**NARA Glossary**

 

To assist the public and those preparing responses to the ERA RFP, NARA
has developed this glossary of archival terms with definitions that
describe specifically how these terms are used within NARA. Individual
projects and documents, such as the ERA Requirements Document, may have
adopted specific or alternate usages of these terms. However, the
definitions in this glossary are the definitive ones that apply
generally across all NARA offices and projects.

 

+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| **Term**               | **NARA Standard Definition**                |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Access, To Provide     | To make available (in accordance with all   |
|                        | applicable access restrictions) documentary |
|                        | material, copies of documentary material or |
|                        | information about documentary material      |
|                        | through activities such as reference        |
|                        | services, providing reproductions, and      |
|                        | producing exhibitions and public programs.  |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Access Restriction     | An identified restriction that controls how |
|                        | access can be provided to documentary       |
|                        | material and information about the          |
|                        | documentary material, and how the material  |
|                        | can be stored. Restrictions may apply to    |
|                        | all or part of the documentary material,    |
|                        | and may be based on national security       |
|                        | considerations, donor restrictions, court   |
|                        | orders, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)   |
|                        | exemptions, or other statutory or           |
|                        | regulatory provisions.                      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Access Review          | The process of reviewing documentary        |
|                        | material to determine what material or      |
|                        | parts of material must be withheld from a   |
|                        | requestor because of access restrictions,   |
|                        | and the process of implementing those       |
|                        | decisions to release, redact, or withdraw,  |
|                        | or withhold materials. This includes        |
|                        | systematic review, mandatory review, FOIA   |
|                        | review, special access review, and review   |
|                        | of records of concern.                      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Accession              | As a verb, the processes supporting the     |
|                        | transfer of legal custody of documentary    |
|                        | material to NARA from the creator (or the   |
|                        | creator\'s legal representative, successor, |
|                        | or heir), including the generation,         |
|                        | execution, and processing of deeds of gift, |
|                        | the standard forms, or other appropriate    |
|                        | legal documents.                            |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | As a noun, the body of documentary material |
|                        | for which legal custody is transferred by   |
|                        | one act of accessioning.                    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Appraisal              | The process of determining the value and    |
|                        | thus the disposition of records based upon  |
|                        | their current administrative, legal, and    |
|                        | fiscal use; their evidential and            |
|                        | informational value; their arrangement and  |
|                        | condition; their intrinsic value; and their |
|                        | relationship to other records.              |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Archival Description   | See Description.                            |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Archival Processing    | The activities of accessioning, arranging,  |
|                        | describing, conducting access review, and   |
|                        | properly storing documentary material.      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Arrangement            | The intellectual and physical processes and |
|                        | results of organizing documentary material  |
|                        | in accordance with accepted archival        |
|                        | principals, particularly provenance and     |
|                        | original order. See also Hierarchical       |
|                        | Description.                                |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Authentic Copy         | A copy of documentary material for which    |
|                        | the official custodian attests the          |
|                        | authenticity.                               |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Authenticity           | The property of a documentary material that |
|                        | it is what it purports to be and has not    |
|                        | been corrupted.                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Authentically Preserve | To maintain documentary material over time  |
|                        | in such a manner that its identity is       |
|                        | unquestionable and it is not corrupted.     |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Authority Source       | A list, file, pick list, or thesaurus       |
|                        | containing standardized information (e.g.,  |
|                        | acronyms, abbreviations, names, and         |
|                        | phrases) which are used to ensure that a    |
|                        | person, place, thing, event, or concept is  |
|                        | consistently referred to using the same     |
|                        | terminology, so providing a uniform method  |
|                        | of creating consistent indexes or access    |
|                        | points to documentary material and          |
|                        | information about documentary material.     |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Certified Copy         | A copy of a documentary material signed and |
|                        | certified as an authentic copy by the       |
|                        | official custodian of the original.         |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Content (of            | The information conveyed by documentary     |
| Documentary Material)  | material.                                   |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Context (of            | The organizational, functional, and         |
| Documentary Material)  | operational circumstances in which          |
|                        | documentary material is created and/or      |
|                        | received and used.                          |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Creator                | The organization or person responsible for  |
|                        | the creation, accumulation, or maintenance  |
|                        | of a series of documentary material when in |
|                        | working (primary) use.                      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Data File              | 1\) A collection of data that is stored     |
|                        | together and treated as a unit by a         |
|                        | computer. 2) Related data (numeric,         |
|                        | textual, or graphic information) and fields |
|                        | that are organized in a strictly prescribed |
|                        | form and format.                            |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Data Type              | The representation of information according |
|                        | to preset specifications (e.g., plain text  |
|                        | files, fixed length text files, HTML, TIFF, |
|                        | etc.)                                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Deed of Gift           | A type of disposition agreement in which    |
|                        | documentary material is donated (and legal  |
|                        | custody transferred) to NARA by an          |
|                        | individual, family, or organization.        |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Deposit Agreement      | A type of disposition agreement in which    |
|                        | NARA agrees to accept physical custody of   |
|                        | documentary material without taking legal   |
|                        | custody of them.                            |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | Note: Such agreements are unusual, and are  |
|                        | not applicable for material over which NARA |
|                        | has statutory authority, i.e. Federal and   |
|                        | Presidential records.                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Description            | 1\) The process of analyzing, organizing,   |
|                        | and recording information that serves to    |
|                        | identify, manage, locate, and explain       |
|                        | documentary material, and the contexts and  |
|                        | record systems from which that material was |
|                        | selected. See also Hierarchical             |
|                        | Description.                                |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | 2\) The written representation or products  |
|                        | of the above process.                       |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Destruction            | The process of eliminating or deleting      |
|                        | documentary material, beyond any possible   |
|                        | reconstruction.                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Digital component (of  | A bit stream which is necessary to          |
| documentary material)  | reproduce documentary material and requires |
|                        | specific identification because it is       |
|                        | stored separately or in a specific data     |
|                        | type, or has a specific behavior or         |
|                        | association with specific software.         |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Dispose                | To carry out disposition instructions to    |
|                        | destroy or donate temporary records after   |
|                        | their retention period expires or other     |
|                        | documentary material without permanent      |
|                        | value.                                      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Disposition            | Those actions taken regarding records no    |
|                        | longer needed for the conduct the regular   |
|                        | current business of the creator.            |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | Note: These actions include transfer to     |
|                        | storage facilities or records centers,      |
|                        | transfers from one creator to another,      |
|                        | transfer of physical custody to NARA,       |
|                        | transfer of legal custody to NARA, and      |
|                        | disposal.                                   |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Disposition Agreement  | A general term that includes all types of   |
|                        | agreements (records schedules, deeds of     |
|                        | gift, deposit agreements) that contain      |
|                        | disposition instructions.                   |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Disposition            | The instructions contained in a disposition |
| Instruction            | agreement that mandate what is to be done   |
|                        | with documentary material at certain points |
|                        | in their lifecycle. Disposition             |
|                        | Instructions may consist of:                |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | -   Specification of the length of time     |
|                        |     material should be retained by their    |
|                        |     creator or custodian (a retention       |
|                        |     period),                                |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | -   Conditions under which the creator or   |
|                        |     custodian should terminate retention,   |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | -   Physical or legal transfer of material  |
|                        |     to another custodian,                   |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | -   Destruction of records, or stipulation  |
|                        |     that the material is not to be          |
|                        |     destroyed.                              |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Documentary Material   | Records (temporary or permanent), nonrecord |
|                        | material, personal papers or artifacts that |
|                        | refer to all media containing recorded      |
|                        | information, regardless of the nature of    |
|                        | the media or the method(s) or               |
|                        | circumstance(s) of recording.               |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Donated Material       | Documentary material that has been          |
|                        | transferred into NARA's legal custody via a |
|                        | deed of gift from a person or non-Federal   |
|                        | organization.                               |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Electronic Record      | Any information that is recorded in a form  |
|                        | that only a computer can process and that   |
|                        | satisfies the definition of a record.       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Equity Holder          | A Federal or Presidential organization that |
|                        | owns or has a stake in information found in |
|                        | a record, and so must participate in        |
|                        | decisions relating to the release,          |
|                        | redaction, and withdrawal of records during |
|                        | access review.                              |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Essential              | Those properties/characteristics of         |
| Characteristics        | electronic records that must remain         |
|                        | unchanged through transfer, ingest,         |
|                        | storage, and presentation or output of      |
|                        | records.                                    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Expunge Material       | To completely remove documentary material   |
|                        | from NARA's physical custody and all        |
|                        | related information about the material such |
|                        | as that no trace of the material's          |
|                        | existence or its audit trail remains.       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| File Unit              | The middle level of hierarchical            |
|                        | description as defined by NARA, which       |
|                        | describes an organized unit of documentary  |
|                        | material grouped together either for        |
|                        | current use or in the process of archival   |
|                        | arrangement. A file unit is the             |
|                        | intellectual grouping of the documentary    |
|                        | material, which may or may not equal the    |
|                        | physical grouping. For example, a case file |
|                        | may be housed in several physical folders,  |
|                        | but described as one file unit.             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Freedom of Information | A request, made based on the provisions of  |
| Act (FOIA) Request     | the Freedom of Information Act, for access  |
|                        | to restricted information in Federal        |
|                        | records held by NARA, including NARA        |
|                        | operating records subject to the FOIA, or   |
|                        | for access to Presidential records in the   |
|                        | custody of NARA that were created after     |
|                        | January 19, 1981 and are subject to the     |
|                        | Presidential Records Act.                   |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Hierarchical           | The principal of archival description in    |
| Description            | which documentary material is described in  |
|                        | aggregates at various prescribed            |
|                        | hierarchical levels. At NARA these levels   |
|                        | range from the largest grouping (series) to |
|                        | the intermediate level (file unit) to the   |
|                        | smallest (item). Descriptions of materials  |
|                        | at the series level are also linked to one  |
|                        | of two types of archival control groups: a  |
|                        | record group or a collection.               |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Ingest                 | The process of moving records into the ERA  |
|                        | system.                                     |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Item                   | The lowest level of hierarchical            |
|                        | description as defined by NARA, which       |
|                        | describes the smallest intellectually       |
|                        | indivisible archival unit (e.g. a letter,   |
|                        | memorandum, report, leaflet, or             |
|                        | photograph).                                |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Legal Custody          | To have legal control and responsibility    |
|                        | for a specific group of documentary         |
|                        | material.                                   |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Medium                 | The physical material in or on which        |
|                        | information may be recorded (e.g. paper,    |
|                        | magnetic tape, film).                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Mediated Search        | A search for documentary material or        |
|                        | information about documentary material      |
|                        | during which the person searching is        |
|                        | assisted by NARA personnel.                 |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Model Template         | A template created to be copied and         |
|                        | modified for the creation of new templates. |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Original Order         | The arrangement of records established by   |
|                        | the creator, preserved by NARA in order to  |
|                        | preserve existing relationships, evidential |
|                        | significance, and the usefulness of finding |
|                        | aids supplied by the creator.               |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Permanent Record       | A record that has sufficient historical or  |
|                        | other value to warrant its continued        |
|                        | preservation by the Federal Government      |
|                        | beyond the time it is needed for            |
|                        | administrative, legal, or fiscal purposes.  |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Persistent Format      | A data type, which may be simple or         |
|                        | complex, that is independent of specific    |
|                        | hardware or software, such that an object   |
|                        | in this data type can be transferred from a |
|                        | source platform to an arbitrary target      |
|                        | platform with no significant alteration of  |
|                        | essential attributes or behaviors.          |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Physical Custody       | To have physical control of and             |
|                        | responsibility for a specific group of      |
|                        | documentary material.                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Preservation           | Processes and operations involved in        |
|                        | ensuring the technical and intellectual     |
|                        | survival of authentic records through time. |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Preservation           | 1\) The review of documentary material to   |
| Assessment             | determine their current condition and       |
|                        | potential need for preservation processing. |
|                        | 2) The results of this review.              |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Preservation Copy      | A copy of documentary material used solely  |
|                        | in the processes and operations involved in |
|                        | the stabilization and protection of         |
|                        | documentary material against damage or      |
|                        | deterioration.                              |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Preservation and       | The related services for preservation and   |
| Access Level (PAL)     | access to a set of electronic records       |
|                        | maintained in the ERA system. NARA will     |
|                        | specify standard PALs for given record      |
|                        | types and data types.                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Preservation and       | A plan, based on the results of a           |
| Access Plan            | preservation assessment, indicating the     |
|                        | activities to be undertaken in preserving   |
|                        | specific documentary material or sets of    |
|                        | material and how NARA will provide access   |
|                        | to them.                                    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Preservation Process   | A process appropriate for ensuring the      |
|                        | continued existence, accessibility, and     |
|                        | authenticity of documentary material over   |
|                        | time.                                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Provenance             | The organization or individual that         |
|                        | created, accumulated, and/or maintained the |
|                        | documentary material in the conduct of      |
|                        | business prior to their legal transfer to   |
|                        | NARA.                                       |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | Note: The archival principle of provenance  |
|                        | states that documentary material of the     |
|                        | same provenance must not be intermingled    |
|                        | with those of any other provenance.         |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Record                 | A unit of recorded information created,     |
|                        | received, and maintained as evidence or     |
|                        | information by an organization or person,   |
|                        | in pursuance of legal obligations or in the |
|                        | transaction of business.                    |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Records Creator        | See Creator                                 |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Record Group           | An administrative grouping of               |
|                        | organizationally related records            |
|                        | established by an archival agency after     |
|                        | considering the organization's              |
|                        | administrative history and complexity and   |
|                        | the volume of its records.                  |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Record Type            | The intellectual form of the documentary    |
|                        | material, such as letter, memo, greeting    |
|                        | card, or portrait.                          |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Records Center         | A facility for the storage and servicing of |
|                        | records pending their disposal or transfer  |
|                        | to the National Archives. Records centers   |
|                        | include NARA-authorized agency records      |
|                        | centers and NARA-operated Federal records   |
|                        | centers.                                    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Records Lifecycle      | An archival concept that describes the      |
|                        | lifespan of a record, from its creation or  |
|                        | receipt to its final disposition. The       |
|                        | records lifecycle is divided into the       |
|                        | following stages or phases:                 |
|                        | creation/receipt, maintenance and use,      |
|                        | retirement, final disposition, and          |
|                        | continuing use.                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Records Lifecycle Data | All data collected by NARA that pertains to |
|                        | the records throughout their lifecycle.     |
|                        | This includes all data related to records   |
|                        | lifecycle management processes, including   |
|                        | data collected during scheduling, physical  |
|                        | transfer, legal transfer, and description.  |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Records Lifecycle      | An activity performed on documentary        |
| Transaction            | material in their existence that changes    |
|                        | their status in the records lifecycle. Such |
|                        | transactions include the scheduling and     |
|                        | appraisal of government records, the        |
|                        | development of deposit agreements, the      |
|                        | retirement of material to NARA's physical   |
|                        | custody, the legal transfer of material to  |
|                        | the National Archives and Presidential      |
|                        | Libraries, destruction, and the review,     |
|                        | redaction, and release of information       |
|                        | subject to legal restrictions on access.    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Records Schedule       | A type of disposition agreement developed   |
|                        | by a Federal agency and approved by NARA    |
|                        | that describes Federal records, establishes |
|                        | a period for their retention by the agency, |
|                        | and provides mandatory instructions for     |
|                        | what to do with them when they are no       |
|                        | longer needed for current Government        |
|                        | business. The term refers to: (1) an SF     |
|                        | 115, Request for Records Disposition        |
|                        | Authority, that has been approved by NARA   |
|                        | to authorize the disposition of Federal     |
|                        | records; and (2) a General Records Schedule |
|                        | (GRS) issued by NARA.                       |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | Note: Records schedules may be reproduced   |
|                        | or referenced in a printed agency manual or |
|                        | directive containing the records'           |
|                        | descriptions and disposition instructions   |
|                        | approved by NARA on one or more SF 115s or  |
|                        | issued by NARA in the GRS.                  |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | Also called records disposition schedule,   |
|                        | records control schedule, records retention |
|                        | schedule, records retention and disposition |
|                        | schedule, or schedule.                      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Redaction              | The action of following instructions and/or |
|                        | guidelines from equity holders to create a  |
|                        | copy of documentary material, in which      |
|                        | access restricted information is removed so |
|                        | that the non-restricted information in the  |
|                        | material may be made available to the       |
|                        | public.                                     |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
|                        |                                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Refer Equities         | For material which NARA does not have the   |
|                        | authority to declassify, the process of     |
|                        | consulting with, and requesting             |
|                        | declassification authority and instructions |
|                        | from, Federal agencies and organizations    |
|                        | about the information they own within       |
|                        | material being considered for release.      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Reference              | The range of activities involved in         |
|                        | assisting researchers using documentary     |
|                        | material.                                   |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Registration of a      | Official approval of a template by NARA,    |
| Template               | and placement of the template in the ERA    |
|                        | template repository. Once registered, the   |
|                        | template can be used.                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Release                | A review determination that the material    |
|                        | may be accessed by the public, either in    |
| -   Full Release       | full or in part. Full release indicates     |
|                        | that the entire documentary material is     |
| -   Partial Release    | available for access Partial release        |
|                        | indicates that some information within the  |
|                        | material has been withheld by performing    |
|                        | redaction, or that a subset of material in  |
|                        | a group of material has been withheld.      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Remove Material        | To remove documentary material from NARA's  |
|                        | physical custody and maintain its audit     |
|                        | trail or other information about it.        |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | Note: This is sometimes referred to as      |
|                        | \"withdrawing\" or \"permanently            |
|                        | withdrawing\" in the Federal records center |
|                        | context.                                    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Retrieval (of          | The process of locating material, getting   |
| documentary material)  | material from storage and preparing them    |
|                        | for presentation or output.                 |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Review Determination   | A decision reached in an access review as   |
|                        | to whether material will be fully released, |
|                        | partially released, redacted, withdrawn, or |
|                        | withheld.                                   |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Sample Records         | Copies of a representative group of records |
|                        | provided by the creator or a custodian to   |
|                        | NARA to support the review of a proposed    |
|                        | disposition agreement, an inspection or     |
|                        | evaluation of the agency\'s records         |
|                        | management program, or the identification   |
|                        | of preservation requirements.               |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Schedule               | As a verb, the processes carried out by a   |
|                        | Federal agency to support the development   |
|                        | of a records schedule.                      |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | As a noun, a synonym for records schedule.  |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Self-Describing        | An entity whose data structure, form, or    |
|                        | layout provides both definitions and values |
|                        | for the data or formats of the object A     |
|                        | self-describing entity can be evaluated,    |
|                        | with all its elements and forms understood, |
|                        | without the need of external references.    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Series                 | The highest level of hierarchical           |
|                        | description as defined by NARA, which       |
|                        | describes file units or items arranged in   |
|                        | accordance with a filing system or          |
|                        | maintained as a unit because they result    |
|                        | from the same accumulation or filing        |
|                        | process, the same function, or the same     |
|                        | activity; have a particular form; or        |
|                        | because of some other relationship arising  |
|                        | out of their creation, receipt, or use.     |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Set of Documentary     | Documentary material grouped together,      |
| Material               | either physically or virtually, for any     |
|                        | purpose. Sets may be hierarchical in        |
|                        | nature.                                     |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Structure (of          | The physical or logical form of a           |
| documentary material)  | documentary material or a set of            |
|                        | documentary material.                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Template               | A set of specifications about a type of     |
|                        | documentary material or a set of            |
|                        | documentary material.                       |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Temporary Record       | A record approved by the appropriate        |
|                        | authority for disposal, either immediately  |
|                        | or after a specified retention period.      |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Transfer               | As a verb, the processes supporting the     |
|                        | moving of documentary material from one     |
|                        | location to another. Usually used to refer  |
|                        | to transfer of materials from the creator   |
|                        | or custodian to NARA (including Federal     |
|                        | records centers).                           |
|                        |                                             |
|                        | As a noun, the body of documentary material |
|                        | for which physical custody is so            |
|                        | transferred.                                |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Transferring Entity    | The organization or person that transfers   |
|                        | physical custody of a group of documentary  |
|                        | material to NARA (including to a Federal    |
|                        | records center). It may be the creator of   |
|                        | the materials, but it need not be.          |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Transformation         | The process, or the results of a process,   |
|                        | of reformatting or otherwise changing the   |
|                        | way electronic documentary material is      |
|                        | digitally encoded in order to reduce or     |
|                        | eliminate dependencies on specific hardware |
|                        | or software, while preserving authenticity. |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Unscheduled Records    | Federal records for which a disposition has |
|                        | not been assigned in a records schedule.    |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Withdraw Material      | To deny public access to documentary        |
|                        | material on the basis of an informed        |
|                        | decision rather than in response to a       |
|                        | formal access request. These informed       |
|                        | decisions may be based on knowledge or      |
|                        | assumption that the content of the material |
|                        | is exempt from release based on the FOIA,   |
|                        | subject to restrictions placed on           |
|                        | Congressional records, sealed court         |
|                        | documents, or subject to prohibitions under |
|                        | deeds of gift, or is subject to other       |
|                        | restrictions.                               |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
| Withhold Material      | To deny public access to documentary        |
|                        | material on the basis of a formal review    |
|                        | and pursuant to the provisions of           |
|                        | some controlling authority, such as the     |
|                        | Freedom of Information Act.                 |
|                        |                                             |
|                        |                                             |
+------------------------+---------------------------------------------+