Information Technology Policy Manual 2022

P OLICY S USPENSION In some instances, this E-Mail Retention and Disposition Policy may be temporarily suspended, specifically if an investigation, litigation, or audit is anticipated. In some instances, this policy’s disposal schedule may conflict with the need to produce e-mail messages relevant to the aforementioned legal or regulatory, or in response to a public records request. If this is the case, then the need to comply fully with the law and/or regulation will override this policy, causing this policy to be temporarily suspended until the matter in question is satisfactorily resolved. Suspension of this policy will take the form of no e-mail messages being disposed of whatsoever for a period of time, until lifted. N ON -C OMPLIANCE Any violation of this policy may lead to corrective action, up to and including dismissal from employment. The corrective action will depend upon the violation and be subject to the discretion of the employee’s supervisor/manager in accordance with Personnel Policy H-1 Corrective Action. Note: Some departments use Discipline Without Punishment as an alternative to H-1. The Police Department has its own corrective action process. Definitions Public records – means all documents, papers, letters, maps, books, photographs, films, sound recordings, magnetic or other tapes, electronic data-processing records, artifacts, or other documentary material, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance in connection with the transaction of public business by any agency of North Carolina government or its subdivisions. By statute, certain items are exempt from public access (see attachment). Personal notes are not considered public record . Public records with short-term value – records of short-term value may be destroyed or otherwise disposed of when their reference value ends. These include items such as fax cover sheets containing only transmittal information, routing slips, reservations and confirmations, and preliminary or rough drafts once the final document is completed. Custodian of the records – means the official in charge of the office that holds the public record, typically the department head or assistant department head or his/her designee.

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Email Retention and Disposition Policy