[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 44 (Monday, March 8, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 10414-10415]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-4838]
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NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION
36 CFR Part 1254
[FDMS Docket NARA-09-004]
RIN 3095-AB59
Researcher Identification Card
AGENCY: National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: NARA is amending its regulations to require researchers using
original records, NARA microfilm, and public use computers at the
National Archives Building in Washington, DC, to obtain a researcher
identification card. Under the new requirements, researchers at
regional archives are also required to obtain a researcher
identification card when there is no separate research room for the use
of microfilm and public access computers.
DATES: This rule is effective April 7, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marilyn Redman at telephone number
301-837-3174 or fax number 301-837-0319.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On September 25, 2009, NARA published a
proposed rule in the Federal Register (74 FR 48892) for a 60-day public
comment period. The proposed rule required researchers using original
records, NARA microfilm, and public use computers at the National
Archives Building in Washington, DC, to obtain a researcher
identification card. Researchers at regional archives are also required
to obtain a researcher identification card when there is no separate
research room for the use of microfilm and public access computers. The
proposed rule also updated our regulations to reflect changes in
available technology and research room practices, such as abolishing
the three-hour time limit for using microfilm readers. Six comments
were received. Of these, three basically supported the changes. One
commenter wrote that the ID should include a requirement for an
approved form of Federal identification before issuing the research
card. Currently, States are converting their driver's licenses to a
single federally-approved system. Our preferred form of identification
is either a driver's license or a passport for our foreign researchers.
We record these numbers as part of the registration process. In some
cases, researchers do not have either type of identification and
present a school ID or some other proof of address. In these
situations, it is not feasible to require a federally-approved ID and
we do not have the right to limit one's access to Federal records based
on the absence of a Federally-approved ID. Of the other comments, one
suggested that we accept the Library of Congress (LOC) researcher
identification card. We rejected this comment because the Library of
Congress and NARA are not connected administratively in any way. The
Library of Congress is in the Legislative Branch and NARA is in the
Executive Branch. Federal regulations apply to Executive Agencies only.
Further, the NARA identification card is tied to a unique building
security system shared by the National Archives Building in Washington,
DC, and the National Archives at College Park. Another comment objected
to having to carry another card and questioned how a card could make
NARA more secure than using another common form of identification.
Again, the application of the identification card is how we determine
who is eligible to conduct research in our facility. The other forms of
identification are required as proof of address to permit researcher
access. The information must be standardized for both security purposes
and for efficiently capturing administrative information on the
characteristics of our users. Other forms of identification are not
compatible with the computer system used for the registration process.
This commenter also suggested that NARA record information from
identification provided by the researcher upon each visit and that NARA
also capture additional administrative information about each visit at
that point. We rejected this comment because our current process is an
OMB-approved information collection structured to minimize the
paperwork burden on the public as required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act. Another comment requested that any denials of access be appealable
to the Archivist of the United States. Federal regulation 36 CFR
1254.50 already makes the Archivist of the United States the final
determiner of research access when it has been denied at lower levels
in the agency. Two commenters expressed doubt that the rule would
improve security at the National Archives Building. The researcher
identification cards are just one of several means employed by NARA
that provide both physical and personal security. Because the cards are
renewed annually, they provide the most reliable contact information
available. Such information has proved useful in investigations
conducted by the NARA Inspector General.
What changes are we making in this rule?
We are making substantive changes by amending the following
sections:
Sec. 1254.6(b): We are adding the requirement for
researchers using the National Archives Building, even those only using
microfilm publications or public use computers, to apply for and obtain
a researcher identification card. This rule applies to regional
archives facilities, as well, except where the microfilm research area
is separate from the area where original records are used. We made
other changes in the text to reflect that none of the affected
facilities has more than one textual research room.
Sec. 1254.22(a): The term ``bar-coded'' is deleted and
replaced with the broader term ``encoded.'' We no longer use bar-codes
on researcher identification cards in the Washington, DC, area. The
plastic cards we issue now have a magnetic strip and future cards may
use other technology.
Sec. 1254.44(a): Because fewer researchers are using
microfilm and there are no waits, the 3-hour limit on use and waiting
lists are no longer needed for the use of microfilm readers. We are
removing references to the 3-hour limit.
Sec. 1254.84: Since this section was last revised, the
researcher identification card can be linked to a personal account
established through the National Archives Trust Fund Cashier's Office
and function as a debit card in Washington, DC, area research rooms.
The regulation is being clarified to describe that capability. In
addition, we are removing discussion of deposit accounts, which are no
longer maintained by the Trust Fund.
We also are making non-substantive editorial changes in Sec. Sec.
1254.6(c) and 1254.10(b).
Paperwork Reduction Act
The information collection in this regulation was previously
approved by
[[Page 10415]]
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under OMB control number
3095-0016, which expires on September 30, 2011.
This rule is not a significant regulatory action for the purposes
of Executive Order 12866 and has been reviewed by the Office of
Management and Budget. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, I
certify that this rule will not have a significant impact on a
substantial number of small entities because the regulation affects
individual researchers. This regulation does not have any federalism
implications.
List of Subjects in 36 CFR Part 1254
Archives and records.
0
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, NARA amends part 1254, in
title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:
PART 1254--USING RECORDS AND DONATED HISTORICAL MATERIALS
0
1. The authority citation for part 1254 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 44 U.S.C. 2101-2118.
0
2. Amend Sec. 1254.6 by revising paragraphs (b) and (c) to read as
follows:
Sec. 1254.6 Do I need a researcher identification card to use
archival materials at a NARA facility?
* * * * *
(b) You also need a researcher identification card if you wish to
use only microfilm copies of documents at NARA's Washington, DC, area
facilities and in any NARA facility where the microfilm research room
is not separate from the textual research room.
(c) If you are using only microfilm copies of records in some
regional archives where the microfilm research room is separate from
the textual room, you do not need an identification card but you must
register as described in Sec. 1254.22.
0
3. Amend Sec. 1254.10 by revising paragraph (b) to read as follows:
Sec. 1254.10 For how long and where is my researcher identification
card valid?
* * * * *
(b) At NARA facilities in the Washington, DC, area and other NARA
facilities that issue and use plastic researcher identification cards
as part of their security systems, we issue a plastic card to replace
the paper card issued at some NARA facilities at no charge. The plastic
card is valid at all NARA facilities.
0
4. Amend Sec. 1254.22 by revising paragraph (a) to read as follows:
Sec. 1254.22 Do I need to register when I visit a NARA facility for
research?
(a) Yes, you must register each day you enter a NARA research
facility by furnishing the information on the registration sheet or
scanning an encoded researcher identification card. We may ask you for
additional personal identification.
* * * * *
0
5. Amend Sec. 1254.44 by revising paragraph (a) to read as follows:
Sec. 1254.44 How long may I use a microfilm reader?
(a) Use of the microfilm readers in the National Archives Building
is on a first-come-first served basis.
* * * * *
0
8. Revise Sec. 1254.84 to read as follows:
Sec. 1254.84 How may I use a debit card for copiers in the
Washington, DC, area?
Your research identification card can be used as a debit card if
you arrange with the Cashier's Office to set up an account using cash,
check, money order, debit card, or credit card. Your researcher
identification card number as encoded on the card forms the basis of
your account in the debit system. You may also purchase generic debit
cards of values up to $20 each from the Cashier's Office using any of
the above payment methods. When the Cashier's Office is closed or at
any other time during the hours research rooms are open as cited in
part 1253 of this chapter, you may use cash or credit card to purchase
a debit card from the vending machines located in the research rooms.
Inserting the debit card into a card reader connected to the copier
enables you to make copies for the appropriate fee, which are found in
Sec. 1258.12 of this chapter. You can add value to your card using the
vending machine in the research room or at the Cashier's Office. We do
not make refunds.
Dated: March 2, 2010.
David S. Ferriero,
Archivist of the United States.
[FR Doc. 2010-4838 Filed 3-5-10; 8:45 am]
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