Harris County Commissioners Court first established the Records Management Program in 1990 to facilitate effective records management practices and to assist county department comply with the Local Government Records Act. Participation is mandatory for departments with appointed heads, and voluntary by elected officials.
We promote good records management practices by:
- Off-site storage of county records at the Harris County Records Center.
- Maintaining the Records Management Plan—the county policy that provides direction and authority to county officials to manage their records.
- Maintaining the Records Control Schedule.
- Ensuring the transfer of record of permanent value to the Harris County Archives when the creating department no longer requires the information for the reason created.
- Coordinating the destruction of valueless physical records through shredding to ensure security and recycling of the fibers to squeeze the last drop of value from once valuable files.
- Facilitating the deletion of valueless digital records so our electronic resources will not be wasted when storing, backing up, and migrating rubbish.
- Conversion of paper documents to digital file to promote ease of access and secure storage.
The program has evolved to meet the needs of the county. Initially we were with the Commissioners Court Coordinator to develop the basic policies, and then with Facilities to cope with the challenges of storing paper records, and now we are in Universal Services in recognition of the changing nature of record keeping media.
