This section contains administrative procedures with respect to miscellaneous topics.

All technical and investigative support Criminal Investigation (CI) personnel, (except Supervisory Special Agents (SSA),Supervisory Investigative Analysts (SIA) and higher management officials), and investigative support personnel are required to maintain a daily record of activities in an electronic data file (CI Diary). Non-technical personnel at the field office, area office, and Headquarters (HQ) levels not directly involved in investigative activities are not required to maintain a daily record of activities. Such non-technical personnel include: budget analysts, program analysts, management analysts, etc.

The following instructions apply to the CI Diary:

Diaries will be inspected by management officials to ensure that instructions pertaining to diary maintenance are being observed. Annually as directed, special agents, investigative analysts, tax fraud investigative assistants (TFIA) and compliance support assistants (CSA) will transfer a copy of their CI Diary data file to their immediate manager for review. The manager will access the Manager Review feature of the CI Diary and review the diary data file of his/her subordinate personnel. This review must be completed as soon as practicable, since subordinate personnel cannot make entries in their CI Diary until the reviewed data file is e-mailed back by the manager and saved to the CI Diary data file by the employee.

All diaries or calendars used to maintain a daily record of activities should be retained by the CI head of office to which the employee is assigned. In the event an employee transfers within CI, the head of office will forward the employee's diaries or calendars to the head of office to which the employee is transferred. Diaries or calendars of an employee will be made available to the former field office upon request.

A separate record of all original tax returns in the custody of field office personnel will be maintained by the Special Agent in Charge (SAC). These original documents include Questionable Refund Program (QRP) and Return Preparer Program (RPP) documents that contain a Document Locator Number (DLN).

These procedures require appropriate security for original tax returns and documents containing DLNs to prevent unauthorized disclosures. These original documents should not be retained by CI longer than necessary.

The SAC or SSA/SIA (if delegated this responsibility) will designate a member of their professional staff as the designee to be responsible for the request, receipt, control, and custody of the inventory of tax returns.

To request tax returns or documents containing a DLN, requestors will submit a complete and correct request through the established investigative support request system. SIA assignment of the request to the designee, serves as management approval. The designee will input the request through the Integrated Data Retrieval System (IDRS)and maintain the request documentation in an authorized server location.

All original returns, documents bearing DLNs and transmittals; Document Charge Out (Form 4251); and Document Transmittal (Form 3210) should go directly to the designee. The designee will maintain document request, receipt, custody, and assignment information on a database, and notify the requestor when documents are received.

The designee as the primary custodian will exercise exclusive control of the database described in the preceding paragraph and will have custody of all original tax returns and documents with DLNs. The delegate, as back-up, will have access to only the database information described in the preceding paragraph. The primary designee will keep the original tax returns and any related documents in a locked cabinet. The designee will also use Form 3210 as a controlling document or logbook to acknowledge transfer or receipt of original returns when they are assigned to special agents. Special agents will work from a copy of an original return and will not normally be assigned or retain the original for extended periods. Original tax return(s) should only be assigned to a special agent when needed for signature verification of the taxpayer and return preparer for grand jury or trial proceedings.

Special agents will periodically provide the designee with a list of all tax returns that are no longer needed for retention in the field office. At a minimum, the returns assigned to a special agent will be reviewed annually during his/her workload review to determine if the returns are still needed.

Periodically, the designee will recharge original tax returns to files and update the tax returns status on the database.

By November 30th of each year, the designee will perform database verifications to ensure that returns requested have been received or recharged to files, and that both database and related assignment documents match.

By December 15th of each year, the SSA will sample Forms 4844, Request for Terminal Action, to ensure the designee inputs only approved requests for any tax return.

As part of their operational review, the SAC or Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC) will verify the accuracy of the original tax return inventory and the SSA's original tax return assignments to the special agents. In instances where tax returns were secured as a result of a related statute determination (see IRM 9.3.1, Disclosure), the SAC or ASAC will ensure that a copy of the related statute determination memorandum is attached to the tax return or retained in the related tax return inventory file.

All communication must be protected from unauthorized disclosure. This includes oral, written and electronic communication.

There are various CI and IRS employee recognition programs. Procedures for preparing and processing award recommendations can be found on CI Connections on the Human Resources Web page; Finance Web page; and the IR Web site on the IRS Human Capital Office (HCO) Web page.

In order to avoid conflicts of interest, certain executive branch employees must file a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report upon entering covered positions and yearly thereafter with the Office of Government Ethics (OGE).

Confidential financial disclosure is subject to a number of legal requirements. The filing of Confidential Financial Disclosure Reports is addressed in the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (as amended); Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 2634, Subpart I; and Treasury Directive 61-02. In-depth information on the Service's Confidential Financial Disclosure Reporting Program can be found on the Service-wide Ethics Program Web site. The Desk Procedures for Administering the IRS' Confidential Financial Disclosure Program in CI can be found on the CI Human Resources Web page.

The Associate Chief Counsel (General Legal Services) is the Deputy Ethics Official (DEO) for the IRS. The DEO provides advice to IRS employees concerning the OGE Standards of Ethical Conduct, the Treasury Supplemental Standards, the Treasury Rules of Conduct, conflicts of interest, and related statutes and regulations.

The SAC may consult with the State Disaster Assistance Coordinator (SDAC) to consider the appropriateness of limiting enforcement activities until the conditions of the disaster have been alleviated. The SAC may issue guidelines covering general types of proscribed activities, or may choose to require pre-approval at the SSA level for various activities on a case-by-case basis.