---
kind: "section"
citation: "39 C.F.R. § 262.6"
title: "39"
number: "262.6"
heading: "Retention and disposal."
url: "https://uscodex.org/cfr/39/262.6"
---

# §262.6. Retention and disposal.

- (a) **Records control schedule.** A directive describing records series that are maintained by components of the Postal Service; it provides maintenance, retention, transfer, and disposal instructions for each series listed, and serves as the authority for Postal officials to implement such instructions.
- (b) **Disposal (records).** The permanent removal of records or information from Postal Service custody; included are:
  - (1) **Transfer to the National Archives.**
  - (2) **Donation to the Smithsonian Institution, local museums or historical societies.**
  - (3) **Sale as waste material.**
  - (4) **Discarding.**
  - (5) **Physical destruction.**
- (c) **Retention period.** The authorized length of time that a records series must be kept before its disposal, usually stated in terms of months or years, but sometimes expressed as contingent upon the occurrence of an event; usually the retention period refers to the period of time between the creation of a series and its authorized disposal date; however, in some cases it refers to the length of time between the cutoff point and the disposal date.

## Notes

### Authority

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552, 552a; 39 U.S.C. 401.

### Source

Source: 49 FR 30693, Aug. 1, 1984, unless otherwise noted.