Texas State Laws on Optical Images
State Archivist and Records Manager:
Chris LaPlante
Box 12927, Austin TX 78711
512-463-5467 fax: 512-463-5436
Carolyn Foster, State Archives Asst. Director
512-463-5502
William L. Dyess
Texas State Library
Box 12927, Austin TX 78711-2927
512-454-2705 ext. 111 fax: 512-323-6100
State Records Management Laws
State Agency Bulletin Number Four
Current through the 74th Legislature,
Regular Session, 1995
Laws affecting records management aid decision making regarding
the control of records activity in state agencies. By being aware
of the statutes pertaining to records management in your agency,
you help ensure that all records procedures are in compliance
with those laws.
This bulletin contains laws and excerpts from laws that agencies
encounter most often in the course of managing state records. In
addition, most agencies must comply with statutes specific to
their mission and authority. Consult your legal department or
legal counsel about these laws and how they may affect the
management of records within your agency.
Note: For the most current edition of the Texas Open Records
Handbook, which contains the text of Chapter 552, Government
Code, as well as other information on the Open Records Act,
contact the Attorney General's Office at 512-462-0011.
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Contents
Records Management Division of Texas State Library
Government Code, Chapter 441, Subchapter C
Preservation of Essential Records Act
Government Code, Chapter 441, Subchapter D
Reduction and Simplification of Agency Paperwork
Government Code, Chapter 441, Subchapter K
Right of Recovery
Government Code, Chapter 441, Section 441.0105
Cost Recovery for Records Storage Services
Government Code, Chapter 441, Section 441.017
Texas Sunset Act
Government Code, Chapter 325, Section 325.017
Paper Supplies and Equipment (regulating legal size paper)
Government Code, Chapter 2051, Section 2051.021
Tampering With Governmental Record
Penal Code, Chapter 37, Section 37.10
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Records Management Division of Texas State Library
Government Code
Chapter 441, Subchapter C
§441.031. Definitions.
In this subchapter:
(1) "Department or institution" means any executive,
educational, judicial, or eleemosynary state
department, institution, board, or commission.
(2) "Head of department or institution" means any
appointive or elective official with authority over the
records of the department or institution.
(3) "Local government" means a county, municipality,
public school district, appraisal district, or any
other special-purpose district or authority. The term
includes all offices, departments, divisions, programs,
commissions, bureaus, boards, or similar entities of
those governments and includes, with regard to county
government, all county, district, and precinct offices.
(4) "Photographic reproduction" means reproduction by
any photographic process and includes reproduction by
microprint or by microphotography on film and a
positive or negative copy.
(5) "State record" means a document, book, paper,
photograph, sound recording, or other material,
regardless of physical form or characteristic, made or
received by a state department or institution according
to law or in connection with the transaction of
official state business. The term does not include
library or museum material made or acquired and
preserved solely for reference or exhibition purposes,
an extra copy of a document preserved only for
convenience of reference, or a stock of publications or
of processed documents.
§441.032. General Powers and Duties of Division.
(a) The Texas State Library and Archives Commission may
establish and maintain a records management division in the
state library.
(b) The division shall:
(1) manage all state records with the cooperation
of the heads of the various departments or
institutions in charge of the records; and
(2) operate a photographic laboratory to make
photographs, microphotographs, or reproductions on
film or to arrange for all or any part of the work
to be done by an established commercial agency
that meets the specifications established by this
section for the proper accomplishment of the work.
§441.033. Director of Division.
(a) The commission shall appoint an assistant to serve as
the director of the records management division.
(b) To be eligible for appointment as director, a person
must have appropriate training and experience in the field
of government records management.
§441.034. Classification of Records.
Under the direction of the records management division and with
the cooperation of the heads of departments and institutions, the
state records of the departments or institutions shall be
surveyed, indexed, and classified.
§441.035. Destruction of Records.
(a) The director and librarian may transfer, destroy, or
otherwise dispose of a state record that has been consigned
by law to the custody of the director and librarian, that is
more than 10 years old, and that the director and librarian
determines to be valueless or of no further use to the state
as an official record if the comptroller, state auditor, and
attorney general agree with the director and librarian that
the preservation of the record is not necessary as evidence
and will serve no useful purpose in the future efficient
operation of state government. Any record disposed of as
agreed must be generally listed and referred to, and each
official shall consent to the disposition by subscribing to
the list.
(b) The director and librarian may destroy a record of a
local government that has been transferred or consigned by
law to the custody of the director and librarian if the
retention period for the record has expired in a records
retention schedule approved according to law. If the record
does not appear on a records retention schedule, it may be
destroyed if in the judgment of the director and librarian
it does not have sufficient historical value to merit
retention. An original record of a local government in the
custody of the director and librarian may be destroyed
before the expiration of its retention period if it is
microfilmed or duplicated on electronic media and the
microfilm or electronic media meets standards established by
the Texas State Library and Archives Commission under
Section 204.004 or 205.003, Local Government Code. A notice
of the destruction of the records shall be filed among the
records of the state library.
(c) Any state record that the director and librarian,
comptroller, state auditor, or attorney general considers
necessary to preserve may be preserved by microfilming the
record if funds are appropriated by the legislature to cover
the cost of microfilming for the state or are otherwise
available for that purpose. Once microfilmed, an original
record may be disposed of in a manner agreed on by the
officials. The microfilm copy constitutes an original for
all legal purposes.
(d) A state record determined to be no longer needed for the
operation of state government or replaced by microfilm copy
may be transferred to the archives division of the state
library if the director and librarian considers the record
to be of historical value.
(e) With the approval of the director and librarian, in
accordance with this section, the head of any department or
institution may destroy any state record in the custody of
the head of the department or institution that, in the
opinion of the head of the department or institution, does
not have any further legal, administrative, or historical
value. Before destroying the state record, the head of the
department or institution must file an application to do so
with the director and librarian that describes the original
purpose and the contents of the state record. In addition,
the approval of the state auditor is required in the case of
the destruction of a state record of a fiscal or financial
nature before the expiration of the retention period
recommended for that class of records by the director and
librarian in consultation with the state auditor.
§441.036. Destruction of Certain Agency Records.
(a) An agency listed in Subsection (b) shall:
(1) examine all its books, papers, correspondence,
or records dated earlier than 1952 and stored with
the records management division;
(2) classify and index its records;
(3) furnish the records management division with a
copy of the index that includes a list of records
to be preserved;
(4) name a retention period on each record to be
stored for a definite time; and
(5) request destruction of any worthless record or
material as provided by Section 441.035(d).
(b) This section applies to the state auditor, State Board
of Barber Examiners, General Services Commission, Texas
Cosmetology Commission, Texas State Board of Medical
Examiners, Board of Pardons and Paroles, Board of Regents,
Texas State University System, Texas Department of Licensing
and Regulation, comptroller of public accounts, Court of
Appeals for the Third Court of Appeals District, governor,
Texas Department of Health, Texas Department of Insurance,
Legislative Budget Board, Parks and Wildlife Commission,
Railroad Commission of Texas, Texas Real Estate Commission,
secretary of state, State Securities Board, Teacher
Retirement System of Texas, Central Education Agency, Texas
State Library, Texas Natural Resource Conservation
Commission, and the state treasury department.
§441.037. Duties of Head of Department or Institution Regarding
Records.
The head of any department or institution shall:
(1) establish and maintain an active, continuing
program for the economical and efficient management of
the records of the department or institution;
(2) make and maintain records containing adequate and
proper documentation of the organization, functions,
policies, decisions, procedures, and essential
transactions of the department or institution designed
to furnish information to protect the legal and
financial rights of the state and of any person
directly affected by activities of the department or
institution;
(3) submit to the director of the records management
division, in accordance with standards established by
the director, schedules proposing the length of time
after being adopted or received by the department or
institution each state records series should be
retained for administrative, legal, or fiscal purposes;
(4) submit a list of any state records in the custody
of the head of the department or institution that do
not have sufficient administrative, legal, or fiscal
value to warrant retention and that are to be disposed
of in accordance with Section 441.035; and
(5) act as or appoint an employee of the department or
institution performing other administrative duties to
act as a records administrator of the department or
institution and, in that role, to comply with the
rules, standards, and procedures issued by the director
of the records management division.
§441.038. Photographic Reproductions.
(a) On request of the head of a department or institution,
or on the director and librarian's own initiative with the
consent of the head of the department or institution, the
director and librarian may provide for making photographic
reproductions of the state records of the department or
institution. State records are open to the director and
librarian for that purpose.
(b) Any photographic reproduction of a state record made by
microprint or by microphotography on film must comply with
the minimum standards of quality approved for permanent
photographic records by the National Bureau of Standards.
(c) Any device used to reproduce a state record must
accurately reproduce the original record in detail.
(d) The director and librarian may make photographic
reproductions for public use as follows:
(1) free of charge for official use of a
department or institution;
(2) for a fee to cover costs for official use of a
local government; or
(3) for standard commercial rates fixed by the
director and librarian for private use.
(e) Any money the state library receives in payment for
charges for photographic reproduction shall be deposited in
the state treasury.
(f) A state official may designate a photographic
reproduction of a state record in the officer's office as an
original record for all legal purposes, even though the
record is current. The officer may transfer the replaced
record to the director and librarian, who shall issue a
receipt for the record. The director and librarian may
further transfer or destroy the transferred record. Copies,
in any form, of a photographic reproduction that has been
designated an original record and certified or authenticated
according to the law may be introduced in evidence.
§441.039. Auditor Reports on Records.
The state auditor may include in an audit report of a state
agency:
(1) the degree to which an agency has complied with
record disposal instructions and transfer agreements to
reduce filing space and equipment required to store
records;
(2) the date on which records last were reviewed for
transfer or disposal; and
(3) any revisions required in scheduled transfer and
disposal dates.
Preservation of Essential Records Act
Government Code, Chapter 441, Subchapter D
§441.051. Short Title.
This subchapter may be cited as the Preservation of Essential
Records Act.
§441.052. Definitions.
In this subchapter:
(1) "Agency" means a state executive, judicial,
legislative, or eleemosynary department, institution,
board, or commission.
(2) "Departmental records supervisor" means a person
having authority over a department's records.
(3) "Disaster" means a natural or man-made occurrence
of fire, flood, storm, earthquake, explosion, epidemic,
riot, sabotage, or other condition of extreme peril
resulting in substantial damage or injury to persons or
property in this state.
(4) "Essential record" means written or graphic
material that is made or received by an agency in the
conduct of official state business and that is filed or
intended to be preserved permanently or for a definite
period as a record of that business.
(5) "Preservation duplicate" means a copy of an
essential record used to preserve the record.
§441.053. Records Management Interagency Coordinating Council.
(a) The Records Management Interagency Coordinating Council
is composed of each of the following officers or the
officer's designee:
(1) the secretary of state;
(2) the state auditor, who serves as a nonvoting
member;
(3) the comptroller of public accounts;
(4) the attorney general;
(5) the director and librarian;
(6) the executive director of the General Services
Commission; and
(7) the executive director of the Department of
Information Resources.
(b) The position of presiding officer rotates among the
members of the council. A term as presiding officer is two
years and expires on February 1 of each odd-numbered year.
(c) Service on the council is an additional duty of a
member's office or employment. A member of the council is
not entitled to compensation for performing the work of the
council but is entitled to reimbursement for actual expenses
incurred in performing that work.
(d) The council is subject to the open meetings law, Chapter
551.
(e) The council's member agencies shall provide the staff
for the council.
(f) The council shall:
(1) review the activities of each member agency
that affect the state's management of records;
(2) study other records management issues; and
(3) report its findings and any recommended
legislation to the governor and the legislature
not later than November 1 of each even-numbered
year.
(g) The council shall adopt policies that coordinate the
activities of each member agency and that make other
improvements in the state's management of records. The
council shall adopt policies under this subsection using the
rule-making procedures prescribed by Chapter 2001.
(h) Each member agency shall adopt the policies adopted
under Subsection (g) as the member agency's own rules,
except to the extent that the policies conflict with other
state or federal law.
(i) Each member agency shall report on its adoption and
implementation of rules under Subsection (h) to the council
not later than October 1 of each even-numbered year.
(j) In this section, "member agency" means each state
officer who is a member of the council or an agency that has
a representative who is a member of the council.
§441.054. Records Preservation Officer.
The director of the records management division is the records
preservation officer. The records preservation officer shall
adopt rules concerning the selection and preservation of
essential records as necessary and proper to carry out the
purpose of this subchapter.
§441.055. Bond.
The director and librarian and the records preservation officer
each shall execute and file with the secretary of state a good
and sufficient bond, payable to the state, in an amount set by
the committee consistent with the person's duties, and
conditioned on the faithful performance of those duties.
§441.056. Categories of Essential Records.
Essential records in the following categories shall be preserved:
(1) Category A-Records containing information necessary
to the operation of government in an emergency created
by a disaster; and
(2) Category B-Records to protect the rights and
interests of individuals or to establish and affirm the
powers and duties of government in the resumption of
operation after a disaster.
§441.057. Selection of Records.
(a) Each agency shall select the state records that are
essential to carry out its work and shall determine the
category of each record.
(b) Each departmental records supervisor, according to the
rules adopted by the records preservation officer, shall:
(1) inventory the state records in the
departmental records supervisor's custody or
control;
(2) submit to the records preservation officer a
report on the inventory containing, in addition to
the information required by the rules, specific
information showing which records are essential;
and
(3) periodically review the inventory and report
and if necessary revise the report so that it is
current, accurate, and complete.
§441.058.Preservation Duplicates.
(a) The records preservation officer shall make preservation
duplicates or shall designate as preservation duplicates
existing copies of essential state records. A preservation
duplicate made by means of photography, microphotography,
photocopying, or microfilm must be made according to
standards that the records preservation officer prescribes
in conformity with the rules of the United States Bureau of
Standards.
(b) A preservation duplicate made by a process that
accurately reproduces or forms a durable medium for
accurately reproducing the original record has the same
force and effect for all purposes as the original record,
regardless of whether the original record exists. A
transcript, exemplification, or certified copy of such a
preservation duplicate is for all purposes a transcript,
exemplification, or certified copy of the original record.
§441.059. Storage.
(a) The records preservation officer shall prescribe the
place and manner of safekeeping of essential records or
preservation duplicates and shall establish storage
facilities for the records and duplicates. At least one copy
of each essential record and a duplicate state seal shall be
stored in the safest possible location in facilities
constructed to withstand blast, fire, water, and other
destructive forces. The facilities must be in a place other
than the legally designated or customary storage location
for the records or duplicates. The records preservation
officer shall properly maintain essential records and
preservation duplicates that the records preservation
officer stores.
(b) The regularly designated custodian of an agency record
or preservation duplicate stored by the records preservation
officer may recall the record or duplicate for temporary use
as necessary for the proper conduct of an agency. The
custodian shall return the record or duplicate to the
records preservation officer immediately after the use.
(c) On request of the regularly designated custodian of an
essential record stored by the records preservation officer,
the records preservation officer shall provide the record
for inspection or the making of certified copies. Copies
certified by the records preservation officer have the same
force and effect as if certified by the regularly designated
custodian.
§441.060. Confidentiality.
The departmental records supervisor shall label as confidential a
state record that is required by law to be treated in a
confidential manner. The records preservation officer and the
officer's staff shall protect the confidential nature of a
labeled record. An employee who fails in this responsibility
shall be dismissed from the employee's duties and may not hold
another state appointment.
§441.061. Review.
At least once every two years the records preservation officer
and the committee shall review the entire program established by
this subchapter.
§441.062. State Auditor's Report of Compliance.
In the audit of an agency the state auditor may report on the
agency's compliance with this subchapter.
Reduction and Simplification of Agency Paperwork
Government Code, Chapter 441, Subchapter K
§441.171. Definitions.
In this subchapter:
(1) "Agency" means a state executive, judicial,
legislative, or eleemosynary department, institution,
board, or commission.
(2) "Committee" means the Records Management and
Preservation Advisory Committee created under Section
441.053.
§441.172. Committee Powers and Duties.
(a) The committee shall make recommendations relating to the
reduction and simplification of paperwork generated by
agencies in the performance of their functions.
(b) In performing its duties under Subsection (a), the
committee shall develop a plan for:
(1) the reduction and simplification of agency
paperwork; and
(2) the analysis and classification of forms used
by agencies.
§441.173. Report.
In the report submitted by the committee under Section
441.053(d), the committee shall include recommendations relating
to the reduction and simplification of state paperwork, including
proposals for legislation as necessary to implement the
recommendations.
§441.174. Agency Cooperation.
Each agency shall fully cooperate in the implementation of this
subchapter. The agency shall analyze and classify the forms used
by the agency with the objective being form simplification and
overall reduction of paperwork in accordance with the plan
developed by the committee.
§441.175. Review.
The records preservation officer and the committee shall review
the plan created under this subchapter at least once every two
years.
Right of Recovery
Government Code, Chapter 441, Section 441.0105
§441.0105. Right of Recovery.
(a) The governing body of a state agency may demand and
receive from any person any state government record in
private possession the removal of which from the possession
of the agency or the agency's predecessor was not authorized
by law.
(b) The director and librarian may demand and receive from
any person any state government record of permanent value in
private possession.
(c) If the person in possession of the state government
record refuses to deliver the record on demand, the director
and librarian or the governing body of a state agency may
ask the attorney general to petition a district court in
Travis County for the recovery of the record as provided by
this section. If the court finds that the record is a state
government record, the court shall order the return of the
record to the custody of the state. As part of the petition
or at any time after its filing, the attorney general may
petition to have the record seized pending the determination
of the court if the director and librarian or governing body
finds the record is in danger of being destroyed, mutilated,
altered, secreted, or removed from the state.
(d) A state government record recovered as the result of a
petition by the attorney general shall be transferred to the
custody of the commission or other state agency for which
the return of the record was originally demanded.
(e) If the attorney general petitions a court for the
recovery of a record under Subsection (c) and prevails, the
court shall award attorney's fees and court costs to the
prevailing party.
(f) In this section, "state agency" means a state executive,
judicial, or legislative department, institution, board, or
commission, including an eleemosynary institution.
Cost Recovery for Records Storage Services
Government Code, Chapter 441, Section 441.017
§441.017. Cost Recovery for Records Storage Services.
(a) This section:
(1) applies to a record stored by the commission
for a state agency; and
(2) does not apply to a record that is under the
permanent control of the commission for archival
purposes.
(b) The commission shall establish and keep current a cost
recovery schedule for its records storage services. The
schedule shall show the total cost, including indirect
costs, to the commission of its records storage services.
(c) Each state agency that will use the commission's records
storage services during a state fiscal biennium shall send
to the commission an estimate of the amount and nature of
the services that the agency will use during the biennium.
The commission shall prescribe:
(1) the time that the estimate must be sent; and
(2) the information that must be included in the
estimate.
(d) The commission shall base its legislative appropriations
request for providing records storage services to other
agencies for the biennium on the estimates received under
Subsection (c). The commission's appropriations request
must:
(1) show the estimated cost for each agency for
records storage services; and
(2) identify the estimated amount that would need
to be appropriated from the general revenue fund,
account in the general revenue fund, or other fund
or account to recover fully the commission's costs
in providing records storage services for other
agencies.
(e) The legislature may appropriate money to pay the
commission's costs in providing records storage services for
an agency:
(1) to the commission; or
(2) to the agency, which shall pay the commission
its costs as the services are provided.
(f) In this section, "agency" means a state executive,
judicial, or legislative department, institution, board, or
commission, including an eleemosynary institution.
Texas Sunset Act
Government Code, Chapter 325, Section 325.017
These provisions of the Texas Sunset Act determine the
disposition of the records of state agencies abolished as the
result of sunset review.
§325.017. Procedure After Termination.
(a) A state agency that is abolished in an odd-numbered year
may continue in existence until September 1 of the following
year to conclude its business. Unless the law provides
otherwise, abolishment does not reduce or otherwise limit
the powers and authority of the state agency during the
concluding year. A state agency is terminated and shall
cease all activities at the expiration of the one-year
period.
(b), (c), (d), and (f) do not apply to records management.
(e) Unless the governor designates an appropriate state
agency as prescribed by Subsection (f), property and records
in the custody of an abolished state agency or advisory
committee on September 1 of the even-numbered year after
abolishment shall be transferred to the State Purchasing and
General Services Commission. If the governor designates an
appropriate state agency, the property and records shall be
transferred to the designated state agency.
Paper Supplies and Equipment
Government Code, Chapter 2051, Section 2051.021
§2051.021. Uniform Size of Paper Supply and Cabinet.
(a) A state agency may not purchase:
(1) forms, bond paper, stationery, pads, or
similar paper supplies that exceed 8-1/2 inches by
11 inches in size; or
(2) a filing cabinet designed to store completed
documents that exceed 8-1/2 inches by 11 inches in
size.
(b) This section does not prohibit the purchase or use of:
(1) paper supplies that are perforated or
otherwise designed to produce completed documents
of 8-1/2 inches by 11 inches in size or smaller;
(2) fanfold paper designed for use in a computer
peripheral device; or
(3) forms or paper supplies used for:
(A) a document prepared on a form
developed by a national organization for
use by a state or a form designed to be
compatible with that document;
(B) preparation of a document required
by the federal government;
(C) maintenance of an accounting or
bookkeeping record;
(D) preparation of a financial report;
(E) a budget document;
(F) a nontextual computer report or
document;
(G) a chart, graph, table, or map;
(H) artwork;
(I) an architectural or engineering
draft or document;
(J) a diploma;
(K) an enlargement of small print
materials for a person with a visual
impairment;
(L) a resale purpose; or
(M) protection or preservation of a
historically valuable document.
(c) In this section, "state agency" means a board,
commission, department, office, institution, including an
institution of higher education as defined by Section
61.003, Education Code, or other agency of the state
government.
Tampering With Governmental Record
Penal Code, Chapter 37, Section 37.10
§37.10. Tampering With Governmental Record.
(a) A person commits an offense if he:
(1) knowingly makes a false entry in, or false
alteration of, a governmental record;
(2) makes, presents, or uses any record, document,
or thing with knowledge of its falsity and with
intent that it shall be taken as a genuine
governmental record;
(3) intentionally destroys, conceals, removes, or
otherwise impairs the verity, legibility, or
availability of a governmental record;
(4) possesses, sells, or offers to sell a
governmental record or blank governmental record
form with intent that it be used unlawfully;
(5) makes, presents, or uses a governmental record
with knowledge of its falsity; or
(6) possess, sells, or offers to sell a
governmental record or blank governmental record
form with knowledge that it was obtained
unlawfully.
(b) It is an exception to the application of Subsection
(a)(3) that the governmental record is destroyed pursuant to
legal authorization. With regard to the destruction of a
local government record, legal authorization includes
compliance with the provisions of Subtitle C, Title 6, Local
Government Code.
(c) Except as provided in Subsection (d), an offense under
this section is a Class A misdemeanor unless the actor's
intent is to defraud or harm another, in which event the
offense is a state jail felony.
(d) An offense under this section is a felony of the third
degree if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the
governmental record was a license, certificate, permit,
seal, title, or similar document issued by government,
unless the actor's intent is to defraud or harm another, in
which event the offense is a felony of the second degree.
(e) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution for
possession under Subsection (a)(6) that the possession
occurred in the actual discharge of official duties as a
public servant.
(f) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a)(1),
(a)(2), or (a)(5) that the false entry or false information
could have no effect on the government's purpose for
requiring the governmental record.
(g) A person is presumed to intend to defraud or harm
another if the person acts with respect to two or more of
the same type of governmental records or blank governmental
record forms and if each governmental record or blank
governmental record form is a license, certificate, permit,
seal, title, or similar document issued by government.
Electronic Records Standards and
Procedures
State Agency Bulletin Number One
As amended, effective 10 October 1995
Return to SLRM home page
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Administrative Rules of Texas State Library and Archives
Commission
Texas Administrative Code
Title 13, Chapter 6
§6.91. Definitions.
The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall
have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise. Terms not defined in these sections shall have the
meanings defined in the Government Code, §§441.031-441.039 and
§§441.051-441.062.
AIIM-The Association for Information and Image
Management.
ANSI-The American National Standards Institute.
Archival record-A record of a state agency scheduled to
be reviewed by or that has been approved by an archives
for permanent preservation.
Database-(A) collection of digitally stored data
records; (B) collection of data elements within records
within files that have relationships with other records
within other files.
Database Management System (DBMS)-Set of programs
designed to organize, store, and retrieve
machine-readable information from a computer-maintained
database or data bank.
Data file-Related numeric, textual, sound, or graphic
information that is organized in a strictly prescribed
form and format.
Electronic media-All media capable of being read by a
computer including computer hard disks, magnetic tapes,
optical disks, or similar machine-readable media.
Electronic record-Any information that is recorded in a
form for computer processing and that satisfies the
definition of a state record in the Government Code,
§441.031(5).
Electronic records system-Any information system that
produces, manipulates, and stores state records by
using a computer.
Records administrator-The person appointed by the head
of each state agency to act as the agency's
representative in all issues of records management
policy, responsibility, and statutory compliance.
Text documents-Narrative or tabular documents, such as
letters, memorandums, and reports, in loosely
prescribed form and format.
§6.92. General.
(a) These sections establish the minimum requirements for
the maintenance, use, retention, and storage of:
(1) any electronic record of a state agency whose
retention period on the agency's records retention
schedule, certified under §6.4 of this title
(relating to Certification of Records Retention
Schedules and Amendments), is 10 years or more;
(2) any electronic record of a state agency whose
retention period on the Texas State Records
Retention Schedule, adopted under §6.10 of this
title (relating to Texas State Records Retention
Schedule), is 10 years or more, if the agency does
not have a certified records retention schedule;
and
(3) any archival electronic record of a state
agency.
(b) Unless otherwise noted, these requirements apply to all
electronic records storage systems, whether on
microcomputers, minicomputers, or main-frame computers,
regardless of storage media.
(c) An electronic storage authorization request certifying
that the requirements of these sections will be followed
must be submitted to and approved by the director and
librarian for all existing electronic storage, and before
any new electronic storage, of records subject to this
section. The authorization request must be submitted in a
form and manner to be determined by the director and
librarian and must be signed by the agency head or
designated records administrator.
(d) The agency head or designated records administrator
must:
(1) administer a program for the management of
records created, received, maintained, used, or
stored on electronic media;
(2) integrate the management of electronic records
with other records and information resources
management programs of the agency;
(3) incorporate electronic records management
objectives, responsibilities, and authorities in
pertinent agency directives;
(4) establish procedures for addressing records
management requirements, including recordkeeping
requirements and disposition;
(5) ensure that training is provided for users of
electronic records systems in the operation, care,
and handling of the equipment, software, and media
used in the system;
(6) ensure the development and maintenance of
up-to-date documentation about all electronic
records systems that is adequate to specify all
technical characteristics necessary for reading or
processing the records and the timely, authorized
disposition of records; and
(7) specify the location and media on which
electronic records are maintained to meet
retention requirements and maintain inventories of
electronic records systems to facilitate
disposition.
(e) Any electronic recordkeeping system not meeting the
provisions of these sections may be utilized for records
subject to this section provided the source document, if
any, or a paper copy is maintained, or the record is
microfilmed in accordance with the specifications in
American National Standard for Imaging Media
(Film)-Silver-Gelatin Type-Specifications for Stability
(ANSI IT9.1-1992).
§6.93. Creation and Use of Data Files.
(a) Disposition instructions for the data must be
incorporated into electronic records systems that produce,
use, and store data files.
(b) State agencies must maintain up-to-date technical
documentation for each electronic records system that
produces, uses, and stores data files. Minimum documentation
required is:
(1) a narrative description of the system
(2) the physical and technical characteristics of
the records, including a record layout that
describes each field including its name, size,
starting or relative position, and a description
of the form of the data (such as alphabetic, zoned
decimal, packed decimal, or numeric), or a data
dictionary, or the equivalent information
associated with a database management system
including a description of the relationship
between data elements in databases; and
(3) any other technical information needed to read
or process the records.
§6.94. Creation and Use of Text Documents.
(a) Electronic records systems that maintain the official
file copy of text documents or data used to generate the
official file copy of text documents on electronic media
must meet the following minimum requirements:
(1) provide a method for all authorized users of
the system to retrieve desired documents, such as
an indexing or text search system;
(2) provide security to ensure integrity of the
documents;
(3) provide a standard interchange format when
determined to be necessary by the agency to permit
the exchange of documents on electronic media
among the components of the agency using different
software/operating systems; and
(4) provide for the disposition of the documents
including, when necessary, the requirements for
transferring archival records to the State
Archives as detailed in §6.97 of this title
(relating to Retention of Electronic Records).
(b) A document created on an electronic records system must
be identified sufficiently to enable authorized personnel to
retrieve, protect, and carry out the disposition of
documents in the system. Agencies must ensure that records
maintained in such systems can be correlated with related
records on paper, microform, or other media.
§6.95. Security of Electronic Records.
(a) State agencies must implement and maintain an electronic
records security program for office and storage areas that:
(1) ensures that only authorized personnel have
access to electronic records;
(2) provides for backup and recovery of records to
protect against information loss;
(3) ensures that personnel are trained to
safeguard confidential electronic records;
(4) minimizes the risk of unauthorized alteration
or erasure of electronic records; and
(5) documents that similar kinds of records
generated and stored electronically are created by
the same processes each time and have a
standardized retrieval approach.
(b) A duplicate copy of essential records and any software
or documentation required to retrieve and read the records
must be maintained in a storage area located in a separate
building from the building where the records that have been
copied are maintained.
(c) For records stored on rewritable electronic media, the
system must ensure that read/write privileges are controlled
and that an audit trail of rewrites is maintained.
§6.96. Maintenance of Electronic Records Storage Media
(a) State agencies must ensure that the accuracy,
completeness, and accessibility of information are not lost
prior to its authorized destruction date because of changing
technology or media deterioration, by converting electronic
storage media and taking other action as required to provide
compatibility with current hardware and software. The
migration strategy for upgrading equipment as technology
evolves must be documented and include:
(1) periodically recopying to the same electronic
media as required, and/or transferring of data
from an obsolete technology to a supportable
technology; and
(2) providing backward system compatibility to the
data in the old system, and/or converting data to
media that the system upgrade and/or replacement
can support.
(b) Paragraphs (1)-(3) of this section outline the
maintenance of backup electronic media stored offsite.
(1) Magnetic computer tapes must be tested and
verified no more than 6 months prior to using them
to store electronic records. Pretesting of tapes
is not required if an automated system is used
that monitors read/write errors and there is a
procedure in place for correcting errors.
(2) The storage areas for electronic media must be
maintained within the following temperatures and
relative humidities:
(A) for magnetic media-65 degrees
Fahrenheit to 75 degrees Fahrenheit, and
30% to 50% relative humidity;
(B) for optical disks-14 degrees
Fahrenheit to 122 degrees Fahrenheit,
and 10% to 90% relative humidity.
(3) A random sample of all magnetic computer tapes
must be read annually to identify any loss of data
and to discover and correct the causes of data
loss. At least a 10% sample or a sample size of 50
magnetic tapes, whichever is less, must be read.
Tapes with unrecoverable errors must be replaced
and, when possible, lost data must be restored.
All other tapes which might have been affected by
the same cause (i. e. poor quality tape, high
usage, poor environment, improper handling) must
be read and corrected.
(c) State agencies must recopy data maintained on electronic
media according to the following schedule.
(1) Data maintained on magnetic tape must be
recopied onto new or used tape a minimum of once
every three years.
(2) An alternative option for recopying magnetic
tape is for the data to be recopied onto new tape
a minimum of once every ten years, provided the
tape is rewound under controlled tension every
three and one-half years. The requirement for
rewinding does not apply to 3480-type tape
cartridges.
(3) Data maintained on optical disks must be
recopied a minimum of once every 10 years.
(d) Floppy disks (diskettes) or any type of flexible disk
system may not be used for the exclusive storage of records
subject to these sections.
(e) External labels, or an eye-readable index relating to
unique identifiers, for electronic media used to process or
store electronic records must include the following
information:
(1) name or other identifier of the organizational
unit responsible for the records;
(2) descriptive title of the contents;
(3) dates of creation and authorized disposition
date;
(4) security classification;
(5) identification of the software (to include
specific application if appropriate) and hardware
used; and
(6) system title, including the version number of
the application.
(f) Additionally, the following information must be
maintained for electronic media used to store permanent
electronic records:
(1) file title(s);
(2) dates of coverage;
(3) the recording density;
(4) type of internal labels;
(5) volume serial number, if applicable;
(6) the number of tracks;
(7) character code/software dependency;
(8) information about block size;
(9) sequence number, if the file is part of a
multi-media set; and
(10) relative starting position of data, if
applicable.
(g) The following standards must be met for electronic
records stored as digital images on optical media.
(1) A non-proprietary image file header label must
be used, or the system developer must provide a
bridge to a non-proprietary image file header
label, or the system developer must supply a
detailed definition of image file header label
structure.
(2) The system hardware and/or software must
provide a quality assurance capability that
verifies information that is written to the
optical media.
(3) Periodic maintenance of optical data storage
systems is required, including an annual
recalibration of the optical drives.
(4) Scanner quality must be evaluated based on the
standard procedures in American National Standard
for Information and Image Management-Recommended
Practice for Quality Control of Image Scanners
(ANSI/AIIM MS44-1988) and American National
Standard for Information and Image
Management-Recommended Practice for Monitoring
Image Quality of Roll Microfilm and Microfiche
Scanners (ANSI/AIIM MS49-1993).
(5) A visual quality control evaluation must be
performed for each scanned image and related index
data.
(6) A scanning density with a minimum of 200 dots
per inch is required for recording documents that
contain no type font smaller than six point.
(7) A scanning density with a minimum of 300 dots
per inch is required for engineering drawings,
maps, and other documents with background detail.
(8) The selected scanning density must be
validated with tests on actual documents.
(9) The use of the Consultative Committee on
International Telegraphy and Telephony (CCITT)
Group 3 or Group 4 compression techniques is
required for document images without continuous
tonal qualities. If use of a proprietary
compression technique is unavoidable, the vendor
must provide a gateway to either Group 3 or Group
4 compression techniques.
(10) Optical drive systems must not be operated in
environments with high levels of airborne
particulates.
(11) All aspects of the design and use of the
imaging system must be documented, including
administrative procedures for digital imaging,
retrieval, and storage; technical system
specifications; problems encountered; and measures
taken to address them, including hardware and
software modifications.
(h) Smoking, drinking, and eating must be prohibited in
electronic media storage areas.
§6.97. Retention of Electronic Records.
(a) State agencies must establish policies and procedures to
ensure that electronic records and any software, hardware,
and/or documentation, including maintenance documentation,
required to retrieve and read the electronic records are
retained as long as the approved retention period for the
electronic records.
(b) The retention procedures must include provisions for:
(1) scheduling the disposition of all electronic
records, according to statutory requirements, as
well as related software, documentation, and
indexes; and
(2) establishing procedures for regular recopying,
reformatting, and other necessary maintenance to
ensure the retention and usability of electronic
records until the expiration of their retention
periods.
(c) State records having archival value and scheduled to be
preserved at the State Archives must be transferred to the
State Archives as the source document, or printed out on
alkaline paper for computer generated information, or on
microforms that meet the specifications in American National
Standard for Imaging Media (Film)-Silver-Gelatin
Type-Specifications for Stability (ANSI IT9.1-1992).
§6.98. Destruction of Electronic Records.
(a) Electronic records may be destroyed only in accordance
with a records retention schedule approved by the director
and librarian and the state auditor or, in lieu of an
approved records retention schedule, an approved records
disposition authorization request.
(b) Each state agency must ensure that:
(1) electronic records scheduled for destruction
are disposed of in a manner that ensures
protection of any confidential information; and
(2) magnetic storage media previously used for
electronic records containing confidential
information are not reused if the previously
recorded information can be compromised by reuse
in any way.
(c) The following requirements must be met for the court
ordered expungement of information recorded on an optical
Write-Once-Read-Many (WORM) system.
(1) Two methods are allowed for expunging
information from a WORM disk:
(A) the information may be overwritten
to obliterate the original image,
leaving no evidence of the original
information, or;
(B) all of the indices, pages, or
documents on a disk, other than the
expunged document(s), must be rewritten
to a new disk and the old disk must be
physically destroyed.
(2) In cases where a complete page or record is
expunged, all reference to the page or record must
be removed from the index. If the index has been
copied, the index must be recopied after the
reference to the page or record has been removed.
(3) Copies of the original WORM disk and copies of
the information removed by expungement must be
destroyed or changed to reflect the court order.
All copies of the record, index, or reference to
the original unrevised information on WORM disk
copies or copies in any other media must be
destroyed.
§6.99. Public Access to Electronic Records.
An electronic recordkeeping system must not provide an impediment
to access to public records.
State and Local Records Management Division
Box 12927 Austin TX 78711-2927
Records Center 512-454-2705
Records Management 512-452-9242
ramona.cearley@tsl.state.tx.us
[Return to SLRM home page]
Electronic Records Standards and Procedures
Local Government Bulletin Number Two
Second edition, October 1995
(with amendments to administrative rules effective 2 October
1995)
Return to SLRM home page
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This bulletin contains the statutory law governing the electronic
storage of records by local governments (Local Government Code,
Chapter 205) and administrative rules concerning electronic
records adopted under authority of the statute by the Texas State
Library and Archives Commission (Texas Administrative Code, Title
13, Chapter 7).
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LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE
Chapter 205
§205.001. Definitions.
In this chapter:
(1) "Electronic storage" means the maintenance of local
government record data in the form of digital electronic signals
on a computer hard disk, magnetic tape, optical disk, or similar
machine-readable medium.
(2) "Local government record data" means the information that by
law, regulation, rule of court, ordinance, or administrative
procedure in a local government comprises a local government
record as defined by Section 201.003.
(3) "Source document" means the local government record from
which local government record data is obtained for electronic
storage. The term does not include backup copies of the data in
any media generated from electronic storage.
§205.002. Authorization.
Any local government record data may be stored electronically in addition
to or instead of source documents in paper or other media, subject to the
requirements of this chapter and rules adopted under it.
§205.003. Standards and Procedures to be Adopted.
(a) The commission shall adopt rules establishing standards and
procedures for the electronic storage of any local government record
data of permanent value and may adopt rules establishing standards and
procedures for the electronic storage of any local government record
data whose retention period is at least 10 years on a records
retention schedule issued by the commission. The rules must be
approved as required by Section 441.165, Government Code.
(b) With regard to the types of local government record data covered
by Subsection (a), the rules may require or prescribe:
(1) standards and procedures for the generation of backup or
preservation copies of the local government record data on paper,
microfilm, electronic, or other approved media;
(2) standards and procedures for the recopying or duplication of
the magnetic tape, optical disk, or similar machine-readable
medium on which the local government record data are stored;
(3) standards and procedures for the physical storage and
maintenance of magnetic tapes, optical disks, or similar
machine-readable media;
(4) standards and procedures for providing access by members of
the public to electronically stored local government record data
to which they are entitled under law; and
(5) other standards and procedures that the commission considers
necessary to ensure the availability, readability, or integrity
of the local government record data.
§205.004. Rules to be Updated.
The director and librarian shall monitor standards and procedures relating
to electronic storage developed for use by federal agencies or adopted by
national organizations that develop and set standards in the fields of
records and information management in order to recommend to the commission
any needed amendments to rules.
§205.005. Supreme Court Rules.
This chapter is not intended to conflict with Subchapter I, Chapter 51,
Government Code, relating to the electronic filing of certain documents in
district and county courts. The commission shall incorporate any rules
adopted under that subchapter into its own.
§205.006. Index.
An index to local government record data stored electronically must provide
the same information that may be required by state law for an index to the
source document, if applicable.
§205.007. Electronic Storage Authorization Requests.
(a) Before the electronic storage of any local government record data
of permanent value or, if stipulated in commission rules, any local
government record data whose retention period is at least 10 years on
a records retention schedule issued by the commission, an electronic
storage authorization request shall be submitted to the director and
librarian for approval.
(b) Electronic storage authorization requests shall be submitted by
the records management officer or under the officer's direction or, if
a records management officer has not yet been designated under Section
203.025, by the custodian of the local government record data to be
stored electronically.
(c) If the director and librarian or the designee of the director and
librarian approves the request, the local government record data may
be stored electronically.
(d) If the director and librarian or the designee of the director and
librarian disapproves the request, the reasons for the disapproval
shall be stated in writing within a reasonable time to the records
management officer or custodian. Electronic storage of the local
government record data may not take place until an electronic storage
authorization request receives the approval of the director and
librarian or the designee of the director and librarian.
(e) The director and librarian or the designee of the director and
librarian may disapprove an electronic storage authorization request
only if the standards and procedures proposed for the electronic
storage of the local government record data are in violation of this
chapter or rules adopted under it.
(f) The director and librarian shall determine the form and manner of
submission of authorization requests required by this chapter.
§205.008. Destruction of Source Documents.
(a) The source document, if any, for electronically stored local
government record data covered by Section 205.007(a) may be destroyed
or returned to the person who filed it for record if the electronic
storage authorization request is approved.
(b) The magnetic tape, optical disk, or similar medium containing the
local government record data and the hardware and software necessary
to provide access to it must be retained by the local government or be
available to the local government until the expiration of the
retention period for all source documents, subject to the rules
adopted under this chapter.
(c) The source document, if any, for electronically stored local
government record data not covered by Section 205.007(a) may be
destroyed before the expiration of the retention period for the source
document in a records retention schedule issued by the commission if
the magnetic tape, optical disk, or similar medium and hardware and
software necessary to provide access to local government record data
on the media are retained for the retention period in the schedule.
Conversely, the magnetic tape, optical disk, or similar medium may be
erased, written over, or destroyed before the expiration of the
retention period for a source document for local government record
data not covered by Section 205.007(a), if the source document, if
any, is retained until the expiration of its retention period or, if
the source document has already been destroyed, paper or microfilm
copies are generated from the magnetic tape, optical disk, or similar
medium before destruction or erasure and retained until the expiration
of the retention period for the source document.
§205.009. Denial of Access Prohibited.
A person under contract or agreement with a local government or elected
county officer to create, file, or store local government record data
electronically or to provide services, equipment, or the means for the
creation, filing, or storage, may not, under any circumstances, refuse to
provide local government record data to the local government in a timely
manner in a format accessible and useable by the local government.
Texas Administrative Code
Title 13, Chapter 7
§7.71. Definitions.
The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the
following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Terms
not defined in these sections shall have the meanings defined in the Local
Government Code, Title 6, Subtitle C, Chapter 201.
AIIM-The Association for Information and Image Management.
ANSI-The American National Standards Institute.
Database-(A) collection of digitally stored data records, (B)
collection of data elements within records within files that have
relationships with other records within other files.
Database Management System (DBMS)-Set of programs designed to
organize, store, and retrieve machine-readable information from a
computer-maintained database or data bank.
Data file-Related numeric, textual, sound, or graphic information
that is organized in a strictly prescribed form and format.
Electronic media-All media capable of being read by a computer
including computer hard disks, magnetic tapes, optical disks, or
similar machine-readable media
Electronic record-Any information that is recorded in a form for
computer processing and that satisfies the definition of local
government record data in the Local Government Code, §205.001.
Electronic record system-Any information system that produces,
manipulates, and stores local government records by using a
computer.
Records custodian-The appointed or elected public officer who by
the state constitution, state law, ordinance, or administrative
policy is in charge of an office that creates or receives local
government records.
Records management officer-Each elected county officer or the
person designated by the governing body of each local government
pursuant to the Local Government Code, §203.025.
Text documents-Narrative or tabular documents, such as letters,
memorandums, and reports, in loosely prescribed form and format.
§7.72. General.
(a) These sections establish the minimum requirements for the
maintenance, use, retention, and storage of any electronic record of a
local government whose retention period is 10 years or more on a
records retention schedule adopted under §7.125 of this title
(relating to Records Retention Schedules). These sections do not apply
to electronic records with retention periods of less than 10 years,
but they are subject to the applicable provisions of the Local
Government Code, Chapter 205.
(b) Unless otherwise noted, these requirements apply to all electronic
records storage systems, whether on microcomputers, minicomputers, or
main-frame computers, regardless of storage media.
(c) An electronic storage authorization request certifying that the
requirements of these sections will be followed must be submitted to
and approved by the director and librarian for all existing electronic
storage, and before any new electronic storage, of records subject to
this section. The authorization request must be submitted in a form
and manner to be determined by the director and librarian and must be
signed by the records management officer.
(d) The governing body of a local government and its records
management officer in cooperation with records custodians must:
(1) administer a program for the management of records created,
received, maintained, used, or stored on electronic media;
(2) integrate the management of electronic records with other
records and information resources management programs;
(3) incorporate electronic records management objectives,
responsibilities, and authorities in pertinent directives;
(4) establish procedures for addressing records management
requirements, including recordkeeping requirements and
disposition;
(5) ensure that training is provided for users of electronic
records systems in the operation, care, and handling of the
equipment, software, and media used in the system;
(6) ensure the development and maintenance of up-to-date
documentation about all electronic records systems that is
adequate to specify all technical characteristics necessary for
reading or processing the records and the timely, authorized
disposition of records; and
(7) specify the location and media on which electronic records
are maintained to meet retention requirements and maintain
inventories of electronic records systems to facilitate
disposition.
(e) Any electronic recordkeeping system not meeting the provisions of
these sections may be utilized for records subject to this section
provided the source document, if any, or a paper copy is maintained,
or the record is microfilmed in accordance with the provisions of
Local Government Code, Chapter 204, and the rules adopted under it.
§7.73. Creation and Use of Data Files.
(a) Disposition instructions for the data must be incorporated into
electronic records systems that produce, use, and store data files.
(b) Local governments must maintain up-to-date technical documentation
for each electronic records system that produces, uses, and stores
data files. Minimum documentation required is:
(1) a narrative description of the system;
(2) the physical and technical characteristics of the records,
including a record layout that describes each field including its
name, size, starting or relative position, and a description of
the form of the data (such as alphabetic, zoned decimal, packed
decimal, or numeric), or a data dictionary, or the equivalent
information associated with a database management system
including a description of the relationship between data elements
in databases; and
(3) any other technical information needed to read or process the
records.
§7.74. Creation and Use of Text Documents.
(a) Electronic records systems that maintain the official file copy of
text documents or data used to generate the official file copy of text
documents on electronic media must meet the following minimum
requirements:
(1) provide a method for all authorized users of the system to
retrieve desired documents, such as an indexing or text search
system;
(2) provide security to ensure integrity of the documents;
(3) provide a standard interchange format when determined to be
necessary by the local government to permit the exchange of
documents on electronic media among the components of the local
government using different software/operating systems; and
(4) provide for the disposition of the documents.
(b) A document created on an electronic records system must be
identified sufficiently to enable authorized personnel to retrieve,
protect, and carry out the disposition of documents in the system.
Local governments must ensure that records maintained in such systems
can be correlated with related records on paper, microform, or other
media.
§7.75. Security of Electronic Records
(a) Local governments must implement and maintain an electronic
records security program for office and storage areas that:
(1) ensures that only authorized personnel have access to
electronic records;
(2) provides for backup and recovery of records to protect
against information loss;
(3) ensures that personnel are trained to safeguard confidential
electronic records;
(4) minimizes the risk of unauthorized alteration or erasure of
electronic records; and
(5) documents that similar kinds of records generated and stored
electronically are created by the same processes each time and
have a standardized retrieval approach.
(b) A duplicate copy of essential records and any software or
documentation required to retrieve and read the records must be
maintained in a storage area located in a separate building from the
building where the records that have been copied are maintained.
(c) For records stored on rewritable electronic media, the system must
ensure that read/write privileges are controlled and that an audit
trail of rewrites is maintained.
§7.76. Maintenance of Electronic Records Storage Media.
(a) Local governments must ensure that the accuracy, completeness, and
accessibility of information are not lost prior to its authorized
destruction date because of changing technology or media
deterioration, by converting electronic storage media and taking other
action as required to provide compatibility with current hardware and
software. The migration strategy for upgrading equipment as technology
evolves must be documented and include:
(1) periodically recopying to the same electronic media as
required, and/or transferring of data from an obsolete technology
to a supportable technology; and
(2) providing backward system compatibility to the data in the
old system, and/or converting data to media that the system
upgrade and/or replacement can support.
(b) Paragraphs (1) - (3) of this subsection outline the maintenance of
backup electronic media stored offsite.
(1) Magnetic computer tapes must be tested and verified no more
than 6 months prior to using them to store electronic records.
Pretesting of tapes is not required if an automated system is
used that monitors read/write errors and there is a procedure in
place for correcting errors.
(2) The storage areas for electronic media must be maintained
within the following temperatures and relative humidities:
(A) for magnetic media-65 degrees Fahrenheit to 75 degrees
Fahrenheit, and 30% to 50% relative humidity;
(B) for optical disks-14 degrees Fahrenheit to 122 degrees
Fahrenheit, and 10% to 90% relative humidity.
(3) A random sample of all magnetic computer tapes must be read
annually to identify any loss of data and to discover and correct
the causes of data loss. At least a 10% sample or a sample size
of 50 magnetic tapes, whichever is less, must be read. Tapes with
unrecoverable errors must be replaced and, when possible, lost
data must be restored. All other tapes which might have been
affected by the same cause (i. e. poor quality tape, high usage,
poor environment, improper handling) must be read and corrected.
(c) Local governments must recopy data maintained on electronic media
according to the following schedule.
(1) Data maintained on magnetic tape must be recopied onto new or
used tape a minimum of once every three years.
(2) An alternative option for recopying magnetic tape is for the
data to be recopied onto new tape a minimum of once every ten
years, provided the tape is rewound under controlled tension
every three and one-half years. The requirement for rewinding
does not apply to 3480-type tape cartridges.
(3) Data maintained on optical disks must be recopied a minimum
of once every 10 years.
(d) Floppy disks (diskettes) or any type of flexible disk system may
not be used for the exclusive storage of records subject to these
sections.
(e) External labels, or an eye-readable index relating to unique
identifiers, for electronic media used to process or store electronic
records must include the following information:
(1) name or other identifier of the organizational unit
responsible for the records;
(2) descriptive title of the contents;
(3) dates of creation and authorized disposition date;
(4) security classification;
(5) identification of the software (to include specific
application if appropriate) and hardware used; and
(6) system title, including the version number of the
application.
(f) Additionally, the following information must be maintained for
electronic media used to store permanent electronic records:
(1) file title(s);
(2) dates of coverage;
(3) the recording density;
(4) type of internal labels;
(5) volume serial number, if applicable;
(6) the number of tracks;
(7) character code/software dependency;
(8) information about block size; (10) relative starting position
of data, if applicable.
(g) The following standards must be met for electronic records stored
as digital images on optical media.
(1) A non-proprietary image file header label must be used, or
the system developer must provide a bridge to a non-proprietary
image file header label, or the system developer must supply a
detailed definition of image file header label structure.
(2) The system hardware and/or software must provide a quality
assurance capability that verifies information that is written to
the optical media.
(3) Periodic maintenance of optical data storage systems is
required, including an annual recalibration of the optical
drives.
(4) Scanner quality must be evaluated based on the standard
procedures in American National Standard for Information and
Image Management-Recommended Practice for Quality Control of
Image Scanners (ANSI/AIIM MS44-1988) and American National
Standard for Information and Image Management-Recommended
Practice for Monitoring Image Quality of Roll Microfilm and
Microfiche Scanners (ANSI/AIIM MS49-1993).
(5) A visual quality control evaluation must be performed for
each scanned image and related index data.
(6) A scanning density with a minimum of 200 dots per inch is
required for recording documents that contain no type font
smaller than six point.
(7) A scanning density with a minimum of 300 dots per inch is
required for engineering drawings, maps, and other documents with
background detail.
(8) The selected scanning density must be validated with tests on
actual documents.
(9) The use of the Consultative Committee on International
Telegraphy and Telephony (CCITT) Group 3 or Group 4 compression
techniques is required for document images without continuous
tonal qualities. If use of a proprietary compression technique is
unavoidable, the vendor must provide a gateway to either Group 3
or Group 4 compression techniques.
(10) Optical drive systems must not be operated in environments
with high levels of airborne particulates.
(11) All aspects of the design and use of the imaging system must
be documented, including administrative procedures for digital
imaging, retrieval, and storage; technical system specifications;
problems encountered; and measures taken to address them,
including hardware and software modifications.
(h) Smoking, drinking, and eating must be prohibited in electronic
media storage areas.
§7.77. Retention of Electronic Records.
(a) Local governments must establish policies and procedures to ensure
that electronic records and any software, hardware, and/or
documentation, including maintenance documentation, required to
retrieve and read the electronic records are retained as long as the
approved retention period for the electronic records.
(b) The retention procedures must include provisions for:
(1) scheduling the disposition of all electronic records,
according to statutory requirements, as well as related software,
documentation, and indexes; and
(2) establishing procedures for regular recopying, reformatting,
and other necessary maintenance to ensure the retention and
usability of electronic records until the expiration of their
retention periods.
§7.78. Destruction of Electronic Records.
(a) Electronic records may be destroyed only in accordance with the
Local Government Code, §202.001.
(b) Each local government must ensure that:
(1) electronic records scheduled for destruction are disposed of
in a manner that ensures protection of any confidential
information; and
(2) magnetic storage media previously used for electronic records
containing confidential information are not reused if the
previously recorded information can be compromised by reuse in
any way.
(c) The following requirements must be met for the court ordered
expungement of information recorded on an optical Write-Once-Read-Many
(WORM) system:
(1) Two methods are allowed for expunging information from a WORM
disk: (A) the information may be overwritten to obliterate the
original image, leaving no evidence of the original information,
or;
(B) all of the indices, pages, or documents on a disk, other than
the expunged document(s), must be rewritten to a new disk and the
old disk must be physically destroyed.
(2) In cases where a complete page or record is expunged, all reference to
the page or record must be removed from the index. If the index has been
copied, the index must be recopied after the reference to the page or
record has been removed.
(3) Copies of the original WORM disk and copies of the information
removed by expungement must be destroyed or changed to reflect the
court order. All copies of the record, index, or reference to the
original unrevised information on WORM disk copies or copies in any
other media must be destroyed.
§7.79. Public Access to Electronic Records.
An electronic recordkeeping system must not provide an impediment to access
to public records.
Local Government Records Act
Local Government Bulletin Number Four
Third edition, June 1995
(incorporating amendments, effective 1
September 1995, enacted by the 74th
Legislature)
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This bulletin contains the text of the Local Government Records
Act of 1989 (Chapters 201 to 205, Local Government Code) and
provisions of Chapter 441, Government Code, relating to the
administration of the Act.
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LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE
Title 6. Records
Subtitle C. Records Provisions Applying To More Than One Type of
Local Government
Chapter 201. General Provisions
§201.001. Short Title
§201.002. Purpose
§201.003. Definitions
§201.004. Record Books
§201.005. Declaration of Records as Public Property; Access
§201.006. Records to be Delivered to Successor in Office
§201.007. Records of Abolished Local Governments
§201.008. Records of Abolished Offices of County Superintendent
of Schools
§201.009. Access to Records
Chapter 202. Destruction and Alienation of Records
§202.001. Destruction of Records
§202.002. Litigation and Open Records Requests
§202.003. Method of Destruction
§202.004. Alienation of Records
§202.005. Right of Recovery
§202.006. Destruction of Nonrecord Material
§202.007. Personal Liability
§202.008. Penalty: Destruction or Alienation of Record
§202.009. Penalty: Possession of Record by Private Entity
Chapter 203. Management and Preservation of Records
Subchapter A. Elective County Offices
§203.001. Records Management Officer
§203.002. Duties and Responsibilities of Elected County Officers
as Records Management Officers
§203.003. Duties of Commissioners Court
§203.004. Director and Librarian
§203.005. Records Management Program to be Established
Subchapter B. All Other Local Government Offices
§203.021. Duties and Responsibilities of Governing Body
§203.022. Duties and Responsibilities of Custodians
§203.023. Duties of Records Management Officers
§203.024. Director and Librarian
§203.025. Designation of Records Management Officer
§203.026. Records Management Program to be Established
Subchapter C. Records Control Schedules
§203.041. Preparation and Filing of Records Control Schedules
§203.042. Retention Periods
§203.043. Filing of Records Control Schedules
§203.044. Initial Destruction of Obsolete Records
§203.045. Destruction of Unscheduled Records
§203.046. Recordkeeping Requirements
§203.047. New Local Governments
§203.048. Care of Records of Permanent Value
§203.049. Transfer of Records of Permanent Value
§203.050. Inspection of Permanent Records
Chapter 204. Microfilming of Records
§204.001. Definitions
§204.002. Authorization
§204.003. Microfilm Produced Under Prior Law
§204.004. Standards and Procedures
§204.005. Rules to be Updated
§204.006. Indexing
§204.007. Destruction of Original Records
§204.008. Destruction of Permanent Records
§204.009. Microfilm of Permanent Records to be Supplied
§204.010. Commercial Microfilm Storage Facilities
§204.011. Effective as Original Record
Chapter 205. Electronic Storage of Records
§205.001. Definitions
§205.002. Authorization
§205.003. Standards and Procedures to be Adopted
§205.004. Rules to be Updated
§205.005. Supreme Court Rules
§205.006. Index
§205.007. Electronic Storage Authorization Requests
§205.008. Destruction of Source Documents
§205.009. Denial of Access Prohibited
Chapter 201. General Provisions
§201.001. Short Title.
This subtitle may be cited as the Local Government Records Act.
§201.002. Purpose.
Recognizing that the citizens of the state have a right to
expect, and the state has an obligation to foster, efficient and
cost-effective government and recognizing the central importance
of local government records in the lives of all citizens, the
legislature finds that:
(1) the efficient management of local government
records is necessary to the effective and economic
operation of local and state government;
(2) the preservation of local government records of
permanent value is necessary to provide the people of
the state with resources concerning their history and
to document their rights of citizenship and property;
(3) convenient access to advice and assistance based on
well-established and professionally recognized records
management techniques and practices is necessary to
promote the establishment of sound records management
programs in local governments, and the state can
provide the assistance impartially and uniformly; and
(4) the establishment of uniform standards and
procedures for the maintenance, preservation,
microfilming, or other disposition of local government
records is necessary to fulfill these important public
purposes.
§201.003. Definitions.
In this subtitle:
(1) "Commission" means the Texas State Library and
Archives Commission.
(2) "Custodian" means the appointed or elected public
officer who by the state constitution, state law,
ordinance, or administrative policy is in charge of an
office that creates or receives local government
records.
(3) "Designee" means an employee of the commission
designated by the director and librarian as provided by
Section 441.167, Government Code.
(4) "Director and librarian" means the executive and
administrative officer of the Texas State Library and
Archives Commission.
(5) "Essential record" means any local government
record necessary to the resumption or continuation of
government operations in an emergency or disaster, to
the re-creation of the legal and financial status of
the government, or to the protection and fulfillment of
obligations to the people of the state.
(6) "Governing body" means the court, council, board,
commission, or other body established or authorized by
law to govern the operations of a local government. In
those instances in which authority over an office or
department of a local government is shared by two or
more governing bodies or by a governing body and the
state, the governing body, for the purposes of this
subtitle only, is the governing body that provides most
of the operational funding for the office or
department.
(7) "Local government" means a county, including all
district and precinct offices of a county,
municipality, public school district, appraisal
district, or any other special-purpose district or
authority.
(8) "Local government record" means any document,
paper, letter, book, map, photograph, sound or video
recording, microfilm, magnetic tape, electronic medium,
or other information recording medium, regardless of
physical form or characteristic and regardless of
whether public access to it is open or restricted under
the laws of the state, created or received by a local
government or any of its officers or employees pursuant
to law, including an ordinance, or in the transaction
of public business. The term does not include:
(A) extra identical copies of documents
created only for convenience of reference or
research by officers or employees of the
local government;
(B) notes, journals, diaries, and similar
documents created by an officer or employee
of the local government for the officer's or
employee's personal convenience;
(C) blank forms;
(D) stocks of publications;
(E) library and museum materials acquired
solely for the purposes of reference or
display; or
(F) copies of documents in any media
furnished to members of the public to which
they are entitled under Chapter 424, Acts of
the 63rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1973
(Article 6252-17a, Vernon's Texas Civil
Statutes), or other state law.
(9) "Office" means any office, department, division,
program, commission, bureau, board, committee, or
similar entity of a local government.
(10) "Permanent record" or "record of permanent value"
means any local government record for which the
retention period on a records retention schedule issued
by the commission is given as permanent.
(11) "Record" means a local government record.
(12) "Records control schedule" means a document
prepared by or under the authority of the records
management officer listing the records maintained by a
local government or an elective county office, their
retention periods, and other records disposition
information that the records management program in each
local government or elective county office may require.
(13) "Records management" means the application of
management techniques to the creation, use,
maintenance, retention, preservation, and disposal of
records for the purposes of reducing the costs and
improving the efficiency of recordkeeping. The term
includes the development of records control schedules,
the management of filing and information retrieval
systems, the protection of essential and permanent
records, the economical and space-effective storage of
inactive records, control over the creation and
distribution of forms, reports, and correspondence, and
the management of micrographics and electronic and
other records storage systems.
(14) "Records management officer" means the person
identified under Section 203.001 or designated under
Section 203.025 as the records management officer.
(15) "Records retention schedule" means a document
issued by the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission under authority of Subchapter J, Chapter
441, Government Code, establishing mandatory retention
periods for local government records.
(16) "Retention period" means the minimum time that
must pass after the creation, recording, or receipt of
a record, or the fulfillment of certain actions
associated with a record, before it is eligible for
destruction.
§201.004. Record Books.
If a state law relating to the keeping of records by a local
government officer or employee requires the records to be kept in
a "book," "record book," or "well-bound book," or contains any
similar requirement that a record be maintained in bound paper
form, the record whose creation is called for in the provision
may be maintained on microfilm or stored electronically in
accordance with the requirements of Chapters 204 and 205 and
rules adopted under those chapters unless the law specifically
prohibits those methods.
§201.005. Declaration of Records as Public Property; Access.
(a) Local government records created or received in the
transaction of official business or the creation or
maintenance of which were paid for by public funds are
declared to be public property and are subject to the
provisions of this subtitle and Subchapter J, Chapter 441,
Government Code.
(b) A local government officer or employee does not have, by
virtue of the officer's or employee's position, any personal
or property right to a local government record even though
the officer or employee developed or compiled it.
§201.006. Records to be Delivered to Successor in Office.
(a) A custodian of local government records shall, at the
expiration of the custodian's term of office, appointment,
or employment, deliver to the custodian's successor, if
there is one, all local government records in custody. If
there is no successor, the governing body shall determine
which officer of the local government shall have custody.
(b) If the functions of an office of one local government
are assumed by another local government, the governing
bodies of the two local governments shall determine in which
local government custody of the records of the office shall
be vested.
§201.007. Records of Abolished Local Governments.
(a) If a local government is abolished or declared void
pursuant to state law, the records of the local government
shall be dealt with according to this section.
(b) After the settlement of the outstanding indebtedness of
an abolished municipality and the satisfaction of the other
applicable requirements of Chapter 62, Local Government
Code, the municipality's governing body at the time the
municipality is abolished, or the receiver or trustees if
appointed by a court, shall transfer the records of the
municipality to the custody of the commission. A record of
an abolished municipality may not be sold to satisfy an
outstanding indebtedness.
(c) After the settlement of the outstanding indebtedness of
an abolished special-purpose district or authority, other
than a school district, and the satisfaction of the other
applicable requirements of state law establishing or
permitting the establishment of the district or authority or
governing its abolition, the district's governing body at
the time the district is abolished shall transfer the
records of the district to the custody of the commission. A
record of an abolished special-purpose district or authority
may not be sold to satisfy an outstanding indebtedness.
(d) As an exception to Subsections (b) and (c), if some or
all of the functions of an abolished municipality or
special-purpose district or authority, other than a school
district, are assumed by another local government, the
records of the abolished local government relating to the
assumed functions shall be transferred to the appropriate
offices of the local government assuming the functions.
(e) The records of annexed, consolidated, or abolished
school districts shall be transferred as provided by this
subsection. The records of an annexed school district shall
be transferred to the custody of the governing body of the
school district to which the abolished school district has
been annexed. The records of each of two or more school
districts that have been consolidated shall be transferred
to the custody of the governing body of the consolidated
school district. The records of an abolished school district
whose entire territory is annexed to another school district
shall be transferred to the custody of the governing body of
that school district. The commissioner of education shall
determine to which governing body custody of the records of
an abolished school district shall be transferred in those
instances in which the territory of the abolished district
is divided among two or more school districts.
(f) The cost of transfer of records to the commission under
this section shall be paid for out of funds of the
commission.
(g) The retention and disposition of local government
records transferred to the custody of the commission under
this section shall be based, as far as is practicable, on
records retention schedules issued by the commission.
§201.008. Records of Abolished Offices of County Superintendents
of Schools.
(a) Regardless of the provisions of Section 17.97, Education
Code, all records of an office of county superintendent of
schools or county superintendent of education abolished
under Section 17.95, Education Code, before September 1,
1989, that are still in the possession of a custodian of
county records or a county officer shall be transferred to
the custody of the commission by order of the director and
librarian.
(b) The director and librarian shall determine the time and
manner of the transfer of the records on a county-by-county
basis. The cost of the transfer shall be paid for out of
funds of the commission.
(c) The county judge of a county in which a custodian of
county records has possession of the records of an abolished
office of the county superintendent of schools may petition
the director and librarian to allow the county to retain all
or part of the records and the director and librarian may
grant the petition.
§201.009. Access to Records.
(a) Local government records are subject to Chapter 424,
Acts of the 63rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1973 (Article
6252-17a, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).
(b) Any local government record to which public access is
denied under Chapter 424, Acts of the 63rd Legislature,
Regular Session, 1973 (Article 6252-17a, Vernon's Texas
Civil Statutes), is, if still in existence, open to public
inspection 75 years after it was originally created or
received. However, a birth record maintained by a local
registrar is, if still in existence, open to public
inspection 100 years after it was originally created or
received and a death record maintained by a local registrar
is, if still in existence, open to public inspection 55
years after it was originally created or received. This
subsection does not limit the authority of a governing body
or an elected county officer to establish retention periods
for records under Section 203.042.
(c) Subsection (b) does not apply to a local government
record whose public disclosure is prohibited by an order of
a court or by another state law.
Chapter 202. Destruction and Alienation of Records.
§202.001. Destruction of Records.
(a) A local government record may be destroyed if:
(1) the record is listed on a records control
schedule accepted for filing by the director and
librarian as provided by Section 203.041 and
either its retention period has expired or it has
been microfilmed or stored electronically in
accordance with the requirements of Chapters 204
and 205;
(2) the record appears on a list of obsolete
records approved by the director and librarian as
provided by Section 203.044; or
(3) a destruction request is filed with and
approved by the director and librarian as provided
by Section 203.045 for a record not listed on an
approved control schedule.
(b) The following records may be destroyed without meeting
the conditions of Subsection (a):
(1) records the destruction or obliteration of
which is directed by an expunction order issued by
a district court pursuant to state law; and
(2) records defined as exempt from scheduling or
filing requirements by rules adopted by the
commission or listed as exempt in a records
retention schedule issued by the commission.
§202.002. Litigation and Open Records Requests.
(a) Regardless of any other provision of