CHAPTER 10 Administration Wing of the Chief Secretary for Administration’s Office Records management work of the Government Records Service Audit Commission Hong Kong 25 October 2011 This audit review was carried out under a set of guidelines tabled in the Provisional Legislative Council by the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee on 11 February 1998. The guidelines were agreed between the Public Accounts Committee and the Director of Audit and accepted by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Report No. 57 of the Director of Audit contains 12 Chapters which are available on our website at http://www.aud.gov.hk. Audit Commission 26th floor, Immigration Tower 7 Gloucester Road Wan Chai Hong Kong Tel : (852) 2829 4210 Fax : (852) 2824 2087 E-mail : [email protected] RECORDS MANAGEMENT WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT RECORDS SERVICE Contents Paragraph PART 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background 1.2 – 1.3 Government Records Service 1.4 Audit review 1.5 Acknowledgement 1.6 PART 2: OVERSEEING OF RECORDS MANAGEMENT 2.1 PROGRAMMES Requirements on records management programmes 2.2 – 2.8 Audit observations and recommendations 2.9 – 2.13 Response from the Administration 2.14 – 2.15 Responsibilities of Government Records Service 2.16 Records management studies 2.17 Audit observations and recommendations 2.18 – 2.20 Response from the Administration 2.21 Records management surveys 2.22 – 2.26 Audit observations and recommendations 2.27 – 2.32 Response from the Administration 2.33 Records management reviews 2.34 – 2.35 Audit observations and recommendations 2.36 – 2.44 Response from the Administration 2.45 – 2.48 — i — Paragraph PART 3: STORAGE AND DISPOSAL SERVICES FOR INACTIVE 3.1 RECORDS Inactive records 3.2 Storage and disposal of inactive records 3.3 – 3.8 Audit observations and recommendations 3.9 – 3.22 Response from the Administration 3.23 Microfilming of inactive records 3.24 – 3.25 Audit observations and recommendations 3.26 – 3.27 Response from the Administration 3.28 PART 4: MANAGEMENT OF ARCHIVAL RECORDS 4.1 Archival records 4.2 Appraisal of records for permanent retention 4.3 Audit observations and recommendations 4.4 – 4.12 Response from the Administration 4.13 Preservation of archival records 4.14 – 4.15 Audit observations and recommendations 4.16 – 4.18 Response from the Administration 4.19 Safe custody of archival records 4.20 Audit observations and recommendations 4.21 – 4.24 Response from the Administration 4.25 Provision of reference and research services for the public 4.26 Audit observations and recommendations 4.27 – 4.29 Response from the Administration 4.30 — ii — Paragraph Access to archival records 4.31 – 4.32 Audit observations and recommendations 4.33 – 4.35 Response from the Administration 4.36 PART 5: DEVELOPMENT OF ELECTRONIC RECORDKEEPING 5.1 SYSTEM Benefits of electronic recordkeeping system 5.2 – 5.3 Pilot project 5.4 – 5.5 Recent developments 5.6 – 5.8 Audit observations and recommendations 5.9 – 5.11 Response from the Administration 5.12 Page Appendices A : Administration Wing: Organisation chart (extract) 61 (30 June 2011) B : Non-compliance with key mandatory records management 62 requirements (22 April 2009 to 31 October 2010) C : Progress in meeting three mandatory records management 63 requirements with a compliance deadline of April 2012 (31 October 2010) D : Acronyms and abbreviations 64 — ii i — — iv — PART 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 This PART describes the background to the audit and outlines the audit objectives and scope. Background 1.2 Records are valuable resources of the Government to support evidence-based decision-making, meet operational and regulatory requirements, and provide accountability. Good records management enhances operational efficiency and effectiveness, minimises costs, provides proper documentation of government policies, decisions and transactions, and ensures proper identification, protection and preservation of records valuable to the Government and the community. 1.3 The Government has put in place administrative arrangements for the management of government records in Hong Kong. The Director of Administration, who heads the Administration Wing of the Chief Secretary for Administration’s Office, is responsible for developing and implementing the policy for the management of government records, including collecting and making accessible archival records. Bureaux and departments (B/Ds) are responsible for establishing their records management programmes in accordance with guidelines and requirements issued by the Director of Administration. Government Records Service 1.4 The Government Records Service (GRS), established in 1989 under the Administration Wing, is tasked to oversee the overall management of government records and ensure that those having archival value are selected for preservation and public access. The GRS Director, who is responsible to a Deputy Director of Administration, heads the GRS. He is supported by some 85 staff undertaking different types of records management work in four Offices, as follows: (a) Records Management and Administration Office. It is responsible for developing a comprehensive records management system and overseeing its implementation in B/Ds, providing training, advisory and records centre services to B/Ds, and providing administrative services to all units in the GRS; (b) Public Records Office. It is responsible for acquiring government records with archival value, valuable government publications and printed materials, and making them available for public access; — 1 — Introduction (c) Preservation Service Office. It is responsible for preserving and conserving archival records, as well as items held in the GRS’s Central Preservation Library for Government Publications. It also provides microfilming services to B/Ds; and (d) Record Systems Development Office. It is responsible for developing a sound foundation to effectively manage electronic records, integrate the appraisal of records with retention planning and preserve electronic records with identified historical value. An extract of the organisation chart of the Administration Wing (showing the four GRS Offices) is at Appendix A. In 2010-11, the GRS’s expenditure was $33 million. Audit review 1.5 The Audit Commission (Audit) has recently conducted a review of the records management work of the GRS. The review has focused on the following areas: (a) overseeing of records management programmes (PART 2); (b) storage and disposal services for inactive records (PART 3); (c) management of archival records (PART 4); and (d) development of electronic recordkeeping system (PART 5). As part of the audit work in (a) above, Audit has examined the records management of three selected B/Ds, viz the Fire Services Department (FSD), the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau (CEDB) and the Security Bureau (SB) (Note 1). Audit has found room for improvement in the above areas and has made a number of recommendations to address the issues. Acknowledgement 1.6 Audit would like to acknowledge with gratitude the full cooperation of the staff of the GRS, the FSD, the CEDB and the SB during the course of the audit review. Note 1: The three B/Ds have been selected having regard to: (a) their progress in meeting the mandatory requirements as indicated in the GRS’s 2010 survey (see para. 2.22); and (b) the relocation of the CEDB and the SB in 2011. — 2 — PART 2: OVERSEEING OF RECORDS MANAGEMENT PROGRAMMES 2.1 This PART examines the following issues relating to the GRS’s overseeing of the implementation of records management programmes in B/Ds: (a) requirements on records management programmes (paras. 2.2 to 2.15); (b) records management studies (paras. 2.17 to 2.21); (c) records management surveys (paras. 2.22 to 2.33); and (d) records management reviews (paras. 2.34 to 2.48). Requirements on records management programmes 2.2 It is the Government’s policy to require each bureau or department to establish a records management programme that will: (a) make and keep full and accurate records; (b) minimise the records management costs; (c) provide quality services to users; (d) provide necessary security for government information; (e) facilitate public access to information; and (f) identify, preserve and provide access to archival records. The detailed requirements are set out in paragraphs 2.3 to 2.8. Records Management Manual 2.3 In August 2001, the Director of Administration issued the Records Management Manual (RMM) to prescribe the code of practices for establishing records management programmes in B/Ds. The key provisions of the RMM are as follows: (a) Records creation. B/Ds should create records to meet operational, policy, legal and financial purposes. They should identify their business functions and assess their information needs so as to create adequate but not excessive records; — 3 — Overseeing of records management programmes (b) Records inventory. B/Ds should prepare and maintain an inventory of all records, whether active or inactive (Note 2), including file titles, storage locations and other useful information; (c) Records classification. B/Ds should organise records systematically according to a records classification scheme. For administrative records (Note 3), B/Ds should adopt the standard classification scheme developed by the GRS. For programme records, B/Ds should make reference to the procedures set out by the GRS to establish their classification schemes; (d) Records storage. B/Ds should store records in such a manner so as to facilitate user access and protect them from unauthorised access, use, disclosure, removal, deterioration, loss or destruction. B/Ds should report any loss or unauthorised destruction of records to the GRS immediately; (e) Records disposal (Note 4). For administrative records, B/Ds should adopt the set of standard disposal schedules (Note 5) developed by the GRS. For programme records, B/Ds should, in consultation with the GRS, develop disposal schedules having regard to the administrative, operational, fiscal and legal requirements and archival values of the records, and submit them to the GRS for approval. B/Ds should plan to dispose of their time-expired records (Note 6) in a systematic manner; Note 2: Active records are those needed to perform current operations and are usually stored near the users. Inactive records are those no longer or rarely required for action or reference. Note 3: Records are classified as administrative or programme records. Administrative records are created or received during the course of day-to-day administrative activities that deal with finance, accommodation, procurement and supply, establishment, personnel and other general administrative activities. Programme records are created or received by B/Ds while carrying out their primary functions. Note 4: Records disposal refers to the actions taken on inactive records that have little or no values to B/Ds. Records disposal takes the forms of records destruction, records transfer to the GRS for permanent preservation or to the GRS’s records centre for temporary storage, records migration to different formats or systems such as microfilming and transfer of records outside government control. Note 5: Disposal schedules stipulate the length of time that records should be retained and the forms of disposal (see Note 4). Note 6: Time-expired records are inactive records that have been retained for the period specified in the standard disposal schedules (for administrative records) or approved disposal schedules (for programme records). They are ready for disposal. — 4 —