030 FW 1, Authority, Definitions and Responsibilities

1.1 Purpose. The purpose of Part 030 is to issue general provisions concerning delegations of authority in the Service.

1.2 Authority. The Director's authority is granted by the Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks and appears in the Departmental Manual (DM) in Part 242 and in the Fish and Wildlife Service Manual in Part 031. Special types of delegations, such as temporary delegations, are issued by Secretary's Orders.

1.3 Issuance and Withdrawal of Delegations.

A. All delegations to or by the Director are contained in Parts 031 to 039 of the Fish and Wildlife Service Manual (FWM). The appropriate medium for issuing delegations is in the Delegation Series of the FWM as described below. For this reason, delegations of authority by the Director will not be included in other parts of the FWM, or memoranda or included in regulations. Any statement regarding delegation of authority that is contained in any directive or regulatory material must be cross-referenced to a delegation contained in Parts 031 through 039 of the FWM. A temporary delegation, however, may be issued as a Director's Order. Any authority not delegated under Parts 031 through 039 is reserved for the Director.

B. Withdrawals of delegated authority contained in Parts 031 through 039 are issued via a FWM release or a Director's Order, except that a withdrawal from a specific individual may be issued by memorandum.

1.4 Scope of Delegation Parts. Parts 030 through 039, Delegations, contain and document delegations as follows:

A. Part 030, Authority, Definitions and Responsibilities, sets forth the policy, criteria and procedures for issuing delegations and redelegations of authority within the Service.

B. Part 031, Director, sets forth the authority delegated to the Director by the Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.

C. Part 032, General Program Redelegations, sets forth the Director's delegations of authority made for the various program areas of the Service.

D. Part 033, General Administrative Redelegations, sets forth the Director's delegations of authority for administrative matters.

E. Part 034, Specific Redelegations to Assistant Directors, sets forth delegations of authority made to specific Assistant Directors.

F. Part 035, Specific Redelegations to Regional Directors, sets forth delegations of authority made to specific Regional Directors.

G. Part 036, Other Specific Redelegations, sets forth delegations of authority made to specific Service operations not appropriate for inclusion in one of the other delegation parts above.

H. Part 039, Emergency Delegations, sets forth delegations of authority for emergency operations of the Service.

1.5 Policy.

A. It is the Service's policy to delegate authority to the lowest practicable level of the organization commensurate with the assignment of responsibility. Authority should be delegated in a manner that strengthens the line of command and permits officials to make decisions for which they are in suitable positions to make.

B. Delegations by the Director are not made to subordinates of Regional or Assistant Directors, except in rare areas of specific applicability. This provides management flexibility to Assistant and Regional Directors and places responsibility on them to ensure that subordinates are granted sufficient authority to perform their duties.

C. In determining the extent to which authority should be redelegated, consideration should be given to such factors as the existence and adequacy of policy and program guidance; the need for centralized operations in the interests of efficiency, security, or financial control; the presence of trained personnel or specialized facilities where the authority is to be exercised; or the necessity of coordinating programs Servicewide.

1.6 Objectives. The primary objectives of delegating authority are to:

A. Vest authority commensurate with responsibility.

B. Relieve officials of routine matters, which can be performed at lower levels of the Service's organization.

C. Reduce paperwork at higher levels for matters which can be decided at a lower level.

1.7 General Limitations.

A. Code of Federal Regulations Documents. Delegations contained in the Delegations Parts do not include authority to issue documents in the Code of Federal Regulations initiated by the Department of the Interior unless such authority is specifically mentioned in the delegation.

B. Correspondence with the President. There is no delegation of authority for conducting official correspondence with the President, which is reserved by and for the Secretary of the Interior.

C. Legal Services. Except where otherwise specified, delegations of authority do not include any authority to perform legal work related to the function delegated. With the exception of specified legal functions, the authority of the Secretary respecting the legal work of the Department is delegated to the Solicitor.

D. Functional Authority. The general program authority redelegated in Part 032 does not include authority delegated in Part 033, General Administrative Redelegations unless specifically stated within the redelegation.

E. Expenditure or Transfer of Funds. Delegations of authority contained in the Delegations Parts do not include the authority provided for in annual appropriations acts for approval of the expenditure, transfer or use of funds for certain emergencies.

1.8 Redelegation.

A. When a delegation has been made to any level, it may be further delegated, unless the redelegation of authority is specifically prohibited or limited. The official redelegating an authority may withdraw or limit such authority permanently or temporarily.

B. Redelegations will be in writing, but are not contained in the FWM.

1.9 Responsibilities.

A. Recipient of Authority. The recipient of delegated authority receives a public trust that is to be exercised with fidelity and prudence. Recipients must exercise the authority in conformity with any requirements with which the official making the delegation would be expected to observe. Such requirements may be found in provisions of the Departmental Manual (DM), the Fish and Wildlife Service Manual (FWM), statutes, Executive Orders, or regulations issued by other Federal agencies, such as the Office of Personnel Management.

B. Official Delegating Authority. The official who delegates authority is neither relieved of the power to exercise the authority nor of the responsibility for actions taken regarding the exercise of that authority. An official who delegates authority should monitor the actions of the recipient regarding such authority; this entails followup and reporting.

C. Acting Officials. An acting official may exercise all of the authority of the official for whom such person has been duly designated to act, unless specifically restricted such as in the case of procurement authority granted under the contracting officers' warrant system.

D. Deputies. Deputies may exercise any and all authority delegated to their principles (except authority that is restricted to the principle only) and may delegate authority to officials under their immediate supervision.