Records Management Basic Training

1. Records Management Basic Training University of Texas at AustinRecords Management Services

2. Our Agenda • What is a record? • Why do we have to manage them? • Who is responsible for managing them? • What do I keep and what do I throw away? • How do I dispose of records? • How often do I need to review and purge records?

3. What Is a Record? • A record captures or documents the relationships and transactions between the university and our students, faculty, staff, donors, and sponsors as well as with the general public and governmental entities.

4. What Is a Record: Life cycle of a record • Created through interaction between the university and its constituents • Active—the record is used in business processes • Stored to meet regulatory requirements or to support decisions or actions throughout audit and dispute cycles • Disposed • Destroyed • Archived

5. What Is a Record: It’s not the medium…it’s the message! • Retention requirements apply to: • PDFs and imaged records. • Electronically Stored Information (ESI). • correspondence in any medium that is declared as a record based on its content. • good old paper documents.

6. Why Do We Do This? State Law sets records management authority and responsibilities for the Texas State Library and requires the establishment of a Records Management Officer for each state agency. It also sets forth requirements for each state agency to develop a records management program and a records retention schedule and establishes standards for retention of electronic records and the destruction of records containing confidential information. Federal Law sets retention requirements for documentation of federally regulated activities or funded programs.

7. Why Do We Do This? • Texas Government Code 441.183 et seq • Texas Administrative Code Title 13 Part 1 Chapter 6 Subchapter A • Code of Federal Regulations

8. Why Do We Do This: To minimize risk and lower liability • In the event of a lawsuit, audit, or request for public information, will we have the required documentation? • Records must be retained and available throughout the life-cycle. • Record retention requirement calculations are based on statute of limitation requirements, state and federal regulatory requirements, cycles of dispute, and business practices. • Records must be kept as long as required and destroyed soon after retention requirements are met. • Consistent and routine management of records demonstrates a good faith effort to comply with legal requirements.

9. Why Do We Do This: To provide efficient and transparent business processes • Good records management practice supports the goal of getting the right information to the right people at the right time. • Knowing which documents and information should be retained, why they are retained, and how long to retain them reduces clutter and streamlines workflow. • Well organized and managed information is quickly and easily retrieved when required. • Awareness of the requirement to retain records to support actions and decisions enhances transparency ingovernance.

10. Why Do We Do This: To preserve our institutional story • University archives are kept at the Center for American History. • The archival value of a record series is determined at the time the record series is added to the UTRRS. • Staff judgment of the historical value of records not listed as requiring archival review is valuable. You are often the experts on the significance of some records.

11. Who Is Responsible? • Everyone! • Everyone is responsible and accountable for keeping accurate and complete records of the business activities they conduct.

12. Who Is Responsible: University roles and responsibilities • Texas State Library and Archives Commission—mandates records management rules and requirements for all state agencies; it develops the state records retention schedule. • Records Management Officer—develops university records management policy, administers university records management program, manages University of Texas at Austin Records Retention schedule, maintains the records disposition log, and provides training and support for department records management contacts and university staff.

13. Who Is Responsible: University roles and responsibilities • Department or UnitHeads—designate Department Records Management contact in the university department system; they review and approve Requests for Internal Authorization to Dispose of Official State Records. • Department Records ManagementContacts—develop and maintain departmental procedures and retention plans; they prepare the Request for Internal Authorization to Dispose of Official State Records form; they oversee disposal of documents.

14. What Do I Keep. . . • . . . and what do I throw away? • Meet the UTRRS:University of Texas at Austin Records Retention Schedule is a list all of the records created in the course of university business and the retention requirement for each one.

15. What Do I Keep: Master records vs. convenience copies • The UTRRS sets retention requirements for master records. • State law requires documentation of disposition for master records. • Convenience copies can be disposed when they are no longer needed and do not require RMS authorization to do so. • Caution: Do not retain convenience copies past the retention requirements of the master record.

16. What Do I Keep: Transitory information • Some examples of transitory information, which can be in any medium (voice mail, fax, e-mail, etc.) are routine messages, internal meeting notices, routing slips, and similar routine information used for communication but not for the documentation of a specific university transaction.

17. What Do I Keep: Retention requirements • State Codes • The State records retention schedule (RRS) sets minimum requirements for records managed by all state agencies. • The UTRRS contains reference links to corresponding State RRS codes.

18. What Do I Keep: Retention requirements • University Codes • AALL codes are developed for general use by all departments. • Department codes are developed for specialized department records. • University codes must be used for all requests to dispose of records.

19. What Do I Keep: Retention requirements • Archival Review Requirements • Archival review requirements for entire record series are set at the time the record series is added to the UTRRS. • UTRRS archival review codes • I = Transfer to the university archives • O = Review by archivist • UTRRS codes requiring archival review are printed in redin the UTTRS

20. What Do I Keep: Retention requirements • Vital Records • Vital records are records necessary to the: • resumption or continuation of university operations in an emergency or disaster. • re-creation of the legal and financial status of the university. • protection and fulfillment of obligations to the people of the state. • UTRRS is guided in designating record series as vital by the State RRS.

21. What Do I Keep: Retention requirements • Retention Codes • AC = After close • AV = As long as administratively valuable • CE = Calendar year-end • FE = Fiscal year-end • LA = Life of asset • PM = Permanent • US = Until superseded

22. Now it’s time for a visit to the UTRRS online!

23. How Do I Dispose of Records? • The end of the life cycle of a record: • Destruction • Archival Transfer

24. How Do I Dispose of Records? • Request for Authorization to Dispose of Official State Records • A request must be submitted and approved prior to destroying any Master Record. The request form provides the essential information to complete the records disposition log that is required by state law. • Failure to maintain complete and accurate disposition logs exposes the university to serious risk in the case of lawsuits, public information requests, audits, and other claims and disputes.

25. How Do I Dispose of Records? • Request for Authorization to Dispose of Official State Records • Incomplete logs and inconsistent application of retention requirements strips away the protections that good faith records management programs provide. • Request to Dispose: www.utexas.edu/business/accounting/retention/ disposeforms.html

26. How Do I Dispose of Records: Disposition requirements • Master Records • Prepare and submit a request to dispose form • Wait for authorizing letter • Dispose per authorizing letter instructions • Notify RMS after the disposition of the records • Convenience copies—may be disposed without authorization when no longer needed • Transitory Information—should be routinely disposed as soon as it has served its purpose

27. How Do I Dispose of Records: Confidential information • Any record (master record, convenience copy, or transitory information) that contains confidential information must be destroyed in a manner that preserves confidentiality. • Do not place records containing confidential information in a blue recycle bin! • Austin Task is the authorized vendor for disposing of records containing confidential information.

28. Caution! • Even if a record meets retention requirements it may not be destroyed if any litigation, claim, negotiation, audit, public information request, administrative review, or other action involving the record is initiated, impending, or imminent until the completion of the action and the resolution of all issues that arise from it.

29. How Often Do I Need To Review and Purge Records? • At least once per year. • Document departmental records management procedures: www.utexas.edu/business/accounting/retention/ checklist.html • Be routine and consistent in management and disposition of records in accordance with the UTRRS, university records management policy, and written department procedures.

30. How Often Do I Dispose of Records: Departmental procedures • List the department Records Management Contact and other records management roles and responsibilities. • Inventory records to be managed. • List retention practices for records with AV retention requirements. • List retention practices for any records that you routinely retain longer than UTRRS requirements

31. How Often Do I Dispose of Records: Departmental procedures • Document review and purge procedures and schedule. • Document automated disposition protocols for ESI. • Document any activity that results in the destruction of records.

32. Questions?