Number: 

DAO 218-3

SECTION 1. PURPOSE.

.01 This Order prescribes procedures and responsibilities for the preparation, clearance, and submission of reports that the Department of Commerce is required to submit to the Congress by law.

.02 This revision updates provisions and language throughout the Order and consolidates the two appendices into one. Accordingly, text change highlighting, prescribed by DAO 200-3, is not shown.

SECTION 2. SCOPE.

.01 This Order applies to both present and future reports required by law to be submitted to the Congress. Appendix A to this Order, "Scheduled, Unscheduled, and Ont-Time Reports to Congress," lists reports currently required.

.02 This Order does not apply to reports requested by the Chairman of Congressional committees, by individual Senators or Representatives, or by Congressional Staff.

SECTION 3. RESPONSIBILITIES.

.01 Secretarial Officers and heads of Departmental offices and operating units designated in the Appendix A to this Order are responsible for preparation of the reports. The reports should be received by the signing officials no later than the date specified in Appendix A.

.02 The Departmental Office of Management and Organization (OMO) shall be the focal point within the Department for matters relevant to this order, and shall monitor compliance with its provisions.

.03 Secretarial Officers and heads of Departmental offices and operating units shall monitor reporting requirements within their areas of the responsibility and report to OMO additions, corrections, or other changes to the schedule of reports shown in Appendix A. For new reports, recommendations on assigning preparation responsibility and designation of the transmitting official should also be included.

.04 The Office of the Assistant General Counsel for Legislation and Regulation shall, in reviewing enrolled enactments referred to the Department, determine if they contain provisions affecting the reporting requirements covered by this Order, and report any such provisions to OMO.

SECTION 4. EXPLANATION OF TERMS.

The following terms are used in this Order:

a. Statutory addressees: Officials to whom a report is sent in compliance with the law prescribing the report. When a law requires submission of a report to the Congress, the report will be sent to the Vice President, in his capacity as President of the Senate, and to the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

b. Printed report: A report that uses camera produced plates for reproduction on a printing press.

c. Typed report: A report produced on a typewriter or work processor/printer in its entirety, except for copies which may be photocopy reproductions of the original.

d. Preparing office: The Departmental office or operating unit responsible for preparing a report, and for ensuring its clearance, approval, reproduction, and delivery to statutory addressees as prescribed by law.

SECTION 5. PRINTED REPORTS.

.01 Reports and Due Dates. Appendix A to this Order specifies that certain reports will be printed. Preparing offices must schedules the preparation and clearance of such reports to ensure that they are received by the Secretary, or other signing official, for approval and signature no later than the "due dates to the transmitting official" shown in Appendix A.

.02 Printing Arrangements. The preparing office must provide the Departmental Office of Public Affairs (OPA) and the Office of Publications (O/Pub) with as much advance notice as possible. The following instructions apply:

a. The preparing office should submit a CD-27, "Publication Clearance Request" to OPA when preparation of the report begins (normally two to three months in advance of the date due to the transmitting official) and, as necessary, request deviations from the standard requirements for reports, as covered in the following subparagraphs.

b. After approval of the CD-27 by OPA, as the manuscript for the report is complete, or page quantity is sufficient to prepare for composition, the preparing office shall submit a CD-10 "Publications Service Request," to O/Pub. All annual reports will be printed in one ink color, in two columns to text on Offset Book Paper Sub 120, on both sides of a sheet, with a Vellum stock cover, as covered in more detail below.

c. Report specifications shall be as follows:

1. Trim size: 8 1/2 x 11 inches;

2. Type column: 2-20x65 pica (format to be assigned by the O/Pub);

3. Type face: 9/10 point Times Roman text, 8 point extracts, 7 point tabular, text headings 12 points Time Roman or less. Display, optional;

4. Paper: Text - White Offset Book Sub 120,

Cover - White or color Vellum Sub 100;

5. Illustrations: Illustrations must be functional such as maps, charts, graphs, photographs or drawings, as necessary to assist the reader in understanding the text of the report; and

6. Color of Ink: Text - Black,

Cover - One color of ink.

.03 Provisions for Quantity of Report to be Printed and Distributed. The preparing office shall include in the CD-10:

a. the number of copies to be printed, and

b. copies to be sent to specified addressees directly by the printer. These requirements shall be coordinated with the O/Pub before completing the CD-10. (Also see paragraph .04, below.)

1. For distribution by the printer, the CD-10 shall include the following in all cases:

(a) Copies for the statutory addressees plus six copies for the Executive Secretariat. These will be used for immediate Office of the Secretary, and for certain control records.

(b) A stated number of copies for the preparing office to meet its distribution responsibilities, as covered in subparagraph 2. below. The preparing office shall consult with the O/Pub in determining the quantity.

2. The preparing office is responsible for determining recipients and arranging for distribution of the printed report within the Department (except as provided above), and for its initial distribution, excepting statutory addressees, outside the Department.

.04 Provisions for Public Sale. When Form CD-10 is prepared to obtain printing (paragraph .03 above) the preparing office shall also attach a copy of GPO Form SD-3868 "Notification of Intent to Publish." Form SD-3868 should be prepared in consultation with the O/Pub.

SECTION 6. DEPARTMENT-LEVEL CLEARANCE, APPROVAL, SIGNATURE AND DELIVERY OF REPORTS.

.01 For reports requiring Department-level clearance, approval and signature by the Secretary, the preparing office shall complete Form CD-183, "Abstract of Secretarial Correspondence," and attach the following materials:

a. A letter of submission from the Secretary to the statutory addressees. The letter should be prepared in the form illustrated in Exhibit 1 of this order. (Upon signing by the Secretary, the letter becomes part of the printed report.)

b. Transmittal letters to the statutory addressees. An updated typed original letter to each statutory addressee must be prepared for the Secretary's signature in the form illustrated in Exhibit 1 of this Order. These letters will ensure and record actual transmission of the report to each statutory addressee. (Letters will be withdrawn by the Executive Secretariat upon receipt of the package and held for signing when the report is received from the printer.)

c. All materials for the report in manuscript, proof, or camera-ready copy form. (If illustrations or tabular materials are unavailable at the time a report must be submitted for clearance and signature, suitable mock-ups may be substituted.)

.02 No report package shall be submitted for Department-level clearance and approval (see Exhibit 2 of this Order) until it has been approved by the head of the submitting Departmental office or operating unit. The preparing office shall then obtain clearances (except for reports of the Inspector General which are circulated for comment only) from the :

a. General Counsel;

b. Assistant Secretary for Administration;

c. Assistant Secretary for Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs;

d. Director, Office of Public Affairs;

e. Office specified in Appendix A for particular reports;

f. Other elements and officials of the Department as determined by the report's preparing office. These clearance should be obtained prior to those above, but not prior to approval of the report by the head of the submitting unit.

.03 After obtaining Department-level clearances, the preparing office shall:

a. For all reports requiring clearance by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), whether they are signed by the Secretary of not, submit the report to the Departmental Director for Budget, Planning and Organization (also see paragraph 3.02 of this Order). For those reports that contain legislative recommendations, the Director will coordinate OMB clearance with the Assistant General Counsel for Legislation and Regulation. The Director will obtain OMB's clearance and forward the cleared report to the Department's Executive Secretariat to obtain the Secretary's signature on the submission letter to the statutory addressees. (The Executive Secretariat may initiate additional clearances deemed necessary.)

b. For reports not requiring OMB clearance, submit the report package to the Department's Executive Secretarial to obtain the Secretary's signature on the submission letter to the statutory addressees. (The Executive Secretariat may initiate additional clearances deemed necessary.)

c. After the Secretary's approval, the Executive Secretariat will return the report (without the transmittal letters) to the preparing office, which will deliver the report to the O/Pub for printing (see Section 5. of this Order).

.04 Delivery to the Statutory Addressees. Upon receiving its supply from the printer, the Department's Executive Secretariat will:

a. Date the previously signed transmittal letters;

b. Transmit the report by regular mail to each statutory addressee;

c. Send a copy of the transmittal letters, together with one copy of the report, to the Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs and the preparing office; and

d. Distribute copies of the report within the immediate Office of the Secretary.

SECTION 7. TYPED REPORTS.

The following procedures apply to the preparation of typed reports, which shall be cleared by OPA and submitted to O/Pub with a Form CD-10 to obtain printing:

a. The preparing office shall use on of two formats when submitting typed reports to the signing official. Depending upon the preparatory work involved, e.g., length of report, number of statutory addressees, etc., the undated report shall be submitted as either:

1. A self-transmitting, typed original report to each statutory addressee, or

2. A good quality, photocopy reproduction of the typed original report with a typed original letter of transmittal to each statutory addressee.

b. One reference copy of each report and each transmittal letter shall be prepared for the signing official. One copy of each will be prepared and maintained as the official record by the preparing office.

c. Legal clearance shall be obtained by the preparing office, in addition to other clearances noted in the appendix to this Order. Any other clearances will be at the discretion of the preparing office and the signing official.

d. Upon clearance, the signing official shall sign and date each typed report.

e. Delivery and distribution of copies will be accomplished through regular correspondence procedures.

SECTION 8. UNSCHEDULED REPORTS.

Unscheduled reports, whether printed or typed, shall be forwarded to the transmitting official within thirty (30) working days of the event which caused the report. For reports to Congress on studies or investigations, the due date shall be thirty (30) working days from the Department's acceptance of the study or investigation report. According to the form of submission, i.e., printed or typed, the provisions of Sections 5. or 7. of this Order apply.

SECTION 9. EFFECT ON OTHER ORDERS.

This Order supersedes Department Administrative Order 218-3, dated June 10, 1987, as amended.

Signed by: Assistant Secretary for Administration

Office of Primary Interest: Office of Management and Organization

EXHIBIT 1 DAO 218-3

(Secretary's Letterhead)

PRINTED WITH REPORT

The President

President of the Senate

Speaker of the House of Representatives

Sirs:

I am pleased to submit the annual report on the activities of the (name of operating unit) , U.S. Department of Commerce, for fiscal year 19XX, in compliance with Section X of the XXX Act of 19XX, as amended (statutory citation for the XXX Act).

Sincerely,

Secretary of Commerce

Enclosure

(Note: An individual copy of this letter should be sent to each addressee receiving the report. This Exhibit illustrates only the generally addressed copy to be printed with the report.)

EXHIBIT 2 DAO 218-3

(Appropriate Letterhead)

FORMAT FOR DEPARTMENTAL PRECLEARANCE

OF ANNUAL REPORTS TO CONGRESS

MEMORANDUM FOR: General Counsel

Assistant Secretary for Administration

Assistant Secretary for Legislative and

Intergovernmental Affairs

Director, Office of Public Affairs

FROM: (Name/Title/Organization/Signature)

SUBJECT: Clearance of Annual Report on (finish subject as appropriate)

In accordance with Department Administrative Order 218-3, I am sending you the attached report for clearance before it is submitted to the Secretary. Please indicate your clearance by initialing/dating below, and return to (office and room number).

INITIALS DATE

For copies of Appendices/Exhibits, please call (202) 482-7873.