Privacy Act requirements may restrict the gathering of information. Normally, a Memorandum of Understanding or change to an existing Implementing Agreement will be needed prior to beginning a project. These documents provide the legal basis for exchanges and cover important aspects of the project. These and other important disclosure issues are covered in greater depth in Chapter 3 of this handbook. The FedState Program Manager must also be familiar with national, regional and district procedures regulating the gathering of third party information from state agencies or other sources.
Minutes document the results of project meetings.
They provide a historical record of the project and are useful in briefing upper management. In addition, minutes serve as an excellent reminder to project participants of agreed future activity. The format may be simple, as long as the high points are recorded. Briefings provided to upper management and executives on a periodic basis keep everyone aware of current status of projects. Action plans and minutes are useful tools in preparing briefings.