    [Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 109th Congress]
    [109th Congress]
    [House Document 108-241]
    [Rules of the House of Representatives]
    [Pages 399-403]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                    Rule VII

    Archiving
                              records of the house

    695. 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 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
    under 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 under clause 1,
    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 any order of
    the House.
    Public availability

    [[Page 400]]

    able for public use, subject to clause 4(b) and any order of the House.
      3. (a) The Clerk shall authorize the Archivist to make records
    delivered under clause 2 avail

      (b)(1) A record shall immediately be made available if it was
    previously made available for public use by the House or a committee or
    a subcommittee.

      (2) An investigative record that contains personal data relating to a
    specific living person (the disclosure of which would be an unwarranted
    invasion of personal privacy), an administrative record relating to
    personnel, or a record relating to a hearing that was closed under
    clause 2(g)(2) of rule XI shall be made available if it has been in
    existence for 50 years.

      (3) A 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, a
    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) A record (other than a record referred to in subparagraph (1),
    (2), or (3)) shall be made available if it has been in existence for 30
    years.

    [[Page 401]]

    Clerk shall notify in writing the chairman and ranking minority member
    of the Committee on House Administration of any such determination.
      4. (a) A record may not be made available for public use under clause
    3 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

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

      5. (a) This rule does not supersede rule VIII or clause 11 of rule X
    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 Administration 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
    under this rule. Such a withdrawal shall be on a temporary basis and for
    official use of the committee.
    Definition of record

      6. In this rule the term ``record'' means any official, permanent
    record of the House (other than a record of an individual Member,
    Delegate, or Resident Commissioner), including--

    [[Page 402]]

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

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

      Before the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, clauses 1
    through 6 were found in former rule XXXVI (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p.
    47). That rule was adopted initially in 1880 (V, 7260). Clause 2 (which
    derived from section 140(a) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of
    1946 (60 Stat. 812)) was added in the 83d Congress when the rule was
    also renumbered (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1953, p. 24). It was amended on
    January 22, 1971 (p. 144). It was again amended in the 99th Congress to
    change the reference from the General Services Administration to the
    National Archives and Records Administration (H. Res. 114, Oct. 14,
    1986, p. 30821). The rule 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). Clerical corrections were effected to reflect
    changes in the name of the Committee on House Administration in the
    104th and 106th Congresses (sec. 202(b), H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p.
    467; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47). Clerical corrections were effected
    in the 107th Congress to correct cross references (sec. 2(x), H. Res. 5,
    Jan. 3, 2001, p. 24).

    Withdrawal of papers
      The Clerk has historically been authorized to permit the Administrator
    of General Services (now Archivist) to make available for use certain
    records of the House transferred to the National Archives (H. Res. 288,
    June 16, 1953, p. 6641). Under this rule, an order of the House is
    required for the release of noncurrent records of the House (Mar. 22,
    1991, p. 7549).

    [[Page 403]]

    porarily to an officer or bureau of the executive departments any papers
    on file in his office relating to any matter pending before such officer
    or bureau, taking proper receipt therefor.

    696. Custody of papers in the files of the House.

      7.  A
    memorial or other paper presented to the House may not be withdrawn from
    its files without its leave. If withdrawn certified copies thereof shall
    be left in the Office of the Clerk. When an act passes for the
    settlement of a claim, the Clerk may transmit to the officer charged
    with the settlement thereof the papers on file in his office relating to
    such claim. The Clerk may lend tem

      Before the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, this
    provision was found in former rule XXXVII (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p.
    47). It was adopted initially in 1873 and amended in 1880 (V, 7256). It
    was renumbered January 3, 1953 (p. 24).

      The House usually allows the withdrawal of papers only in cases where
    there has been no adverse report. As the rules for the order of business
    give no place to the motion to withdraw, it is made by unanimous consent
    (V, 7259). The House formerly adopted a privileged resolution at the
    beginning of each Congress authorizing the Clerk to furnish certified
    copies of certain types of House papers subpoenaed by courts upon
    determination of relevancy by the court, but not permitting production
    of executive session papers or transfer of original papers (Jan. 3,
    1973, p. 30).

      See rule VIII, infra for current procedure for response to subpoenas
    for papers of the House.