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White House extends deadline for electronic records to June 2024

The long-standing goal of moving to a paperless government has moved on again, and the White House is now allowing agencies to fully transition to electronic records management by the end of June 2024.

A 2019 directive set December 31, 2022, as the deadline for the National Archives and Records Administration to stop accepting paper records from agencies.

But just as the leader in federal records for the past two months had predicted, December 23rd…

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The long-standing goal of moving to a paperless government has moved on again, and the White House is now allowing agencies to fully transition to electronic records management by the end of June 2024.

A 2019 directive set December 31, 2022, as the deadline for the National Archives and Records Administration to stop accepting paper records from agencies.

But As expected of a leader in federal records for the past two months, December 23rd Memo The Office of Management and Budget will extend that deadline to June 30, 2024. The memo is signed by OMB Director Shalanda Young and Archivist Debra Steidel Wall of the United States.

“From 1 July 2024, institutions will be required to digitize permanent records created in analog format before forwarding them to NARA,” the memo read. “Digitization and transfer must be in accordance with NARA regulations and transfer guidance, including metadata requirements.”

The memo cites challenges faced by institutions in digitizing records during COVID-19 restrictions as a major driver of the delay.

It also establishes a “limited exception” for the June 30, 2024 deadline. Exceptional intrinsic value in its original form. ”

On the other hand, all temporary records that are not transferred to NARA and that can be destroyed after a certain period of time must be managed electronically “to the greatest extent possible” by the end of June 2024.

“Moving federal agencies to an electronic, or ‘paperless’, environment is a priority for increasing the ability of the public to engage with government in new, more efficient and effective ways,” the note said. said. “It’s critical that federal agencies embrace the opportunity to move beyond paper-based processes and improve government by moving fully to an electronic environment.”

According to Jason R. Baron, a professor at the University of Maryland and former NARA litigation director, the delayed electronic records retention deadlines aren’t surprising.

“For some time it was doubtful whether the entire federal government could transition to electronic records management by the end of 2022,” Baron told the Federal News Network. “While the memorandum cites COVID-19 as the reason the agency needs more time, the real underlying reason for the delay is the limited resources the agency faces and the associated problems. These systemic issues aren’t going away anytime soon, and it remains to be seen if agencies will be able to meet even extended deadlines.”

A government-wide move to phase out paper record keeping has begun In 2012, when the Obama administration set a target Manage electronic records “to the greatest extent possible” by 2020. showed their confidence To reach that goal by 2018.

Ultimately, however, the 2020 target was not achieved due to challenges with metadata requirements and a delayed IT modernization project. In the summer of 2019, the Trump administration Set a tough deadline for when NARA will stop accepting paper records End of 2022.

Prior to the pandemic, 98% of institutions reported being confident they would meet the 31 December 2022 deadline.

But Only 66% of positive responses A 2021 report to NARA released earlier this year. More than a third of agencies said he planned to apply for a waiver to NARA, but a quarter of agencies had not yet determined whether a waiver was required. .

“Institutions indicated delays in digitization projects and records disposition due to continued restrictions on access to hardcopy records in offices and other storage spaces,” NARA said in an agency response. I am writing a summary report.

As Barron pointed out, COVID-19 wasn’t the only challenge. Although most federal records are created and stored electronically, government agencies still struggle to obtain appropriate metadata and meet other long-term retention requirements for electronic records.

“These challenges include identifying metadata, technology issues, managing cultural change, and legal or regulatory requirements that require paper,” says NARA’s report.

The latest OMB memo also highlights plans to address the challenges facing government agencies in managing not just email, but the proliferation of digital records. By his June next year, NARA will Expanding the “capstone” approach Used to manage email records to other forms of digital messaging.

“We commend NARA for its commitment to issue guidance that extends the widely adopted Capstone approach to storing government officials’ emails in all kinds of temporary, encrypted messages,” said Baron. said.

By the end of 2023, NARA will also issue guidance on managing records that exist in collaborative working environments across multiple agencies. Additionally, NARA plans to finalize new electronic records management standards and services under the Federal Electronic Records Modernization Initiative (FERMI) by December 31, 2023.

“Government agencies using FERMI resources must comply with records management policies and orders from NARA and OMB, including the above requirements,” the memo read.



https://federalnewsnetwork.com/technology-main/2022/12/white-house-extends-e-records-deadline-to-june-2024/ White House extends deadline for electronic records to June 2024

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