Disposition of Local Government Records

Local government records are eligible for destruction or transfer to a certified repository if they have met the minimum retention requirements established by retention schedules issued by the Office of the Public Records Administrator. The two statutes governing this process are CGS 7-109 and CGS 11-8.

A municipal government agency may apply for permission to destroy or transfer records by utilizing a "Records Disposal Authorization, Connecticut Towns, Municipalities, and Boards of Education," Form RC-075. These requests must be signed by the custodian of the records and the administrative head of the municipality. Disposal requests for educational records also require the signature of the superintendent of schools. All disposal requests will be reviewed by the Public Records Administrator and the State Archivist. Records may not be destroyed or transferred until the Office of the Public Records Administrator has returned a signed disposal authorization form to the requester.

Some records that do not appear on any of the municipal retention schedules may also be eligible for destruction or transfer. You may apply for permission to destroy these records utilizing the RC-075 form, leaving the "Schedule No.-Item No." column blank. If a record does not appear on a retention schedule, it does not mean that it may be destroyed or transferred without permission from this office.

Permission to destroy or remove records classified as "irrelevant" and "unnecessary" under the provisions of CGS 4-193(e) may be obtained from this office utilizing the RC-076 form, "Request for Removal of Public Records, Personal Data Files from Towns and Municipalities." All of these requests are reviewed and approved by the Public Records Administrator and the State Archivist.

Many records that are created or kept in municipal offices are permanent and may not be destroyed. Some permanent records are maintained indefinitely by the municipality for administrative or legal reasons. Other records may be historical or archival records and may be transferred to other locations for permanent retention after review and approval by the Public Records Administrator and the State Archivist.

Permanent/Archival records may be transferred only to a repository that has been certified by the Office of the Public Records Administrator. Non-permanent records that have met the required retention period may be transferred to an appropriate repository, but that repository does not need to meet the stricter criteria applied to repositories for permanent records.

Under the Collections policy approved by the Connecticut State Library Board, the State Archives will aid municipalities in placing historical local government records in the most appropriate local repository if possible. The State Archives may serve as a repository of last resort when no other alternative exists to prevent a record's imminent loss or destruction. The State Archivist's Office may contact the official requesting disposal to obtain more information about potential historical records and their disposition.