Article 5
50-18-92. Creation
of State Records Committee; membership; duties; retention schedules; appeal to committee
by agency heads; court records.
50-18-93. Duties of
department.
50-18-94. Duties of
agencies.
50-18-95. Agency
heads retain authority to determine records required by departments; treatment of
confidential records.
50-18-96. Copies of
records as primary evidence.
50-18-97. Effect of
certified copies of records fee.
50-18-98. Title to
records; access to records of constitutional officers.
50-18-99. Records
management programs for local governments.
50-18-100. Lifting
restrictions on access to confidential, classified, or restricted records after 75 years;
earlier lifting.
50-18-101. Use of
confidential, classified, or restricted records for research; limitations.
50-18-102. Records
as public property; disposing of records other than by approved retention schedule as
misdemeanor; person acting under article not liable.
50-18-103. Construction
of laws and rules.
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Georgia Records Act." (Ga.
L. 1972, p. 1267, 1.)
As
used in this article, the term:
(1) "Agency" means any state office, department,
division, board, bureau, commission, authority, or other separate unit of state government
created or established by law.
(2) "Court
record" means all documents, papers, letters, maps, books (except books formally
organized in libraries), microfilm, magnetic tape, or other material, regardless of
physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or, in the
necessary performance of any judicial function, created or received by an official of the
Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, and any superior, state, juvenile, probate, or magistrate
court. "Court record" includes records of the offices of the judge, clerk,
prosecuting attorney, public defender, court reporter, or any employee of the court.
(3) "Department" means the Department of Archives
and History.
(4) "Georgia State Archives" means an
establishment maintained by the department for the preservation of those records and other
papers that have been determined by the department to have sufficient historical and other
value to warrant their continued preservation by the state and that have been accepted by
the department for deposit in its custody.
(5) "Records" means all documents, papers,
letters, maps, books (except books in formally organized libraries), microfilm, magnetic
tape, or other material, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received
pursuant to law or ordinance or in performance of functions by any agency.
(6) "Records center" means an establishment
maintained by the department primarily for the storage, processing, servicing, and
security of public records that must be retained for varying periods of time but need not
be retained in an agency's office equipment or office space.
(7) "Record series" means documents or records
having similar physical characteristics or relating to a similar function or activity that
are filed in a unified arrangement.
(8) "Records management" means the application of
management techniques to the creation, utilization, maintenance, retention, preservation,
and disposal of records undertaken to reduce costs and improve efficiency of record
keeping. "Records management" includes management of filing and microfilming
equipment and supplies; filing and information retrieval systems; files, correspondence,
reports, and forms management; historical documentation; micrographics; retention
programming; and vital records protection.
(9) "Retention schedule" means a set of
disposition instructions prescribing how long, where, and in what form a record series
shall be kept.
(10) "Vital records" means any record vital to
the resumption or continuation of operations, or both; to the re-creation of the legal and
financial status of government in the state; or to the protection and fulfillment of
obligations to citizens of the state. (Ga. L. 1972, p. 1267, 2; Ga. L. 1973, p. 691, 1, 2;
Ga. L. 1975, p. 675, 1; Ga. L. 1978, p. 1372, 4; Ga. L. 1983, p. 884, 4-1; Ga. L. 1984, p.
22, 50.)
a) There is created the State Records Committee, to be
composed of the Governor, the Secretary of State, an appointee of the Governor who is not
the Attorney General, and the state auditor, or their designated representatives. It shall
be the duty of the committee to review, approve, disapprove, amend, or modify retention
schedules submitted by agency heads, school boards, county governments, and municipal
governments through the department for the disposition of records based on administrative,
legal, fiscal, or historical values. The retention schedules, once approved, shall be
authoritative, shall be directive, and shall have the force and effect of law. A retention
schedule may be determined by three members of the committee. Retention schedules may be
amended by the committee on change of program mission or legislative changes affecting the
records. The Secretary of State shall serve as chairman of the committee and shall
schedule meetings of the committee as required. Three members shall constitute a quorum.
Each agency head has the right of appeal to the committee for actions taken under this
Code section.
(b) Each court of this state may
recommend to the State Records Committee and the Administrative Office of the Courts
retention schedules for records of that court. The committee, with the concurrence of the
Administrative Office of the Courts, shall adopt retention schedules for court records of
each court. The destruction of court records by retention schedule shall not be construed
as affecting the status of each court as a court of record. (Ga. L. 1972, p. 1267, 3; Ga.
L. 1975, p. 675, 2; Ga. L. 1978, p. 1372, 1; Ga. L. 1981, p. 1422, 2; Ga. L. 1988, p. 426,
1.)
It
shall be the duty of the department to:
(1) Establish and administer, under the direction of a state
records management officer, who shall be employed under the rules and regulations of the
state merit system, a records management program;
(2)
Develop and issue procedures, rules, and regulations establishing standards for efficient
and economical management methods relating to the creation, maintenance, utilization,
retention, preservation, and disposition of records, filing equipment, supplies,
microfilming of records, and vital records programs;
(3) Assist state agencies in implementing records programs
by providing consultative services in records management, conducting surveys in order to
recommend more efficient records management practices, and providing training for records
management personnel; and
(4) Operate a records center or centers which shall accept
all records transferred to it through the operation of approved retention schedules,
provide secure storage and reference service for the same, and submit written notice to
the applicable agency of intended destruction of records in accordance with approved
retention schedules. (Ga. L. 1972, p. 1267, 4; Ga. L. 1975, p. 675, 3.)
It shall be the duty of each agency to:
(1) Cause to be made and preserved records containing
adequate and proper documentation of the organization, functions, policies, decisions,
procedures, and essential transactions of the agency and designed to furnish the
information necessary to protect the legal and financial rights of the government and of
persons directly affected by the agency's activities;
(2)
Cooperate fully with the department in complying with this article;
(3) Establish and maintain an active and continuing program
for the economical and efficient management of records and assist the department in the
conduct of records management surveys;
(4) Implement records management procedures and regulations
issued by the department;
(5) Submit to the department, in accordance with the rules
and regulations of the department, a recommended retention schedule for each record series
in its custody, except that schedules for common-type files may be established by the
department. No records will be scheduled for permanent retention in an office. No records
will be scheduled for retention any longer than is absolutely necessary in the performance
of required functions. Records requiring retention for several years will be transferred
to the records center for low-cost storage at the earliest possible date following
creation;
(6) Establish necessary safeguards against the removal or
loss of records and such further safeguards as may be required by regulations of the
department. The safeguards shall include notification to all officials and employees of
the agency that no records in the custody of the agency are to be alienated or destroyed
except in accordance with this article; and
(7) Designate an agency records management officer who
shall operate a records management program. (Ga. L. 1972, p. 1267, 5; Ga. L. 1975, p. 675,
4, 5; Ga. L. 1978, p.1372, 2.)
(a) Nothing in this article shall be construed to divest
agency heads of the authority to determine the nature and form of records required in the
administration of their several departments. Notwithstanding this Code section, agency
heads shall carry out the provisions of Code Section 50-18-94.
(b) Any records designated confidential by law shall be so treated by the
department in the maintenance, storage, and disposition of such confidential records.
These records shall be destroyed in such a manner that they cannot be read, interpreted,
or reconstructed. (Ga. L. 1972, p. 1267, 6; Ga. L. 1975, p. 675, 6.)
Photostatic copies of records produced from microfilm and
print-out copies of computer records shall be received in any court of this state as
primary evidence of the recitals contained therein. (Ga. L. 1972, p. 1267, 8.)
The department may make certified copies under seal of
any records or any preservation duplicates transferred or deposited in the Georgia State
Archives or the records center or may make reproductions of such records. The certified
copies or reproductions, when signed by the director of the Department, shall have the
same force and effect as if made by the agency from which the records were received. The
department may establish and charge reasonable fees for such services. (Ga. L. 1972, p.
1267, 9.)
(a) Title to any record transferred to the Georgia State
Archives as authorized by this article shall be vested in the department. The department
shall not destroy any record transferred to it by an agency without consulting with the
proper official of the transferring agency prior to submitting a retention schedule
requesting such destruction to the State Records Committee. Access to records of
constitutional officers shall be at the discretion of the constitutional officer who
created, received, or maintained the records, but no limitation on access to such records
shall extend more than 25 years after creation of the records.
(b) Title to any record transferred to the records center shall remain in the
agency transferring such record to the records center. (Ga. L. 1972, p. 1267, 10; Ga. L.
1973, p. 691, 3; Ga. L. 1975, p. 675, 8.)
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) "Governing body" means the governing body of
any county, municipality, or consolidated government. The term includes school boards of
this state.
(2) "Office or officer" means
any county office or officer or any office or officer under the jurisdiction of a
governing body which maintains or is responsible for records.
(b) This article shall apply to local governments, except
as modified in this Code section.
(c) All records created or received in the performance of a
public duty or paid for by public funds by a governing body are deemed to be public
property and shall constitute a record of public acts.
(d) Prior to July 1, 1983, each office or officer shall
recommend to the governing body a retention schedule. This schedule shall include an
inventory of the type of records maintained and the length of time each type of record
shall be maintained in the office or in a record-holding area. These retention periods
shall be based on the legal, fiscal, administrative, and historical needs for the record.
Schedules previously approved by the State Records Committee will remain in effect until
changed by the governing body.
(e) Prior to January 1, 1984, each governing body shall
approve by resolution or ordinance a records management plan which shall include but not
be limited to:
(1) The name of the person or title of the officer who will
coordinate and perform the responsibilities of the governing body under this article;
(2) Each retention schedule approved by the governing body; and
(3) Provisions for maintenance and security of the records.
(f) The Secretary of State, through the department, shall
coordinate all records management matters for purposes of this Code section. The
department shall provide local governments with a list of common types of records
maintained together with recommended retention periods and shall provide training and
assistance as required. The department shall advise local governments of records of
historical value which may be deposited in the state archives. All other records shall be
maintained by the local government.
(g) Except as otherwise provided by law, ordinance, or
policy adopted by the office or officer responsible for maintaining the records, all
records shall be open to the public or the state or any agency thereof. (Ga. L. 1972, p.
1267, 11; Ga. L. 1973, p. 691, 4; Ga. L. 1978, p. 1372, 3; Ga. L. 1981, p. 1422, 1.)
(a) This Code section applies only to those records:
(1) That are confidential, classified, or restricted by Acts
of the General Assembly or may be declared to be confidential, classified, or
restricted by future Acts of the General Assembly, unless the future
Acts specifically exempt these
records from this Code section; and
(2) That have
been, or are in the future, deposited in the Georgia State
Archives or in other state
operated archival institutions because of their
value for historical research.
(b) All restrictions on access to records covered by this
Code section are lifted and removed 75 years after the creation of the record.
(c) Restrictions on access to records covered by this Code
section may be lifted and removed as early as 20 years after the creation of the record on
unanimous approval in writing of the State Records Committee.
(d) Applications requesting that the State Records
Committee review and consider lifting such restrictions may be made either by the director
of the department or by the head of the agency that transferred the record to the
archives. (Ga. L. 1975, p. 675, 10.)
(a) Records that by law are confidential, classified, or
restricted may be used for research purposes by private researchers providing that:
(1) The researcher is qualified to perform such research;
(2) The research topic is designed to produce a study that would be
of potential benefit to the state or its citizens; and
(3) The researcher will agree in writing to protect the
confidentiality of
the information contained in the records. When the purpose of the
confidentiality is to protect the rights of privacy of any person or
persons who are named
in the records, the researcher must agree not to
refer to the persons, either in his notes
or in his finished study or in any
manner, in such a way that they can be identified. When
the purpose of
the confidentiality is to protect other information, the researcher must
agree not to divulge that information.
(b) The head of the agency that created the records, or his
designee, shall determine whether or not the researcher and his research topic meet the
qualifications set forth in subsection (a) of this Code section prior to accepting the
signed agreement from the researcher and granting permission to use the confidential
records.
(c) The use of such confidential records for research shall
be considered a privilege and the agreement signed by the researcher shall be binding on
him. Researchers who violate the confidentiality of these records shall be punished in the
same manner as would government employees or officials found guilty of this offense. (Ga.
L. 1975, p. 675, 11.)
(a) All records created or received in the performance of
duty and paid for by public funds are deemed to be public property and shall constitute a
record of public acts.
(b) The destruction of records shall occur only through the operation of an approved
retention schedule. The records shall not be placed in the custody of private individuals
or institutions or semiprivate organizations unless authorized by retention schedules.
(c) The alienation, alteration, theft, or destruction of records by any person or persons
in a manner not authorized by an applicable retention schedule is a misdemeanor.
(d) No person acting in compliance with this article shall be held personally liable. (Ga.
L. 1972, p. 1267, 7; Ga. L. 1975, p. 675, 7.)
Whenever laws or rules and regulations prescribe where a record
series must be kept, the custodian of the records shall be considered in compliance with
the laws and rules and regulations if he transfers the records to a local holding area, a
records center, or the Georgia State Archives when he does so in accordance with an
approved retention schedule. (Ga. L. 1975, p. 675, 12.)
| 
