In 1994, CI, in accordance with the formation of a Centralized Financial System, agreed to assume purchasing and accounting responsibility for investigative equipment, as well as investigative accessories and supplies. At that time, the automated CIMIS was put into effect.

See IRM 9.1.2, Authority for the delegated authority relating to IRM 9.11.3, Investigative Property.

The Director, AKM, Director, NCITA, Director, SIT, and Director, AAI are responsible for developing, maintaining, and overseeing this IRM and ensuring compliance with current policies and procedures.

Director, AKM, Director, NCITA, Director, SIT, and Director, AAI will:

The Director, AKM, Director, NCITA, and Director, AAI will review the instructions and guidelines relating to the investigation of tax returns and other IRS documents for procedural, operational, and editorial changes.

The CI investigative equipment authority, requirements, processes, and responsibilities are addressed in the following:

Investigative equipment includes, but is not limited to, the following: fleet vehicles, surveillance vehicles, radio communication equipment, firearms, body armor, electronic surveillance equipment, audio and video equipment, cameras and lenses, night vision equipment, optical equipment, Secure Telephone Unit (STU) equipment, enforcement belt and wallet badges, CI pocket commissions, microfilm reader printers, use of force padded training suits, and firearms training systems.

Investigative accessories and supplies include, but are not limited to the following: ammunition, safes, pagers, cellular phones, tape recorders and transcribers, slide projectors, camera lenses, binoculars, pepper spray, targets, holsters, gun cleaning equipment and supplies, microphones, headphones, handcuffs, emergency lights, bolt cutters, gear bags, fingerprint kits, flashlights, tripods, camera accessories, tools, red guns, impact bags, mats, leg irons, money counter, pry bar, raid hats, and raid jackets.

The ADP equipment is all computer hardware, software and peripherals which include, but are not limited to the following: desktop computers, laptop or portable computers, printers, monitors, scanners, external storage devices, software, fax machines, telephones, answering machines, and miscellaneous equipment. This equipment will be entered into the KISAM system.

Office equipment is all equipment regularly used for administrative purposes such as shredders, date stamping machines, and training aids.

Headquarters will be responsible for:

Each Director, Field Operations, will be responsible for:

Each field office will be responsible for:

In addition to the above responsibilities, each SAC will:

Except for those devices described in paragraph (3) below, field offices may not purchase, fabricate or have manufactured any consensual monitoring equipment or accessories without approval from the director of AKM and/or NCITA or their designee. Equipment obtained with approval that is valued at $900 or more and/or susceptible to being converted to personal use will be entered into CIMIS by the field office.

Field offices may maintain an inventory of induction coils, in-line recording devices or similar devices for use when consensual telephone monitoring is approved.

Field offices may purchase induction coils, in-line recording devices or similar devices locally. Use of personally owned induction coils, in-line recording devices or similar devices is prohibited.

Responsibility for electronic monitoring equipment will be assigned to HQ technical representative in the SIT. At the request of the SAC, the HQ SIT technical representative may reassign monitoring devices to a field office technical agent.

Only those special agents who have attended training programs in the use, operation, and installation of electronic surveillance equipment (except induction coils, in-line recording devices, or similar devices) will be permitted to install and operate such equipment, unless in emergency situations, another individual is specifically authorized to do so by the SAC or their designee. Training for this type of equipment will be conducted with sufficient frequency to assure that operators and installers of the equipment retain their expertise.

The Director, SIT will be responsible for maintaining the inventory of all undercover investigative equipment including Undercover (UC) vehicles. Unique pool numbers have been established in CIMIS to track assets. The respective program analyst will maintain a separate tracking system that accurately identifies all UC equipment. The program analysts will provide an inventory listing to the SAC annually for their information.

The program analysts will conduct a physical inventory of all UC assets during sensitive reviews by September 30th of each year and report any changes/deletions/lost items to SIT and the SIT-CIMIS-Coordinator.

The SIT-CIMIS-Coordinator will be responsible for all additions/disposals. The CIMIS procedures will be followed for disposal of equipment and vehicles. The field office where the UC equipment is located will assist in the disposal process.

If a luxury vehicle is seized/forfeited or is obtained from a Big Ticket Operation and is going to be assigned to an Undercover Agent (UCA), the identifying information about the vehicle should be provided to the SIT-CIMIS-Coordinator for entry into CIMIS.

The program analysts will input mileage and maintenance on all undercover vehicles. Undercover agents will submit vehicle information via electronic diary to their respective program analysts each month. The program analysts will input this information by the 20th workday of the next month.

The Director, Finance, Director, AKM, or Director, NCITA, oversee the purchases or lease of all investigative equipment.

The Director, AKM and/or Director, NCITA, will acquire and distribute all investigative equipment. Field offices may not purchase investigative equipment without prior approval of the NCITA or their designee, except as stated in subsection 9.11.3.4.5(3) above.

The SAC can purchase expendable supplies and accessories, such as ammunition, targets, etc.

No-cost acquisitions include property:

All loaned equipment must be tracked and signed for by the borrowing individual. Equipment must be shipped securely using the appropriate shipping carrier. Equipment may be in loan status up to one year. After one year, the equipment should either be returned or transferred/reassigned in CIMIS. During physical inventories, the receiving office must verify all loaned equipment.

When equipment is loaned to another field office, the loaning office shall complete a loaned equipment spreadsheet (see Exhibit 9.11.3-7). The spreadsheet will be included with the equipment that is shipped for the borrower to sign, and a copy must be on file with the loaning office. Upon receipt of the equipment, the borrower will sign the spreadsheet and forward a copy of the spreadsheet to the loaning office. A file will be maintained for all loaned equipment spreadsheets and will be inspected during the inventory.

Equipment loaned to employees within CI must be reassigned to the borrower in CIMIS using the temporary custody option. The CIMIS coordinator will generate a new CIMIS EQR01 (Custody Receipt of Government Property (Form 1930) Report) for the borrowing individual. Loaned equipment under $900 will be tracked using a sign-out log. At a minimum, the log must include the borrower's name, date signed out, and description of equipment - including serial number. All sign-out logs shall be in an accessible central file and/or posted by the location of the equipment. The sign-out logs will be inspected during the annual inventory.

Equipment loaned to other agencies and vendors, e.g., Motorola, must be tracked in CIMIS using the Consignment option and signed for by the borrowing individual. As part of the "Consign Equipment" activity in CIMIS, the borrowing individual's contact information will be recorded, as well as the CI approving official and the estimated return date. Equipment may be loaned to other law enforcement agencies only with the approval of the SAC, the NCITA, or their designee. All equipment loaned to other agencies must be tracked using the loaned equipment spreadsheet.

The lead tech agent will be responsible for coordinating and loaning all tech equipment. The CIMIS coordinator will reassign or transfer the equipment in CIMIS to the borrowing individual.

Any loaned use of force equipment should be coordinated with the Use of Force Coordinator. The CIMIS coordinator will reassign or transfer the equipment in CIMIS to the borrowing individual.

Criminal Investigation offices will conduct an annual physical inventory of investigative equipment and investigative accessories and supplies tracked in CIMIS within the prescribed timeframe in the 4th quarter of each fiscal year. Corrective actions must be made to the CIMIS database prior to end of the 4th quarter.

In order to maintain the proper separation of duties, an individual conducting a physical inventory of equipment cannot have custody or control of the equipment being inventoried or be assigned CIMIS equipment roles that allow manipulation to the CIMIS database.

At the time the annual inventory is conducted, a new CIMIS Report EQR01 and CIMIS EQR02 (Storage Responsibility for Government Property Report), will be generated from the CIMIS system and signed by the person having custody of the property. These signed reports will be maintained in accordance with CI Property Management Procedures. Because of the ability to convert into a spreadsheet and manipulate the data, CIMIS Report EQR03 (Equipment Inventory) will not be generated to conduct the annual inventory. During this inventory, the SAC will consider whether:

Due to the dangerous nature of firearms and the potential for accidental injury and damage, law enforcement officers should take every precaution to ensure that firearms and ammunition are protected against theft or unauthorized use.

For the purposes of this IRM section, a safety locking device is defined as a safe, gun safe, gun case, lockbox or other device that is designed to prevent misuse of a firearm or to store a firearm and that is designed to be unlocked only by means of a key, combination or other similar means.

When storing an IRS-issued and/or authorized personally-owned firearm in a government office, it will be secured inside a safety locking device and control of the keys or combination must be maintained to prevent unauthorized access to the firearm. At no time is the firearm to be left in a locked or unlocked file cabinet, desk drawer or other unsecure location.

When storing an IRS-issued and/or authorized personally-owned firearm at the agent's residence, it will be secured inside the safety locking device and control of the keys or combination must be maintained to prevent unauthorized access to the firearm. If the safety locking device used permits, the firearm should be stored holstered in the safety locking device, ready for duty carry. If the safety locking device does not permit the weapon to be stored holstered, extra care should be taken to store the loaded and unholstered weapon inside the device. Safety locking devices are to be stored out of plain view with limited/controlled access. An agency provided safety locking device must be securely affixed/locked to a secondary immobile object, whenever one is readily available.

Temporary quarters, hotels, vacation residences, etc., are considered the agent’s residence. Therefore, an agent’s IRS-issued and/or authorized personally-owned weapon must be secured with a safety locking device. If a safety locking device is unavailable, the use of an agency issued safety trigger locking device is required and the firearm will not be stored in plain view.

In unusual circumstances and only when absolutely necessary, IRS-issued and/or authorized personally-owned firearms and ammunition may be stored for short periods of time in a locked trunk of a vehicle. In vehicles with no trunk, firearms and ammunition must be stored in a safety locking device. Under no circumstances should an IRS-issued and/or authorized personally-owned firearm be left in a vehicle overnight. When it is necessary to temporarily store firearms or ammunition in a locked vehicle, it will be stored in a safety locking device. The safety locking device will be secured in the trunk. When a trunk is not available the safety locking device will be stored out of plain view.

It is preferable to store surplus ammunition separately from firearms. Ammunition will be stored in a safety locking device or a security room.

The likelihood of an accidental discharge is increased when a semiautomatic weapon is loaded or unloaded due to the necessity to "work the slide" when chambering or ejecting a round.

Due to the sensitivity of information stored on computers, PDAs, and other electronic devices that are capable of storing electronic data, special precautions must be taken to prevent theft, loss, or misuse. These precautions are intended to protect Sensitive But Unclassified (SBU) material and Personally Identifiable Information (PII) that may be stored on these devices. For suspected computer security violations see IRM 10.8.1, Information Technology (IT) Security, Policy and Guidance.

All files stored on computers, PDAs, or other electronic devices will be encrypted.

Computers, PDAs and other devices that are capable of storing electronic data will not be left unattended unless in a locked, password-protected mode.

Computers, PDAs, and other devices that are capable of storing electronic data will not be left unattended in any building or office that lacks appropriate security (i.e., limited/controlled access).

Computers, PDAs, and other devices that are capable of storing electronic data may never be placed in checked baggage.

Computers, PDAs, and other devices that are capable of storing electronic data will not be left unattended in the passenger compartment of a vehicle, stored for a prolonged period of time in the trunk of a vehicle or left overnight in a vehicle; regardless of whether the vehicle is parked at the drivers residence or in a garage.

The SAC or their designee will contact the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) whenever law enforcement sensitive equipment or investigative equipment containing PII is reported lost or stolen (i.e. firearms, enforcement badges, pocket commissions, passports, body armor, cameras, digital recorders, etc), when a vehicle accident results in injuries to third parties or there is any allegation of misconduct.

Each office will appoint a Survey Officer. The Survey Officer must be a supervisor or management official. Anytime equipment is lost, stolen, damaged or destroyed, a memorandum must be sent to the SAC or Director, Field Operations, through the Survey Officer. The individual to whom the equipment was assigned will prepare the memorandum. The memorandum will be completed with such detail that any outside reviewer will know from the narrative the full circumstances of the loss. A complete description of the property along with cost and depreciated value will be determined. The Survey Officer will review the memorandum to determine if the loss or damage was due to negligence and make a recommendation to the SAC or Director, Field Operations, as to the employee’s financial liability.

Criminal Investigation Management Information System property that is lost, stolen, damaged, or destroyed will be reported on Form 1933, Report of Survey. Form 1933 will be completed with such detail that any outside reviewer will know from the narrative, contained or attached to the form, the full circumstances of the loss. A complete description of the property along with cost and depreciated value will be determined.

If a government owned or leased vehicle has been lost, stolen, or damaged in excess of $1,500, a Form 1933 must be on file. All accidents, regardless of damage cost, must be reported on Standard Form 91, Motor Vehicle Accident Report, and a police report should be on file.

Checklist property lost, stolen, damaged, or destroyed will only be reported on Form 1933 when the SAC or Director, Field Operations, has determined that negligence was involved.

Form 1933 will address a recommendation for financial liability. If the recommendation includes the replacement of the property by the employee, the depreciated value of the equipment will be used to determine the cost to the employee. The Director, Field Operations; HQ Directors; or Deputy Chief, CI will make the final determination regarding financial liability.

In all cases after final approval, Form 1933 shall be forwarded to the CIMIS Coordinator for disposal of those items in CIMIS.

All approved 1933 forms will be forwarded to AKM through the Director, Field Operations office upon request.

The Deputy Chief, CI, is the HQ approving authority for Forms 1933 for losses involving investigative equipment (including surveillance vehicles) under the control of HQ-CI personnel. The Chief, CI, has designated that AKM has the responsibility for maintaining records showing the disposition of the investigative equipment and AKM will be the Survey Officer.

Area and field offices will report excess investigative equipment to the ERC and forward to the FMSS Office for disposition.

All owned fleet vehicles will be disposed through FMSS, or other authorized disposing agencies as directed by HQ. All leased fleet vehicles will be disposed through GSA as directed by GSA.

Prior to losing custody of the equipment, the CI Property Officer will prepare the SF-120, Report of Excess Property, to include all approval signatures and provide to FMSS Office.

The Facilities Management custody and property officer will provide CI’s property office with a copy of the signed SF-120.

When property leaves CI’s custody, the CIMIS Coordinator will enter that disposition in CIMIS. The appropriate disposition code will be entered in CIMIS to accurately record the reason for disposal of the item.

In most cases, CI owned fleet vehicles will be disposed in CIMIS using the “Transfer out of IRS-SF122” disposal method. All leased fleet vehicles will be disposed of in CIMIS using the "Excess/Non-renew of Lease" disposal method code. There is no requirement to advertise the availability of these vehicles to other field offices.

For information concerning the disposal of forfeited property, see IRM 9.7.8, Disposition of Seized and Forfeited Property.

The following briefly describes the options forbidden and permitted for firearm disposal:

For information concerning the disposal of seized or forfeited firearms, see IRM 9.7.8, Disposition of Seized and Forfeited Property.

The primary purpose of this disposal code is to remove items from CIMIS that do not meet the current guidelines, and to remove duplicate entries from CIMIS. The AKM Survey Officer must approve in writing the use of "Incorrectly Inventoried" disposal code, prior to the CIMIS Coordinator removing an item from CIMIS. The "Notes" screen on CIMIS will be updated with the circumstances documenting the disposal.

On occasion, equipment will be traded into a vendor (e.g., warranty replacements, upgrades). The original CIMIS entry shall be disposed in CIMIS and not updated to reflect the new make/model/serial number. The CIMIS Coordinator shall use the "Traded In" disposal code, after obtaining a receipt from the vendor that the old equipment was replaced by new equipment. This receipt shall be used for documentation before disposing and maintained in the disposal file.

All GS-1811's and supervisors taking an active, participating role while conducting the following enforcement operations, should wear a ballistic vest (body armor):

Exceptions may be made to the guidelines established in IRM 9.1.4, Criminal Investigation Directives and Functional Delegations of Authority - Directive No. 8, Use of Ballistic Vests During Enforcement Operations on a case-by-case basis. The final judgement on whether a ballistic vest must be worn, or whether an exception will be granted, rests with the supervisor of the enforcement operation or the warrant (raid) team leader when a supervisor is not present.

Undercover agents will make their own decision on the use of body armor, with the concurrence of the SIT Undercover Manager and field office management. These issues should be discussed in detail by the UCA, and the supervisor in advance of the operation in order to anticipate what action will be safest for the UCA.

The facts relating to the use of ballistic vests will be addressed in all reviews where a firearm is discharged during an enforcement operation.

The Director, AKM, or their designee, will acquire and distribute all radio communications equipment. Field offices may not purchase radio communications equipment, antennas, or supplies and may not modify any radio communications equipment without prior approval of AKM, or their designee.

No antenna site, radio base station, or repeater installation or relocation is to be made without the approval of AKM, or their designee. No site lease arrangements or cancellations may be made without such approval.

The following information should be included in the request for approval:

Installation, repair and maintenance of radio communications equipment and antennas will be performed under the IRS national radio maintenance agreement.

Government vehicles consist of makes, models, and types (such as an automobile, surveillance van, and aircraft). The vehicles can also be used for several different purposes. The following subsections describe some of the issues involved with government-used vehicles.

While on official business, special agents will not carry weapons or use ammunition other than that furnished or approved for use by the IRS.

The Glock 9mm caliber semiautomatic pistol, Models 5MOS, 19MOS and 26 are the standard issued pistols for CI. Special agents will be issued one of these pistols on a permanent basis and will retain their assigned pistol during their entire career unless the weapon is recalled for repair or replacement. In addition, the Smith and Wesson AR-15 carbine and the Beretta 1301 shotgun are the standard-issue long-guns to trained members of the IRS-CI long-gun cadre. Members of the long-gun will be issued one or both of these firearm long-guns on a permanent basis depending on the weapon availability.

In addition to the IRS-issued handgun, Special Agents may be authorized to carry one personally-owned handgun. Prior to carrying a personally-owned handgun, SA’s must obtain written approval from their SAC through their Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC). The approved request will be submitted to the respective Use of Force Coordinator. Only one Personally Owned Weapon (POW)/Back-up Gun (BUG) may be authorized per agent. The list of approved POW/BUG is outlined as follows:

The SAC may authorize the use of any IRS-owned handgun for undercover operations. Undercover agents authorized to carry a weapon other than the IRS-issued Glock 9mm caliber must qualify with their assigned weapon prior to carrying that weapon and once every other fiscal quarter. While any Special Agents assigned to the cover team of an undercover operation are generally prohibited from solely carrying a POW as the primary handgun, the SAC may authorize members of the cover team to carry the POW as the primary handgun on an undercover operation if the need for extreme conceal ability enhances the safety of the undercover agent and/or the cover team (i.e. members of the cover team sitting in a public setting such as a restaurant in close proximity to the undercover agent).

Special agents are responsible for ensuring their assigned and POW weapons are kept clean and in serviceable operating condition at all times.

All IRS-owned and personally-owned firearms must be inspected prior to issuance, and annually thereafter, by a firearm instructor who has completed armorer training and is currently certified by the manufacturer or an IRS-authorized gunsmith to ensure each weapon is safe for use and in good operating condition.

Firearms requiring repair, adjustment or modification will be serviced by the manufacturer, an IRS-authorized gunsmith, or a firearms instructor who has completed armorer training and is currently certified by the manufacturer.

The changing of iron sights, optical sights, magazine releases, slide stops, and Glock-factory triggers on the IRS-issued or POW Glock weapon system is authorized when, in the opinion of a firearms instructor, such action will improve the shooter’s accuracy or ability to manipulate the weapon. Iron sights, optical sights, magazine releases, slide-stops, and triggers may only be changed by the manufacturer, an IRS-authorized gunsmith, or a firearms instructor who has completed armorer training and is currently certified by the manufacturer. Any agent wishing to use an optical sight on their duty handgun must complete the CI Pistol Optics Transition Course prior to carrying the optic on duty. If an agent wishes to carry an optic on their POW, then the agent must have already completed the CI Pistol Transition Course and must already carry an optic on the CI-issued pistol.

Modifications (other than changing sights and triggers on the Glock or stocks on Beretta shotguns) will not be made to an IRS-issued weapon without prior approval of the Use of Force (UOF) Senior Analyst, NCITA. Exceptions to this approval are:

All requests to purchase or acquire a firearm should be directed to the Director, NCITA for approval.

Each SAC, or their designee, will make provisions for the destruction of those weapons determined to be uneconomical to repair in accordance with IRM 10.2.1, Physical Security. See subsection 9.11.3.9.3 regarding the disposal of firearms. Each SAC, or their designee, will make provisions for the destruction of those weapons determined to be uneconomical to repair in accordance with IRM 10.2.1, Physical Security.

Criminal Investigation HQ-NCITA will issue and maintain administrative controls of the enforcement belt and wallet badges, pocket commissions, and credential cases for all CI personnel in the GS-1811 series, as well as Task Force Officer's pocket commissions.