1. As qualified below, applicable grant records shall be retained for three years starting on the day the grantee submits to OSM its final expenditure report to close the grant. Grantees may substitute copies made by microfilming, photocopy or other similar methods for the original records.

2. If any litigation, claim, negotiation, audit or other action involving the records is started before the expiration of the 3-year period, the records shall be retained until completion of the action and resolution of all issues which arise from it, or until the end of the regular 3-year period, whichever is later.

3. The three-year retention period for real property and equipment records starts from the date of the disposition, replacement or OSM-directed transfer.

4. Grantees shall require contractors and subcontractors to retain pertinent records for three years after the grantee makes final payments and all other pending matters are closed.

5. OSM and the Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their authorized representatives, shall have the right of access to any books, documents, papers or other records of the grantee and subgrantee which are pertinent to the OSM grant, in order to make audit, examination, excerpts and transcripts. The right of access shall not be limited to the three-year retention period, but shall last as long as the records are retained.

6. To avoid duplicate recordkeeping, OSM may make special arrangements with grantees and subgrantees to retain any records which are continuously needed for joint use. OSM will request transfer of records to its custody when it determines that the records possess long-term retention value. When the records are transferred to or maintained by OSM, the 3-year retention requirement is not applicable to the grantee or subgrantee.

FEDERAL ASSISTANCE MANUAL
January 2, 1998