[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 139 (Tuesday, July 21, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39195-39196]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-19467]
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NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION
Electronic Records Work Group Draft Report; Appendix D
AGENCY: National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
ACTION: Request for comment.
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SUMMARY: This notice contains the Electronic Records Work Group's
proposed Appendix D. Appendix D addresses the second Work Group
recommendation, that NARA modify the General Records Schedules (GRS) to
authorize the destruction of copies of administrative records covered
by those GRS that are not needed for recordkeeping purposes after a
recordkeeping copy has been produced. This appendix proposes a new item
to be added to General Records Schedules 1-16, 18, and 23 to provide
the disposition authority previously provided by GRS 20.
Because the proposed disposition for these GRS records is being
published in full text for public comment as part of this notice, the
Work Group believes that this notice will serve as the Federal Register
notice required by 44 U.S.C. 3303a. Therefore, the Work Group believes
that NARA will not need to publish a separate Federal Register records
schedule notice for this GRS change unless the GRS disposition language
is revised substantively in response to comments and the Archivist
determines that additional public comment is warranted.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 20, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent electronically to the e-mail address
grs20@arch2.nara.gov. We ask that lengthy attachments be
sent in ASCII, WordPerfect 5.1/5.2, or MS Word 6.0 format. If you do
not have access to e-mail, comments may be mailed to Electronic Records
Work Group (NPOL), Room 4100, 8601 Adelphi Rd., College Park, MD 20740-
6001, or faxed to 301-713-7270.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Miller at 301-713-7110, ext.
229.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In addition to your comments on the proposed
GRS changes which are presented in Appendix D at the end of this
notice, we also ask your comments on the following question:
D1. Are the definition of program records and administrative
records clear?
Dated: July 16, 1998.
Lewis J. Bellardo,
Deputy Archivist of the United States.
Appendix D: Proposal To Revise The Entire GRS To Cover all Formats
of the Administrative Records Included Therein
Background
In the 1995 edition of the General Records Schedules, GRS 20, items
13, 14 and 15, authorized the deletion of electronic source records
that remained on electronic mail and word processing systems after a
record was produced for inclusion in a recordkeeping system. The
disposition of the recordkeeping system would be governed by a separate
GRS or agency schedule item. This authority was challenged in a court
suit on the basis that the GRS cannot provide Governmentwide
authorization for destruction of electronic mail messages and word
processing records that qualified as program records. As stated in the
draft report of the Electronic Records Work Group, the Archivist has
determined that the GRS will be limited to common administrative
records, and he charged the Electronic Records Work Group to develop
guidance to distinguish between administrative and program records.
This appendix provides that guidance and recommends changes to the GRS
to replace GRS 20, items 13, 14, and 15, and include other source
records.
Proposed Definitions
Program records are those records created by each Federal agency in
performing the mission of the agency. The agency's mission is defined
in enabling legislation and further delineated in formal regulations.
Administrative records are those records created by several or all
Federal agencies in performing common facilitative functions that
support the agency's mission activities, but do not directly document
the performance of mission functions. Administrative records relate to
activities such as budget and finance, information management, human
resources, equipment and supplies, facilities, public and congressional
relations, contracting, and legal matters not directly related to the
agency's core mission (e.g., adherence to general statutes such as laws
on procurement, privacy, and government ethics).
While both program and administrative records are needed for the
agency to accomplish its mission, the distinction is important for the
scheduling of an agency's records.
Discussion
The General Records Schedules (GRS) issued by the National Archives
and Records Administration (NARA) in accordance with 36 CFR 1228.40
apply to certain administrative records created by several or all
agencies. Their purpose and maintenance requirements are generally
standard from agency to agency. The GRS provide mandatory disposition
authority for those records, unless an agency receives an exception
from NARA.
All program records and administrative records not covered by a GRS
must be scheduled by the creating agency. Many agencies have records
relating to administrative functions that are not described in the GRS.
These records may supplement the records covered by the GRS or they may
be organized or maintained in a way that
[[Page 39196]]
make application of the GRS inappropriate. If records described in the
GRS are part of a larger file series and cannot be economically
segregated, the agency schedule for the series, not the GRS, would
control the disposition of the entire series. Agencies also have
administrative records that are not appropriate for GRS coverage
because the content or organization of the files may vary significantly
from agency to agency, such as records relating to the selection of
political appointees (see NARA Bulletin 95-6).
The Work Group recommends that a new item be added to GRS 1-16, 18,
and 23, to authorize disposal of the source records used to produce
records maintained in those GRS recordkeeping systems, after a
recordkeeping copy has been produced. These source records will include
electronic source records generated using electronic mail, word
processing, and other office automation systems. This authority is
needed because the electronic source record that remains on the office
automation application is a record, in addition to the record in the
recordkeeping system.
This new item is appropriate for inclusion in the GRS because the
GRS applies only to administrative records. This new item is
recommended because unlike unique agency program records, the Work
Group believes that the electronic source records of records covered by
the GRS have virtually no potential for unique or added value.
Consequently, unlike program records, the source records need not be
appraised in a series-based manner. (This authority would not be added
to GRS 17 and 21 because they cover cartographic, architectural, and
audiovisual records. Even though such nontextual records may be
generated in digital format, NARA needs to conduct further study before
determining whether electronic source records should be added to these
two GRS. GRS 19, Research and Development Records, was withdrawn in a
previous edition of the GRS, and NARA has decided to withdraw GRS 22,
Inspector General Records, in the next edition.)
The new item proposed by the Work Group would align the disposition
authority for the source records with records documenting a specific
administrative function, as opposed to providing one GRS authority
across functional areas, as was done in the 1995 edition of GRS 20. It
will provide authority for deletion of the source records, including
those that are maintained on office automation applications apart from
an agency recordkeeping system. The new item will be applicable to
source records in all physical formats that the agency does not
maintain in a recordkeeping system. However, the item will authorize
deletion of source records maintained apart from the recordkeeping
system only after a recordkeeping copy is produced. The item will not
apply to the records in a recordkeeping system.
Proposed Changes
1. General Introduction to the GRS
Replace:
``As provided in GRS 20, Electronic Records, the disposal instructions
for most records in the remaining schedules are applicable to both hard
copy and electronic versions of the records described. GRS 20 specifies
several exceptions to this authority. In those cases, the electronic
version of the file must be scheduled by submission of an SF 115 to
NARA.''
With:
``The items in GRS 1-16, 18, and 23, apply to records that contain the
information described in the schedule. The coverage is neutral with
respect to the recording medium. The specified retention periods apply
to the records described in each item which are maintained in a
recordkeeping system, regardless of the physical medium used to
maintain the records. In addition, an item in each of those schedules
provides authority for agencies to destroy/delete source records after
a record has been produced for inclusion in the appropriate
recordkeeping system.''
2. New Item to be Added at the End of GRS 1-16, 18, and 23
``Records Maintained Apart From a Recordkeeping System.''
``Records, including electronic source records, used to generate
the records covered by the other items in this schedule which cover the
records in an agency recordkeeping system. Includes records in all
formats/media that are used as sources for the creation of the record
maintained in a recordkeeping system, such as electronic records that
remain on electronic mail and word processing utilities after the
record for the recordkeeping system has been produced.
``Destroy/delete after the recordkeeping copy has been produced.
Electronic source records may be maintained for a limited period of
time for operational purposes other than recordkeeping, such as
updating.''
3. New Paragraph to be Added to the Introductions to GRS 1-16, 18, AND
23
``A new item has been added to this schedule to authorize the
destruction of source records, regardless of physical format, that are
maintained in addition to the record in an agency recordkeeping system.
This item covers records that are used to create the recordkeeping
copy, e.g., the electronic record that remains on electronic mail and
word processing utilities after a record has been produced for
inclusion in a recordkeeping system.''
[FR Doc. 98-19467 Filed 7-20-98; 8:45 am]
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