Sample Chapter Format - NIH Manual Chapters

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NIH MANUAL {chapter number} Page {}
Date: {MM/DD/YY}
Replaces: {}
Issuing Office & Phone: {Organization ACRONYM} {phone number}

{CHAPTER TITLE}

PURPOSE:

BACKGROUND:

POLICY:

REFERENCES:

DEFINITIONS:

RESPONSIBILITIES:

PROCEDURES:

RECORDS RETENTION AND DISPOSAL: All records (e-mail and non-e-mail) pertaining to this chapter must be retained and disposed of under the authority of NIH Manual 1743, "Keeping and Destroying Records, Appendix 1, "NIH Records Control Schedule," Item {insert as appropriate or check with your IC Records Officer}.
NIH e-mail messages. NIH e-mail messages (messages, including attachments, that are created on NIH computer systems or transmitted over NIH networks) that are evidence of the activities of the agency or have informational value are considered Federal records. These records must be maintained in accordance with current NIH Records Management guidelines. Contact your IC Records Officer for additional information.

All e-mail messages are considered Government property, and, if requested for a legitimate Government purpose, must be provided to the requester. Employees' supervisors, NIH staff conducting official reviews or investigations, and the Office of Inspector General may request access to or copies of the e-mail messages. E-mail messages must also be provided to Congressional oversight committees if requested and are subject to Freedom of Information Act requests. Since most e-mail systems have back-up files that are retained for significant periods of time, e-mail messages and attachments are likely to be retrievable from a back-up file after they have been deleted from an individual's computer. The back-up files are subject to the same requests as the original messages.

MANAGEMENT CONTROLS: The purpose of this manual issuance is to {describe purpose}.

1. Office Responsible for Reviewing Management Controls Relative to this Chapter (Issuing Office):

{List the issuing office and any other offices that will share responsibility for coordinating the review procedure to ensure appropriate management controls are in place for this chapter. If an office outside of the issuing office is given responsibility for reviewing management controls, the issuing office must have documentation of the other office's concurrence.}

2. Frequency of Review (in years):

{State how often the review will be required. This will be dependent on the level of risk posed if the chapter were not accurately followed. The preferred option is to have controls "built into" automated systems so there is an ongoing control/reporting capability. (Issuing component should confer with OMA in developing the review schedule.)}

3. Method of Review:

{Choose the type of review that most appropriately applies, e.g., if a Management Control Review (MCR) has recently been completed and it covers the same areas for which the manual chapter provides guidance, choose the first option.}

__ Management Control Review (list title):
_____________________________

{For areas that will be reviewed as part of a scheduled NIH MCR.}

__ Alternative Review (conducted by an outside source, e.g., OIG/GAO: you must describe who will/did conduct the review and how it will/did relate to the management controls of the chapter)
_____________________________

{This would include reviews by reviews by other NIH components. Issuing components should confer with OMA for additional guidance.}

__ Other Review (describe):
_____________________________

{This would include reviews not included in either of the above categories. For example, an issuing component may decide to initiate an internal Risk Assessment. If the findings of the assessment were low risk, no additional review would be required; however, if the findings indicate a medium or high risk, a 1-3 year follow-up review would be appropriate. Some areas may not lend themselves to the Risk Assessment format. For example, in areas where the chapter covers a low inherent risk - i.e., even without the chapter's guidelines, there is little risk of waste, loss, unauthorized use, misappropriation of funds, or risk to human life - the issuing component may wish to have a users workgroup do a short review of the area, resulting in a one-page summary of the findings. Issuing components should confer with OMA for additional guidance.}

4. Review Reports are sent to: _______________________________

{Reports are sent to the NIH senior official responsible for the area covered by the manual, i.e., Deputy Director for Management (DDM) for management/general administration, Deputy Director for Extramural Research (DDER) for extramural research, Deputy Director for Intramural Research (DDIR) for intramural research, NIH Chief Information Officer for information technology policy, or Director of Human Resources, NIH, for human resource policy. A copy of all review reports must also be forwarded to the DDM. If a chapter review covers more than one of these areas, a copy of the report is sent to the senior official for each of these areas.}

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