Section 100-RICR-40-05-1.8 - Disposition of Record(s)A. The Records Officer, or local government representative, shall submit to the Public Records Administrator, or Local Government Records Program, the Certification of Records Destruction prior to destruction of any record, regardless of format. The Certification of Records Destruction:1. Shall be signed by the Agency Head or their designee.2. Shall be signed by the State Archivist/Public Records Administrator or their designee.3. Shall be eligible for disposal by the Agency solely upon confirmation by the Public Records Administrator or their designee that the Certification of Records Destruction has been executed by each required party. The Certification of Records Destruction shall thereafter be a permanent record of the Agency, and will be maintained as the legal replacement for destroyed records.4. No public record shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by any agency without prior notice to, and approval by, the program. For records which have been affected by natural or other disaster, see § 1.8(C) of this Part.B. Records which have met the applicable retention requirement in compliance with the approved Records Control Schedule shall be physically and permanently destroyed in a timely and appropriate manner, as follows: 1. Records in custody of the Agency shall be destroyed by the Agency or an approved vendor.2. Records in custody of the State Records Center shall be destroyed by the Public Records Administration or an affiliate vendor.C. Records which have been compromised, rendered illegible, reasonably evidenced as posing a public health hazard or otherwise unusable due to catastrophe, natural disaster or other event shall be issued a Certification of Emergency Records Destruction and may be disposed of thereafter with prior written approval from the Public Records Administration, including confirmation by the Public Records Administrator of execution by each of the required parties. If you identify records that may be compromised, your Agency must: 1. Contact the Public Records Administration immediately at records@sos.ri.gov or (401) 222-2353.2. Allow a member of the Public Records Administration to conduct a site visit to assess the records before any action is taken to dispose of records.3. Provide clear evidence, such as photo documentation and a detailed incident report, that records are unsalvageable and that every effort has been made to either create a reproduction or rescue the records prior to seeking approval for disposition via the Certification of Emergency Records Destruction. The Certification of Emergency Records Destruction: a. Shall be signed by the Agency Head or their designee.b. Shall be signed by the State Archivist/ Public Records Administrator or their designee.c. Will be maintained as a permanent record and will serve as the legal replacement for destroyed records.d. Upon approval, records shall be safely destroyed by the Agency or an appropriate affiliate vendor contracted by the Agency and specializing in disaster mitigation and document destruction.D. Records which the Agency seeks to preserve digitally shall adhere in each instance to the standards set forth in § 1.3 of this Part. In addition to the foregoing: 1. Digitizing of public records to archival standards shall be deemed the digital preservation of non-permanent records. a. The Records Officer shall submit to the Public Records Administration the Notice of Intent to Digitize form prior to executing a digitizing project.b. The Records Officer may be required by the Public Records Administrator to submit a Digital Records Preservation Strategy prior to executing a digitizing project.c. The Records Officer shall submit to the Public Records Administration the Certification of Records Destruction prior to the destruction of digitized physical records.2. Except as otherwise determined hereafter by the Public Records Administration, Microfilm of physical public records with a permanent retention requirement shall serve as the sole permitted, legal replacement for said public records. a. Records with a permanent or long-term retention requirement are eligible for microfilming pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-3-5.1.b. Microfilming must be completed in adherence to the ANSI/AIIM MS 19-1993 standards and recommendations incorporated above at § 1.3 of this Part.E. Transfer to State Archives 1. The Agency may request the State Archives, as the official State Repository, to accept the possession and custody of records with a permanent retention requirement, and which have no present legal or administrative value to the Agency but are deemed by the State Archivist/ Public Records Administrator and the Attorney General or the Auditor General to be of permanent or historical value.2. Public records determined to be of permanent value according to the Records Control Schedule and by the State Archivist/Public Records Administrator, shall be transferred to the State Archives following assessment after the twentieth (20th) year if transfer of custody is in the best interest of the record(s).3. A list of all such records transferred, together with a statement certifying compliance with the provisions of research and access as provided in R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-8.1-11, shall be preserved in the files of both the Agency and the State Archives.4. Public records created or received by general officers or other senior officials which relate to or have an effect upon the carrying out of the constitutional, statutory, or other official duties carried out on behalf of the State, shall be transferred at the end of the elected official's term within thirty (30) days of leaving such office.5. The State Archives shall organize and administer the transfer of custody of such records.100 R.I. Code R. 100-RICR-40-05-1.8
Amended effective 12/3/2018
Amended effective 12/22/2022