Records Managementfor

Election Records

Texas State Library and Archives Commissionhttps://www.tsl.state.tx.us/

Presented by Michael Reagor, Government Information Analyst

Agenda• What is Records Management• Records Retention

(“How long do we have to keep this?”)

• Records Disposition• Managing Electronic Records• Resources

About Us• Records Management Assistance unit

• 6 Government Information Analysts serving:• 150 state agencies• 10,000 local government entities

• Consulting and Training• Retention, destruction, imaging, managing email,

disaster preparedness and recovery, filing systems, preservation

• Rule Development• 1,500 records series for local governments• Standards for managing e-records, microfilm, inventory

WHAT IS RECORDS MANAGEMENT?

(and why bother?)

What is Records Management?

“The application of management techniques to the creation, use, maintenance, retention, preservation, and disposal of records for the purposes of reducing the costs and improving the efficiency of recordkeeping.”

Why do we have RM laws/rules?

Public Information Act

(Government Code Chapter 552)

Open Meetings Act (Government Code Chapter

551)

Local Government Records Act

(Local Government Code Chapters 201-205)

Local Government Records Act Effective & economic government operations Preserve records of permanent value Establish standards and procedures

Local Government Code, Chapters 201-205

RECORDS RETENTION

Local Government Record

• Documents the transaction of public business

• Is created or received by a local government

• Is a record whether it is open or closed• May exist in any medium

“Non-Records”

Convenience copies: “Extra identical copies of documents created only for convenience of reference or research” (Local Government Code §201.003(8)(A))

Copies of documents furnished to the public as part of a Public Information Act request

“Non-Records”

Blank forms/stocks of publications Library or museum materials Alternative Dispute Resolution working

files

Designating a “Record Copy”

Which copy of a record needs to be kept for the full retention period?

Definitions• Retention Period: The minimum

amount of time you are legally required to keep a record

Definitions• Record Series: A group of records, all

with the same function, regardless of format

• Examples of record series:• Case papers• Correspondence: e-mail sent, e-mail received, paper

letter sent or received, form letter, internal memo…• Employment applications: application form, letters of

reference, writing samples, transcripts…

How to read a record series

Record Number

Record Title Record Description

Retention Period

Remarks

EL3125-01a

CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS AND FILINGS

Campaign Contribution and expenditure statements (including annual reports of unexpended contributions)

Date of filing + 2 years.

By law – Election Code, Section 254.040.

Unique # assigned to this record series by TSLAC

What TSLAC calls this series

The scope of the series: what kinds of records would be classified here

Minimum amount of time you have to keep these records

Statutes that govern the retention of this record series and other notes about retention added by TSLAC.

Retention Codes• AV – As long as Administratively Valuable

• The record’s immediate purpose has been served. • You may destroy it whenever it ceases to have

value to your office.

• FE – Fiscal Year End• The last day of the fiscal year.

• US – Until Superseded• The record is replaced by an updated version.

Records Retention Schedule• A document that lists the records series of

an organization, with mandatory minimum retention periods for each records series.

• TSLAC Local Schedules• 12 schedules• Include 1,500+ records series• Mandatory minimum retention• Same retention regardless of medium• Available to print from website

Local Retention Schedules

• CC – County Clerk• DC – District Clerk• EL – Elections/Voter• HR – Health• JC – Junior Colleges• LC – Justice/Municipal

Courts

• PS – Public Safety• PW – Public Works• SD – Schools• TX – Taxation• UT – Utility Services

http://bitly.com/localschedules

GR – General Records

Local Schedule GR• Retention Schedule for Records

Common to All Local Governments• Part 1: Administrative Records • Part 2: Financial Records• Part 3: Personnel and Payroll Records• Part 4: Support Services Records• Part 5: Information Technology Records

Local Schedule EL

• Retention Schedule for Elections and Voter Registration• Part 1: Election Records• Part 2: Records of Candidacy and

Campaign Finance• Part 3: Voter Registration Records

RECORDS DISPOSITION

Disposition Benefits• Creates physical space• Reduces costs:

• Physical storage• Network server storage• Protection • E-Discovery

• Speeds up retrieval• Provides legal

protection

When To Do Disposition• Maintain regular

schedule• Fiscal Year End• Calendar Year End• Slow time of year

• Do not wait until you run out of room

Types of DispositionArchival Transfer Destruction

Transfer to Archives• Change of ownership

• To approved receivers, after retention has been met and with RMO’s approval:• public institution of higher

education;• public museum;• public library; or • other public entity

• Local Government Code §202.004: Alienation of Records

Destruction: Paper Records• Confidential records

• Shredding• Pulping• Burning

• Open records• Recycling• Landfills

Destruction: Microforms• Microfilm

• Entire rolls• 5/8 in. Cross-Cut

• Microfiche• Shred twice• 5/8 in. Cross-Cut• 3/8 in. Cross-Cut

Disposition Process• Internal approval• Disposition log

Internal Approval• RMO should verify eligibility for

destruction against retention schedule

• Might be signed by:• Department head/ program manager• Financial officer• Legal counsel

Records Disposition Log• Records series title• Dates of records disposed• Date of disposal• Volume of records disposed• Disposal method• Approval signatures

Destruction HoldsIt is illegal to destroy any

record that is involved in ongoing:

• Litigation• Claim• Negotiation• Public Information Request• Audit

RECORDS WITH SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Records with Special Requirements

• Confidential• Permanent• Microfilm• Electronic• Essential

Confidential Records• Secure environment• Follow security procedures

• Office of the Attorney General• https://www.oag.state.tx.us/open/index.s

html

• (877) OPEN-TEX (673-6839)• publicrecords@oag.state.tx.us

Permanent Records• H.B. 1559 took effect September

1, 2011. Text: http://bit.ly/hb1559

• TSLAC shall adopt rules for storage of permanent and historical court records.

• Bulletin F (created in cooperation with Local Government Records Storage Task Force) published April 2013. http://bit.ly/bulletinf

• Rules go into effect April 2015.

Permanent Records• Storage

Webinar: • Importance of

proper storage• Storage standards

• Minimum conditions

• Optional enhanced conditions

• Funding sourceshttp://bit.ly/storagestandards

Microfilm Records • Bulletin A: Microfilming Standards

and Procedures http://bit.ly/BulletinA• Temperature not over 70 degrees• Constant 35% humidity• Retain masters offsite

Essential Records• Records needed to:

• Respond to an emergency (building maps, contact information)

• Resume or continue operations (payroll, contracts, delegations of authority)

• Protect the health, safety, property, and rights of residents (birth/marriage records, active court proceedings, voter registration records)

• Document the history of communities and families (town charters, photographs)

• Identify and store backups offsite

Electronic Records• Bulletin B:

Electronic Records Standards and Procedures http://bit.ly/bulletinb

• E-records must be available, accessible, usable for full retention period

• Store backups offsite

First computer “bug,” Harvard University,1947

RESOURCES

I want more training!• Archived Webinars:

• Records Retention 101• Managing email• Storage Rules• Long-term preservation• Imaging projects• Shared drive management• Disaster recovery/salvage• And others…

https://www.tsl.texas.gov/slrm/webinars/index.html

I want to stay informed!• Read our blog, The Texas

Record• Retention rule

updates• New training

classes available• Analyst tips

https://www.tsl.texas.gov/slrm/blog/ Subscribe – we’ll email you new posts

I want to find my analyst!• Find the analyst assigned to your county:

https://www.tsl.texas.gov/slrm/local/countylist.html

QUESTIONS?

Michael ReagorGovernment Information AnalystState and Local Records ManagementTexas State Library and Archives Commission(512) 463-5494 mreagor@tsl.texas.gov

https://www.tsl.texas.gov/slrm