Australian Society of Archivists
1999 Conference
Changes within the Archives Authority of New South
Wales
Catherine Robinson
As Tony Newton has noted, the State
Records Act has had an impact on the archives and records professions
in the wider NSW public sector. I would now like to narrow the focus
to State Records and the way in which the Act has changed roles for
recordkeeping professionals within our organisation.
A new organisation
With the proclamation of the
State
Records Act on 1 January 1999, the Archives Authority of New
South Wales ceased to exist and was replaced by the
State Records Authority of
New South Wales, known as State Records. This change was more
than just a change in organisation name. It was a major turning point
for the work of the Government Recordkeeping program and the ongoing
development of a whole of government recordkeeping framework(1)
for the New South Wales Public Sector. Finally, we had a legislative
basis for much of our work in developing recordkeeping standards and
electronic recordkeeping.
Part 2 of the Act establishes the records management
responsibilities of NSW Government agencies, area health services,
universities and local government bodies. It is the first time that
records management responsibilities have been articulated for NSW
Government. In describing the records management responsibilities, the
Act also established clear roles for State Records as the records
management standard setting organisation and the regulator of records
management in the NSW public sector. The establishment of these new
roles has had a major impact upon the work and activities of the
Government Recordkeeping program. I would like to look at each of
these roles, how they have been established under the provisions of
the new Act, and the challenges that each role brings to the
recordkeeping professional. Firstly, our role as a standard setting
organisation.
Setting the standard for records management
Many of you may be aware of the standards development work which had
been occurring at the Archives Authority for sometime. In preparation
for the new Act, we drafted the two key standards that needed to be
ready when the Act came into operation. Exposure drafts of these two
standards, on Full and Accurate Records and Records
Management Programs, respectively,(2)
were released for comment in May 1996 to major New South Wales
Government agencies and to interested parties outside the New South
Wales public sector. These standards take quite a different approach
to the Australian Standard on Records Management(3)
in that they are ‘outcomes oriented’ rather than describing
specific practices, and are measurable and objective in examining an
organisation's records management practices and program. The Standard
on Records Management Programs also incorporates a ‘compliance
checklist’, designed to function as a tool for auditing an agency’s
records management program or for the agency's own assessment of its
records management program.
In addition to this early standards work, we had been involved for
many years in drafting and publishing best practice guidance in
various aspects of records management for the NSW public sector. This
role allowed us to provide guidance and advice to agencies within our
jurisdiction. We often felt that we were simply an advice bureau, and
with no legislative backing for a role in standard setting or the
articulation of best practice, our advice about recordkeeping best
practice was often not taken up until there were major failures in
recordkeeping within an agency.
Briefly, Part 2, s.13 of the State Records Act defines and
articulates a role for the State Records Authority in approving and
issuing standards and codes of best practice for all aspects of
records management for the NSW public sector. We are obliged to
consult with public offices and to seek the approval of our Board
before issuing a new standard or code of best practice. Once issued,
State Records is also obliged to keep standards and codes of best
practice under review.
One way in which we can see this new role operating and the types of
activities being undertaken by recordkeeping professionals, is by
examining the processes of issuing and promulgating records management
standards. Once the drafting process for the Standard on Full and
Accurate Records and Standard on Records Management Programs
was complete, it was opportune to issue these standards to NSW
Government agencies in order to allow them sufficient time to become
familiar with the standards and to implement them prior to the
commencement of the Act. We had also received requests from records
managers who wanted to use the draft standards as authoritative
documents within their agencies in order to raise awareness of records
management and the forthcoming Act and its obligations.
As the Archives Authority of NSW did not have a role within NSW
Government as a standard setting organisation, we had to look beyond
the boundaries of our organisation to find other organisations which
could formally issue our standards to NSW Government agencies. This
involved a rather convoluted consultation and endorsement process
which finally resulted in the standards and two electronic
recordkeeping policies being issued to NSW Government agencies under a
government directive in June 1998.(4)
Under the provisions of the new Act this situation will not occur
again. We are able to develop and issue standards without requiring
other agencies to issue or promulgate them on our behalf. It will
definitely make the role of articulating best practice much simpler.
The Act also provides us with simple mechanisms for the development
and issuance of standards and codes of best practice on records
management.
Simply, State Records is able to approve of standards and codes of
best practice for records management. We either adopt standards or
develop them ourselves. At the moment we are currently developing a
draft Standard on the Storage of Records(5)
for the storage of records in active and semi-active environments.
Once a draft standard or code of best practice is completed, State
Records is obliged to consult with public offices in its jurisdiction.
The Act also requires that a notice should be placed in the NSW
Government Gazette inviting submissions on the draft standard or code
of best practice. In reality our consultation processes are far wider
than those envisaged in the legislation. We hold focus groups and
contact agencies directly for their input into drafts. Once the
consultation process is completed, State Records must then seek the
approval of the Board of State Records, before any standards and codes
of best practice may be issued. A key element in obtaining approval
from the Board is an ability to demonstrate to the Board that formal
consultation mechanisms have been undertaken. Once the Board has
approved a standard or code of best practice, it can then be formally
issued to public offices, and we must also give formal notification of
its existence by publishing a notice in the Government Gazette.
In addition to this role of establishing records management
standards for NSW Government, we are also obliged to review standards
and codes of best practice which are issued for use within NSW
Government. This is a role we have not yet actively engaged in,
however I envisage that a formal review process which incorporates
wide consultation will be developed within the next year or so.
Challenges
The role of the standard setting organisation has provided
recordkeeping professionals with the opportunity to articulate best
practice as has never before been possible. However undertaking such a
role does involve a number of challenges. These include:
- maintaining an awareness of current best practices in all areas
of recordkeeping
- preparing standards which endorse best practices and are suited
to the environment of the NSW Government, that is standards which
are capable of being implemented across the NSW Government
- balancing competing interests in consultation processes, and
- the implementation of the records management standards.
I think that this last challenge is perhaps the greatest for us;
obviously any standard which we approve of, must be capable of being
implemented, and in this way, we can set the rules for recordkeeping
in our jurisdiction. However ensuring that the standards are
implemented appropriately within agencies requires us to look wider
than the new legislative role which we have been granted.
In the last six months we have noticed that we are playing an
increased advice and educative role to NSW Government. We have noticed
an increased demand for:
- training courses
- visits to agencies to explain the importance of recordkeeping or
how the agency may meet the obligations of the new Act
- requests to participate in agency records management steering
committees, and
- general assistance in implementing the records management
standards.
Many agencies want to know more than just the desired outcomes, they
are interested to know the specifics in meeting the desired outcomes.
The result of this has been the production of further guidance
documents to explain specific strategies which can be used to meet the
minimum compliance requirements contained within the standards.
The reality is that our standard setting role requires us to play an
educative role in order to ensure the successful implementation of the
standards. Ultimately the role will ensure that the State Records
Authority is recognised as having a role in providing expertise on
recordkeeping to the NSW public sector through its standards and codes
of best practice, but also in the advice and guidance it can provide
to organisations within its jurisdiction.
Regulating records management across the NSW
public sector
The second role established under the new Act, is that of the
regulator of records management across the NSW public sector. While
preparing this paper I was conscious of the fact that the Archives
Authority had had a role in regulating disposal activities across the
NSW Government agencies for many years, and while this role continues
under the new Act, the regulatory role envisaged by the Act is much
broader than just the disposal aspect of recordkeeping.
Briefly, Part 2 of the Act requires public offices (NSW Government
agencies, local government, universities and area health services) to
make arrangements with State Records for the monitoring of the public
office's records management program. They are also expected to report
to State Records on the implementation of their records management
program. Public offices are also required to provide State Records
with access to State Records in order to allow us to monitor
compliance with the Act and its requirements. Finally, the Act
requires State Records to report to the relevant Minister any failures
by a public office to comply with the requirements of the Act. State
Records may also include details about failures to comply with the Act
in its Annual Report. This is a very new regulatory framework for
government agencies and for recordkeeping professionals in NSW.
So how will this regulatory role work in practice?
Annual Records Management Survey
From 1996 the Archives Authority has been undertaking surveys of
records management programs and practices in NSW Government agencies.
The primary purpose of the survey was to acquire empirical data to
enable the Archives Authority to measure its performance in improving
government recordkeeping. In addition, it was intended that the survey
would enable us to identify trends in aspects of records management
across Government over time and would provide valuable intelligence
for planning the development of guidance, training and other products
and services.
Survey questionnaires were distributed in 1996 through to 1998 to
160 major agencies and area health services of the New South Wales
Government. As there was no compulsion to complete and return the
survey, our return rates of 65% and 55% were satisfactory. We designed
the survey to gain a general quantitative overview of programs and
practices, which could be analysed statistically. We did not seek to
collect detail about specific agencies’ systems and processes and
stressed that the exercise was not intended to measure compliance with
the records management standards and electronic recordkeeping
policies. The 1998 Records Management Survey was also a voluntary
affair, however our return rate was much higher, 70% of agencies
returned completed surveys. We suspect that the new legislation had an
impact on the return rate.
From 1999 onwards these surveys will now be compliance-based to
assist our stronger regulatory role in monitoring records management
within the NSW Government. The survey will no longer be a voluntary
matter and any answers which concern us will prompt a more direct
investigation and involvement with the agency. We have also commenced
to survey local government and when the Act commences for them on 1
January 2000, the local government survey will also become compliance
oriented.
I should like to note that we have undertaken to publish results of
each year's records management surveys, and these reports appear on
State Records' web site. The survey reports on records management have
revealed the state of records management across our jurisdiction and
have highlighted a number of deficiencies in government recordkeeping.
These deficiences have been incorporated into major strategies for the
Government Recordkeeping program, for example raising the disposal
coverage of NSW Government agencies and the preparation of guidance on
disaster management.
Reporting on records management in State
Records' Annual Report
Information gained during the records management survey process has
also been incorporated into our Annual Report for the last two years.
While we have used the intelligence gained through the survey process
to indicate broadly the trends and developments, incorporation into
the Annual Report also provides a wider scope for the dissemination of
such information. In future years we will be using our Annual Report
for discussing records management issues and compliance with the Act.
Obviously public offices which repeatedly fail to comply with records
management standards may well find themselves the subject of an entry
in the Annual Report.
Visits and participation with agency staff
Obviously surveys are not the only mechanism which we can use to
monitor records management across the NSW Government. There are other
more subtle mechanisms which we can employ for monitoring records
management. We are paying visits to public offices and also
participating in steering committees which are formed within agencies
to improve recordkeeping. These interactions with agencies afford us
the opportunity to make contact with the agency, check on practices
and the implementation of the records management program and steer the
agency towards better or improved practices. It also assists us to
check survey information against the reality of the agency situation.
Compliance audits
In addition to the annual records management survey, the other major
way in which we will be monitoring records management programs is
through the formal compliance audits.
Rather than establish and resource an audit program of our own, we
have been establishing arrangements with the Audit Office of NSW to
conduct compliance audits on our behalf. We have received strong
support from the Audit Office of NSW, who are keen to carry out
recordkeeping audits as part of their regular cycle of compliance
audits. We had envisaged conducting the compliance audit next year
however the later commencement of the Act and the phased introduction
of compliance requirements of the Standard on Records Management
Programs has meant that the audit will be conducted in 2001-2002.
The compliance audit will be based on existing audit methodologies
and will be primarily against the minimum compliance requirements of
the Standard on Records Management Programs. Public offices
will be required to show compliance to the Standard through their
documentation and practices. We intend to release the audit program to
public offices as soon as practicable in order to allow them the
opportunity to conduct a self assessment of their readiness for the
formal external audit. Additionally we are encouraging public offices
to use the compliance checklist at the back of the Standard to conduct
self assessments now in order to determine their level of compliance.
Challenges
Implementing the regulatory aspects of Part 2 of the Act has brought
its own set of challenges. These challenges have required us to
consciously rethink the roles which we play within NSW Government. The
challenges also emphasise the effect which the new legislation has had
upon the role of the recordkeeping professional within State Records.
Firstly, the challenges in changing cultures. Effectively on 1
January we took on the role of regulator. The ramifications of this
role are still emerging, however it has meant that we have had to
rethink relationships with other organisations, vendors, consultants
and suppliers. We need to be even handed in our dealings with such
companies. Additionally we need to react in particular ways to
intelligence about bad recordkeeping. Rather than wring our hands
about the situation, we have to take a proactive role, and while being
firm and friendly, ensure that better practices are implemented. We
are still learning to wear the regulator's hat and the angst that
comes with such a role. Agencies within the jurisdiction are also
having to get use to State Records staff working within the role of
regulator and I suspect it will be some time before we are all
comfortable with this new role.
Another challenge we face is the need to balance competing
interests. We set the standards for recordkeeping for NSW Government
and we also regulate recordkeeping for NSW Government. These roles
could quite conceivably be in competition to each other. Thus the
independent compliance audit to be conducted in 2001 will provide a
truly objective measure of an agency's records management practices.
It will also provide us with an objective measure of how we are
meeting our goals in both of these roles. An associated challenge will
be to assist the Audit Office in incorporating our recordkeeping
requirements into a useable audit document.
Another major challenge is dealing with the regional versus
metropolitan divide. As Tony has already noted, we do need to
recognise that public offices outside of the Sydney metropolitan area
are often cut out of the information and resources loop, and that for
these organisations the prospect of a compliance audit is rather
daunting. We need to ensure that we address the regional concerns
equally and allay fears. This is also one area where we may need to
use the discretionary provisions of section 12 which allow us to be
flexible in the application of the requirements of the standards and
codes of best practice. The implementation of the draft Standard
on Storage of Records is one particular case where I envisage
that we will need to recognise the differences between regional and
metropolitan and implement the standard in a flexible manner which is
reflective of the differences between city and country.
The most major challenge for us, will be the need to manage issues
of non-compliance. How far will we go if an agency repeatedly fails to
comply with the requirements of the Act? Will we report them to their
Minister? Will we make an issue of their non-compliance in our Annual
Report? It has been said before that we intend to "carry a big
carrot rather than a big stick". Such an approach has strong
merit and I would like to think that we are able to work through most
non-compliance issues with a public office. However I can envisage
particular situations where we may need to involve the full force of
the Act's regulatory provisions. If we simply let an agency repeatedly
demonstrate their non-compliance to the Act, we send a very powerful
message to other agencies about our willingness not to use the
provisions of the Act. Obviously the ramifications of the regulatory
provisions are major and need to be well thought through before they
are invoked. However the provisions were included in the Act as a
mechanism which could be resorted to if necessary, and it is important
that we use the full weight of the provisions if they are required.
Footnotes
(1) For further information on the development and
implementation of the whole of government records management
framework, see David Roberts 'Establishing the Continuum: Building a
Recordkeeping Regime Across Government' in Preserving Yesterday,
Managing today, Challenging Tomorrow, Records Management
Association of Australia (RMAA) 14th Convention Proceedings, Perth,
1997; and Catherine Robinson 'From Proposal to Practice: Recordkeeping
in the New South Wales Government' paper presented at the Edmonton
Chapter of the Association of Records Managers and Administrators
(ARMA) 1999 Seminar, Managing Change - A Blueprint for the Future,
held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, 2 - 3 March 1999. Both papers are
available on the State Records Authority’s web site at
http://www.records.nsw.gov.au/
(2) Standard on Full and Accurate Records,
Issued April 1998; Standard on Records Management Programs,
Issued April 1998 (available on the State Records Authority’s
web site at http://www.records.nsw.gov.au/)
(3) Australian Standard AS 4390 – 1996, Records
Management
(4) NSW Premier's Memorandum, No. 98-16, Records
Management Standards and Policies, 9 June 1998.
(5) The draft Standard on the Storage of
Records will be issued to NSW public offices for comment in
August/September 1999. |
