SF 135 Requests
Records Transmittal and Receipt, SF-135
Agencies can store records that are covered by a
NARA-approved records disposition schedule or the General Records Schedule on a
reimbursable basis.
Consistent with 36 CFR 1228.154(c)(vii), NARA
records center facilities can accept unscheduled record series that have a SF
115, Request for Records Disposition Authority, logged and pending with NARA's
Records Management Services (ACNR). Please insert "pending" in block
6h on the SF 135 and cite the schedule, the item number, and the date it
submitted to NARA with a copy of the schedule.
No original signature is required.
One SF 135 is suggested for each transfer of
temporary records. A separate SF 135 is required for each series of permanent
or unscheduled records.
The NARA records center receiving an e-mail request
to transfer records will complete the SF-135 and reply back via e-mail to the
original e-mail address. Approved forms returned as "undeliverable"
will be mailed. Please be certain that the transferring agency's mailing and
e-mail address is included on the SF 135.
Preparing the Standard Form 135 (SF 135),
Records Transmittal and Receipt
General Instructions
Filling Out the SF 135
Item 1: Enter the name and
address of the FRC to which you are submitting records. See the FRC Directors page for
the most current address information.
Item 2: Enter the name of the transferring
agency official. To expedite and improve the transfer process for our customer
agencies, FRCs will accept SF 135s without original signatures. Please note
that your agency may have internal procedures that require signatures. If you
are in doubt, please contact your agency's records officer.
Item 3: Provide the name, office, business
telephone number (including area code), and e-mail address of the person to
contact about the records.
Item 4: Completed by the FRC.
Item 5: Provide the complete address of the
transferring office. If records come from one office, but the SF 135 should be
sent to a different office, please include BOTH addresses. Specify where the
approved SF 135 should be sent, and where the final SF 135 should be
sent.
Item 6: This three-part number comprises the
transfer number (formerly known as accession number) and is completed by the
FRC after they receive the transfer.
Item 6(a): Enter the NARA record group number
assigned to the records of the agency (or component) making the transfer.
Item 6(b): Enter the last two digits of the
current fiscal year.
Item 6(c): Unless NARA has granted
authorization to your agency to pre-assign numbers, FRC staff will assign a
sequential number in this column.
Item 6(d): For transfer and billing purposes, a
standard-size box equals one cubic foot. Enter the total number of boxes
included in this transfer. If the records do not fit in a standard records
center box, leave this column blank, add the dimensions of the container to
item 6(f), and contact the FRC staff to verify acceptance.
Item 6(e): Enter the inclusive range of numbers
(e.g., 1-30).
Item 6(f): Describe the records in sufficient
detail to allow FRC personnel to verify compliance with your records schedule.
You may wish to use the series description provided in your Records Control
Schedule or the General Records Schedule. A complete series description
includes the series title and inclusive dates (start and end) of the records.
Include the organizational component that created
the records if the component is other than that described in item 5.
Indicate in this section if the series of records is
subject to the Privacy Act. Since SF 135s are public records, information
included on SF 135s (including folder title lists) should not contain National
Security Classified information or information restricted by exemption B6, the
Freedom of Information Act.
If the records are scheduled for permanent
retention, are unscheduled, or if disposition instructions indicate sampling
records is necessary, you must include a detailed folder listing for each box
in item 6(f) (if space permits) or as an attachment. If you are submitting the
SF 135 electronically, you may send the listing as a separate e-mail
attachment.
Special description requirements apply for certain
records and should be stated in item 6(f):
Stratified Report Invoicing: For agencies
participating in Stratified Report Invoicing, a caret (^) followed by a valid
two-digit charge code must be placed at the beginning of the series
description.
Site Audit Records: State "GAO Site Audit"
if the records have been so designated by the Government Accountability Office,
and indicate whether the site audit records pertain to Native Americans
Non-paper-based and special format records: These
can include records such as microfilm, engineering drawings (because of their
special format), electronic media, etc. Include the format type in 6(f) (see
www.archives.gov/frc/codes.html for information on specific
codes for non-textual record types).
Item 6(g): Restrictions
If your records pertain to National Security
Information, you must complete this section using one of the three National
Security Classification codes (C=Confidential, S=Secret or T=Top
Secret). Please note that the codes Q, R, or W (listed on
the back of the SF 135) should no longer be used. If you designate a National
Security Classification, you MUST also indicate whether the records are
designated as Code E (Restricted Data or Formerly Restricted Data). For further
information, please see EO
12356 (http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/codification/executive-order/12356.html),
later amended by EO 13292. Only the Washington National Records Center at
Suitland can store classified records.
If there are no special restrictions on your
records, you may designate code N or leave this section blank. In this case the
default restriction (restricted to authorized agency users and researchers)
will apply.
Cite the appropriate schedule identifier and item
number in your agency records schedule or the General Records Schedule (GRS).
For accountable officers' records, cite the appropriate item from GRS 6. You
may also use the General
Records Schedules (36 CFR 1228.40-46) when dealing
with records common to most offices such as contracts, travel and
transportation records, and similar records. If you need further assistance,
contact your agency's records officer. Also indicate in this section if the
records are subject to extended retention, commonly known as a
"freeze" on destruction. The "freeze code" is a
three-letter designation created by FRC staff to identify the freeze pertinent
to the records.
Item 6(i): Follow the instructions on your Item
6(i): Follow the instructions on your records schedule to compute the
disposition date. Because disposal is accomplished in quarterly cycles (i.e.,
January, April, July, and October), advance the date to the beginning of the
next calendar quarter to obtain the actual date of disposal. For example, if
the ending date of your records is September 2006, and the retention period is
three years, then the disposal date will be October 2009. Permanent records are
offered to the National Archives on an annual basis; no month is shown in the
disposition date field. Place "P" after the offer year. If records
are unscheduled, please indicate "U" in this section.
Item 6(i), 6(k), 6(l), and 6(m) are completed
by FRC personnel.
Stratified Report Invoicing refers to billing
that is broken out by different functions and/or geographical locations within
the same agency. If you are unsure whether your agency participates in
Stratified Report Invoicing, contact your agency's records officer, or
your NARA
FRC account representative (www.archives.gov/frc/acct-reps.html).
SUBMITTING THE SF 135
Agencies may transmit the SF 135 to FRCs either in hard copy or electronically.
Submitting the form electronically reduces mail time, is more secure, and
allows revisions to be made in a timely manner. You may obtain an electronic version
of the SF
135 online
in Word or PDF format.
Before shipping records, you must send a completed
SF 135 to your local FRC and receive approval of the form from the center. The
"transfers" e-mail address for each FRC is available on the FRC Directors page (www.archives.gov/frc/directors.html).
A separate SF 135 is required for each individual record series having the same
disposition authority and disposition date. For instructions on completing the
SF 135, please see page 2 of the SF 135.
Each individual record series being transferred
requires a separate SF 135. See 36 CFR 1228.160 (e) for more details.
Approval of the Standard Form 135 Sean Preparation
for Transfer
After you submit the SF 135, the FRC staff will
review it to ensure that it is complete and accurate. FRC staff will then
assign the transfer number and will return one copy of the SF 135 to you within
10 working days, authorizing shipment of the boxes. You must include a copy of
the approved SF 135 in box #1 of each transfer. If you submitted a SF 135
electronically, print out the approved copy of the SF 135 that was e-mailed
back to you by the FRC and place it in the first box as the
"shipment" copy. If the boxes or other containers are sealed and must
not be opened by NARA staff, place this shipment copy in an envelope securely
taped to the outside of box #1.
Always retain a copy of the detailed box content
listing so that you may provide agency box numbers when requesting reference
service. We also strongly recommend that you include a copy of the box content
listing in box #1.
FRC staff can prepare detailed folder indexing for
your transfers on a fee for- service basis. Please see the "Special
Services" chapter for more details.
After the FRC staff shelve the records, they will
issue a records center location number and will return a completed, signed copy
of the SF 135 to you as an official receipt. FRC staff will add the location of
the records to the receipt copy of the SF 135. Your agency staff will use this
location information when requesting records. This receipt copy is your
official record of the transfer and should be retained in your files.
Freeze--In records disposition,
those temporary records that cannot be destroyed on schedule because of special
circumstances, such as a court order or investigation, require a temporary
extension of the approved retention period.
Unscheduled records are Federal records whose
final disposition has not been approved by NARA in a records schedule.
An active record is a record necessary to
conduct the current business of an office.
Transfers typically contain one series--the records all have one subject,
function, or activity in common.
Mixed series are records grouped together into a transfer that do not have
any relationship with each other, aside from being from the same agency or
office. Mixed-series records may have different disposition authorities but
must have the same disposition date.
Permanent records are records that warrant preservation by the Federal
Government beyond the time they are needed for administrative, fiscal, or legal
purposes because of their historical or other value. The National Archives
makes the final determination on permanent records (see 44 USC 29).
Items to be Completed by Records Center:
NOTE: You must have a full version of Adobe
Acrobat in order to save the annotations made to this electronic form.
