Managing Records: Electronic Records
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How
long do I have to keep electronic records?
Are electronic records legal in court?
Where can I get training in records management
and archives?
Are digital images of paper records legal in court?
Do you have any grants for records management or
archives projects?
How should I go about hiring a consultant in
records management?
Is electronic document imaging or scanning a good idea?
Why ask vendors for local government references?
Do you have any guidance regarding geographic information systems (GIS)?
How long do I have to keep electronic records?
The legal retention period for records is not determined by their format. Instead, retention depends on the function of the records and their legal, administrative, and fiscal value. If you are from a local government, check the retention schedule for your type of government (county, school district, municipality or miscellaneous) for the appropriate retention periods for your records. If you are from a state agency, use the State General Schedule and your agency-specific records schedules to determine how long to keep your records. (If your records are not scheduled, contact your State Archives representative.) Records in all formats (hardcopy and electronic) must be retained beyond the minimum retention period when they are relevant to a FOIL request, audit, or legal investigation.
For more information on the retention of records, see Publication #41, Retention and Disposition of Records. The Archives also offers a workshop on using State Archives retention schedules every fall. Be sure to contact your Records Management Officer or the State Archives if you have any questions concerning the legal disposition of records. You can reach us at (518) 474-5834 or via email at RECMGMT@mail.nysed.gov.
Are electronic records legal in court?
Many people believe that electronic records cannot be used as evidence
in court. Actually, electronic records can usually be used as evidence;
however, you will need to be able to prove that the system that maintains
the records is secure and maintains accurate, authentic records. For more
information on this topic, see the State Archives publication Guidelines
for the Legal Acceptance of Public Records in an Emerging Electronic Environment
(SGP 10).
Where can I get training in records management
and archives?
The State Archives provides workshops free of charge to local governments
and state agencies, and others can attend if there is space available.
The Archives holds these workshops across the state in three different
seasons each year (spring, summer and fall), and we announce these workshops
in seasonal catalogs and via our website. You can find a registration
form for our current workshop offerings online. The State Archives
can also present specialized workshops for individual governments, agencies
or associations. For more information on workshops, contact the State
Archives Regional
Advisory Officer in your region of the state or (especially if you
are an Albany-based state agency) contact the State Archives central office
at (518) 474-6926.
Are digital images of paper records legal in
court?
Many people believe that digital images of paper records cannot be used
as evidence in court. Actually, digital images can usually be used as
evidence; however, you will need to be able to prove that the system that
maintains the records is secure and maintains accurate, authentic records.
For more information on this topic, see the State Archives publication
Guidelines
for the Legal Acceptance of Public Records in an Emerging Electronic Environment
(SGP10).
Do you have any grants for records management
or archives projects?
The State Archives oversees the Local Government Records Management Improvement
Fund (LGRMIF), which annually awards millions of dollars for records management and archives grants
to local governments across the state. For more information on the LGRMIF grants program, see the grants
section. This grants program is only for local
governments; the Archives does not award any grants to state agencies.
How should I go about hiring a consultant
in records management?
There are a number of basic issues you should address whenever hiring
a records management consultant, including how
to choose a consultant, how write up a contract, and how to oversee a
project. For detailed information on hiring
consultants, see Records
Management Consultants (Technical Information Series 44). The State
Archives maintains
lists of consultants who do various types of records management consulting.
For a copy of these lists, contact the
State Archives at (518) 474-6926, via e-mail at RECMGMT@mail.nysed.gov,
or find them online at our website.
Is electronic document imaging or scanning a good
idea?
Electronic document imaging, what many people simply call "scanning,"
can be an important records management technology. However, imaging isn't
the solution to all problems. If you're trying to save space by scanning
records and then destroying the originals, scanning is an inappropriate
choice. Microfilming is a cheaper and easier solution to implement. On
the other hand, if you are trying to combine paper and electronic information
in one place and provide access to those records simultaneously to a large
number of people even at remote locations, then imaging is the best solution.
If you need help deciding if imaging makes sense for you, contact the
State Archives Regional
Advisory Officer in your region of the state or (especially if you
are an Albany-based state agency) contact the State Archives central office
at (518) 474-6926. The Archives also offers an Electronic Document Imaging
workshop in the fall.
Why ask vendors for local government references?
To obtain input from governments with similar records regarding the quality
of the microfilm vendor services and products.
Do you have any guidance regarding geographic information systems (GIS)?
The State Archives distributes a three-volume set titled Local Government
GIS Development Guidelines that guides local governments through the development
and implementation of geographic information systems. The Archives also
has an Introduction to GIS workshop that is usually given in the fall.