| I.
DECISION:
By decision of the
Secretary General, the following will take effect as of the date of this order.
The Committee on the Use of
Buildings, established by the Secretary General in Administrative Regulation No. 17, shall
be responsible for reviewing requests for the use of buildings and facilities of the
General Secretariat and making recommendations to the Secretary General in accordance with
the policies and procedures described below. The Committee shall consist of the following:
a. The Assistant Secretary
for Management, who shall preside over it;
b. The Advisor to the
Secretary General; and
c. The Chief of Protocol,
who shall act as Secretary.
II. POLICIES:
1. Use of the Buildings
a. The Organization of
American States Building and other buildings of the General Secretariat are for official
use, and for purposes compatible with those of the Organization. Therefore, the use of
those buildings shall be primarily intended for the official activities of the General
Secretariat and other organs of the Organization, and for holding meetings or social
events of those organs and of the Permanent Missions and Delegations of the Member States.
b. The use of the Permanent
Council Room is reserved for the Permanent Council and the two technical councils. If use
of that room is requested by other organs, or by the Missions or Delegations, the
Secretary of the Committee on the Use of Buildings referred to in paragraph I, shall
consult with the Chairman of the Permanent Council through the Director of the Office of
the Secretariat of the General Assembly before the Committee makes its recommendation.
c. Other official
inter-american organizations, or agencies, such as non-governmental organizations or
agencies with which the General Secretariat has entered into cooperative agreements, may
be authorized to use the buildings and facilities.
d. The use of the
Organization of American States' buildings and facilities may be authorized when Permanent
Missions or Delegations sponsor social or cultural events jointly with groups or agencies
outside the Organization, on a non-profit basis.
e. Other organizations,
agencies, or groups whose goals and objectives are similar to those of the Organization,
may also be authorized to use the buildings and facilities of the Organization.
2. Conditions Governing
the Use of the Buildings and Facilities
The following
conditions on the use of the buildings and facilities of the General Secretariat shall be
applied. The conditions will be set forth in the "Agreement for the Use of the OAS
Buildings and Facilities", OAS Form No. 582 (Annex 1).
a. Programs or functions at
the Organization of American States' buildings or any other facilities of the
Organization, shall not be of political, or similar nature or purpose.
b. No financial
transactions will be permitted within the premises of the Organization. No admission fee
shall be collected for entrance of the premises. Commercial advertising, the sale of food
or beverages (cash bars, etc.), or sale or raffling of articles of any nature is
prohibited on the premises.
c. No material may be
posted in the premises nor shall alterations be made to facilities without prior
authorization of the Director of the Contracting Office.
d. When food and beverages
are offered, they must be served by a licensed catering firm which shall coordinate with
the Chief of the Building Maintenance Unit as to the time of arrival, the entrance for the
delivery of food and equipment, and the removal of refuse from the premises at the
termination of the program. All catering equipment shall be delivered, and set up on the
day of the event, and removed from the premises at the latest on the day after the event.
e. No program shall
continue beyond 12 midnight on weekdays and 1 A.M. on weekends or legal holidays observed
in Washington, D.C.
f. Authorized agents of the
General Secretariat shall have the right at all times to enter into the areas being used,
in order to make necessary repairs or alterations or to ascertain whether the user is
complying with the terms of the "Agreement for the Use of the OAS Buildings and
Facilities," OAS Form No. 582.
g. The user shall be
directly responsible and accountable for all facilities supplied by the General
Secretariat. The user will assume responsibility for any and all liability resulting from
personal injury to the user, or other persons using the facilities; and/or any and all
damages or loss of property to the General Secretariat occurring during the use of the
facilities. The user will also provide the General Secretariat with a certificate of
insurance purchased by the user to protect both the user and the General Secretariat in
the above-mentioned circumstances and to comply with any provisions as specified in the
"Agreement for the Use of the OAS Buildings and Facilities". The insurance
provided shall be satisfactory to the General Secretariat or the Committee on the Use of
Buildings shall request additional provisions.
h. All organizations,
agencies, or groups which have applied and been granted the use of any facility of the
Organization of American States, shall be informed that the following year they will be
assigned a second priority for the use of the facilities. This will also apply to any
affiliate of said organization, agency or group.
i. The fees to be charged
for the use of the facilities will be estimated on the basis of the facilities requested
for the event, based upon the information provided by user. Should the actual charges
resulting from the event exceed this amount, a bill will be rendered after those costs are
known.
j. In the event of an
unforeseeable serious emergency (force majeure), the General Secretariat of the
Organization of American States reserves the right to cancel the use of the buildings,
giving at least 24 hours notice.
k. The user will indemnify
the Organization and save it harmless from any liabilities arising by virtue of this
agreement.
III. PROCEDURES:
1. Requests for the use
of the facilities:
Permanent Missions and
Delegations, as well as organizations, or groups interested in using part of the buildings
and facilities in accordance with paragraph II, including the Patio and the Aztec Garden,
shall apply in writing to the Secretary General providing the pertinent information
concerning the events or meetings they wish to sponsor.
2. Approval of Requests:
a. The Secretary of the
Committee on the Use of Buildings shall call for a meeting of the Committee when required
to review pending applications.
b. Each application will be
reviewed based on the policies and procedures for the use of the Buildings set forth in
paragraph II of this Administrative Memorandum and a recommendation to either grant or
deny the use of the facilities will be submitted to the Secretary General. The Committee
will also decide on the rates to be charged according to the "Fees for the Use of OAS
Buildings and Facilities," OAS Form No. 583 (Annex 2). This amount will be included
in the "Agreement for the Use of the OAS Buildings and Facilities," section 9,
OAS Form No. 582 (Annex 1).
c. The Secretary General
will decide upon the application based on the recommendations of the Committee, and his
final decision will be forwarded to the Secretary of the Committee on the Use of
Buildings.
d. The final decision will
be communicated, in writing, by the Secretary of the Committee on the Use of Buildings to
the requesting party. "The Agreement for the Use of the OAS Buildings and
Facilities," OAS Form No. 582, completed with the estimated charges for the use of
the facilities will then be sent to the requesting party for signature.
3. Arrangements:
Upon a favorable decision
by the Secretary General, the Chief of Protocol shall make the necessary arrangement with:
a. The requesting Mission
or Delegation, or when applicable with the organization, group or agency concerned;
b. The Contracting Office,
which shall receive copies of both the completed "Agreement for the Use of the OAS
Buildings and Facilities" and the "Fees for Use of OAS Buildings and
Facilities" to make the necessary preparations in advance.
c. The Office of Financial
Services, which shall also receive copies of both the "Agreement" and the
"Fees" forms. The Office of Protocol (or the office sponsoring the event) should
indicate in the "Agreement" form (section 8), the budgetary account to be
charged for OAS funded events. For non-OAS events, the user must pay in full before the
event to the Office of Financial Services, Organization of American States, Washington
D.C. 20006. Upon arrival of the payment, the Office of Financial Services should notify
immediately the Office of Protocol that the payment has been received.
4. Fees for the Use of
the Building and Facilities:
a. In the cases provided
for tile sections a and b of paragraph II.1, no fees shall be charged to the Organs of the
General Secretariat and to the Permanent Missions and Delegations of the member countries.
In the cases provided for the sections c, d and e of paragraph II.1, expenses incurred for
staff services, equipment (including depreciation), security, cleaning, light, etc. shall
be charged to the organization, agency or group concerned according to the "Fees for
the Use of the OAS Buildings and Facilities."
b. The total estimated
charges shall be communicated in the "Agreement for the Use of the OAS Buildings and
Facilities." Should the actual charges resulting from the event exceed this amount, a
bill will be rendered after those costs are known.
c. The "Fees"
form shall be reviewed every six months (January 1, July 1) by the Committee on the Use of
Buildings and updated if necessary to reflect the actual operating costs.
d. Should ever an unusual
or special circumstance arise involving a question of waiving the prescribed charges as
unquestionably being in the over-all interest of the Organization, decision shall be
arrived at by the Committee on the Use of Buildings making a recommendation to the
Secretary General.
IV. NULLIFICATION OR
AMENDMENT OF PREVIOUS DECISIONS:
The policies and procedures
of this Administrative Memorandum supersedes Administrative Regulation No. 17 Rev. 4, and
all other previously issued directives and provisions on the use of buildings and
facilities of the OAS.
This Administrative
Memorandum is effective as of October 29, 1980.
FOR THE SECRETARY GENERAL
Assistant Secretary for Management
Date: October 29, 1980
Original: English
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