(a) The lead agency shall establish a docket at an office of the lead agency or other central location at which documents included in the administrative record file shall be located and a copy of the documents included in the administrative record file shall also be made available for public inspection at or near the site at issue, except as provided below:

(1) Sampling and testing data, quality control and quality assurance documentation, and chain of custody forms, need not be located at or near the site at issue or at the central location, provided that the index to the administrative record file indicates the location and availability of this information.

(2) Guidance documents not generated specifically for the site at issue need not be located at or near the site at issue, provided that they are maintained at the central location and the index to the administrative record file indicates the location and availability of these guidance documents.

(3) Publicly available technical literature not generated for the site at issue, such as engineering textbooks, articles from technical journals, and toxicological profiles, need not be located at or near the site at issue or at the central location, provided that the literature is listed in the index to the administrative record file or the literature is cited in a document in the record.

(4) Documents included in the confidential portion of the administrative record file shall be located only in the central location.

(5) The administrative record for a removal action where the release or threat of release requires that on-site removal activities be initiated within hours of the lead agency's determination that a removal is appropriate and on-site removal activities cease within 30 days of initiation, need be available for public inspection only at the central location.

(b) Where documents are placed in the central location but not in the file located at or near the site, such documents shall be added to the file located at or near the site upon request, except for documents included in paragraph (a)(4) of this section.

(c) The lead agency may make the administrative record file available to the public in microform, computer telecommunications, or other electronic means.

[55 FR 8859, Mar. 8, 1990, as amended at 78 FR 16614, Mar. 18, 2013]