Priority of investigation

(a) General. Except as provided in this section, a Team investigation will have priority over any other investigation of any other Federal agency.

(b) Criminal acts. (1) If the Attorney General, in consultation with the Director, determines, and notifies the Director that circumstances reasonably indicate that the building failure being investigated by a Team may have been caused by a criminal act, the Team will relinquish investigative priority to the appropriate law enforcement agency.

(2) If a criminal investigation of the building failure being investigated by a Team is initiated at the state or local level, the Team will relinquish investigative priority to the appropriate law enforcement agency.

(3) The relinquishment of investigative priority by the Team will not otherwise affect the authority of the Team to continue its investigation under the Act.

(c) National Transportation Safety Board. If the National Transportation Safety Board is conducting an investigation related to an investigation of a Team, the National Transportation Safety Board investigation will have priority over the Team investigation. Such priority will not otherwise affect the authority of the Team to continue its investigation under the Act.

(d) Although NIST will share any evidence of criminal activity that it obtains in the course of an investigation under the Act with the appropriate law enforcement agency, NIST will not participate in the investigation of any potential criminal activity.