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Purpose
The Public Records Act 2002 (the Act) prohibits the disposal of public records without the permission of the State Archivist. The primary purpose of this Information Standard, which is managed and administered by Queensland State Archives, is to help public authorities meet their recordkeeping obligations under the Act.
The principles in this Information Standard are underpinned by the principles of sound recordkeeping as outlined in Information Standard 40: Recordkeeping and apply to records in all formats including technology-dependent records.
Systematic, transparent and consistent disposal programs facilitate and support:
- Efficient delivery of Government services
- Continuity of business processes
- Accountability
- Accessibility of Government information, and
- Preservation of Queensland's cultural resources.
In this Information Standard, the term 'disposal' includes:
- Keeping all or part of a record for a period of time
- Destroying, deleting or migrating a record or part of a record, and
- Abandoning, transferring, donating or selling a record or part of a record.
Definitions for other terms used in this Information Standard can be found in the Glossary of Archival and Recordkeeping Terms on the Queensland State Archives website.
Policy
Public authorities must ensure that records are appraised and retained according to accountability, legal, administrative, financial, research and community requirements and expectations. Those public records deemed to be of continuing value need to be identified and retained in a usable form for a minimum period as specified in an approved Retention and Disposal Schedule.
There are two mandatory principles in this Information Standard, which are:
- Public authorities must ensure public records are retained for as long as they are required, and
- The disposal of public records must be authorised by the State Archivist.
Scope
This Information Standard relates to the retention and disposal domain of the Information Policy Framework of the Queensland Government Enterprise Architecture (QGEA). It applies to public authorities as defined under the Public Records Act 2002.
The principles of this Information Standard apply to records in all formats including technology-dependent records. Technology-dependent records are records that require a technological device for their creation, storage, access and use. It covers records under the control of a public authority, including records in the custody of shared service providers and other entities performing functions on behalf of the public authority (e.g. commercial storage providers).
Issue and review
This Information Standard is issued under the authority of the State Archivist in s.25 of the Public Records Act 2002. It is published within the QGEA and is managed by the Queensland Government Chief Information Office (QGCIO). It was developed by Queensland State Archives and approved by the Director-General, Department of Public Works on 30 June 2009.
This QGEA Information Standard will be reviewed periodically. The next review date is June 2012.
Implementation
The authority for the implementation of the mandatory principles of this Information Standard is primarily derived from the Public Records Act 2002. This Standard forms part of the Queensland State Archives’ whole-of-Government Recordkeeping Policy Framework which identifies the key policies, advice, guidelines and tools relevant to Queensland public authorities.
This Standard expands on Principle 7 of Information Standard 40: Recordkeeping in relation to the retention of public records for as long as they are required for business, legislative, accountability and cultural purposes.
Further implementation advice to support each of the minimum requirements in this Information Standard may be found in the Guideline for the Development of Retention and Disposal Schedules and the Guideline for the Implementation of Retention and Disposal Schedules.
For general advice on recordkeeping refer to Queensland State Archives’ Guideline for Recordkeeping.
IS31 implementation toolbox
Mandatory Principles
Principle 1 - Public authorities must ensure public records are retained for as long as they are required
The Chief Executive of each public authority is accountable for the creation, management, appraisal and retention of its public records to ensure the accountability, legal, administrative, financial and research needs of the Government and the community are met. In consultation with Queensland State Archives, public authorities are responsible for assessing the value of the records they hold and setting appropriate retention periods for those records. Decisions on retention periods are documented in a Retention and Disposal Schedule. At a minimum, public authorities must:
- Develop, and submit for the State Archivist's approval, a Retention and Disposal Schedule covering the core-business records of the agency which meets the requirements of Queensland State Archives' Guideline for the Development of Retention and Disposal Schedules
- Retain the agency's public records according to the relevant classes under an approved Retention and Disposal Schedule.
Principle 2 - The disposal of public records must be authorised by the State Archivist
The disposal (including the destruction, damage, abandonment, donation, amendment, sale or transfer) of public records (or part of a record) can only be performed with the written authorisation of the State Archivist or other legal authority. At a minimum, public authorities must:
- Dispose of public records in accordance with a Retention and Disposal Schedule approved by the State Archivist that is current at the time of disposal
- Ensure all disposal is endorsed by the Chief Executive or an authorised delegate
- Ensure the method of destruction of public records is appropriate to the sensitivity of the records and conforms with local environment regulations, and
- Document the disposal of public records.