Help with Records Retention

Which Retention Schedules to Use?

• Local Government Records Retention Schedules
• State Agency Records Retention Schedules

Click to expand each topic...

Basics of Records Retention...

• What Are Records Retention Schedules?
• What Are Records Series?
• How Are Records Retention Periods Determined?
• What is an Archival Record?
• What is a Non-Archival Record?

Help Finding the Right Retention...

• How to Navigate Records Retention Schedules
• How to Determine the Correct Records Series
• How to Choose Between Multiple Records Series
• Searching Techniques for Records Retention Schedules Video (3 minutes)

How Long to Keep...

• Appointment Letters
• Audit Trails
• Backups
• Chat/Instant Messaging
• COVID-19 Contact Tracing Logs and Screening Records
• COVID-19 Pandemic Records
• COVID-19 Vaccination Verification Records
• Database Records
• Data Entry Records
• Drone Operations Records

• Drone Recordings
• Emails
• Meeting Recordings
• Migration Process Records
• Public Records Request Logs
• Public Records Requests
• Recruitment Records (Local Governments)
• Recruitment Records (State Agencies)
• Social Media Posts
• Text Messages
• Voicemails

Strategies for...

• Applying Retention Schedule Updates
• Applying Retention to Subject Files
• Managing Chat/Instant Messaging Retention
• Managing Sensitive Payment Cardholder Data
• Managing Social Media Records Retention
• Managing Voicemail Retention

Transitory Records...

• Examples of Common Records with Minimal Retention
• What Does "Until No Longer Needed for Agency Business" Mean?
• Why Isn't There Just One "Transitory" Records Series?

Other Advice...

• Difference Between Administrative and Core Mission Policies/Procedures
• Impact of Public Records Requests on Records Retention
• What are Personnel Files?
• What To Do With Non-Work-Related Appointments in Calendars