Patent and Trademark Office Schedule Project Completed

Earlier this week, the records management staff from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) met with the Archivist of the United States to celebrate the completion of an 8 year scheduling project that completely revised and updated the records schedule for their agency. This milestone was marked with a brief ceremony where the Archivist … Continue reading Patent and Trademark Office Schedule Project Completed

Welcome ARMA 2011

As many of you are probably aware, the annual meeting of ARMA International takes place this year October 17-19 at the Gaylord National Hotel and Conference Center. We wanted to make everyone aware of our presence at this meeting and of the sessions and events that are of particular interest to Federal employees. There is … Continue reading Welcome ARMA 2011

New Directors Within the Office of the CRO Named

It has been just one week since Laurence Brewer and Don Rosen were named to be the Director of the National Records Management Program and the Director of Policy Analysis and Enforcement, respectively, in the newly organized Office of the Chief Records Officer. There is much to talk about and even more to do!  But … Continue reading New Directors Within the Office of the CRO Named

Records Management Training for FY 2012

NARA's Agency Services Announces the National Records Management Training Schedule for FY 2012. Our National Records Management Training Program is pleased to offer a full range of comprehensive records management training courses geared towards the Federal community. The fact is that everyone who works for the Federal government is potentially creating records everyday. These records, … Continue reading Records Management Training for FY 2012

Appraisal of US District Court Records

Recent articles have implied that the US District Courts are destroying records in an effort to save money on their storage costs. This is simply not true. What is happening is the result of a multi-year, nationwide effort by appraisal staff of the National Archives to develop some objective criteria by which records are identified … Continue reading Appraisal of US District Court Records

NGA Inspection Report Released

We have just issued our most recent inspection report, "Management of Hard Copy Mapping Products in the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency" (June, 2011). You can download a .pdf of the report here. This report presents the findings and recommendations of our inspection of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) that was conducted earlier this year. The inspection … Continue reading NGA Inspection Report Released

Mixed-Media Files Bulletin Issued

We are pleased to announce that NARA Bulletin 2011-04 has been issued. This Bulletin provides guidance to agencies who frequently manage files with records created or received in more than one type of medium. This Bulletin reminds agencies of the lifecycle management requirements for records in all formats. It also points to the need to … Continue reading Mixed-Media Files Bulletin Issued

2011 Records Management Self-Assessment: A Video

The deadline for agencies to submit their responses to the 2011 Records Management Self-Assessment is tomorrow, June 3. We've produced a short video about the self-assessment starring Chief Records Officer Paul Wester and Office of the Chief Records Officer Management and Program Analyst Angela Dorsey. A .pdf transcript of the video is also available.

Tool Spotlight: Records Control Schedule Repository

Have you ever had a question about the process for scheduling Federal records for disposition? The first step in the process is to complete an SF-115, Request for Records Disposition Authority and submit it to us for approval. After they go through the appraisal process and are approved by the Archivist of the United States, … Continue reading Tool Spotlight: Records Control Schedule Repository

ACT-IAC Releases Study on Social Media Retention Policies

This morning, an event is being held at the National Archives in Washington, DC  to announce the release of an American Council for Technology (ACT) Industry Action Advisory Council (IAC) report on Best Practices Study of Social Media Retention Policies (.pdf link). The report was produced by the IAC Collaboration and Transformation Shared Interest Group. … Continue reading ACT-IAC Releases Study on Social Media Retention Policies