Draft Agency File Codes
                                 by Sandy York (contractor), Regional Program Director for
                                 Records Management
   Most people know a good file plan is one of
the essential elements to a successful records
management program. A file plan (also known
as a file guide, file structure, or file index) can
make it easier to access and find information,
and help you meet statutory and regulatory
requirements.

   Records managers are often asked to help
Agency offices create file plans. The
Information Management staff in the Office of
Solid Waste and Emergency Response
(OSWER) recently devised a new system of
"file designations" or "file codes" as part of their
file plan. A file code  is an number or symbol,
or some other type of designation, used to
abbreviate lengthy file titles. One of the goals of
this system is to help programs identify records
series and to provide for linkage and integration
of records across programs.

OSWER Uses An Alpha-Numeric Code

   The file code system devised in OSWER is
alpha-numeric. The  first four characters are a
mnemonic representation of the activity covered
by the record series and the last three digits are
the EPA series number from the Agency's
revised records disposition schedules. For
example, COMM could represent committees.
There are five schedule items for committees:

   EPA 181A - Scientific Advisory Committee
            Records
   EPA 182A - Meeting Arrangement Records
   EPA 186A - Inter-Agency Committee
             Records
   EPA 187A - Infra-Agency Committee
             Records
   EPA 188A - EPA Steering Committee
             Meeting File

   Using this coding system, the file
designations for committee files would look
like this:

  COMM - Committees

   COMM 181 Scientific Advisory Committee
             Records
   COMM 182 Meeting Arrangement Records
   COMM 186 Inter-Agency Committee
             Records
   COMM 187 Intra-Agency Committee
             Records
   COMM 188 EPA Steering Committee
             Meeting File

   A file label for Scientific Advisory Committee
Records would read:

      COMM 181-
      Scientific Advisory Committee Records.

   One of the advantages, as you can see, is
that the file designations tie directly to the
disposition schedules. Once you know the file
code, it's a simple matter of finding the retention
for those records in the disposition schedule
with that same number.
National Records Management Program, Information Access Branch
Information Management and Services Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
                              February 1993
                            EPA 220-F-93-001

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Sample File Designations

   Here is a sampling of some of the file designations used in this system. The National Records
Management Program (NRMP) welcomes your comments and suggestions. The NRMP will be
circulating a draft comprehensive list of file codes using this alpha-numeric format in early March.
The list will! be expanded as more records schedules are added.
ADMI - Administrative and Management
       Programs

   105 Management Study Records
   106 Organizational Plans
   109 EPA Forms
   110 Office Administrative Files
   111 Schedules of Daily. Activities

AIRP • Air Program Records

   101 Imported Nonconforming Motor Vehicle
       Files
   217 State Implementation Plans (SIPs)

CCOR - Controlled Correspondence

   127 Regional Administrator's Correspondence
       File
   141 Controlled and Major Correspondence
       of EPA Administrators ...
   146 Controlled and Major Correspondence
       of EPA Division Directors...

CONG - Congressional Affairs

   027 Site-Specific Congressional
       Correspondence
   132 Congressional Inquiries File
   155 Reports to Congress and/or the
       President
DOCK - Dockets

   009 National Contingency Plan/National
       Priorities List
   012 Federal Agency Hazardous Waste
       Compliance Docket
   150 Rulemaking Dockets

P0W- FluuduinioMMtomiBflon Act

   030 Freedom of Information Act Request Files -
       Access Granted
   031  Freedom of Information Act Request Files -
       Requests Denied but Response Not
       Appealed
   032 Freedom of Information Act Request Files -
       Responses Appealed

OPPR - Office of Pesticides Program Records

   118 OPP Bibliographic and Reference Systems
   129 OPP Information Tracking Systems
   151  Chemical Disposal Files

PERS - Personnel Records

   121  Travel Expense. Files
   122 Personnel Reference Files
   123 Employee Training-Res
            National Records Management Program
                    February 1993

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