026-22 - Resolution - Operating Policies and Procedures for Managing City RecordsDocuSign Envelope ID: OF8F72CB-7E1A-427D-B54A-295F353F473E
RESOLUTION NO. 026-22
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF PORT ORCHARD, WASHINGTON, ADOPTING
OPERATING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR MANAGING CITY RECORDS
WHEREAS, Chapter 40.14 RCW, Preservation and Destruction of Public Records state
that all records shall be and remain the property of State of Washington and sets criteria as to
the retention and destruction of public records; and
WHEREAS, the City of Port Orchard ("the City") is a local agency as defined in the statute
and must therefore comply with its provisions; and
WHEREAS, the Policies and Procedures for managing city records were developed by
using the Office of the Secretary of State, Washington State Archives Advise sheets; and
WHEREAS, the City must follow, and it is the City Council's desire to adopt policies and
procedures to be consistent with State law; now, therefore,
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PORT ORCHARD, WASHINGTON, HEREBY RESOLVES
AS FOLLOWS:
THAT: The "Policies and Procedures for Records Management," attached hereto as
Exhibit A are hereby adopted.
PASSED by the City Council of the City of Port Orchard, SIGNED by the Mayor and attested
by the City Clerk in authentication of such passage this 22nd day of February 2022.
DocuSigned by:
}°6bG, �u aA� sttiu
Robert Putaansuu, Mayor
ATTEST:
DocuSigned by:
UJAA.Gt,
8B71 3F CB414...
Brandy al ace, MMC, City Clerk
DocuSign Envelope ID: OF8F72CB-7E1A-427D-B54A-295F353F473E
Exhibit A
Resolution No. 026-22
Operating Policy and Procedure 101
Records Management
1.0 Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to provide direction and guidance to City of Port Orchard
employees and elected officials in the management of records created or received relating
to the conduct of city business. In addition, this policy and procedures are to ensure the city
manages these records in compliance with Washington State retention rules and laws.
Organizing and managing records will save space, provide efficient access, maintain
confidentiality where needed, and reduce legal exposure in "discovery" proceedings.
2.0 Policy
2.1 What is a public record?
A. Chapter 40.14 of the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) contains regulations
for the retention, preservation and lawful destruction of public records, and
grants authority to Washington State Archives to preserve and protect public
records. (Chapter 42.56 RCW defines public records for the purposes of public
records requests.) Per RCW 40.14.010, "public records" are defined by three
key criteria:
1. "Made or received by any agency in the State of Washington" Public
Records include both records that an agency creates and those that it
receives or collects. For example, when an agency solicits public comment
on an issue, both the request for comment and any comments received in
response are public records.
2. "In connection with the transaction of public business" A record
provides proof or evidence of agency business. Agency business includes
not only the core functions of an agency, but also support functions, such as
finance, human resources, and facility and asset management.
If a record meets the two criteria listed above, then it is a public record that
needs to be retained and managed.
3. "Regardless of physical form or characteristic" A public record,
regardless of the format in which it is sent or received. Not only paper
records, photographs or microfilm, but records that are created or received
using any kind of digital format or application. This includes emails,
websites, wikis, databases, digital photos, text messages, blogs, tweets, and
any emerging technologies used to conduct agency business. Having a
record in a different format does not change the retention requirements or
disposition that is to be applied.
B. Note: Per RCW 40.14.020, public records are the property of the State of
Washington, and do not belong to the individuals who create or receive them.
These records must be kept, managed and disposed of lawfully, in accordance
with approved records retention schedules. Agencies need to be aware of what
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constitutes a public record in order to capture, manage, retain, and dispose of
them appropriately.
3.0 Procedures
3.1 Responsibilities
The City Clerk is designated as the Records Manager for the City. The City Clerk
will ensure the city-wide records management program is followed.
A. Records Manager Responsibility
1. Remain current and knowledgeable on the laws and rules governing records
retention that affects the City.
2. Periodically review the City's retention process to ensure that policies and
procedures are being followed and are current with State law.
3. Provide periodic training to Liaisons to assist them in managing their areas
of responsibility.
4. Oversee the destruction of records that have reached the end of their
retention period.
5. Oversee the appraisal of records that have reached the retention period and
the transfer of records to the Regional State Archives.
B. Department Responsibility
1. Department supervisors shall appoint a records management liaison for
each department. The Liaison shall be the point of contact between the
department and the City Clerk and will be expected to be the person most
knowledgeable about the City's records management policy and how it
related to their department.
C. Liaison Responsibility
1. Work with City Clerk and Information Technology staff to establish an
electronic file storage structure that assists in classifying and preserving the
electronic documents encountered in the department area of responsibility
to facilitate the management of documents meeting retention and/or
destruction rules.
2. Complete training as required by State law.
3. Train new staff on record retention process for your department.
D. Information Technology Staff Responsibility
1. Assist the City Clerk and Liaisons in developing, implementing and
maintaining an electronic records storage system that supports this policy.
2. Provide a secure, safe environment for the electronic records of the City.
3. Provide a Disaster Recovery Backup System to be maintained to
exclusively provide disaster recovery from catastrophic data loss. This
system is not and shall not be relied upon or used as a retention or archiving
system.
4. Provide a minimal recovery period for city documents if accidentally or
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inadvertently deleted.
E. Employees and Elected Officials Responsibility
1. All employees shall follow the rules set forth in this policy in managing
documents, storing and identifying documents in locations and formats and
in compliance with retention requirements.
2. If an employee is unsure whether a record needs to be kept or if it falls into
an exclusion, the employee should consult with the Records Retention
Schedule and the Records Manager.
3.2.1.1 Record retention schedules
Employees shall keep records in accordance with the retention schedule guidelines
as set forth by the State of Washington Secretary of State, Washington State
Archives, found at: https://www.sos.wa.gov/archives/recordsmanagement/select-
type-of-local-govemment.aspx. Before any record can be destroyed you shall check
with your supervisor or the records manager.
3.3 Paper Records
A. Each department should routinely, no less than annually, dispose of its original
paper records that have met retention by disposing of the records through a
secure shredding company to protect confidentiality or by transferring the
records to the State archives.
B. Records that have a longer retention period can be boxed and transferred to a
central storage location until the retention has been met.
3.4 Electronic Records
A. Per WAC 434-662-040:
Electronic records must be retained in electronic format and remain usable,
searchable, retrievable and authentic for the length of the designated retention
period. This includes text and voice messages related to the conduct of city
business. Printing and retaining a hard copy are not a substitute for eliminating
the electronic version prior to meeting its required retention.
B. Per WAC 434-662-150 E-mail Management:
Emails created and received by any agency of the State of Washington in the
transaction of public business are public records for the purposes of RCW 40.14
and are subject to the laws and regulations governing the retention, disclosure,
destruction and archiving of public records. The e-mails of elected government
officials and public employees that are created in the transaction of public
business are subject to the records retention periods and disposition
promulgated by the State records committees, and any and all said e-mails with
archival value must be retained or transferred to the digital archives.
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3.5 Destruction of Non -Archival Paper Records After Imaging ("Scanning and
Tossing")
A. The State Records Committee and the Local Records Committee have approved
destruction authorities for non -archival paper -based source records that have
been converted to a digital format by imaging (scanning) — and verified to be
complete and accurate — in accordance with the State Archives requirements.
The destruction authority for non -archival local government agency source is
provided by DAN GS50-09-14. Archival records must not be destroyed.
B. Departments that wish to implement the "Scanning and Tossing" program must
follow the guidelines as set forth by the State of Washington Secretary of State,
Washington State Archives, found at:
hgps://www. sos.wa. gov/archives/recordsmanagement/how-to-scan-image-
records-and-go-paperles s. aspx
C. All departments that wish to implement the "Scanning and Tossing" program
must have a procedure in place confirming that:
1. The paper record is eligible for the "Scanning and Tossing" program.
2. The paper record is scanned and verified in a systematic and consistent
fashion that ensures a complete and accurate copy of the sourced
record.
3. Where a complete and accurate image cannot be obtained and verified,
or a paper record is not completely legible, the paper record must be
retained for the entire minimum retention period.
4. Proper scanned format and resolution are used. Acceptable file formats
include TIFF, PNG, PDF, PDF/A, JPEG, JPEG 2000 and the
recommended density is 300 DPI. See Chapter 434-663 WAC.
5. Paper records will not be destroyed before images are verified to be
complete and accurate.
6. Electronic Record is managed, stored, and retained until it has met its
retention.
D. The department shall document that the original paper was converted and
destroyed lawfully under the appropriate disposition authority, and that the
images are also destroyed lawfully once the retention requirements have been
met.
3.6 Documenting Records Transmittal to State Archives
Documentation of records transmitted to the State archives is required and shall be
recorded on the standard Archives Records Transmittal & Box Content List. An
Archives Records Transmittal & Box Content List documents transferred records
and is maintained by each department. This form serves as a permanent record and
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would be utilized in any legal proceeding as evidence of proper transfer. See the
Clerk's office for the Archives Records Transmittal & Box Content List.
3.7 Documenting Records Disposal
Documentation of records destruction, both paper and scanned images, are required
and shall be recorded on the standard Destruction Log. A Public Records
Destruction Log documents disposed records and is maintained by each
department. This form serves as a permanent record and would be utilized in any
legal proceeding as evidence of proper destruction. See the Clerk's office for the
standard Destruction Log.
3.8 Exceptions to Retention Schedule
A. Paper and Electronic Records MUST NOT be destroyed, regardless if the
retention schedule permits, when subject to any of the following:
1. Existing public records requests in accordance with RCW 42.56If there
is a pending request for records, you cannot destroy them even though the
retention period to keep it has passed. Once the records have been provided
to the Public Records Officer pursuant to the request, they may be logged
on the destruction log and destroyed.
2. Ongoing or reasonably anticipated litigation.
3. Legal requirements, federal statutes, grant agreements.
4. Archival transfer requirements found on the State Retention Schedule.
5. When a specific business need is identified and approved by the Department
Director.
6. Documents related to damage claims or litigation must be retained until
determined they can be released for standard retention.
4.0 References
4.1 State of Washington Secretary of State - Washington State Archives Laws
and Rules for Records Management:
A. Revised Code of Washington (RCW)
40.14 Preservation and Destruction of Public Records
40.16 Penal Provisions for the Intentional Destruction of Public Records
40.20 Reproduced Records
42.56 Public Records Act
B. Washington Administrative Code (WAC)
434-600 Promulgation
434-610 Definitions
434-615 Custody of Public Records
434-620 Powers and Duties (State Archivist)
434-624 Powers and Duties (State Records Committee)
434-626 Powers and Duties (State Agency Records Officers)
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434-635 Local Records Disposition Authority
434-640 Methods of Records Disposal
434-660 Standards for Public Records
434-662 Preservation of Electronic Records
434-663 Imaging Systems (Standards)
434-670 Local Records Grants Programs
434-677 Security Microfilm (Standards)
434-690 Archives (Public Records Access)
4.2 State of Washington Secretary of State - Washington State Archives
A. Basics of Records Management: Benefits of Managing Public Records Basics
of Public Records Management: What is a Public Record?
B. Records Management Advice Issued: March 2018
C. Requirements for the Destruction of Non -Archival Paper Records after Imaging
"Scanning and Tossing"
4.3 State of Washington Secretary of State -Division of Archives and Records
Management
Essential Records Manual (Security Backup, Disaster Preparedness Response,
and Recovery)
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