[Code of Federal Regulations] [Title 36, Volume 3] [Revised as of July 1, 2006] From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access [CITE: 36CFR1234.24] [Page 915-916] TITLE 36--PARKS, FORESTS, AND PUBLIC PROPERTY CHAPTER XII--NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION PART 1234_ELECTRONIC RECORDS MANAGEMENT--Table of Contents Subpart C_Standards for the Creation, Use, Preservation, and Disposition of Electronic Records Sec. 1234.24 Standards for managing electronic mail records. Agencies shall manage records created or received on electronic mail systems in accordance with the provisions of this chapter pertaining to adequacy of documentation, recordkeeping requirements, agency records management responsibilities, and records disposition (36 CFR parts 1220, 1222, and 1228). (a) Agency instructions on identifying and preserving electronic mail messages will address the following unique aspects of electronic mail: (1) Some transmission data (names of sender and addressee(s) and date the message was sent) must be preserved for each electronic mail record in order for the context of the message to be understood. Agencies shall determine if any other transmission data is needed for purposes of context. (2) Agencies that use an electronic mail system that identifies users by codes or nicknames or identifies addressees only by the name of a distribution list shall instruct staff on how to retain names on directories or distributions lists to ensure identification of the sender and addressee(s) of messages that are records. (3) Agencies that use an electronic mail system that allows users to request acknowledgments or receipts showing that a message reached the mailbox or inbox of each addressee, or that an addressee opened the message, shall issue instructions to e-mail users specifying when to request such receipts or acknowledgments for recordkeeping purposes and how to preserve them. (4) Agencies with access to external electronic mail systems shall ensure that Federal records sent or received on these systems are preserved in the appropriate recordkeeping system and that reasonable steps are taken to capture available transmission and receipt data needed by the agency for recordkeeping purposes. (5) Some e-mail systems provide calendars and task lists for users. These may meet the definition of Federal record. Calendars that meet the definition of Federal records are to be managed in accordance with the provisions of General Records Schedule 23, Item 5. (6) Draft documents that are circulated on electronic mail systems may be records if they meet the criteria specified in 36 CFR 1222.34. (b) Agencies shall consider the following criteria when developing procedures for the maintenance of electronic mail records in appropriate recordkeeping systems, regardless of format. (1) Recordkeeping systems that include electronic mail messages must: (i) Provide for the grouping of related records into classifications according to the nature of the business purposes the records serve; (ii) Permit easy and timely retrieval of both individual records and files or other groupings of related records; [[Page 916]] (iii) Retain the records in a usable format for their required retention period as specified by a NARA-approved records schedule; (iv) Be accessible by individuals who have a business need for information in the system; (v) Preserve the transmission and receipt data specified in agency instructions; and (vi) Permit transfer of permanent records to the National Archives and Records Administration (see 36 CFR 1228.270 and 36 CFR 1234.32(a)). (2) Agencies may elect to manage electronic mail records with very short-term NARA-approved retention periods (transitory records with a very short-term retention period of 180 days or less as provided by GRS 23, Item 7, or by a NARA-approved agency records schedule) on the electronic mail system itself, without the need to copy the record to a paper or electronic recordkeeping system, provided that: (i) Users do not delete the messages before the expiration of the NARA-approved retention period, and (ii) The system's automatic deletion rules ensure preservation of the records until the expiration of the NARA-approved retention period. (3) Except for those electronic mail records within the scope of paragraph (b)(2) of this section: (i) Agencies must not use an electronic mail system to store the recordkeeping copy of electronic mail messages identified as Federal records unless that system has all of the features specified in paragraph (b)(1) of this section. (ii) If the electronic mail system is not designed to be a recordkeeping system, agencies must instruct staff on how to copy Federal records from the electronic mail system to a recordkeeping system. (c) Agencies that maintain their electronic mail records electronically shall move or copy them to a separate electronic recordkeeping system unless their system has the features specified in paragraph (b)(1) of this section. Because they do not have the features specified in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, backup tapes should not be used for recordkeeping purposes. Agencies may retain records from electronic mail systems in an off-line electronic storage format (such as optical disk or magnetic tape) that meets the requirements described at 36 CFR 1234.30(a). Agencies that retain permanent electronic mail records scheduled for transfer to the National Archives shall either store them in a format and on a medium that conforms to the requirements concerning transfer at 36 CFR 1228.188 or shall maintain the ability to convert the records to the required format and medium at the time transfer is scheduled. (d) Agencies that maintain paper files as their recordkeeping systems shall print their electronic mail records and the related transmission and receipt data specified by the agency. [60 FR 44641, Aug. 28, 1995, as amended at 66 FR 27028, May 16, 2001; 71 FR 8807, Feb. 21, 2006]