CHAPTER 6. LOCAL PUBLIC RECORDS COMMISSIONS
IC 5-15-6
Chapter 6. Local Public Records Commissions
IC 5-15-6-1
County commissions of public records; creation; membership;
meetings
Sec. 1. (a) A commission is hereby created in each county of the
state which shall be known as the county commission of public
records of ________________ county.
(b) The county commission shall consist, ex officio, of the judge
of the circuit court, the president of the board of county
commissioners, the county auditor, the clerk of the circuit court, the
county recorder, the superintendent of schools of the school district
in which the county seat is located and the city controller of the
county seat city, and if there is no city controller, then the
clerk-treasurer of the county seat city or town shall be a member of
such commission.
(c) The commission shall elect one (1) of its members to be
chairman and the clerk of the circuit court shall be secretary. The
members of the county commission shall serve without compensation
and shall receive no disbursement for any expense.
(d) The county commission shall meet at least one (1) time in each
calendar year.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.1; Acts 1955, c.319, s.1; Acts 1969,
c.141, s.1; Acts 1972, P.L.41, SEC.1.) As amended by P.L.50-1991,
SEC.3.
IC 5-15-6-1.2
"County commission" or "commission" defined
Sec. 1.2. As used in this chapter, "county commission" or
"commission" refers to the county commission of public records
created by section 1 of this chapter.
As added by P.L.50-1991, SEC.4.
IC 5-15-6-1.3
"Indiana state archives" defined
Sec. 1.3. As used in this chapter, "Indiana state archives" has the
meaning set forth in IC 5-15-5.1-1.
As added by P.L.50-1991, SEC.5.
IC 5-15-6-1.4
"Local government" defined
Sec. 1.4. As used in this chapter, "local government" means a
political subdivision (as defined in IC 36-1-2-13).
As added by P.L.50-1991, SEC.6.
IC 5-15-6-1.5
"Public record" or "record" defined
Sec. 1.5. As used in this chapter, "public record" or "record"
means a record (as defined in IC 5-15-5.1-1), except that "public
record" or "record" means local government rather than state
government documentation.
As added by P.L.50-1991, SEC.7.
IC 5-15-6-1.6
"Records management" defined
Sec. 1.6. As used in this chapter, "records management" means a
program to apply management techniques to the purchase, creation,
utilization, maintenance, retention, preservation, and disposal of
records undertaken to improve efficiency and reduce costs of record
keeping, including management of the following:
(1) Filing and microfilming equipment and supplies.
(2) Filing and information retrieval systems.
(3) Records.
(4) Historical documentation.
(5) Micrographic retention programming.
(6) Critical records protection.
As added by P.L.50-1991, SEC.8.
IC 5-15-6-1.7
"Retention schedule" defined
Sec. 1.7. As used in this chapter, "retention schedule" has the
meaning set forth in IC 5-15-5.1-1.
As added by P.L.50-1991, SEC.9.
IC 5-15-6-2
Duties of county commission
Sec. 2. (a) It shall be the duty of the county commission to
determine the following:
(1) Which public records, if any, are no longer of official or
historical value.
(2) Which public records are of current official value and
should be retained in the office where they are required to be
filed.
(3) Which public records are of official value but are consulted
and used so infrequently that they are no longer of appreciable
value to the officer with whom they are required to be filed.
(4) Which public records are of no apparent official value but
which do have historical value.
(b) The county commission may request the assistance of the
commission on public records established under IC 5-15-5.1 in
developing records management programs.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.2.) As amended by Acts 1979, P.L.40,
SEC.17; P.L.50-1991, SEC.10.
IC 5-15-6-2.5
Retention schedules; records not covered under schedules;
exceptions to schedules; documentation of disposition; jurisdiction
over records
Sec. 2.5. (a) The county commission shall adopt and implement
retention schedules for use by local government officials as part of
a records management program for local government public records
at the first meeting of the county commission after the commission
receives a retention schedule for the local government approved by
the oversight committee on public records as established by
IC 5-15-5.1-18.
(b) All requests to destroy, transfer, or otherwise dispose of
records that are not covered by an approved retention schedule are to
be submitted to the county commission according to the procedure
established under this chapter.
(c) Requests for exceptions to an approved retention schedule
shall be submitted to the county commission. The commission may
not consider requests for retention of records that are shorter in
duration than the approved retention schedule.
(d) Local government officers shall submit documentation of
destruction, transfer, or other disposal of records according to an
approved retention schedule to the county commission with a copy
submitted to the state archives.
(e) Whenever a local government includes parts of more than one
(1) county, the commission of the county that contains the greatest
percentage of population of the local government has jurisdiction
over the records of the local government for the purposes of this
chapter.
As added by P.L.50-1991, SEC.11.
IC 5-15-6-3
Destruction of records having no official or historical value
Sec. 3. (a) As used in this section, "original records" includes the
optical image of a check or deposit document when:
(1) the check or deposit document is recorded, copied, or
reproduced by an optical imaging process described in
subsection (e); and
(2) the drawer of the check receives an optical image of the
check after the check is processed for payment or the depositor
receives an optical image of the deposit document after the
document has been processed for the deposit.
(b) All public records which, in the judgment of the commission,
have no official or historical value, and which occupy space to no
purpose in the offices and storerooms of the local government of a
county, shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of. Except as
provided in this section, such records shall not be destroyed until a
period of at least three (3) years shall have elapsed from the time
when the records were originally filed, and no public records shall be
destroyed within a period of three (3) years if the law provides that
they shall be kept for a longer period of time, or if the law prohibits
their destruction.
(c) Subject to this section, records may be destroyed before three
(3) years elapse after the date when the records were originally filed
if the destruction is according to an approved retention schedule.
(d) No financial records or records relating thereto shall be
destroyed until the earlier of the following actions:
(1) The audit of the records by the state board of accounts has
been completed, report filed, and any exceptions set out in the
report satisfied.
(2) The financial record or records have been copied or
reproduced as described in subsection (e).
(e) As used in this section, "public records" or "records" includes
records that have been recorded, copied, or reproduced by a
photographic, photostatic, miniature photographic, or optical imaging
process that correctly, accurately, and permanently copies,
reproduces, or forms a medium for copying or reproducing the
original record on a film or other durable material. Original records
may be disposed of in accordance with subsection (f), if the record
has been copied or reproduced as described in this subsection. The
copy must be treated as an original. Copies, recreations, or
reproductions made from an optical image of a public record
described in this subsection shall be received as evidence in any
court in which the original record could have been introduced, if the
recreations, copies, or reproductions are properly certified as to
authenticity and accuracy by an official custodian of the records.
(f) Original records may be disposed of only with the approval of
the commission according to guidelines established by the
commission. However, the guidelines established by the commission
concerning the disposal of financial records must be approved by the
state board of accounts before the guidelines become effective.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.3; Acts 1955, c.319, s.2.) As amended
by P.L.50-1991, SEC.12; P.L.74-1995, SEC.5; P.L.47-1997, SEC.1;
P.L.10-1997, SEC.10; P.L.79-1998, SEC.9.
IC 5-15-6-4
Removal of records; time restriction
Sec. 4. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), no records shall
be removed or transferred from any office until a period of at least
three (3) years shall have elapsed from the date on which the records
were filed, nor even after that time if the records are in frequent use
by the officer having charge of the office.
(b) Records may be removed or transferred from any office before
three (3) years elapse after the date on which the records were filed
if the removal or transfer is according to an approved retention
schedule.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.4.) As amended by P.L.50-1991,
SEC.13.
IC 5-15-6-5
Records having official value; state archives
Sec. 5. Public records having an official value but which are used
infrequently by the officer with whom they are filed or maintained
shall, on order of the commission, be removed and transferred to the
Indiana state archives.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.5.) As amended by P.L.50-1991,
SEC.14.
IC 5-15-6-6
Records having historical value; state archives
Sec. 6. Public records having no apparent official value, but
having a historical value shall be transferred to and shall constitute
a part of the Indiana state archives.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.6.) As amended by P.L.50-1991,
SEC.15.
IC 5-15-6-7
Orders of commission; historical or genealogical societies
Sec. 7. (a) When any public records are ordered to be destroyed,
removed, or transferred, the commission shall enter an order to that
effect on its minutes, stating the date on which the order is entered
and a general description of the public records which the commission
orders to be destroyed, removed, or transferred.
(b) A copy of any order to destroy public records shall be
delivered to:
(1) the state archivist at the Indiana state archives;
(2) any active genealogical society of the county; and
(3) any active historical society of the county;
not later than sixty (60) days before the destruction date,
accompanied by a written statement that the state archivist at the
Indiana state archives or society may procure at its expense such
records for its own purposes.
(c) The order delivered under subsection (b) must state that the
records will be made available to the state archivist at the Indiana
state archives, the genealogical society, or the historical society
subject to the following provisions:
(1) Genealogical or historical societies of the county which
have an active organization shall have priority in the procuring
of the public records.
(2) If there is more than one (1) genealogical or historical
society of the county with an active organization, the earliest
established genealogical or historical society shall have priority
in the procuring of the public records.
(3) In order to procure all or part of the public records included
in the order, a genealogical or historical society must offer to
the Indiana state archives sufficient proof of ability to properly
preserve the records in question, or the state archives may deny
the records to the genealogical historical society and give
priority to another historical society in the county or the state
archivist at the Indiana state archives.
(4) If within thirty (30) days of the delivery of the destruction
order to the genealogical or historical society, the society has
not notified the commission of an intent to procure all or part of
the records included in the order, the state archivist at the
Indiana state archives may upon request procure at the archive's
expense the records for the archive's own purposes within the
remaining time in the sixty (60) day period.
(5) If a county historical society that has obtained records
through the county commission subsequently wishes to destroy,
transfer, or otherwise dispose of these records, the historical
society shall submit a request to the county commission for
authorization to destroy the records according to the procedure
set forth in this chapter.
(6) Records obtained by a historical society under this chapter
remain public records and are subject to all applicable public
records laws.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.7; Acts 1963, c.341, s.1.) As amended
by P.L.51-1991, SEC.1; P.L.50-1991, SEC.16.
IC 5-15-6-8
Reckless, knowing, or intentional destruction or damage to public
records; offense; exceptions
Sec. 8. A public official or other person who recklessly,
knowingly, or intentionally destroys or damages any public record
commits a Class D felony unless:
(1) the commission shall have given its approval in writing that
the public records may be destroyed;
(2) the commission shall have entered its approval for
destruction of the public records on its own minutes; or
(3) authority for destruction of the records is granted by an
approved retention schedule established under this chapter.
(Formerly: Acts 1939, c.91, s.8.) As amended by P.L.50-1991,
SEC.17.
IC 5-15-6-9
Repealed
(Repealed by P.L.50-1991, SEC.19.)
IC 5-15-6-10
Repealed
(Repealed by Acts 1978, P.L.2, SEC.521.)
IC 5-15-6-11
Application of chapter
Sec. 11. This chapter does not apply to public records of a
hospital established and operated under IC 16-22 and IC 16-23.
As added by P.L.40-1992, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.2-1993, SEC.51;
P.L.184-2005, SEC.1.
IC 5-15-6-12
Retention of compilation or creation of list or report;
considerations
Sec. 12. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a
local government official is not required to retain a compilation or
creation of a list or report if:
(1) the list or report:
(A) consists solely of information contained in public
records; and
(B) is generated by a computer program; and
(2) the compilation or creation does not result in the permanent
electronic storage of the information.
As added by P.L.58-1993, SEC.14.