ORS 192.105: State Archivist authorization for state officials to dispose of records; legislative records excepted; local government policy on disposing of public records; limitations; records officer; standards for State Records Center.

(1) Except as otherwise provided by law, the State Archivist may grant to public officials of the state or any political subdivision specific or continuing authorization for the retention or disposition of public records that are in their custody, after the records have been in existence for a specified period of time. In granting such authorization, the State Archivist shall consider the value of the public records for legal, administrative, fiscal, tribal cultural, historical or research purposes and shall establish rules for procedure for the retention or disposition of the public records. (2)(a) The State Archivist shall provide instructions and forms for obtaining authorization. Upon receipt of an authorization or upon the effective date of the applicable rule, a state official who has public records in custody shall destroy or otherwise dispose of those records that are older than the specified period of retention established by the authorization or rule. An official of a local government may destroy such records if such destruction is consistent with the policy of the local government. No record of accounts or financial affairs subject to audit shall be destroyed until released for destruction by the responsible auditor or representative of the auditor. If federal funds are involved, records retention requirements of the United States Government must be observed. Each state agency and political subdivision shall designate a records officer to coordinate its records management program and to serve as liaison with the State Archivist. The county records officers for the purposes of ORS 192.001, 192.050, 192.060, 192.105, 192.130, 357.825, 357.835 and 357.875 shall be those officers identified in ORS 205.110. The State Archivist shall require periodic reports from records officers about records management programs. The State Archivist may require state agency records designated as inactive by the State Archivist to be transferred to the State Records Center, pending the availability of space. (b) The State Archivist shall determine which parts of a public record are acceptable for admission to the State Records Center and may require the state agency or governing body to cause the unacceptable part to be removed before the record is submitted to the State Records Center. (3) Authorizations granted prior to January 1, 1978, by any state agency, the State Archivist, or any board of county commissioners, to state agencies, schools, school districts, soil and water conservation districts, or county officials and offices shall remain in effect until they are adopted or amended by the State Archivist. (4) This section does not apply to legislative records, as defined in ORS 171.410. [1953 c.224 §1; 1961 c.160 §10; subsection (3) enacted as 1961 c.150 §5; 1971 c.508 §1; 1977 c.146 §1; 1991 c.671 §6; 1993 c.660 §1; 1999 c.59 §43; 2003 c.255 §1; 2003 c.803 §10; 2023 c.35 §5]