[Adopted at time of adoption of Code]
Records shall be available for public inspection and copying at the
office of the Town Clerk, Town Building, Milton, New York.
Requests for public access to records shall be accepted and records
produced during all hours that the Clerk's office is regularly open for business.
A notice containing the title or name and business address of the records
access officer and appeals body and the location where records can be seen
or copied shall be posted in a conspicuous location wherever records are kept
and/or published in a local newspaper of general circulation.
[Adopted 7-9-1990 as L.L.
No. 2-1990]
There shall be a records management program established under the aegis
of the Town Board and headed by a Records Management Officer (RMO). The Officer
will be responsible for administering the noncurrent and archival public records
and storage areas for the Town of Marlborough in accordance with local, state
and federal laws and guidelines. The RMO will appoint a designee, if needed.
The Officer shall have all the necessary powers to carry out the efficient
administration, determination of value, use, preservation, storage and disposition
of the noncurrent and archival public records kept, filed or received by the
offices and departments of the Town of Marlborough. The Records Management
Officer shall:
A. Continually survey and examine public records to recommend
their classification so as to determine the most suitable methods to be used
for the maintaining, storing and servicing of archival material. Classification
shall be as follows:
(1) Obsolete and unnecessary records according to New York
State records retention and disposition schedules thereby subject to disposition.
(2) Information containing administrative, legal, fiscal,
research historical or educational value which warrant their permanent retention.
(3) Records not subject to disposition according to state
law.
B. Establish guidelines for proper records management in
any department or agency of the Town of Marlborough in accordance with local,
state and federal laws and guidelines.
C. Report annually to the chief executive official and the
governing body on the powers and duties herein mentioned, including but not
limited to the cost/benefit ratio of programs effectuated by the department.
D. Operate a records management center for the storage,
processing and servicing of all noncurrent and archival records for all Town
of Marlborough departments and agencies.
E. Establish a Town of Marlborough archives and perform
the following functions:
(1) Advise and assist the Town of Marlborough departments
in reviewing and selecting material to be transferred to the Town of Marlborough
archives for preservation.
(2) Continually survey and examine public records to determine
the most suitable methods to be used for the creating, maintaining, storing
and servicing of archival materials.
(3) Establish and maintain an adequate repository for the
proper storage, conservation, processing and servicing of archival records.
(4) Promulgate rules governing public access to and use of
records in the archives, subject to the approval of the Records Advisory Board.
(5) Develop a confidentiality policy for archival records
designated confidential, provided that such policy does not conflict with
any federal or state statutes.
(6) Provide information services to other local government
offices.
(7) Collect archival materials which are not official Town
of Marlborough records, but which have associational value to the locality
or a close relationship to the existing archival collection. Such collecting
shall be subject to archive space, staff and cost limitations and to the potential
endangerment of such materials if they are not collected by the archives.
(8) Develop a procedure whereby historically important records
are to be identified at the point of generation.
There shall be a Records Advisory Board designated to work closely with
and provide advice to the Records Management Officer. The Board shall consist
of the local government counsel, the fiscal officer, members of the Town Board,
the local historian and other interested citizens of the community. The Board
shall meet periodically and have the following duties:
A. Provide advice to the Records Management Officer on the
development of the records management program.
B. Review the performance of the program on an ongoing basis
and propose changes and improvements.
C. Review retention periods proposed by the Records Management
Officer for records not covered by state archives' schedules.
D. Provide advice on the appraisal of records for archival
value and to be the final sign-off entity as to what is or is not archival.
The legal counsel for the Town of Marlborough may take steps to recover
local government records which have been alienated from proper custody and
may, when necessary, institute actions of replevin.
No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by a department
of the Town of Marlborough unless approval has been obtained from the Records
Management Officer. No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of
by the Records Management Officer without the express written consent of the
department head having authority.
As used in this Article, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
ARCHIVES
Those official records which have been determined by the Officer
and the Advisory Board to have sufficient historical or other value to warrant
their continued preservation by the local government.
RECORDS
Any documents, books, papers, photographs, sound recordings, microforms
or any other materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made
or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction
of official Town of Marlborough business.
RECORDS CENTER
An establishment maintained by the Town of Marlborough primarily
for the storage, servicing, security and processing of records which must
be preserved for varying periods of time and need not be retained in office
equipment or space.
RECORDS DISPOSITION
A.
The removal by the Town of Marlborough, in accordance with approved
records control schedules, of records no longer necessary for the conduct
of business by such agency through removal methods which may include:
(1)
The disposal of temporary records by destruction or donation; or
(2)
The transfer of records to the record center/archives for temporary
storage of inactive records and permanent storage of records determined to
have historical or other sufficient value warranting continued preservation.
B.
The transfer of records from one local agency to another agency, upon
request.
RECORDS MANAGEMENT
The planning, controlling, directing, organizing, training, promotion
and other managerial use and records disposition, including records preservation,
records disposal and records centers or other storage facilities.
SERVICING
Making information in records available to any local agency for official
use or to the public.