(1) Electronic mail shall be used for the conduct of official business or limited personal use as outlined in the Main Body section in this Directive. Official business conducted over electronic mail systems shall comply with record keeping requirements of the Federal Records Act (FRA). Electronic mail messages are subject to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA).

(2) Electronic mail shall be used as an enabling technology to improve USDA business processes. Electronic mail messages are Departmental property and not personal property. The expectation of privacy or confidentiality does not apply to electronic mail messages stored, retrieved or exchanged. Accordingly, electronic mail messages shall only be authorized for examination during the course of audits, investigations and system administration functions.

(3) Electronic mail messages containing discriminatory language or remarks that may constitute sexual harassment are prohibited.

(4) Electronic mail messages that meet the definition of a record as stated in the FRA shall be preserved, for the appropriate period of time. For example, E-Mail messages that document agency policies, programs, decisions, operations and functions are considered Federal Records and shall be archived. (See DR 3080-1 for additional guidance.)

(5) A Business-Quality messaging environment for unclassified communications, shall be implemented within USDA to achieve government wide electronic messaging.

(6) X.500 Directory Services, shall be implemented within USDA to provide enterprise-wide translation of user or network resource names to electronic mail addresses and directory synchronization services.

(7) X.400 is the Departmental standard protocol for interconnecting disparate electronic mail systems, providing electronic mail interoperability for USDA staff, and supporting a Business-Quality messaging environment. SMTP may be used as an interim electronic protocol until a Business-Quality messaging environment is implemented.

(8) All X.400 MTAs shall utilize the USDA Electronic Mail Gateway Service for all intra-USDA X.400 electronic mail traffic and shall be in compliance with FIPS PUB 146-2, POSIT.

(9) All X.400 MTAs shall be registered with the GSA E-Mail PMO.

NOTE: The GSA E-Mail PMO is the registration authority for the X.500 OU Name, X.400 PRMD Name, and the AAI registrations for the U.S. Government. These registrations are necessary to provide unique identification of Government-wide networks. The E-Mail PMO received its registration authority through a delegation of responsibility from the NIST which has the overall OSI registration authority.

(10) Acquisitions of new electronic mail systems shall have X.400 capabilities that:

(11) E-Mail systems, facilities and resources shall be shared among agencies and staff offices to reduce costs, improve efficiency and eliminate redundancy.

(12) The standard E-Mail naming convention shall be: firstname.lastname@usda.gov (john.smith@usda.gov). When two or more persons have the same firstname and same lastname, and if the agency E-Mail system supports the use of a middle initial, then the first alternative shall be: firstname.middleinitial.lastname@usda.gov (john.s.smith@usda.gov). If the agency E-Mail system does not support a middle initial, then one of the following alternatives shall be used: append a middle initial to the firstname or append a unique number to the last name.

This second alternative shall be: firstname middleinitial.lastname@usda.gov (johns.smith@usda.gov)or firstname.lastnamex@usda.gov (john.smith2@usda.gov).

(1) The USDA contract for voice mail service is mandatory-for-use in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area unless the agency's requirements cannot be met through that contract.

(2) USDA agencies in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area shall request a waiver from OCIO, to include a cost/benefit analysis, for any voice mail systems or services, other than USDA's mandatory contract, before any expenditure of funds will be authorized.

(3) The USDA contract for voice mail service is mandatory-for-consideration outside of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Field locations shall complete a cost/benefit analysis to determine the best source of supply and shall include the USDA mandatory contractor, VoiceCom, as an alternative in the analysis.

(4) Purchase of voice mail equipment or service shall be accomplished within the framework of current procurement regulations and requirements contracts. The following factors should be taken into consideration in the acquisition:

(1) Establish and maintain Department-wide electronic messaging policy, programs, and procedures;

(2) Perform oversight management functions required of the FTS2000/2001 Mail system;

(3) Maintain and disseminate current information on electronic mail standards, records, and interoperability to agencies;

(4) Provide and manage the USDA Electronic Mail Gateway Service to ensure:

(5) Provide X.500 Directory Services and directory synchronization;

(6) Ensure compatible Department-wide electronic mail capabilities;

(7) Serve as liaison to the GSA E-Mail PMO on all electronic messaging issues;

(8) Serve as the registration representative for X.400 PRMD Names, X.500 OU Names, and AAI requests and serve as liaison to the GSA E-Mail PMO on registration issues;

(9) Review agency requests to use voice mail systems other than USDA's mandatory contract:

(1) Utilize USDA's Electronic Mail Gateway Service to exchange electronic messages among disparate electronic mail systems;

(2) Support business-quality messaging to the maximum extent possible;

(3) Conform to the USDA X.500 Directory Schema to ensure integration of all USDA directory information;

(4) Complete and submit X.400 PRMD Name Registration Application Forms to OCIO;

(5) Implement E-Mail as an enabling technology in support of the government-wide electronic messaging initiative;

(6) Identify and preserve those electronic mail messages that constitute a record as defined in the FRA and DR 3040-1;

(7) Submit requests for waiver from the mandatory voice mail contract within the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area to the Voice Mail COR at OCIO/TBSD/CTSB; and

(8) Complete a cost/benefit analysis to determine the best source of supply and include the USDA mandatory contractor, VoiceCom, as an alternative in the analysis. The USDA contract for voice mail service is mandatory-for-consideration outside of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

a The Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 makes it a federal crime to intercept and disclose electronic messages. The Act applies to a message either in transmission or storage.

b Telecommunications security policies and procedures apply to the planning, acquisition, and use of electronic mail systems and electronic mail services, including FTS2000/2001 Mail.

c National security information and sensitive information require protection and shall not be exchanged via electronic mail by unsecured means, such as clear text.