TSLAC Guidance for Records Management During the COVID-19 Pandemic

(Author: Rebecca Hanna, Coauthor: Erica Siegrist) In April 2020, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) released answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Records Management During the COVID-19 Pandemic. This article will answer the same questions to provide Texas-specific guidance for state agencies and local governments. Records Management Related to Teleworking How should Texas…

IG + RM within a color wheel

Information Governance and the Records Lifecycle

by Erica Rice When we talk about records management on this blog, we often use the “R.I.M.” or “RIM” acronym as a shorthand way to refer to the “records and information management” field. Records management (RM) is no longer a siloed discipline; RIM practitioners need to manage records within the entire information landscape of their…

Person typing the copyright symbol on a typewriter.

Copyright Records

by Erica Rice How long should you keep records documenting the copyright of an original work of authorship? Records documenting the copyright status of original works are administratively valuable when it comes to crafting licensing agreements, drafting acceptable use notices, responding to infringement lawsuits, etc. For Texas state universities, the answer is simple: follow the…

Remote Training

Creating Records at Home, Part II: Zoom

by Erica Rice Continuing our series on “Creating Records at Home” (Part I covered Microsoft Teams), let’s talk about what to do with records created in videoconferencing platforms like Zoom. Many readers may be getting questions from their staff about what to do with their Zoom recordings and chat logs. Are they records, and if…

COVID-19 Health Screening Records

by Erica Rice Note: This article only applies to local governments and state agencies that are not healthcare providers. Any public health agencies, public hospitals, or health departments should follow the retention periods in Schedule HR (for local governments) or in their specific agency retention schedule. Since the start of the 2020 pandemic, many organizations…

Teams

Creating Records at Home, Part I: Microsoft Teams

by Erica Rice [Edited 7/16/20: This post was updated to include new information about applying retention policies in Teams.] The great Dr. Patricia C. Franks once wrote, “Records and information managers who understand the way work is conducted in their organizations have a better chance of identifying and providing intellectual and/or physical control over the…

COVID-19 Records and How Long to Keep Them

by Erica Rice [Updated 7/6/2020]: On July 2, 2020, the U.S. Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued guidance requiring that all Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act grant documentation be retained for 5 years. Visit the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s website for more information about CARES funds. The analysts here at TSLAC…