Section 4500.80  Management of Electronic Records

a)         Born-digital Records.  Born-digital records shall be subject to the same record schedules as those records originally created in other media.

b)         Databases.  Databases or components of databases may or may not be considered records, depending upon their function and contents.  An agency's Records Retention Schedule, as approved by the Commission, will be used to make such a determination.

c)         Permanent Records.  Records scheduled for permanent retention must be stored in file formats approved by the Commission (see Appendix A) at the time the records are permanently removed from the active system, at the time of active system decommissioning or at the request of the Commission.

d)         Storage Media.  Electronic records may be stored on a hard disk, magnetic tape, networks using a combination of these, or other media approved by the Commission (see Appendix B).  Stored records must be regularly migrated to new media in accordance with current industry best practices, such as, but not limited to, ANSI/ARMA 16-2007, The Digital Preservation Coalition's Digital Preservation Handbook and the University of Illinois' "Best Practices for Media Selection and Migration".  If agencies are uncertain as to whether they are following appropriate best practices, they should consult with the Illinois State Archives.

e)         Access.  Electronic records must be maintained in such a way that each record is individually accessible for the length of the scheduled retention.

f)         Backup Copies.  A minimum of two total copies of all electronic records must be preserved for the length of scheduled retention.  Copies must be stored according to current industry best practices for geographic redundancy, such as, but not limited to, NIST Special Publication 800-34 Rev. 1 – Contingency Planning Guidelines for Federal Information Systems and the New York State Archives' "Record Advisory:  Electronic Records Disaster Preparedness and Recovery".  If agencies are uncertain as to whether they are following appropriate best practices, they should consult with the Illinois State Archives.

g)         External Vendors

1)         Agencies may contract with external vendors for the storage or management of electronic records. The vendors must comply with all rules in this Section.  Contracting agencies will remain responsible for the proper management of records in the custody of vendors.

2)         Contracts for the storage of electronic records by external vendors must allow for the return of all electronic data files and indexing information to the agency at the expiration of the contract or, in the case of vendor failure, in a format complying with the requirements of subsections (c) and (e).

h)         Identification.  Each electronic record must have a unique identifier to allow for ongoing management of that record. If electronic records are stored on discrete storage media, each physical unit must have a unique identifier.

i)          System Requirements for the Management of Permanent Records

1)         Electronic Records Scheduled for Permanent Retention.  These records must be stored and managed in accordance with subsections (d) through (j).  If those requirements are not or cannot be met, then an additional microfilm or print copy must be created for permanent preservation.  Microfilm copies must be created in accordance with Sections 4500.50 and 4500.60.  Certain record types that are unsuitable for print or microfilm reproduction, such as audio or video files, are exempt from this requirement.

2)         Classification.  Systems used to store and access electronic records must allow records to maintain their relationships with one another.

3)         Security.  Systems used to store and access electronic records must not permit unauthorized additions, deletions or changes to the records.  Access to the system must be limited and strictly controlled.

4)         Access.  Systems used to store and access electronic records must allow for the retrieval of individual records and their associated metadata in a timely manner.

5)         Metadata.  Systems used to store and access electronic records must capture relevant structural, descriptive and administrative metadata at the time a record enters the system.  The system must generate additional metadata whenever a record is moved within the system or migrated to another format or storage medium.

6)         Format Migration.  Systems used to store and access electronic records must allow for the migration of stored records, and their associated metadata, notes and attachments, from one file format to another.

7)         System Maintenance.  Each agency shall ensure that hardware, software and documentation (including maintenance documentation) used to store and access electronic records are retained for the entire life of that system.

8)         System Changes.  If hardware, software and/or documentation used to store and access electronic records is replaced, or if the electronic records are migrated to a new system, the agency must ensure that the replacement hardware, software and/or documentation meets all requirements mandated in the approved records schedule and in this Section.

j)          Legacy Systems.  Agencies must make efforts to bring existing systems used for the storage of electronic records into compliance with this Section.  If systems are unable to accomplish some of the required functions, agencies must attempt to achieve the same results through separate processes. Vendor contracts for the storage or management of government electronic records must be updated for compliance when possible.

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