March ARO Updates - Utah Archives & Records Service

March Updates

This monthly newsletter features content exclusively for
Appointed Records Officers.

Quarter 2 Trainings

Our Quarter 2 training calendar is now available! This quarter we will be offering GRAMA 101 (split into three one-hour sessions), the 2021 Legislative update webinar, and a RIM Certification Test Study Session for Local Government.

Dear Abby,

Do I have to be an appointed records officer to send or request records from the Records Center?

Sincerely,
Delegating ARO

Dear Delegating ARO,

The security of your records is our top priority. For this reason, we only allow appointed records officers (AROs), chief administrative officers (CAOs), or individuals designated by them to send records to the Records Center, or to recall or receive records from the Records Center.

The Records Center staff needs confirmation from an ARO or CAO that individuals transferring or requesting records are authorized to do so. This can be done via email (recordscenter@utah.gov) or telephone (801-525-3020). Once the Records Center has that confirmation, they keep track of who is authorized to transfer or request records for an agency.

The only Records-Center-related task that cannot be delegated to other agency staff members is authorizing the destruction of records. When records become eligible for destruction, Records Center staff members send notices requesting destruction authorization to the ARO of the custodial agency. Destruction authorizations (or hold requests) require the signature of the ARO or CAO, without exception.

Respectfully,
Abby

GRS Updates

We are requesting your feedback on two update proposals:

They are up for feedback until 4/15/21. Please let us know what you think of them! You can view the proposed updates and click to provide feedback from our GRS Updates webpage.

Thanks to ARO feedback, three proposals were improved: Conflict of interest files (GRS-1911), Mandated or significant training materials (GRS-1951), and Training administration records (GRS-150).

Give GRS Feedback

State Records Committee Update

A hearing before the State Records Committee does not always mean the resolution of the appeal. The Committee has encouraged parties to work with the Government Records Ombudsman to resolve their appeal. If your appeal is continued, you can still work with the Ombudsman to narrow the appeal, or resolve the appeal and have it withdrawn before the next hearing. Four of the five appeals heard by the Committee in March were continued! Here's why:

To review the records in camera. This is the most common reason the Committee orders a continuance. (Gilman v. Unified Police Department 2020-107)
To provide time for the parties to resolve the appeal outside of the Committee. This was the second time this appeal was continued. The parties provided an update to the Committee on their progress. (Rosenstein v. UDOT 2020-105)
To allow time for the respondent to provide the responsive records and give the petitioner a chance to review the records and address classification or redaction concerns with the Committee at a later date if desired. (Rosenstein v. UDOT 2020-105, Guzman v. DCFS 2020-127, & Center for Biological Diversity v. DWS 2020-42)

Records Management Committee Update

General Retention schedules for Training administration records (GRS-150), Mandated or significant training materials (GRS-1951), and Conflict of interest files (GRS-1911) were all approved by the Records Management Committee on March 22, 2021. A series-specific schedule was also approved for Physician's billing records (SSRS 20329).

Database Preservation Guidance

Records and Information Management (RIM) guidelines often focus on managing unstructured data (such as Word documents, spreadsheets, and PDF files), or even semi-structured data, such as email. Databases are considered fully structured data, and require a different approach. This guideline is intended to help records officers consider the data (which are government records) that may be contained within their databases, and to provide descriptions of each part of the process of managing the information in databases.

Read Guideline

Reformatting Program Manager Job

The Utah Division of Archives & Records Service is seeking an Archives Reformatting Program Manager to play an integral role in our division-wide workflow, and transition our Reformatting team to focus on digital media! If you’re skilled in photography, digitization, and the management of digital assets, with a strong grasp of archival processes and standards, apply today!

Learn More

© 2021 State of Utah - All rights reserved.

You are receiving this email because you are an Appointed Records Officer for your agency.

This message was sent to <<Email Address>>. You may update your subscription or unsubscribe.

Our mailing address is:
Utah State Archives and Records Service 346 S Rio Grande St Salt Lake City, UT 84101 USA