section_id,title_number,title_name,chapter,subchapter,part_number,part_name,subpart,subpart_name,section_number,section_heading,agency,authority,source_citation,amendment_citations,full_text 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.101 Scope.,DNFSB,,,,"This part contains the Board's regulations implementing the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.10,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.110 Requests for classified records.,DNFSB,,,,"The Board may at any time be in possession of classified records and Unclassified Controlled Nuclear Information (UCNI) received from the Department of Energy or other federal agencies. The Board shall refer requests under § 1703.105 for such records or information to the Department of Energy or other originating agency without making an independent determination as to the releasability of such documents. The Board shall refer requests for classified records in a manner consistent with Executive Order 12356, “National Security Information,” 3 CFR, 1982 Comp., p. 166, or any superseding Executive Order. The Board shall refer requests for UCNI in a manner consistent with 42 U.S.C. 2168 and the Department of Energy's implementing regulations in 10 CFR part 1017 or any successor regulations." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.11,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.111 Requests for privileged treatment of documents submitted to the board.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Scope. Any person submitting a document to the Board may request privileged treatment by claiming that some or all of the information contained in the document is exempt from the mandatory public disclosure requirements of FOIA and should otherwise be withheld from public disclosure. (b) Procedures. A person claiming that information is privileged under paragraph (a) of this section must file: (1) An application, accompanied by an affidavit, requesting privileged treatment for some or all of the information in a document, and stating the justification for nondisclosure of the information and addressing the factors set forth in paragraph (e) of this section; (2) The original document, boldly indicating on the front page “Contains Privileged Information—Do Not Release” and identifying within the document the information for which the privileged treatment is sought; (3) Three copies of the redacted document ( i.e., without the information for which privileged treatment is sought) and with a statement indicating that information has been removed for privileged treatment; and (4) The name, title, address, telephone number, and telecopy information of the person or persons to be contacted regarding the request for privileged treatment of documents submitted to the Board. (c) Effect of privilege claim. (1) The Designated FOIA Officer shall place documents for which privileged treatment is sought in accordance with paragraph (b) of this section in a nonpublic file, while the request for confidential treatment is pending. By placing documents in a nonpublic file, the Board is not making a determination on any claim for privilege. The Board retains the right to make determinations with regard to any claim of privilege, and the discretion to release information as necessary to carry out its responsibilities. (2) The Designated FOIA Officer shall place the request for privileged treatment described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section and a copy of the redacted document described in paragraph (b)(3) of this section in a public file while the request for privileged treatment is pending. (d) Notification of request and opportunity to comment. When a FOIA requester seeks a document for which privilege is claimed, the Designated FOIA Officer shall so notify the person who submitted the document and give that person an opportunity (at least five days) in which to comment in writing on the request. A copy of this notice shall be sent to the FOIA requester. (e) Factors to be considered by Board. In determining whether to grant the document privileged status and to deny the request for the document the Board shall consider: (1) Whether the information has been held in confidence by its owner; (2) Whether the information is of a type customarily held in confidence by its owner and whether there is a rational basis therefor; (3) Whether the information was transmitted to and received by the Board in confidence; (4) Whether the information is available in public sources; and (5) Whether public disclosure of the information sought to be withheld is likely to cause substantial harm to the competitive position of the owner of the information, taking into account the value of the information to the owner; the amount of effort or money, if any, expended by the owner in developing the information; and the ease or difficulty with which the information could be properly acquired or duplicated by others. (f) Notification before release. Notice of a decision by the Designated FOIA Officer to deny a claim of privilege, in whole or in part, shall be given to any person claiming that information is privileged no less than five days before public disclosure. The decision shall be made only after consultation with the General Counsel's Office. The notice shall briefly explain why the person's objections to disclosure were not sustained. A copy of this notice shall be sent to the FOIA requester. (g) Notification of suit in Federal courts. When a FOIA requester brings suit to compel disclosure of confidential commercial information, the Board shall notify the person who submitted documents containing such confidential commercial information of the suit." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.12,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.112 Computation of time.,DNFSB,,,,"In computing any period of time under this part, the day of the Board's action is not included. The last day of the period is included unless it is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, in which case the period runs until the end of the next working day. Whenever a person has the right or is required to take some action within a prescribed period after notification by the Board and the notification is made by mail, five days shall be added to the prescribed period. Only two days shall be added when a notification is made by express mail." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,"§ 1703.102 Definitions; words denoting number, gender and tense.",DNFSB,,,,"Agency record is a record in the possession and control of the Board that is associated with Board business. Agency records do not include records such as: (1) Publicly available books, periodicals, or other publications that are owned or copyrighted by non-federal sources; (2) Records solely in the possession and control of Board contractors; (3) Personal records in the possession of Board personnel that have not been circulated, were not required by the Board to be created or retained, and may be retained or discarded at the author's sole discretion. In determining whether such records are agency records the Board shall consider whether, and to what extent, the records were used in agency business; (4) Records of a personal nature that are not associated with any Board business; or (5) Non-substantive information in the calendar or schedule books of the Chairman or Members, uncirculated except for typing or recording purposes. Board means the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. Chairman means the Chairman of the Board. Designated FOIA Officer means the person designated by the Board to administer the Board's activities pursuant to the regulations in this part. The Designated FOIA Officer shall also be the Board officer having custody of or responsibility for agency records in the possession of the Board and shall be the Board officer responsible for authorizing or denying production of records upon requests filed pursuant to § 1703.105. General Counsel means the chief legal officer of the Board. General Manager means the chief administrative officer of the Board. Member means a Member of the Board. In determining the meaning of any provision of this part, unless the context indicates otherwise: the singular includes the plural; the plural includes the singular; the present tense includes the future tense; and words of one gender include the other gender." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.103 Requests for agency records available through the electronic reading room.,DNFSB,,,"[56 FR 21261, May 8, 1991, as amended at 62 FR 66815, Dec. 22, 1997; 82 FR 30723, July 3, 2017]","(a) The DNFSB will maintain an electronic reading room on its public Web site at https://www.dnfsb.gov / foia-reading-room . Records may be obtained by accessing and downloading them from the electronic reading room. The electronic reading room is intended to provide easy accessibility to a substantial collection of the agency's records. The agency considers the records available through its electronic reading room to have been placed in the public domain. (b) The public records of the agency that are available in the electronic reading room or through links from the electronic reading room include: (1) The Board's rules and regulations; (2) Statements of policy adopted by the Board. (3) Board recommendations; the Secretary of Energy's response, any final decision, and implementation plans regarding Board recommendations; and interested person's comments, data, views, or arguments to the Board concerning its recommendations and the Secretary of Energy's response and final decision; (4) Transcripts of public hearings and any Board correspondence related thereto; (5) Recordings or transcripts of Board meetings that were closed under 10 CFR part 1704, where the Board subsequently determines under 10 CFR 1704.9 that the recordings or transcripts may be made publicly available; (6) Board orders, decisions, notices, and other actions in a public hearing; (7) Board correspondence, except that which is exempt from mandatory public disclosure under § 1703.104; (8) Copies of the filings, certifications, pleadings, records, briefs, orders, judgments, decrees, and mandates in court proceedings to which the Board is a party and the correspondence with the courts or clerks of court; (9) Those of the Board's Administrative Directives that affect members of the public; (10) Index of the documents identified in this section, but not including drafts thereof; and (11) Annual reports to Congress in which the Board's operations during a past fiscal year are described. (12) Copies of records released pursuant to FOIA requests, along with an index to these records. The format will generally be the same as the format of the released records." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.4,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.104 [Reserved],DNFSB,,,, 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.5,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.105 Requests for board records not available through the public reading room (FOIA requests).,DNFSB,,,"[56 FR 21261, May 8, 1991, as amended at 62 FR 66815, Dec. 22, 1997]","(a) Upon the request of any person, the Board shall make available for public inspection and copying any reasonably described agency record in the possession and control of the Board, but not available through the Public Reading Room, subject to the provisions of this part. If a member of the public files a request with the Board under the FOIA for records that the Board determines are available through the Public Reading Room, the Board will treat the request under the simplified procedures of § 1703.103. (b)(1) A person may request access to Board records that are not available through the Public Reading Room by using the following procedures: (i) The request must be in writing and must describe the records requested to enable Board personnel to locate them with a reasonable amount of effort. Where possible, specific information regarding dates, titles, file designations, and other information which may help identify the records should be supplied by the requester, including the names and titles of any Board personnel who have been contacted regarding the request prior to the submission of the written request. (ii) A request for all records falling within a reasonably specific and well-defined category shall be regarded as conforming to the statutory requirement that records be reasonably described. The request must enable the Board to identify and locate the records by a process that is not unreasonably burdensome or disruptive of Board operations. (2) The request should be addressed to the Designated FOIA Officer and clearly marked “Freedom of Information Act Request.” The address for such requests is: Designated FOIA Officer, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW., suite 700, Washington, DC 20004. For purposes of calculating the time for response to the request under § 1703.108, the request shall not be deemed to have been received until it is in the possession of the Designated FOIA Officer or his designee. (3) The request must include: (i) A statement by the requester of a willingness to pay the fee applicable under § 1703.107(b), or to pay that fee not to exceed a specific amount, or (ii) A request for waiver or reduction of fees. (4) No request shall be deemed to have been received until the Board has: (i) Received a statement of willingness to pay, as indicated in § 1703.105(b)(3)(i), or (ii) Received and approved a request for waiver or reduction of fees. However, the FOIA request shall be deemed to have been received if the request for waiver or reduction of fees includes a statement of willingness to pay the fee anticipated to be incurred in processing the request under this section, or to pay that fee not to exceed a specific amount, should the request for fee waiver or reduction be denied. (c) with respect to records in the files of the Board that have been obtained from other federal agencies: (1) Where the record originated in another federal agency, the Designated FOIA Officer shall refer the request to that agency and so inform the requester, unless the originating agency agrees to direct release by the Board. (2) Requests for Board records containing information received from another agency, or records prepared jointly by the Board and other agencies, shall be treated as requests for Board records. The Designated FOIA Officer shall, however, coordinate with the appropriate official of the other agency. The notice of determination to the requester, in the event part or all of the record is recommended for denial by the other agency, shall cite the other agency Denying Official as well as the Designated FOIA Officer if a denial by the Board is also involved. (d) If a request does not reasonably describe the records sought, as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, the Board response shall specify the reasons why the request failed to meet those requirements and shall offer the requester the opportunity to confer with knowledgeable Board personnel in an attempt to restate the request. If additional information is needed from the requester to render records reasonably described, any restated request submitted by the requester shall be treated as an initial request for purposes of calculating the time for response under § 1703.108. (e)(1) Expedited processing. A person may request expedited processing of an FOIA request when a compelling need for the requested records has been shown. “Compelling need” means: (i) Circumstances in which the lack of expedited treatment could reasonably be expected to pose an imminent threat to the life or physical safety of an individual; (ii) An urgency to inform the public about an actual or alleged Federal Government activity, if the request is made by a person primarily engaged in disseminating information; or (iii) The records pertain to an immediate source of risk to the public health and safety or worker safety at a defense nuclear facility under the Board's jurisdiction. (2) A requester seeking expedited processing should so indicate in the initial request, and should state all facts supporting the need to obtain the requested records rapidly. The requester must also state that these facts are true and correct to the best of the requester's knowledge and belief. (3) When a request for expedited processing is received, the Board will respond within ten calendar days from the date of receipt of the request, stating whether or not the request has been granted. If the request for expedited processing is denied, any appeal of that decision will be acted upon expeditiously." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.6,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.106 Requests for waiver or reduction of fees.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The Board shall collect fees for record requests made under § 1703.105, as provided in § 1703.107(b), unless a requester submits a request in writing for a waiver or reduction of fees. The Designated FOIA Officer shall make a determination on a fee waiver or reduction request within five working days of the request coming into his possession. No determination shall be made that a fee waiver or reduction request should be denied, until the Designated FOIA Officer has consulted with the General Counsel's Office. If the determination is made that the written request for a waiver or reduction of fees does not meet the requirements of this section, the Designated FOIA Officer shall inform the requester that the request for waiver or reduction of fees is being denied and set forth his appeal rights under § 1703.109. (b) A person requesting the board to waive or reduce search, review, or duplication fees shall: (1) Describe the purpose for which the requester intends to use the requested information; (2) Explain the extent to which the requester will extract and analyze the substantive content of the agency record; (3) Describe the nature of the specific activity or research in which the agency records will be used and the specific qualifications the requester possesses to utilize information for the intended use in such a way that it will contribute to public understanding; (4) Describe the likely impact of disclosure of the requested records on the public's understanding of the subject as compared to the level of understanding of the subject existing prior to disclosure; (5) Describe the size and nature of the public to whose understanding a contribution will be made; (6) Describe the intended means of dissemination to the general public; (7) Indicate if public access to information will be provided free of charge or provided for an access or publication fee; and (8) Describe any commercial or private interest the requester or any other party has in the agency records sought. (c) The Board shall waive or reduce fees, without further specific information from the requester if, from information provided with the request for agency records made under § 1703.105, it can determine that disclosure of the information in the agency records is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the Government and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester. (d) In making a determination regarding a request for a waiver or reduction of fees, the Board shall consider the following factors: (1) Whether the subject of the requested agency records concerns the operations or activities of the Government; (2) Whether disclosure of the information is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of Government operations or activities; (3) Whether, and the extent to which, the requester has a commercial interest that would be furthered by the disclosure of the requested agency records; and (4) Whether the magnitude of the identified commercial interest of the requester is sufficiently large, in comparison with the public interest in disclosure, that disclosure is primarily in the commercial interest of the requester." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.7,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.107 Fees for record requests.,DNFSB,,,"[56 FR 21261, May 8, 1991, as amended at 62 FR 66816, Dec. 22, 1997; 82 FR 30723, July 3, 2017; 89 FR 73260, Sept. 10, 2024]","(a) Fees for records available through the Public Reading Room. (1) With the exception of copies of transcripts of Board public hearings addressed in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, the fees charged shall be limited to costs of duplication of the requested records. The Board shall either duplicate the requested records or have them duplicated by a commercial contractor. If the Board duplicates the records, it shall not charge the requester for the associated labor costs. A schedule of fees for this duplication service shall be prescribed in accordance with paragraph (b)(6) of this section. A person may obtain a copy of the schedule of fees in person or by mail from the Public Reading Room. There shall be no charge for responses consisting of ten or fewer pages. (2) Transcripts of Board public hearings are made by private contractors. Interested persons may obtain copies of public hearing transcripts from the contractor at prices set in the contract, or through the duplication service noted in paragraph (a) of this section, if the particular contract so permits. Copies of the contracts shall be available for public inspection in the Public Reading Room. (3) Requests for certification of copies of official Board records must be accompanied by a fee of $5.00 per document. Inquiries and orders may be made to the Public Reading Room in person or by mail. (b) Fees for records not available through the Public Reading Room (FOIA requests). (1) Definitions. For the purpose of paragraph (b) of this section: Commercial use request means a request from or on behalf of one who seeks information for a use or purpose that furthers commercial, trade, or profit interests as these phrases are commonly known or have been interpreted by the courts in the context of the FOIA; Direct costs mean those expenditures which DNFSB incurs in search, review, and duplication, as applicable to different categories of requesters, to respond to requests under § 1703.105. Direct costs include, for example, the hourly salary and projected benefits costs of agency personnel who search for, review, or duplicate records in response to a request. Overhead expenses such as cost of space, and heating or lighting the facility in which DNFSB records are stored are not included in direct costs. Educational institution refers to a preschool, a public or private elementary or secondary school, an institution of graduate higher education, an institution of undergraduate higher education, an institution of professional education, and an institution of vocational education, which operates a program of scholarly research; Noncommercial scientific institution refers to an institution that is not operated on a commercial basis and which is operated solely for the purpose of conducting scientific research the results of which are not intended to promote any particular product or industry; Representative of the news media refers to any person actively gathering news for an entity that is organized and operated to publish or broadcast news to the public. The term news means information that is about current events or that would be of current interest to the public. Examples of news media entities include television or radio stations broadcasting to the public at large, and publishers of periodicals (but only in those instances when the periodicals can qualify as disseminations of “news”) who make their products available for purchase or subscription by the general public. These examples are not intended to be all-inclusive. Moreover, as traditional methods of news delivery evolve (e.g., electronic dissemination of newspapers through telecommunications services), such alternative media may be included in this category. A “freelance” journalist may be regarded as working for a news organization if the journalist can demonstrate a solid basis for expecting publication through that organization, even though the journalist is not actually employed by the news organization. A publication contract would be the clearest proof, but the Board may also look to the past publication record of a requester in making this determination. (2) Fees. (i) If documents are requested for commercial use, DNFSB shall charge the hourly salary and projected benefits costs of agency personnel who search for and review records in response to a request, and for the costs of duplication as set out in subsection (b)(6) of this section. (ii) If documents are not sought for commercial use and the request is made by an educational or noncommercial scientific institution, whose purpose is scholarly or scientific research, or a representative of the news media, DNFSB's charges shall be limited to the direct costs of duplication as set out in subsection (b)(6) of this section. There shall be no charge for the first 100 pages of duplication. (iii) For a request not described in paragraphs (b)(2) (i) or (ii) of this section, DNFSB shall charge the hourly salary and projected benefits costs of the agency's personnel who search for records in response to a request and the direct costs of duplication as set out in subsection (b)(6) of this section. There shall be no charge for document review time, and the first 100 pages of reproduction and the first two hours of search time will be provided without charge. (iv) The Board will not assess any fees if it has failed to meet its deadlines in § 1703.108. (v) The Board, or its designee, may establish minimum fees below which no charges will be collected, if it determines that the costs of routine collection and processing of the fees are likely to equal or exceed the amount of the fees. If total fees determined by the Board for a FOIA request would be less than the appropriate threshold, the Board shall not charge the requesters. (vi) Payment of fees must be by check or money order made payable to the U.S. Treasury. (vii) Requesters may not file multiple requests at the same time, each seeking portions of a document or documents, solely in order to avoid payment of fees. When the Board reasonably believes that a requester, or a group of requesters acting in concert, is attempting to break a request down into a series of requests for the purpose of evading assessment of fees, the Board may aggregate any such requests and charge the requester accordingly. The Board shall not, however, aggregate multiple requests on unrelated subjects from a requester. (viii) Whenever the Board estimates that duplication or search costs are likely to exceed $25, it shall notify the requester of the estimated costs, unless the requester has indicated in advance his willingness to pay fees as high as those anticipated. Such a notice shall offer the requester an opportunity to confer with the Board personnel with the object of reformulating the request to meet the requester's needs at a lower cost. (3) Fees for unsuccessful search. The Board may assess charges for time spent searching, even if it fails to locate the records, or if records located are determined to be exempt from disclosure. (4) Advance payments. (i) If the Board estimates or determines that allowable charges that a requester may be required to pay are likely to exceed $250, the Board shall notify such requester of the estimated cost and either require satisfactory assurance of full payment where the requester has a history of prompt payment of fees, or require advance payment of the charges if a requester has no payment history. (ii) If a requester has previously failed to pay a fee charged in a timely fashion, the Board shall require the requester to pay the full amount owed plus any applicable interest, and to make an advance payment of the full amount of the estimated fee before the Board will begin to process a new request or a pending request from that requester. (iii) When the Board requires advance payment under this paragraph, the administrative time limits prescribed in § 1703.108(b) will begin only after the Board has received the fee payments. (5) Debt collection. The Board itself may endeavor to collect unpaid FOIA fees, or may refer unpaid FOIA invoices to the General Services Administration, or other federal agency performing financial management services for the Board, for collection. (6) Schedule of Fees. To the extent authorized by these regulations, DNFSB is authorized to seek the following fees to recover costs incurred in responding to FOIA requests: (i) Document search charges —(A) Manual: Salary rate(s) (basic hourly pay plus 16%) of personnel performing records search or review. (B) Electronic: Salary rate(s) (basic hourly pay plus 16%) of personnel performing search or review. (C) Document Review Charges: Salary rate(s) (basic hourly pay plus 16%) of personnel performing search or review. (iii) Commercial requests. DNFSB will charge requesters who seek records for commercial purposes for the cost of reviewing them to determine whether they are exempt from mandatory disclosure. The agency will assess these charges only when the records are first analyzed to determine the applicability of a specific exemption to a record or portion thereof. DNFSB will not charge for the review of an exemption previously applied at the administrative review level. If a record or portion thereof was withheld in full under an exemption that is subsequently found inapplicable, it may be reviewed again to determine the applicability of other exemptions not previously considered. DNFSB may charge for the cost of such review. (iv) Copying charges. ( 1 ) Paper: $.05 per page, if done in-house, or generally available commercial rate, approximately $0.10 per page. ( 2 ) Electronic media: Direct cost, including operator time (basic hourly pay plus 16%). ( 3 ) Audio and video cassette: Actual commercial rates. ( 4 ) Duplication of CD or DVD: Direct cost, including operator time (basic hourly pay plus 16%). ( 5 ) Large documents, e.g., maps or diagrams: Actual commercial rates." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.8,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.108 Processing of FOIA requests.,DNFSB,,,"[56 FR 21261, May 8, 1991, as amended at 62 FR 66816, Dec. 22, 1997]","(a) Where a request complies with § 1703.105 as to specificity and statement of willingness to pay or request for fee waiver or reduction, the Designated FOIA Officer shall acknowledge receipt of the request and commence processing of the request. The Designated FOIA Officer shall prepare a written response: (1) Granting the request, (2) Denying the request, (3) Granting or denying it in part, (4) Stating that the request has been referred to another agency under § 1703.105, or (5) Informing the requester that responsive records cannot be located or do not exist. (b) Action pursuant to this section to provide access to requested records shall be taken within twenty working days. This time period may be extended up to ten additional working days, in unusual circumstances, by written notice to the requester. If the Board will be unable to satisfy the request in this additional period of time, the requester will be so notified and given the opportunity to— (1) Limit the scope of the request so that it can be processed within the time limit, or (2) Arrange with the Designated FOIA Officer an alternative time frame for processing the original request or a modified request. (c) For purposes of this section and § 1703.109, the term unusual circumstances may include but is not limited to the following: (1) The need to search for and collect the requested records from field facilities or other establishments that are separate from the Board's Washington, DC offices: (2) The need to search for, collect and appropriately examine a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records which may be responsive to a single request; or (3) The need for consultation, which shall be conducted with all practicable speed, with another agency pursuant to § 1703.105(d). (d) If no determination has been made at the end of the ten day period, or the last extension thereof, the requester may deem his administrative remedies to have been exhausted, giving rise to a right of review in a district court of the United States as specified in 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4). When no determination can be made within the applicable time limit, the Board will nevertheless continue to process the request. If the Board is unable to provide a response within the statutory period, the Designated FOIA Officer shall inform the requester of the reason for the delay; the date on which a determination may be expected to be made; and that the requester can seek remedy through the courts, but shall ask the requester to forgo such action until a determination is made. (e) Nothing in this part shall preclude the Designated FOIA Officer and a requester from agreeing to an extension of time for the initial determination on a request. Any such agreement shall be confirmed in writing and shall clearly specify the total time agreed upon. (f) The procedure for appeal of denial of a request for Board records is set forth in § 1703.109." 10:10:5.0.5.5.2.0.46.9,10,Energy,XVII,,1703,PART 1703—PUBLIC INFORMATION AND REQUESTS,,,,§ 1703.109 Procedure for appeal of denial of requests for board records and denial of requests for fee waiver or reduction.,DNFSB,,,"[56 FR 21261, May 8, 1991, as amended at 82 FR 30723, July 3, 2017]","(a)(1) A person whose request for access to records in whole or in part may appeal that determination to the General Counsel within 90 days of the determination. A person denied a fee waiver or reduction may appeal that determination to the General Counsel within 30 days. The person may also seek assistance from the FOIA Public Liaison of the agency. Appeals filed pursuant to this section must be in writing, directed to the General Counsel at the address indicated in § 1703.105(b)(2), and clearly marked “Freedom of Information Act Appeal.” Such an appeal received by the Board not addressed and marked as indicated in this paragraph will be so addressed and marked by Board personnel as soon as it is properly identified and then will be forwarded to the General Counsel. (2) The General Counsel shall make a determination with respect to any appeal within 20 working days after the receipt of such appeal. If, on appeal, the denial of the request for records or fee reduction is in whole or in part upheld, the General Counsel shall notify the person making such request of the provisions for judicial review of that determination. (3) The requestor may request that the FOIA Public Liaison refer the denial to be reviewed through dispute resolution services or may request the Office of Government Information Services within the National Archives and Records Administration to review the denial. (b) In unusual circumstances, as defined in § 1703.108(c), the time limits prescribed for deciding an appeal pursuant to this section may be extended by up to ten working days, by the General Counsel, who will send written notice to the requester setting forth the reasons for such extension and the expected determination date." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.1 Applicability.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) This part implements the provisions of the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. 552b). These procedures apply to meetings, as defined herein, of the Members of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (Board). The Board may waive the provisions set forth in this part to the extent authorized by law. (b) Requests for all documents other than the transcripts, recordings, and minutes described in § 1704.8 shall be governed by Board regulations pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552)." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.10,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.10 Severability.,DNFSB,,,,"If any provision of this part or the application of such provision to any person or circumstances, is held invalid, the remainder of this part or the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid, shall not be affected thereby." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.11,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.11 Nonpublic collaborative discussions.,DNFSB,,,"[86 FR 48296, Aug. 30, 2021]","(a) In general. Notwithstanding the other requirements of this part, a quorum of Members may hold a meeting that is not open to public observation to discuss official business of the Board if— (1) No formal or informal vote or other official action is taken at the meeting; (2) Each individual present at the meeting is a Member or an employee of the Board; (3) At least one Member from each political party is present at the meeting, unless all Members are of the same political party at the time of the meeting; and (4) The general counsel of the Board, or a designee of the general counsel, is present at the meeting. (b) Disclosure of nonpublic collaborative discussions. (1) Except as provided by paragraph (b)(2) of this section, not later than two business days after the conclusion of a meeting described in subsection (a), the Board shall make available to the public, in a place easily accessible to the public— (i) A list of the individuals present at the meeting; and (ii) A summary of the matters, including key issues, discussed at the meeting, except for any matter the Board properly determines may be withheld from the public under § 1704.4. (2) Information about matters withheld from the public. If the Board properly determines under paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section that a matter may be withheld from the public under § 1704.4, the Board shall include in the summary required by paragraph (b)(1)(ii) as much general information as possible with respect to the matter." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.2 Definitions.,DNFSB,,,,"As used in this part: (a) Chairman and Vice Chairman mean those Members designated by the President to serve in said positions, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 2286(c). (b) Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board means the Board established under the National Defense Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 1989. (c) General Counsel means the Board's principal legal officer, or an attorney serving as Acting General Counsel. (d) Meeting means the deliberations of three or more Members where such deliberations determine or result in the joint conduct or disposition of official Board business. A meeting does not include: (1) Notation voting or similar consideration of business for the purpose of recording of votes, whether by circulation of material to the Members individually in writing or by a polling of the Members individually by telephone. (2) Action by three or more Members to: (i) Open or to close a meeting or to release or to withhold information pursuant to § 1704.5; (ii) Set an agenda for a proposed meeting(s); (iii) Call a meeting on less than seven days' notice as permitted by § 1704.6(b); or (iv) Change the subject matter or the determination to open or to close a publicly announced meeting under § 1704.7(b). (3) A session attended by three or more Members for which the purpose is to have the Board's staff or expert consultants to the Board brief or otherwise provide information to the Board concerning any matters within the purview of the Board under its authorizing statute, provided that the Board does not engage in deliberations that determine or result in the joint conduct or disposition of official Board business on such matters. (4) A session attended by three or more Members for which the purpose is to have the Department of Energy (including its contractors) or other persons or organizations brief or otherwise provide information to the Board concerning any matters within the purview of the Board under its authorizing statute, provided that the Board does not engage in deliberations that determine or result in the joint conduct or disposition of official Board business on such matters. (5) A gathering of Members for the purpose of holding informal preliminary discussions or exchange of views which do not effectively predetermine official action. (e) Member means an individual duly appointed and confirmed to the collegial body, known as “the Board.”" 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.3 Open meetings requirement.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Any meetings of the Board, as defined in § 1704.2, shall be conducted in accordance with this part. Except as provided in § 1704.4, the Board's meetings, or portions thereof, shall be open to public observation. (b) The General Counsel or his designee will attend and monitor briefings described in § 1704.2(d) (3)-(4) and informal preliminary discussions described in § 1704.2(d)(5) to assure that those gatherings do not proceed to the point of becoming deliberations and “meetings” within the meaning of the Sunshine Act. (c) The General Counsel or his designee will inform the Board Members if developing discussions at a briefing or gathering should be deferred until a notice of an open or closed meeting can be published in the Federal Register, and a meeting conducted pursuant to the Sunshine Act and these regulations." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.4,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.4 Grounds on which meetings may be closed or information may be withheld.,DNFSB,,,"[56 FR 9609, Mar. 7, 1991, as amended at 79 FR 42181, July 21, 2014]","Except in a case where the Board finds that the public interest requires otherwise, a meeting may be closed and information pertinent to such meeting otherwise required by §§ 1704.5, 1704.6, and 1704.7 to be disclosed to the public may be withheld if the Board properly determines that such meeting or portion thereof or the disclosure of such information is likely to: (a) Disclose matters that are: (1) Specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive Order to be kept secret in the interests of national defense or foreign policy; and (2) In fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order. In making the determination that this exemption applies, the Board shall rely upon the classification assigned to a document by the Department of Energy or other originating agency; (b) Relate solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of the Board; (c)(1) Disclose matters specifically exempted from disclosure by statute (other than 5 U.S.C. 552): Provided, That such statute: (i) Requires that the matters be withheld from the public in such a manner as to leave no discretion on the issue; or (ii) Establishes particular criteria for withholding or refers to particular types of matters to be withheld; (2) This exemption applies to Board meetings, or portions of meetings, involving deliberations regarding recommendations which, under 42 U.S.C. 2286d(b) and (h)(3), may not be made publicly available until after they have been received by the Secretary of Energy or the President, respectively; Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. (d) Disclose trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential; (e) Involve accusing any person of a crime, or formally censuring any person; (f) Disclose information of a personal nature where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy; (g) Disclose investigatory records compiled for law enforcement purposes, or information which, if written, would be contained in such records, but only to the extent that the production of such records or information would; (1) Interfere with enforcement proceedings; (2) Deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication; (3) Constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy; (4) Disclose the identity of a confidential source and, in the case of a record compiled by a criminal law enforcement authority in the course of a criminal investigation, or by an agency conducting a lawful national security intelligence investigation, confidential information furnished only by the confidential source; (5) Disclose investigative techniques and procedures; or (6) Endanger the life or physical safety of law enforcement personnel; (h) Disclose information the premature disclosure of which would be likely to significantly frustrate implementation of a proposed action of the Board, except that this subsection shall not apply in any instance where the Board has already disclosed to the public the content or nature of its proposed action, or where the Board is required by law to make such disclosure on its own initiative prior to taking final action on such proposal; (i) Specifically concern the Board's issuance of a subpoena, or the Board's participation in a civil action or proceeding, an action in a foreign court or international tribunal, or an arbitration, or the initiation, conduct, or disposition by the Board of a particular case of formal agency adjudication pursuant to the procedures in 5 U.S.C. 554 or otherwise involving a determination on the record after opportunity for a hearing; or (j) Disclose other information for which the Government in the Sunshine Act provides an exemption to the open meeting requirements of that Act." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.5,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,"§ 1704.5 Procedures for closing meetings, or withholding information, and requests by affected persons to close a meeting.",DNFSB,,,,"(a) A majority of all Members may vote to close a meeting or withhold information pertaining to that meeting. A separate vote shall be taken with respect to any action under § 1704.4. A majority of the Board may act by taking a single vote with respect to a series of meetings, a portion or portions of which are proposed to be closed to the public, or with respect to any information concerning such series of meetings, so long as each meeting in such series involves the same particular subject matters and is scheduled to be held no more than thirty days after the initial meeting in such series. Each Member's vote under this paragraph shall be recorded and proxies are not permitted. (b) Any person whose interest may be directly affected if a portion of a meeting is open may request the Board to close that portion on any of the grounds referred to in § 1704.4 (e), (f), or (g). Requests, with reasons in support thereof, should be submitted to the General Counsel, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW., suite 700, Washington, DC 20004. On motion of any Member, the Board shall determine by recorded vote whether to grant the request. (c) Within one working day of any vote taken pursuant to this section, the Board shall make available a written copy of such vote reflecting the vote of each Member on the question, and if a portion of a meeting is to be closed to the public a full written explanation of its action closing the meeting and a list of all persons expected to attend and their affiliation. (d) For every closed meeting, the General Counsel of the Board shall publicly certify that, in his or her opinion, the meeting may be closed to the public and shall state each relevant exemption provision. If the General Counsel invokes the exemption for classified or sensitive unclassified information under § 1704.4(a), he shall rely upon the classification or designation assigned to the document containing such information by the Department of Energy or other originating agency. A copy of such certification, together with a statement setting forth the time and place of the meeting and the persons present, shall be retained by the Board as part of the transcript, recording, or minutes required by § 1704.8." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.6,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.6 Procedures for public announcement of meetings.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) For each meeting, the Board shall make public announcement, at least one week before the meeting, of the: (1) Time of the meeting; (2) Place of the meeting; (3) Subject matter of the meeting; (4) Whether the meeting is to be open or closed; and (5) The name and business telephone number of the official designated by the Board to respond to requests for information about the meeting. (b) The one week advance notice required by paragraph (a) of this section may be reduced only if: (1) A majority of all Members determines by recorded vote that Board business requires that such meeting be scheduled in less than seven days; and (2) The public announcement required by paragraph (a) of this section is made at the earliest practicable time. (c) Immediately following each public announcement required by this section, or by § 1704.7, the Board shall submit a notice of public announcement for publication in the Federal Register." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.7,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,§ 1704.7 Changes following public announcement.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The time or place of a meeting may be changed following the public announcement only if the Board publicly announces such change at the earliest practicable time. Members need not approve such change. (b) The subject matter of a meeting or the determination of the Board to open or to close a meeting, or a portion thereof, to the public may be changed following public announcement if: (1) A majority of all Members determines by recorded vote that Board business so requires and that no earlier announcement of the change was possible; and (2) The Board publicly announces such change and the vote of each Member thereon at the earliest practicable time. (c) The deletion of any subject matter announced for a meeting is not a change requiring the approval of the Board under paragraph (b) of this section." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.8,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,"§ 1704.8 Transcripts, recordings, or minutes of closed meetings.",DNFSB,,,,"Along with the General Counsel's certification and presiding officer's statement referred to in § 1704.5(d), the Board shall maintain a complete transcript or electronic recording adequate to record fully the proceedings of each meeting, or a portion thereof, closed to the public. The Board may maintain a set of minutes in lieu of such transcript or recording for meetings closed pursuant to § 1704.4(i). Such minutes shall fully and clearly describe all matters discussed and shall provide a full and accurate summary of any actions taken, and the reasons therefor, including a description of each of the views expressed on any item and the record of any rollcall vote." 10:10:5.0.5.5.3.0.46.9,10,Energy,XVII,,1704,PART 1704—RULES IMPLEMENTING THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT,,,,"§ 1704.9 Availability and retention of transcripts, recordings, and minutes, and applicable fees.",DNFSB,,,,"The Board shall make promptly available to the public in the Public Reading Room the transcript, electronic recording, or minutes of the discussion of any item on the agenda or of any testimony received at a closed meeting, except for such item, or items, of discussion or testimony as determined by the Board to contain matters which may be withheld under the exemptive provisions of § 1704.4. Copies of the nonexempt portions of the transcript or minutes, or transcription of such recordings disclosing the identity of each speaker, shall be furnished to any person at the actual cost of transcription or duplication. If at some later time the Board determines that there is no further justification for withholding a portion of a transcript, electronic recording, or minutes or other item of information from the public which has previously been withheld, such portion or information shall be made publicly available. The Board shall maintain a complete verbatim copy of the transcript, a complete copy of the minutes, or a complete electronic recording of each meeting, or a portion thereof, closed to the public for at least two years after such meeting, or until one year after the conclusion of any Board proceeding with respect to which the meeting, or a portion thereof, was held, whichever occurs later." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.01 Scope.,DNFSB,,,,"This part contains the Board's regulations implementing the Privacy Act of 1974, Public Law 93-579, 5 U.S.C. 552a." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.10,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.10 Fees.,DNFSB,,,,"A fee will not be charged for search or review of requested records, or for correction of records. When a request is made for copies of records, a copying fee will be charged at the same rate established for FOIA requests. See 10 CFR 1703.107. However, the first 100 pages of copying will be free of charge." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.11,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.11 Exemptions.,DNFSB,,,,"Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k), the Board has determined that system of records DNFSB-3, “Drug Testing Program Records,” is partially exempt from 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(c)(3), (d), (e)(1), (e)(4)(G), (H), (I), and (f). The exemption pertains to portions of these records which would identify persons supplying information on drug abuse by Board employees or contractors." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.02 Definitions.,DNFSB,,,,"The following terms used in these regulations are defined in the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a(a): agency, individual, maintain, record, system of records, statistical record, and routine use. The Board's use of these terms conforms with the statutory definitions. References in this part to “the Act” refer to the Privacy Act of 1974." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.03 Systems of records notification.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Public notice. The Board has published in the Federal Register its systems of records. The Office of the Federal Register biennially compiles and publishes all systems of records maintained by all Federal agencies, including the Board. (b) Requests regarding record systems. Any person who wishes to know whether a system of records contains a record pertaining to him or her may file a request in person or in writing. Written requests should be directed to: Privacy Act Officer, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20004. Telephone requests should be made by calling the Board at 202-208-6400, and asking to speak to the Privacy Act Officer." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.4,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.04 Requests by persons for access to their own records.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Requests in writing. A person may request access to his or her own records in writing by addressing a letter to: Privacy Act Officer, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW., suite 700, Washington, DC 20004. The request should contain the following information: (1) Full name, address, and telephone number of requester, (2) Proof of identification, which should be a copy of one of the following: Valid driver's license, valid passport, or other current identification which contains both an address and picture of the requester, (3) The system of records in which the desired information is contained, and (4) At the requester's option, authorization for copying expenses (see § 1705.10 below). (b) Requests in person. Any person may examine his or her own records on the Board's premises. To do so, the person should call the Board's offices at 202-208-6400 and ask to speak to the Privacy Act Officer. This call should be made at least two weeks prior to the time the requester would like to see the records. During this call, the requester should be prepared to provide the same information as that listed in paragraph (a) of this section, except for proof of identification." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.5,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.05 Processing of requests.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Requests in writing. The Privacy Act Officer will acknowledge receipt of the request within five working days of its receipt in the Board's offices. The acknowledgment will advise the requester if any additional information is needed to process the request. Within fifteen working days of receipt of the request, the Privacy Act Officer will provide the requested information or will explain to the requester why additional time is needed for response. (b) Requests in person. Following the initial call from the requester, the Privacy Act Officer will determine (1) whether the records identified by the requester exist, and (2) whether they are subject to any exemption under § 1705.11 below. If the records exist and are not subject to exemption, the Privacy Act Officer will call the requester and arrange an appointment at a mutually agreeable time when the records can be examined. The requester may be accompanied by one person of his or her own choosing, and should state during this call whether or not a second individual will be present at the appointment. At the appointment, the requester will be asked to present identification as stated in § 1705.04(a)(2). (c) Excluded information. If a request is received for information compiled in reasonable anticipation of litigation, the Privacy Act Officer will inform the requester that this information is not subject to release under the Privacy Act ( see 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(5))." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.6,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.06 Appeals from access denials.,DNFSB,,,,"When access to records has been denied by the Privacy Act Officer, the requester may file an appeal in writing. This appeal should be directed to The Chairman, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue NW., suite 700, Washington, DC 20004. The appeal letter must (a) specify those denied records which are still sought, and (b) state why the denial by the Privacy Act Officer is erroneous. The Chairman or his designee will respond to such appeals within twenty working days after the appeal letter has been received in the Board's offices. The appeal determination will explain the basis for continuing to deny access to any requested records." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.7,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.07 Requests for correction of records.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Correction requests. Any person is entitled to request correction of a record pertaining to him or her. This request must be made in writing and should be addressed to Privacy Act Officer, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20004. The letter should clearly identify the corrections desired. An edited copy of the record will usually be acceptable for this purpose. (b) Initial response. Receipt of a correction request will be acknowledged by the Privacy Act Officer in writing within five working days of receipt of the request. The Privacy Act Officer will endeavor to provide a letter to the requester within thirty working days stating whether or not the request for correction has been granted or denied. If the Privacy Act Officer decides to deny any portion of the correction request, the reasons for the denial will be provided to the requester." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.8,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.08 Appeals from correction denials.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) When amendment of records has been denied by the Privacy Act Officer, the requester may file an appeal in writing. This appeal should be directed to The Chairman, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20004. The appeal letter must (1) specify the records subject to the appeal, and (2) state why the denial of amendment by the Privacy Act Officer is erroneous. The Chairman or his designee will respond to such appeals within thirty working days (subject to extension by the Chairman for good cause) after the appeal letter has been received in the Board's offices. (b) The appeal determination, if adverse to the requester in any respect, will: (1) Explain the basis for denying amendment of the specified records, (2) inform the requester that he or she may file a concise statement setting forth reasons for disagreeing with the Chairman's determination, and (3) inform the requester of his or her right to pursue a judicial remedy under 5 U.S.C. 552a(g)(1)(A)." 10:10:5.0.5.5.4.0.46.9,10,Energy,XVII,,1705,PART 1705—PRIVACY ACT,,,,§ 1705.09 Disclosure of records to third parties.,DNFSB,,,,"Records subject to the Privacy Act that are requested by any person other than the individual to whom they pertain will not be made available except in the following circumstances: (a) Their release is required under the Freedom of Information Act in accordance with the Board's FOIA regulations, 10 CFR part 1703; (b) Prior consent for disclosure is obtained in writing from the individual to whom the records pertain; or (c) Release is authorized by 5 U.S.C. 552a(b) (1) or (3) through (11)." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.1 Scope; statement of policy.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Scope. This part sets forth the guidelines, requirements, and procedures the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board will follow in determining whether a contractor or offeror has an organizational or consultant conflict of interest (OCI) and in avoiding, neutralizing, or mitigating OCIs. (b) Policy. It is the policy of the Board to identify and then avoid or mitigate organizational and consultant conflicts of interest. Normally, the Board will not award contracts to offerors who have OCIs and will terminate contracts where OCIs are identified following contract award. In exceptional circumstances, the Board reserves the right to waive conflicts of interest if it determines that such action is in the best interests of the Government, pursuant to § 1706.8, and to take such mitigating measures as it deems appropriate pursuant to such section." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.10,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.10 Remedies.,DNFSB,,,"[57 FR 44652, Sept. 29, 1992; 58 FR 13684, Mar. 12, 1993]","The refusal to provide the certificate, or upon request of the contracting officer the additional written statement, required by §§ 1706.6 and 1706.7 in connection with an award shall result in disqualification of the offeror for that award. The nondisclosure or misrepresentation of any relevant information may also result in the disqualification of the offeror for that award. If such nondisclosure or misrepresentation by an offeror or contractor is discovered or occurs after award, or in the event of breach of any of the restrictions contained in this part, the Board may terminate the contract for convenience or default, and the offeror or contractor may also be disqualified by the Board from consideration for subsequent Board contracts and be subject to such other remedial actions as provided by law or the contract." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.11,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.11 Organizational conflicts of interest certificate—Advisory or assistance services.,DNFSB,,,,"As prescribed in or permitted by § 1706.6(a), insert the following provision in Board solicitations: Organizational and Consultant Conflicts of Interest Certificate—Advisory and Assistance Services (Oct. 1990) (a) An organizational or consultant conflict of interest means that because of other activities or relationships with other persons, a person is unable or potentially unable to render impartial assistance or advice to the Government, or the person's objectivity in performing the contract work is or might be otherwise impaired, or a person has an unfair competitive advantage. (b) In order to comply with the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Letter 89-1, Conflict of Interest Policies Applicable to Consultants, the offeror shall provide the certificate described in paragraph (c) of this provision. (c) The certificate must contain the following: (1) Name of the agency and the number of the solicitation in question. (2) The name, address, telephone number, and federal taxpayer identification number of the offeror. (3) A description of the nature of the services rendered by or to be rendered on the instant contract. (4) The name, address, and telephone number of the client or clients, a description of the services rendered to the previous client(s), and the name of a responsible officer or employee of the offeror who is knowledgeable about the services rendered to each client, if, in the 12* months preceding the date of the certification, services were rendered to the Government or any other client (including a foreign government or person) respecting the same subject matter as the instant solicitation, or directly relating to such subject matter. The agency and contract number under which the services were rendered must also be included, if applicable. * If approved by the head of the contracting activity, this period may be increased up to 36 months. (5) A statement that the person who signs the certificate has made inquiry and that, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief, no actual or potential conflict of interest or unfair competitive advantage exists with respect to the advisory or assistance services to be provided in connection with the instant contract, or that any actual or potential conflict of interest or unfair competitive advantage that does or may exist with respect to the contract in question has been communicated in writing to the contracting officer or his or her representative; and (6) The signature, name, employer's name, address, and telephone number of the person who signed the certificate. (d) Persons required to certify but who fail to do so may be determined to be nonresponsible. Misrepresentation of any fact may result in suspension or debarment, as well as penalties associated with false certifications or such other provisions provided for by law or regulation. (a) An organizational or consultant conflict of interest means that because of other activities or relationships with other persons, a person is unable or potentially unable to render impartial assistance or advice to the Government, or the person's objectivity in performing the contract work is or might be otherwise impaired, or a person has an unfair competitive advantage. (b) In order to comply with the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Letter 89-1, Conflict of Interest Policies Applicable to Consultants, the offeror shall provide the certificate described in paragraph (c) of this provision. (c) The certificate must contain the following: (1) Name of the agency and the number of the solicitation in question. (2) The name, address, telephone number, and federal taxpayer identification number of the offeror. (3) A description of the nature of the services rendered by or to be rendered on the instant contract. (4) The name, address, and telephone number of the client or clients, a description of the services rendered to the previous client(s), and the name of a responsible officer or employee of the offeror who is knowledgeable about the services rendered to each client, if, in the 12* months preceding the date of the certification, services were rendered to the Government or any other client (including a foreign government or person) respecting the same subject matter as the instant solicitation, or directly relating to such subject matter. The agency and contract number under which the services were rendered must also be included, if applicable. * If approved by the head of the contracting activity, this period may be increased up to 36 months. (5) A statement that the person who signs the certificate has made inquiry and that, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief, no actual or potential conflict of interest or unfair competitive advantage exists with respect to the advisory or assistance services to be provided in connection with the instant contract, or that any actual or potential conflict of interest or unfair competitive advantage that does or may exist with respect to the contract in question has been communicated in writing to the contracting officer or his or her representative; and (6) The signature, name, employer's name, address, and telephone number of the person who signed the certificate. (d) Persons required to certify but who fail to do so may be determined to be nonresponsible. Misrepresentation of any fact may result in suspension or debarment, as well as penalties associated with false certifications or such other provisions provided for by law or regulation." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.2 Definitions.,DNFSB,,,,"Advisory or assistance services means services acquired by contract to advise or assist the Board, whether with respect to its internal functions or its oversight of defense nuclear facilities, or otherwise to support or improve policy development or decisionmaking by the Board, or management or administration of the Board, or to support or improve the operation of the Board's management systems. Such services may take the form of the provision of information, advice, reports, opinions, alternatives, conclusions, recommendations, training, direct assistance, or performance of site visits, technical reviews, investigation of health and safety practices or other appropriate services. Affiliates means associated business concerns or individuals if, directly or indirectly, either one controls or can control the other or a third party controls or can control both. Board means, as the context requires, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, its Chairman, or any other officer of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board to whom the appropriate delegation has been made under 42 U.S.C. 2286(c)(3). Contract means any contract, agreement, or other arrangement with the Board, except as provided in § 1706.3. Contractor means any person, firm, unincorporated association, joint venture, co-sponsor, partnership, corporation, or other entity, or any group of one or more of the foregoing, which is a party to a contract with the Board, and the affiliates and successors in interest of such party. The term “contractor” also includes the chief executive and directors of a party to a contract with the Board, the key personnel of such party identified in the contract, and current or proposed consultants or subcontractors to such party. The term “contractor” shall also include consultants engaged directly by the Board through the use of a contract. Defense nuclear facility means any United States Department of Energy (DOE) defense nuclear facility, as defined in 42 U.S.C. 2286g, subject to the Board's oversight. Evaluation activities means activities that involve evaluation of some aspect of defense nuclear facilities. Mitigating means, with respect to an organizational or consultant conflict of interest, reducing or counteracting the effects of such a conflict of interest on the Board, but without eliminating or avoiding the conflict of interest. National Laboratories means laboratories operated by educational institutions or business entities under management and operating contracts with DOE. Offeror means any person, firm, unincorporated association, joint venture, partnership, corporation, or other entity, or any group of one or more of the foregoing, submitting a bid or proposal to the Board, solicited, unsolicited or otherwise invited by the Board, to obtain a contract, and the affiliates and successors in interest of such a bidder or proposer. The term “offeror” also includes the chief executive and directors of such a bidder or proposer, the key personnel of a bidder or proposer identified in the bid or proposal, and proposed consultants or subcontractors to such bidder or proposer. Organizational or consultant conflict of interest means that, because of other past, present, or future planned activities or relationships, an offeror or contractor is unable, or potentially unable, to render impartial assistance or advice to the Board, or the objectivity of such offeror or contractor in performing contract work for the Board is or might be otherwise impaired, or such offeror or contractor has or would have an unfair competitive advantage. The term “organizational or consultant conflict of interest” shall include, but not be limited to, actions or situations that would preclude the award or extension of a contract under, or would be prohibited by, § 1706.5. Potential organizational or consultant conflict of interest means a factual situation that indicates or suggests that an actual organizational or consultant conflict of interest may exist or arise from award of a proposed contract or from continuation of an existing contract. The term is used to signify those situations that merit conflicts review prior to contract award or that must be reported to the contracting officer for conflicts review if they arise during contract performance. Research means any scientific, engineering, or other technical work involving theoretical analysis, exploration, or experimentation. Subcontractor means any subcontractor of any tier which performs work under a prime contract with the Board. Task order contract means a Board contract that contains a broad scope of work but does not authorize the contractor to perform specific tasks within that broad scope until the contracting officer issues task orders. Unfair competitive advantage means an advantage obtained by an offeror or contractor to the Board by virtue of the relationship of the offeror or contractor with the Board or access to information not available to other offerors or contractors, and recognized in appropriate legal precedent as unfair. In determining the meaning of any provision of this part, unless the context indicates otherwise, the singular includes the plural; the plural includes the singular; the present tense includes the future tense; and words of one gender include the other gender." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.3 Applicability.,DNFSB,,,"[57 FR 44652, Sept. 29, 1992; 58 FR 13684, Mar. 12, 1993]","(a) General applicability. This part applies to contractors and offerors only, except as otherwise herein provided. This part shall be incorporated by reference and made a part of all Board contracts in excess of the small purchases threshold, except as provided in the last sentence of this § 1706.3(a). In addition, if determined appropriate by the contracting officer for the Board, this part may be incorporated by reference and made a part of Board contracts below the small purchases threshold, except as provided in the last sentence of this § 1706.3(a). This part does not apply to the acquisition of services, including, without limitation, consulting services, through the personnel appointment process or to Board agreements with other federal government agencies, but shall apply to Board agreements with the management and operating contractors (and subcontractors and consultants thereto) of the National Laboratories. (b) Subcontractors and consultants. The requirements of this part shall also apply to subcontractors and consultants proposed for, or working on, a Board contract, in each case where the amount of the subcontract or consultant agreement under which such subcontractor or consultant is or will be working is expected to exceed $10,000, and in each other case where the contracting officer for the Board deems it appropriate to make the requirements of this part applicable to a subcontractor or consultant proposed for, or working on, a Board contract. The certificates or disclosures submitted by offerors or contractors pursuant to this part shall include certificates or disclosures from all subcontractors and consultants to contractor or offerors in those cases where this part applies by its terms to such subcontractors or consultants or has been applied to such persons by the contracting officer. Contractors and offerors shall assure that contract clauses giving effect to this § 1706.3(b), satisfactory to the contracting officer, are included in subcontracts and consultant agreements of any tier involving performance of work under a prime contract covered by this part." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.4,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.4 Head of the contracting activity.,DNFSB,,,,The head of the contracting activity for the Board shall be the General Manager. 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.5,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.5 General rules.,DNFSB,,,"[57 FR 44652, Sept. 29, 1992; 58 FR 13684, Mar. 12, 1993]","(a) Award of Contracts. Contracts shall generally not be awarded to an offeror: (1) For any services where the award would result in the offeror evaluating products or services it has provided to the Board, is then providing to the Board, or is then offering to provide for the Board; (2) For evaluation activities or research related to the Board's oversight of defense nuclear facilities, where the award would result in the offeror evaluating products or services it has provided, is then providing, or is then offering to provide to DOE or to contractors or subcontractors for defense nuclear facilities; or (3) For any other services (the acquisition of which is otherwise covered by this part), where the Board has determined, pursuant to § 1706.7, that an actual or potential OCI exists and cannot be avoided, and the Board does not waive that OCI. Paragraphs (a) (1) and (2) of this section also apply when award would result in evaluation of products or services of another entity where the offeror has been, is, or would be substantially involved in the development of the product or performance of the service, or has other substantial involvement regarding the product or services. (b) Subsequent related contracts. (1) A Board contractor under a Board contract shall normally be ineligible to participate in Board contracts or subcontracts that stem directly from the contractor's performance of work under a previous Board contract, where the Board determines that an OCI would exist because: (i) The expectation of receiving the subsequent contract is likely to diminish the contractor's capacity to give impartial assistance and advice, or otherwise result in a biased work product; or (ii) An offeror on the subsequent contract would have an unfair competitive advantage by virtue of having performed the first contract. (2) If a contractor under a Board contract prepares a complete or essentially complete statement of work or specifications in the performance of a contract, the contractor shall be ineligible to perform or participate in the initial contractual effort that is based on such statement of work or specifications. The contractor shall not incorporate its products or services in such statement of work or specifications. (c) National Laboratory personnel. The Board may engage personnel of the National Laboratories who have expertise needed by the Board in the performance of its oversight responsibilities, provided that prior to each such engagement, the Board determines either: (1) That the nature of work performed by such personnel for DOE does not pose actual or potential OCIs with respect to the particular work covered by the Board contract; or (2) That such engagement is in the Government's best interests and that a waiver should be granted pursuant to § 1706.8. In all cases involving National Laboratory personnel, notice of the circumstances of the contract, stating the rationale for use of the personnel, shall be published in the Federal Register. (d) Work for others. During the term of any Board contract, the contractor may not enter into consulting or other contractual arrangements with other persons or entities, the result of which could give rise to an OCI with respect to the work being performed under the contract. The prime contractor shall ensure that all of its employees, subcontractors, and consultants under the contract abide by this paragraph. If the contractor has reason to believe that any proposed arrangement with other persons or entities may involve an actual or potential OCI, it shall promptly inform the Board in writing of all pertinent facts regarding such proposed arrangement. In the case of task order contracts, this paragraph applies, subject to § 1706.7(c), only to specific ongoing tasks that the contracting officer authorizes the contractor to perform. (e) Contractor protection of Board information that is not publicly available. If the contractor in the performance of a Board contract obtains access to information, such as Board plans, policies, reports, studies, or financial plans, or internal data protected by the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a), proprietary information, or any other data which has not been released to the public, the contractor shall not: (1) Use such information for any private purpose until the information has been released or is otherwise made available to the public; (2) Compete for work for the Board based on such information for a period of six months after either the contract has been completed or such information has been released or otherwise made available to the public, whichever occurs first, or submit an unsolicited proposal to the Government based on such information until one year after such information is released or otherwise made available to the public, unless a waiver permitting such action has been granted pursuant to § 1706.8; or (3) Release the information without prior written approval of the contracting officer, unless such information has previously been released or otherwise made available to the public by the Board." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.6,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.6 Solicitation provisions.,DNFSB,,,"[57 FR 44652, Sept. 29, 1992; 58 FR 13684, Mar. 12, 1993]","(a) Advisory or assistance services. There shall be included in all formal Board solicitations for advisory or assistance services where the contract amount is expected to exceed $25,000 (or the then applicable small purchases threshold), a provision requiring a certificate representing whether award of the contract to the offeror would present actual or potential OCIs. Apparent successful offerors will be required to submit such certificates, but the Board may also require such a certificate to be submitted in other circumstances, such as: (1) Where the contracting officer has identified certain offerors who have passed an initial screening and has determined that it is appropriate to request the identified offerors to file the certificate in order to expedite the award process; or (2) In the case of modifications for additional effort under Board contracts, except those issued under the “changes” clause. If a certificate has been previously submitted with regard to the contract being modified, only an updating of such statement shall be required for a contract modification. In addition, if determined appropriate by the contracting officer for the Board, such certificates may be required in connection with any other contracts subject to this part or in which this part has been incorporated by reference. (b) Marketing consultant services. There shall further be included in all Board solicitations, except sealed bids, where the contract amount is expected to exceed $200,000, a provision requiring an organizational conflicts of interest certificate from any marketing consultants engaged by an offeror in support of the preparation or submission of an offer for a Board contract by that offeror." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.7,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.7 Procedures.,DNFSB,,,"[57 FR 44652, Sept. 29, 1992; 58 FR 13684, Mar. 12, 1993]","(a) Pre-award disclosure and resolution of OCIs. If a certificate under § 1706.6 indicates, or the Board otherwise learns, that actual or potential OCIs could be, or would appear to be, created by contract award to a particular offeror, the Board shall afford the affected offeror an opportunity to provide in writing all relevant facts bearing on the certificate. If the Board thereafter determines that an actual or potential OCI exists, one of the following actions shall ultimately be taken: (1) Disqualify the offeror; (2) Include in the contract appropriate terms and conditions which avoid the conflict, in which case no waiver is required; or (3) Make a finding that it is in the best interests of the Government to seek award of the contract under the waiver provisions of § 1706.8, and, where reasonably possible, include contract terms and conditions or take other measures which mitigate such conflicts. (b) Post-award disclosure and resolution of OCIs. (1) If, after contract award, the contractor discovers actual or potential OCIs with respect to the contract, it shall make an immediate and full disclosure in writing to the contracting officer. This statement shall include a description of the action that the contractor has taken or proposes to avoid or mitigate such conflicts. (2) If a disclosure under this section indicates, or the Board otherwise learns, that actual or potential OCIs exist, the Board may afford the contractor an opportunity to provide all relevant facts bearing upon the problem. If at any time the Board determines that an actual or potential OCI exists, one of the following actions shall ultimately be taken: (i) Terminate the contract, or, in the case of a task order contract, terminate the particular task; (ii) Insist on appropriate contract terms and conditions which avoid the OCIs, in which case no waiver is required; or (iii) Make a finding that it is in the best interests of the Government to permit the contractor to continue to perform the contract (or task) under the waiver provisions of § 1706.8, and, where reasonably possible, insist on appropriate contract terms and conditions or take other measures which mitigate the OCIs. (c) Task order contracts. (1) Because a task order contract generally entails a broad scope of work, apparent successful offerors shall be required to identify in their certificates filed in accordance with § 1706.6 any actual or potential OCIs that come within the full scope of the contract. The Board may decline to award a task order contract to an offeror based upon such information or it may decline to approve performance of a particular task by the contractor if an actual or potential OCI is subsequently identified with respect to that particular task. The Board may also take the other actions identified in § 1706.7(a) to avoid or mitigate such conflicts. (2) Contractors performing task order contracts for the Board shall disclose to the contracting officer any new work for others they propose to undertake that may present an actual or potential OCI with regard to the performance of any work under the full scope of the Board contract. Such disclosure shall be made at least 15 days prior to the submission of a bid or proposal for the new work. The disclosure shall include the statement of work and any other information necessary to describe fully the proposed work and contemplated relationship. (3) If the Board has issued a task order or a letter request for proposal under the contract with a contractor who has disclosed to the contracting officer that it proposes to undertake new work for persons other than the Board as described in § 1706.7(c)(2), for services in the same technical area and/or at the same defense nuclear facility that is the subject of the proposed new work (including overlap based upon generic work performed for others by the contractor), the Board shall inform the contractor that entering into a contract for the new work may result in termination by the Board of the task order contract, if the Board determines that such work would give rise to an OCI and the Board does not grant a waiver. (d) Decisions on OCIs. The contracting officer shall make recommendations to the General manager regarding disqualification or actions to be taken by the Board to avoid or mitigate any actual or potential OCI. (1) The General Manager shall have the authority to approve, modify, or disapprove such recommendations regarding avoidance of an actual or potential OCI. If an offeror or contractor disagrees with the actions approved by the General Manager and requests review of the action, the Chairman shall make the decision on the actions to be taken by the Board. (2) Any recommended action respecting the best interests of the Government and mitigation measures to be taken with respect to an actual or potential OCI must be approved by the Chairman in conjunction with the decision to grant a waiver pursuant to § 1706.8, and any recommended action to terminate a contract or a particular task on account of an actual or potential OCI must be approved by the Chairman. (3) Decisions on OCIs by the General Manager or the Chairman shall be made with the advice of the Office of the General Counsel." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.8,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.8 Waiver.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Waiver of OCIs. The need for a waiver of any OCI in connection with the award or continuation of specific contracts may be identified either by the contracting officer for the Board or other Board employee or by a written request filed by an offeror or contractor with the contracting officer. The request may be combined with the certificate or disclosure required under §§ 1706.6 or 1706.7, or with additional statements filed under § 1706.7 regarding matters raised in the certificate or disclosure. The contracting officer shall review all of the relevant facts brought to his attention and shall bring the matter to the General Manager, who shall make a written recommendation to the Chairman of the Board regarding whether a waiver should be granted for a contract award or for continuation of an existing contract. (b) Criteria for Waiver of OCIs. (1) The Chairman is authorized to waive any OCI (and the corresponding provision of § 1706.5 where applicable) upon a determination that awarding or extending the particular contract, or not terminating the particular contract, would be in the best interests of the Government. Issuance of a waiver shall ordinarily be limited to those situations in which: (i) The work to be performed under contract is vital to the Board program; (ii) The work cannot be satisfactorily performed except by a contractor or offeror whose interests give rise to a question of OCI; and (iii) Contractual and/or technical review and supervision methods can be employed by the Board to mitigate the conflict. (2) The Chairman is also authorized to waive any OCI (and the corresponding provision of § 1706.5 where applicable), without regard to the foregoing factors, if the Chairman determines, notwithstanding the existence of the OCI, that it is in best interests of the Government to award or extend the particular contract, or not to terminate it, without compliance with § 1706.8(b)(1). (c) Waiver of Rules or Procedures. The Chairman is also authorized to waive any rules or procedures contained in this part upon a determination that application of the rules or procedures in a particular situation would not be in the best interests of the Government. Any request for such a waiver must be in writing and shall describe the basis for the waiver. (d) Office of General Counsel. Waivers of OCIs or of any rule or procedure contained in this part shall be made after consultation with the Office of General Counsel. (e) Federal Register. Except as otherwise provided in § 1706.8(c), notice of each waiver granted under this section shall be published in the Federal Register with an explanation of the basis for the waiver. In the discretion of the Board, notices of instances of avoidance of OCIs may also be published in the Federal Register." 10:10:5.0.5.5.5.0.46.9,10,Energy,XVII,,1706,PART 1706—ORGANIZATIONAL AND CONSULTANT CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS,,,,§ 1706.9 Examples.,DNFSB,,,"[57 FR 44652, Sept. 29, 1992; 58 FR 13684, Mar. 12, 1993]","The examples in this section illustrate situations in which questions concerning OCIs may arise. The examples are not all inclusive, but are intended to provide offerors and contractors with guidance on how this subpart will be applied. (a) Circumstances —(1) Facts. A Board contractor for technical assistance in the review of a safety aspect of a particular defense nuclear facility proposes to use the services of an expert who also serves on an oversight committee for a contractor of other defense nuclear facilities. (2) Guidance. Assuming the work of the oversight committee has no direct or indirect relationship with the work at the facility that is the subject of the Board's contract, there would not be an OCI associated with the use of this expert in the performance of the Board contract. (b) Circumstances —(1) Facts. A Board contractor studying the potential for a chemical explosion in waste tanks at a defense nuclear facility advises the Board that it has been offered a contract with DOE to study the chemical composition of the waste in the same tanks. (2) Guidance. The contractor would be advised that accepting the DOE contract would result in termination of its performance under its contract with the Board. (c) Circumstances —(1) Facts. The Board issues a task order under an existing contract for the evaluation of the adequacy of fire protection systems at a defense nuclear facility. The contractor then advises the Board that it is considering making an offer on a solicitation by DOE to evaluate the same matter. (2) Guidance. The contractor would be advised that entering into a contract with DOE on that solicitation could result in the contract with the Board being terminated. (d) Circumstances —(1) Facts. A firm responding to a formal Board solicitation for technical assistance provides information regarding a contract it currently has with DOE. The effort under the DOE contract is for technical assistance work at DOE facilities not subject to Board oversight and outside its jurisdiction. (2) Guidance. The Board would analyze the work being performed for DOE to ensure no potential or actual conflict of interest would be created through award of the Board contract. Should the Board determine that no potential or actual conflict of interest exists, the contractor would be eligible for award. If the Board determines that a potential or actual conflict of interest would arise through a contract award, it may disqualify the firm or, if the Board determines that such action is in the best interests of the Government, the Board may waive the conflict or the rules and procedures and proceed with the award. (e) Circumstances —(1) Facts. The Board discovers that a firm competing for a contract has a number of existing agreements with DOE in technical areas which are unrelated to the Board's oversight authority. While these contracts may not represent a potential or actual conflict of interest regarding the substance of the technical effort, their total value constitutes a significant portion of the firm's gross revenues. (2) Guidance. A conflict of interest may exist due to the firm's substantial pecuniary dependence upon DOE. Consequently, the Board may question the likelihood that the contractor would provide unbiased opinions, conclusions, and work products because of this extensive financial relationship. The Board will review and consider the extent of the firm's financial dependence on DOE, the nature of the proposed Board contract, the need by the Board for the services and expertise to be provided by the firm and the availability of such services and expertise elsewhere, and whether the likelihood of the firm's providing objective technical evaluations and opinions to the Board could be influenced in view of its DOE relationship. Based on this analysis, the Board may either determine that there is no conflict and make the award, waive the conflict if one is identified and establish procedures to mitigate it where possible, or disqualify the offeror. (f) Circumstances —(1) Facts. The Board discovers that a firm competing for a contract has a substantial business relationship in technical areas unrelated to the Board's oversight authority with a contractor operating a defense nuclear facility under a DOE contract. Similar to the situation described in paragraph (e) of this section, the total value of the contracts with the DOE contractor constitutes more than half of the firm's gross revenues, even though those contracts do not represent a potential or actual conflict of interest regarding any of the particular matters to be covered by the contract with the Board. (2) Guidance. The firm's substantial financial and business dependence upon the DOE contractor may give rise to a conflict of interest, in that the likelihood of the firm's rendering impartial, objective assistance or advice to the Board may be impaired by its extensive financial relationship with the DOE contractor. In this situation, the Board will review and consider the nature of the proposed Board contract, the need by the Board for the services and expertise to be provided by the firm and the availability of such services and expertise elsewhere. The Board will also review and consider the extent of the firm's financial dependence on the DOE contractor and whether the firm would be impartial and objective in providing technical evaluation and opinions to the Board, especially on matters in which the DOE contractor is involved, notwithstanding the relationship with the DOE contractor. Based on this analysis, the Board may determine that there is no actual conflict of interest and make the award. Alternatively, if the Board identifies a conflict that cannot be avoided, the Board may determine to waive the conflict in the best interests of the United States, with or without the establishment of procedures to mitigate the conflict, or it may disqualify the offeror." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.1.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,A,Subpart A—General Provisions,,§ 1707.101 Scope and purpose.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) This part sets forth policies and procedures you must follow when you submit a demand or request to an employee of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) to produce official records and information, or provide testimony relating to official information, in connection with a legal proceeding. You must comply with these requirements when you request the release or disclosure of official records and information. (b) The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board intends these provisions to: (1) Promote economy and efficiency in its programs and operations; (2) Minimize the possibility of involving DNFSB in controversial issues not related to our functions; (3) Maintain DNFSB's impartiality among private litigants where DNFSB is not a named party; and (4) Protect sensitive, confidential information and the deliberative processes of DNFSB. (c) In providing for these requirements, DNFSB does not waive the sovereign immunity of the United States. (d) This part provides guidance for the internal operations of DNFSB. It does not create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, that a party may rely upon in any legal proceeding against the United States." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.1.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,A,Subpart A—General Provisions,,§ 1707.102 Applicability.,DNFSB,,,"[66 FR 66715, Dec. 27, 2001, as amended at 87 FR 22437, Apr. 15, 2022]","This part applies to demands and requests to employees for factual, opinion, or expert testimony relating to official information, or for production of official records or information, in legal proceedings in which the United States or the DNFSB is not a named party. However, it does not apply to: (a) Demands upon or requests for a DNFSB employee to testify as to facts or events that are unrelated to his or her official duties or that are unrelated to the functions of DNFSB; (b) Demands upon or requests for a former DNFSB employee to testify as to matters in which the former employee was not directly or materially involved while at the DNFSB; (c) Requests for the release of records under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552, or the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a; and (d) Congressional demands and requests for testimony or records." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.1.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,A,Subpart A—General Provisions,,§ 1707.103 Definitions.,DNFSB,,,,"DNFSB means the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. DNFSB employee or employee means: (1) Any current or former officer or employee of DNFSB; (2) Any contractor or contractor employee working on behalf of the DNFSB or who has performed services for DNFSB; and (3) Any individual who is serving or has served in any advisory capacity to DNFSB, whether formal or informal. (4) Provided, that this definition does not include persons who are no longer employed by DNFSB and who are retained or hired as expert witnesses or who agree to testify about general matters, matters available to the public, or matters with which they had no specific involvement or responsibility during their employment with DNFSB. Demand means a subpoena, or an order or other demand of a court or other competent authority, for the production, disclosure, or release of records or for the appearance and testimony of a DNFSB employee that is issued in a legal proceeding. General Counsel means the General Counsel of DNFSB or a person to whom the General Counsel has delegated authority under this part. Legal proceeding means any matter before a court of law, administrative board or tribunal, commission, administrative law judge, hearing officer, or other body that conducts a legal or administrative proceeding. Legal proceeding includes all phases of litigation. Records or official records and information mean: (1) All documents and materials which are DNFSB agency records under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552; (2) All other documents and materials contained in DNFSB files; and (3) All other information or materials acquired by a DNFSB employee in the performance of his or her official duties or because of his or her official status. Request means any formal or informal request, by whatever method, for the production of records and information or for testimony which has not been demanded by a court or other competent authority. Testimony means any written or oral statements, including but not limited to depositions, answers to interrogatories, affidavits, declarations, interviews, and statements made by an individual in connection with a legal proceeding." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.201 General prohibition.,DNFSB,,,,"No employee may produce official records and information or provide any testimony relating to official information in response to a demand or request without the prior, written approval of the General Counsel." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.10,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.210 Procedure in the event of an adverse ruling.,DNFSB,,,,"If the court or other competent authority fails to stay the demand, the employee upon whom the demand is made, unless otherwise advised by the General Counsel, will appear at the stated time and place, produce a copy of this part, state that the employee has been advised by counsel not to provide the requested testimony or produce documents, and respectfully decline to comply with the demand, citing United States ex rel. Touhy v. Ragen, 340 U.S. 462 (1951). A written response may be offered to a request, or to a demand, if permitted by the court or other competent authority." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.202 Factors DNFSB will consider.,DNFSB,,,,"The General Counsel, in his or her sole discretion, may grant an employee permission to testify on matters relating to official information, or produce official records and information, in response to a demand or request. Among the relevant factors that the General Counsel may consider in making this decision are whether: (a) The purposes of this part are met; (b) Allowing such testimony or production of records would be necessary to prevent a miscarriage of justice; (c) DNFSB has an interest in the decision that may be rendered in the legal proceeding; (d) Allowing such testimony or production of records would assist or hinder DNFSB in performing its statutory duties or use DNFSB resources where responding to the request will interfere with the ability of DNFSB employees to do their work; (e) Allowing such testimony or production of records would be in the best interest of DNFSB or the United States; (f) The records or testimony can be obtained from other sources; (g) The demand or request is unduly burdensome or otherwise inappropriate under the applicable rules of discovery or the rules of procedure governing the case or matter in which the demand or request arose; (h) Disclosure would violate a statute, executive order or regulation; (i) Disclosure would reveal confidential, sensitive, or privileged information, trade secrets or similar, confidential commercial or financial information, or otherwise protected information, or would otherwise be inappropriate for release; (j) Disclosure would impede or interfere with an ongoing law enforcement investigation or proceedings; (k) Disclosure would compromise constitutional rights; (l) Disclosure would result in DNFSB appearing to favor one litigant over another; (m) Disclosure relates to documents that were produced by another agency; (n) A substantial Government interest is implicated; (o) The demand or request is within the authority of the party making it; and (p) The demand or request is sufficiently specific to be answered." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.203 Filing requirements for demands or requests for documents or testimony.,DNFSB,,,,"You must comply with the following requirements whenever you issue demands or requests to a DNFSB employee for official records, information, or testimony. (a) Your request must be in writing and must be submitted to the General Counsel. If you serve a subpoena on DNFSB or a DNFSB employee before submitting a written request and receiving a final determination, DNFSB will oppose the subpoena on grounds that your request was not submitted in accordance with this subpart. (b) Your written request must contain the following information: (1) The caption of the legal proceeding, docket number, and name and address of the court or other authority involved; (2) A copy of the complaint or equivalent document setting forth the assertions in the case and any other pleading or document necessary to show relevance of the testimony, records, or information you seek from the DNFSB; (3) A list of categories of records sought, a detailed description of how the information sought is relevant to the issues in the legal proceeding, and a specific description of the substance of the testimony or records sought; (4) A statement as to how the need for the information outweighs the need to maintain any confidentiality of the information and outweighs the burden on DNFSB to produce the records or provide testimony; (5) A statement indicating that the information sought is not available from another source, from other persons or entities, or from the testimony of someone other than a DNFSB employee, such as a retained expert; (6) If testimony is requested, the intended use of the testimony, a general summary of the desired testimony, and a showing that no document could be provided and used in lieu of testimony; (7) A description of all prior decisions, orders, or pending motions in the case that bear upon the relevance of the requested records or testimony; (8) The name, address, and telephone number of counsel to each party in the case; and (9) An estimate of the amount of time that the requester and other parties will require with each DNFSB employee for time spent by the employee to prepare for testimony, in travel, and for attendance in the legal proceeding. (c) The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board reserves the right to require additional information to complete your request where appropriate. (d) Your request should be submitted at least 45 days before the date that records or testimony is required. Requests submitted in less than 45 days before records or testimony is required must be accompanied by a written explanation stating the reasons for the late request and the reasons for expedited processing. (e) Failure to cooperate in good faith to enable the General Counsel to make an informed decision may serve as the basis for a determination not to comply with your request." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.4,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.204 Service of subpoenas or requests.,DNFSB,,,,"Subpoenas or requests for official records or information or testimony must be served on the General Counsel, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20004-2901." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.5,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.205 Processing demands or requests.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) After service of a demand or request to testify, the General Counsel will review the demand or request and, in accordance with the provisions of this subpart, determine whether, or under what conditions, to authorize the employee to testify on matters relating to official information and/or produce official records and information. (b) The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board will process requests in the order in which they are received. Absent exigent or unusual circumstances, DNFSB will respond within 45 days from the date that we receive it. The time for response will depend upon the scope of the request. (c) The General Counsel may grant a waiver of any procedure described by this subpart where a waiver is considered necessary to promote a significant interest of the DNFSB or the United States or for other good cause." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.6,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.206 Final determination.,DNFSB,,,,"The General Counsel makes the final determination on demands and requests to employees for production of official records and information or testimony. All final determinations are within the sole discretion of the General Counsel. The General Counsel will notify the requester and the court or other authority of the final determination, the reasons for the grant or denial of the demand or request, and any conditions that the General Counsel may impose on the release of records or information, or on the testimony of a DNFSB employee." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.7,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.207 Restrictions that apply to testimony.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The General Counsel may impose conditions or restrictions on the testimony of DNFSB employees including, for example, limiting the areas of testimony or requiring the requester and other parties to the legal proceeding to agree that the transcript of the testimony will be kept under seal or will only be used or made available in the particular legal proceeding for which testimony was requested. The General Counsel may also require a copy of the transcript of testimony at the requester's expense. (b) The DNFSB may offer the employee's written declaration in lieu of testimony. (c) If authorized to testify pursuant to this part, an employee may testify as to facts within his or her personal knowledge, but, unless specifically authorized to do so by the General Counsel, the employee shall not: (1) Disclose classified, privileged, or otherwise protected information; (2) Testify as an expert or opinion witness with regard to any matter arising out of the employee's official duties or the functions of DNFSB unless testimony is being given on behalf of the United States (see also 5 CFR 2635.805 for current employees)." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.8,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.208 Restrictions that apply to released records.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The General Counsel may impose conditions or restrictions on the release of official records and information, including the requirement that parties to the proceeding obtain a protective order or execute a confidentiality agreement to limit access and any further disclosure. The terms of the protective order or of a confidentiality agreement must be acceptable to the General Counsel. In cases where protective orders or confidentiality agreements have already been executed, DNFSB may condition the release of official records and information on an amendment to the existing protective order or confidentiality agreement. (b) If the General Counsel so determines, original DNFSB records may be presented for examination in response to a demand or request, but they are not to be presented as evidence or otherwise used in a manner by which they could lose their identity as official DNFSB records, nor are they to be marked or altered. In lieu of the original records, certified copies will be presented for evidentiary purposes (see 28 U.S.C. 1733)." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.2.46.9,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,B,Subpart B—Requests for Testimony and Production of Documents,,§ 1707.209 Procedure when a decision is not made prior to the time a response is required.,DNFSB,,,,"If a response to a demand or request is required before the General Counsel can make the determination referred to in § 1707.201, the General Counsel, when necessary, will provide the court or other competent authority with a copy of this part, inform the court or other competent authority that the demand or request is being reviewed, and seek a stay of the demand or request pending a final determination." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.3.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,C,Subpart C—Schedule of Fees,,§ 1707.301 Fees.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Generally. The General Counsel may condition the production of records or appearance for testimony upon advance payment of a reasonable estimate of the costs to DNFSB. (b) Fees for records. Fees for producing records will include fees for searching, reviewing, and duplicating records, costs of attorney time spent in reviewing the demand or request, and expenses generated by materials and equipment used to search for, produce, and copy the responsive information. Costs for employee time will be calculated on the basis of the hourly pay of the employee (including all pay, allowance, and benefits). Fees for duplication will be the same as those charged by DNFSB in its Freedom of Information Act fee regulations at 10 CFR part 1703. (c) Witness fees. Fees for attendance by a witness will include fees, expenses, and allowances prescribed by the court's rules. If no such fees are prescribed, witness fees will be determined based upon the rule of the Federal district court closest to the location where the witness will appear. Such fees will include cost of time spent by the witness to prepare for testimony, in travel, and for attendance in the legal proceeding. (d) Payment of fees. You must pay witness fees for current DNFSB employees and any records certification fees by submitting to the General Counsel a check or money order for the appropriate amount made payable to the Treasury of the United States. In the case of testimony by former DNFSB employees, you must pay applicable fees directly to the former employee in accordance with 28 U.S.C. 1821 or other applicable statutes. (e) Certification (authentication) of copies of records. The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board may certify that records are true copies in order to facilitate their use as evidence. If you seek certification, you must request certified copies from DNFSB at least 45 days before the date they will be needed. The request should be sent to the General Counsel. You will be charged a certification fee of $15.00 for each document certified. (f) Waiver or reduction of fees. The General Counsel, in his or her sole discretion, may, upon a showing of reasonable cause, waive or reduce any fees in connection with the testimony, production, or certification of records. (g) De minimis fees. Fees will not be assessed if the total charge would be $10.00 or less." 10:10:5.0.5.5.6.4.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1707,PART 1707—TESTIMONY BY DNFSB EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL RECORDS IN LEGAL PROCEEDINGS,D,Subpart D—Penalties,,§ 1707.401 Penalties.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) An employee who discloses official records or information or gives testimony relating to official information, except as expressly authorized by DNFSB or as ordered by a Federal court after DNFSB has had the opportunity to be heard, may face the penalties provided in 18 U.S.C. 641 and other applicable laws. Additionally, former DNFSB employees are subject to the restrictions and penalties of 18 U.S.C. 207 and 216. (b) A current DNFSB employee who testifies or produces official records and information in violation of this part shall be subject to disciplinary action." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.100 Authority to conduct safety investigations.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (Board) is an independent federal agency in the executive branch of the United States Government. (b) The Board's enabling legislation authorizes it to conduct safety investigations pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2286a(b)(2))." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.10,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.109 Rights of witnesses in safety investigations.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Any person who is compelled to appear in person to provide testimony or produce documents in connection with a safety investigation is entitled to be accompanied, represented, and advised by an attorney. Subpoenas in safety investigations shall issue only under signature of the Chairman or any Member of the Board designated by the Chairman. Attendance and testimony shall be before the Board or a Member authorized by the Board. (b) If an executive branch agency employee witness is represented by counsel from that same agency, counsel shall identify who counsel represents to determine whether counsel represents multiple interests in the safety investigation. (c) Counsel for a witness may advise the witness with respect to any question asked where it is claimed that the testimony sought from the witness is outside the scope of the safety investigation, or that the witness is privileged to refuse to answer a question or to produce other evidence. For these permissible objections, the witness or counsel may object on the record to the question and may state briefly and precisely the grounds therefore. If the witness refuses to answer a question, then counsel may briefly state on the record that counsel has advised the witness not to answer the question and the legal grounds for such refusal. The witness and his or her counsel shall not otherwise object to or refuse to answer any question, and they shall not otherwise interrupt any oral examination. (d) When it is claimed that the witness has a privilege to refuse to answer a question on the grounds of self-incrimination, the witness must assert the privilege personally. (e) Any objections made during the course of examination will be treated as continuing objections and preserved throughout the further course of testimony without the necessity for repeating them as to any similar line of inquiry. (f) Counsel for a witness may not interrupt the examination by making any unnecessary objections or statements on the record. (g) Following completion of the examination of a witness, such witness may make a statement on the record, and that person's counsel may, on the record, question the witness to enable the witness to clarify any of the witness's answers or to offer other evidence. (h) The Board or any Member authorized by the Board shall take all measures necessary to regulate the course of an investigative proceeding to avoid delay and prevent or restrain obstructionist or contumacious conduct or contemptuous language. (i) If the Board or any Member authorized by the Board finds that counsel for a witness, or other representative, has refused to comply with his or her directions, or has engaged in obstructionism or contumacy, the Board or Member authorized by the Board may thereupon take action as the circumstances may warrant. (j) Witnesses appearing voluntarily do not have a right to have counsel present during questioning, although the Board or Member authorized by the Board, in consultation with the Office of the General Counsel, may permit a witness appearing on a voluntary basis to be accompanied by an attorney or non-attorney representative." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.11,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.110 Multiple interests.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) If counsel representing a witness appears in connection with a safety investigation, counsel shall state on the record all other persons or entities counsel represents in that investigation. (b) When counsel does represent more than one person or entity in a safety investigation, counsel shall inform the Investigating Officer(s) and each client of counsel's possible conflict of interest in representing that client. (c) When an Investigating Officer(s), or the Board, as the case may be, in consultation with the Board's General Counsel, has concrete evidence that the presence of an attorney representing multiple interests would obstruct or impede the safety investigation, the Investigating Officer(s) or the Board may prohibit that attorney from being present during testimony. (d) The Board shall issue a written statement of the reasons supporting a decision to exclude counsel under this section within five working days following exclusion. The Board shall also delay the safety investigation for a reasonable period of time to permit retention of new counsel." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.12,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.111 Sequestration of witnesses.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Witnesses shall be sequestered during interviews, or during the taking of testimony, unless otherwise permitted by the Investigating Officer(s) or by the Board, as the case may be. (b) No witness, or counsel accompanying any such witness, shall be permitted to be present during the examination of any other witness called in such proceeding, unless permitted by the Investigating Officer(s) or the Board, as the case may be." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.13,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.112 Appearance and practice before the Board.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Counsel appearing before the Board or the Investigating Officer(s) must conform to the standards of ethical conduct required of practitioners before the Courts of the United States. (b) The Board may suspend or deny, temporarily or permanently, the privilege of appearing or practicing before the Board in any way to a person who is found: (1) Not to possess the requisite qualifications to represent others; or (2) To have engaged in unethical or improper professional conduct; or (3) To have engaged in obstructionism or contumacy before the Board; or (4) To be otherwise not qualified. (c) Obstructionist or contumacious conduct in an investigation before the Board or the Investigating Officer(s) will be grounds for exclusion of any person from such safety investigation proceedings and for summary suspension for the duration of the investigation. (d) At the time of the finding the Board shall issue a verbal or written statement of the reasons supporting a decision to suspend or exclude counsel for obstructionism or contumacy. (e) A witness may have a reasonable amount of time to retain replacement counsel if original counsel is suspended or excluded." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.14,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.113 Right to submit statements.,DNFSB,,,,"At any time during the course of an investigation, any person may submit documents, statements of facts, or memoranda of law for the purpose of explanation or further development of the facts and circumstances relevant to the safety matter under investigation." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.15,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.114 Official transcripts.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Official transcripts of witness testimony, whether or not compelled by subpoena to appear before a Board safety investigation, shall be recorded either by an official reporter or by any other person or means designated by the Investigating Officer(s) or the Board's General Counsel. (b) Such witness, after completing the compelled testimony, may file a request with the Board's General Counsel to procure a copy of the official transcript of that witness's testimony. The General Counsel shall rule on the request, and may deny for good cause. (c) Good cause for denying a witness's request to procure a transcript may include, but shall not be limited to, the protection of a trade secret, non-disclosure of confidential or proprietary business information, security-sensitive operational or vulnerability information, safety privileged information, or the integrity of Board investigations. (d) Whether or not a request is made, the witness and his or her attorney shall have the right to inspect the official transcript of the witness's own testimony, in the presence of the Investigating Officer(s) or his designee, for purposes of conducting errata review. (e) Transcripts of testimony are otherwise considered confidential and privileged safety information, and in no case shall a copy or any reproduction of such transcript be released to any other person or entity, except as provided in paragraph (b) above or as required under the Freedom of Information Act or the Government in the Sunshine Act, or any procedures or requirements contained in Board regulations issued pursuant to those Acts." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.16,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.115 Final report of safety investigation.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The Board will complete a final report of the safety investigation fully setting forth the Board's findings and conclusions. (b) The final report of the safety investigation is confidential and protected by the safety privilege, and is therefore not releasable. (c) The Board, in its discretion, may sanitize the final report of the safety investigation by redacting confidential and safety privileged information so that the report is put in a publically releasable format. (d) Nothing in this section voids or otherwise displaces the Board's legal obligations with respect to compliance with the Freedom of Information Act, the Government in the Sunshine Act, or any procedures or requirements contained in the Board's regulations issued pursuant to those Acts." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.17,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.116 Procedure after safety investigations.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) If a formal safety investigation results in a finding that an event or practice has adversely affected, or may adversely affect, public health and safety, the Board may take any appropriate action authorized to it under its enabling statute, including, but not limited to, making a formal recommendation to the Secretary of Energy, convening a hearing, or establishing a reporting requirement. (b) If a safety investigation yields information relating to violations of federal criminal law involving government officers and employees, the Board shall expeditiously refer the matter to the Department of Justice for disposition. (c) If in the course of a safety investigation, a safety issue or concern is found to be outside the Board's jurisdiction, that safety issue or concern shall be referred to the appropriate entity with jurisdiction for disposition. (d) Statements made in connection with testimony provided to the Board in an investigation are subject to the provisions of 18 U.S.C. 1001." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.101 Scope and purpose of safety investigations.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The Board shall investigate any event or practice at a Department of Energy defense nuclear facility which the Board determines has adversely affected, or may adversely affect, public health and safety. (b) The purpose of any Board investigation shall be: (1) To determine whether the Secretary of Energy is adequately implementing standards (including all applicable Department of Energy orders, regulations, and requirements) at Department of Energy defense nuclear facilities; (2) To ascertain information concerning the circumstances of such event or practice and its implications for such standards; (3) To determine whether such event or practice is related to other events or practices at other Department of Energy defense nuclear facilities; and (4) To provide to the Secretary of Energy such recommendations for changes in such standards or the implementation of such standards (including Department of Energy orders, regulations, and requirements) and such recommendations relating to data or research needs as may be prudent or necessary." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.102 Types of safety investigations.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The Board may initiate a preliminary safety inquiry or order a formal safety investigation. (b) A preliminary safety inquiry means any inquiry conducted by the Board or its staff, other than a formal investigation. Where it appears from a preliminary safety inquiry that a formal safety investigation is appropriate, the Board's staff will so recommend to the Board. (c) A formal safety investigation is instituted by an Order of Safety Investigation issued either after a recorded notational vote of Board Members or after convening a meeting in accordance with the Government in the Sunshine Act and voting in open or closed session, as the case may be. (d) Orders of Safety Investigations will outline the basis for the investigation, the matters to be investigated, the Investigating Officer(s) designated to conduct the investigation, and their authority. (e) The Office of the General Counsel shall have primary responsibility for conducting and leading a formal safety investigation. The Investigating Officer(s) shall report to the Board. (f) Following a notational vote and in accordance with the Government in the Sunshine Act, the Board or an individual Board Member authorized by the Board may hold such closed or open hearings and sit and act at such times and places, and require the attendance and testimony of such witnesses and the production of such evidence as the Board or an authorized member may find advisable, or exercise any other applicable authority as provided in the Board's enabling legislation. Each Board Member shall have full access to all information relating to the matter under investigation, including attendance at closed hearings. (g) Subpoenas in formal safety investigation hearings may be issued by the Chairman only after a notational vote of the Board. The Chairman may designate another Board Member to issue a subpoena. Subpoenas shall be served by any person designated by the Chairman, or otherwise as provided by law. (h) A determination of a decision or action authorized to the Board by these procedures shall only be made after a notational vote of the Board with each Board Member having one vote." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.4,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.103 Request to conduct safety investigations.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Any person may request that the Board perform a preliminary safety inquiry or conduct a formal safety investigation concerning a matter within the Board's jurisdiction. (b) Actions the Board may take regarding safety investigation requests are discretionary. (c) The Board will offer to protect the identity of a person requesting a safety investigation to the maximum extent permitted by law. (d) Board safety investigations are wholly administrative and investigatory in nature and do not involve a determination of criminal culpability, adjudication of rights and duties, or other quasi-judicial determinations." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.5,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.104 Confidentiality of safety investigations and privileged safety information.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Information obtained during the course of a preliminary safety inquiry or a formal safety investigation may be treated as confidential, safety privileged, and non-public by the Board and its staff, to the extent permissible under existing law. The information subject to this protection includes but is not limited to: Identity of witnesses; recordings; statements; testimony; transcripts; emails; all documents, whether or not obtained pursuant to Board subpoena; any conclusions based on privileged safety information; any deliberations or recommendations as to policies to be pursued; and all other related investigative proceedings and activities. (b) The Board shall have the discretion to assert the safety privilege when safety information, determined by the Board as protected from release, is sought by any private or public governmental entity or by parties to litigation who attempt to compel its release. (c) Nothing in this section voids or otherwise displaces the Board's legal obligations with respect to the Freedom of Information Act, the Government in the Sunshine Act, or any procedures or requirements contained in the Board's regulations issued pursuant to those Acts." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.6,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.105 Promise of confidentiality.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The Investigating Officer(s) may give a promise of confidentiality to any individual who provides evidence for a safety inquiry or investigation to encourage frank communication. (b) A promise of confidentiality must be explicit. (c) A promise of confidentiality must be documented in writing. (d) A promise of confidentiality may be given only as needed to ensure forthright cooperation of a witness and may not be given on a blanket basis to all witnesses. (e) A promise of confidentiality must inform the witness that it applies only to information given to the Investigating Officer(s) and not to the same information if given to others." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.7,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.106 Limitation on participation.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) A safety investigation under this rule is not a judicial or adjudicatory proceeding. (b) No person or entity has standing to intervene or participate as a matter of right in any safety investigation under this regulation." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.8,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,§ 1708.107 Powers of persons conducting formal safety investigations.,DNFSB,,,,"The Investigating Officer(s) appointed by the Board may take informal or formal statements, interview witnesses, take testimony, request production of documents, recommend issuance of subpoenas, recommend taking of testimony in a closed forum, recommend administration of oaths, and otherwise perform any lawful act authorized under the Board's enabling legislation in connection with any safety investigation ordered by the Board." 10:10:5.0.5.5.7.0.46.9,10,Energy,XVII,,1708,PART 1708—PROCEDURES FOR SAFETY INVESTIGATIONS,,,,"§ 1708.108 Cooperation: Ready access to facilities, personnel, and information.",DNFSB,,,,"(a) Section 2286c(a) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, requires the Department of Energy to fully cooperate with the Board and provide the Board with ready access to such facilities, personnel, and information as the Board considers necessary, including ready access in connection with a safety investigation. (b) Each contractor operating a Department of Energy defense nuclear facility under a contract awarded by the Secretary is also required, to the extent provided in such contract or otherwise with the contractor's consent, to fully cooperate with the Board and provide the Board with ready access to such facilities, personnel, and information of the contractor as the Board considers necessary in connection with a safety investigation. (c) The Board may make a written request to persons or entities relevant to the safety investigation to preserve pertinent information, documents, and evidence, including electronically stored information, in order to preclude alteration or destruction of that information." 10:10:5.0.5.5.8.0.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1709,PART 1709—DEBT COLLECTION PROCEDURES,,,,§ 1709.101 Cross-reference to executive branch-wide debt collection regulations.,DNFSB,,,,"The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board adopts the regulations at 31 CFR parts 900 through 904 governing the administrative collection, offset, compromise, and the suspension or termination of collection activity for debts or civil claims for money, funds or property owed to the United States government as defined by 31 U.S.C. 3701(b)." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.1.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,A,Subpart A—General Provisions,,§ 1710.101 Scope.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) This part provides procedures for the collection by administrative offset of a federal employee's salary without his/her consent to satisfy certain debts owed to the federal government. This part applies to all federal employees who owe debts to the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (Board) and to current employees of the Board who owe debts to other federal agencies. This part does not apply when the employee consents to recovery from his/her current pay account. (b) These procedures do not apply to debts or claims arising under: (1) The Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, 26 U.S.C. 1 et seq.; (2) The tariff laws of the United States; or (3) Any case where a collection of a debt is explicitly provided for or prohibited by another statute. (c) These procedures do not preclude the compromise, suspension, or termination of collection action where appropriate under the standards implementing the revised Federal Claims Collection Standards (FCCS), 31 U.S.C. 3711 et seq., 31 CFR chapter IX, parts 900 through 904. (d) This part does not preclude an employee from requesting waiver of an overpayment under 5 U.S.C. 5584 or in any way questioning the amount or validity of the debt by submitting a subsequent claim to the Board. This part does not preclude an employee from requesting a waiver pursuant to other statutory provisions applicable to the particular debt being collected. (e) The Board is not limited to collection remedies contained in the revised FCCS. The FCCS is not intended to impair common law remedies." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.1.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,A,Subpart A—General Provisions,,§ 1710.103 Definitions.,DNFSB,,,,"Administrative charges are those amounts assessed by the Board to cover the costs of processing and handling delinquent debts due the government. Administrative offset means withholding money payable by the United States Government to, or held by the government for, a person to satisfy a debt the person owes the United States Government. Agency means any agency of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal government, including government corporations. Centralized salary offset computer matching describes the computerized process used to match delinquent debt records with federal salary payment records when the purpose of the match is to identify federal employees who owe debts to the federal government. Creditor agency means the agency to which the debt is owed, including a debt collection center when acting on behalf of a creditor agency in matters pertaining to the collection of a debt. Debt and claim are used synonymously to refer to an amount of money, funds, or property that has been determined by an agency official to be owed to the United States from any person, organization, or entity, except another federal agency. For the purposes of administrative offset under 31 U.S.C. 3716, the terms “debt” and “claim” include an amount of money, funds, or property owed by a person to a state (including past-due support being enforced by a state), the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Debt collection center means the Department of the Treasury or other government agency or division designated by the Secretary of the Treasury, with authority to collect debts on behalf of creditor agencies. Delinquent debt record refers to the information about a debt that an agency submits to Treasury when the agency refers the debt for collection by offset in accordance with the provision of 31 U.S.C. 3716. Disbursing official means an official who has authority to disburse federal salary payments pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 3321 or another law. Disposable pay means that part of current basic pay, special pay, incentive pay, retired pay, retainer pay, or in the case of an employee not entitled to basic pay, other authorized pay remaining after the deduction of: (1) Any amount required by law to be withheld; (2) Amounts properly withheld for federal, state, or local income tax purposes; (3) Amounts deducted as health insurance premiums; (4) Amounts deducted as normal retirement contributions, not including amounts deducted for supplementary coverage; and (5) Amounts deducted as normal life insurance premiums, not including amounts deducted for supplementary coverage. Employee is any individual employed by any agency of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal government, including government corporations. FCCS means the Federal Claims Collection Standards jointly published by the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Justice at 31 CFR parts 900 through 904. Hearing official means an individual responsible for conducting any hearing with respect to the existence or amount of a debt claimed or the repayment schedule if not established by written agreement between the employee and the Board, and who renders a decision on the basis of this hearing. Paying agency means the agency that employs the individual who owes the debt and authorizes the payment of his/her current pay. Salary offset means an administrative offset to collect a debt under 5 U.S.C. 5514 by deduction(s) at one or more officially established pay intervals from the current pay account of an employee without his or her consent. Treasury means the Department of the Treasury. Waiver means the cancellation, remission, forgiveness, or non-recovery of a debt allegedly owed by an employee to an agency as permitted or required by 5 U.S.C. 5584, 5 U.S.C. 8346(b), or any other law." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.1.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,A,Subpart A—General Provisions,,§ 1710.105 Application.,DNFSB,,,,"The regulations in this part are to be followed when: (a) The Board is owed a debt by an individual currently employed by another federal agency; (b) The Board is owed a debt by an individual who is a current employee of the Board; or (c) The Board employs an individual who owes a debt to another federal agency." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.1,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,§ 1710.107 Notice requirements.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Deductions under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 5514 shall not be made unless the creditor agency provides the employee with written notice that he/she owes a debt to the Federal government a minimum of 30 calendar days before salary offset is initiated. When the Board is the creditor agency, this notice of intent to offset an employee's salary shall be hand-delivered at work, or sent by registered mail, return receipt requested, to the employee's most current address that is available to the Board. The written notice will contain: (1) A statement that the debt is owed and an explanation of its origin, nature, and amount; (2) The creditor agency's intention to collect the debt by deducting from the employee's current disposable pay account until the debt and all accumulated interest are paid in full; (3) The amount and frequency of the intended deduction (stated as a fixed dollar amount or as a percentage of pay, not to exceed 15 percent of disposable pay) and the intention to continue the deduction until the debt is paid in full or otherwise resolved; (4) An explanation of interest, penalties, and administrative charges, including a statement that these charges will be assessed unless excused in accordance with the Federal Claims Collection Standards at 31 CFR parts 900 through 904; (5) The employee's right to inspect and copy government records pertaining to the debt or, if the employee or his or her representative cannot personally inspect the records, to request and receive a copy of these records; (6) If not previously provided, the opportunity (under terms agreeable to the Board) to establish a schedule for the voluntary repayment of the debt or to enter into a written agreement to establish a schedule for repayment of the debt in lieu of offset (31 CFR 901.2) (the agreement must be in writing, signed by the employee and the Board, and documented in the Board's files); (7) The employee's right to a hearing conducted by an official arranged for by the Board (an administrative law judge, or alternatively, a hearing official not under the control of the head of the agency) if a petition is filed as prescribed in § 1710.109; (8) The methods and time period for petitioning for hearings; (9) A statement that the timely filing of a petition for a hearing will stay the commencement of collection proceedings; (10) A statement that a final decision on the hearing will be issued not later than 60 days after the filing of the petition requesting the hearing unless the employee requests and the hearing official grants a delay in the proceedings; (11) A statement that any knowingly false or frivolous statements, representations, or evidence may subject the employee to: (i) Disciplinary procedures appropriate under 5 U.S.C. chapter 75, 5 CFR part 752, or any other applicable statutes or regulations; (ii) Penalties under the False Claims Act, sections 3729-3731 of title 31, United States Code, or any other applicable statutory authority; or (iii) Criminal penalties under sections 286, 287, 1001, and 1002 of title 18, United States Code or any other applicable statutory authority. (12) A statement of other rights and remedies available to the employee under statutes or regulations governing the program for which the collection is being made; and (13) Unless there are contractual or statutory provisions to the contrary, a statement that amounts paid on or deducted for the debt which are later waived or found not owed to the United States will be promptly refunded to the employee. (b) Entitlement to hearing: (1) An employee who has received a notice under paragraph (a) that his or her debt will be collected by means of salary offset may request a hearing concerning the existence or amount of the debt. (2) If a hearing is given, the employee is entitled to receive a written decision from the official holding the hearing on the following issues: (i) the determination of the creditor agency concerning the existence or amount of the debt; and (ii) The repayment schedule, if it was not established by written agreement between the employee and the creditor agency.” (c) Exceptions to entitlement to notice, hearing, written responses, and final decisions: (1) Any adjustment to pay arising out of any employee's election of coverage or a change in coverage under a federal benefits program requiring periodic deductions from pay, if the amount to be recovered was accumulated over four pay periods or less; (2) A routine intra-agency adjustment of pay that is made to correct an overpayment of pay attributable to clerical or administrative errors or delays in processing pay documents, if the overpayment occurred within the four pay periods preceding the adjustment, and, at the time of such adjustment, or as soon thereafter as practical, the individual is provided written notice of the nature and the amount of the adjustment and point of contact for contesting such adjustment; or (3) Any adjustment to collect a debt amounting to $50 or less, if, at the time of such adjustment, or as soon thereafter as practical, the individual is provided written notice of the nature and the amount of the adjustment and a point of contact for contesting such adjustment." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.2,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,§ 1710.109 Hearing.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Request for hearing. An employee shall file a petition for a hearing in accordance with the instructions outlined in the creditor agency's notice of salary offset. (1) If the Board is the creditor agency, a hearing may be requested by filing a written petition stating why the employee disputes the existence or amount of the debt or the repayment schedule if it was not established by written agreement between the employee and the Board. The employee shall sign the petition and fully identify and explain with reasonable specificity all the facts, evidence, and witnesses, if any, which the employee believes support his or her position. The petition for a hearing must be received no later than fifteen (15) calendar days after receipt of the notice of offset unless the employee can show that the delay in meeting the deadline date was because of circumstances beyond his or her control or because of failure to receive notice of the time limit (unless he or she was otherwise aware of it). (2) [Reserved] (b) Failure to submit timely request for hearing. If the employee fails to submit a request for hearing within the time period described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the employee will have waived the right to a hearing, and salary offset may be initiated. The Board, however, shall accept a late request for hearing if the employee can show that the late request was the result of circumstances beyond the employee's control or because of a failure to receive actual notice of the filing deadline. (c) Hearing official. The Board must obtain the services of a hearing official who is not under the supervision or control of the Board. The Board may contact the Chief Financial Officer to request a hearing official. (d) Notice of hearing. After the employee requests a hearing, the designated hearing official shall inform the employee of the form of the hearing to be provided. For oral hearings, the notice shall set forth the date, time, and location of the hearing. For paper hearings, the notice shall notify the employee of the date by which he or she should submit written arguments to the designated hearing official. The hearing official shall give the employee reasonable time to submit documentation in support of the employee's position. The hearing official shall schedule a new hearing date if requested by both parties. The hearing official shall give both parties reasonable notice of the time and place of a rescheduled hearing. (e) Oral hearing. The hearing official will conduct an oral hearing if he or she determines that the matter cannot be resolved by review of documentary evidence alone (for example, when an issue of credibility or veracity is involved). The hearing need not take the form of an evidentiary hearing, but may be conducted in a manner determined by the hearing official, including but not limited to: (1) Informal conferences with the hearing official, in which the employee and agency representative will be given full opportunity to present evidence, witnesses, and argument; (2) Informal meetings with an interview of the employee by the hearing official; or (3) Formal written submissions, with an opportunity for oral presentation. (f) Paper hearing. If the hearing official determines that an oral hearing is not necessary, he or she will make the determination based upon a review of the available written record, including any documentation submitted by the employee in support of his or her position. (g) Failure to appear or submit documentary evidence. In the absence of good cause shown (for example, excused illness), if the employee fails to appear at an oral hearing or fails to submit documentary evidence as required for a paper hearing, the employee will have waived the right to a hearing, and salary offset may be initiated. Further, the employee will have been deemed to admit the existence and amount of the debt as described in the notice of intent to offset. If the Board's representative fails to appear at an oral hearing, the hearing official shall proceed with the hearing as scheduled and will make his or her determination based upon the oral testimony presented and the documentary evidence submitted by both parties. (h) Burden of proof. The Board will have the initial burden to prove the existence and amount of the debt. Thereafter, if the employee disputes the existence or amount of the debt, the employee must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that no debt exists or that the amount of the debt is incorrect. In addition, the employee may present evidence that the proposed terms of the repayment schedule are unlawful, would cause a financial hardship to the employee, or that collection of the debt may not be pursued due to operation of law. (i) Record. The hearing official shall maintain a summary record of any hearing provided by this part. Witnesses will testify under oath or affirmation in oral hearings. (j) Date of decision. The hearing official shall issue a written opinion stating his or her decision, based upon documentary evidence and information developed at the hearing, as soon as practicable after the hearing, but not later than 60 days after the date on which the request for hearing was received by the Board. If the employee requests a delay in the proceedings, the deadline for the decision may be postponed by the number of days by which the hearing was postponed. When a decision is not timely rendered, the Board shall waive penalties applied to the debt for the period beginning with the date the decision is due and ending on the date the decision is issued. The written decision must include: (1) A statement of the facts presented to demonstrate the nature and origin of the alleged debt; (2) The hearing official's analysis, findings, and conclusions; (3) The amount and validity of the debt; and (4) The repayment schedule, where appropriate." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.3,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,§ 1710.111 Procedures for salary offset.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Determination of disposable pay. The Board will determine an employee's disposable pay (as defined in § 1710.103) and will implement salary offset as described in paragraph (c) of this section, or when requested by another agency, as described in § 1710.113(c). If the debtor is not employed by the Board, the Board will request the agency employing the debtor to determine the amount of the employee's disposable pay and implement salary offset upon request. (b) When salary offset begins. Deductions will begin within three official pay periods following receipt of the creditor agency's request for offset. (c) Amount of salary offset. The amount to be offset from each salary payment will be up to 15 percent of a debtor's disposable pay, as follows: (1) If the amount of the debt is equal to or less than 15 percent of the disposable pay, such debt generally will be collected in one lump sum payment; (2) Installment deductions will be made over a period of no greater than the anticipated period of employment. An installment deduction will not exceed 15 percent of the disposable pay from which the deduction is made unless the employee has agreed in writing to the deduction of a greater amount. An installment deduction may be less than 15 percent of disposable pay if the creditor agency has determined that smaller deductions are appropriate based on the employee's ability to pay. (d) Final salary payment. After the employee has separated either voluntarily or involuntarily from the payment agency, the p]ayment agency may make a lump sum deduction exceeding 15 percent of disposable pay from any final salary or other payments pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 3716 in order to satisfy the debt. (e) Multiple debts. In instances where two or more creditor agencies are seeking salary offset, or where two or more debts are owed to a single creditor agency, the Board's finance office may, at its discretion, determine whether one or more debts should be offset simultaneously within the 15 percent limitation. (f) Precedence of debts owed to the Board. For Board employees, debts owed to the Board generally take precedence over debts owed to other agencies. In the event that a debt to the Board is certified while an employee is subject to a salary offset to repay another agency, the Board's finance office may decide whether to have that debt repaid in full before collecting its claim or whether changes should be made in the salary deduction being sent to the other agency. If debts owed to the Board can be collected in one pay period, the finance office may suspend the salary offset to the other agency for that pay period in order to liquidate the Board debt. (g) Order of debt collection. When an employee owes two or more debts, the best interests of the government shall be the primary consideration in determining the order of debt collection. The Board's finance office, in making this determination, will be guided primarily by the statute of limitations that affects the collection of the debt(s)." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.4,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,§ 1710.113 Coordinating salary offset with other agencies.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Responsibility of the Board as the creditor agency. The Chairperson or his or her designee shall coordinate debt collections with other agencies and shall, as appropriate: (1) Arrange for a hearing or special review upon proper petitioning by a federal employee; and (2) Prescribe, upon consultation with the General Counsel, such additional practices and procedures as may be necessary to carry out the intent of this regulation. (3) The designated salary offset coordinator will be responsible for: (i) Ensuring that each notice of intent to offset is consistent with the requirements of §§ 1710.107 and 1710.111 of this part; (ii) Ensuring that each certification of debt that is sent to a paying agency is consistent with the requirements of paragraph (b) of this section; (iii) Obtaining hearing officials; and (iv) Ensuring that hearings are properly scheduled. (b) Requesting recovery from current paying agency. Upon completion of the procedures established in these regulations and pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 5514, the Board must: (1) Certify, in writing, to the paying agency that the employee owes the debt, the amount and basis of the debt, the date on which payment(s) is due, the date the Government's right to collect the debt first accrued, and that the Board's regulations implementing 5 U.S.C. 5514 have been approved by the Office of Personnel Management; (2) Advise the paying agency of the amount or percentage of disposable pay to be collected in each installment and the number and commencing date of the installments (if a date other than the next officially established pay period is required); (3) Advise the paying agency of the action(s) taken under 5 U.S.C. 5514(b) and give the date(s) action(s) were taken (unless the employee has consented to the salary offset in writing or signed a statement acknowledging receipt of the required procedures and the written consent or statement is forwarded to the paying agency); (4) Submit a debt claim certification containing the information specified in paragraphs (b)(1), (2), and (3) of this section and an installment agreement (or other instruction on the payment schedule), if applicable, to the paying agency; and (5) Submit the debt claim to the paying agency for collection if the employee is in the process of separating, and has not received a final salary check, or other final payment(s) from the paying agency. The Board must submit a properly certified claim to the agency responsible for making such payments before the collection can be made. (c) Separated employee. If the employee is already separated and all payments due from his or her former paying agency have been paid, the Board may request, unless otherwise prohibited, that money due and payable to the employee from the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund (5 CFR 831.1801 et seq. or 5 CFR 845.401 et seq. ), or other similar funds, be administratively offset to collect the debt (31 U.S.C. 3716 and the FCCS). (d) Employee transfer. When an employee transfers from one paying agency to another paying agency, the Board is not required to repeat the due process procedures described in 5 U.S.C. 5514 and this subpart to resume the collection. The Board will submit a properly certified claim to the new paying agency and will subsequently review the debt to verify that the collection is continued by the new paying agency." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.5,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,§ 1710.115 Notice of salary offset from another agency.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) Complete claim. When the Board receives a certified claim from a creditor agency, deductions should be scheduled to begin at the next officially established pay interval. The Board's finance office will provide the employee with a notice that contains: (1) A statement that the Board has received a certified debt claim from the creditor agency; (2) The amount of the debt claim; (3) The date salary offset deductions will begin; (4) The amount of such deductions; and (5) A copy of the notice received from the creditor agency. (b) Notice of Claim. The Board's finance office will provide a copy of the notice to the creditor agency and advise the creditor agency of the dollar amount to be offset and the pay period when the offset will begin. (c) Incomplete claim. When the Board receives an incomplete certification of debt from a creditor agency, it must return the debt claim with notice that procedures under 5 U.S.C. 5514 and 10 CFR 1710.113 must be followed and a properly certified debt claim received before action will be taken to collect from the employee's current pay account. (d) Review. The Board will not review the merits of the creditor agency's determination with respect to the amount or validity of the debt certified by the creditor agency. (e) Employees who transfer from one paying agency to another. If, after the creditor agency has submitted the debt claim to the Board, the employee transfers from the Board to a different paying agency before the debt is collected in full, the Board will certify the total amount collected on the debt. One copy of the certification will be furnished to the employee and one copy to the creditor agency, along with notice of the employee's transfer." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.6,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,§ 1710.117 Refunds.,DNFSB,,,,"(a) The Board will refund promptly any amounts deducted to satisfy debts owed to the United States when the debt is waived, found not owed to the United States, or when directed by an administrative or judicial order. (b) Unless required or permitted by law or contract, refunds under this section may not bear interest." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.7,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,§ 1710.119 Non-waiver of rights.,DNFSB,,,,"An employee's involuntary payment of all or any part of a debt collected under these regulations will not be construed as a waiver of any rights that the employee may have under 5 U.S.C. 5514 or any other provision of contract or law, unless there are statutes or contracts to the contrary." 10:10:5.0.5.5.9.2.46.8,10,Energy,XVII,,1710,PART 1710—FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR THE COLLECTION OF A DEBT OWED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,B,"Subpart B—Notice, Hearing, and Salary Offset Process",,"§ 1710.121 Interest, penalties, and administrative charges.",DNFSB,,,,"Charges may be assessed for interest, penalties, and administrative charges in accordance with the FCCS, 31 CFR 901.9."