    [Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 104th Congress]
    [104th Congress]
    [House Document 103-342]
    [Rules of the House of Representatives]
    [Pages 762-765]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 762]]

                                   Rule XXXVI.

        PRESERVATION AND AVAILABILITY OF NONCURRENT RECORDS OF THE HOUSE.

    Sec. 932. Duties of clerk and committees as to
    custody of papers before committees.

      1. (a) At the  end of each Congress, the
    chairman of each committee of the House shall transfer to the Clerk any
    noncurrent records of such committee, including the subcommittees
    thereof.

      (b) At the end of each Congress, each officer of the House elected
    pursuant to rule II shall transfer to the Clerk any noncurrent records
    made or acquired in the course of the duties of such officer.

      2. The Clerk shall deliver the records transferred pursuant to clause
    1 of the rule, together with any other noncurrent records of the House,
    to the Archivist of the United States for preservation at the National
    Archives and Records Administration. Records so delivered are the
    permanent property of the House and remain subject to this rule and the
    orders of the House.

      3. (a) Subject to paragraph (b) of the clause, clause 4 of this rule,
    and orders of the House, the Clerk shall authorize the Archivist of the
    United States to make available for public use the records delivered to
    the Archivist under clause 2 of this rule.

    [[Page 763]]
    2 of this rule shall be made available immediately.
      (b)(1) Any record that the House or a committee of the House (or a
    subcommittee thereof) makes available for public use before such record
    is delivered to the Archivist under clause

      (2) Any investigative record that contains personal data relating to a
    specific living individual (the disclosure of which would be an
    unwarranted invasion of personal privacy), any administrative record
    with respect to personnel, and any record with respect to a hearing
    closed pursuant to clause 2(g)(2) of rule XI shall be available if such
    record has been in existence for 50 years.

      (3) Any record for which a time, schedule, or condition for
    availability is specified by order of the House shall be made available
    in accordance with that order. Except as otherwise provided by order of
    the House, any record of a committee for which a time, schedule, or
    condition for availability is specified by order of the committee
    (entered during the Congress in which the record is made or acquired by
    the committee) shall be made available in accordance with the order of
    the committee.

      (4) Any record (other than a record referred to in subparagraph (1),
    (2), or (3) of this paragraph) shall be made available if such record
    has been in existence for 30 years.

    [[Page 764]]
    mittee on House Oversight of any determination under the preceding
    sentence.
      4. (a) A record shall not be made available for public use under
    clause 3 of this rule if the Clerk determines that such availability
    would be detrimental to the public interest or inconsistent with the
    rights and privileges of the House. The Clerk shall notify in writing
    the chairman and the ranking minority party Member of the Com

      (b) A determination of the Clerk under paragraph (a) is subject to
    later order of the House and, in the case of a record of a committee,
    later order of the committee.

      5. (a) This rule does not supersede rule XLVIII or rule L and does not
    authorize the public disclosure of any record if such disclosure is
    prohibited by law or executive order of the President.

      (b) The Committee on House Oversight may prescribe guidelines and
    regulations governing the applicability and implementation of this rule.

      (c) A committee may withdraw from the National Archives and Records
    Administration any record of the committee delivered to the Archivist of
    the United States under this rule. Such withdrawal shall be on a
    temporary basis and for official use of the committee.

      6. As used in the rule the term ``record'' means any official,
    permanent record of the House, including--

              (a) with respect to a committee of the House, an official,
    permanent record of the committee (including any record of a
    legislative, oversight, or other activity of such committee or
    subcommittee thereof); and

    [[Page 765]]
    term does not include a record of an individual Member of the House.

              (b) with respect to an officer of the House elected pursuant
    to rule II, an official, permanent record made or acquired in the course
    of the duties of such officer. Such

      The predecessor to this provision was adopted in 1880 (V, 7260). The
    rule was renumbered in the 83d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1953, p.
    24), and was rewritten entirely in the 101st Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan.
    3, 1989, p. 73) to incorporate the provisions of H. Res. 419 as reported
    from the Committee on Rules in the 100th Congress (H. Rept. 100-1054).
    In the 104th Congress it was amended to reflect the new name of the
    Committee on House Oversight (sec. 202(b), H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p.
    ----).

      Clause 2 of the former provision stemmed from section 140(a) of the
    Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (60 Stat. 812) and was made a
    part of the standing rules January 3, 1953 (p. 24) and amended January
    22, 1971 (p. 144). The Clerk of the House has historically been
    authorized to permit the Administrator of General Services to make
    available for use certain records of the House transferred to the
    National Archives (H. Res. 288, June 16, 1953, p. 6641). In the 99th
    Congress the reference was changed from the General Services
    Administration to the National Archives and Records Administration (H.
    Res. 114, Oct. 14, 1986, p. 30821).

      Under rule XXXVI, an order of the House is required for the release of
    noncurrent records of the House (Mar. 22, 1991, p. ----).