CFR > Title 32 - National Defense > SUBTITLE A—Department of Defense > CHAPTER I—OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE (parts 1 to 399) > SUBCHAPTER M—MISCELLANEOUS (parts 191 to 284) > PART 197—HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN THE FILES OF THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE (OSD) > 197.5—Responsibilities.

197.5—Responsibilities.

(a) The Director of Administration and Management, Office of the Secretary of Defense, (DA&M, OSD), or designee shall, according to the Deputy Secretary of Defense Memorandum dated August 25, 1993, be the approval authority for access to DoD classified information in OSD Component files and in files at the National Archives, Presidential libraries, and other similar institutions.
(b) The Heads of the OSD Components, when requested, shall:
(1) Determine whether access is for a lawful and authorized Government purpose or in the interest of national security.
(2) Determine whether the specific records requested are within the scope of the proposed historical research.
(3) Determine the location of the requested records.
(4) Provide a point of contact to the OSD Records Administrator.
(c) The OSD Records Administrator shall:
(1) Exercise overall management of the Historical Research Program.
(2) Maintain records necessary to process and monitor each case.
(3) Obtain all required authorizations.
(4) Obtain, when warranted, the legal opinion of the General Counsel of the Department of Defense regarding the requested access.
(5) Perform a mandatory declassification review on documents selected by the researchers for use in unclassified projects.
(6) Provide to prospective researchers the procedures necessary for requesting access to OSD Component files.
(d) The Researcher shall provide any information and complete all forms necessary to process a request for access.