The Department of Botany stores and maintains many loans and research collections at the request of non-staff affiliates. Because storage space is at a premium, we need to look very critically at this type of storage. For purposes of this policy, non-staff affiliates include collaborators, associates, non-resident staff, pre/post docs, long-term visitors, staff/post-docs from other NHB departments and other non-salaried individuals who borrow loans or maintain collection storage to pursue their own research. The following policy statements affect the loan and collection storage mentioned above. These policies provide criteria for review of loan requests by non-staff affiliates and establish guidelines and a review period for non-staff loans and collections stored in the department.

2. Acceptance of new non-staff research specimens:

All new non-staff individuals (excluding pre/post-docs) desiring to store loans and/or collections at US will be required to submit a request for storage space to the Collections Advisory Committee addressing the following points:

• Brief description of research project.
• Expected duration of project, including the approximate amount of time to be spent at US monthly (e.g. full-time, half-time, 1 day/week, etc.).
• Approximate number of specimens to be stored.

These individuals will be required to receive approval from the Collections Advisory Committee before they borrow or transfer any specimens to the United States National Herbarium. Pre- and post-doctoral fellows will not be required to submit a request for space, but the staff curator who sponsors a fellow is responsible for determining their storage space needs and informing the Herbarium Services Unit.

3. Annual report by non-staff affiliates:

1. All current non-staff affiliates storing specimens in the department will be required to submit a yearly progress report in January of each year to the Collections Advisory Committee addressing the following points:
   • Progress made on project in the previous year, including the approximate amount of time spent at US (e.g. full-time, half-time, 1 day/week, 14 hours total, etc.).
   • Revised time estimate until completion of project (if more than three months past original estimate) and reasons for delayed completion. For loans/collections that were stored prior to the establishment of this policy, estimates of completion dates should be supplied in the first annual report.
   • Changes in specimen storage needs.
   • Improvements made to the US collections (gifts for det., incoming collections, etc.)
2. Upon receipt of these progress reports, recommendations will be made by the Collections Advisory Committee to those individuals who are not making satisfactory progress on their projects. If no significant progress is made in the six months following this notification and the Collections Advisory Committee does not feel that the reasons for the delays are justified, consideration will be given to returning the loans and collections.
3. Any individual covered by this policy that does not provide the required annual report to the Collections Advisory Committee may lose all privileges to store specimens in the Department of Botany.

4. Staff Responsibilities: It is the responsibility of each staff member to ensure that these policies are properly communicated to prospective affiliates.