(a) The guidelines set forth in this part apply, pursuant to section 201 of the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 (Sec. 201, Pub. L. 96-440, 94 Stat. 1879, (42 U.S.C. 2000aa-11)), to the procedures used by any federal officer or employee, in connection with the investigation or prosecution of a criminal offense, to obtain documentary materials in the private possession of a disinterested third party.

(b) The guidelines set forth in this part do not apply to:

(1) Audits, examinations, or regulatory, compliance, or administrative inspections or searches pursuant to federal statute or the terms of a federal contract;

(2) The conduct of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence activities by a government authority pursuant to otherwise applicable law;

(3) The conduct, pursuant to otherwise applicable law, of searches and seizures at the borders of, or at international points of entry into, the United States in order to enforce the customs laws of the United States;

(4) Governmental access to documentary materials for which valid consent has been obtained; or

(5) Methods of obtaining documentary materials whose location is known but which have been abandoned or which cannot be obtained through subpoena or request because they are in the possession of a person whose identity is unknown and cannot with reasonable effort be ascertained.

(c) The use of search and seizure to obtain documentary materials which are believed to be possessed for the purpose of disseminating to the public a book, newspaper, broadcast, or other form of public communication is subject to title I of the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 (Sec. 101, et seq., Pub. L. 96-440, 94 Stat. 1879 (42 U.S.C. 2000aa, et seq.)), which strictly prohibits the use of search and seizure to obtain such materials except under specified circumstances.

(d) These guidelines are not intended to supersede any other statutory, regulatory, or policy limitations on access to, or the use or disclosure of particular types of documentary materials, including, but not limited to, the provisions of the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. 3401, et seq.), the Drug Abuse Office and Treatment Act of 1972, as amended (21 U.S.C. 1101, et seq.), and the Comprehensive Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Prevention, Treatment, and Rehabilitation Act of 1970, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4541, et seq.). For the use of a warrant to obtain information from, or records of, members of the news media, see the Department's statement of policy set forth in §50.10 of this chapter.

[Order No. 942-81, 46 FR 22364, Apr. 17, 1981, as amended by AG Order No. 3420-2014, 79 FR 10994, Feb. 27, 2014]