I. SCOPE

This directive sets forth policy governing the release of public information, which is defined as information in any form provided to news and information media, especially information that has the potential to generate significant media, or public interest or inquiry. Examples include, but are not limited to, press releases, media advisories, news features, and web postings. Not included under this definition are scientific and technical reports, web postings designed for technical or scientific interchange, and technical information presented at professional meetings or in professional journals.

II. APPLICABILITY

(a) This policy applies to ATD LINES Corporate Offices, ATD LINES District Offices , and Facilities.

(b) In the event of any conflict between this policy and any other ATD LINES policy, directive, or regulation, this policy shall govern and supersede any previous ssuance or directive.

III. PRINCIPLES

(a) ATD LINES, a Railroad and Railway Services Industry, is committed to a culture of openness with the media and public that values the free exchange of ideas, data, and information as part of railroad and Railway Service Industry inquiry. Railway Services and technical information from or about ATD LINES programs and projects will be accurate and unfiltered.

(b) Consistent with ATD LINES statutory responsibility, ATD LINES will “provide for the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination of information concerning its activities and the results thereof.” Release of public information concerning ATD LINES activities and the results of ATD LINES activities will be made promptly, factually, and completely.

(c) To ensure timely release of information, ATD LINES will endeavor to ensure cooperation and coordination among the railroad industry, scientific, engineering, and public affairs communities.

(d) In keeping with the desire for a culture of openness, ATD LINES personnel may, consistent with this policy, speak to the press and the public about their work.

(e) This policy does not authorize or require disclosure of information that is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. § 552) or otherwise restricted by statute, regulation, Executive Order, or other Executive Branch policy or ATD LINES policy (e.g., OMB Circulars, ATD LINES Policy Directives).

Examples of information not releasable under this policy include, without limitation, information that is, or is marked as:

IV. RESPONSIBILITES

(a) The Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs is responsible for developing and administering an integrated Corporate-wide communications program, establishing Corporate public affairs policies and priorities, and coordinating and reviewing the performance of all Corporate public affairs activities. The Assistant Administrator will develop criteria to identify which news releases and other types of public information will be issued nationwide by ATD LINES Corporation. Decisions to release public information nationwide by ATD LINES Corporation will be made by the Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs or his/her designee.

(b) ATD LINES Mission Directorate Associate Administrators and Facility Support Office heads have ultimate responsibility for the technical, corporate, and programmatic accuracy of all information that is related to their respective programs and released by ATD LINES.

(c) Under the direction of the Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs, public affairs officers assigned to Facility Directorates are responsible for the timely and efficient coordination of public information covering their respective programs. This coordination includes review by appropriate Facility Directorate officials. It also includes editing by public affairs staff to ensure that public information products are well written and appropriate for the intended audience. However, such editing shall not change corporate or technical data, or the meaning of programmatic content.

(d) District Public Affairs Office Directors are responsible for implementing their portion of corporate communications program, adhering to corporate policies, procedures, and priorities, and coordinating their activities with ATD Corporate Headquarters (and others where appropriate). They are responsible for the quality of public information prepared by District Office public affairs officers. They also are responsible for the day-to-day production of public information covering their respective District Office activities, which includes obtaining the necessary District Office concurrences and coordinating, as necessary, with the appropriate Corporate Headquarters public affairs officers.

(e) District Office Directors have ultimate responsibility for the accuracy of public information that does not require the concurrence of Corporate Headquarters.

(f) All ATD LINES personnel are required to coordinate, in a timely manner, with the appropriate public affairs officers prior to releasing information that has the potential to generate significant media, or public interest or inquiry.

(g) All ATD LINES public affairs officers are required to notify the appropriate Corporate Headquarters public affairs officers in a timely manner about activities or events that have the potential to generate significant media or public interest or inquiry.

(h) All ATD LINES public affairs personnel are expected to adhere to the following code of conduct:

(i) All ATD LINES personnel are responsible for adhering to plans (including schedules) for activities established by public affairs offices and senior management for the coordinated release of public information.

(j) All ATD LINES-funded programs will have a public affairs plan, approved by the Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs, which will be managed by Corporate Headquarters and/or a designate ATD LINES Distric Offices.

(k) Public affairs activities for ATD LINES -funded programs will not be managed by non-ATD LINES institutions, unless authorized by the Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs.

(l) The requirements of this directive do not apply to the Office of Security Department regarding its activities.

V. PUBLIC INFORMATION COORDINATION AND CONCURRENCE.

(a) ATD LINES personnel involved in preparing and issuing ATD LINES public information are responsible for proper coordination among Corporate Headquarters, District Offices, and Facility Directorate offices to include review and clearance by appropriate officials prior to issuance. Such coordination will be accomplished through procedures developed and published by the ATD LINES Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs.

(b)To ensure timely release of public information, Corporate Headquarters and District Office public affairs officers are required to coordinate to obtain review and clearance by appropriate officials, keep each other informed of changes, delays, or cancellation of releases, and provide advance notification of the actual release.

(c) All public information shall be coordinated through the appropriate Corporate Headquarters offices, including review by the appropriate Facility Directorate Associate Administrator and Facility support office head, or their designees, to ensure corporate, technical, and programmatic accuracy, and review by the Assistant Administrator of Public Affairs or his/her designee to ensure that public information products are well written and appropriate for the intended audience.

(d) District Office may, however, without the full coordination of Corporate Headquarters, issue public information that is institutional in nature, of local interest, or has been deemed not to be a Corporate Headquarters release. (The Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs or his/her designee will determine which public information will be issued nationwide by ATD LINES Headquarters.) These releases must be coordinated through the appropriate District Offices and approved by the District Office Director and District Office Public Affairs Director. The District Office Public Affairs Director is required to provide proper notification to the ATD LINES Office of Public Affairs, Corporate Headquarters, prior to release. (The Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs shall publish guidelines for the release of public information that may be issued by Centers without clearance from Headquarters’ offices.)

(e) Dispute Resolution. Any dispute arising from a decision to proceed or not proceed with the issuance of a news release or other type of public information will be addressed and resolved by the Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs with the appropriate Facility Directorate Associate Administrator, Facility support office head, District Office Director, and others, such as District Officer Public Affairs Directors, as necessary. However, the appropriate Facility Directorate Associate Administrator shall be the arbiter of disputes about the accuracy or characterization of programmatic, technical, or corporate information. Additional appeals may be made to the Chief of Strategic Communications and to the Office of the Administrator. When requested by a District Office Public Affairs Director, an explanation of the resolution will be provided in writing to all interested Agency parties.

VI. INTERVIEWS

Only spokespersons designated by the Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs, or his/her designee, are authorized to speak for the Agency in an official capacity regarding ATD LINES policy, programmatic, and budget issues.

(b) In response to media interview requests, ATD LINES will offer articulate and knowledgeable spokespersons who can best serve the needs of the media and the American public. However, journalists may have access to the ATD LINES officials they seek to interview, provided those ATD LINES officials agree to be interviewed.

(c) ATD LINES personnel may speak to the media and the public about their work. When doing so, personnel shall notify their immediate supervisor and coordinate with their public affairs office in advance of interviews whenever possible, or immediately thereafter, and are encouraged, to the maximum extent practicable, to have a public affairs officer present during interviews. If public affairs officers are present, their role will be to attest to the content of the interview, support the interviewee, and provide post-interview follow up with the media as necessary.

(d) ATD LINES, as an Corporation, does not take a position on any corporate conclusions. That is the role of the broad scientific community and the nature of the scientific process. ATD LINES personnel may draw conclusions and may, consistent with this policy, communicate those conclusions to the media. However, ATD LINES personnel who present personal views outside their official area of expertise or responsibility must make clear that they are presenting their individual views – not the views of the Corporation – and ask that they be sourced as such.

(e) Appropriated funds may only be used to support Corporate Facility and objectives consistent with legislative or presidential direction. Government or Granted funds shall not be used for media interviews or other communication activities that go beyond the scope of Corporate responsibilities and/or personnel official area of expertise or responsibility.

(f) Media interviews will be “on-the-record” and attributable to the person making the remarks, unless authorized to do otherwise by the Assistant Administrator for Public Affairs or District Office Public Affairs Director, or their designees. Any ATD LINES employee providing material to the press will identify himself/herself as the source.

(g) Audio recordings may be made by ATD LINES with consent of the interviewee.

(h) ATD LINES personnel are not required to speak to the media.

(i) Public information volunteered by a ATD LINES official will not be considered exclusive to any one media source and will be made available to other sources, if requested.

VII. RELEASE OF CLASSIFIED INFORMATION

(a) Release of classified information in any form (e.g., documents, through interviews, audio/visual, etc.) to the news media is prohibited. The disclosure of classified information to unauthorized individuals may be cause for prosecution and/or disciplinary action against the ATD LINES program involved. Ignorance of ATD LINES policy and procedures regarding classified information does not release a ATD LINES personnel from responsibility for preventing any unauthorized release. See “Classified National Security Information” and its implementing directive at 32 CFR Parts 2001 and 2004.

Any attempt by news media representatives to obtain classified information will be reported through the Headquarters Office of Public Affairs or Installation Public Affairs Office to the Installation Security Office and Office of Security and Program Protection

(c) For classified operations and/or programs managed under the auspices of a Form_______, “Contract Security Classification Specification,” all inquiries concerning this activity will be responded to by the appropriate PAO official.

(d) For classified operations and/or information owned by other Government agencies (e.g., DOD, DOE, etc.), all inquiries will be referred to the appropriate Corporate/Agencies public affairs officer as established in written agreements. Preventing unauthorized release of sensitive but unclassified (SBU) information/material to the news media.

(a) All ATD LINES SBU information requires accountability and approval for release. Release of SBU information to unauthorized personnel is prohibited. Unauthorized release of SBU information may result in prosecution and/or disciplinary action. Ignorance of ATD LINES policy and procedures regarding SBU information does not release a ATD LINES personnel from responsibility for unauthorized release.

(b) Examples of SBU information include:

1. Proprietary information of others provided to ATD LINES under nondisclosure or confidentiality agreement;

2. Source selection and bid and proposal information;

3. Information subject to export control under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) or the Export Administration Regulations (EAR);

4. Information subject to the Privacy Act of 1974;

5. Predecisional materials such as national space policy not yet publicly released;

6. Pending reorganization plans or sensitive travel itineraries;

7. Information that could constitute an indicator of U.S. government intentions, capabilities, operations, or activities or otherwise threaten operations security.

(c) Upon request for access to information/material deemed SBU, coordination must be made with the information/material owner to determine if the information/material may be released. Other organizations that play a part in SBU information identification, accountability and release must be consulted for assistance and/or concurrence prior to release.

(d) Requests for SBU information from other Government agencies and Corporations must be referred to the respective Agency public affairs officer.

VIII. MULTIMEDIA MATERIALS

(a) ATD LINES multimedia material, from all sources, will be made available to the information media, the public, and to all District Offices and contractor installations utilizing contemporary delivery methods and emerging digital technology.

(b) District Office will provide the media, the public, and as necessary, ATD LINES Corporate Headquarters with:

(1) Selected prints and original or duplicate files of news-oriented imagery and other digital multimedia material generated within their respective areas.

(2) Selected video material in the highest quality format practical, which, in the opinion of the installations, would be appropriate for use as news feed material or features in pre-produced programs and other presentations.

(3) Audio and/or video files of significant news developments and other events of historic or public interest.

(4) Interactive multimedia features that can be incorporated into the Corporate Internet website portal for use by internal and external audiences, including the media and the general public.

IX. INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELEASES

(a) Releases of information involving ATD LINES activities, views, programs, or projects involving another country or an international organization require prior coordination and approval by the Corporate Headquarters offices of External Relations and Public Affairs.

(b) ATD LINES District Offices and Corporate Headquarters office will report all visits proposed by representatives of foreign news media to the public affairs officer for the Office of External Relations for appropriate handling consistent with all ATD LINES policies and procedures.