[Adopted 2-25-1997 by L.L. No. 1-1997]
A.
The appointment of the City Clerk as Records Management
Officer by the City Manager pursuant to Article 57-A, Local Government
Records Law, of the Arts and Cultural Affairs Law of the State of
New York was approved by the City Council by Resolution No. 251, authenticated
and certified September 14, 1988. The City Clerk as RMO will be responsible
for administering the noncurrent and archival public records and storage
areas for the City of New Rochelle in accordance with local, state
and federal laws and guidelines.
B.
The City of New Rochelle's Records Management Program
objectives shall be to:
(1)
Facilitate the creation of usable records containing
accurate and complete information.
(2)
Save tax dollars through efficient administration
of information resources.
(3)
Prevent the creation of unnecessary records.
(4)
Make recorded information available and readily accessible
when needed, thereby minimizing time spent searching for files and
documents.
(5)
Ensure the systematic legal disposition of obsolete
records.
(6)
Encourage the lasting preservation of archival records
- those identified as having sufficient legal, administrative, fiscal
or historical value to warrant their permanent retention.
The City Clerk as the Records Management 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 City of New Rochelle.
A.
The City Clerk shall continually survey and examine
public records to recommend their classification so as to determine
the most suitable method to be used for the maintaining, storing and
servicing of archival material. Classifications 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; or
(3)
Records not subject to disposition according to state
law.
B.
The City Clerk, working independently and/or with
the advice of the Local Government Records Management Advisory Council,
shall establish guidelines for proper records management in any department
or agency of the City of New Rochelle in accordance with local, state
and federal laws and guidelines.
C.
The City Clerk shall report annually to the chief
executive official and the governing body of the powers and duties
herein mentioned, including but not limited to the attainment of annual
planning goals and objectives.
D.
The City Clerk shall operate a Records Management
Center for the storage, processing and servicing of all noncurrent
and archival records for all City of New Rochelle departments and
agencies.
E.
The City Clerk shall establish a City of New Rochelle
Archives and perform the following functions:
(1)
Advise and assist City of New Rochelle departments
in reviewing and selecting material to be transferred to the City
of New Rochelle 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 City of New
Rochelle offices.
(7)
Collect archival materials which are not official
City of New Rochelle records but which have associational value to
the City of New Rochelle 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 Local Government Records Management
Advisory Board designated to work closely with and provide advice
to the City Clerk (RMO). The Board shall be appointed by the City
Clerk (RMO) and shall include the following members: the City Clerk
as its Chairperson, a liaison member of City Council, the City's Historian,
representatives of key City departments, such as Development, Law,
Finance, City Clerk's Office, Police, Fire, Public Works; at least
one representative from the Thomas Paine Historical Society; and other
interested citizens. 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
Office 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.
A.
A City of New Rochelle department is the legal custodian
of its records and shall retain custody of records deposited in the
records center. Records transferred to or acquired by the archives
shall be under the custody and control of the archives rather than
the department which created or held them immediately prior to being
transferred to the archives.
B.
Records shall be transferred to the archives upon
the recommendation of the RMO, with the approval of the head of the
department which has custody of the records.
C.
Records may be permanently removed from the archives
at the request of the RMO or the head of the department which had
custody of the records immediately prior to the transfer of those
records to the archives.
The City of New Rochelle 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 City of New Rochelle 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:
Those official records which have been determined by the
City Clerk (RMO) and Advisory Board to have sufficient historical
or other value to warrant their continued preservation by the local
government.
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 City of New Rochelle
business.
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.
The removal by the City of New Rochelle, 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:
The transfer of records from one City of New
Rochelle agency to any other City of New Rochelle agency.
An establishment maintained by the City of New Rochelle 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.
Making information in records available to any City of New
Rochelle agency for official use or to the public.
