activities extends to employment therein, and to admission thereto unless §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 do not apply to the recipient, and that inquiries concerning the application of Title IX and these Title IX regulations to such recipient may be referred to the employee designated pursuant to § 8a.135, or to the designated agency official.

(2) Each recipient shall make the initial notification required by paragraph (a)(1) of this section within 90 days of September 29, 2000 or of the date these Title IX regulations first apply to such recipient, whichever comes later, which notification shall include publication in:

(i) Newspapers and magazines operated by such recipient or by student, alumnae, or alumni groups for or in connection with such recipient; and

(ii) Memoranda or other written communications distributed to every student and employee of such recipient.

(b) Publications. (1) Each recipient shall prominently include a statement of the policy described in paragraph (a) of this section in each announcement, bulletin, catalog, or application form that it makes available to any person of a type, described in paragraph (a) of this section, or which is otherwise used in connection with the recruitment of students or employees.

(2) A recipient shall not use or distribute a publication of the type described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section that suggests, by text or illustration, that such recipient treats applicants, students, or employees differently on the basis of sex except as such treatment is permitted by these Title IX regulations.

(c) Distribution. Each recipient shall distribute without discrimination on the basis of sex each publication described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, and shall apprise each of its admission and employment recruitment representatives of the policy of nondiscrimination described in paragraph (a) of this section, and shall require such representatives to adhere to such policy.

Except as provided in §§ 8a.205 through 8a.235(a), these Title IX regulations apply to every recipient and to each education program or activity operated by such recipient that receives Federal financial assistance.

(a) Exemption. These Title IX regulations do not apply to any operation of an educational institution or other entity that is controlled by a religious organization to the extent that application of these Title IX regulations would not be consistent with the religious tenets of such organization.

(b) Exemption claims. An educational institution or other entity that wishes to claim the exemption set forth in paragraph (a) of this section shall do so by submitting in writing to the designated agency official a statement by the highest-ranking official of the institution, identifying the provisions of these Title IX regulations that conflict with a specific tenet of the religious organization.

These Title IX regulations do not apply to an educational institution whose primary purpose is the training of individuals for a military service of the United States or for the merchant marine.

(a) Social fraternities and sororities. These Title IX regulations do not apply to the membership practices of social fraternities and sororities that are exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, 26 U.S.C. 501(a), the active membership of which consists primarily of students in attendance at institutions of higher education.

(b) YMCA, YWCA, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Camp Fire Girls. These Title IX regulations do not apply to the membership practices of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA), the Girl Scouts, the Boy Scouts, and Camp Fire Girls.

(c) Voluntary youth service organizations. These Title IX regulations do not apply to the membership practices of a voluntary youth service organization that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, 26 U.S.C. 501(a), and the membership of which has been traditionally limited to members of one sex and principally to persons of less than nineteen years of age.

(a) Admissions to educational institutions prior to June 24, 1973, are not covered by these Title IX regulations.

(b) Administratively separate units. For the purposes only of this section, §§ 8a.225 and 8a.230, and §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310, each administratively separate unit shall be deemed to be an educational institution.

(c) Application of §§ 8a.300 through .310. Except as provided in paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section, §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply to each recipient. A recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in admission or recruitment in violation of §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310.

(d) Educational institutions. Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this section as to recipients that are educational institutions, §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply only to institutions of vocational education, professional education, graduate higher education, and public institutions of undergraduate higher education.

(e) Public institutions of undergraduate higher education. §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 do not apply to any public institution of undergraduate higher education that traditionally and continually from its establishment has had a policy of admitting students of only one sex.

(a) Application. This section applies to each educational institution to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply that:

(1) Admitted students of only one sex as regular students as of June 23, 1972; or

(2) Admitted students of only one sex as regular students as of June 23, 1965, but thereafter admitted, as regular students, students of the sex not admitted prior to June 23, 1965.

(b) Provision for transition plans. An educational institution to which this section applies shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in admission or recruitment in violation of §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310.

(a) Submission of plans. An institution to which § 8a.225 applies and that is composed of more than one administratively separate unit may submit either a single transition plan applicable to all such units, or a separate transition plan applicable to each such unit.

(b) Content of plans. In order to be approved by the Secretary of Education, a transition plan shall:

(1) State the name, address, and Federal Interagency Committee on Education Code of the educational institution submitting such plan, the administratively separate units to which the plan is applicable, and the name, address, and telephone number of the person to whom questions concerning the plan may be addressed. The person who submits the plan shall be the chief administrator or president of the institution, or another individual legally authorized to bind the institution to all actions set forth in the plan.

(2) State whether the educational institution or administratively separate unit admits students of both sexes as regular students and, if so, when it began to do so.

(3) Identify and describe with respect to the educational institution or administratively separate unit any obstacles to admitting students without discrimination on the basis of sex.

(4) Describe in detail the steps necessary to eliminate as soon as practicable each obstacle so identified and indicate the schedule for taking these steps and the individual directly responsible for their implementation.

(5) Include estimates of the number of students, by sex, expected to apply for, be admitted to, and enter each class during the period covered by the plan.

(c) Nondiscrimination. No policy or practice of a recipient to which § 8a.225 applies shall result in treatment of applicants to or students of such recipient in violation of §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 unless such treatment is necessitated by an obstacle identified in paragraph (b)(3) of this section and a schedule for eliminating that obstacle has been provided as required by paragraph (b)(4) of this section.

(d) Effects of past exclusion. To overcome the effects of past exclusion of students on the basis of sex, each educational institution to which § 8a.225 applies shall include in its transition plan, and shall implement, specific steps designed to encourage individuals of the previously excluded sex to apply for admission to such institution. Such steps shall include instituting recruitment programs that emphasize the institution's commitment to enrolling students of the sex previously excluded.

(a) This section, which applies to all provisions of these Title IX regulations, addresses statutory amendments to Title IX.

(b) These Title IX regulations shall not apply to or preclude:

(1) Any program or activity of the American Legion undertaken in connection with the organization or operation of any Boys State conference, Boys Nation conference, Girls State conference, or Girls Nation conference;

(2) Any program or activity of a secondary school or educational institution specifically for:

(i) The promotion of any Boys State conference, Boys Nation conference, Girls State conference, or Girls Nation conference; or

(ii) The selection of students to attend any such conference;

(3) Father-son or mother-daughter activities at an educational institution or in an education program or activity, but if such activities are provided for students of one sex, opportunities for reasonably comparable activities shall be provided to students of the other sex;

(4) Any scholarship or other financial assistance awarded by an institution of higher education to an individual because such individual has received such award in a single-sex pageant based upon a combination of factors related to the individual's personal appearance, poise, and talent. The pageant, however, must comply with other nondiscrimination provisions of Federal law.

(c) Program or activity or program means:

(1) All of the operations of any entity described in paragraphs (c)(1)(i) through (iv) of this section, any part of which is extended Federal financial assistance:

(i)(A) A department, agency, special purpose district, or other instrumentality of a State or of a local government; or

(B) The entity of such State or local government that distributes such assistance and each such department or agency (and each other State or local government entity) to which the assistance is extended, in the case of assistance to a State or local government;

(ii)(A) A college, university, or other postsecondary institution, or a public system of higher education; or

(B) A local educational agency (as defined in section 8801 of title 20), system of vocational education, or other school system;

(iii)(A) An entire corporation, partnership, or other private organization, or an entire sole proprietorship—

(1) If assistance is extended to such corporation, partnership, private organization, or sole proprietorship as a whole; or

(2) Which is principally engaged in the business of providing education, health care, housing, social services, or parks and recreation; or

(B) The entire plant or other comparable, geographically separate facility to which Federal financial assistance is extended, in the case of any other corporation, partnership, private organization, or sole proprietorship; or

(iv) Any other entity that is established by two or more of the entities described in paragraphs (c)(1)(i), (ii), or (iii) of this section.

(2)(i) Program or activity does not include any operation of an entity that is controlled by a religious organization if the application of 20 U.S.C. 1681 to such operation would not be consistent with the religious tenets of such organization.

(ii) For example, all of the operations of a college, university, or other postsecondary institution, including but not limited to traditional educational operations, faculty and student housing, campus shuttle bus service, campus restaurants, the bookstore, and other commercial activities are part of a “program or activity” subject to these Title IX regulations if the college, university, or other institution receives Federal financial assistance.

(d)(1) Nothing in these Title IX regulations shall be construed to require or prohibit any person, or public or private entity, to provide or pay for any benefit or service, including the use of facilities, related to an abortion. Medical procedures, benefits, services, and the use of facilities, necessary to save the life of a pregnant woman or to address complications related to an abortion are not subject to this section.

(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit a penalty to be imposed on any person or individual because such person or individual is seeking or has received any benefit or service related to a legal abortion. Accordingly, subject to paragraph (d)(1) of this section, no person shall be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any academic, extracurricular, research, occupational training, employment, or other educational program or activity operated by a recipient that receives Federal financial assistance because such individual has sought or received, or is seeking, a legal abortion, or any benefit or service related to a legal abortion.

(a) General. No person shall, on the basis of sex, be denied admission, or be subjected to discrimination in admission, by any recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through §§ 8a.310 apply, except as provided in §§ 8a.225 and §§ 8a.230.

(b) Specific prohibitions. (1) In determining whether a person satisfies any policy or criterion for admission, or in making any offer of admission, a recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply shall not:

(i) Give preference to one person over another on the basis of sex, by ranking applicants separately on such basis, or otherwise;

(ii) Apply numerical limitations upon the number or proportion of persons of either sex who may be admitted; or

(iii) Otherwise treat one individual differently from another on the basis of sex.

(2) A recipient shall not administer or operate any test or other criterion for admission that has a disproportionately adverse effect on persons on the basis of sex unless the use of such test or criterion is shown to predict validly success in the education program or activity in question and alternative tests or criteria that do not have such a disproportionately adverse effect are shown to be unavailable.

(c) Prohibitions relating to marital or parental status. In determining whether a person satisfies any policy or criterion for admission, or in making any offer of admission, a recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply:

(1) Shall not apply any rule concerning the actual or potential parental, family, or marital status of a student or applicant that treats persons differently on the basis of sex;

(2) Shall not discriminate against or exclude any person on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery therefrom, or establish or follow any rule or practice that so discriminates or excludes;

(3) Subject to § 8a.235(d), shall treat disabilities related to pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery therefrom in the same manner and under the same policies as any other temporary disability or physical condition; and

(4) Shall not make pre-admission inquiry as to the marital status of an applicant for admission, including whether such applicant is “Miss” or “Mrs.” A recipient may make pre-admission inquiry as to the sex of an applicant for admission, but only if such inquiry is made equally of such applicants of both sexes and if the results of such inquiry are not used in connection with discrimination prohibited by these Title IX regulations.

A recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply shall not give preference to applicants for admission, on the basis of attendance at any educational institution or other school or entity that admits as students only or predominantly members of one sex, if the giving of such preference has the effect of discriminating on the basis of sex in violation of §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310.

(a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and admission of students. A recipient may be required to undertake additional recruitment efforts for one sex as remedial action pursuant to § 8a.110(a), and may choose to undertake such efforts as affirmative action pursuant to § 8a.110(b).

(b) Recruitment at certain institutions. A recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 apply shall not recruit primarily or exclusively at educational institutions, schools, or entities that admit as students only or predominantly members of one sex, if such actions have the effect of discriminating on the basis of sex in violation of §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310.

(a) General. Except as provided elsewhere in these Title IX regulations, no person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any academic, extracurricular, research, occupational training, or other education program or activity operated by a recipient that receives Federal financial assistance. Sections 8a.400 through 8a.455 do not apply to actions of a recipient in connection with admission of its students to an education program or activity of a recipient to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 do not apply, or an entity, not a recipient, to which §§ 8a.300 through 8a.310 would not apply if the entity were a recipient.

(b) Specific prohibitions. Except as provided in §§ 8a.400 through 8a.455, in providing any aid, benefit, or service to a student, a recipient shall not, on the basis of sex:

(1) Treat one person differently from another in determining whether such person satisfies any requirement or condition for the provision of such aid, benefit, or service;

(2) Provide different aid, benefits, or services or provide aid, benefits, or services in a different manner;

(3) Deny any person any such aid, benefit, or service;

(4) Subject any person to separate or different rules of behavior, sanctions, or other treatment;

(5) Apply any rule concerning the domicile or residence of a student or applicant, including eligibility for in-state fees and tuition;

(6) Aid or perpetuate discrimination against any person by providing significant assistance to any agency, organization, or person that discriminates on the basis of sex in providing any aid, benefit, or service to students or employees;

(7) Otherwise limit any person in the enjoyment of any right, privilege, advantage, or opportunity.

(c) Assistance administered by a recipient educational institution to study at a foreign institution. A recipient educational institution may administer or assist in the administration of scholarships, fellowships, or other awards established by foreign or domestic wills, trusts, or similar legal instruments, or by acts of foreign governments and restricted to members of one sex, that are designed to provide opportunities to study abroad, and that are awarded to students who are already matriculating at or who are graduates of the recipient institution; Provided, that a recipient educational institution that administers or assists in the administration of such scholarships, fellowships, or other awards that are restricted to members of one sex provides, or otherwise makes available, reasonable opportunities for similar studies for members of the other sex. Such opportunities may be derived from either domestic or foreign sources.

(d) Aids, benefits or services not provided by recipient. (1) This paragraph (d) applies to any recipient that requires participation by any applicant, student, or employee in any education program or activity not operated wholly by such recipient, or that facilitates, permits, or considers such participation as part of or equivalent to an education program or activity operated by such recipient, including participation in educational consortia and cooperative employment and student-teaching assignments.

(2) Such recipient:

(i) Shall develop and implement a procedure designed to assure itself that the operator or sponsor of such other education program or activity takes no action affecting any applicant, student, or employee of such recipient that these Title IX regulations would prohibit such recipient from taking; and

(ii) Shall not facilitate, require, permit, or consider such participation if such action occurs.

(a) Generally. A recipient shall not, on the basis of sex, apply different rules or regulations, impose different fees or requirements, or offer different services or benefits related to housing, except as provided in this section (including housing provided only to married students).

(b) Housing provided by recipient. (1) A recipient may provide separate housing on the basis of sex.

(2) Housing provided by a recipient to students of one sex, when compared to that provided to students of the other sex, shall be as a whole:

(i) Proportionate in quantity to the number of students of that sex applying for such housing; and

(ii) Comparable in quality and cost to the student.

(c) Other housing. (1) A recipient shall not, on the basis of sex, administer different policies or practices concerning occupancy by its students of housing other than that provided by such recipient.

(2)(i) A recipient which, through solicitation, listing, approval of housing, or otherwise, assists any agency, organization, or person in making housing available to any of its students, shall take such reasonable action as may be necessary to assure itself that such housing as is provided to students of one sex, when compared to that provided to students of the other sex, is as a whole:

(A) Proportionate in quantity; and

(B) Comparable in quality and cost to the student.

(ii) A recipient may render such assistance to any agency, organization, or person that provides all or part of such housing to students of only one sex.

A recipient may provide separate toilet, locker room, and shower facilities on the basis of sex, but such facilities provided for students of one sex shall be comparable to such facilities provided for students of the other sex.

(a) A recipient shall not provide any course or otherwise carry out any of its education program or activity separately on the basis of sex, or require or refuse participation therein by any of its students on such basis, including health, physical education, industrial, business, vocational, technical, home economics, music, and adult education courses.

(b)(1) With respect to classes and activities in physical education at the elementary school level, the recipient shall comply fully with this section as expeditiously as possible but in no event later than one year from September 29, 2000. With respect to physical education classes and activities at the secondary and post-secondary levels, the recipient shall comply fully with this section as expeditiously as possible but in no event later than three years from September 29, 2000.

(2) This section does not prohibit grouping of students in physical education classes and activities by ability as assessed by objective standards of individual performance developed and applied without regard to sex.

(3) This section does not prohibit separation of students by sex within physical education classes or activities during participation in wrestling, boxing, rugby, ice hockey, football, basketball, and other sports the purpose or major activity of which involves bodily contact.

(4) Where use of a single standard of measuring skill or progress in a physical education class has an adverse effect on members of one sex, the recipient shall use appropriate standards that do not have such effect.

(5) Portions of classes in elementary and secondary schools, or portions of education programs or activities, that deal exclusively with human sexuality may be conducted in separate sessions for boys and girls.

(6) Recipients may make requirements based on vocal range or quality that may result in a chorus or choruses of one or predominantly one sex.

(a) Counseling. A recipient shall not discriminate against any person on the basis of sex in the counseling or guidance of students or applicants for admission.

(b) Use of appraisal and counseling materials. A recipient that uses testing or other materials for appraising or counseling students shall not use different materials for students on the basis of their sex or use materials that permit or require different treatment of students on such basis unless such different materials cover the same occupations and interest areas and the use of such different materials is shown to be essential to eliminate sex bias. Recipients shall develop and use internal procedures for ensuring that such materials do not discriminate on the basis of sex. Where the use of a counseling test or other instrument results in a substantially disproportionate number of members of one sex in any particular course of study or classification, the recipient shall take such action as is necessary to assure itself that such disproportion is not the result of discrimination in the instrument or its application.

(c) Disproportion in classes. Where a recipient finds that a particular class contains a substantially disproportionate number of individuals of one sex, the recipient shall take such action as is necessary to assure itself that such disproportion is not the result of discrimination on the basis of sex in counseling or appraisal materials or by counselors.

(a) General. Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, in providing financial assistance to any of its students, a recipient shall not:

(1) On the basis of sex, provide different amounts or types of such assistance, limit eligibility for such assistance that is of any particular type or source, apply different criteria, or otherwise discriminate;

(2) Through solicitation, listing, approval, provision of facilities, or other services, assist any foundation, trust, agency, organization, or person that provides assistance to any of such recipient's students in a manner that discriminates on the basis of sex; or

(3) Apply any rule or assist in application of any rule concerning eligibility for such assistance that treats persons of one sex differently from persons of the other sex with regard to marital or parental status.

(b) Financial aid established by certain legal instruments. (1) A recipient may administer or assist in the administration of scholarships, fellowships, or other forms of financial assistance established pursuant to domestic or foreign wills, trusts, bequests, or similar legal instruments or by acts of a foreign government that require that awards be made to members of a particular sex specified therein; Provided, that the overall effect of the award of such sex-restricted scholarships, fellowships, and other forms of financial assistance does not discriminate on the basis of sex.

(2) To ensure nondiscriminatory awards of assistance as required in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, recipients shall develop and use procedures under which:

(i) Students are selected for award of financial assistance on the basis of nondiscriminatory criteria and not on the basis of availability of funds restricted to members of a particular sex;

(ii) An appropriate sex-restricted scholarship, fellowship, or other form of financial assistance is allocated to each student selected under paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section; and

(iii) No student is denied the award for which he or she was selected under paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section because of the absence of a scholarship, fellowship, or other form of financial assistance designated for a member of that student's sex.

(c) Athletic scholarships. (1) To the extent that a recipient awards athletic scholarships or grants-in-aid, it must provide reasonable opportunities for such awards for members of each sex in proportion to the number of students of each sex participating in interscholastic or intercollegiate athletics.

(2) A recipient may provide separate athletic scholarships or grants-in-aid for members of each sex as part of separate athletic teams for members of each sex to the extent consistent with this paragraph (c) and § 8a.450.

(a) Assistance by recipient in making available outside employment. A recipient that assists any agency, organization, or person in making employment available to any of its students:

(1) Shall assure itself that such employment is made available without discrimination on the basis of sex; and

(2) Shall not render such services to any agency, organization, or person that discriminates on the basis of sex in its employment practices.

(b) Employment of students by recipients. A recipient that employs any of its students shall not do so in a manner that violates §§ 8a.500 through 8a.550.

Subject to § 8a.235(d), in providing a medical, hospital, accident, or life insurance benefit, service, policy, or plan to any of its students, a recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex, or provide such benefit, service, policy, or plan in a manner that would violate §§ 8a.500 through 8a.550 if it were provided to employees of the recipient. This section shall not prohibit a recipient from providing any benefit or service that may be used by a different proportion of students of one sex than of the other, including family planning services. However, any recipient that provides full coverage health service shall provide gynecological care.

(a) Status generally. A recipient shall not apply any rule concerning a student's actual or potential parental, family, or marital status that treats students differently on the basis of sex.

(b) Pregnancy and related conditions. (1) A recipient shall not discriminate against any student, or exclude any student from its education program or activity, including any class or extracurricular activity, on the basis of such student's pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or recovery therefrom, unless the student requests voluntarily to participate in a separate portion of the program or activity of the recipient.

(2) A recipient may require such a student to obtain the certification of a physician that the student is physically and emotionally able to continue participation as long as such a certification is required of all students for other physical or emotional conditions requiring the attention of a physician.

(3) A recipient that operates a portion of its education program or activity separately for pregnant students, admittance to which is completely voluntary on the part of the student as provided in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, shall ensure that the separate portion is comparable to that offered to non-pregnant students.

(4) Subject to § 8a.235(d), a recipient shall treat pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy and recovery therefrom in the same manner and under the same policies as any other temporary disability with respect to any medical or hospital benefit, service, plan, or policy that such recipient administers, operates, offers, or participates in with respect to students admitted to the recipient's educational program or activity.

(5) In the case of a recipient that does not maintain a leave policy for its students, or in the case of a student who does not otherwise qualify for leave under such a policy, a recipient shall treat pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, and recovery therefrom as a justification for a leave of absence for as long a period of time as is deemed medically necessary by the student's physician, at the conclusion of which the student shall be reinstated to the status that she held when the leave began.

(a) General. No person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, be treated differently from another person, or otherwise be discriminated against in any interscholastic, intercollegiate, club, or intramural athletics offered by a recipient, and no recipient shall provide any such athletics separately on such basis.

(b) Separate teams. Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section, a recipient may operate or sponsor separate teams for members of each sex where selection for such teams is based upon competitive skill or the activity involved is a contact sport. However, where a recipient operates or sponsors a team in a particular sport for members of one sex but operates or sponsors no such team for members of the other sex, and athletic opportunities for members of that sex have previously been limited, members of the excluded sex must be allowed to try out for the team offered unless the sport involved is a contact sport. For the purposes of these Title IX regulations, contact sports include boxing, wrestling, rugby, ice hockey, football, basketball, and other sports the purpose or major activity of which involves bodily contact.

(c) Equal opportunity. (1) A recipient that operates or sponsors interscholastic, intercollegiate, club, or intramural athletics shall provide equal athletic opportunity for members of both sexes. In determining whether equal opportunities are available, the designated agency official will consider, among other factors:

(i) Whether the selection of sports and levels of competition effectively accommodate the interests and abilities of members of both sexes;

(ii) The provision of equipment and supplies;

(iii) Scheduling of games and practice time;

(iv) Travel and per diem allowance;

(v) Opportunity to receive coaching and academic tutoring;

(vi) Assignment and compensation of coaches and tutors;

(vii) Provision of locker rooms, practice, and competitive facilities;

(viii) Provision of medical and training facilities and services;

(ix) Provision of housing and dining facilities and services;

(x) Publicity.

(2) For purposes of paragraph (c)(1) of this section, unequal aggregate expenditures for members of each sex or unequal expenditures for male and female teams if a recipient operates or sponsors separate teams will not constitute noncompliance with this section, but the designated agency official may consider the failure to provide necessary funds for teams for one sex in assessing equality of opportunity for members of each sex.

(d) Adjustment period. A recipient that operates or sponsors interscholastic, intercollegiate, club, or intramural athletics at the elementary school level shall comply fully with this section as expeditiously as possible but in no event later than one year from September 29, 2000. A recipient that operates or sponsors interscholastic, intercollegiate, club, or intramural athletics at the secondary or postsecondary school level shall comply fully with this section as expeditiously as possible but in no event later than three years from September 29, 2000.

Nothing in these Title IX regulations shall be interpreted as requiring or prohibiting or abridging in any way the use of particular textbooks or curricular materials.

(a) General. (1) No person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination in employment, or recruitment, consideration, or selection therefor, whether full-time or part-time, under any education program or activity operated by a recipient that receives Federal financial assistance.

(2) A recipient shall make all employment decisions in any education program or activity operated by such recipient in a nondiscriminatory manner and shall not limit, segregate, or classify applicants or employees in any way that could adversely affect any applicant's or employee's employment opportunities or status because of sex.

(3) A recipient shall not enter into any contractual or other relationship which directly or indirectly has the effect of subjecting employees or students to discrimination prohibited by §§ 8a.500 through 8a.550, including relationships with employment and referral agencies, with labor unions, and with organizations providing or administering fringe benefits to employees of the recipient.

(4) A recipient shall not grant preferences to applicants for employment on the basis of attendance at any educational institution or entity that admits as students only or predominantly members of one sex, if the giving of such preferences has the effect of discriminating on the basis of sex in violation of these Title IX regulations.

(b) Application. The provisions of §§ 8a.500 through 8a.550 apply to:

(1) Recruitment, advertising, and the process of application for employment;

(2) Hiring, upgrading, promotion, consideration for and award of tenure, demotion, transfer, layoff, termination, application of nepotism policies, right of return from layoff, and rehiring;

(3) Rates of pay or any other form of compensation, and changes in compensation;

(4) Job assignments, classifications, and structure, including position descriptions, lines of progression, and seniority lists;

(5) The terms of any collective bargaining agreement;

(6) Granting and return from leaves of absence, leave for pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, leave for persons of either sex to care for children or dependents, or any other leave;

(7) Fringe benefits available by virtue of employment, whether or not administered by the recipient;

(8) Selection and financial support for training, including apprenticeship, professional meetings, conferences, and other related activities, selection for tuition assistance, selection for sabbaticals and leaves of absence to pursue training;

(9) Employer-sponsored activities, including social or recreational programs; and

(10) Any other term, condition, or privilege of employment.

A recipient shall not administer or operate any test or other criterion for any employment opportunity that has a disproportionately adverse effect on persons on the basis of sex unless:

(a) Use of such test or other criterion is shown to predict validly successful performance in the position in question; and

(b) Alternative tests or criteria for such purpose, which do not have such disproportionately adverse effect, are shown to be unavailable.

(a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently discriminating on the basis of sex in the recruitment or hiring of employees, or has been found to have so discriminated in the past, the recipient shall recruit members of the sex so discriminated against so as to overcome the effects of such past or present discrimination.

(b) Recruitment patterns. A recipient shall not recruit primarily or exclusively at entities that furnish as applicants only or predominantly members of one sex if such actions have the effect of discriminating on the basis of sex in violation of §§8a.500 through 8a.550.

A recipient shall not make or enforce any policy or practice that, on the basis of sex:

(a) Makes distinctions in rates of pay or other compensation;

(b) Results in the payment of wages to employees of one sex at a rate less than that paid to employees of the opposite sex for equal work on jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and that are performed under similar working conditions.

A recipient shall not:

(a) Classify a job as being for males or for females;

(b) Maintain or establish separate lines of progression, seniority lists, career ladders, or tenure systems based on sex; or

(c) Maintain or establish separate lines of progression, seniority systems, career ladders, or tenure systems for similar jobs, position descriptions, or job requirements that classify persons on the basis of sex, unless sex is a bona fide occupational qualification for the positions in question as set forth in §8a.550.

(a) “Fringe benefits” defined. For purposes of these Title IX regulations, fringe benefits means: Any medical, hospital, accident, life insurance, or retirement benefit, service, policy or plan, any profit-sharing or bonus plan, leave, and any other benefit or service of employment not subject to the provision of §8a.515.

(b) Prohibitions. A recipient shall not:

(1) Discriminate on the basis of sex with regard to making fringe benefits available to employees or make fringe benefits available to spouses, families, or dependents of employees differently upon the basis of the employee's sex;

(2) Administer, operate, offer, or participate in a fringe benefit plan that does not provide for equal periodic benefits for members of each sex and for equal contributions to the plan by such recipient for members of each sex; or

(3) Administer, operate, offer, or participate in a pension or retirement plan that establishes different optional or compulsory retirement ages based on sex or that otherwise discriminates in benefits on the basis of sex.

(a) General. A recipient shall not apply any policy or take any employment action:

(1) Concerning the potential marital, parental, or family status of an employee or applicant for employment that treats persons differently on the basis of sex; or

(2) Which is based upon whether an employee or applicant for employment is the head of household or principal wage earner in such employee's or applicant's family unit.

(b) Pregnancy. A recipient shall not discriminate against or exclude from employment any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or recovery therefrom.

(c) Pregnancy as a temporary disability. Subject to §8a.235(d), a recipient shall treat pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, recovery therefrom, and any temporary disability resulting therefrom as any other temporary disability for all job-related purposes, including commencement, duration, and extensions of leave, payment of disability income, accrual of seniority and any other benefit or service, and reinstatement, and under any fringe benefit offered to employees by virtue of employment.

(d) Pregnancy leave. In the case of a recipient that does not maintain a leave policy for its employees, or in the case of an employee with insufficient leave or accrued employment time to qualify for leave under such a policy, a recipient shall treat pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, and recovery therefrom as a justification for a leave of absence without pay for a reasonable period of time, at the conclusion of which the employee shall be reinstated to the status that she held when the leave began or to a comparable position, without decrease in rate of compensation or loss of promotional opportunities, or any other right or privilege of employment.

(a) Prohibitory requirements. The obligation to comply with §§8a.500 through 8a.550 is not obviated or alleviated by the existence of any State or local law or other requirement that imposes prohibitions or limits upon employment of members of one sex that are not imposed upon members of the other sex.

(b) Benefits. A recipient that provides any compensation, service, or benefit to members of one sex pursuant to a State or local law or other requirement shall provide the same compensation, service, or benefit to members of the other sex.

A recipient shall not in any advertising related to employment indicate preference, limitation, specification, or discrimination based on sex unless sex is a bona fide occupational qualification for the particular job in question.

(a) Marital status. A recipient shall not make pre-employment inquiry as to the marital status of an applicant for employment, including whether such applicant is “Miss” or “Mrs.”

(b) Sex. A recipient may make pre-employment inquiry as to the sex of an applicant for employment, but only if such inquiry is madeequally of such applicants of both sexes and if the results of such inquiry are not used in connection with discrimination prohibited by these Title IX regulations.

A recipient may take action otherwise prohibited by §§8a.500 through 8a.550 provided it is shown that sex is a bona fide occupational qualification for that action, such that consideration of sex with regard to such action is essential to successful operation of the employment function concerned. A recipient shall not take action pursuant to this section that is based upon alleged comparative employment characteristics or stereotyped characterizations of one or the other sex, or upon preference based on sex of the recipient, employees, students, or other persons, but nothing contained in this section shall prevent a recipient from considering an employee's sex in relation to employment in a locker room or toilet facility used only by members of one sex.

Within 60 days of September 29, 2000, each Federal agency that awards Federal financial assistance shall publish in the Federal Register a notice of the programs covered by these Title IX regulations. Each such Federal agency shall periodically republish the notice of covered programs to reflect changes in covered programs. Copies of this notice also shall be made available upon request to the Federal agency's office that enforces Title IX.

The investigative, compliance, and enforcement procedural provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d) (“Title VI”) are hereby adopted and applied to these Title IX regulations. These procedures may be found at 15 CFR 8.7 through 8.15, and 13 CFR part 317.

The purpose of these regulations is to set out DOC's policies and procedures under the Age Discrimination Act of 1975 and the general age discrimination regulations at 45 CFR Part 90. The Act and the general regulations prohibit discrimination on the basis of age in programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance. The Act and the general regulations permit federally assisted programs and activities, and recipients of Federal funds, to continue to use age distinctions and factors other than age which meet the requirements of the Act and its implementing regulations.

(a) The Act and these regulations apply to each DOC recipient and to each program or activity operated by the recipient which receives or benefits from Federal financial assistance provided by any entity of DOC.

(b) The Act and these regulations do not apply to:

(1) An age distinction contained in that part of a Federal, State, or local statute or ordinance adopted by an elected, general purpose legislative body which:

(i) Provides benefits or assistance to persons based on age; or

(ii) Establishes criteria for participation in age-related terms; or

(iii) Describes intended beneficiaries or target groups in age-related terms.

(2) Any employment practice or any employer, employment agency, labor organization, or any labor-management joint apprenticeship training program, except for any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance for public service employment.

As used in these regulations, the following terms are defined as follows:

(a) Act means the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended (Title III of Pub. L. 94-135).

(b) Action means any act, activity, policy, rule, standard, or method of administration; or the use of any policy, rule, standard, or method of administration.

(c) Age means how old a person is, or the number of years from the date of a person's birth.

(d) Age distinction means any action using age or an age-related term.

(e) Age-related term means a word or words which necessarily imply a particular age or range of ages (for example: “children,” “adult,” “older persons,” but not “student”).

(f) Agency means a Federal department or agency that is empowered to extend financial assistance.

(g) DOC means the U.S. Department of Commerce.

(h) Federal financial assistance means any grant, entitlement, loan, cooperative agreement, contract (other than a procurement contract or a contract of insurance or guaranty), or any other arrangement by which the agency provides or otherwise makes available assistance in the form of:

(1) Funds; or

(2) Services of Federal personnel; or

(3) Real and personal property or any interest in or use of property, including:

(i) Transfers or leases of property for less than fair market value or for reduced considerations; and

(ii) Proceeds from a subsequent transfer or lease of property if the Federal share of its fair market value is not returned to the Federal Government.

(i) Normal operation means the operation of a program or activity without significant changes that would impair its ability to meet its objectives.

(j) Recipient means any State or its political subdivision, any instrumentality of a State or its political sub-division, any public or private agency, institution, organization, or other entity, or any person to which Federal financial assistance is extended, directly or through another recipient. Recipient includes any successor, assignee, or transferee, but excludes the ultimate beneficiary of the assistance.

(k) Secretary means the Secretary of Commerce or his or her designee.

(l) Statutory objective means any purpose of a program or activity expressly stated in any Federal statute, State statute, or local statute or ordinance adopted by an elected, general purpose legislative body.

(m) Subrecipient means any of the entities in the definition of “recipient” to which a recipient extends or passes on Federal financial assistance. A subrecipient is generally regarded as a recipient of Federal financial assistance and has all the duties of a recipient in these regulations.

(n) United States means the fifty States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, Wake Island, the Canal Zone, the Northern Marianas, and the territories and possessions of the United States.

The rules stated in this section are limited by the exceptions contained in § 20.5.

(a) General rule: No person in the United States shall, on the basis of age, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

(b) Specific rules: A recipient may not, in any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance, directly or through contractual licensing, or other arrangements, use age distinctions or take any other actions which have the effect, on the basis of age, of:

(1) Excluding individuals from, denying them the benefits of, or subjecting them to discrimination under, a program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance, or

(2) Denying or limiting individuals in their opportunity to participate in any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

(c) The specific forms of age discrimination listed in paragaph (b) of this section do not necessarily constitute a complete list.

(d) If a recipient operating a program provides special benefits to the elderly or to children, such use of age distinctions shall be presumed to be necessary to the normal operation of the program, notwithstanding the provisions of § 20.5.

(a) Normal operations or statutory objective of any program or activity. A recipient is permitted to take an action otherwise prohibited by § 20.4 if the action reasonably considers age as a factor necessary to the normal operation or the achievement of any statutory objective of a program or activity. An action meets this standard if:

(1) Age is used as a measure or approximation of one or more other characteristics; and

(2) The other characteristic(s) must be measured or approximated in order for the normal operation of the program or activity to continue, or to achieve any statutory objective or the program or activity; and

(3) The other characteristic(s) can be reasonably measured or approximated by the use of age; and

(4) The other characteristic(s) are impractical to measure directly on an individual bases.

(b) Reasonable factors other than age. A recipient is permitted to take an action otherwise prohibited by § 20.4 which is based on a factor other than age, even though that action may have a disproportionate effect on persons of different ages. An action may be based on a factor other than age only if the factor bears a direct and substantial relationship to the normal operation of the program or activity or to the achievement of a statutory objective.

The burden of proving that an age distinction or other action falls within the exceptions outlined in § 20.5 is on the recipient of Federal financial assistance.

(a) DOC may conduct compliance reviews and pre-award reviews or use other similar procedures that will permit it to investigate and correct violations of the Act and these regulations. DOC may conduct such review even in the absence of a complaint against a recipient. The review may be as comprehensive as necessary to determine whether a violation of the Act and these regulations has occurred.

(b) If a compliance review of pre-award review indicates a violation of the Act or these regulations, DOC will attempt to achieve voluntary compliance with the Act. If voluntary compliance cannot be achieved, DOC will arrange for enforcement as described in § 20.15.

(a) Any person, individually, or as a member of a class, or on behalf of others, may file a complaint with DOC alleging discrimination prohibited by the Act or these regulations based on an action occurring on or after July 1, 1979. A complainant shall file a complaint within 180 days from the date the complainant first had knowledge of the alleged act of discrimination. However, for good cause shown, DOC may extend this time limit.

(b) DOC will attempt to facilitate the filing of complaints wherever possible, including taking the following measures:

(1) Accepting as a sufficient complaint, any written statement which: identifies the parties involved and the date the complainant first had knowledge of the alleged violation; describes generally the action or practice complained of; and is signed by the complainant;

(2) Freely permitting a complainant to add information to the complaint to meet the requirements of a sufficient complaint;

(3) Considering as the filing date, the date on which a complaint is sufficient to be processed;

(4) Notifiying the complainant and the recipient of their rights and obligations under the compliant procedure, including the right to have a representative at all stages of the process;

(5) Notifying the complainant and the recipient (or their representatives) of their right to contact DOC for information and assistance regarding the complaint resolution process.

(c) DOC will return to the complainant any complaint outside the jurisdiction of these regulations, and will state the reason(s) why it is outside the jurisdiction of these regulations.

(a) DOC will refer to a mediation service designated by the Secretary all sufficient complaints that:

(1) Fall within the jurisdiction of the Act and these regulations, unless the age distinction complained of is clearly within an exception; and

(2) Contain all information necessary for further processing.

(b) Both the complainant and the recipient shall participate in the mediation process to the extent necessary to reach an agreement or to make an informed judgment that an agreement is not possible.

(c) If the complainant and the recipient reach an agreement, the mediator shall prepare a written statement of the agreement and have the complainant and the recipient sign it. The mediator shall send a copy of the agreement to DOC. DOC will take no further action on the complaint unless the complainant or the recipient fails to comply with the agreement.

(d) The mediator is required to protect the confidentiality of all information obtained in the course of the mediation process. No mediator shall testify in any adjudicative proceeding, produce any document, or otherwise disclose any information obtained, in the course of the mediation process without prior approval of the head or the mediation service.

(e) The mediation will proceed for a maximum of 60 days after a complaint is filed with DOC. Mediation ends if:

(1) 60 days elapse from the time DOC receives the complaint; or

(2) Prior to the end of that 60-day period, an agreement is reached; or

(3) Prior to the end of that 60-day period, the mediator determines that an agreement cannot be reached.

(f) The mediator shall return unresolved complaints to DOC.

(a) Informal investigation:

(1) DOC will investigate complaints that are unresolved after mediation or are reopended because of a violation of a mediation agreement.

(2) As part of the initial investigation, DOC will use informal factfinding methods, including joint or separate discussions with the complainant and recipient, to establish the facts and, if possible, settle the complaint on terms that are mutually agreeable to the parties. DOC may seek the assistance of any involved State program agency.

(3) DOC will put any agreement in writing and have it signed by the parties and an authorized offical at DOC.

(4) The settlement shall not affect the operation of any other enforcement effort of DOC, including compliance reviews and investigation or other complaints which may involve the recipient.

(5) The settlement is not a finding of discrimination against a recipient.

(b) Formal investigation: If DOC cannot resolve the complaint through informal investigation, it will begin to develop formal findings through further investigation of the complaint. If the investigation indicates a violation of these regulations, DOC will attempt to obtain voluntary compliance. If DOC cannot obtain voluntary compliance, it will begin enforcement as described in § 8a.15.

A recipient may not engage in acts of intimidation or retaliation against any person who:

(a) Attempts to assert a right protected by the Act or these regulations; or

(b) Cooperates in any mediation, investigation, hearing, or other part of DOC's investigation, conciliation, and enforcement process.

Certain DOC procedural provisions applicable to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 apply to DOC enforcement of these regulations. They are found in 15 CFR Part 8, § 8.12 and § 8.13.

(a) Where DOC finds that a recipient has discriminated on the basis of age, the recipient shall take any remedial action that DOC may require to overcome the effects of the discrimination. If another recipient exercises control over the recipient that has discriminated, DOC may require both recipients to take remedial action.

(b) Even in the absence of a finding of discrimination, a recipient may take affirmative action to overcome the effects of conditions that resulted in limited participation in the recipient's program or activity on the basis of age.

(a) When, under the provisions of these regulations, DOC terminates the funding of a recipient, the Secretary may, using undisbursed funds from the terminated award, make a new award to an alternate recipient, i.e. any public or non-profit private organization or agency, or State or political subdivision of the State.

(b) The Secretary will require any alternate recipient to demonstrate:

(1) The ability to comply with these regulations; and

(2) The ability to achieve the goals of the Federal statute authorizing the program or activity.

(a) A complainant may file a civil action following the exhaustion of administrative remedies under the Act. Administrative remedies are exhausted if:

(1) 180 days have elapsed since the complainant filed the complaint and DOC has made no finding with regard to the complaint; or

(2) DOC issues any finding in favor of the recipient.

(b) If DOC fails to make a finding within 180 days or issues a finding in favor of recipient, DOC shall:

(1) Promptly advise the complainant of this fact; and

(2) Advise the complainant of his or her right to bring civil action for injunctive relief; and

(3) Inform the complainant that:

(i) The complainant may bring a civil action only in a United States district court for the district in which the recipient is located or transacts business;

(ii) A complainant prevailing in a civil action has the right to be awarded the costs of the action, including reasonable attorney's fees, but that the complainant must demand these costs in the complaint;

(iii) Before commencing the action, the complainant shall give 30 days notice by registered mail to the Secretary, the Attorney General of the United States, and the recipient;

(iv) The notice shall contain the alleged violation of the Act, the relief requested, the court in which the complainant is bringing the action, and whether or not attorney's fees are demanded in the event the complainant prevails; and

(v) The complainant may not bring an action if the same alleged violation of the Act by the same recipient is the subject of a pending action in any court of the United States.