Records Management and Formats

Franklin County Document Management Seminar

Records Management and Formats

Judy Walker

Assistant State Archivist

The Ohio Historical Society


Records Management and Formats

• Records management overview– scheduling– disposal

• Record formats– paper– microfilm– electronic

• Reformatting

• Historical Records


149.011 ORC (What is a “record?”)

“Records includes any document, device, or item, regardless of physical form or characteristic, created or received by or coming under the jurisdiction of any public office of the state or its political subdivisions, which serves to document the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the office.”

Records Management Overview


County Records Commission 149.38 ORC

• Members– President of the Board of County Commissioners as chair

– County Prosecuting Attorney

– County Auditor

– County Recorder

– County Clerk of Court of Common Pleas

• Meet at least once every 6 months• Can hire an archivist• Shall appoint a secretary who may or may not be a

member of the commission



County Records Commission 149.38 ORC

• Provide rules for retention and disposal of records• Review retention schedules and disposal requests

submitted by the office• Provide that proper procedures are followed for

scheduling and disposing of records• Revise retention schedules



Records Disposition - ORC Requirements

When records approved for disposal, send list of records to Auditor of State– State Auditor can disapprove

– Notify within 60 days and records shall not be destroyed

• Before disposal– inform OHS of the disposal

– OHS given opportunity (60 days) to select for its custody records with enduring historical value



Established Procedures

• RC forms -- facilitate the procedures required by the ORC

• RC forms are not required since the local records commission establishes its own rules for records management. But you do have to meet the requirements of the ORC

RC1 Application for One Time Disposal

RC2 Retention Schedule

RC3 Certificate of Records Disposal



RC2 Records Retention Schedules

• Provide the foundation for any records management program

• List the records an office maintains and the length of time the records should be maintained

• When the retention period has expired, the records can be disposed of -- on an ongoing basis

• Signatures indicate review by each involved entity– local records commission (approving body)

– State Auditor (reviewing agency)

– OHS (informational review for selection)



Creating Records Retention Schedules

• Format Specific– retention periods differ based on the format of the

record

– Ex. Deeds: Retain paper copy until microfilmed

Retain digital image 10 years

Retain microfilm permanently

• Record Specific– retention is the same for all formats of the record

– Ex. Deeds: Retain paper, digital image, and

microfilm copies permanently



Creating Records Retention Schedules

General Schedules• List records common to most offices and provides

retention periods for those records– minutes, cancelled checks, publications, etc.

• Your local records commission can approve these for the entire county or on an office by office basis



RC1 Application for One Time Disposal

• List of records that are not on a retention schedule that your office wants to dispose of

• Does not provide ongoing authority to dispose of records

• Usually used for obsolete records or for a disposal when no retention schedules are in place

• Signatures indicate review by each involved entity– local records commission (approving body)

– State Auditor (reviewing agency)

– OHS (informational review for selection)



RC3 Certificate of Records Disposal

• A list of records that have met their retention requirements (per the schedule)

• A final opportunity for OHS to select historical records for its custody

• 15 day waiting period while form is reviewed by OHS and Auditor of State




For assistance regarding RC forms and procedures, please contact:

Pari Swift

Local Government Records Archivist

614-297-2553

[email protected]



Record Formats -- Options

• Paper

• Microforms– microfilm– microfiche

• Electronic Formats– digitized records (scanned images)– born digital records (databases, spreadsheets,

LAN/Mainframe systems)

Formats


Format Characteristics

Paper Microfilm Electronic

Eye readable Eye readable Not eye readable –requires software andhardware

Access can bedifficult

Multiple accesspossible – access alsoconsideredcumbersome

Multiple access

Fairly stable inproper storageenvironment

Stable in properstorage environment(500 years)

Unstable

Formats


Format Characteristics

Paper Microfilm Electronic

Large storage spacerequired

Minimizes storagespace

Electronic storage –inexpensive andminimal physicalspace required

Formats


Reasons to reformat

• Save space

• Provide access

• Preserve information

• Create back up of vital information

Reformatting


Reformatting options

Microfilm

Digital Image Microfilm

Digital ImagePaper

• Should the paper be retained?

Reformatting


Reformatting options

Born Digital

Migrate the digital record

Print

Microfilm

Reformatting


Choosing a Format -- paper

• Paper is best used when:– physical storage space is available– preservation is a concern

• paper is eye readable and quite stable

– multiple access points are not required– maintaining a born digital copy is not warranted

• word processing documents, database reports, spreadsheet reports, etc.

Reformatting


Choosing a Format -- microfilm

• Microfilm is best used when:– saving space is a concern– records have at least a ten year retention period

• generally not cost effective to film records with short retention periods

– preservation is a concern• microfilm, when properly stored and created, should

last approximately 500 years

– providing access is not the primary reason for reformatting

Reformatting


Choosing a Format -- digital imaging

• Digital imaging is best used when:– multiple access points are necessary

• Intranet or Internet

– physical storage space is limited– retention periods of less than ten years

Digital Imaging Guidelines available on the LGR website

www.ohiohistory.org/lgr

Reformatting


Choosing a format -- electronic

• It is generally easier and less expensive to commit to maintaining some born digital records in paper or microfilm, than to migrate them

• However, many born digital records will have to be maintained in electronic formats for the duration of their retention period– some databases– large applications– web sites

Reformatting



• These systems and the records held in them need to be identified and analyzed – identify the records and the data that makes up

the records– develop migration strategy and budget– assure security of the system– maintain reliable, current system

documentation– assure the reliability and authenticity of the

data in the system

Reformatting



• Reliability is the measure of a records authority and is a function of the records creation– is it what it says it is

• Authenticity is proven reliability over time and is a function of a record preservation– is it still what it says it is

Reliability and authenticity are functions of system policies, documentation, and the implementation of technology

Reformatting



Electronic records will not be valid (reliable and authentic) during their active life if they are not managed effectively

Reformatting



• Resources– State Archives staff– Trustworthy Information Systems Handbook

• System documentation

• Record metadata

• Security measures

• Audit trails

• Disaster recovery plans

– Electronic Records Committee

Reformatting


Preservation formats -- Summary

1. Microfilm (preservation)

2. Paper

3. Digital imaging (access)

4. Electronic (born digital)– many born digital records must be maintained

in electronic formats– data migrated to software and hardware

platforms that will maintain the accessibility of the records

Reformatting


What do we preserve? -- examples

• Commissioners Journals

• Prosecuting Attorney Opinions

• Abstracts of Votes

• Maps

• Naturalization Records

• Court Records

• Birth, Death and Marriage Records

• Planning and Zoning Records

• Tax Duplicates

• Public Welfare Records

• County Home Records

• Mortgage, Deed, and Lien records

Historical Records


What do we preserve? -- formats

• Microfilm is preferred– saves space, preservation quality

• Paper is acceptable– preservation

• Electronic formats– limited in our current capacity to handle

electronic formats– web sites, e-publications, email in .txt files

Historical Records


What do we preserve? -- formats

Joint Electronic Records Repository Initiative

(JERRI)

Goalto create an archival repository for electronic

records and resources for the state and its political

subdivisions in Ohio

Historical Records


JERRI

• Partners– Ohio Department of Administrative Services– Ohio Historical Society– Ohio Supercomputer Center– State Library of Ohio

• Current status

Historical Records


Conclusions

• Technology makes the creation and dissemination of records and information fast, easy and cheap

• Records management cannot be ignored in the electronic environment. In fact, it is more important now than it was 50 years ago


Conclusions

• Selecting the format of records must be done carefully and with the retention period and possible preservation concerns in mind

• Yes, you can throw away the paper! But be careful when you do!– Follow records management procedures– You could be destroying our ability to preserve

the historical record


Food for Thought


Food for Thought

“Almost every workplace lawsuit today,especially a sexual harassment case,

has an E-mail component,”

Nancy Flynn, executive director of the ePolicy Institute, which develops E-mail and Internet policies for employers. US

News and World Report


Food for Thought

“Digital records don’t just survive by accident”

Margaret Hedstrom


Food for Thought

“The more technologically advanced we get, the more fragile we become.”

Abby Smith, Council of Library and Information Resources


Food for Thought

“Any technology can go the way of eight-track and Betamax. Information doesn’t have much of a chance unless you keep a museum of tape players and PC’s around”

Charlie Mayn, Special Media Preservation, National Archives and Records Administration


Food for Thought

“For years, computer scientists said the ones and zeros of digital data would stick around

forever. They were wrong.”

Tests by the National Media Lab found that magnetic tapes might last only a decade. The fate of floppy disks,

videotape, hard drives, and CDROMs is just as bleak.


Preserving the Electronic Record

• Ohio Electronic Records Committee– Managing Email Guidelines– Digital Imaging Guidelines– Electronic Records Mgmt Guidelines– General Schedules for Administrative

Electronic Records– Trustworthy Information Systems Handbook– Recordkeeping System Software



• JERRI

• Working with San Diego Supercomputer Center– experimenting with using XML to preserve

data

• Working with Minnesota State Archives– creating educational initiatives for archivists

and their constituencies



• Partnering with OCLC– preserve web based resources

• Working with the Supreme Court of Ohio initiatives

• Electronic Records workshops for local government entities


Any questions?

Judy Walker

Assistant State Archivist

297-2585

[email protected]

Records Management and Formats

Documents

Transcript of Records Management and Formats