Attachment_(2)_eTranscription_Technical_Specifications_for_Vendors.pdf

Executive Office for Immigration Review

Information Resources Management eTranscription

Technical Specifications for Vendors

Version 2.4

November 29, 2017

CM #SYS700764OTH

LIMITED OFFICIAL USE

Prepared for:

United States Department of Justice

Executive Office for Immigration Review

Information Resources Management

5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 2300

Falls Church, VA 20530 eTranscription Technical Specifications for Vendors

Limited Official Use ii v 2.4

Technical Specifications for Vendors Document Approvals

Organization: Board of Immigration Appeals

Title: Chief Clerk

Printed Name: Donna Carr

Signature:

Date:

Organization: Information Resource Management

Title: Deputy CIO Software Development & Project Sponsor

Printed Name: Kate Ahn

Title: Chief Technology Officer

Printed Name: Ajay Budhraja

Title: Project Manager

Printed Name: Lou Parent

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Revision Log

Version Date Revision Description Author

0.1 4/6/2011 Initial Draft D. Glover

0.2 4/7/2011 Incorporated comments from K. Ahn D. Glover

0.3 4/11/2011 Incorporated comments from H. Myatt, C. Fudge and A. Budhraja D. Glover

0.4 4/14/2011 Incorporated comments from D. Rodman and D. Carr D. Glover

0.5 5/16/2011 Renamed document. Incorporated comments from W. Robinson, D.

Carr, L. Guardiola, S. Lesmana

D. Glover

0.6 6/15/2011 Incorporated comments from W. Robinson up to and including Section

3. Added information tables for document properties. Expanded descriptions of SFTP directories.

D. Glover

0.7 6/21/2011 Incorporated comments from W. Robinson through end of document.

Added section on Digital Audio Recording files. Expanded section on Validation of Completed Work Packages (Delivery Packages).

Updated all specifications to match eTranscription as built as of June 21, 2011.

D. Glover

0.8 7/13/2011 Incorporated comments from W. Robinson. Corrected appropriate tense from future to present. Updated document property information.

Added information on condition where there may be templates but no recordings/hearings.

D. Glover

1.0 7/14/2011 Finalized first publication. C. Nguyen

1.01 8/25/2011 Added EOIR configuration management tracking number. Added information on business days and business hours (Section 1.1).

Clarified that use of the transcript template files is optional for vendors (Sections 3.3.3 and 3.4). Clarified instructions for when a template is provided for a non-existent hearing (Section 3.3.3 and 3.3.3.1).

Clarified the definition of document bookmarks, content controls and the options for editing the values of document properties (Section 3.3.3.1, 3.3.6.1, 3.4.4, 3.3.3.1 and 3.3.6.1). Corrected file naming convention examples (Sections 3.3.3.2, 3.3.4.2, 3.3.6.2). Added guidance for page numbering of transcription templates (Section 3.4.2). Added guidance for notating indiscernible audio (Section 3.4.3).

Indicated that vendors may edit content other than bookmarks in the templates provided by EOIR (Section 3.4.4). Added guidance of notating issues with document properties in line on the transcript cover page (Section 3.4.5). Added guidance on certification page signatures (Section 3.4.6). Relaxed and explained requirement for PDF/A-1a format (Sections 3.5.1 and 5.2). Expanded information on the delivery of completed work packages (Section 3.5.6). Added information on MS Word Service Packs (Section 5.1 and Section 7). Added information on key based authentication (Section 5.3). Added additional references (Section 7). Added additional utility information (Section 8). Updated information on acceptable date formats for proceedings and transcript completion dates, added EOIR Document Version property, alphabetized document property listing and indicated custom properties (Table 1, Table 2 and Table 3).Other minor edits for grammar, clarity and consistency.

D. Glover

1.1 9/15/2011 Incorporated comments from BIA. Referenced specific version number for document property specifications (Table 1, Table 2 and Table 3). Minor formatting changes.

D. Glover

1.2 12/16/2011 Updated the document to add in information regarding Vendor Invoice N. Li &

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Template. Added a new section 3.6 Vendor Invoices and updated section 4 with and section 4.4 EOIR Receipt of Vendor Invoices.

L. McPhee

1.3 1/5/2012 Updated the document with BIA comments N. Li &

L. McPhee

1.4 1/11/2012 Updated the document with BIA comments from review meeting N. Li &

L. McPhee

1.5 3/15/2012 Updated the document to reflect changes in Sprint 6, which allows multiple line items in an invoice to have the same A-Numbers, e.g. in case of re-transcription.

N. Li &

L. McPhee

1.6 3/26/2012 Added information regarding the use of USB drives as a contingency plan in the event of an SFTP server outage.

A. Leftwich

1.7 3/30/2012 Updated the document with BIA comments. L. McPhee

2.0 4/12/2012 Prepared document for release. L. McPhee

2.1 7/12/2013 Added updated invoice information. A. Leftwich

2.2 9/4/2013 Updated the document with BIA comments. A. Leftwich

2.3 3/16/2015 Added details on cancellation of work packages feature. A. Leftwich

2.4 11/29/2017 Modified document to reflect current state of eTranscription application.

A. Leftwich

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Table of Contents

SECTION 1. Purpose

1.1 Of Note

SECTION 2. Prerequisites

2.1 Vendor Obligations

2.1.1 Points of Contact

2.1.2 Information Assurance

2.1.3 Technical Information

2.2 EOIR Obligations

2.2.1 Point of Contact

2.2.2 Technical Information

SECTION 3. Vendor Processing of Work Packages

3.1 EOIR Release of Work to Vendor

3.2 Obtaining Work Electronically

3.2.1 Accessing the SFTP Server

3.2.2 SFTP Directory Structure

3.2.3 Cancellation of Work Packages

3.2.4 SFTP Server Contingency Plan

3.3 Transcription Work Package

3.3.1 Work Package File Naming Convention

3.3.2 Digital Audio Recording (DAR) Files

3.3.3 Hearing and Oral Decision Transcript Template Files

3.3.4 Certification Page Template Files

3.3.5 Case Summary Sheet File

3.3.6 Vendor Quality Sheet Template File

3.4 Vendor Production of Transcripts

3.4.1 Document Layout & Formatting

3.4.2 Document Page Numbering

3.4.3 Notation of Indiscernible Audio

3.4.4 Document Properties

3.4.5 Use of Brackets on Cover and Certification Page

3.4.6 Certification Page Signature

3.5 Transcription Delivery Package

3.5.1 Conversion to PDF/A-1a

3.5.2 Completed Work File Naming Convention

3.5.3 Unrelated Cases

3.5.4 Archive File Format

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3.5.5 Delivery Package File Naming Convention

3.5.6 Delivery

3.6 Vendor Invoices

3.6.1 Vendor Invoice Template

3.6.2 Vendor Invoice

SECTION 4. EOIR Processing of Delivery Packages

4.1 EOIR Receipt of Vendor Work

4.1.1 Validation of Completed Work Packages (Delivery Packages)

4.2 EOIR Quality Assurance

4.3 EOIR Acceptance

4.4 EOIR Receipt of Vendor Invoices

SECTION 5. Commercial Software

5.1 Word Processor

5.2 PDF/A-1a

5.3 Secure Shell (SSH) File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) Client

5.4 VIQ Player

5.5 File Archive Application

SECTION 6. Vendor Support

6.1 Training

6.2 Provision and Maintenance of SFTP Account Information

6.3 Commercial Software

6.4 EOIR eTranscription Application

SECTION 7. References

SECTION 8. Utilities

List of Tables

Table 1: Document Properties for Hearing and Oral Decision Transcript Templates (v1.0) Table 2: Document Properties for Certification Page Template (Version 1.0)

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Table 3: Document Properties for Vendor Quality Sheet Template (Version 1.0) Table 4: Fields in the General Information Section of the Vendor Invoice Table 5: Fields in the Summary Section of the Vendor Invoice Table 6: Fields in the Details Section of the Vendor Invoice

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SECTION 1. Purpose

This document provides transcription vendors with process and technical information for the transition to the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) eTranscription application.

Specifically, this document covers the technical and procedural interface between EOIR and transcription vendors for the EOIR eTranscription application.

The EOIR eTranscription application will allow EOIR personnel to electronically process transcription requests and, once approved, route requests electronically to transcription vendors for processing. Once vendors have produced completed transcripts they are able to submit electronic versions to EOIR using the eTranscription application.

The specifics contained in this document constitute the mutually agreed upon format as defined in the transcription vendor contract.

1.1 Of Note

The use of the term “template” used throughout this document does not equate to unique non-executable file formats intended specifically for a particular application, such as Microsoft Word

Templates (.dot or .dotx). Within this document “template” is used generically for a document with a preformatted layout and pre-populated information for the purpose of allowing quick use.

Business days are official EOIR working days of the week. Business hours are from 8:00 am to

4:30 pm Eastern Time (ET). All eTranscription application system times are ET.

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SECTION 2. Prerequisites

2.1 Vendor Obligations

In order to participate in the EOIR eTranscription program, there are technical requirements for vendors to perform. This section discusses the basic requirements vendors must adhere to.

2.1.1 Points of Contact

Vendors need to provide a technical point of contact for coordination with the Contracting

Officer’s Representative (COR).

2.1.2 Information Assurance

Vendors are required to pass an information assurance review conducted by EOIR Systems

Security & Integrity staff. Details of this process are covered in other documentation provided by the COR.

2.1.3 Technical Information

Vendors are to ensure they have the technical capability to download large volumes of data in order to obtain work packages containing DAR files. Network bandwidth needs will vary depending on the amount of cases and size of DAR files contained within. Electronic delivery is the primary delivery mechanism for DAR files. However, in some instances, Compact Disc

Read Only Media (CD-ROMs) will be provided containing the DAR files.

Access to EOIR eTranscription by vendors is limited to specific Internet Protocol (IP) address ranges. Vendors must provide EOIR with the IP address or address range from which they will connect. Vendors can obtain this information from their Internet Service Provider (ISP). When a vendor’s IP address or address range will need to change, this must be coordinated through the

COR to the EOIR Service Desk in advance to coordinate a changeover. Vendors must inform

EOIR of an address changeover at least five business days in advance.

2.2 EOIR Obligations

2.2.1 Point of Contact

The EOIR COR is the point of contact for vendors.

2.2.2 Technical Information

EOIR will provide this document, the training specified in Section 3.2, and access to the EOIR eTranscription application as covered in Sections 3.2 and 6.2

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SECTION 3. Vendor Processing of Work Packages

3.1 EOIR Release of Work to Vendor

The eTranscription application allows for EOIR to transmit and receive all transcription work in an electronic format at scheduled intervals. Please note that there will still be occasions where

EOIR will prepare batches of work that will require physical components (such as cassette tapes or CD-ROMs) to be shipped or picked up by a vendor’s representative (e.g. driver).

3.2 Obtaining Work Electronically

The units of work released electronically are referred to as transcription work packages which are defined in Section 3.3 Transcription Work Package. EOIR will make available the transcription work packages via a Secure Shell (SSH) File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) server.

3.2.1 Accessing the SFTP Server

The SFTP server will support client applications compatible with the Secure Shell File Transfer de facto standard from the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). Vendors are provided with the server address, account name, and a private key file that will have a pass phrase (password) for access.

3.2.2 SFTP Directory Structure

When logged in to the SFTP server, vendors are presented with five top level directories;

Delivery Packages

Received Packages

Rejected Packages

Utilities

Work Packages

Vendors have read/write access to the Delivery Packages directory and read-only access to all other directories.

3.2.2.1 Utilities Directory

The Utilities directory will hold a copy of the VIQ Player application. Vendors have read-only access to this directory.

3.2.2.2 Work Packages Directory

The Work Packages directory will contain work released by EOIR to the vendor. This directory will contain subdirectories for each date work was released. Each of these subdirectories will contain subdirectories for each of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) Clerks Office (CO) appeal teams; East, West, and PCM.

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If no work packages were released for an appeals team then there is no directory created for that team. Work packages are discussed in more detail in Section 3.3.

Vendors have read-only access to the Work Packages directory. Work packages remain in the directory until removed by the EOIR technical staff. The subdirectory structure is;

Work Packages o YYYY-MM-DD

East

PCM

West

3.2.2.3 Delivery Packages Directory

The Delivery Packages directory is where vendors will upload completed work. This type of directory is often referred to as a “drop folder.” This directory is a single level directory, there are no subdirectories. Transcription delivery packages are discussed in Section 3.5.

The eTranscription application monitors the Delivery Packages directory and will process uploaded delivery packages every 15 minutes. Delivery packages received by EOIR that are validated to be in compliance with the technical specifications outlined in this document are moved to the Received Packages directory. Delivery packages that are not in compliance with the technical specifications outlined (aka invalid) are moved to the Rejected Packages directory.

Vendors have read/write access to the Delivery Packages directory. Delivery packages remain in the directory until removed by the EOIR technical staff. This directory does not have a subdirectory structure. The eTranscription application will not traverse subdirectories.

3.2.2.4 Rejected Packages Directory

Packages that are processed and found to not be in compliance with the technical specification outlined in this document are considered invalid and are moved to the Rejected Packages directory. For each day packages are processed by the eTranscription application a subdirectory is created within this directory.

Vendors have read-only access to the Rejected Packages directory. Rejected packages remain in the directory until removed by the EOIR technical staff. The subdirectory structure is;

Rejected Packages o YYYY-MM-DD

Within each day’s subdirectory for rejected packages is an error log. The error log is continuously updated during the day whenever a delivery package is rejected. Additional details on rejected delivery packages are discussed in Section 4.1.1.2.

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3.2.2.5 Received Packages Directory

Packages that are processed and found to be in compliance with the technical specifications outlined in this document are considered valid and are moved to the Received Packages directory. For each day packages are processed by the eTranscription application a subdirectory is created within this directory.

Vendors have read-only access to the Received Packages directory. Received packages remain in the directory until removed by the EOIR technical staff. The subdirectory structure is;

Received Packages o YYYY-MM-DD

Details on received delivery packages are discussed in Section 4.1.

3.2.3 Cancellation of Work Packages

If a work package is errantly sent to the SFTP server, EOIR will cancel the work package and delete it from the SFTP server. When a cancellation occurs EOIR will directly contact the affected vendors via a telephone call to provide them with the details of the cancelled work packages. Please note that any transcripts associated with a cancelled work package will be automatically blocked from uploading to the SFTP server.

3.2.4 SFTP Server Contingency Plan

In the event that the SFTP server is unavailable for use, EOIR will notify the vendors of the outage and allow for transcription work packages to be sent out and returned to the EOIR using portable USB thumb drives. EOIR will provide the USB thumb drives to each vendor along with detailed instructions on how to utilize the USB thumb drives should they be needed. Please note that prior authorization from EOIR is required before using the USB thumb drives to send out or return transcription work packages.

3.3 Transcription Work Package

The electronic replacement for tape bags is a Transcription Work Package. All the information required for transcribing a case electronically is provided in these work packages, except the physical cassette tapes and the VIQ Player application. Cassette tapes shall continue to be provided to vendors as in the past. The VIQ Player is available in the SFTP utilities directory and directly from the VIQ Solutions web site.

Each case requiring transcription will have a single transcription work package file. These work packages are available for vendor download from the EOIR eTranscription SFTP site. These files are archive files that contain;

EOIR Digital Audio Recording (DAR) files

Hearing Template(s)

Oral Decision Template(s)

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Certification Page Template(s)

Case Summary Sheet

Vendor Quality Sheet

The individual files and directory structure are compressed within the archive file and may be extracted using any archive tool supporting the ZIP compression format.

EOIR DAR files are in the same format found on the CD-ROMs that have been previously provided to vendors. As EOIR DAR files are already compressed in their native format, there is no significant reduction in total size when DAR files are compressed into a ZIP archive. Vendors will receive approximately the same amount of data via SFTP download that they currently receive physically on CD-ROM.

Templates are generated for each hearing and oral decision that requires transcription.

Additionally, a set of templates are generated for use in transcribing unrelated cases included in

DAR files. All of these templates will include custom document properties specific to the work package. Templates are discussed in detail in Section 3.3.3.

Transcription Work Packages are created for all cases requiring transcription, including cassette tape only cases with no digital audio recordings. For cases with only cassette tape media, the work package will contain hearing, oral decision and other templates, as well as the files for use in transcribing unrelated cases, but no DAR files.

3.3.1 Work Package File Naming Convention

Transcription work packages will have the standard naming convention of A-Number [AID appeal id] [R release date] [D due date].zip.

Example: 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [R 2011-02-07] [D 2011-02-14].zip

3.3.2 Digital Audio Recording (DAR) Files

DAR files for transcription are provided in a directory structure. Recordings consist of four audio channels in the proprietary VIQ Solutions Inc. file format. Each audio channel is contained in an individual file with the extension being .a00 to .a03 for channels 0 to 3. Recordings include an annotations file in an eXtensible Markup Language (XML) format. One annotation file accompanies each set of the four channel recording files.

Each collective of files for a single recording are approximately fifty (50) megabytes in size for each hour of recording. The directory naming convention for each collective is A-Number underscore Hearing Date.

Example: 999-888-777_2010-11-02

As discussed in Section 3.2.2.1, the VIQ Player application is available for playback of DAR files. The player application allows access to annotations logged in the annotations.xml file.

Immigration Judges (IJs) may use annotations to note the start and end of an oral decision or

Limited Official Use 7 v 2.4 other significant moments that occur during a hearing. Such annotations will allow easy navigation through the audio file during playback.

At a minimum, the annotations file will contain:

Alien Name

The VIQ player application also offers several advanced features. One feature is the channel selection feature that allows users to isolate and playback the audio from individual channels on a recording. This allows for isolation of a single channel which is typically tied to a specific person’s microphone in the courtroom.

While audio is being played back, there is a meter that can be used to play audio at faster or slower speeds while maintaining a normal pitch. This feature is useful for transcribers who may wish to listen to a recording at a faster speed in order to produce transcriptions more quickly.

This speed control may be operated by the use of an optional foot pedal control.

3.3.3 Hearing and Oral Decision Transcript Template Files

Transcript template files are provided for the convenience of vendors. Templates include information required by EOIR and the eTranscription application for processing of submitted work in the form of document properties. Vendor production of transcripts for submission is discussed in Section 3.4. Use of the transcript templates provided by EOIR for preparation of transcripts is at the discretion of vendors, however the information (e.g. metadata) required by

EOIR and the eTranscription application is required in the prescribed format.

A transcription template is provided for each identified hearing. A transcription template for the last oral decision is also provided. The first page of each template is the cover page. Subsequent pages of hearings will contain the transcript. Transcriptions of oral decisions begin on the cover page. These templates are provided in the Microsoft Office Open XML format, ISO/IEC

29500:2008 Part 1- commonly known as Microsoft Word’s .docx format. If there are multiple oral decisions, the vendor should create different oral decision files by copying the oral decision template, modifying the file name to reflect the correct date, and modifying the property values in the document accordingly

Because of the manner in which work packages are prepared, it is possible to have templates provided by EOIR without the existence of hearing recordings (tape or DAR). Vendors are to ignore such templates, note the existence of each template without a recording in the

Transcription Vendor Quality Sheet (Section 3.3.6) and not include the erroneous template in the completed work package.

3.3.3.1 Document Properties

To facilitate automated processing and electronic retrieval, templates are pre-populated with information, including the Alien Registration Number (commonly referred to as the A-Number), Alien Name, Charging Document Date and Immigration Judge (IJ) Name. This and additional

Limited Official Use 8 v 2.4 information are contained as custom document properties (metadata) within the template document.

All template document properties can be accessed through the use of a word processing application. As all word processing applications are different, it is up to each vendor to determine how to access the document property feature of their chosen word processing application.

Some of the custom document properties are linked to document bookmarks. Document bookmarks are text fields displayed inline with the text of a document. These bookmarks are linked to document properties. This allows a person to edit the document properties using the bookmarks as he or she edits the document text.

It is important that the linkage between the bookmark and the document properties be maintained. It is possible for a person to inadvertently break the connection between the bookmark and document property.

Any discrepancy between a document property and the value displayed within documents submitted to EOIR will be identified as a quality issue. This may require rework by the vendor at no cost to the government.

Errors in the document properties may cause submitted work to be rejected by the eTranscription application’s automated validation. Additional details on rejected delivery packages are discussed in Section 4.1.

It is the responsibility of vendors to confirm that the information in the document properties match the information stated verbally in the DAR files. Discrepancies found are to be reported using the Vendor Quality Sheet. Details on the Vendor Quality Sheet are covered in Section

3.3.6.

In addition to using document bookmarks, another option for editing document properties is to use the features of the word processing application (e.g. File > Properties > Advanced Properties

> Custom in Microsoft Word 2016). When the bookmark and document property are properly linked editing the value of one will be reflected in the other. That is, editing a document property using the word processing application feature will be reflected in the bookmark displayed inline.

Table 1: Document Properties for Hearing and Oral Decision Transcript Templates (v1.0)

Property Name Bookmark Name Pre-

Populated Required Inline Appearance

Alien Counsel Name AlienCounselName no no [NAME]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Alien Name AlienName no yes [FIRST MIDDLE LAST]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

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Property Name Bookmark Name Pre-

Populated Required Inline Appearance

A-Number

AlienNumber yes yes [A-NUMBER]

Text field, 11 alpha-numeric characters in the format of three digits, dash, three digits, dash, and three digits; nnn-nnn-nnn

Author n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters;

valid values, as appropriate, are “Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR)” (no quotes)

DHS Charging Document Date* n/a yes yes n/a

Text field; mm/dd/yy format with 00/00/00 being an accepted value

DHS Counsel Name DHSCounselName no no [NAME]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

EOIR Docket ID* n/a yes yes n/a

Integer number; n. This is the appeal ID used in the file name(s).

EOIR Document Type n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters;

valid values, as appropriate, are “HEARING TRANCRIPT” or “ORAL DECISION TRANSCRIPT” (no quotes)

EOIR Document Version* n/a yes yes n/a

Text field; major.minor

EOIR Transcript Transaction ID* n/a yes yes n/a

Integer number; n

Immigration Judge Immigration Judge yes yes [NAME]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Location Location no no [CITY, STATE]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Proceeding Date Proceeding Date yes no [DATE]

Date field; any valid date format. E.g. mm/dd/yy, month dd, yyyy.

Subject n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; valid values, as appropriate, are “EOIR Hearing Transcript” or “EOIR Oral Decision Transcript” (no quotes)

Title n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; valid value is “EOIR Transcript Documentation” (no quotes)

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Populated Required Inline Appearance

Transcription Completion Date n/a no yes n/a

Date field; any valid date format. E.g. mm/dd/yy, month dd, yyyy.

Transcription Vendor

Transcription Vendor yes yes

[TRANSCRIPTION

VENDOR]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters;

Valid values are the full names of the vendor companies as identified by the

COR.

Typist n/a no yes n/a

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Italicized property names indicate custom document properties.

* indicates document properties that vendors are not expected to validate as the values for these fields would not be verbally spoken during a hearing or otherwise known by a vendor.

Three bookmarks are defined in the template but not associated with any document properties:

ProceedingTitle1, ProceedingTitle2, and ElectronicSignatureTitle. They are for EOIR internal processing. Transcription vendors should not modify them.

To account for inaccuracies with EOIR information (e.g. recordings containing unrelated cases) blank templates for a case hearing, oral decision and a certification page are provided as part of the work package. Transcription vendors can use these templates in the event of one or more unrelated cases being contained within recordings or other situations related to the specific work packages.

These blank templates will contain a minimum number of document properties required by the

EOIR eTranscription application for automated processing. This information will include document properties referencing the original case recording on which the unrelated case occurs.

Because situations such as this are anomalies it is not possible to populate the templates with the usual amount of pre-populated information.

Should the use of the blank templates be required, vendors will note this using the Vendor

Quality Sheet by selecting “Generic Document Templates Used” and entering a description of the problem and correction in the comments field. If blank templates are not used the unused templates are to be discarded and not included in the completed work package.

Templates are unique to the work package for which they are contained. Templates are not to be interchanged or reused for other work packages.

3.3.3.2 Template File Naming Convention

Each type of transcript template will have a standard naming convention.

Transcript Type Codes

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CH- Case Hearing

OD- Oral Decision

Case Hearing A-Number [AID appeal id] [proceeding date CH] [TS transcription date].docx

Example: 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [2010-11-02 CH] [TS 2010-12-15].docx

Oral Decision A-Number [AID appeal id] [proceeding date OD] [TS transcription date].docx

Example: 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [2010-11-30 OD] [TS 2010-12-15].docx

It is possible for a given type of event (e.g. hearing) to occur more than once on a particular date

(e.g. two distinct hearings on the same day). When such situations occur a sequential alphabetic character is appended to the date for subsequent events.

Example: 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [2010-11-02 CH] [TS 2010-12-15].docx 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [2010-11-02a CH] [TS 2010-12-15].docx

File names for blank templates are Case Hearing Template.docx, Certification Page

Template.docx, and Oral Decision Template.docx.

3.3.4 Certification Page Template Files

For each work package, a certification page template is provided that is specific to the work package’s associated case. To account for inaccuracies with EOIR information, e.g. a recording containing an unrelated case, a blank certification page template is provided as part of the work package. This template is named Certification Page Template.docx.

3.3.4.1 Document Properties

To facilitate automated processing and electronic retrieval templates are pre-populated with information, including the Alien Registration Number (commonly referred to as the A-Number), Alien Name, Charging Document Date and Immigration Judge (IJ) Name. This and additional information is contained as custom document properties (metadata) within the template document.

Some of the custom document properties are linked to document bookmarks, text fields displayed within the document. This allows for editing of the property from within the document or from the word processing application’s document property feature. It is important that this linkage be maintained. Any discrepancy between a document property and the value displayed within submitted documents will be found to be a quality issue and require rework by the vendor at no cost to the government.

Table 2: Document Properties for Certification Page Template (Version 1.0)

Property Name Bookmark Name Pre-

Populated Required Inline Appearance

Alien Name AlienName no yes [FIRST MIDDLE LAST]

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Populated Required Inline Appearance

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

A-Number

AlienNumber yes yes [A-NUMBER]

Text field, 11 alpha-numeric characters in the format of three digits, dash, three digits, dash, and three digits; nnn-nnn-nnn

Author n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; valid values, as appropriate, are “Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR)” (no quotes)

DHS Charging Document Date* n/a yes yes n/a

Text field; mm/dd/yy format with 00/00/00 being an accepted value

EOIR Docket ID* n/a yes yes n/a

Integer number; n

EOIR Document Type n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; the valid values is “TRANSCRIPT CERTIFICATION PAGE” (no quotes)

EOIR Document Version* n/a yes yes n/a

Text field; major.minor

EOIR Transcript Transaction ID* n/a yes yes n/a

Integer number; n

Immigration Judge

Immigration Judge yes yes [NAME]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Location Location no no [CITY, STATE]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Subject n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; the valid value is “EOIR Transcript Certification Page”

Title n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; valid value is “EOIR Transcript Documentation” (no quotes)

Transcription Completion Date n/a no yes n/a

Date field; any valid date format. E.g. mm/dd/yy, month dd, yyyy.

Transcription Vendor

Transcription Vendor yes yes [TRANSCRIPTION VENDOR]

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters;

Valid values are the full names of the vendor companies as identified by the COR.

Typist n/a no yes n/a

Limited Official Use 13 v 2.4

Populated Required Inline Appearance

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

* indicates document properties that vendors are not expected to validate as the values for these fields would not be verbally spoken during a proceeding or otherwise known by a vendor.

3.3.4.2 Template File Naming Convention

Certification page templates will follow the below standard naming convention.

A-Number [AID appeal id] [CP] [TS transcription date].docx

Example: 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [CP] [TS 2010-12-15].docx

As with hearings and oral decisions, a blank template for certification pages is provided as part of the work package for when there are inaccuracies with the recordings.

3.3.5 Case Summary Sheet File

Work packages will also include a case summary sheet that will include any special instructions from EOIR. The case summary sheet is intended to serve as an aid to vendors.

Information provided by the case summary sheet is;

Alien Number

Alien Name

Charging Document Date

Lead A-Number

Appeal Team

Base City

Custody

Language

Vendor

Total DAR Time

Total Tapes

IJ Decision Date

Appeal Due Date

Appeal Filed Date

Vendor Due Date

Transcription Unit (TSU) Instruction

This document is not processed by the eTranscription application and is not to be returned to

EOIR as part of the transcript delivery package (Section 3.5).

Limited Official Use 14 v 2.4

3.3.5.1 Document Properties

The case summary sheet does not contain any document properties of relevance to vendors.

3.3.5.2 File Naming Convention

Case summary sheets will follow the below standard naming convention.

A-Number [AID appeal id] [CS].docx

Example: 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [CS].docx

3.3.6 Vendor Quality Sheet Template File

To facilitate the gathering of quality issues identified by vendors, a vendor quality sheet is included in each work package.

3.3.6.1 Document Properties

To facilitate automated processing and electronic retrieval, the vendor quality sheet is pre-populated with information. This information is contained as custom document properties

(metadata) within the document.

Some of the custom document properties are linked to document content controls. Content controls are input controls that are displayed inline with the text of a document. This allows a person to edit the document properties using the content controls as he or she views the document contents.

Content controls are a robust way to display document properties inline within a document and to allowing editing of document properties from within a document. The linkage of content controls and document properties is not as fragile as the linkage of document bookmarks.

Due to technical limitations with the conversion of documents using content controls to PDF

EOIR is only able to support use of content controls in the vendor quality sheet which is not to be converted to PDF for submission to EOIR.

Another option for editing document properties is to use the features of the word processing application (e.g. File > Properties > Advanced Properties > Custom in Microsoft Word 2016).

Table 3: Document Properties for Vendor Quality Sheet Template (Version 1.0)

Property Name Content Control Name Pre-

Populated Required Content Control Input Label

Alien Name Alien Name no yes Alien Name

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

A-Number Alien Number yes yes A-Number

Limited Official Use 15 v 2.4

Property Name Content Control Name

Populated Required Content Control Input Label

Text field, 11 alpha-numeric characters in the format of three digits, dash, three digits, dash, and three digits; nnn-nnn-nnn

Audio Skip Audio Skip no no Audio Skip

Text field; Yes or No

Author n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; valid values, as appropriate, are “Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR)” (no quotes)

Blank Recording Blank Recording no no Blank Recording

Text field; Yes or No

Comment Comment no no Comment

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

DHS Charging Document Date*

DHS Charging Document Date yes yes n/a

Text field; mm/dd/yy format with 00/00/00 being an accepted value

Embedded Decision

Embedded Decision no no Embedded Decision

Text field; Yes or No

EOIR Docket ID* n/a yes yes n/a

Integer number; n

EOIR Document Type n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; the valid value is “TRANSCRIPTION VENDOR QUALITY SHEET” (no quotes)

EOIR Document Version* n/a yes yes n/a

Text field; major.minor

EOIR Transcript Transaction ID* n/a yes yes n/a

Integer number; n

Heavy Accent Heavy Accent no no Heavy Accent

Text field; Yes or No

Immigration Judge

Immigration Judge yes yes Immigration Judge

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Inaudible Inaudible no no Inaudible

Text field; Yes or No

Incomplete Incomplete Hearing no no Incomplete Hearing

Limited Official Use 16 v 2.4

Populated Required Content Control Input Label

Hearing Text field; Yes or No

Issue Issue no no Issue

Text field; Yes or No

Issue With Alien Name

Issue With Alien Name no no Issue With Alien Name

Text field; Yes or No

Media Malfunction Media Malfunction no no Media Malfunction

Text field; Yes or No

Missing Information

Missing Information no no Missing Information

Text field; Yes or No

Missing Oral Decision

Missing Oral Decision no no Missing Oral Decision

Text field; Yes or No

Other Issue Other Issue no no Other Issue

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Poor Quality Recording

Poor Quality Recording no no Poor Quality

Text field; Yes or No

Speaker Not Identified

Speaker Not Identified no no Speaker Not Identified

Text field; Yes or No

Subject n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; valid values, as appropriate, are “EOIR Transcript Certification” (no quotes)

Title n/a yes yes n/a

Text field, mixed case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters; valid value is “EOIR Transcript Certification Page” (no quotes)

Transcription Completion Date

Transcription Completion Date no yes Transcription Completion Date

Date field; any valid date format. E.g. mm/dd/yy, month dd, yyyy.

Transcription Vendor

Transcription Vendor yes yes Transcription Vendor

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters;

Valid values are the full names of the vendor companies as identified by the COR.

Too Far From Microphone

Too Far From Microphone no no Too Far From Microphone

Text field; Yes or No

Typist Typist no yes Typist

Limited Official Use 17 v 2.4

Populated Required Content Control Input Label

Text field, all upper case, punctuation allowed, maximum 256 characters

Unrelated Transcription

Unrelated Transcription no no Unrelated Transcription

Text field; Yes or No

Italicized property names indicate custom document properties.

* indicates document properties that vendors are not expected to validate as the values for these fields would not be verbally spoken during a proceeding or otherwise known by a vendor.

3.3.6.2 Vendor Quality Sheet File Naming Convention

A-Number [AID appeal id] [VQ] [TS transcription date].docx

Example: 999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [VQ] [TS 2010-12-15].docx

3.4 Vendor Production of Transcripts

Transcripts produced for and submitted to EOIR must meet the technical specifications outlined in this document. In general; hearing transcripts are to be submitted in PDF and Oral Decision transcripts are to be submitted in Microsoft Words docx format. All these documents should adhere to the layout, formatting and document properties of the template files provided in each work package. It is the intent that the document templates serve as an aid to vendors; however the use of the templates for production of transcripts is at the vendor’s discretion.

3.4.1 Document Layout & Formatting

Transcriptions and certification pages are to adhere foremost to the specifications contained in the vendor contract. Secondary is adherence to the layout and formatting of the provided templates.

3.4.2 Document Page Numbering

Transcription templates provided by EOIR begin page numbering at 1 on the second page of the document, skipping the cover page. Oral decision templates provided by EOIR begin page numbering on the first page of the document. When using the provided templates it is the vendor’s responsibility to adjust the page numbering sequence of each individual template document to provide proper sequential page numbering throughout all documents in the transcription package.

3.4.3 Notation of Indiscernible Audio and Untranslated Testimony

Sections of recordings that are difficult or impossible to distinguish audibly are to be notated with the text “[indiscernible]” (without quotes) in the transcript document body. The use of opening and closing square brackets and proper spelling of indiscernible is required.

“Indiscernible” may be singular, plural, upper, lower and mixed case. When testimony is not

Limited Official Use 18 v 2.4 translated by the interpreter, use “[untranslated]” (without quotes) in the transcript document body.

The eTranscription application will identify these notations for quality control purposes. This feature only applies to text within the body of a transcript. Vendors are to note any identifiable reasons for indiscernible audio, e.g. heavy accent, in the vendor quality sheet.

3.4.4 Document Properties

Transcripts submitted to EOIR must contain the same document properties (metadata) as the template provided in each work package. This requirement is to ensure that the EOIR eTranscription application can process completed work and to aid EOIR in efficient and effective retrieval of transcripts.

Document properties that are displayed within the document templates provided by EOIR are implemented in one of two ways. For transcript and certification page templates the document properties are displayed inline using document bookmarks. For the vendor quality sheet the document properties are displayed inline using content controls. In both cases there is a linked relationship between the bookmark or content control and the document property.

When using the provided templates, vendors are to ensure that the provided document properties remain intact. There is the potential of a typist or reader of the document to inadvertently modify or delete the bookmark. If this occurs it is the vendor’s responsibility to ensure the document property value and the information displayed inline within the document match. Typically this can be done by recreating the bookmark link to the document property.

It is the responsibility of the transcription vendor to verify the accuracy of the provided document properties and to enter information for the Typist and Transcription Completion Date properties.

In the event that EOIR provides inaccurate property information (e.g., DHS Counsel Name), vendors will correct the document property and any associated bookmark that is displayed with the correct information. Vendors will then note this change using the Vendor Quality Sheet by entering a description of the problem and correction in the “Other Issue” field. This will provide feedback to EOIR in order to diagnose and correct systemic issues.

When using EOIR provided transcript templates, any text other than the bookmarks may be edited at the discretion of the vendor. An example is the “IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS” section of the transcript cover page which may be edited to indicate other proceedings such as deportation, exclusion, asylum and others. Vendors are not to modify the vendor quality sheet, only enter information in the fields provided.

3.4.5 Use of Brackets on Cover and Certification Page

Templates provided by EOIR include blank and populated bookmarks linked to document properties that are displayed inline. These bookmarks are noted using square brackets. Blank

Limited Official Use 19 v 2.4 bookmarks are displayed with the bookmark label in brackets (e.g. [NAME]) and populated bookmarks include the bookmark value in brackets (e.g. [999-888-777]).

When using these templates, vendors are to remove the brackets when entering or verifying the bookmark values. Vendors are cautioned to ensure the integrity of the bookmark is maintained, see Section 3.4.4. If these brackets are included within submitted work they will be flagged as a quality issue.

3.4.6 Certification Page Signature

Vendors are to include a graphical representation of the transcriber’s physical signature on the certification page signature line. This image must be compliant with the requirement outlined in

Section 5.2. The transcribers name must be typed under the signature line and entered as the value for the Typist document property. The certification page template provided by EOIR links the transcriber name displayed inline within the document to the Typist document property.

3.5 Transcription Delivery Package

Vendors will upload completed work to EOIR’s SFTP server in the form of Transcription

Delivery Packages. The completed transcripts, certification page, and vendor quality sheet for each case must be contained in a single archive (ZIP) file.

3.5.1 Conversion to PDF/A-1a

It is the intent of EOIR to receive transcripts in the PDF/A-1a format. This format is suitable for long-term preservation of electronic records and provides structural and semantic properties of documents that aid in accessibility by physically impaired users. When using EOIR provided transcript templates, vendors will convert completed hearing transcripts and certification pages into an accepted PDF format. This conversion must maintain the document properties and values of the original template to support the eTranscription electronic workflow and aid EOIR in managing electronic transcripts.

3.5.2 Completed Work File Naming Convention

The file naming convention for PDF files is based on the convention used for the templates with the addition of the transcription (TS) completion date and .pdf extension for all files except the vendor quality sheet.

Example of a completed delivery package with two case hearings, one oral decision, certification page and vendor quality sheet;

999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [2010-11-02 CH] [TS 2011-02-13].pdf

999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [2010-11-30 CH] [TS 2011-02-14].pdf

999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [2010-11-30 OD] [TS 2011-02-14].docx

999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [CP] [TS 2011-02-14].pdf

999-888-777 [AID 4801234] [VQ] [TS 2011-02-14].docx

Limited Official Use 20 v 2.4

When a bond hearing is on the same recording as the removal hearing, prepare a separate bond transcript using the file naming convention below:

999-888-777B [AID 4801234] [2010-11-02 CH] [TS 2011-02-13].pdf

999-888-777B [AID 4801234] [2010-11-30 OD] [TS 2011-02-14].docx

999-888-777B [AID 4801234] [CP] [TS 2011-02-14].pdf

999-888-777B [AID 4801234] [VQ] [TS 2011-02-14].docx

3.5.3 Unrelated Cases

On occasion an IJ may not stop recording one hearing when moving on to a new hearing. This results in an unrelated case appearing on a DAR session.

If there is an unrelated case on a recording then a transcript for this case and an accompanying certification page are to be submitted as part of the delivery package following the appropriate naming convention.

3.5.3.1 Reporting the Occurrence of an Unrelated Case

The existence of an unrelated hearing is to be indicated on the vendor quality sheet provided in the originating work package. The notation of an unrelated hearing on the vendor quality sheet is to include the A-Number for the unrelated alien and the hearing date of the recording on which it occurs.

3.5.3.2 Unrelated Case Templates and File Naming Convention

For unrelated cases vendors are to use the blank templates provided in the work package (Section

3.3.3.2). These templates and converted PDF files are to be renamed as appropriate for the unrelated hearing.

For example, for a hearing for A-Number 999-888-777 with an unrelated hearing for A-Number

999-555-444 the file names for the unrelated case hearing transcript and certification page would be;

999-555-444 [2010-11-30 CH] [TS 2011-02-14].pdf

999-555-444 [CP] [TS 2011-02-14].pdf

3.5.4 Archive File Format

Transcription Delivery Packages are to be submitted as ZIP (.ZIP) archive files compatible with at least version 4.5 of the PKWARE specification.