02-16047. Expanding Transfer Options for Electronic Records

AGENCY:

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

This proposed rule will amend the regulations for the transfer of permanent records to NARA by permitting two additional electronic records transfer methods, File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and Digital Linear Tape IV (DLTtape IV). NARA is introducing these transfer methods to reduce the media and shipping costs of electronic records transferred from Government agencies, improve record and file integrity, and expand the options for transfer methods. This rule will affect Government agencies transferring permanent electronic records to the National Archives of the United States.

DATES:

Comments are due by August 26, 2002.

ADDRESSES:

Comments must be sent to Regulation Comment Desk (NPOL), Room 4100, Policy and Communications Staff, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001. They may be faxed to 301-837-0319. You may also comment via the Internet to [e-mail].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jennifer Davis Heaps at telephone number 301-837-1801, or fax number 301-837-0319.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

NARA currently accepts magnetic tape and compact-disk, read only memory (CD-ROM) as transfer media for records scheduled for permanent retention in the National Archives of the United States. DLTtape IV is a kind of magnetic tape cartridge. NARA has only used media-based transfer methods in the past, but has been testing other methods as well as additional media. With this rule, NARA proposes the addition of FTP transfer methods and DLT transfer media.

FTP is a media-less transfer method that can be used to transfer electronic records. FTP operates by using special software located at the sending and receiving sites. This software, in combination with a telecommunications network, provides the means for transferring electronic records. The agency may send any documentation in electronic format to NARA via FTP as part of the transfer of the electronic records or through any other acceptable method of transfer as specified in 36 CFR 1228.270.

DLTtape IV cartridge tape is a high-density magnetic cartridge tape that can store up to 40 gigabytes of information on each cartridge. DLTtape IV tapes are used by selected tape drive units produced by several companies. DLTtape IV preparation will follow existing cartridge tape specifications.

Paragraphs (a) and (b) in § 1228.270 have been rewritten for clarity and consistency with the new information in paragraph (c) of the same section.

Although this proposed rule does not address the format of electronic records described in paragraph (d), NARA is exploring the acceptance of formats other than ASCII and EBCDIC as part of its E-Government initiative. Any proposed changes in this area will be addressed in a separate rulemaking.

Please submit Internet comments within the body of your email message or as an attachment. Please also include “Attn: 3095-AB03” and your name and return address in your Internet message. If you do not receive a confirmation from the system that we have received your Internet message, contact the Regulation Comment Desk at 301-837-1801.

This proposed rule is 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 it applies only to Federal agencies.

This regulation does not have any federalism implications.

List of Subjects in 36 CFR Part 1228

• Archives and records

For the reasons set forth in the preamble, NARA proposes to amend part 1228 of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:

PART 1228—DISPOSITION OF FEDERAL RECORDS

1. The authority citation for part 1228 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 44 U.S.C. chs. 21, 29, and 33.

2. Amend § 1228.270 by revising paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) to read as follows:

§ 1228.270

Electronic records.

(a) Timing of transfers. Each agency is responsible for the integrity of the permanent records it transfers on physical media to the National Archives of the United States. For records transferred by a media-less method, NARA works with the agency to ensure integrity of the records during the transfer process. To ensure that permanent electronic records are preserved, each Federal agency must transfer electronic records to NARA promptly in accordance with the agency's records disposition schedule. Furthermore, if the agency cannot provide proper care and handling of the media (see part 1234 of this chapter), or if the media are becoming obsolete and the agency cannot migrate the records to newer media, the agency must contact NARA to arrange for timely transfer of permanent electronic records, even when sooner than provided in the records schedule.

(b) Temporary retention of copy. Each agency must retain a second copy of any permanent electronic records that it transfers to the National Archives of the United States until it receives official notification from NARA that the transfer was successful and that NARA has assumed responsibility for continuing preservation of the records.

(c) Transfer media. This paragraph covers the transfer of permanent records to the National Archives; it does not apply to the use or storage of records in agency custody. See 36 CFR 1234.30 for the requirements governing the selection of electronic records storage media for current agency use. The agency must use only media that is sound and free from defects for transfers to the National Archives of the United States; the agency must choose reasonable steps to meet this requirement. The approved media and media-less transfer forms are open reel magnetic tape, magnetic tape cartridge; Compact-Disk, Read Only Memory (CD-ROM); and File Transfer Protocol (FTP) as described in paragraphs (c) (1), (2) and (3) of this section.

(1) Magnetic tape. Agencies may transfer electronic records to the National Archives on magnetic tape as follows:

(i) Open-reel magnetic tape must be on 1/2 inch 9-track tape reels recorded at 1600 or 6250 bpi that meet ANSI X3.39-1986, American National Standard: Recorded Magnetic Tape for Information Interchange (1600 CPI, PE) or ANSI X3.54-1986, American National Standard: Recorded Magnetic Tape for Information Interchange (6250 CPI, Group Coded Recording), respectively.

(ii) Tape cartridges may be 18-track 3480-class cartridges. The 3480-class cartridge must be recorded at 37,871 bpi that meet ANSI X3.180-1990, American National Standard: Magnetic Tape and Cartridge for Information Interchange—18-Track, Parallel, 1/2 inch (12.65 mm), 37871 cpi (1491 cpmm), Group-Coded—Requirements for Recording. The data must be blocked at no more than 32,760 bytes per block.

(iii) Tape cartridges may be DLTtape IV cartridges that must be recorded in an uncompressed format and written to the tape using a Tape Archive (TAR) utility. The data must be blocked at no more than 32,760 bytes per block and must conform to the standards cited in the table as follows:

If you are copying the record on . . .	. . . then, the standard below applies.
DLTtape IV with a DLT 4000 drive	ISO/IEC 15307, Information technology—Data interchange on 12,7 mm 128-track magnetic tape cartridges—DLT 4 format (20 GB native, 40 GB compressed, 1.5 MB/sec).
DLTtape IV with a DLT 7000 drive	ISO/IEC 15896, Information technology—Data interchange on 12,7 mm 208-track magnetic tape cartridges—DLT 5 format (35 GB native, 70 GB compressed, 5.0 MB/sec).
DLTtape IV with a DLT 8000 drive	ISO/IEC 16382, Information technology—Data interchange on 12,7 mm 208-track magnetic tape cartridges—DLT 6 format (40 GB native, 80 GB compressed, 6.0 MB/sec).

(2) * * *

(i) CD-ROMs used for this purpose must conform to ANSI/NISO/ISO 9660-1990, American National Standard for Volume and File Structure of CD-ROM for Information Exchange.

(ii) Permanent electronic records must be stored in discrete files. The CD-ROMs transferred may contain other files, such as software or temporary records, but all permanent records must be in files that contain only permanent records. Agencies must indicate at the time of transfer if a CD-ROM contains temporary records and, if so, where those records are located on the CD-ROM. The agency must also specify whether NARA should return the CD-ROM to the agency or dispose of it after copying the permanent records to an archival medium.

(iii) If permanent electronic records that an agency disseminates on CD-ROM exist on other media, such as magnetic tape, the agency and NARA will mutually agree on the most appropriate medium for transfer of the records to the National Archives of the United States.

(3) File Transfer Protocol. Agencies may use File Transfer Protocol (FTP) to transfer electronic records scheduled for preservation at the National Archives of the United States. The files transferred via FTP must comply with the format and documentation requirements specified in paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section.

(i) FTP file structure must conform to an 8.3 file naming convention and file directory structure as cited in ANSI/NISO/ISO 9660-1990, American National Standard for Volume and File Structure of CD-ROM for Information Exchange.

(ii) Permanent electronic records must be stored in discrete files, separate from temporary files. All permanent records must be transferred in files that contain only permanent records.

(iii) When permanent electronic records may be disseminated through other types of mechanisms (e.g., magnetic tape, CD-ROM), the agency and NARA will mutually agree on the most appropriate medium for transfer of the records to the National Archives and will select the appropriate files for FTP transfer. Several important factors may limit the use of FTP as a transfer method, including the number of records, record file size, and available bandwidth. NARA will retain approval for appropriateness of FTP as the selected mechanism for each scheduled records transfer based on certain criteria (file size, FTP transfer rate, record classification, etc.). Agencies interested in sending electronic records scheduled for transfer to NARA through FTP must contact NARA's Electronic and Special Media Records Services Division (NWME), 8601 Adelphi Rd., College Park, MD 20740-6001 or by email to [e-mail] to initiate the transfer discussions.

(iv) Each permanent electronic records transfer must be preceded with a signed Agreement to Transfer Records to the National Archives of the United States (Standard Form 258) sent to the Office of Records Services—Washington, DC (NWME), 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001.

(4) Incorporation by reference. The standards cited in § 1228.270(c)(1), (2), and (3) are available from the American National Standards Institute, 11 West 42nd Street, 13th floor, New York, NY 10036. The standards cited for CD-ROM, FTP, and DLTTtapeIV are also available from the National Information Standards Organization (NISO), Press Fulfillment, P.O. Box 451, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701. All these standards are also available for inspection at the Office of the Federal Register, 800 North Capitol Street, NW., Suite 700, Washington, DC. This incorporation by reference was approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. These materials are incorporated by reference as they exist on the date of approval and a notice of any change in these materials will be published in the Federal Register.

* * * * *

Dated: May 15, 2002.

John W. Carlin,

Archivist of the United States.