[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Victor 10-1-1990 by L.L. No. 3-1990. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
Records are essential to the administration
of local government. They contain the information that keeps government
programs functioning. It is the intent of this chapter that a records management program be established
which will assist officials in making decisions, administering programs
and providing administrative continuity with past operations. The
program would be intended to document the delivery of services, show
the legal responsibilities of government and protect the legal rights
of citizens. It will contain information on taxation and on the management
and expenditure of funds. These records will also document the historical
development of government itself, the community and the people of
the Village.
A.
There shall be a records management program established under the aegis of the Village Clerk and headed by the Records Management Officer. The Village Clerk is designated as the Records Management Officer (RMO) and will be responsible for administering the current and archival public records in storage areas for the Village in accordance with local, state and federal laws and guidelines. The RMO may appoint a designee to carry out the specific duties listed in § 29-4 if he/she so chooses.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A place where official records, which have been determined
by the Officer and Advisory Committee to have sufficient historical
or other value are preserved.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Official files, minutes and documents, books, papers, photographs,
sound recordings, emails, microforms or any other materials, regardless
of physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to
law or in conjunction with the transaction of official Village business.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
An establishment maintained by the Records Management Officer
for the storage, servicing, security and processing of records which
must be preserved for varying periods of time.
The removal by the Village, in accordance with approved records
control schedules, of the records no longer necessary for the conduct
of business by such agency through removal methods, which may include
the disposition of temporary records by destruction or donation or
the transfer of records to a central storage facility for temporary
or permanent storage of records determined to have historical or other
sufficient value warranting continued preservation or the transfer
of records from one Village agency to another Village agency.
The planning, controlling, directing, organizing, training,
promotion and other managerial activities involved in records creation,
records maintenance and use and records disposition, including records
preservation, records disposal and the records center or other storage
facilities.
Making information in records held by the Village available
to any agency for official use or to the public.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A.
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 public
records kept, filed or received by the officers and departments of
the Village.
B.
The Records Management Officer shall continually survey
and examine public records to recommend their classification so as
to determine the most suitable method to be used for maintaining,
storing and servicing them under the following guidelines:
(1)
Disposition: records deemed obsolete and unnecessary
according to the New York State Retention and Disposition Schedule
are subject to disposition.
(2)
Archival retention: information containing administrative,
legal, fiscal, research, historical or educational value which warrants
their permanent retention.
(3)
Inactive retention: records not subject to long-term
retention according to state law.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
C.
The Records Management Officer shall establish guidelines
for proper records management in any department of the Village government
in accordance with local, state and federal laws and guidelines.
D.
The Records Management Officer shall report annually
to the governing body on the powers and duties herein mentioned, including
but not limited to the development and progress of programs to date
and planned activities for subsequent years.
E.
The Records Management Officer shall operate a central
records management storage facility for storage, processing and servicing
of all Village records for all Village departments and agencies.
F.
Additional requirements of the Records Management
Officer include but are not limited to:
(1)
The development of a comprehensive records management
program.
(2)
The conduct of an initial survey and analysis of all
records, to be followed up annually with a report of records stored.
(3)
The encouragement and coordination of the continuous
legal destruction of obsolete records through the adoption and use
of the state archive Record Retention and Disposition Schedules.
(4)
The development of suitable retention periods for
records not covered by the state Records Retention and Disposition
Schedules. (Subsequently, the RMO must secure approval of such retention
periods from the New York State Commissioner of Education and gain
adoption from the Village Board of any proposed change before the
retention period takes effect.)
(5)
The assistance to each department for the establishment
of a records management system to support the overall Village records
management program. He/she shall encourage the continued efficient
management of records within respective departments.
(6)
The setting up and overseeing of a center for the
storage of inactive records.
(7)
The maintenance of archival materials which are not
official Village records but which have historical value to the community
or close relationship to the existing archival collection. This 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)
The coordinating and carrying out or participating
in the planning for development of advanced records management systems
and equipment.
(9)
The preparation of special and annual reports for
the Board of Trustees on records management program progress, cost
savings and cost avoidance problems and additional issues.
[Amended 10-20-2003 by L.L. No. 2-2003]
A.
There shall be a Records Advisory Committee designated
to work closely with and provide advice to the Records Management
Officer. The Committee shall consist of five members.
B.
The Committee shall meet periodically and have the
following duties:
(1)
To provide advice to the Records Management Officer
on the development of the records management program.
(2)
To review the performance of the program on an ongoing
basis and propose changes and improvements.
(3)
To review any changes in retention periods proposed
by the Records Management Officer for records not covered by the state
archive schedules.
(4)
To 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.
Active records. The originating department has full
custody (legal and physical) over records still in active use.
[Amended 10-20-2003 by L.L. No. 2-2003]
B.
Inactive records. The originating department is the
legal custodian of its records and shall retain the power to retrieve
and use records deposited in inactive storage in the records center.
The RMO will have physical custody of inactive records and will determine
the method and design of storage.
C.
Archival records. Records transferred to or acquired
by the Archives shall be under the full custody (legal and physical)
of the archives, as directed by the RMO, rather than the department
which created or held them immediately prior to being transferred
to the archives.
D.
Records shall be transferred to the archives upon
the recommendation of the RMO, with the approval of the head of the
department which had custody of the records and the approval of the
Records Advisory Board.
E.
Records may be removed (temporarily or permanently)
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, subject to the approval of the Records
Advisory Board.
No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed
of by a department of the Village until it has met the time limit
on the state Records Retention and Disposition Schedule or unless
approved by 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.
The Legal Department may take steps to recover
local government records which have been alienated from proper custody,
and may, when necessary, institute actions of replevin. ("Replevin"
is the recovery by a person of goods claimed to be his, on his promise
to test the matter in court and give the goods up again if defeated.)
To comply with Article 6 of the Public Officers
Law, the following format will be followed:
A.
All requests for information shall be in writing,
reasonably describing the record requested and made during regular
business hours of the Village of Victor offices.
B.
Within five business days of the receipt of the written
request, the following will occur:
C.
Any person denied access to a record may appeal, within
30 days, in writing, such denial to the Village Board.
D.
The Village Board is hereby designated as the appeal
agency for determination of denials.
E.
The Village Board shall, within 10 business days of
the receipt of an appeal, fully explain in writing to the person requesting
the record, the reason for further denial or the Village Board shall
provide access to the record sought.
F.
The Village Board shall forward to the Committee on
Open Government a copy of such appeal when received by the agency
and shall also forward to said Committee the ensuing determination
thereon.
G.
A set fee will be charged per photocopy of a record.
Such charges will be established by resolution of the Village Board.
