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Records Management Guidance
Records Management Policies, Standards, and Guidance
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Records Management Manual and Model Policy
The following manual provides an overview of how the State of Michigan's records management program functions for local governments. The model policy is provided to help local governments that are seeking to adopt a policy.
- Manual: Local Government Records Management
- Model Policy: Records Management (For Local Governments to Adopt)
Updated 8/19/2022
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Recordkeeping Issues: Schedules, Filing and Storage, Disaster Planning
The following documents provide tips and guidance about a variety of recordkeeping topics.
- FAQ: General Schedules
- Guide: Types of Records
- Tips: Recordkeeping Responsibilities
- Tips: Recordkeeping Rules
- Tips: Organizing Records
- Tips: Naming Records
- Guide: Do I need to keep this record?
- Guide: Who is the official recordkeeper?
- Guide: Designating an Official Recordkeeper
- Tips: Getting Rid of ROT (Redundant, Obsolete, and Trivial) Records
- Tips: Records Clean-up
- Tips: Employee On-boarding and Recordkeeping
- Tips: Employee Off-boarding and Record Retention
- Tips: Disaster Preparedness and Response
- Guide: Environmental Conditions for Storing Various Recording Media
- Guide: Selecting Records Storage Vendors
- Brochure: Confidential Destruction of Records
- Tips: 10 Steps to Good Records Management
Updated 4/23/2024
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Electronic Mail (Email)
The following documents provide tips and guidance about the proper management of email.
- Brochure: Email Retention
- Guide: Email Retention
- FAQ: Email Retention
- Model Policy: Email Management (fill-in-the-blank)
- Guide: Email Retention Decision Tree
- Guide: What email do I have to keep?
- Tip Sheet: Email Clean-up
- Training: Email Management (online class)
- Training: Email Organization (online class)
Updated 6/15/2023
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Imaging/Scanning Records
The following documents include laws, standards, and guidance about imaging (a.k.a. scanning) official government records. These activities are governed by the provisions of Michigan's Records Reproduction Act (see link below). DTMB Records Management Services provides scanning services to agencies that want to convert their records.
- FAQ: Digital Imaging
- Brochure: Records Scanning Services
- Best Practices: Reproducing Public Records
- Law: Records Reproduction Act (MCL 24.401 - 24.406) effective January 2005
- Best Practices: Capture of Digital Images from Paper or Microfilm
- Standards: Capturing Digital Images from Paper or Microfilm (effective August 15, 2005)
- Best Practices: Capture of Microfilm from Paper
- Standards: Capturing Microfilm from Paper (effective August 15, 2005)
- Best Practices: Capture of Microfilm from Digital Images
- Standards: Capturing Microfilm from Digital Images (effective August 15, 2005)
Updated 8/23/2022
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Electronic Records
The following guidance will help government agencies fulfill their records management responsibilities.
- Tip Sheet: Electronic Records for Local Governments
- Tip Sheet: Social Media Guidance for Local Governments
- Tip Sheet: Text Messaging
- Tip Sheet: File Formats for Electronic Records
Updated 02/27/2024
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Managers and Supervisors Toolkit
This toolkit contains resources to help managers and supervisors fulfill their recordkeeping responsibilities. Properly maintained records support business process efficiency and efficacy. This toolkit supplements the training, "Records Management for Managers and Supervisors."
- Tips: Recordkeeping Responsibilities
- Tips: Designating a Recordkeeper
- Tips: Recordkeeping Rules
- Guide: Organizing Records
- Guide: Naming Records
- Tool: Filing Rules Template
- Tips: Getting Rid of ROT (Redundant, Obsolete, and Trivial) Records
- Tips: Records Clean-up
- Tool: Records Clean-up Metrics Collection
- Tips: Employee Performance Objectives for Recordkeeping
- Tool: Records Management Training Plan Template for Employees
- Tips: Employee On-boarding and Recordkeeping
- Tips: Employee Off-boarding and Record Retention
Updated 4/23/2024