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Records Management Policies & Procedures Manual January 2009 The County of Cape May, NJ Records & Information Management (RIM) Program Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 1 ---PAGE BREAK--- TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 WHAT IS 4 RECORDS MANAGEMENT 5 CAPE MAY COUNTY RECORDS STORAGE CENTER 8 Submitting a Records Storage Request 8 Submitting a Records Retrieval 9 SUBMITTING A RECORDS DESTRUCTION 10 Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 2 ---PAGE BREAK--- INTRODUCTION Local governments hold within them a public trust. It is understood that government personnel will manage and protect records which chronicle history, document the citizens’ financial and legal interest, and support the decisions made by local government. Government records are an asset, not a liability. Measures need to be taken to protect them, enhance them, and utilize them to their fullest potential. Merely creating, filing, and storing records in a basement or attic is not enough. Records, which take thousands of man-hours to create, are useless if they cannot be retrieved and used. Poor records management practices result in wasting valuable and scarce tax dollars as the local government purchases unnecessary filing equipment and uses up valuable office space for records. Records management provides for efficiency of time and money. The objective of Cape May County’s Records & Information Management (RIM) Program is to protect, control and manage all the County’s information assets in an efficient and cost effective manner and in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The definition of records applies to all information, regardless of the medium, i.e., paper, electronic, microfilm, magnetic tape, CD’s, DVD’s, etc. This manual applies exclusively to the storage, retention, and destruction of the County’s hard copy records. Records management responsibilities are divided into three distinct groupings: State: The Division of Archives & Records Management (DARM), N.J. Department of State, has overall authority over state records. It is responsible for: • Establishing policies and procedures for the management of state & local records, • Creating and maintaining N.J. Records Retention Schedules, and • Overseeing the records disposition/destruction review and approval process. County: Cape May County’s Records Manager is responsible for developing and directing a County-wide RIM Program to include: • Serving as the RIM interface between Cape May County & NJ DARM, • Developing and overseeing RIM guidelines & standards, • Consulting on records management issues with departments, and • Overseeing records storage and disposition. Departmental: Each department has a Records Management Coordinator assigned by the department head. The coordinator is responsible for: • Serving as an intermediary between the department and the County’s Records Manager, and • Managing departmental records to ensure that essential information is appropriately retained, controlled, and can be retrieved as needed. This manual has been prepared for the employees of Cape May County, NJ. It is designed to provide basic information about public records, the RIM Program, and the records management responsibilities of each department and division. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 3 ---PAGE BREAK--- WHAT IS RIM? Records and information management (RIM) is the systematic control of organizational information throughout its life cycle. Records are information assets and hold value for the organization. Local governments have a duty to all stakeholders to manage records effectively in order control cost, maximize resources, and ensure the vitality of the organization. Effective records management ensures that the information needed is retrievable, authentic and accurate. This requires • Setting and following organizational policies and best practices, • Identifying who is responsible and accountable for managing records, • Creating, communicating and executing procedures consistently, and • Integrating best practices and process flows with other departments. Employees use records and information daily to • Perform daily business transactions, • Deliver goods and services consistently and with integrity, • Identify vital records and establish guidelines and resources to maintain business continuity after a disruption or disaster, • Comply with legislative and regulatory requirements, • Manage risk, • Protect the interests of all stakeholders inside and outside the county, • Provide documentation of research for the development of products and services, and • Preserve the organizational identity and history. When trying to decide who is responsible for managing records and information, the answer is everyone. Each employee has an important role to play in protecting the future of the organization by creating, using, retrieving, and disposing of records in accordance with the organization’s established policies and procedures. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 4 ---PAGE BREAK--- RECORDS MANAGEMENT BASICS Records are defined as recorded information made or received by an organization that is evidence of its operations and has value requiring its retention for a specific period of time. Records Life Cycle – Records management is controlling the life span of records. Most records will go through four lifecycle stages: • Creation - as correspondence, reports, forms, etc. • Active Life - the records are being managed by each individual department for decision making, classifying and filing. During this stage, records are usually located in or near the offices of personnel using the information. • Semi Active Life - records that have a reference of less than one time per month, have a retention rate of less than 10 years, and are non-permanent should be transferred to the departments inactive storage location or to the Record Storage Center. • Inactive stage - storage, preservation or disposal. The key to controlling inactive records is a good indexing system to aid in accessing and retrieving needed information. Records that have met or exceeded the retention period should be destroyed. Permanent records are to be stored in an appropriate environment. In order to conserve storage space permanent records may be imaged for future reference. After the creation of a record it goes through three different stages in its life cycle. Each stage requires different storage and handling by the record owners. Active Use Semi-Active Inactive The record is being used by employees on a regular basis. Records are kept in a local filing system and/or computer The record is used as a reference less than once a month. The records may be indexed and moved to departmental storage or transferred to the County Record Storage Center. If a record is no longer being used, past the retention period and has no historical value, destruction should be requested. If the record is permanent it may be imaged and the paper destroyed. A Records Retention Schedule is listing of records series titles or categories, indicating the length of time each record series is to be maintained. The purpose of records retention schedules is to protect information while it has operational, administrative, legal, fiscal, regulatory and/or historical value. Records Disposition: Records can be disposed of in one of two ways: • Physical destruction — shredding, burning, discarding or recycling; or • Transfer of ownership — awarding custody to a proprietor other than the originating agency - e.g., commercial storage area, library, museum or the State Archives. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 5 ---PAGE BREAK--- RECORDS MANAGEMENT BASICS, CONT’D Records Processes: The process of controlling records starts at creation or shortly thereafter by classifying the records for easy access and retrieval. If records have not been classified, it may be necessary to identify or inventory existing records. Once identified, it is recommended that a departmental index listing be created for all records. Standard record series titles are available from the N.J. Division of Archives & Records Management records retention schedules available at www.njarchives.org. Conducting an annual record review identifies those records which are considered inactive and eligible for storage. By moving inactive records out of active office areas, space becomes available for new or incoming records. Cape May County has established a County Records Storage Center (RSC) whose storage, retrieval and disposal services are available to all County departments to help manage their inactive or archival records. Active Records: When a record is created it is considered to be an active record. Active records are records which are referred to and required for current use by the department to conduct its business. Classification & Indexing: As new file folders are created, their titles should be added to a master department index listing along with other key identifiers. The index serves to help locate information and reduce duplication. Inventory: Active files should be reviewed annually to identify records that can be moved to inactive or semi active storage locations or are eligible for destruction. Semi Active Records: Semi active records are records that are still accessed; however they are not accessed as frequently as an active record. For the most part the semi active records should be stored in a departmental or County storage location to conserve space for active records. Inactive Records: Inactive records are records that the department no longer or rarely uses. If the record has met or exceeded its retention period, the department can begin the destruction process. If the record doesn’t meet its retention period or is considered to be a permanent record, the department should contact the RIM program to discuss alternatives for conserving office space. Electronic Records: Records that have a long term life span or require constant access should be considered for inclusion in Cape May County’s enterprise-wide electronic content management system (ECM). These records will be imaged into the computer system to allow easy access through the intranet or web. Departmental Storage Areas: Each department has access to a storage area for semi active records. Indexing is the key to controlling inactive records that are maintained in or near active office areas. The index should identify the stored records, where they are located, the storing department, etc. Using a computer program, such as Microsoft Excel, Word or the Records Mine System can make the indexing process much easier. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 6 ---PAGE BREAK--- RECORDS MANAGEMENT BASICS, CONT’D When organizing departmental storage areas: All drawers and boxes should be labeled with the contents, Each box should have a unique identifier or number, Boxes should be properly stored on shelves, and The inactive records and/or index should be reviewed annually to identify records eligible for destruction or transfer to the County’s Records Storage Center. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 7 ---PAGE BREAK--- CAPE MAY COUNTY RECORDS STORAGE CENTER (RSC) Contact: Phone: 463-6446 Fax: 463-6455 Email: [EMAIL REDACTED] Location: Ground floor of the Cape May County Courts Complex 9 Main Street, Cape May Court House Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays; closed for lunch from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. The purpose of the Records Storage Center is to provide off-site storage for non-permanent semi-active departmental records. Records remain in the department’s ownership and control and may be removed from the Records Storage Center at any time. Department or division heads will be contacted for approval prior to the destruction of any of their records. Submitting a Records Storage Request Records that 1) have a reference rate of less than once per month, 2) have a retention rate of less than 20 years, and 3) are non-permanent, are candidates for transfer to the RSC. Departmental records should be reviewed on an annual basis to identify records of this type. The Coordinator is responsible for overseeing storage requests and verifying the validity of worksheets and index information. The process for transferring records to storage is as follows: 1. Use the Records Retention Schedule to identify which boxes (or file drawers) potentially hold records that may be moved off-site for storage. 2. If necessary, transfer the records into standard-sized storage boxes that can be obtained from the Records Storage Center. Check each box to ensure that all files are the same records series and are eligible for transfer. Different record series should not be stored within the same box. Also remove items from the box that do not need to be stored, such as copies or items that have passed their retention period. 3. Assign an internal box number to each box. With a marker, write the box number on the left hand side of the box. 4. Create an index of the items in each box so that they can be located at a later date. Place one copy of the index in the box; the second copy should be placed in Section 6 of the RIM Binder. Please inform the Records Center Clerk if any box contains confidential information or has archival value. 5. Coordinators must complete all pertinent information on the Records Transfer Request for each box which is available on the RIM website and then can be emailed directly to the Records Storage Center or interofficed to DN 109 6. Once a determination has been made to transfer the boxes to the RSC, labels for the boxes will be generated and forwarded to the department. The Coordinator will place the identification labels on the upper right side of the corresponding box and retain a copy of the transmittal form for future reference. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 8 ---PAGE BREAK--- CAPE MAY COUNTY RECORDS STORAGE CENTER (RSC), CONT’D RSC staff will contact Facilities & Services to arrange for the transfer of the records. F&S must have a work order to transfer these records to the RSC and will contact the Coordinator before arriving to pick up boxes. The Coordinator must accompany F&S to the location of the boxes to verify that the correct records are removed. Boxes can not be transferred without a Records Storage Center bar-coded label on each box. The Coordinator must check each box off the worksheet as it is removed. 7. After verifying receipt of all boxes, Records Storage Center staff will forward a copy of the updated department box inventory report to the Coordinator. The inventory report should be placed in Section 5 of the RIM binder. Submitting a Records Retrieval Request Records stored at the Records Storage Center remain the property of the transferring department which remains in control of access to their records. Permission must be granted by the storing department head or departmental Coordinator in order for records to be accessed by other members of the department. Permission can be obtained via telephone, fax, or via email, and must specify which records are to be made available. 1. Record retrieval requests should be submitted early in the day or no later than 3 p.m., so that they will be available for pick up the following day. Emergent retrievals may be made at any time during the workday. 2. Requests must include clear identification of the records to be retrieved and identification of the assigned RSC box number where the records can be found. 3. Requested records will be made available in one of the following ways: The entire box will be retrieved for pick up or delivery. Unless permanently withdrawn, the box should be returned to the RSC for re-shelving. The requested file folder or document will be removed from the box for pick up or delivery. Unless permanently withdrawn, the records should be sent back to the RSC for return to the storage box. The requested document is retrieved, a photocopy or fax is made for the department’s use, and the original document is immediately re-filed in the storage box. The copy can be picked up, faxed or delivered and need not be returned to the RSC. Note: If you do not reach a Records Storage Center clerk via phone, please leave a message; RIM staff are often working off-site but check voicemail three times each day. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 9 ---PAGE BREAK--- SUBMITTING A RECORDS DESTRUCTION REQUEST Records that 1) are no longer used, 2) have no legal, fiscal or historical significance, or 3) have completed their required retention periods as stipulated by the New Jersey Division of Archives and Records Management (DARM) Records Retention Schedules are eligible for destruction. By law, all New Jersey government units must request and receive permission to destroy public records regardless of the medium in which the information is maintained. Records designated as permanent may not be destroyed. Each Departmental Records Coordinator has access to the RIM Program’s Request for Records Destruction Worksheet. When obsolete records are in the possession of the department that controls those records, the Coordinator is responsible for overseeing the request and verifying the destruction process. The process is as follows: 1. Use the Records Retention Schedule to identify which boxes (or file drawers) potentially hold records that may be destroyed. 2. Check each box to ensure that all files are the same records series and are eligible for destruction. If the box contains more than one records series, the destruction date is calculated from the record series with the longest retention period. Remove items from the box that are not eligible for destruction. 3. Assign a number to each box so that you can identify it at a later time. 4. Create an index of the items to be destroyed, if necessary. 5. Complete a departmental label for each box. Affix the label on the front center of the box. Using a marker, place a big red X on the box so you may later identify to Facilities & Services that it is to be destroyed. 6. Complete a Request for Records Destruction Worksheet. This worksheet must be completed electronically. An updated form is available on the RIM Page of the County website for downloading purposes. All required information must be included on the form. Email the Records Destruction Worksheet to [EMAIL REDACTED]. 7. A RIM staff member will review the information and make corrections if necessary. When complete, the form will be forwarded with an NJDARM Authorization for Records Disposal form to the Department Head for signature. After the signature is acquired the form should be returned to DN109 for completion of the process. 8. RIM staff will then submit the form to County Counsel, the County Auditor and NJ DARM for approval. 9. When approvals have been received, the RIM office will make arrangements for the records to be picked up from their departmental storage location and destroyed. Facilities & Services will contact the departmental Coordinator before arriving to remove the boxes for either recycling or shredding. 10. The coordinator must accompany F&S staff to the location of the boxes to verify that the correct boxes are removed. Each box should be checked off the worksheet as it is removed, and a copy of the dated and verified worksheet must be faxed to the Records Manager at 465-8676 to complete the disposition process. Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 10 ---PAGE BREAK--- Records Management Policies and Procedures, Rev. 2 Page 11 11. After receiving verification of destruction, the Records Manager will electronically send the completed forms to the State, to the Auditor, and the Requesting department to complete the process.