Best Practices for Managing Federal Museum Collections

Section A. - Meet Government-wide Mandates

A-1 Know criteria that define Federal property as museum collections

Museum collections require documentation to enhance their usefulness, special accountability to ensure their security, and care and handling to prolong their availability in the best condition possible. Each of these considerations requires expenditure of funds. Efficient use of federal resources requires us to accurately identify federal property with heritage values that merit long-term management.

Federal museum collections are federal property subject to the same rules that are applicable to all federal "personal property." Federal museum collections are a subset of "personal property" as defined at this site:

ACQNET - Source for Acquisition Information
Federal Acquisition Regulations System - Definitions
http://www.acqnet.gov/far/current/html/Subpart%202_1.html#wp1145507

Other sources of government-wide definitions that are useful in acquiring and managing federal museum collections follow.

The Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, 63 Stat. 377, 40 USC 483 (b)
http://epw.senate.gov/fpasa49.pdf
As amended, allows for management of Federal property.

Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board
http://www.fasab.gov/pdffiles/sffas_29.pdf

In addition to government-wide definitions, agencies may tailor definitions of personal property that recognize agency-specific uses of federal collections. A few examples follow.

Department of the Interior (DOI)
"Personal property. Property of any kind or an interest therein, except (1) real property, (2) records of the Federal Government, and (3) naval vessels of the following categories: battleships, cruisers, aircraft carriers, destroyers, and submarines. Specifically, personal property includes all equipment; materials and supplies; and museum objects. It does not include property which is incorporated in, or permanently affixed to, real property."
http://www.doi.gov/pam/114-60.html

"Museum property is personal property acquired according to some rational scheme and preserved, studied, or interpreted for public benefit. You may have museum property even though you have no museums. Museum property includes objects selected to represent archeology, art, ethnography, history, documents, botany, zoology, paleontology, geology, and environmental samples."
411 DM Chapter 1
http://elips.doi.gov/elips/release/3141.htm

Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)
Historic Preservation
http://historicpreservation.fws.gov/mp/museumPropPol.html

National Park Service (NPS)
Museum Management Program
http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/laws/index.htm

Department of Defense (DOD)
Definition of Personal Property
http://www.acq.osd.mil/installation/reinvest/manual/4perprop.html#s4_1_2
Frequently Asked Questions About Personal Property
http://www.acq.osd.mil/installation/reinvest/manual/4faqs.html

US Army
Center of Military History's Army Regulations
http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/collections/CMH-ARs.htm

Department of Energy (DOE)
Property Management Regulations
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/get-cfr.cgi?TITLE=41&PART=109-1&SECTION=100-51&YEAR=2000&TYPE=TEXT

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Personal Property Branch
http://www.pps.noaa.gov/index.htm
Property Definitions
http://www.pps.noaa.gov/definitions.htm

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Preserve NOAA 's History by Reporting Its Heritage Assets
http://www.pps.noaa.gov/HAPamphlet.html
Heritage Assets
http://www.pps.noaa.gov/New_menu/heritage.htm

Standards of ethical conduct for employees of the executive branch, 5CFR2635.101(b)(9
http://www.usoge.gov/pages/laws_regs_fedreg_stats/oge_regs/5cfr2635.html
Employees shall protect and conserve Federal property and shall not use it for other than authorized activities.

36CFR79
Curation of Federally-Owned and Administered Archeological Collections (3-4)
http://www.cr.nps.gov/aad/tools/36cfr79.htm

Managing Archeological Collections: 36 CFR 79
http://www.cr.nps.gov/aad/collections/laws_04.htm

Department of the Interior (DOI)
Policy and Responsibilities for Managing Museum Property
http://elips.doi.gov/elips/release/3141.htm
Scope of Museum Property Collection
http://www.doi.gov/museum/policy/pdf/mphi-3.pdf

National Park Service (NPS) (A to C4)
http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/publications/MHI/Chapter%202.pdf

US Army
Army Museum, Historical Artifacts, and Art (2-5}
http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r870_20.pdf
or
http://www.usapa.army.mil/pdffiles/r870_20.pdf