State Records Committee
MINUTES
June 26, 2024
Capitol Building Room 152
This is a summary of the State Records Committee meeting. The meeting in its entirety is recorded in a digital audio file format and maintained at Office of the Secretary of State 1301 E 6th Ave, Helena, MT 59601.
Committee Members Present
Anita Milanovich (Governor’s Office) Bowen Greenwood (Clerk of Supreme Court) Ken Varns (Legislative Audit Division) | Jill Hamilton (Department of Revenue) LaRay Jenks (Department of Justice) Yvette Englert (Department of Administration) |
Summary of Committee Action
The Committee approved the minutes as corrected from the 4th quarter meeting held on June 26, 2024.
The Committee scheduled the next meeting for September 30, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. in Helena, MT. The meeting adjourned at 11:31 a.m.
Call to Order and Roll Call
Chairman Ritter called the meeting to order at 11:02 a.m.
Chairman Ritter provided a brief update informing the committee that the Biennial Report to the Governor and Legislature was published and can be found on the Secretary of State’s website.
OLD BUSINESS
Annual Review of Email Retention Guidelines
Chairman Ritter noted to the committee that this was brought back to the table and explained that in the 3rd quarter meeting the committee determined that social media records fall in the category of a short-term record.
Committee Member Kevin Gilbertson commented and noted that in most cases social media interactions from an agency would occur through a management tool and noted the possibility for putting records retention requirements within the management tool rather than trying to manage the records from the third-party social media platform.
Records Management – Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
Chairman Ritter noted to the committee that he was able to do a little more research on the topic and explained that many states are treating GIS as a “carrier” (i.e. the medium in which the records are being presented in). Mr. Ritter continued by explaining that the difficulty of this area of records management is the information can be layered and fall under different record types.
NEW BUSINESS
Review Administrative Rule Change Recommendation for State Agency Records Management
Mr. Ritter provided a brief history for the intent of the proposal to streamline and create consistency in records management across the different levels of government. Mr. Ritter reminded the committee that in the 3rd quarter meeting, the committee approved to move forward with a legal review to revise the current administrative rules.
The Committee had discussion on the proposal and a motion was made to approve the recommendation with changes and present it to the Secretary of State’s Office.
Determine Records Management Areas for Further Improvement
Chairman Ritter explained that he would like to meet with Committee Member Gilbertson to further discuss records management around Generative Artificial Intelligence and bring back more information for the committee to discuss and consider at a future meeting.
Public Comment
Public comment was presented at the time of each agenda item. Additionally, follow-up information and comment was provided related to records management around GIS.
Final Business
The Committee scheduled the next meeting for September 30, 2024 in Helena, MT. The meeting was adjourned at 11:28 a.m.