The Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA) provides for the release of private records to certain individuals. These individuals include the subject of the record, a parent or guardian, and additional individuals who have a notarized release or power of attorney (Utah Code Section 63G-2-202(1)(a)). GRAMA also states that before releasing a private (controlled or protected) record, a records …
Guests of Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy Visit Archives
The Utah State Archives and Records Service hosted 22 guests from the Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy on September 24, 2018. Our guests were journalists, mayors, a senator, and agency directors from several Central and South American nations who travelled to the United States to examine transparency and accountability in government. They are researching best practices …
State Records Committee News
Patricia Smith-Mansfield, who served as the Governor’s designee on the State Records Committee for 14 years while she was director of Utah State Archives and Records Service, is back on the Committee. Now she is a citizen representative. Tricia, welcome back! Tricia’s years of experience, and knowledge of records law are valuable assets for the Committee. The State Records Committee …
Classification and the Purpose of General Retention Schedules: RIM v. GRAMA
There is something unique about records management in Utah, and it might be causing confusion. We have two meanings for the term classification. One comes from the Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA), the other from the records management profession. In GRAMA Most of the records officers we work with refer to classification as defined in GRAMA, which states …
Archives welcomes New State Records Committee Executive Secretary
Gina Proctor has accepted the position of Executive Secretary for the State Records Committee. In this role, Gina will be receiving and processing appeals of records access denials as they are submitted for the Committee’s consideration. Gina will provide support for the Committee. She will write the minutes, schedule the hearings, notify all parties about meeting dates, and process details. …
2018 RIMM Webinar Series is Just Around the Corner!
Sit back and enjoy your lunch while watching a series of webinars that Utah’s Division of Archives and Records Service (aka State Archives) is hosting to celebrate Records and Information Management Month (RIMM). Wednesday, April 11, 2018. Noon-1:00 p.m. 2018 Legislative Updates by Paul Tonks, AAG counsel for the Division of Archives and the State Records Committee During the 2018 Legislative …
2018 Records Management Training Schedule
Utah’s Division of Archives and Records Service offers free records access and management training classes, webinars, and conferences to all governmental employees. Most classes are held in Salt Lake City, but we will have two regional trainings this year–one in Vernal and one in Richfield. We may also be able to provide training in your region upon request if you …
Handle Drafts With Care
The Salt Lake Tribune v. Kane County, SRC Decision, Case No. 17-44 The State Records Committee, on November 9, 2017, heard The Salt Lake Tribune v. Kane County, a case regarding Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument boundary maps prepared by Kane County and shown to the United States Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke during his listening tour to Utah in …
A Clearly Unwarranted Invasion of Personal Privacy
Utah State Archives notes that the American Library Association has created Choose Privacy Week, an “annual, week-long event that promotes the importance of individual privacy rights and celebrates libraries and librarians’’ unique role in protecting privacy in the library and in society as a whole.” Much has been said about the value of government transparency, however, personal privacy is also important. The …
A Portal to Sunshine
Utah holds a distinguished reputation as the new Silicon Valley or, more fondly, is referred to as the Silicon Slopes. Thus, it is not surprising that in 2014 the Utah Legislature enacted the Open Records Portal, a website designed to encourage government transparency and accountability. Since its infancy, the public has submitted over 2000 records requests through the portal to …