Executive Records (schedule 102906)

Executive records are the administrative and operational records of the offices of ministers, deputy ministers, assistant deputy ministers, and equivalent positions.

Included are records in all formats and media and records classified and scheduled under all primaries of the Administrative Records Classification System (ARCS) and Operational Records Classification System (ORCS) or other records schedules.

This special schedule for executive records takes precedence over retention periods and final dispositions indicated in ARCS and ORCS, unless one of those records classification systems specifies a longer retention period or full retention for a given record series.

If an ORCS has been developed to include records of an executive office, the retention periods and final disposition of the ORCS will take precedence over this schedule.

Records Lifecycle

Phase	A	SA	FD
Retention	SO	10y	SR

SO = when file is closed

NOTE: Contact your Government Information Management Specialist (GIMS) or Ministry Records Officer before disposing of any records from executive offices. Off-site storage and retrieval services may be arranged through Records Center Services at RCSHELP@gov.bc.ca.

10y = All executive records will be retained for a minimum combined active and semi-active retention period of ten years from the date of file closure. In some cases, a longer combined active and semi-active retention period may be required under ARCS or ORCS.

SR = The government archives will selectively retain executive records because of their significant operational, legal, historical, evidential, informational, or other values.

Executive records often document the development, implementation, operation, and evaluation of government legislation, programs, and services. Such records are unique primary source documents and will be retained.

The government archives will fully retain records which pertain to legal precedence, audits or special investigations.

The government archives will fully retain for their evidential value all policy and procedure files created by offices having primary responsibility for policy and procedure development and approval. Draft and duplicate materials which hold no evidential value may be purged and discarded.

Executive records may contain a large volume of transitory and ephemeral material. For example, ministers often receive high volumes of form letters relating to a single issue. In most instances, a sample will be retained and the rest will be discarded. In unusual instances, all letters may be retained.

As with all government records, routine records of no value will be discarded. Unnecessary duplicates, publications, waste and scrap materials, and other items which are not an integral part of the record series will be purged and destroyed.

Approval Date:  1987-12-17 (amended 1990-07-25)