5 FAH-1 H-100
CORRESPONDENCE
5 FAH-1 H-110
OFFICIAL DEPARTMENT OF STATE CORRESPONDENCE
(CT:CH-46; 05-12-2017)
(Office of Origin: IRM/BMP/GRP/GP)
5 FAH-1 H-111 INTRODUCTION
(TL:CH-4; 07-31-2002)
a. Communication is the most vital link to the
Department of State's role in national security issues. The information
exchanged must be managed properly to protect the interest of the United States
Government.
b. This handbook describes how to prepare
correspondence. It explains, step-by-step, all the elements involved in
producing a final document that will become a part of the Department of State's
official record. Each type of correspondence is carefully defined and analyzed
to ensure proper use and accurate and timely completion.
5 FAH-1 H-112 GENERAL
(CT:CH-26; 06-21-2012)
a. The Department maintains records of all official
communications. The State Archiving System (SAS) is the official foreign
policy database that houses the central foreign policy file in the Department
of State. Department personnel must provide substantive information to the
Office of Information Resources Management Programs and Services (A/GIS/IPS).
Substantive documents must be included in this file to ensure the integrity and
completeness of this system (see 5 FAM 421.1).
b. Department offices and posts assign action as
appropriate on all incoming communications. Action documents are handled and
distributed by subject content and security classification with regard to
unusual sensitivity or distribution considerations indicated by using captions.
c. Official correspondence is addressed to the
principal officer at post or to the head of an organizational unit in the
Department. To avoid delay in answering official correspondence, all mail must
be opened unless it is marked "personal.
d. All Department and post personnel must follow the
procedures outlined in this handbook for preparing correspondence.
5 FAH-1 H-113 SCOPE
(CT:CH-35; 03-27-2014)
a. This handbook contains specific guidelines for
preparing official Department of State correspondence. It also presents
guidance on managing and drafting official correspondence and protecting
classified correspondence from unauthorized disclosure.
b. Recommendations for additions, deletions, or
revisions to this handbook should be forwarded to IRM's Office of Information
Resources Management Policy and Regulations (IRM/BMP/GRP/GP) to be considered
during regular reviews.
c. Personnel should consult points of contact provided
in the respective chapters in this handbook for answers to questions on more
specialized topics, i.e., telegrams, diplomatic notes, congressionals.
5 FAH-1 H-114 DEFINITIONS
(CT:CH-46; 05-12-2017)
AcknowledgmentBrief response
to members of Congress to indicate receipt of correspondence.
Action officeCognizant office
in receipt of inquiry for reply.
AddresseeThe post, activity,
or individual to whom a message is directed by the originator. Addressees are
indicated as either action or information.
Approving officialPerson
appointed to authorize release.
CaptionA handling instruction
that is listed before any other handling instructions in the telegram text. A
caption denotes the special nature of, or limits the distribution of a telegram.
ChannelAn electrical path over
which transmission can be made from one station to another.
ClassNetClassNet stands for
Classified Network. It is a global network that securely transfers critical
classified information through the transmission of email, documents, and
incoming and outgoing telegrams to Department of State employees.
CLOUTCommon LAN Outbound
Telegram ReleaseA software package that makes possible the electronic release
of telegrams from the desktop using existing email systems and network
infrastructure.
CongressionalLetter to or from
a member of Congress.
CPRChief of Protocol.
DCSDefense Communication
System.
DepartmentDepartment of State
offices in the United States.
DomesticStateside; Department
of State offices in the United States.
Domestic field officesDepartment
of State offices located anywhere in the United States authorized to conduct
official business.
DrafterThe person who actually
composes written material in the form of official correspondence.
Drafting officeThe Office
responsible for final preparation of official correspondence.
DTG Date-Time Group. Date and
time assigned to an outgoing telegram by the telegraphic processor upon receipt
for transmission; the official date of the telegram. A DTG is always expressed
in Zulu or GMT time.
DTSDiplomatic
Telecommunications Service.
EFTOEncrypted for transmission
only, classification used in Sensitive-But-Unclassified No Foreign (SBU NOFORN)
telegrams.
Electronic mail (Email)The
process or result of sending and receiving messages via telecommunications
links between computer terminals.
Executive Secretariat InfoLinkAn
S/ES website that contains guidance and procedures, which pertain to
correspondence prepared for signature by the Secretary, other seventh-floor
principals, the President, and Vice President.
FAXFacsimile; an exact copy of
a document by electronic transmission.
FieldRestricted area on
telegram form that requires specific information.
FLASHThe highest precedence
designation, reserved for the most urgent telegrams containing information
vitally affecting the conduct of foreign relations and requiring instant
attention by the addressee, regardless of the time of day or night. Hostile action
is imminent.
FontsGeneral shapes for a set
of characters. Each font has a name for selecting the type and size of print.
GlossaryA place to store text
that can be used again. Each piece of text is recorded and assigned a unique
name.
GPOGovernment Printing Office.
GSAGeneral Services
Administration.
HBureau of Legislative
Affairs.
HeadingThe part of a telegram
that precedes the text and controls the transmission, security, and
accountability of telegrams between the originator and addressee posts.
Host governmentA foreign
government conducting business on behalf of members of a diplomatic mission in
Washington.
ImmediateA precedence
designator restricted to telegrams of such urgency as to require immediate
attention or action during normal duty hours. Immediate telegrams are not
urgent enough to require attention after regular duty hours, holidays or
weekends.
Information addresseeThe post,
activity, unit or command to whom a telegram is directed by the originator for
information.
InquiryIncoming letter
requesting information.
Interim acknowledgmentShort
response acknowledging receipt of inquiry with date to expect final reply.
IPCInformation Program Center.
MacroA custom-made command or
sequence of actions that is named and stored. Macros can be assigned to keys
or menus.
Members of CongressElected
officials in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.
MinimizeA telegraphic
communications term signifying that nonurgent, nonessential message traffic
must be curtailed or reduced to a post that does not possess the means to
process a normal telegraphic workload. All cable traffic being sent to a post
that is in minimize must contain the phrase MINIMIZE CONSIDERED as the last
item of text, prior to the signature.
MRNMessage reference number;
the official identification number for telegrams originated at Department
transmission facilities. The MRN consists of the post name and a sequential
number that begins with the Arabic numeral 1 on January 1 each year and
increases by one with each telegram transmitted by the post through December
31. The MRN for telegrams from years prior to the current year begins with the
last two digits of the year.
NIACTA handling symbol used in
conjunction with the IMMEDIATE Precedence Designator to indicate a telegram
requires immediate attention or action by the addressee regardless of the time
of day or night. NIACT is an acronym for night action required.
NOTALA term used in a
multiple-address telegram, located on the reference line, placed after the
referenced MRN to indicate the reference was not sent to all addressees of the
telegram. NOTAL is an acronym for not to all.
NetworkAn assembly of member
terminals, control facilities and intercommunication facilities that can
establish and maintain a communications link between any two of the member
terminals.
Official communicationCommunications
generated on official letterhead or form, or transmitted electronically, e.g.,
telegram to conduct official State Department business.
Official file copySee record copy.
OriginatorOne who initiates or
drafts correspondence (often the sender).
PassIn a telegram, a handling
instruction requiring a post with regional responsibilities to relay the
telegram to constituent posts designated in the telegram.
PCPersonal computer;
stand-alone computer equipment used to run various software packages.
PitchFixed-character spacing
measuring width.
PointVariable-character
spacing measuring height.
PostU.S. embassy, mission, or
consulate located throughout the world.
PouchUsed generally to
describe the diplomatic correspondence and privileged mail facilities of the
Department of State; specifically, the sealed bag in which diplomatic
correspondence and mail is carried. Also, a telegraphic handling symbol
indicating those posts that will receive copies of a telegram in the diplomatic
pouch, instead of an electronic transmission.
PrecedenceA designation
assigned to a telegram by the drafter to indicate to communications personnel
the relative order and degree of urgency required in processing and dispatching
a telegram, and to the addressee the order in which the message is to be noted.
PreparerThe person who
actually enters the data for generating official correspondence and ensures its
formal completion. This person may also be the drafter (see drafter).
PRIORITYA precedence
designator used for messages requiring rapid action and prompt delivery and
which must be delivered before routine traffic.
Record copyOfficial document
(paper or electronic) on official State Department business; includes copies of
attachment(s) or enclosure(s), and original initials of drafter and clearance
officer(s).
ROUTINEA precedence designator
used for all telegrams not sufficiently urgent to justify a higher precedence
designator.
RSVPRspondez s'il vous plait
(French); request for a reply.
SASState Archiving
SystemOfficial Department of State foreign policy database.
SBUSensitive But
UnclassifiedAn administrative control marking which indicates that an
unclassified document requires a degree of protection. This marking replaces
the Limited Official Use (LOU) administrative control marking.
ScannerAn electronic device
used to reproduce an exact image.
SenderUsed interchangeably
with signing officer.
Seventh-Floor PrincipalsDepartment
officials appointed by the President who occupy offices on the seventh floor.
SignatureLast name of the
Secretary of State or designate for the Department, or principal officer of the
post or activity where a telegram originates. Not used on Department of
Defense-originated messages.
Signing officerUsed
interchangeably with sender.
SMART State
Messaging and Archive Retrieval ToolsetIn
accordance with the Federal Records Act, SMART is the Department's primary
application for sending, receiving, and searching for cables and record
emails. SMART functions within Microsoft Outlook and is available to all
OpenNet and ClassNet users. SMART enables the Department to comply with
current regulatory marking policies and allows Department users to easily
search for messages in the SMART Archive.
Special clearancesClearances
required for specific captioned documents to control or limit distribution.
StandardsAn established basis
of performance used to determine quality and acceptability. As applied to
information technology, standards characteristically address the implementation
of technical and operating functions, and interfaces between equipment, between
software packages, and between equipment and software packages. Standards
become rules when an appropriate authority so determines.
StationThe communications
facility at a post or activity capable of transmitting and receiving telegrams.
TAGSTraffic Analysis by
Geography and Subject.
TelecommunicationLong-distance
exchange of signals, signs, text, images, sounds or intelligence of any kind,
via wire, radio frequency wave, visual or other electromagnetic systems.
Telegram In general, a written
message composed in an exact format, converted by a telegraphic processor into
an electronic signal and transmitted via circuitry to a receiving station. A
Department of State telegram conveys official information about Department policy,
program activities, posts operation or personnel management. The term "cable" is synonymous with
"telegram."
TemplateA timesaving pattern
to shape or customize the software for a particular type of document.
TrafficAll telegraphic
messages transmitted and received.
U.S. missionDepartment of
State office set up to conduct negotiations or establish relations with a
foreign country.
USPSU.S. Postal Service.
5 FAH-1 H-115 DISTRIBUTION AND CHANNEL
CAPTIONS FOR NONTELEGRAPHIC DOCUMENTATION
(TL:CH-4; 07-31-2002)
The following distribution and channel captions apply only
to documents in the Department and do not apply to telegrams. Telegrams are
covered in 5
FAH-2 H-440:
(1) ES Sensitive: The ES
Sensitive designation is given to memoranda that the Executive Secretariat
determines are of the greatest sensitivity, thereby warranting Executive
Secretariat control and distribution. Designation and distribution is made by
the Executive Secretariat only.
(2) Principals Channel: The
Principals Channel designation is given to sensitive memoranda prepared by an
Under Secretary for the Secretary or the Deputy Secretary, or by the Deputy
Secretary for the Secretary. Distribution is made by the Executive
Secretariat.
5 FAH-1 H-116 THROUGH H-119 UNASSIGNED