[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 30 (Monday, February 14, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-3362]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: February 14, 1994]


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NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION
36 CFR Part 1253

RIN 3095-AA56

 

NARA Research Room Hours

AGENCY: National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: NARA is modifying the hours that the Central Research Room, 
the Microfilm Research Room, and the Motion Picture, Sound and Video 
Research Room in the National Archives Building are open for research 
use. This rule affects researchers who use these research rooms in the 
evening. NARA is taking this action so that resources will be available 
for staffing the research rooms at the new National Archives at College 
Park (Archives II) facility.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 16, 1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Ann Hadyka or Nancy Allard on 
301-713-6730.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NARA published a notice of proposed 
rulemaking on September 22, 1993 (58 FR 49251) proposing that certain 
research rooms in the National Archives Building that were open weekday 
evenings and on Saturday close at 8 p.m. instead of 10 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, and at 5 p.m. instead of 5:15 p.m. on Saturdays. Over 
70 comments were received, most opposing the proposed change. Many of 
these commenters noted that the reduction in evening hours would 
adversely impact local researchers who conduct their research in the 
evening after their workday as well as visiting researchers who want to 
maximize their research time in as short a period as possible and local 
evening classes who visit the National Archives on night-time field 
trips. Commenters who use the Microfilm Research Room noted that the 
reduced hours would further limit access to microfilm readers, for 
which there is frequently a waiting period. Several commenters offered 
alternative research room schedules, such as a 9 p.m. weekday closing, 
later opening, or closing early on selected days of the week.
    Commenters who favored the proposed change were primarily 
audiovisual archives researchers. Most of these commenters stated that 
extending the research hours for still pictures, cartographic, 
electronic and Nixon holdings at the National Archives at College Park 
facility (Archives II) would compensate for shortened hours in other 
research rooms.
    After carefully considering all comments, NARA has developed a 
revised research room schedule that would accommodate the concerns of 
the commenters and provide adequate staff coverage in the research 
rooms. NARA held a public meeting on December 13, 1993, to discuss the 
comments received on the proposed rule and to solicit comments on the 
revised schedule. Notice of the meeting was provided individually to 
each commenter and a notice of the meeting was published in the Federal 
Register on November 30, 1993 (58 FR 63133). Twenty-one persons, 
including members of the public and NARA staff, attended the meeting. 
In addition, NARA received seven letters and three telephone calls from 
individuals who could not attend the meeting. These comments were also 
considered in the preparation of this final rule.
    In this final rule, NARA is modifying research room hours in the 
Central Research Room and Microfilm Research Room in the National 
Archives Building to be 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday and Wednesday; 8:45 
a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday; and 8:45 a.m. to 4:45 
p.m., Saturday. The hours for the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video 
Research Room have been deleted from this final rule because that 
research room will close for relocation to Archives II before the 
effective date of this final rule. (That research room will be covered 
by a separate rulemaking on research room hours at Archives II.)
    The days for 9 p.m. closing of the research rooms were chosen to 
include days when other research facilities, including the Library of 
Congress, do not have evening hours. To further minimize the impact of 
the changed hours on researchers in the Central and Microfilm Research 
Rooms, NARA will not invoke the 36 CFR 1254.12(a) provision that 
researchers must return records up to 15 minutes before closing time in 
those research rooms.
    This rule is not a significant regulatory action for the purposes 
of Executive Order 12866 of September 30, 1993 and it has not been 
reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget. As required by the 
Regulatory Flexibility Act, it is hereby certified that this proposed 
rule will not have a significant impact on small entities.

List of Subjects in 36 CFR Part 1253

    Archives and records.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, chapter XII of title 36, 
Code of Federal Regulations, is amended as follows:

PART 1253--LOCATION OF RECORDS AND HOURS OF USE

    1. The authority citation for part 1253 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 44 U.S.C. 2104(a).

    2. Section 1253.1 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 1253.1  National Archives Building.

    The National Archives Building is located at Seventh Street and 
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20408. Hours: For the Central 
Research Room and Microfilm Research Room, 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday 
and Wednesday; 8:45 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday; 8:45 
a.m. to 4:45 p.m. on Saturday. For other research rooms, 8:45 a.m. to 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday.

    Dated: February 7, 1994.
Trudy Huskamp Peterson,
Acting Archivist of the United States.
[FR Doc. 94-3362 Filed 2-11-94; 8:45 am]
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