(a) You may order copies of many of our documents for a fee. Our fee schedule for copies is located in § 1258.12 of this chapter. Exceptions to the fee schedule are located in § 1258.4. See § 1258.6 about reproductions NARA may provide without charging a fee.

(b) For preservation reasons, we do not make copies from the original documents if the documents are available on microfilm and a clear copy (electrostatic, photographic, or microfilm) can be made from the microfilm.

Yes, although many of our holdings are in the public domain as products of employees or agents of the Federal Government, some records and donated historical materials do have copyright protection. Particularly in the case of some special media records, Federal agencies may have obtained materials from private commercial sources, and these may carry publication restrictions in addition to copyright protection. Presidential records may also contain copyrighted materials. You are responsible for obtaining any necessary permission for use, copying, and publication from copyright holders and for any other applicable provisions of the Copyright Act (Title 17, United States Code).

Yes, the responsible director of a unit, or any of his or her superiors, the Director of the Federal Register, and their designees may certify copies of documents as true copies for a fee. The fee is found at § 1258.12(a).

(a) Self-service copiers are available in some of our facilities. Contact the appropriate facility to ask about availability before you visit.

(b) In the Washington, DC, area, self-service card-operated copiers are located in research rooms. Other copiers we set aside for use by reservation are located in designated research areas. Procedures for use are outlined in §§ 1254.80 through 1254.84 of this subpart.

(c) You may use NARA self-service copiers where available after the research room attendant reviews the documents to determine their suitability for copying. The appropriate supervisor or the senior archivist on duty in the research room reviews the determination of suitability if you request.

(d) We may impose time limits on using self-service copiers if others are waiting to use them.

(e) In some of our facilities, you may use your own scanner or personal paper-to-paper copier to copy textual materials if the equipment meets our standards cited in §§ 1254.80 and 1254.86. Contact the appropriate facility for additional details before you visit.

(f) You must follow our document handling instructions in §§ 1254.36 and 1254.72. You also must follow our microfilm handling instructions in § 1254.42.

(g) You may use a hand-held camera with no flash or a cell phone camera to take pictures of documents only if you have the permission of the research room attendant.

(h) You may not use a self-service copier or personal scanner to copy some special media records. If you wish to copy motion pictures, maps and architectural drawings, or aerial photographic film, the appropriate staff can advise you on how to order copies. If you wish to obtain copies of electronic records files, the appropriate staff will assist you.

(a) You must use paper tabs to designate individual documents you wish to copy. You must show the container including the tabbed documents to the research room attendant who determines whether they can be copied on the self-service copier. The manager of the staff administering the research room reviews the determination of suitability if you ask. After copying is completed, you must return documents removed from files for copying to their original position in the file container, you must refasten any fasteners removed to facilitate copying, and you must remove any tabs placed on the documents to identify items to be copied.

(b) If you are using a reserved copier, you must submit the containers of documents to the attendant for review before your appointment. The review time required is specified in each research room. Research room attendants may inspect documents after copying.

(c) You may copy from only one box and one folder at a time. After copying the documents, you must show the original documents and the copies to a research room attendant.

(a) Bound archival volumes (except when specialized copiers are provided).

(b) Documents fastened together by staples, clips, acco fasteners, rivets, or similar fasteners, where folding or bending documents may cause damage.

(c) Documents larger than the glass copy plate of the copier.

(d) Documents with uncancelled security classification markings.

(e) Documents with legal restrictions on copying.

(f) Documents that the research room attendant judges to be in poor physical condition or which may be subject to possible damage if copied.

(a) We must properly cancel security classification markings (Confidential, Secret, Top Secret) and other restricted markings on declassified records before documents are copied. Only a NARA staff member can cancel security markings. Properly declassified documents bear the declassification authority as required by 32 CFR 2001.24.

(b) You may not remove from the research room copies of documents bearing uncancelled classification markings. We confiscate copies of documents with uncancelled markings.

(c) When you copy individual documents, the research room staff cancels the classification markings on each page of the copy and places the declassification authority on the first page of each document. If you copy only selected pages from a document, you must make a copy of the first page bearing the declassification authority and attach that page to any subsequent page(s) you copy from the document. You must show this declassification authority to the guard or research room attendant when you remove copies of documents from the research room or the building.

(d) Before you copy formerly-classified materials, we provide you with a declassification strip, which you attach to the copier. The strip reproduces on each page copied and cancels the security markings. We may also provide a declassification strip to attach to your personal copier or scanner.

(e) Staff at Presidential libraries cancel security markings before documents are provided to researchers in research rooms.

(a) Subject to §§ 1254.26(d) and 1254.86, you may use scanners and other copying equipment if the equipment meets certain conditions or minimum standards described in paragraphs (b) through (g) of this section. Exceptions are noted in paragraph (h). The supervisor administering the research room or the senior staff member on duty in the research room reviews the research room attendant's determination if you request.

(b) Equipment platens or copy boards must be the same size or larger than the records. No part of a record may overhang the platen or copy board.

(c) No part of the equipment may come in contact with records in a manner that causes friction, abrasion, or that otherwise crushes or damages records.

(d) We prohibit drum scanners.

(e) We prohibit automatic feeder devices on flatbed scanners. When using a slide scanner, we must check slides after scanning to ensure that no damage occurs while the slide is inside the scanner.

(f) Light sources must not raise the surface temperature of the record you copy. You must filter light sources that generate ultraviolet light.

(g) All equipment surfaces must be clean and dry before you use records. You may not clean or maintain equipment, such as replacing toner cartridges, when records are present. We do not permit aerosols or ammonia-containing cleaning solutions. We permit a 50 percent water and 50 percent isopropyl alcohol solution for cleaning.

(h) If you wish to use a scanner or other personal copier in a regional archives or Presidential library, contact the facility first for approval. Not all facilities permit the use of scanners or personal copying equipment because of space, electrical load concerns, and other reasons. Your request must state the space and power consumption requirements and the intended period of use.

(i) In facilities that provide a self-service copier or permit the use of personal paper-to-paper copiers or scanners, you must show documents you wish to copy to the research room attendant for approval.

(j) If you have any question about what is permissible at any given facility, consult with the facility before your visit. Contact information for our facilities is found in part 1253 of this chapter and at the NARA Web site, http://www.archives.gov.

(a) There is a 5-minute time limit on copiers in research rooms when others are waiting to use the copier. If you use a microfilm reader-printer, we may limit you to three copies when others are waiting to use the machine. If you wish to copy large quantities of documents, you should see a staff member in the research room to reserve a copier for an extended time period.

(b) If we must cancel an appointment due to copier failure, we make every effort to schedule a new mutually agreed-upon time. However, we do not displace researchers whose appointments are not affected by the copier failure.

Your research identification card can be used as a debit card if you arrange with the Cashier's Office to set up an account using cash, check, money order, debit card, or credit card. Your researcher identification card number as encoded on the card forms the basis of your account in the debit system. You may also purchase generic debit cards of values up to $20 each from the Cashier's Office using any of the above payment methods. When the Cashier's Office is closed or at any other time during the hours research rooms are open as cited in part 1253 of this chapter, you may use cash or credit card to purchase a debit card from the vending machines located in the research rooms. Inserting the debit card into a card reader connected to the copier enables you to make copies for the appropriate fee, which are found in § 1258.12 of this chapter. You can add value to your card using the vending machine in the research room or at the Cashier's Office. We do not make refunds.

(a) At the National Archives at College Park facility NARA approves a limited number of researchers to bring in and use personal paper-to-paper copying equipment in the Textual Research Room (Room 2000). Requests must be made in writing to the chief of the Research Support Branch (NWCC2), National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Rd., College Park, MD 20740-6001. Requests must identify the records you wish to copy, the expected duration of the project, and the make and model of the equipment.

(b) We evaluate requests using the following criteria:

(1) A minimum of 3,000 pages must be copied;

(2) The project is expected to take at least 4 weeks, with the copier in use a minimum of 6 hours per day or 30 hours per week;

(3) The copying equipment must meet our standards for preservation (see §§ 1254.26(d) and 1254.80); and

(4) Space is available for the personal copying project. NARA allows no more than 3 personal copying projects in the research room at one time, with Federal agencies given priority over other users.

(c) You must coordinate with research room management and oversee the installation and removal of copying equipment. You are responsible for the cost and supervision of all service calls and repairs. You must remove copying equipment and supplies within two business days after the personal copying project is completed.

(d) NARA is not responsible for any personal equipment or consumable supplies.

(e) You must be trained by NARA staff on the proper methods for handling and copying archival documents.

(f) You must abide by all regulations on copying stated in this subpart.

(g) We reserve the right to discontinue the privilege of using a personal copier at any time without notice. We discontinue your privilege if you violate one of the conditions in this subpart, we need to provide space for a Federal agency, or we lack staff to supervise the area.

(h) The collection of information contained in this section has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget with the control number 3095-0035.

(a) We provide use of NARA viewing and listening equipment in the research room on a first-come-first-served basis. When others are waiting to use the equipment, we may impose a 3-hour limit on your use.

(b) You may use the NARA-furnished recorder or your personal recording device and media to make a copy of unrestricted archival materials in the research room.

(c) We provide you with a copy of the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Research Room rules and a warning notice on potential copyright claims in unrestricted titles. You are responsible for obtaining any needed permission or release from a copyright owner for other than personal use of the copy.

(d) The research room attendant may inspect and tag your personal recording equipment before admitting you into the unrestricted viewing and copying area in the research room. You must place all equipment and accessory devices on the carts we provide, except that you may place a tripod holding a video camera on the floor in front of a film-viewing station. We are not responsible for damage to or loss of personal equipment and accessories.

(e) You must remain in the research room at your audio or film viewing station at all times while your personal equipment is in use. You must remove your personal equipment from the research room when you leave the room for the day. We cannot be responsible for any damage to or loss of your equipment.

(f) We are not responsible for assisting with “hook-up” to NARA viewing equipment, for providing compatibility between the personal recording equipment and NARA viewing equipment, or for the quality of the copies you make. We provide you information on the types of NARA equipment that we have in the research room and on the cables necessary for hook-up to our viewing equipment.

(g) When you bring audio or video recording tapes or cassettes into the unrestricted area of the research room, the research room attendant marks the recording media “NARA-approved personal property” for identification purposes. We inspect this media before you leave the research room and when you leave the research complex at the National Archives at College Park.

(h) You may reserve a NARA-furnished video copying station and 120-minute blank video cassette, for a fee, on a first-come-first-served basis for 90 minutes. If no one else is waiting to use the station, you may reserve an additional 90 minutes. You may not connect personal recording devices to NARA equipment at the video copying station. You may use only NARA-provided tapes at the video copying station. Fees for use of the station and blank cassette are specified in § 1258.12 of this chapter.

(i) You may not take any personal recording device or media in the restricted viewing area in the research room.