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Records Management Policy
January 2016
__________________________________________________________________
Records Management Policy
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Title
1. This policy may be cited as the "Records Management Policy."
Interpretation
2. In this policy:
(1)
"Council" means the council of the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's
(2)
"Designated Officer" means the person designated and authorized by the Chief
Administrative Officer of the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's, to act
on behalf of the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's to manage and
maintain the Records Management System;
(3)
"Manual" means the AMA Records Management Manual, second edition, as
amended from time to time;
(4)
"record" includes books, documents, maps, drawings, photographs, letters,
vouchers, papers and any other thing on which information is recorded or stored
by graphic, electronic, mechanical or other means, but does not include a
computer program or any other mechanism that produces records;
(5)
"Records Management System" means an electronic or paper-based system used
by the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's to manage the records of the
Municipality of the District of St. Mary's from record creation through to
records disposal;
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Records Management Policy
January 2016
The definition of "Designated Officer" is used to ensure that the Records Management System is duly designated
and authorized by the municipal government and properly managed and maintained. Municipalities may wish to
use a designated occupational title--for example, "City Clerk" or "Records Officer" in place of "Designated
Officer", wherever "Designated Officer" appears in the Model Records Management Policy.
The definition of "record" mirrors the definition in s. 461(h) of Part XX - Freedom of Information and Protection of
Privacy of the MGA and includes electronic records. All municipalities in Nova Scotia are required to comply with
Part XX - Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy provisions of the MGA
The definition of "Records Management System" permits use of a paper based or electronic record-keeping system
or a combination of the two. Under the definition of "Records Management System", the records management
system used by a municipality must use a life-cycle approach to records management.
Records Management System Established
3. The Records Management System of the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's is
established and authorized.
Under s. 34 of the MGA, the council of a municipality may adopt a policy for the management and destruction of
records. This provision establishes the Records Management System of the municipality. If an existing Records
Management System is employed by the municipality, the alternative provision should be used so that the existing
System in use is authorized by the council of the municipal unit.
Compliance with Records Management System
4. All records in the custody and control of the employees of the Municipality of the District
of St. Mary's are the property of the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's .All records
of the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's] must comply with the Records
Management System and this policy. All employees and management of the Municipality
of the District of St. Mary's must comply with this policy.
Once authorized by the council of the Municipality, both records and the employees of the municipal unit must
comply with the Records Management System and this compliance is recognized by the policy. The municipal unit is
the owner of the records, not specific departments or groups within the municipality.
Designated Officer
5. The Designated Officer is responsible for the management and maintenance of the Records
Management System.
Adoption of the Manual
6. The Designated Officer is authorized to adopt and maintain the Manual as part of the
Records Management System. Records of Municipality of the District of St. Mary's must
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Records Management Policy
January 2016
be created, accessed, maintained and disposed of only as provided by the Manual. The
Manual includes a Records Retention Schedule that prescribes the period of time that records
are kept to meet the operational, legal, regulatory, financial or other requirements of the
Municipality of the District of St. Mary's. The Records Retention Schedule also provides
instructions as to the manner and time of the disposition of a record.
The Manual may provide evidence of the integrity of records made in the usual and ordinary course of business of
municipalities in a legal proceeding. Section 23 of the Nova Scotia Evidence Act, R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 154 and s. 30 of
the Canada Evidence Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-5 deals with admitting business records into evidence.
Section 23(4) of the Nova Scotia Evidence Act provides that the circumstances in which records are kept may affect
the weight of evidence tendered in a legal proceeding as a business record. Furthermore, dealing with electronic
records, s. 23F of the Nova Scotia Evidence Act provides that for the purposes of determining admissibility of an
electronic record, evidence in respect of standards, procedures, usage or practices of how electronic records are
recorded or stored, may be presented. See also, Canada Evidence Act, s. 30(6) and s. 31.5.
Section 34 (4) of the MGA deals with authenticity of a municipal record. Section 34 provides that where a municipal
record is destroyed or an original municipal record is not produced in court, and the clerk certifies that a
reproduction is part of the records of the municipality and is a true reproduction of the original municipal record, a
photographic, photostatic or electronic reproduction of the record is admissible in evidence to the same extent as
the original municipal record and is, in the absence of proof to the contrary, proof of the record.
Integrity and Authenticity Maintained
7. The Records Management System must maintain the integrity and authenticity of records
made or kept in the usual and ordinary course of business.
Authorization to Amend Manual
8. The Designated Officer is authorized to amend the Manual.
To ensure that the Manual is up to date and complete, the Designated Officer is authorized to amend the Manual.
Disposal by Designated Officer
9. When the Designated Officer determines that the retention period for a given record
described in the Records Retention Schedule has ended, the Designated Officer may allow
the record to be destroyed or otherwise disposed of in accordance with the instructions
outlined in the Records Retention Schedule and in consultation with stakeholders within the
organization as detailed below:
(1)
The destruction actions must always be authorized, allowing for staff to intercede
if specific issues such as a government investigation, audit, freedom of
information access request, litigation or legal claim require that destruction must
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Records Management Policy
January 2016
be halted. A sample records destruction approval form is included in Appendix B
- Forms and Samples to the Manual;
(2)
Records pertaining to any actual or pending government investigation, audit,
freedom of information access request, litigation or legal claim should not be
destroyed. There should be processes to impose a "legal hold" when specific
requirements arise;
(3)
Records destruction should be undertaken in a manner that preserves the
confidentiality of records, including the privacy of information about individuals;
(4)
All copies of records that are authorized for destruction, including security,
preservation and backup copies, should be destroyed as soon as reasonably
possible; and
(5)
Records should be maintained to document the destruction actions. Certificates of
destruction are generally provided by service agencies, and these are retained
permanently, along with information about the records series title, date range and
date of destruction
This provision provides the Designated Officer with the authority to destroy or dispose of records according to the
terms of the Records Retention Schedule.
10. Records that are required by any enactment to be kept, and all minutes, by-laws, policies and
resolutions of Council shall not be destroyed.
Section 34(2) of the MGA requires that municipalities not destroy any records that are required by any enactment to
be kept. Section 34(2) also requires that minutes, by-laws, policies and resolutions of council not be destroyed.
Section 483(4) of the MGA also requires that where a municipality uses an individual's personal information to
make a decision that directly affects the individual the municipality retain that information for at least one year after
using it.
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Records Management Policy
January 2016
__________________________________________________________________
Records Management Policy
Editor's Annotations
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Enabling Legislation
Municipal Government Act, R.S.N.S. 1998, c. 18:
34
(1) The council may adopt a policy for the management and destruction of records.
. . .
Disclaimer
The purpose of this publication is to provide general information. This publication is not
intended to provide legal advice. The contents of this publication should not be relied upon. No
solicitor-client or other relationship is created by using the contents of this publication. This
publication is not a substitute for competent and independent legal advice or other professional
advice. If legal advice or other professional advice is required, the services of a competent
professional should be sought.
While the Association of Municipal Administrators of Nova Scotia ("AMANS") has made
reasonable efforts to ensure that the contents of this publication are accurate, the AMANS does
not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, currency or completeness of the contents of this
publication. The AMANS expressly disclaims all representations, warranties, conditions and
endorsements. In no event shall the AMANS, its directors, agents, consultants or employees be
liable for any loss, damages or costs whatsoever, including (without limiting the generality of the
foregoing) any direct, indirect, punitive, special, exemplary or consequential damages arising
from, or in connection to, any use of any of the contents of this publication.
Important Notice
The reader is cautioned that editorial and drafting choices involve interpretation of the law.
Municipal units should consult with their own legal advisors before relying upon, and applying
to their own circumstances, the comments or drafts contained in this Manual.
Comments
This Model Records Management Policy is premised on municipalities adopting the AMA
Records Management Manual, as amended from time to time, as its Records Management
System. If a municipality uses, or plans to use a records management system other than the
AMA Records Management Manual, the municipality must alter its Records Management
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Records Management Policy
January 2016
Policy accordingly.
If a municipality adopts this Model Records Management Policy and the AMA Records
Management Manual as its Records Management System, the municipality must be sure to
follow it. In such a situation, the municipality may be found to be liable if the municipality
destroys records contrary to its own policy and Records Management System in place.
Municipalities in Nova Scotia are bound by the Freedom of Information and Protection of
Privacy provisions of Part XX of the Municipal Government Act. Municipalities are not
bound by the provincial Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
In addition to the Municipal Government Act, municipalities should consult the following
Nova Scotia legislation regarding the duty to keep records:
o Government Records Act
o Personal Information International Disclosure Protection Act
Section 3 of the Records Management Policy (the "Policy") establishes and authorizes the
Records Management System. If a municipality has an existing Records Management System
in place, the alternate wording should be used in section 3 to authorize the existing system.
Pursuant to section 4 of the Policy, all records in the custody and control of the municipality
are the property of the municipality. Section 4 also requires that all records comply with the
Records Management System and Policy. All employees and management of the
municipality must comply with the Policy under section 4.
Under section 5, the Designated Officer is responsible for the management and maintenance
of the Records Management System.
Section 6 authorizes the Designated Officer to adopt and maintain the AMA Records
Management Manual. Pursuant to section 6, records of a municipality must only be created,
accessed, maintained and disposed of in accordance with the Manual. The AMA Records
Management Manual includes a Records Retention Schedule that prescribes the period of
time that records are kept as well as instructions as to the manner and time of the disposition
of a record.
Section 7 requires that the Records Management System in place in a municipality maintains
the integrity and authenticity of records made or kept in the ordinary course of business.
Section 8 gives the Designated Officer of a municipality the authority to amend the AMA
Records Management Manual in order to keep it current.
Section 9 gives the designated officer the authority to order a record destroyed or to be
otherwise disposed of when the retention period has ended, so long as it complies with the
instructions set out in the AMA Records Management Manual's Records Retention Schedule
and in consultation with stakeholders within the organization as detailed in subsections 9(1)
to 9(5).
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Records Management Policy
January 2016
Section 10 prohibits the destruction of records required by any enactment to be kept by the
municipality, as well as all minutes, by-laws, policies and resolutions of Council.
See the User's Guide found at the beginning of this Manual regarding the appropriate insert
to make where "[Municipality]" appears.
The Chapter # in the Policy title bar should be replaced by each municipal unit with the
Chapter number it assigns to this Policy.