Determining the Office of Primary Responsibility for Records
Identifying the Office(s) of Primary Responsibility for specific
records helps in reducing redundant record keeping and coordinates the
disposition of convenience or informational copies when records
are destroyed. It also aids in locating official records or documents
subject to legal holds or open records requests.
The Office(s) of Primary of Responsibility is determined by
the:
- Office responsible for the creation of the record.
- Primary responsibility for operations related to the record.
- Performs the decisive action on a form, document or other record keeping requirement.
Specific Districts and Divisions may have the responsibility
for the same document within the agency. For example, more than
one District or Division may be responsible for the official record if:
- It serves a different function in more than one District or Division, or
- The District or Division office has "sign-off" or approval responsibility related to a process, and where another District or Division office is responsible for maintaining the official record.
It is possible that files related to an office's function
often contain mixed original official records and convenience copies. Some
duplication is inevitable, and it is unnecessary or impractical
to micromanage files on a document-by-document basis. When in doubt,
the best practice in this circumstance is to treat the file as the
official record and manage it accordingly.