This policy describes the management of NIH business functions during changes in the NIH administration through the temporary delegation of general administrative authorities from the NIH Director to other NIH senior officials. 

This policy applies to all NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices (ICOs), and all NIH staff. This policy may be extended to NIH contractors, fellows, and other individuals.

The complexity of the NIH administration transition process is simplified when it is organized, and clear transition priorities are set. To allow for the continued efficient operations of NIH business functions during transition periods, clearly defined roles and authority expectations also need to be determined to free those in new administrator roles to focus their efforts on preparing to govern the NIH.

To facilitate a smooth transition and provide a mechanism for expeditiously redistributing legal power to make decisions and administer the day-to-day operations of general administrative functions (personnel, property, travel, training, etc.), the NIH Director, or an individual acting in that capacity, may at any time temporarily authorize other NIH senior officials the legal authority to approve administrative actions and/or decisions on their behalf.

This authorization may have a cascading effect on other NIH senior officials who may, as a result, also need to temporarily authorize the re-delegation of their legal authorities so that they may assume new ones.

1. NIH Delegations of Authority

   1. The following temporary Delegations of Authority are issued to allow NIH Senior Leadership the management tools to focus on acclimating the new NIH Director to govern the NIH. Institutes, Centers, and Offices (ICOs) should follow the below delegations regarding general administrative authorities:

      1. The NIH Director has the authority to approve a Delegation of Authority to the NIH Principal Deputy Director giving temporary approval authority, until further notice, for all general administrative authorities for which the NIH Director was the approving official, including but not limited to, those relating to human resources and conference expenditures. 

      2. When the authority above has been delegated, the NIH Principal Deputy Director may re-delegate this authority through a Delegation of Authority to the NIH Deputy Director for Management in the Office of the Director giving temporary approval authority, until further notice, for all general administrative authorities for which the NIH Deputy Director was the approving official, including but not limited to, those relating to human resources and conference expenditures. 

1. Office of Human Resources (OHR), Office of Management (OM), OD

1. Liaise with the Executive Secretariat, NIH, to draft and route for approval to NIH senior leaders’ temporary re-delegation memos.

2. Monitor the subject area to determine the need to revise or rescind this policy or the temporary DOAs.

3. Advise ICOs with interpretation assistance regarding the temporary DOAs as they relate to current authorities of individual NIH-level DOAs published in the NIH DOA System.

4. Consult OMA to discuss publishing requirements of policies and DOAs, as appropriate.

2. Office of Management Assessment (OMA), OM, OD

1. Publish final policies, also known as Manual Chapters, in the NIH Policy Manual System and individually approved NIH-level DOAs in the NIH DOA System.

2. Announce new, revised, or rescinded NIH Manual Chapters or individual NIH-level DOAs through their respective Listservs to alert subscribers; NIH-MANUAL-CHAPTERS and DELEGATIONS-L.

3. Maintain the permanent official records of policies issued within the NIH Policy Manual System and NIH-level delegations issued within the NIH Delegations of Authority System.

3. Institutes, Centers, and Offices (ICOs)

1. As appropriate, operate under the temporary NIH General Administration Delegations of Authority communicated through this policy issuance.

2. ICOs that are the issuing office of individual NIH-level DOAs issued in the NIH DOA System that are affected by the issuance of these Temporary DOAs:

   1. Monitor the subject area and, if determined to become “permanent,” revise or rescind accordingly.

   2. If appropriate, temporarily revise or rescind accordingly.

   3. Contact OHR for interpretation assistance as needed.

1. NIH Manual Chapter 1743 “Managing Federal Records” https://policymanual.nih.gov/1743

2. NIH Manual Chapter 1710 “Publishing and Maintaining Policies in the NIH Policy Manual” https://policymanual.nih.gov/1710

3. NIH Manual Chapter 1130 “NIH Delegations of Authority” https://policymanual.nih.gov/1130