(a) Personal files are defined in §1220.18 of this subchapter. This section does not apply to agencies and positions that are covered by the Presidential Records Act of 1978 (44 U.S.C. 2201-2207) (see 36 CFR part 1270 of this chapter).

(b) Personal files must be clearly designated as such and must be maintained separately from the office's official records.

(1) Information about private (non-agency) matters and agency business must not be mixed in outgoing agency documents, such as correspondence and messages.

(2) If information about private matters and agency business appears in a received document, the document is a Federal record. Agencies may make a copy of the document with the personal information deleted or redacted, and treat the copy as the Federal record.

(3) Materials labeled “personal,” “confidential,” or “private,” or similarly designated, and used in the transaction of public business, are Federal records. The use of a label such as “personal” does not affect the status of documentary materials in a Federal agency.