Create a Basic Retention Schedule in 5 Steps

Heidi Steed Guidelines, Records Management

Records retention is simply a practice by which an organization maintains their records for set lengths of time, and systems in which they use to either redirect, store, or dispose of those records. The records retention schedule is the policy which guides this practice, by clearly defining how long a record must be kept and the guidelines for how records …

Preparing to Set Out On the Records Management Trail

Heidi Steed Guidelines, Records Management

Howdy! Looks like you are getting ready to depart on a records management journey. The road to a good records management program will require endurance, patience and perseverance. Here are 5 things to prepare for before you hit the trail:  1. Determine your destination: You will want to determine your destination by setting records management goals. Do you want to …

ARO Spotlight: Mandy McClellan – Central Utah Water Conservancy District

Heidi Steed Records Officer Spotlights

The Central Utah Water Conservancy District manages a vast network of water facilities in eight Utah counties. Recordkeeping for this vital resource is of the utmost importance to the organization. Records Manager Mandy McClellan offers up some insight into her role and advice for other recordkeepers.  Tell us how you got your start in records management? Is this a career …

2022 Legislative Updates to GRAMA

Rebekkah Shaw GRAMA, Open Government

In the 2022 session, the Utah Legislature made several updates to the Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA). Here are the highlights.  Representative Dan Johnson sponsored House Bill 96 which contains two significant changes. First, it defines a media representative as “a person who requests a record to obtain information for a story or report for publication or broadcast …

ARO Spotlight: Brooke Smith and the Murray City Records Clean Up Project

Heidi Steed Records Officer Spotlights

Here at the Utah Division of Archives and Records Service we seek to support government agencies throughout the whole records lifecycle: from records creation, through use and access, from records storage, to destruction and preservation. So when we see a great records management project, we want to celebrate! Murray City recently shared news of their latest records clean-up project with …

Preserving Utah State Prison Records

Jim Kichas History, News and Events

Our State Government Team has been providing assistance to the Department of Corrections as they work to move the State Prison from its current site in Draper to the newly constructed site west of the Salt Lake International Airport in 2022. With so much history, and lots of official records, this is a massive project that we are excited to …

Insights from Heber’s Sexton Report

Mahala Ruddell History, Research

In March 2019, Heber City transferred a large batch of historical records to the State Archives. Although we were able to fully process and create finding aids for the bulk of the transfer that same year, the subsequent coronavirus pandemic interrupted our project. We are now eagerly wrapping up the final pieces, most of which are records from the Heber …

State Records Committee Year in Review

Rebekkah Shaw Open Government, State Records Committee

As 2021 comes to a close, we wanted to share what the State Records Committee (SRC) has been up to this year. The Committee met electronically through May. In June, we started meeting in person again at the Taylorsville State Office Building, but virtual attendance was still an option for anyone attending. Going forward, meetings will always have an option …

Highlights with Heidi: Research Archivist at Utah State Archives & Records Service

Highlights with Heidi: Authority to Weed

Heidi Stringham History, News and Events

Weeding is used to get rid of non-records (binders, folders, post-it notes, etc.), redundant records (i.e. form letters where we only need to preserve one), and misidentified records in archival collections. Archivists use their authority to weed as a collection management tool to best utilize resources, particularly physical storage and digital space. Archives RIM specialists add the phrase “with authority …