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Saturday, October 11, 2008
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Records Management
Frequently Asked Questions about Federal Records Management
What are record keeping requirements?
"
Record keeping requirements" are defined as all statements in
statutes, regulations, and agency directives or authoritative issuances,
that provide
general and specific requirements for Federal agency
personnel on particular records to be created and maintained by the
agency (36 CFR 1220.14.)
Record keeping requirements should be outlined in
procedural manuals and other issuances that specify which records need
to be included in
agency files or other record keeping systems. (Indian
Health Manual, Part 5, Chapter 15, Records Management) Clearly articulated
record keeping
requirements are essential for creating adequate
and proper documentation. For more information, consult the Albuquerque
Area Indian Health Records
Management Officer at (505) 248-4620. What is a record?
Records are defined in various statues, including the
Federal Records Act and the Freedom of Information Act. The definition
that follows is from the Federal Records Act that governs agencies'
records management responsibilities.
Records include all books, papers, maps, photographs,
machine-readable materials, or other documentary materials, regardless
of physical form or characteristics, made or received by an agency of
the United States Government under Federal law or in connection with
the transaction of public business and preserved or appropriate for preservation
by that agency or its legitimate successor as evidence of the organization,
functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities
of the Government or because of the informational value of the data in
them (44 U.S.C. 3301).
Many of the key terms, phrases, and concepts in this
statutory definition of records are defined in CFR Part 1222.12 What is a record series?
A series is the basic unit for organizing and controlling
files. It is a group of files or documents kept together (either physically
or intellectually) because they relate to a particular subject or function,
result from the same activity, document a specific type of transaction,
take a particular physical form, or have some other relationship arising
out of their creation, receipt, maintenance, or use (36 CFR 1220.14
).
Each record series must be scheduled for appropriate
disposition. The series concept is a flexible one, and programs should
create series by organizing documents in ways that facilitate management
of the records throughout their life cycle. For example, each record
series in hard copy should be physically separated from all other record
series. Electronic records should be managed in ways that link records
to their disposition authority, within the context of a record keeping
system.
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