Section 4500.50  Standards for the Reproduction of Records by Microphotographic and Electronic Microimaging Processes with a View to the Disposal of the Original Records

a)         Records proposed for microfilming or electronic microimaging with a view to disposal of the original records must be on a list or retention schedule approved by the Commission.

b)         In submitting lists or schedules of records scheduled for permanent retention for which microfilm copies are to be substituted, the head of each agency shall certify that microfilm copies, made in accordance with standards of the Commission, will be adequate substitutions for the original records.

c)         Quality of the Film Used.  The film stock must be silver halide and the processing of the film shall comply with the minimum standards of quality required by the Commission as set forth in Section 4500.60.

d)         Preparation of the Records for Filming or Electronic Microimaging

1)         All documents in the file shall be microfilmed, unless their size or physical form prevents microfilming, in which case an explanation of their omission shall be microfilmed at the appropriate point on the roll of film and be worded substantially as follows:

"(Item Description) was omitted from this roll of film

because ____________________________________.

It may be located _____________________________."

2)         Any records not filmed shall be maintained by the agency under terms specified on the approved Records Retention Schedule.

e)         Integrity of the Original Records

1)         The integrity of the original records shall be preserved through a photographic or electronic microimaging process so that the image on film, or exact duplicates of the image, will be adequate substitutes for the original records in that they will serve the purposes for which the records were created or maintained and that the copies will contain all significant record detail needed for probable future reference and will not permit additions, deletions or changes to the reproductions of the original images.

2)         Prior to microfilming, the original documents shall be prepared, arranged, classified and indexed to readily permit the subsequent location, examination and reproduction of the photographs.  Any significant characteristics of the records that would not reflect photographically (e.g., that the record is indistinct or that certain figures are of a color not suited to recording on microfilm) shall be indicated by means of an explanatory target inserted to guide the user.  Any notations on the face or reverse side of any document shall be photographed and identified as forming an integral part of the original document.  A significant characteristic is any part of the record necessary for its interpretation, including all words, numbers and illustrations.

A)        Each film roll, camera negative, or sheet (including 105 mm continuous fiche film rolls, but not COM) shall be identified by or contain the following targets:

i)          A technical target for measuring resolution.

ii)         A film density target (8½ x 11 inch bond paper).

iii)        A roll number START target in characters that can be read without magnification.

iv)        A TITLE target giving name of the office having custody of the records, a brief title of the record series, dates, file arrangement, and the number of the schedule approved by the Commission authorizing the project.

v)         Listed between the START file and END file targets must be explanatory targets for omission, deletion, misfiles, retakes, or any example given in subsection (e)(2).

B)        At the end of each roll/sheet of film, after the document images, shall be targets as follow:

i)          An END target containing the number of the list or schedule approved by the Commission authorizing the project.

ii)         Roll number.

iii)        Brief title of the record series.

iv)        Beginning and ending file designations.

v)         A Camera/Electronic Microimaging Operator's Certificate as follows:

"I hereby certify that I have on this ____ day of _______, 20___, photographed or electronically microimaged the documents appearing on this roll of film, that they are true copies of the documents found in the record file described above, and that the integrity of the above described record file has been maintained on this film by microfilming or electronically microimaging each document in the exact order in which it was found in the file.  Reproductions designed to serve as permanent records comply with the regulations and standards of the Local Records Commission of Cook County."

vi)        Signature of camera operator.

vii)       A film density target (8½ x 11 inch bond paper).

viii)      A technical target for measuring resolution.

f)         Security microfilm shall have no breaks, cuts or splices in the body of the film, which shall be the area following the START target and preceding the Camera/Electronic Microimaging Operator's Certificate.  However, a retake of a length of film may be spliced ahead of the START target or after the Camera/Electronic Microimaging Operator's Certificate, providing that the retake be given its own START target and Camera/Electronic Microimaging Operator's Certificate.  This shall be done in such a manner as not to overload a reel or cartridge.  Exceptions to this requirement are:

1)         If the trailing end of a reel shall be fogged or unreadable, the camera or electronic microimaging operator shall rephotograph the original documents or obtain the corresponding electronically microimaged documents from a point 12 images in advance of the last readable image prior to the fogged or unreadable area.  The retake will include a Camera/Electronic Microimaging Operator's Certificate and will be spliced to the trailing end of the fogged or unreadable portion of the film.

2)         When a court-ordered expungement of specific records is issued and deletions are made from the roll of film, the court expungement order and a Certificate of Deletion, illustrated below, must be photographed or electronically microimaged and the images spliced to the beginning of the film.

CERTIFICATE OF DELETION

This is to certify that deletion of microfilm images on this roll of microfilm occurred due to Court Order #_______________, dated ___________________, signed by Judge_________________ ___________________.  No other images other than those listed in this order were deleted.

_______________________________

Signature of Officer

g)         The camera or microimaging system used to microfilm the records shall be one that accurately reproduces the content of the original records with sufficient photographic contrast and resolution to be readable through three generations of reproduction.

h)         Each roll of original film or camera negative must be inspected after processing and before duplicate copies are made.  The inspection must be conducted in such a manner as to reveal defects such as improper density, poor resolution, blurred or obscured images, improper document sequence, or improper identification targets.  If a defect prohibits a clear, legible, hard copy print from the files, the original records must be rephotographed.  The following methods are suitable means of inspection:

1)         Random sampling of the film, including samples from the beginning, middle, and end of the roll or microform.  (It is suggested that this be done on all film as a minimum quality control.)

2)         Visually inspecting the film by passing each image through a reader and checking for overlapping, double or folded images, or other types of problems that would impair retrieving any information on the microimages.

3)         Performing all of the requirements of subsection (h)(2) plus counting the number of microimages on the film and comparing that against the number of documents that were to be microfilmed.  (If the numbers coincide, the conclusion is made that every document has been microfilmed.)

4)         Individually comparing each document with each microimage that was actually created.  (This visual verification provides the highest assurance that every document has been properly filmed.)

i)          If more than 1% of the original images needs to be refilmed (approximately 30 images per roll), the entire roll must be refilmed.

j)          Updateable Microfiche Systems.  An agency considering using an updateable microfiche system should first contact the Commission to review the proposed application.  This application will be approved if the updateable microfiche meets the following specifications:

1)         Each microfiche must have the specified targets at the beginning and end of each fiche as required by subsections (e)(2)(A) and (B).

2)         Each time a microfiche is updated, either a Camera Operator's Certificate must be inserted at the end of the added documents or an annotated reference to the original Camera Operator's Certificate must appear on each added image.

3)         Only records bearing retention periods of 10 years or less may be placed on updateable microforms.

4)         If a court-ordered expungement is necessary, a Certificate of Deletion must appear at the place of the deleted image.

k)         Prior to the destruction of records microfilmed under the authority of approved records schedules, the agency shall file a Local Records Disposal Certificate with the Commission that lists all records that are to be destroyed and certifies compliance with this Section.

l)          Each film carton shall be identified by a label or exterior marking indicating:

1)         Roll number.

2)         Name of office.

3)         Title of the record series.

4)         Names of the file units at the start of the roll, at space targets, and at the end of the roll.

5)         The number of the application authorizing the microfilming of the record/record series.

m)        Inspection.  Security or master films of permanent record microforms, and records microfilmed to dispose of the original record, shall be inspected every 2 years during their scheduled life.  The inspection shall be made using a 1% randomly selected sample in the following categories:  70% − microforms not previously tested; 20% − microforms tested in the last inspection; and 10% − control group.  The control group shall represent samples of microforms from the oldest microforms filmed through the most current.

(Source:  Amended at 39 Ill. Reg. 3094, effective February 11, 2015)