Records Management and Retention

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Thompson 11-1-1994 as L.L. No. 6-1994. Amendments noted where applicable.]

§ 92-1. Establishment; department officer.

There shall be a records management program established under the aegis of the Town Board headed by a records management officer (RMO). The officer will be responsible for administering the noncurrent and archival public records and storage areas for the town in accordance with local, state and federal laws and guidelines. The RMO shall be the Town Clerk or his designee.

§ 92-2. Powers and duties.

The officer shall have all the necessary powers to carry out the efficient administration, determination of value, use, preservation, storage and disposition of the noncurrent and archival public records kept, filed or received by the offices and departments of the town.

1. The records management officer shall continually survey and examine public records to recommend their classification so as to determine the most suitable methods to be used for the maintaining, storing and servicing of archival material:

(1) Obsolete and unnecessary records according to New York State Records Retention and Disposition Schedules thereby subject to disposition;

(2) Information containing administrative, legal fiscal, research historical or educational value which warrant their permanent retention; or

(3) Records not subject to disposition according to state law


2. The records management officer shall establish guidelines for proper records management in any department or agency of the town in accordance with local, state and federal laws and guidelines.
3. The records management officer shall report annually to the chief executive official and the governing body on the powers and duties herein mentioned, including but not limited to the cost/benefit ratio of programs effectuated by the department.

4. The officer shall operate a records management center for the storage, processing and servicing of all noncurrent and archival records for all town departments and agencies.

5. The officer shall establish a town archives and perform the following functions:

   (1) Advise and assist town departments in reviewing and selecting material to be transferred to the town archives for preservation.

   (2) Continually survey and examine public records to determine the most suitable methods to be used for the creating, maintaining, storing and servicing of archival materials.

   (3) Establish and maintain an adequate repository for the proper storage, conservation, processing and servicing of archival records.

   (4) Promulgate rules governing public access to and use of records in the archives, subject to the approval of the Records Advisory Board.

   (5) Develop a confidentiality policy for archival records designated confidential, provided that such policy does not conflict with any federal or state statutes.

   (6) Provide information services to other town offices.

   (7) Collect archival materials which are not official town records but which have associational value to the town or a close relationship to the existing archival collection. Such collecting shall be subject to archive space, staff and cost limitations and to the potential endangerment of such materials if they are not collected by the archives.

   (8) Develop a procedure whereby historically important records are to be identified at the point of generation.

§ 92-3. Records Advisory Board.

There shall be a Records Advisory Board designated to work closely with and provide advice to the records management officer. The Board shall consist of the Town Board, Town Attorney and Town Comptroller. The Board shall meet periodically and have the following duties:

1. Provide advice to the records management officer on the development of the records management program.

2. Review the performance of the program on an ongoing basis and propose changes and improvements.

3. Review retention periods proposed by the records management office for records not covered by state archives' schedules.

4. Provide advice on the appraisal of records for archival value, and to be the final sign-off entity as to what is or is not archival.

1. A town department is the legal custodian of its records and shall retain custody of records deposited in the records center. Records transferred to or acquired by the archives shall be under the custody and control of the archives rather than the department which created or held them immediately prior to being transferred to the archives.

2. Records shall be transferred to the archives upon the recommendation of the RMO, with the approval of the head of the department which has custody of the records and the approval of the Records Advisory Board.

3. Records may be permanently removed from the archives at the request of the RMO or the head of the department which had custody of the records immediately prior to the transfer of those records to the archives, subject to the approval of the Records Advisory Board.

§ 92-5. Replevin; recovery of records.

The Legal Department may take steps to recover local government records which have been alienated from proper custody and may, when necessary, institute actions of replevin.

§ 92-6. Disposal of records.

No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by a department of the town unless approval has been obtained from the records management officer. No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by the records management officer without the express written consent of the department head having authority.

§ 92-7. Definitions.

As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

ARCHIVES -- Those official records which have been determined by the officer and Advisory Committee to have sufficient historical or other value to warrant their continued preservation by the local government.

RECORDS -- Any documents, books, papers, photographs, sound recordings, microforms or any other materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official town business.

RECORDS CENTER -- An establishment maintained by the town primarily for the storage, servicing, security and processing of records which must be preserved for varying periods of time and need not be retained in office equipment or space.

RECORDS DISPOSITION:

1. The removal by the town, in accordance with approved records control schedules, of records no longer necessary for the conduct of business by such agency through removal methods which may include:

   (1)The disposal of temporary records by destruction or donation; or

   (2)The transfer of records to the record center/archives for temporary storage of inactive records and permanent storage of records determined to have historical or other sufficient value warranting continued preservation; and

2. The transfer of records from one town agency to any other town agency.

RECORDS MANAGEMENT -- The planning, controlling, directing, organizing, training, promotion and other managerial use and records disposition, including records preservation, records disposal and records centers or other storage facilities.

SERVICING -- Making information in records available to any town agency for official use or to the public.

§ 92-8. When effective.

This chapter shall take effect immediately upon its being enacted and the filing of a copy hereof is required by law.

ARTICLE I
Public Access to Records

§ 28-1. Purpose and scope.

1. The people's right to know the process of government decisionmaking and the documents and statistics leading to determinations can be thwarted by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.

2. This article provides information concerning the procedures by which records may be obtained from an agency defined by Subdivision 3 of § 86 of the Public Officers Law. No agency regulations shall be more restrictive than this article.

3. Agency personnel shall furnish to the public the information and records required by the Freedom of Information Law, as well as records otherwise available by law.

4. Any conflicts among laws governing public access to records shall be construed in favor of the widest possible availability of public records.

§ 28-2. Designation of records access officers.

1. The Board of Trustees ("Board") of the village shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with the regulations herein and designates the Village Clerk/Treasurer as the principal records access officer who shall have the duty of coordinating the village response to public requests for access to records. The designation of the Village Clerk/Treasurer shall not be construed to prohibit officials who have in the past been authorized to make records or information available to the public from continuing to do so.

2. The Village Clerk/Treasurer is responsible for assuring that village personnel:

   (1) Maintain an up-to-date subject matter list.

   (2) Assist the requester in identifying requested records, if necessary.

   (3) Upon locating the records, take one of the following actions:

   (a) Make records available for inspection; or

   (b) Deny access to the records in whole or in part and explain, in writing, the reasons therefor.

   (4) Upon request for copies of records:

   (a) Make a copy available upon payment or offer to pay established fees, if any; or

   (b) Permit the requester to copy those records.

   (5) Upon request, certify that a record is a true copy.

   (6) Upon failure to locate records, certify that:

   (a) The village is not the custodian for such records; or

   (b) The records of which the village is a custodian cannot be found after diligent search.

§ 28-3. Location.

The Board hereby designates the office of the Village Clerk/Treasurer as the location where public records shall be available for public inspection and copying.

§ 28-4. Hours for public inspection.

The Village Clerk/Treasurer shall accept requests for public access to records and produce records during all hours during which the Clerk/Treasurer's office is regularly open for business.

§ 28-5. Requests for records.

1. The Village Clerk/Treasurer may require that a request be made in writing or may make records available upon oral request.

2. The Village Clerk/Treasurer shall respond to any request reasonably describing the record or records sought within five business days of receipt of the request.

3. A request shall reasonably describe the record or records sought. Whenever possible a person requesting records should supply information regarding dates, file designations or other information that may help to describe the records sought.

4. If the Village Clerk/Treasurer does not provide or deny access to the records sought within five business days of receipt of a request, the Village Clerk/Treasurer shall furnish a written acknowledgment of receipt of the request and a statement of the approximate date when the request will be granted or denied. If access to records is neither granted nor denied within 10 business days after the date of acknowledgment of receipt of a request, the request may be construed as a denial of access that may be appealed.

§ 28-6. Subject matter list.

1. The Village Clerk/Treasurer shall maintain a reasonably detailed current list by subject matter of all records in his/her possession, whether or not records are available pursuant to Subdivision 2 of ~ 87 of the Public Officers Law.

2. The subject matter list shall be sufficiently detailed to permit identification of the category of the record sought.

3. The subject matter list shall be updated not less than twice per year. The most recent update shall appear on the first page of the subject matter list.

§ 28-7. Denial of access to records; appeals.

1. The Board shall hear appeals or shall designate a person or body to hear appeals regarding denial of access to records under the Freedom of Information Law.

2. Denial of access shall be in writing stating the reason therefor and advising the person denied access of his or her right to appeal to the person or body established to hear appeals, and that person or body shall be identified by name, title, business address and business telephone number. The records access officer shall not be the appeals officer.

3. If the Board fails to respond to a request within five business days of receipt of a request as required in § 28-5 of this article, such failure shall be deemed a denial of access by the agency.

4. Any person denied access to records may appeal within 30 days of a denial.

5. The time for deciding an appeal by the Board or the person or body designated to hear appeals shall commence upon receipt of a written appeal identifying:

   (1) The date and location of a request for records;

   (2) The records that were denied; and

   (3) The name and return address of the appellant.

6. The Board shall transmit to the Committee on Open Government copies of all appeals upon receipt of an appeal. Such copies shall be addressed to:

   Committee on Open Government Department of State 162 Washington Avenue Albany, New York 12231

7. The Board or the person or body designated to hear appeals shall inform the appellant and the Committee on Open Government of its determination, in writing, within seven business days of receipt of an appeal. The determination shall be transmitted to the Committee on Open Government in the same manner as set forth in Subsection F of this section.

8. A final denial of access to a requested record, as provided for in Subsection G of this section, shall be subject to court review, as provided for in Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules.

§ 28-8. Fees.

Except when a different fee is otherwise prescribed by law:

1. There shall be no fee charged for the following:

   (1) Inspection of records;

   (2) Search for records; or

   (3) Any certification pursuant to this article.

2. The Village Clerk/Treasurer may provide copies of records without charging a fee.

3. The Village Clerk/Treasurer may charge a fee for copies of records, provided that:

   (1) The fee for copying records shall not exceed $0.25 per page for photocopies not exceeding nine inches by 14 inches.

   (2) The fee for copies of records not covered by Subsection C(1) shall not exceed the actual reproduction cost, which is the average unit cost for copying a record, excluding fixed costs of the village such as operator salaries.

ARTICLE II
Retention and Disposition

§ 28-9. Adoption of Schedule MU-1.

Records Retention and Disposition Schedule MU-1, issued pursuant to Article 57-A of the Arts and Cultural Affairs Law and containing legal minimum retention periods for municipal government records, is hereby adopted for use by all municipal officers in disposing of municipal government records listed therein.

§ 28-10. Minimum retention period; criteria for disposal.

In accordance with Article 57-A:

1. Only those records will be disposed of that are described in Records Retention and Disposition Schedule MU-1 after they have met the minimum retention period prescribed therein.

2. Only those records will be disposed of that do not have sufficient administrative, fiscal, legal or historical value to merit retention beyond established time periods.