Title
Approve and adopt the County of Monterey Records Management Policy as presented.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors:
Approve and adopt the County of Monterey Records Management Policy as presented.
SUMMARY:
The approval of the recommended action will establish a framework for the roles and responsibilities of County departments in relation to the management of County records which is important for the efficient administration of county government, to create, receive, maintain, and make available accurate and reliable county records.
DISCUSSION:
This policy has been developed with input from a number of departments, in order to establish a uniform program of responsible recordkeeping applicable to all County departments. Primary considerations in the development of the proposed policy have been provisions of Government Code §§26201-26202.6 and §§26205-26205.8 pertaining to the Board of Supervisors' responsibilities regarding the retention and destruction of County records; Government Code §12168 et seq. pertaining to establishing standards concerning the management of records; and Government Code §6250 et seq. pertaining to the availability and accessibility of public records. The proposed policy has also been prepared to be consistent with the Secretary of State Local Government Guidelines, and other applicable laws or regulations.
This policy is intended to meet the goals of establishing basic standards for the transfer and conversion of paper records to other methods of record storage consistent with applicable law; to preserve and protect documents of historical significance and/or archival value; and to saving space, reducing storage costs and staff resources utilized by incorporating the automation provided by utilizing imaging technologies available.
Consistent with the California Secretary of State Guidelines, the essence of the policy is for the County to retain records as long as legally required, but not longer, unless specific reasons are provided. Following this basic policy, in addition to making use of the ability to transfer paper records to electronic ones, will save the County time and money in managing important records while allowing for the destruction of incidental and outdated records.
Implementation of the proposed policy, if adopted, will require resources from the Information Technology Department - Records Retention, the Human Resources for the provision of training, and the County Free Libraries to handle the proposed County Archive Program. There are both one-time and recurring costs associated with the implementation of this policy such as training, space, necessary staffing to include a County Records Manager for the proper management of records, and software necessary to develop or obtain an efficient electronic records management solution. Not all of these costs are defined at this time. The Office of the CAO in collaboration with ITD will bring a plan for implementation, along with estimated costs, before the Board for approval.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The CAO, County Counsel, and a records management "team" comprised of representatives of County Departments participated in the development of this policy and concur with the recommendation.
FINANCING:
The approval of this recommended action and the subsequent activities required for the implementation of this policy will require additional budgetary resources. The implementation of this policy will impact the budgets of Information Technology Department, County Free Libraries, and Human Resources Department. The CAO's Office in collaboration with ITD will oversee the development of appropriate procedures, forms and training to facilitate these tasks and bring an implementation plan along with the estimated costs before the Board of Supervisors for approval within the next nine months.
Prepared by: Sarah House, Management Analyst, x5108
Approved by:
__________________________________________
Dianah Neff, Director of Information Technology
Dated: May 19, 2014
Attachments:
1. Proposed Records Management Policy
2. Records Management Policy Exhibit A - Proposed Cross Departmental Records Retention Schedule