Obtaining Personal Belongings from the Ronald Reagan Building
USAID Colleagues,
The following notice outlines a set of specific instructions for USAID staff who wish to obtain their personal effects from the Ronald Reagan Building (RRB). These instructions are reflective of a joint effort between the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), General Services Administration (GSA), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the Department of State (DoS).
This Thursday and Friday ONLY–on February 27 and 28, 2025 –USAID staff will have the opportunity to retrieve their personal belongings from the RRB during a designated date and time as provided below. Staff should read this message carefully before attempting to retrieve their items from the building this week.
Note: Staff located at the USAID Annex, SA-44, and the Security Warehouse will have an opportunity to collect their personal belongings at a later date and time.
Staff should arrive at the start of their time window, but no sooner as early entry will not be granted. Staff will be required to enter at the 14th Street entrance, near the RRB lobby, and show their USAID PIV card to Security Guards or members of law enforcement who will be on site to assist with this effort. All staff and their property will undergo magnetometer and x-ray machine screening upon entry. Staff will then be escorted to their workspace, where they will be permitted to collect their personal items. Staff will be given approximately 15 minutes to complete this retrieval and must be finished removing items within their time slot only. Staff with a significant amount of personal belongings to retrieve must be cognizant of time; however, flexibility may be granted in select circumstances with the approval of the Office of Security.
Staff MUST bring their own boxes, bags, tape, and/or other containers to remove their personal items; these items will not be provided. Staff will be permitted to remove personal items only, and may not retrieve or remove any U.S. government created documents, supplies, or other items that are property of the U.S. government.
Staff MUST remove their USAID-issued government furnished equipment (GFE) (e.g. laptop, iPad, etc.) prior to exiting their workspace. Staff who have permanently separated from employment with USAID must turn in their USAID-issued assets, classified tokens, PIV card, and diplomatic passport (if applicable) at designated tables upon exiting USAID space. Staff who are currently on administrative leave should retain their USAID-issued assets, PIV card, and diplomatic passport until such time that they are separated from the agency. While collecting their items, staff must ensure that proper records management practices are employed when identifying and/or disposing records, pursuant to the Federal Records Act and ADS 502.
After collecting their items, but prior to exiting the RRB, staff will be required to acknowledge receipt of their personal belongings, holding all agencies harmless for any personal items left behind. Staff will also certify that they do not have any official government records in their possession – physical or electronic. Staff may designate an alternate USAID staff member to retrieve their belongings in their absence; however, please note that there will be no alternate dates or times for retrieval. No visitors, staff without PIV cards, or children of staff will be allowed in the former USAID space. If staff are unable to retrieve their items, and do not wish to have another staff member retrieve items in their absence, personal items will be packed by GSA and sent to a warehouse for collection at a later date and time. GSA cannot guarantee that personal items not claimed during this time will be free from damage or loss, but will take all precautionary measures to safeguard items. Staff WILL NOT be reimbursed for any transportation or parking costs associated with collecting their personal belongings.
Staff will be permitted to enter the RRB during their specific date and time based on their Bureau or Independent Office, as outlined below:
| Time | Bureau/Office | Floor |
|---|---|---|
| 7:30am - 9:00am | HCTM and SEC | 4th |
| 9:30am - 11:00am | E&E and AFR | 4th |
| 11:30am - 12:00pm | CPS and BHA | 8th |
| 1:00pm - 2:00pm | IPI | 2nd |
| 2:00pm - 3:00pm | ASIA and OCE | 5th |
| 3:00pm - 4:30pm | LAC and M | 5th |
| 4:30pm - 6:00pm | A/AID, ES, and LPA | 6th |
| Time | Bureau/Office | Floor |
|---|---|---|
| 7:30am - 9:00am | ME and GC | 6th |
| 9:00am - 11:00am | CPS and CMC | 7th |
| 11:00am - 12:30pm | PLR | 7th |
| 1:00pm - 1:30pm | Passport | B2 |
| 1:30pm - 2:00pm | MAILROOM | B2 |
| 2:00pm - 2:30pm | M/IRD | B2 |
| 2:30pm - 3:30pm | M/CIO, Unions, E&E | B3 |
Staff must not bring any prohibited items along with them. Anyone carrying a prohibited item will not be permitted to enter the building. Prohibited items will be confiscated and staff will be escorted from the building if they fail to comply. Prohibited items may include items that are dangerous, unlawful, or otherwise determined to create vulnerabilities to the tenant agencies or the visiting public. The items in this reference are, and have always been, prohibited from entering the Ronald Reagan Building facility through a security screening post unless granted an exception or exemption by the Office of Security or Federal Protective Services (FPS):
- BB guns, compressed air guns, firearms (unless meeting the exceptions listed in 18 U.S.C. § 930), flare pistols, gun lighters, parts of guns and firearms, pellet guns, realistic replicas of firearms, spear guns, starter pistols, stun guns/cattle prods/shocking devices, and ammunition;
- Axes and hatchets, bows and arrows; drills, including cordless portable power drills; ice axes/ice picks; throwing stars (martial arts); knives, sabers, swords, daggers, and other bladed devices of any length with the exception of a pocket knife with a blade of less than 2½ inches in length; saws, including cordless portable power saws; razor-type blades such as box cutters, utility knives, and razor blades not in a cartridge, but excluding safety razors;
- Billy clubs, blackjacks, brass knuckles, crowbars, hammers, martial arts weapons, including nunchucks and Kubatons, nightsticks, ski poles;
- Blasting caps, dynamite, fireworks, flares in any form, gunpowder, hand grenades, plastic explosives, realistic replicas of explosives;
- Fuels, including cooking fuels and any flammable liquid fuel, gasoline, gas torches, including micro-torches and torch lighters, turpentine and paint thinner, realistic replicas of incendiaries;
- Chlorine for pools and spas, compressed gas cylinders, including fire extinguishers, liquid bleach, mace, pepper spray, spillable batteries, except those in wheelchairs; spray paint; tear gas, and helium balloons.
As a reminder, all staff must abide by the USAID Code of Conduct. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action, up to termination.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Notification of Administrative Leave
As of 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, February 23, 2025, all USAID direct hire personnel, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and/or specially designated programs, will be placed on administrative leave globally.
Concurrently, USAID is beginning to implement a Reduction-in-Force that will affect approximately 1,600 USAID personnel with duty stations in the United States.
Individuals that are impacted will receive specific notifications on February 23, 2025, with further instructions and information about their benefits and rights.
Designated essential personnel who are expected to continue working will be informed by Agency leadership February 23, 2025, by 5 p.m. EST.
For overseas personnel, USAID intends a voluntary Agency-funded return travel program and other benefits. USAID is committed to keeping its overseas personnel safe. Until they return home, personnel will retain access to Agency systems and to diplomatic and other resources.
In the coming week, we will provide details on how to retrieve personal items from the former USAID workspaces and return government issued devices.
Additional guidance is forthcoming, and all future updates/notices will continue to be communicated through official USAID channels and posted on USAID.gov for those without access to USAID systems.