[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 238 (Monday, December 13, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69571-69572]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-32241]


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NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION


Records Schedules; Availability and Request for Comments

AGENCY: National Archives and Records Administration, Office of Records 
Services--Washington, DC.

ACTION: Notice of availability of proposed records schedules; request 
for comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) 
publishes notice at least once monthly of certain Federal agency 
requests for records disposition authority (records schedules). Once 
approved by NARA, records schedules provide mandatory instructions on 
what happens to records when no longer needed for current Government 
business. They authorize the preservation of records of continuing 
value in the National Archives of the United States and the 
destruction, after a specified period, of records lacking 
administrative, legal, research, or other value. Notice is published 
for records schedules in which agencies propose to destroy records not 
previously authorized for disposal or reduce the retention period of 
records already authorized for disposal. NARA invites public comments 
on such records schedules, as required by 44 U.S.C. 3303a(a).

DATES: Requests for copies must be received in writing on or before 
January 27, 2000. Once the appraisal of the records is completed, NARA 
will send a copy of the schedule. NARA staff usually prepare appraisal 
memorandums that contain additional information concerning the records 
covered by a proposed schedule. These, too, may be requested and will 
be provided once the appraisal is completed. Requesters will be given 
30 days to submit comments.

ADDRESSES: To request a copy of any records schedule identified in this 
notice, write to the Life Cycle Management Division (NWML), National 
Archives and Records Administration (NARA), 8601 Adelphi Road, College 
Park, MD 20740-6001. Requests also may be transmitted by FAX to 301-
713-6852 or by e-mail to [email protected]. Requesters must 
cite the control number, which appears in parentheses after the name of 
the agency which submitted the schedule, and must provide a mailing 
address. Those who desire appraisal reports should so indicate in their 
request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marie Allen, Director, Life Cycle 
Management Division (NWML), National Archives and Records 
Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001. 
Telephone: (301)713-7110. E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Each year Federal agencies create billions 
of records on paper, film, magnetic tape, and other media. To control 
this accumulation, agency records managers prepare schedules proposing 
retention periods for records and submit these schedules for NARA's 
approval, using the Standard Form (SF) 115, Request for Records 
Disposition Authority. These schedules provide for the timely transfer 
into the National Archives of historically valuable records and 
authorize the disposal of all other records after the agency no longer 
needs to conduct its business. Some schedules are comprehensive and 
cover all the records of an agency or one of its major subdivisions. 
Most schedules, however, cover records of only one office or program or 
a few series of records. Many of these update previously approved 
schedules, and some include records proposed as permanent.
    No Federal records are authorized for destruction without the 
approval of the Archivist of the United States. This approval is 
granted only after a thorough consideration of their administrative use 
by the agency of origin, the rights of the Government and of private 
persons directly affected by the Government's activities, and whether 
or not they have historical or other value.
    Besides identifying the Federal agencies and any subdivisions 
requesting disposition authority, this public notice lists the 
organizational unit(s) accumulating the records or indicates agency-
wide applicability in the case of schedules that cover records that may 
be accumulated throughout an agency. This notice provides the control 
number assigned to each schedule, the total number of schedule items, 
and the number of temporary items (the records proposed for 
destruction). It also includes a brief description of the temporary 
records. The records schedule itself contains a full description of the 
records at the file unit level as well as their disposition. If NARA 
staff has prepared an appraisal memorandum for the schedule, it too, 
includes information about the records. Further information about the 
disposition process is available on request.

Schedules Pending

    1. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census (N1-29-00-01, 2 
items, 1

[[Page 69572]]

temporary item). Completed paper questionnaire forms of the 2000 
Decennial Census, and the Individual Census Record File in electronic 
format. The completed paper questionnaires are sent to the Data Capture 
Centers for processing. The paper forms are scanned to create 
electronic images of the questionnaires, which are proposed for 
disposition in Disposition Job No. N1-29-00-02. All information from 
the scanned electronic image files is transferred to the Individual 
Census Record File, which is proposed for permanent retention.
    2. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census (N1-29-00-02, 52 
items, 35 temporary items). Comprehensive schedule pertaining to all 
textual and electronic records of the 2000 Decennial Census, except the 
paper questionnaire forms and Individual Census Record File which are 
proposed for disposition in Disposition Job No. N1-29-00-1. The 
schedule covers six major processes of the decennial census: address 
list development, data collection, data capture, data processing, 
accuracy and coverage evaluations, and data products. Also included are 
program and administrative records such as pre-test questionnaires, 
contracts and related records, source documents relating to research, 
evaluation, and experimental programs. Records proposed for disposal 
include address lists and map update records, block canvassing, special 
place and group quarters inventories, local updates to census address 
lists, new construction lists, updates or revisions to census maps in 
electronic format, update/leave questionnaires, urban update/leave 
questionnaires, list enumeration and address registers, updates and 
revisions to the Master Address File, questionnaires, maps, and address 
registers created for special enumerations, respondent data collected 
by telephone assistance and through the Internet response program, 
operations and control records, electronic images of scanned paper 
questionnaires, unprocessed electronic source files of information 
captured from the electronic images, the Decennial Response File, the 
Census Unedited File, the Census Unedited File Sample, the Census 
Edited File, the Census Edited File Sample, the Accuracy and Coverage 
Evaluation (ACE) address lists, ACE telephone interview records, 
personal interview records and maps, dual system estimates, ACE support 
and management records, Census 2000 contracts and related records, 
census pretest records, research, evaluation, and experimental program 
records, and records created using electronic mail and word processing 
applications.
    Records proposed for permanent retention include the final Census 
2000 electronic maps, the final electronic Decennial Master Address 
File and documentation, the Census 2000 Detail File, the Hundred 
Percent Estimated Detail File, the Sample Estimated Detail File, the 
State Populations Totals File, the Redistricting Data File, the Block-
Level Data File, the statistically corrected and uncorrected Hundred 
Percent Data Summary Files, the Sample Data Summary File, the Public 
Use Microdata Sample Files, the statistically corrected and uncorrected 
Congressional District Data Summary Files, and all other final data 
products created for Island areas or other special demographic or 
geographic enumerations.

    Dated: December 8, 1999.
Michael J. Kurtz,
Assistant Archivist for Record Services--Washington, DC.
[FR Doc. 99-32241 Filed 12-10-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7515-01-P