FY2007 Annual Report
Records Management
The effective management of the state’s records is fundamental to the operation of our government. Records provide the basis for efficiency and continuity in government. They enable and document the business of government. They provide evidence as to how decisions were made and policies implemented. They clarify obligations and protect citizens’ rights and privileges.
The State Records Management Program’s mission is to promote the efficiency and continuity of state government, document the rights of Missouri citizens, hold state officials accountable for their actions and preserve our state's heritage by providing state agencies with the necessary instruments to develop effective and efficient information control. Organizationally, the Records Management Program consists of three components: Records Analysis and Consultation, the State Records Center, and the Imaging Services Section.
FY07 Accomplishments
The Records Management Division completed work begun in FY06 to secure a software system with related hardware items that will provide customers online access to transact all business processes with the Records Management Division. This system will create statewide efficiencies which will enable the creation and maintenance of agency records retention schedules electronically, provide for management of all records center inventory and work processes, and allow management of the microfilm vault inventory.
The RFP was released in October 2006. Three bids were evaluated and Infolinx Software Solutions was awarded the bid in May 2007. Work has begun with the vendor to test and implement the system during FY08. The system is expected to reduce the turnaround time for updating and creating agency records retention schedules, allow agencies to easily integrate their retention schedule into electronic records management systems, and give agencies easier access to their holdings in the records center.
The new software system is expected to change the daily operations of the Records Management Division. In anticipation of these changes, a review of current and future services was conducted. The result of this review was the development of a five-year comprehensive plan. The plan targeted operations upgrades and potential enhancements to the services the Division provides state agencies.
A new procedures manual and guide for using Records Management services was added to the Secretary of State’s Records Management Webpage. The Frequently Asked Questions(FAQ) is divided into five topics: general program information; records consultation and scheduling; the state records center; microfilm services; and destruction of records. The FAQ will allow the Division to update procedures quickly and disperse information in a timelier manner.
During FY07, the Imaging Section continued to scan State of Missouri death certificates. Death certificates dating from 1927 through 1934 and 1945 through 1956 were completed, and 147 rolls of preservation microfilm were generated by taking the digital images and burning the images onto microfilm with the use of a digital archive writer.
Records Analysis and Consultation
Sound records management programs consist of a planned and coordinated set of policies, procedures, and activities to manage recorded information. The professional Records Analysis staff, comprised of records analysts and electronic records archivists, is an invaluable resource to state agencies. Analysts help to develop records management policies and guidelines, and provide the expertise and knowledge to assist agencies in operating effective and efficient records management programs.
Records Retention and Disposition
A major key to managing records is determining how long to keep them and when they can be destroyed after their active usage has diminished. Records retention is based on the life-cycle concept: like other resources, the value of most information tends to decline over time. Records need to be kept for as long as they are needed to support administrative, legal, and fiscal functions. A few records, typically less than one percent of those created in a given year, should be retained permanently because of their historical significance.
The primary tool for documenting these determinations is the Records Disposition Schedule. The Records Analysis staff works closely with state agency officials to identify categories of agency records and incorporate them into an Agency Records Disposition Schedule. Once the agency identifies one or more series of records, the analysts and archivists meet with agency officials to determine how long the records are needed to meet their business needs. They thoroughly research statutes, regulatory codes, and similar records series in states across the nation. The analysts work with the agency to prepare draft disposition schedules, which include the records series title, a clear description of the records and how they are used, and the retention and disposition instructions after the records become inactive.
Approved agency retention schedule
After reaching consensus with the agency, the analysts take the proposed Agency Records Disposition Schedulesbefore the State Records Commission for discussion, necessary revisions, and approval. Once approved by the Commission, the schedule serves as the legal authority for the agency to either destroy obsolete records or transfer historical records to the Missouri State Archives. The staff currently maintains more than 950 records retention and disposition schedules.
In addition to agency-specific schedules, the staff continues to expand the General Records Schedule (GRS), which lists series of records that are common to all agencies and provides retention and disposition instructions. Any state agency may use the authority of the GRS to dispose of records listed on it. Records Management will present the expanded GRS to the State Records Commission for approval in early FY08.
Staff Training and Development
During FY07, the professional staff continued developing their knowledge and understanding of records management concepts and new developments, particularly related to electronic records and technology. As agencies increasingly turn toward electronic records technology such as email, scanning, instant messaging, and web-based transactions, the records analysts and electronic records archivists remain prepared to work with agency managers and IT officials to evaluate the recordkeeping requirements of new systems and work processes. Staff training included attendance at the Association of Records Managers and Administrators (ARMA) International conference and the National Association of Government Archivists and Records Administrators (NAGARA) national conference.
State Records Center
Many records may be referred to for years after they are no longer current, and therefore must be retained. The inactive life of a record can range anywhere from two-years to 75-years or more after its period of active use. In fact, some historical records must be maintained permanently. Records that are on a Records Disposition Schedule and have reached an inactive status may be stored within the State Records Center.
The State Records Center saves the state money by providing off-site storage at a much lower cost per cubic foot than storage in agency office space. The storing agency can retrieve records whenever they are needed, and return them for refiling. Records are stored in a secure facility, protected against unauthorized access, environmental hazards, pests, and fire. The Records Center also tracks the retention periods of stored records, ensuring that records that no longer have any value are disposed of as soon as possible after they are eligible.
While the Records Center is the physical custodian, the transferring agency maintains proprietary control over its records. Thus, only the agency has access to its records while they are stored in the State Records Center. State agencies with an approvedrecords retention and disposition schedule are eligible to store records in the State Records Center.
Facilities
The State Records Center operates in three separate facilities. The Kirkpatrick State Information Center (KSIC) is the main facility. The KSIC’s climate-controlled environment was designed for the protection and preservation of long-term records (those with a retention of more than ten years) and permanent records. The facility can hold 149,878 cubic feet (or boxes) of records. The KSIC facility has been near capacity since 1995. KSIC can only accept new records into the facility as eligible disposable records are removed.
Records stored in the records center
The two annex facilities do not have air conditioning, so records stored in these facilities experience the extremes of Missouri’s temperature and humidity changes. Therefore, every effort is made to store only short-term records (those with a retention period of ten years or less) at these facilities. However, some long-term records that cannot be accommodated within the KSIC are stored in the Annex facilities.
Annex 1, located off Missouri Boulevard in Jefferson City, houses 76,480 cubic feet of records. Annex 2, located on Jaycee Drive in Jefferson City, opened in July 2001. Annex 2’s current shelved capacity is 86,956 cubic feet of records, bringing the current total State Records Center capacity to 313,314 cubic feet. Additional shelving is being added to Annex 2 as funds become available, bringing the Records Center facilities closer to its maximum potential capacity of 334,382 cubic feet in the three buildings.
Holdings
cubic feet of records. Staff recycled 20,815 cubic feet of records that had met their retention requirements. Thus net growth, accessions of new records minus destruction of obsolete records, was 7,003 cubic feet.
As of June 30, 2007, the State Records Center held 284,711cubic feet of records of which more than 144,957 cubic feet are permanent and will not be destroyed. The holdings belong to approximately 314 divisions within state departments. The following chart illustrates the volume of records stored by the fifteen most active state departments.
State Records Center Holdings FY 07
Top 15 Agencies
Cost Comparison
To illustrate the cost savings of storing records in the State Records Center, we have assumed that all 27,818 boxes received in FY07 in the Records Center are to be retained for five years. (In reality most boxes will be retained longer.) The following table compares the cost of storing files in the records center versus storing them in filing cabinets in an agency’s office for just the five year period. The assumptions are based on:
The average cost of a four drawer letter sized file cabinet, the floor area required to place and access files in cabinets, and a statewide average cost of leased office space of $11.50 per square foot, the estimated annual cost of storing one cubic foot of records in an office environment is $14.29.
The average per year cost to store a cubic foot box of records in the State Records Center is $1.06.
The cost to process and destroy a box of files $0.58.
Cost Comparison:
Storage in the State Records Center v. Agency Office Space
Costs |
State Records Center |
Agency Office Space |
Year 1 |
$4.60 |
$14.29 |
Years 2-5 |
4.24 |
57.16 |
Destruction |
0.58 |
0.58 |
Total Cost per box |
$9.42 |
$72.03 |
|
|
|
Cost to store 27,818 boxes five years |
$262,046 |
$2,003,731 |
Savings over five years |
$1,741,685 |
|
Courier Services
Records Center personnel schedule pick-up and delivery services for agencies within Jefferson City. Agencies outside of Jefferson City are responsible for arranging for their own records shipments. Records Center personnel can assist out-of-town agencies in locating transportation services.
Records Center delivery truck
Servicing the Records
Agencies retain full access to their records in the State Records Center. If an agency needs files from its boxes, a Records Center clerk retrieves the file and sends it to the agency. When the agency returns the file, a staff member refiles it in the appropriate box. This process is referred to as Pull Requests. On average, Records Management processes 65,221 pull requests each year to support state agencies’ performance of their missions.
Records Center Growth
The requirement for economical paper records storage will continue throughout the next 40 years. Computers and electronic forms of communicating and transacting business have been common in offices for over 20 years. At one time it was thought that the advent of computers would lead to the idea of the “paperless office,” where paper files and records could be eliminated or greatly reduced.
As the amount of information contained in electronic systems continues to increase, so too does the amount of paper records generated in relation to that electronic data. The following graph illustrates storage growth of holdings in the State Records Center over the past 8 years.
State Records Center Holdings
FY00 through FY07
Records Management staff has worked diligently to limit the rate of growth in Records Center holdings, by promptly processing destruction of eligible records as expeditiously as possible, and by reviewing agency disposition schedules to shorten retention periods when appropriate. Nevertheless, holdings are growing at a rate of over 5% per year over the past 10 years. The Records Center added Annex 1 in 1995 and Annex 2 in 2001 to accommodate this growth. At the present rate, Annex 2 will run out of room by July 2009.
Records Management believes that the most effective means to deal with this problem is for the state to plan for and build a dedicated records storage facility, designed specifically for the efficient and economical storage of records in all media, and providing room for expansion to accommodate future growth. A new Records Center Building would allow consolidation of records from the Kirkpatrick State Information Center and the two leased annex facilities in Jefferson City into a single location, greatly reducing operating costs and increasing staff efficiencies. The Missouri State Archives, whose holdings of permanent historical records have outgrown their current storage space, would be able to expand into the environmentally controlled KSIC storage area.
Records Management raised the concept of a Records Center Campus previously, in 2000. Although it was considered favorably at the time, budget situations prevented it from being advanced beyond the initial stages. The need for a solution to the storage space shortfall problem is inevitable, and the process to plan and build the envisioned new Records Center is lengthy. Records Management initiated formal planning during FY06 and continued to work towards a solution in FY0.
Imaging Services
Microfilm is an ideal storage medium for the preservation of long-term and historically significant records. Imaging Services Section operates a full-service microfilm laboratory. Services include source document microfilming, microfilm processing and duplication, rigorous quality assurance testing, and storage within a state-of-the-art environmentally controlled vault. Imaging Services utilizes a high-speed digital scanner and Kodak Digital Archive Writer to scan important records for easy access while ensuring their long-term preservation on proven microfilm media.
Scanning death certificates
Source Document Conversion
Some records are better suited for microfilming than others. A general rule of thumb is that if a records series must be retained for more than twenty years, it may be more cost effective to store microfilm than paper. However, there are other factors to consider, including how often the records are referenced, if they must be updated, and the quantity of the records. The Record Analysis and Consultation unit assists agencies with these sorts of considerations. During FY07, Imaging Services filmed 2,180 rolls of microfilm producing 4,747,465 images.
Processing, Duplication, and Quality Assurance
Processing microfilm.
In addition to processing and duplicating film the unit has created, staff processes and duplicates film created by state agencies. Technicians visually inspect each roll of microfilm and conduct tests for density and resolution. If defects are found during this inspection, the film is rejected and the project is re-filmed. During FY06, technicians processed 6,058 rolls of microfilm and duplicated 12,209 rolls.
Vault Storage
The microfilm vault is kept at a constant temperature of 58(plus or minus 2°) with a constant humidity level of 35% (plus or minus 2%). If either the temperature or the humidity level fluctuates past the plus or minus 2 mark, an alarm sounds and service technicians are immediately dispatched. Properly stored film, such as that within the vault, should have a usable life of at least 500 years. Currently, more than 150,000 rolls of archival microfilm are stored in the vault.
State Records Commission
The seven-member State Records Commission was created by state statute 109.250 RSMo. The Commission determines how long records must be maintained in order to serve the needs of government. Once the records have met their retention requirements, the Commission determines their proper disposition either by destruction or transfer to the Missouri State Archives.
State Records Commission Members
Robin Carnahan, Chair |
Senator Gary Nodler |
Kenneth H. Winn, Secretary |
Representative Dwight Scharnhorst |
Ken Kuster, Designee for |
Brett Berri, Designee for |
Dan Ross |
Dr. Gary Kremer |