Electronic Records Standards and Procedures
State Agency Bulletin Number One
As amended, effective November 2005
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Contents
6.91. Definitions
6.92. General
6.93. Creation of Electronic State
Records
6.94. Retention of Electronic State
Records
6.95. Final Disposition of Electronic
State Records
6.96. Maintenance of Electronic
Records Storage Media
6.97. Guidelines for the Management
of Electronic Transactions and Signed Records
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Section 6.91. Definitions
The following words and terms, when used in these sections, shall
have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise. Terms not defined in these sections shall have the meanings
defined in the Government Code, §441.180.
(1) Archival state record-A state record of enduring value that will
be preserved on a continuing basis by the Texas State Library
and Archives Commission or another state agency until the state
archivist indicates that based on a reappraisal of the record
it no longer merits further retention.
(2) Electronic mail record-An electronic state record sent or received
in the form of a message on an electronic mail system of a state
agency, including any attachments transmitted with the message.
(3) Electronic mail system-A computer application used to create,
receive, retain, and transmit messages and other attached records.
Excluded from this definition are file transfer utilities.
(4) Electronic records system-Any information system that produces,
manipulates, and stores electronic state records by using a computer.
(5) Electronic state record-Information that meets the definition
of a state record in the Government Code, §441.031 and §441.180, and is maintained
in electronic format for computer processing, including the product
of computer processing of the information.
(6) Mailing list service-An electronic mailing list hosting service
(e.g., Listserv) used for discussions and announcements within
a specified group of individuals. Subscribers to the service participate
by sending information to and receiving information from the list
using electronic mail messages.
(7) State record-As defined by the Government Code, §441.180(11),
any written, photographic, machine-readable, or other recorded
information created or received by or on behalf of a state agency
or an elected state official that documents activities in the
conduct of state business or use of public resources. The term
does not include library or museum material made or acquired and
maintained solely for reference or exhibition purposes; an extra
copy of recorded information maintained only for reference; or
a stock of publications or blank forms. As provided by the Government Code, §441.031, the term also does not include any records, correspondence, notes, memoranda, or documents, other than a final written agreement described by §2009.054(c), associated with a matter conducted under an alternative dispute resolution procedure in which personnel of a state department or institution, local government, special district, or other political subdivision of the state participated as a party, facilitated as an impartial third party, or facilitated as the administrator of a dispute resolution system or organization.
(8) Transitory information-Records of temporary usefulness that are
not an integral part of a records series of an agency, that are
not regularly filed within an agency's recordkeeping system, and
that are required only for a limited period of time for the completion
of an action by an official or employee of the agency or in the
preparation of an on-going records series. Transitory records
are not essential to the fulfillment of statutory obligations
or to the documentation of agency functions.
Source Note: The provisions of this Section 6.91 adopted to be
effective December 6, 2000, 25 TexReg 11935; amended to be effective November 13, 2005, 30 TexReg 7221
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Section 6.92. General
(a) These sections establish the minimum requirements for the
management of all electronic state records.
(b) The head of each state agency must ensure:
(1) that a program is established for the management of state
records created, received, retained, used, transmitted, or disposed
on electronic media;
(2) that the management of electronic state records is integrated
with other records and information resources management programs
of an agency;
(3) that electronic records management objectives, responsibilities,
and authorities are incorporated in pertinent agency directives;
(4) that procedures are established for addressing records
management requirements, including retention requirements and
disposition;
(5) that training is provided for users of electronic records
systems, including electronic mail systems, in the operation,
care, and handling of the information, equipment, software,
and media used in the systems;
(6) that up-to-date documentation is developed and maintained
about all electronic state records that is adequate for retaining,
reading, or processing the records and ensuring their timely,
authorized disposition; and
(7) that a security program for electronic state records is
established that is in compliance with subsection (b) of 1 TAC
201.13 (relating to Information Resource Standards).
Source Note: The provisions of this Section 6.92 adopted to be
effective December 6, 2000, 25 TexReg 11935
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Section 6.93. Creation Electronic State Records
(a) Any state agency electronic records system, already in use
on the effective date of these sections, should meet the minimum
requirements in subsection (b) of this section to the extent possible.
(b) Any electronic records system developed or acquired by a
state agency, after the effective date of these sections, must
meet the following requirements:
(1) have the capability for preserving any electronic state
record resident in the system for its full retention period;
or, there must not be any system impediments that prevent migrating
the record to another electronic records system, in as complete
a form as possible;
(2) sufficiently identify records created on the system to
enable agency staff to retrieve, protect, and carry out the
disposition of records in the system;
(3) ensure that any electronic state records can be identified
that are part of a records series maintained in multiple records
media such as paper, microform, etc.; and
(4) provide a standard interchange format, when determined
to be necessary by the agency, to permit the exchange of records
on electronic media between agency computers using different
software/operating systems and the conversion or migration of
records on electronic media from one system to another.
Source Note: The provisions of this Section 6.93 adopted to be
effective December 6, 2000, 25 TexReg 11935
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Section 6.94. Retention of Electronic State Records
(a) A state agency must establish policies and procedures to:
(1) ensure that an electronic state record and any software,
hardware, and/or documentation, including maintenance documentation,
required to retrieve and read the electronic state record are
retained as long as the approved retention period for the record;
or
(2) provide for recopying, reformatting, and other necessary
maintenance to ensure the availability and usability of an electronic
state record until the expiration of its retention period.
(b) Except as provided in subsection (c), a state agency's records
retention schedule submitted for certification or recertification
after the effective date of these sections must schedule by record
series all electronic state records maintained by the agency,
in accordance with the Government Code, §441.185, and Chapter
6, Subchapter A of this title (relating to Records Retention Schedule).
(c) An electronic state record must be individually accessible.
System tapes used for data backup or disaster recovery, unless
indexed for accessibility, must not be used to satisfy records
retention requirements.
(d) A state agency's electronic mail system, already in use on
the effective date of these sections, should meet the minimum
requirements in subsection (e) of this section to the extent possible.
(e) Any electronic mail system developed or acquired by a state
agency, after the effective date of these sections, must meet
the following requirements.
(1) Some transmission data (name of sender and addressee(s);
date/time the message was sent) must be retained for each electronic
mail record, except for mailing list services that do not identify
the addressees.
(2) A state agency must determine if any other transmission
data is needed to maintain the integrity of the electronic mail
record.
(3) A state agency that uses an electronic mail system that
identifies users by codes or nicknames or identifies addressees
only by the name of a distribution list must instruct staff
on how to retain names on directories or distribution lists
to ensure identification of the sender and addressees of messages.
(4) A state agency having an electronic mail system that allows
users to request confirmation that a message has been received
or opened must establish guidelines for the appropriate retention
of this information.
(5) A state agency must provide for the organization of electronic
mail records according to the agency's approved records retention
schedule.
Source Note: The provisions of this Section 6.94 adopted to be
effective December 6, 2000, 25 TexReg 11935
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Section 6.95. Final Disposition of Electronic
State Records
(a) Any electronic state record may be destroyed only in accordance
with a records retention schedule approved in accordance with
the Government Code §441.185 or, in lieu of an approved records
retention schedule, an approved records disposition authorization
request.
(b) An electronic state record that is an archival record must
be maintained by the agency through hardware and software migrations
and upgrades as authentic evidence of the state's business in
accessible and searchable form, except as otherwise determined
by the state archivist.
(c) A state agency must ensure that:
(1) an electronic state record scheduled for destruction is
disposed of in a manner that ensures protection of any confidential
information; and
(2) magnetic storage media previously used for an electronic
state record containing confidential information is not reused
if the previously recorded information can be recoverable through
reuse in any way, when the media passes out of custody of the
agency.
(d) A state agency must establish and implement procedures that
address the disposition of an electronic mail record by staff
in accordance with its approved records retention schedule and,
specifically, must establish guidelines to enable staff to determine
if an electronic mail record falls under transitory information
(records series item number 1.1.057) on the agency's approved
records retention schedule in order to encourage its prompt disposal
after the purpose of the record has been fulfilled.
(e) The following requirements apply when a state agency receives
a court order for expunging of information recorded on an optical
Write-Once-Read-Many (WORM) disk.
(1) Two methods are allowed for expunging information from
a WORM disk:
(A) all of the indices, pages, or documents on a disk, other
than the expunged document(s), must be rewritten to a new
disk and the old disk must be physically destroyed, or;
(B) the information may be overwritten to obliterate the
original image, leaving no evidence of the original information.
(2) In cases where a complete page or record is expunged, all
reference to the page or record must be removed from the index.
If the index has been copied, the index must be recopied after
the reference to the page or record has been removed.
(3) Copies of the original WORM disk and copies of the information
removed by expungement must be destroyed or changed to reflect
the court order. All copies of the record, index, or reference
to the original unrevised information on WORM disk copies or
copies in any other media must be destroyed.
Source Note: The provisions of this Section 6.95 adopted to be
effective December 6, 2000, 25 TexReg 11935
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Section 6.96. Maintenance of Electronic Records
Storage Media
(a) If an agency has a storage room for magnetic tape, it must
be maintained within 65 degrees Fahrenheit to 75 degrees Fahrenheit,
and 30% to 50% relative humidity.
(b) A random sample of all magnetic tapes stored in tape libraries
must be read annually to identify any loss of data and to discover
and correct the causes of data loss according to the following:
(1) at least a 5% sample or a sample size of 50 magnetic tapes,
whichever is less, must be tested for read errors;
(2) tapes with unrecoverable errors must be replaced and the
data must be restored to the extent possible; and
(3) all other tapes which might have been affected by the same
cause (i. e. poor quality tape, high usage, poor environment,
improper handling) must be read and corrected.
(c) A state agency must establish a schedule for recopying electronic
state records maintained on electronic media to ensure that no
information is lost.
(d) Electronic state records maintained on floppy disks (diskettes)
must be recopied a minimum of once a year.
(e) Electronic storage media must have an external label or an
index, such as electronic records systems utilizing automated
disk/tape library management systems, that includes the following
information:
(1) name or other identifier of the organizational unit responsible
for the records;
(2) descriptive title of the contents;
(3) dates of creation and authorized disposition date;
(4) security classification;
(5) identification of the software (to include specific application
if appropriate) and hardware used; and
(6) operating system title and version.
(f) The following standards must be met for electronic records
stored as digital images on optical media.
(1) A non-proprietary image file header label must be used,
or the system developer must provide a bridge to a non-proprietary
image file header label, or the system developer must supply
a detailed definition of image file header label structure.
(2) The system hardware and/or software must provide a quality
assurance capability that verifies information written to the
optical media.
(3) Scanned image quality must be evaluated according to the
standard procedures in American National Standard for Information
and Image Management-Recommended Practice for Quality Control
of Image Scanners (most current version of ANSI/AIIM MS44).
(4) A visual quality control evaluation must be performed for
each scanned image and related index data.
(5) A scanning resolution with a minimum of 200 dots per inch
is required for recording documents that contain no type font
smaller than six point.
(6) For documents with a type font smaller than 6 point, scanning
resolution must be adequate to ensure that no information is
lost.
(7) The selected scanning resolution must be validated with
tests on actual documents.
(8) The use of the International Telecommunication Union-Technical
(ITU-T) Group 3 or Group 4 compression techniques is required
for document images without continuous tonal qualities. If use
of a proprietary compression technique is unavoidable, the vendor
must provide a gateway to either Group 3 or Group 4 compression
techniques.
Source Note: The provisions of this Section 6.96 adopted to be
effective December 6, 2000, 25 TexReg 11935
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Section 6.97. Guidelines for the
Management of Electronic Transactions and Signed Records
(a) The Guidelines for the Management of Electronic
Transactions and Signed Records, which are available at http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/slrm/recordspubs/index.html#ueta,
are adopted by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
The guidelines are based on the work and recommendations of the
Uniform Electronic Transactions Act Task Force. The task force was
jointly created by the commission and the Department of Information
Resources to advise the agencies on the rules each might adopt pursuant
to the Business and Commerce Code, §43.017.
(b) The Guidelines for the Management of Electronic
Transactions and Signed Records are applicable to state agencies
that send and accept electronic records and electronic signatures
to and from other persons and by state agencies that otherwise create,
generate, communicate, store, process, use, and rely upon electronic
records and electronic signatures.
(c) The Guidelines for the Management of Electronic
Transactions and Signed Records describe electronic records, electronic
signatures, and trustworthy records; describe common types of risks
that pertain to electronic transactions and signed records, describe
the need for, and how to conduct risk assessments, as well as how
to conduct a cost/benefit analysis to determine if the electronic
transaction is practical. The Guidelines also discuss risk mitigation
and security relating to electronic records and signatures; and
records management issues, including life cycle vs. system development
life cycle, preservation of electronically signed records, and the
role of records managers and auditors in the implementation of a
process to accept electronically signed documents. The Guidelines
include appendices that discuss current electronic signature technologies,
contain a checklist for evaluating electronic signatures, discuss
the technical considerations of various electronic signature alternatives,
and briefly comment on the International Organization for Standardization
nonrepudiation model.
(d) For archival state records, state agencies must
ensure that the printed name of the electronic signer, as well
as the date the signature was executed, be included as part of
a human readable form (such as electronic display or printout)
of the electronic record.
Source Note: The provisions of this Section 6.97 adopted to be effective
March 12, 2003, 28 TexReg 2056
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