Public Records Retention and Going Paperless for School Districts and ESDs

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1 Public Records Retention and Going Paperless for School Districts and ESDs Scott Sackett Principal Records Consultant, Washington State Archives

2 What Is a Public Record? For the purposes of retention and destruction, two criteria (chapter RCW): 1. Made or received in connection with the transaction of public business 2. Regardless of format For public disclosure, refer to chapter RCW.

3 Records Management Is a Statutory Requirement RCW and : Public records are public property Agencies must obtain legal authority to dispose of public records Records retention schedules provide this authority RCW : Agencies shall adopt/enforce rules to protect public records from damage/disorganization Rules shall provide for fullest assistance and the most timely possible action on requests

4 Retention Schedules Per chapter RCW and chapter WAC, the Local Records Committee grants disposition authority to agencies in the form of records retention schedules. Records retention schedules describe: Type of records approved for destruction; Minimum period for which they need to be retained; and Whether the records have archival value or are essential.

5 recordsmanagement

6 Choose Your Agency Type

7 School District/ESD Homepage

8 Which Schedules Do I Use? 1) The Local Government Common Records Retention Schedule (or CORE) addresses those records that relate to the common functions of the management of the agency, and management of its physical assets, finances, human resources, and information resources. 2) The School Districts and Educational Service Districts Records Retention Schedule addresses those functions/records that are unique to school districts. recordsmanagement/managing-schooldistrict-records.aspx

9 What Do Agencies Do With NON-ARCHIVAL Records? 1. Retain for the minimum required retention period; THEN 2. Destroy.

10 CORE Non-Archival Example #1

11 CORE Non-Archival Example #2

12 HOLD IT! There are times when you must hang on to records even if their retention requirements have been met: Litigation holds (must keep until hold lifted) Open public records requests (must keep related responsive documents until request fulfilled/closed)

13 Why Not Just Keep Everything? Informational assets can easily become legal and logistical liabilities If it s retained, it s fair game for records requests and lawsuits If it s retained, it must remain accessible Ongoing storage, data migration costs care and feeding of the records

14 Disposition Take Action! Apply same retention and disposition practices to electronic records as you would paper-based records Regularly schedule disposition to get rid of those items that have met their minimum retention Document your agency s records destruction Template available: RecordsManagement/Destruction-of-Public- Records.aspx

15 What Do Agencies Do With ARCHIVAL Records? Archival records are not destroyed at the end of their retention period. Agencies must either: 1. Retain the records themselves indefinitely; OR 2. Arrange with Washington State Archives for appraisal/transfer (at no cost) after the records have met their retention.

16 CORE Archival Example

17 How do I go paperless? Going paperless is developing completely electronic processes from start to finish No paper copy is generated; no hard copy signatures required for authority or execution The transaction/execution of business is all done in a digital format (E.g., using e-forms, electronic web-based applications, databases, electronic approvals/signatures)

18 Do some planning when you do go paperless You can absolutely do business completely electronically (born digital) as long as you follow retention and disposition requirements and Meet any other requirements (legal, audit, access, other regulatory) as necessary for your agency business It s a good idea to document the decisions and implementation of going paperless

19 Bridging the gap Still have paper-centric processes Many want to transition from hybrid to completely electronic

20 Born Digital vs Digitization Imaging or digitizing is CONVERTING a paper-based record to a digital format through the process of scanning and indexing Born digital means the records are both created/received and used in an electronic environment

21 Do I Keep the Paper or Electronic Version? Regardless of how it was created: If the transaction of public business occurs in paper then the paper record needs to be retained.* If the transaction of public business occurs electronically then the electronic record needs to be retained. *(Unless agency obtains authorization to scan and toss we ll address that shortly)

22 Paper or Electronic? Example #1: Board meeting minutes are drafted using Microsoft Word and then printed. Chair signs the printed minutes at the next meeting. Transaction of public business occurs on paper so the signed paper minutes need to be retained.* *(Unless agency obtains authorization to scan and toss we ll address that shortly)

23 Paper or Electronic? Example #2: A public records request is submitted in hard copy to the agency. Key information from this record is entered into a database. The business transaction occurred on paper so the received request needs to be retained it, not the database entry, represents the evidence of the request.

24 Can I Scan and Toss My Paper? Yes, if. Agencies wishing to scan non-archival paper records and then destroy the originals before their required retention has been met ( scanning and tossing ) must meet or exceed State Archives requirements as set forth in the document Requirements for the Destruction of Non- Archival Paper Records After Imaging.

25 You can t just do it Conversion to an imaging system does not automatically authorize the destruction of the source documents for which images have been created... WAC

26 How Do I Use This Document to Scan and Toss? The agency self-evaluates its compliance with the requirements. If an agency determines that its procedures for scanning and managing the records meet or exceed the requirements, that agency may destroy Non-Archival source records once they have been scanned and verified. Archival records can be scanned and appraised/transferred early NOT tossed

27 Scanning and Tossing : Primary Concerns Are the records designated Non-Archival? Are the records being scanned in a way that ensures a complete, accurate, and durable copy? Will the images be accessible and protected from unauthorized deletion/alteration for the entire required retention period?

28 Born Digital Records Electronic records must be retained in electronic format for the length of the designated retention period. Printing and retaining a hard copy is not a substitute for the electronic version. (WAC )

29 Why Printing Doesn t Work For Born Digital Records Metadata associated with born digital records establishes the authenticity of the record, providing evidence of the transaction taking place. Printing electronic records (e.g. s) preserves the informational content but not the authenticity of the record

30 Why Isn t There a Series for ? As with paper records, the applicable DAN number will be determined by the content and function of the record NOT the format. You will not find retention requirements determined by format.

31 Messages: Identifying The Agency Record Copy Generally speaking, for records originating within the agency, the person who creates and sends the message holds the agency record copy. For records received from outside the agency, the primary recipient or the agency recipient taking action holds the agency record copy.

32 My Device = My Records? It may be your personal device or account, but if it s being used for agency business, keep in mind that you are accessing (and sometimes creating) public records

33 The Challenge of Text Messages Utilized for business purposes at many agencies Used with agency-owned devices And often on personal devices too. Retention based on function/content Some need to be captured/retained How? Manual forwarding, screenshots, agency enterprise server, 3rd-party service? Does the agency have policies and procedures addressing this?

34 Text Message Resource Page

35 Where To Find More Information

36 Thank you! Washington State Archives: Partners in preservation and access.