[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 163 (Tuesday, August 23, 2011)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52533-52537]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-21395]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 163 / Tuesday, August 23, 2011 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 52533]]
OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT
5 CFR Part 293
RIN 3206-AM05
Personnel Records
AGENCY: U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is amending the
regulations governing disposition of Official Personnel Folders of
Federal employees to clarify the roles and responsibilities of OPM and
Federal agencies.
DATES: Effective September 22, 2011.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tanya Bennett, at (202) 606-4054, by
facsimile at (202) 606-1719, or by e-mail at Tanya.Bennett@opm.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. Office of Personnel Management is
amending subpart C of part 293 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations
(Personnel Records) to clarify agency responsibilities concerning
Official Personnel Folders (OPFs) of current and former Federal
employees in the civil service.
Background
Generally, OPM and the other agencies share responsibility for
personnel management in the Executive Branch. OPM functions as a
government-wide regulator of personnel management. Agencies, on the
other hand, are required to maintain and establish their own personnel
office within their agency, and the head of each agency, in accordance
with applicable statutes, Executive orders and rules, is responsible
for personnel management in their agency. The OPF is a critical tool
for personnel management. An OPF is a file containing records
reflecting an employee's appointment, employment history and benefits
information. OPFs contain long-term records that serve to protect the
legal and financial rights of the Government and the employee. Pursuant
to Executive Order 12107 (December 28, 1978), OPFs are designated as
records of OPM, and the President has delegated authority to the
Director of OPM to regulate the establishment, maintenance, and
transfer of OPFs.
Although OPFs are designated as records of OPM, agencies have
significant responsibilities related to OPFs. OPM regulations require
agencies to establish OPFs for most employees. OPM's regulations also
specify the content of the OPF, which each agency must maintain.
Moreover, agencies are generally required to retain the OPF of a
separated employee for 30 working days after separation and to transfer
that OPF thereafter to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC).
Further, if an employee's OPF is lost or destroyed, the current (or
former) employing agency must reconstruct the OPF.
The transfer of an OPF from the NPRC can be the result of an agency
initially submitting the OPF to the NPRC improperly, an activity such
as amending or correcting the OPF of a current or former employee, the
rehiring of a former Federal employee, or a need to produce the
document for litigation. The return of the OPF to the NPRC produces a
subsequent and additional transfer expense.
Purpose and Summary of Changes
The purpose of this rule is to clarify the roles and
responsibilities of OPM and other agencies with respect to OPFs by
articulating, delineating, and differentiating the responsibilities of
OPM as regulator of OPFs and the responsibilities of other agencies,
who have a variety of reasons to use OPFs in connection with the
appointment and employment of Federal employees. To clarify these roles
and responsibilities, this rule makes the following changes to subpart
C of 5 CFR part 293:
In Sec. 293.301, inserting language excluding agencies
from the application of subpart C when they are exempt from OPM
recordkeeping requirements by statute, regulation, or formal agreement
with OPM. Further, inserting a sentence stating that OPM's Guide to
Personnel Recordkeeping will list the excluded agencies. These changes
clarify which agencies are or are not bound by subpart C.
In Sec. 293.303, amending the heading from ``Ownership of
the folder'' to ``The roles of the Office, agencies, and custodians''
and revising and clarifying the text of the section. These changes
clarify the intent of the section.
In Sec. 293.303, removing the phrase ``under the
jurisdiction and control of''' to eliminate confusion about the meaning
of this clause. Also, adding the phrase ``each former employee'' to
recognize that this section also covers OPFs of former employees. The
remaining language has been designated paragraph (a).
In Sec. 293.303, adding paragraph (b) to clarify the role
and responsibilities of OPM; paragraph (c) to clarify the roles and
responsibilities of agencies, generally; paragraph (d)(1) to establish
the definition of the term ``custodian'' for purposes of this section;
and paragraphs (d)(2) through (d)(5) to establish the roles and
responsibilities of custodians.
In Sec. 293.303. adding paragraph (e) to clarify that
agencies and custodians will carry out their roles and responsibilities
for OPFs pursuant to this subpart and OPM's Guide to Personnel
Recordkeeping.
In Sec. 293.307, adding paragraphs (c) and (d) to specify
that agencies are responsible for costs associated with transferring
OPFs to and from the NPRC.
Comments and Responses
OPM published its proposed rule with request for comments on
January 19, 2010. 75 FR 2821 (Jan. 19, 2010). OPM received comments
from two individuals, four different components of the Department of
Defense, and two other Federal agencies, including the NPRC. Below is a
summary of the comments received, which is followed by OPM's responses.
1. Storage Costs
Two commenters opposed the amendment to 5 CFR 293.307, which adds
paragraphs (c) and (d) to clarify the OPF-related costs for which
agencies are responsible, because the commenters believe these
provisions will shift the cost of storing OPFs with NARA to other
agencies.
OPM believes these commenters misconstrued the rule. Nothing in
this rule shifts the cost of storing OPFs with
[[Page 52534]]
NARA from OPM to other agencies. Under the rule, OPM remains
responsible for the cost of storing OPFs. In addition, OPM remains
responsible under the Privacy Act for all costs associated with
responding to a former employee's request for a review or a copy of her
or his OPF, and under the Freedom of Information Act for responses to
third party (public) requests for information from OPFs (although, as
noted below, OPM may seek reimbursement from such third-party
requesters). The change made by the rule is that transfer of custody
for storage of OPFs is now predicated on OPFs being accepted for
storage by NARA.
Another commenter requested that the rule specify the NARA actual
costs that OPM will be responsible for and those that will be the
responsibility of the other agencies for storage, transfers,
references, interfile, and disposition (destruction or accessioning
into the Archives of the United States) of OPFs.
As clarified by the rule, agencies will be responsible for the
costs associated with transferring OPFs to NPRC, requesting OPFs from
NPRC, and for any other service initiated by an agency. OPM will be
responsible for the storage charges of OPFs that have been accepted by
the NPRC and placed into storage, and for all charges associated with
responding to requests from former employees and the public under the
Privacy Act and Freedom of Information Act (subject to possible
reimbursement from such third-party requesters). OPM will be charged in
the same manner as other agencies for the OPFs of its own current and
former employees.
OPM has chosen not to specify in the rule the actual costs charged
by the NPRC for services because such costs will be established
pursuant to the NPRC's revolving fund authority. OPM has an interagency
agreement with the NPRC that specifies the services provided to OPM and
the corresponding costs. This interagency agreement is regularly
updated.
2. Requests for Copies of OPFs From Former Employees or OPF Information
From the Public
A commenter stated that this rule would allow OPM to charge another
agency for costs associated with a request by a former employee for a
copy of the employee's OPF or a request for OPF information by a member
of the public.
OPM may well seek to recover the costs of some of these requests
from third-party requesters (pursuant to FOIA, for example), but
whether or not OPM undertakes that sort of cost-recovery, this rule is
not intended to enable OPM to shift the costs of such third-party
requests to another agency and will not effectuate such a cost-
shifting. Once an OPF has been accepted by the NPRC, OPM becomes the
custodian until and unless another agency requests the OPF. OPM will
not charge agencies for the costs associated with responding to
requests from former Federal employees or members of the public for
records currently stored at the NPRC.
3. Requests for OPF Information From Federal Agencies
A commenter stated that the rule would allow OPM to charge other
agencies that are requesting OPF information.
OPM believes that the commenter has slightly confused requesting
information from an OPF and requesting the actual OPF. Currently, the
NPRC does not charge for OPF information. For requests from agencies to
the NPRC for an actual OPF, however, the NPRC charges a handling fee
associated with transferring the file to and receiving it from an
agency. Fees charged by the NPRC associated with handling OPFs as part
of transferring OPFs will now be the responsibility of the agencies
under this rule.
4. Effect on Electronic OPFs
Several commenters expressed concern that the amended rule may be
construed to include electronic OPFs (eOPFs). One commenter mentioned
that the migration to eOPF was required by 2012 and recommended that
OPM not implement the changes to this rule until that time to alleviate
any financial impact on agencies. Another commenter stated that the
OPM's Enterprise Human Resource Integration (EHRI) had already factored
NPRC transactions into maintenance costs for eOPFs. Three commenters
recommended that the rule specify it applies only to paper OPFs and/or
include a statement excluding eOPFs.
OPM agrees that a distinction should be made between the roles and
responsibilities for paper OPFs and eOPFs. OPM has added language to
Sec. 293.303 to distinguish between paper OPFs and eOPFs. OPM
acknowledges that it has already factored NPRC transactions into
maintenance costs for eOPFs with respect to EHRI.
5. Data Calls, Cost Studies and Statistical Analysis
A commenter wanted to know what data calls were issued to collect
information in preparation for this regulation and which specific
agencies provided feedback to OPM in this process. The same commenter
wanted OPM to provide the cost studies, statistical analysis, and raw
data used to justify the rule and the human capital cost increase to
implement and track agency transactions.
OPM did not call for data from other agencies or conduct cost
studies and statistical analysis in preparing this rule. The purpose of
the rule is to correct a misunderstanding of the roles and
responsibilities of OPM and the other agencies with respect to the
transfer of OPFs to NPRC. This misunderstanding has resulted in
agencies avoiding part of the cost of administering their own
responsibilities with respect to OPFs. The commenter appears to
misconstrue the rule as simply seeking a more beneficial cost
arrangement for OPM; instead, the purpose is to differentiate the
activities that are properly considered functions of agency human
resources offices and thus ensure that an agency that initiates the
transfer of an OPF assumes the costs associated with that action (just
as that agency bears the costs associated with establishing and
maintaining OPFs for its appointees and employees).
6. Employee Medical Folders and Employee Performance Files
A commenter asked that OPM address how this rule will affect
Employee Medical Folders (EMFs) and Employee Performance Files (EPFs).
EMFs contain information determined by an agency's medical staff to
be occupational medical records, which can follow the employee from
agency to agency or be sent to NPRC if the employee separates from
Federal service. The rule for disposition of EMFs, 5 CFR 293.510, which
is not amended by this rule, instructs agencies to follow the same
procedures established for disposition of OPFs, 5 CFR 293.307. Because
this rule amends 5 CFR 293.307 to clarify that agencies are responsible
for the costs associated with the transfer of OPFs to NPRC, the same
requirements will apply to transferring EMFs to NPRC. As for EPFs,
there is no separate cost associated with transferring EPFs because any
information transferred is contained in the OPF as part of the left
(temporary) side of the OPF (See 5 CFR 293.402 and 5 CFR 293.404).
7. Other Agency's Records Management Policies
Three commentators suggested that this rule might cause other
agencies to amend their records management policies in order to charge
agencies for use of their records.
[[Page 52535]]
OPM is not in a position to predict what other agencies might do in
terms of their own records management policies in response to this rule
or to comment on the position other agencies adopt or may adopt
regarding records for which they are the custodian but that are not
maintained in the OPF.
8. Change to the Title of Section 293.303
One commenter stated that the existing title of Sec. 293.303,
``Ownership of the Folder,'' is not confusing and, therefore, need not
be changed.
OPM disagrees with the commenter. In OPM's experience, the use of
the word ``ownership'' in the title of Sec. 293.303 has resulted in
disagreements over the meaning and scope of the word. In particular, it
has created ambiguity in delineating the responsibilities of OPM and
the other agencies with regard to the cost of transferring OPFs to and
from the NPRC. The new title for Sec. 293.303, ``The roles and
responsibilities of the Office, agencies, and custodians,'' provides a
clearer statement of the purpose of the section and its new content.
9. Definition of Custodian
Four commenters submitted comments about adding a definition of the
term ``custodian'' to Sec. 293.102. Two commenters sought general
clarification about the definition. A commenter contended that the
definition was beyond OPM's authority under Executive Order 12107 and
inconsistent with prior use of the term in OPM's Guide to Personnel
Recordkeeping. Another commenter wanted the definition to be revised in
order to make clear that the NPRC, although in physical possession of
OPFs, is not responsible for the cost associated with the maintenance
and disposition of the OPF once it arrives at NPRC.
Rather than amending Sec. 293.102, the definitions section for all
of 5 CFR part 293, OPM has decided to include the definition solely in
the regulations for OPFs by amending Sec. 293.303. In this rule, Sec.
293.303 replaces the ``jurisdiction and control'' language that was
introduced in 1954 by Executive Order 10561 (September 13, 1954) and
included in Civil Service Commission regulations implementing that
order (19 FR 6899 (October 28, 1954)), with the concept of custodian in
order to more clearly articulate the responsibilities of OPM and the
other agencies. Although Executive Order 10561 was revoked by Executive
Order 12107 (December 28, 1978), OPM continued to use the
``jurisdiction and control'' language that was borrowed from it. The
notion of jurisdiction and control has led to confusion about the
delineation of responsibilities and costs associated with carrying out
those responsibilities.
The purpose of this concept was to recognize that although other
agencies are often in possession of the OPFs, the authority for the
establishment, maintenance and transfer of them resides with OPM. The
same purpose is reflected in this rule's revision in Sec. 293.303 by
creating paragraph (a), which keeps much of the original language from
the section but eliminates the phrase ``jurisdiction and control.''
Further, this rule revises Sec. 293.303 by introducing several
additional paragraphs that define the term custodian and specify the
responsibilities of OPM, agencies, and custodians pertaining to
establishing, maintaining, and transferring OPFs.
Executive Order 12107 grants OPM authority to promulgate
regulations pertaining to the establishment, maintenance, and transfer
of OPFs. Defining a term to be used by OPM within those regulations is
consistent with this authority. Moreover, regulating the activities and
responsibilities of agencies in physical possession of OPFs is
inherently part of the maintenance and transfer of OPFs.
OPM does not agree that the definition of custodian contained in
this rule is inconsistent with OPM's use of the term in the Guide to
Personnel Recordkeeping. However, to the extent that an inconsistency
arises, the definition of custodian in this rule is controlling for
purpose of implementing these regulations. The Guide to Personnel
Recordkeeping will be revised to resolve any inconsistency that comes
to OPM's attention.
Instead of revising the definition of custodian to ensure that the
NPRC is not responsible for costs associated with the maintenance and
disposition of OPFs once they arrive at NPRC, OPM has added paragraph
(d)(5) to Sec. 293.303 to clarify that OPM is the custodian once the
NPRC approves the transfer of an OPF from an agency.
10. When an Agency Is No Longer a Custodian
Three commenters noted that the proposed definition of custodian
seemed to indicate that agencies no longer have responsibility for the
cost of transferring OPFs to NPRC after an individual separates from
Federal service because an agency is the legal custodian of an
employee's OPF during the period of the employee's employment at that
agency. The argument was that because agencies are required to hold the
folders for a minimum of 30 days after an employee separates, and
because the agency is responsible only during the period of employment,
the agency is not responsible for transfer costs.
OPM agrees that an agency is the custodian during the period of an
employee's employment. An agency remains the custodian, however, even
after an employee separates, while it performs its personnel management
responsibilities, which typically take 30 days. Agencies complete
actions such as resignation, termination, or retirement after an
employee separates from the losing agency. In addition, in the case of
some actions outlined in Chapter 7 of the Guide to Personnel
Recordkeeping, the OPF may remain in the possession of an agency for
longer than 30 days. In order to accomplish these vital actions; ensure
the accuracy, completeness, necessity, timeliness, and relevance of the
actions; and ensure the fairness of decisions involving the subject of
the OPF, as required by 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1), the folder remains in the
physical possession of the agency for some time after separation. To
clarify when an agency is no longer the custodian of an OPF, the rule
amends Sec. 293.303 by adding paragraphs (d)(4) and (d)(5).
11. Potential Augmentation of OPM's Appropriation
Three commenters suggested that the rule would result in an
augmentation of OPM's appropriation because OPM receives appropriated
funds for reimbursing the NPRC for costs associated with OPFs.
Although OPFs are designated as records of OPM, some of the
administrative expenses associated with OPFs flow logically from each
agency's requirements of maintaining its own workforce, including
compliance with OPM's regulations. Indeed, having OPFs is part and
parcel of having employees. Each agency is responsible for its own
personnel management, and establishing, maintaining, and transferring
OPFs are necessary functions of each agency's personnel office. This
includes remedying OPFs submitted improperly, as well as amending or
correcting OPFs of current and former employees, rehiring former
Federal employees, and utilizing OPFs in litigation. Therefore, each
agency's general operating appropriation is available to reimburse the
NPRC for expenses related to these functions. At the same time, OPM's
appropriation is available for expenses necessary to carry out OPM's
Governmentwide functions regarding OPFs, such as storage of OPFs and
servicing OPFs that have been transferred and accepted by the NPRC.
[[Page 52536]]
OPM is also responsible for expenses related to its own employees'
OPFs.
Prior to Fiscal Year (FY) 2000, NARA financed the activities of the
NPRC related to OPFs out of its own general operating appropriation.
During this period, the NPRC paid the costs of transferring, storing,
and providing other services associated with OPFs out of an
appropriation to NPRC for this purpose. OPM did not reimburse the NPRC
for costs associated with OPFs. (And agencies were--and still are--
responsible for costs associated with establishing and maintaining OPFs
for their employees).
Beginning with FY 2000, however, Congress changed the financing of
the NPRC activities by establishing the Records Center Revolving Fund
(Fund) and authorizing the NPRC to credit the Fund with fees charged to
other agencies (Pub. L. 106-58, 113 Stat. 430, 460-61 (Sept. 29, 1999),
codified at 44 U.S.C. 2901 note).
Currently, each agency incurs the cost of establishing OPFs for its
own employees as a necessary expense of maintaining its workforce.
Similarly, each agency has incurred costs associated with maintaining
OPFs for its own employees. Agencies do not seek, or receive,
reimbursement from OPM for these costs. Rather, agencies understand
that they are required by regulation to perform these tasks and incur
costs associated with fulfilling their responsibilities as employing
agencies. However, because of the confusion created by the title of
Sec. 293.303, ``Ownership of the Folder,'' and its mention of
``jurisdiction and control'' of OPFs, the costs of transferring OPFs to
and from the NPRC have been avoided by the other agencies. By
specifically providing that the costs associated with transferring OPFs
are the responsibility of the transferring agencies, OPM has now
eliminated this confusion.
This rule reflects OPM's position that services the NPRC provides
to agencies transferring OPFs to the NPRC are not services that benefit
OPM, but rather are services that allow agencies to fulfill their
responsibilities as employers (and under OPM's regulations). Similarly,
the services the NPRC provides to agencies initiating requests for OPFs
from the NPRC are also services that benefit agencies, not OPM.
Although OPM has incurred these costs since FY 2000, it would not be
appropriate to continue such an arrangement now that the roles and
responsibilities of OPM and the other agencies have been clarified.
12. NPRC Billing and Business Practices
A commenter stated that the implementation of this rule would have
a negative impact on the NPRC's billing and business practices because
it will have to initiate agreements with each agency for billing and
services and it may be necessary to charge OPM by folder rather than by
cubic foot.
OPM appreciates the concern for the potential impact this rule may
have for the NPRC. However, OPM does not control the NPRC's billing and
business practices, or how it will adjust to this rule. As noted
previously, this rule is being adopted in order to rectify the
ambiguity of which responsibilities are OPM's and which are
responsibilities of the other agencies. Resolving this ambiguity
ultimately should help the NPRC determine the appropriate billing and
business practices to adopt and implement.
13. Excluded Agencies
While OPM was preparing the rule for publication and in discussions
with the NPRC about the interagency agreement that governs the
operating relationship between the NPRC and OPM, the NPRC brought to
OPM's attention the potential for Sec. 293.301, the applicability
provision for subpart C (OPF regulations), to be read more broadly than
OPM intended.
Section 293.301 states that the OPF regulations apply to ``each
executive department and independent establishment of the Federal
Government, each corporation wholly owned or controlled by the United
States, and with respect to positions subject to civil service rules
and regulations, the legislative and judicial branches of the Federal
Government.'' Prior to 1985, Sec. 293.301 included a clause that
exempted agencies from the OPF regulations if they were ``specifically
excluded from [OPM] recordkeeping requirements by statute, Office
regulation or formal agreement between the Office and the agency'' (5
CFR 293.301 (1985)).
However, the exclusionary language was subsequently removed from
Sec. 293.301. On October 19, 1982, OPM issued a notice in the Federal
Register proposing to amend part 293 in order to move the guidelines on
accessing OPFs from 5 CFR part 294 to 5 CFR part 293 (See 47 FR 46513
(Oct. 19, 1982)). As part of this proposed amendment, for reasons not
stated, OPM amended Sec. 293.301 by removing the clause exempting
agencies specifically excluded from OPM's recordkeeping requirements.
The rule became final on January 24, 1985, with no mention in the final
notice of why the exclusionary language was removed (See 50 FR 3307
(Jan. 24, 1985)).
Removal of the exclusionary language was probably due to the fact
that Sec. 293.101(b) of 5 CFR 293, subpart A (Basic Policies on
Maintenance of Personnel Records) contains similar language that may
have been considered applicable to subpart C. Section 293.101(b) makes
the basic policies on maintenance of personnel records applicable ``to
any department or independent establishment in the Executive Branch of
the Federal Government * * * except those specifically excluded from
Office recordkeeping requirements by statute, Office regulation, or
formal agreement between the Office and that agency.'' However, as
stated in Sec. 293.101(b), it applies only to subpart A, not subpart
C. Therefore, the exclusionary language of Sec. 293.101(b), as
written, does not affect Sec. 293.301. The current language of Sec.
293.301 appears to apply to agencies regardless of whether they are
subject to OPM's basic policies on maintenance of personnel records.
At any rate, in practice, OPM has continued to consider agencies
that are specifically excluded from OPM recordkeeping requirements by
statute, regulation or formal agreements between OPM and other agencies
(i.e., exempt from subpart A) as exempt from OPM's OPF regulations
(i.e., exempt from subpart C). This practice is reflected in Chapter 2,
Section 2-A of OPM's Guide to Personnel Recordkeeping, which is
entitled ``Employment Systems Outside the Office of Personnel
Management's Recordkeeping Authority.''
After consulting with the NPRC, OPM has addressed the potential to
read Sec. 293.301 more broadly then intended by reinserting the
original, pre-1985 exclusionary language at the end of the current
Sec. 293.301. Moreover, OPM has added an additional sentence following
this language that identifies OPM's Guide to Personnel Recordkeeping as
the document where excluded agencies will be listed, which will allow
for more efficient updates and revisions, rather than listing the
agencies in the rule.
14. Need for an Effective Date
A commenter requested the rule have an established effective date
that is far enough in the future to allow agencies' human resource
offices and the NPRC to prepare for the changes made by this rule.
The proposed rule was published on January 19, 2010. Since that
time, personnel offices have been on notice of the impending changes
made by this rule and the NPRC has implemented a system that will
permit it to bill individual agencies for the costs they incur. OPM is
confident that agencies and the NPRC are capable of meeting
[[Page 52537]]
the requirements of this rule. Therefore, the effective date of these
changes will be 30 days from the date of publication of this rule in
the Federal Register.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
I certify that these regulations will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because they
would apply only to Federal agencies and employees.
Executive Order 13563 and Executive Order 12866
The Office of Management and Budget has reviewed this rule in
accordance with E.O. 13563 and 12866.
List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 293
Government employees, Privacy, Records.
U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
John Berry,
Director.
Accordingly, OPM amends 5 CFR part 293, subpart C as follows:
PART 293--PERSONNEL RECORDS
Subpart C--Official Personnel Folder
0
1. The authority citation for part 293, subpart C, is revised to read
as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552; 5 U.S.C. 552a; 5 U.S.C. 1103; 5 U.S.C.
1104; 5 U.S.C. 1302, 5 U.S.C. 2951(2), 5 U.S.C. 3301; 5 U.S.C. 4315;
E.O. 12107 (December 28, 1978), 3 CFR 1954-1958 Compilation; E.O.
9830 (February 24, 1947); 3 CFR 1943-1948 Compilation.
0
2. Revise Sec. 293.301 to read as follows:
Sec. 293.301 Applicability of regulations.
Except for those agencies specifically excluded from Office of
Personnel Management (OPM) recordkeeping requirements by statute, OPM
regulation, or formal agreement between OPM and the agency, this
subpart applies to--and within this subpart agency means--each
executive department and independent establishment of the Federal
Government; each corporation wholly owned or controlled by the United
States; and, with respect to positions subject to civil service rules
and regulations, the legislative and judicial branches of the Federal
Government. OPM will list agencies to which this subpart does not apply
in the Guide to Personnel Recordkeeping, and will amend the Guide from
time to time to update that list.
0
3. Revise Sec. 293.303 to read as follows:
Sec. 293.303 The roles and responsibilities of the Office, agencies,
and custodians.
(a) The Official Personnel Folder (OPF) of each employee in a
position subject to civil service rules and regulations and of each
former employee who held such a position is part of the records of the
Office of Personnel Management (Office).
(b) The Office has Government-wide responsibility for developing
regulations, practices and procedures for the establishment,
maintenance, and transfer of OPFs.
(c) Agencies shall be responsible for the following:
(1) The establishment of the OPF for a new appointee or a new
employee for whom no OPF has previously been established; and
(2) The maintenance of a previously existing OPF during the period
any new appointee or employee remains an agency's employee.
(d)(1) Custodian means the agency in physical possession of an OPF.
In the case of an electronic OPF (eOPF), the custodian is the agency
that has primary access to an eOPF contained within a document
management system approved by the Office.
(2) A custodian shall be responsible for the maintenance and
transfer of the OPF or eOPF, and the costs associated with these
activities.
(3) An agency is the custodian of an OPF it requests from the
National Personnel Records Center (NPRC), for any temporary use, from
the date that the OPF is transmitted by the NPRC to the agency until
the date that the NPRC receives the OPF back from the agency.
(4) An agency is no longer the custodian of an OPF once the OPF has
been transferred to and accepted by the NPRC.
(5) Once NPRC has approved the transfer, the Office is the
custodian of the OPF until the destruction date established for the
file pursuant to the National Archive and Records Administration's
General Records Schedule, unless another agency requests the OPF from
the NPRC in the interim.
(e) Agencies and custodians shall carry out their responsibilities
with respect to the OPF or eOPF in accordance with this subpart and the
Office's Guide to Personnel Recordkeeping.
0
4. Amend Sec. 293.307 by adding new paragraphs (c) and (d) as follows:
Sec. 293.307 Disposition of folders of former Federal employees.
* * * * *
(c) Agencies are responsible for all costs associated with the
establishment and maintenance of OPFs and the transfer of OPFs to the
National Personnel Records Center.
(d) Agencies are responsible for all costs associated with agency-
initiated requests for OPFs or services from the National Personnel
Records Center.
[FR Doc. 2011-21395 Filed 8-22-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-47-P