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Records ManagementRecords provide the information needed to manage municipal programs, have effective decision making, and ensure administrative continuity. Municipal records document the delivery of services, provide legal accountability, give evidence of the responsible management and expenditure of public funds, and document the historical development of government and the community. Local Government records are:
Regarding mayor-council cities, C.R.S.§ 31-4-110 provides that the clerk has custody of all the laws and ordinances of the city council and is to keep a regular record of city council proceedings. Relating to towns, C.R.S. §31-4-305 is similar to § 31-4-110 and directs the clerk to keep a true and accurate record of all the proceedings, rules, and ordinances made and passed by the board of trustees. In practice, municipal clerks often find themselves entrusted with virtually all record keeping for the municipality. One of the exceptions to this is the criminal justice records, which are usually maintained by the police department or the court system. This should be noted in the municipality’s records plan manual.
Important InformationRecords Retention in Colorado is governed by the Colorado Municipal Records Retention Schedule (CMRRS). The full schedule is available for download below, and individual schedules can be downloaded on the State Archivist's website. The schedule is updated on a regular basis by the CMCA Records Management Committee with the advice and input of the Archivist's Office. It was updated most recently in November 2022 with Supplement 13 - individual changes are listed in Appendix H. THE CMRRS is divided into 21 major sections spanning many record types commonly held by municipalities of varying sizes. Each section is separated by subject matter, and includes a schedule for more general records including communications and emails (Schedule 40 - General Administrative Records). There are several appendices with extra information, and an index to narrow down your search for a specific record type. It is designed to be as all-inclusive as possible while still retaining a general description of file types, as different municipalities will define records in various ways. Often, the same file could be classified under several different schedules - it is advised that individual municipalities codify a specific records policy to address these discrepancies and provide consistency when records are approved for destruction. Please contact the Records Management Committee for any questions or feedback you may have regarding the schedules.
PLEASE NOTE: THIS DOCUMENT DOES NOT PROVIDE LEGAL AUTHORITY OR AUTHORIZATION FOR DESTRUCTION OF MUNICIPAL RECORDS BY ANY MUNICIPALITY UNTIL IT IS APPROVED FOR USE FOR THAT MUNICIPALITY BY THE COLORADO STATE ARCHIVES. NO RECORD SHOULD BE DESTROYED IF IT IS PERTINENT TO ANY CURRENT, PENDING OR ANTICIPATED AUDIT, INVESTIGATION OR LEGAL PROCEEDING. Records come in various forms and custodian of records must determine if the document that they have is a record or working document. Whether hard copy format or electronic, records must be preserved in a process for efficient and accurate retrieval. With the evolution of technology, most municipalities are moving towards “paperless” environments. Many offices still maintain hard copies and if that is the case for you, you must determine a system for filing that is cohesive with hard copy systems and electronic systems. Municipal clerks are required to understand how they keep records in terms of naming conventions, retention, and storage. Having a repository for all municipal records makes it easy and efficient for the public and staff to accesses the resources and materials needed. If you plan on utilizing an electronic system, having a good hard copy filing system makes the transition to electronic much smoother.
The Colorado Open Records Act ("CORA") is laid out in C.R.S. § 24-72-201 to 206. You can view the most up-to-date Statutes on the State's Lexis Nexis page HERE FAQsThe Colorado Municipal Records Retention Manual which, is a the list of most current retention schedules and dates for municipal records management.
A quasi-judicial case is one in which the Council members are acting as judges rather than legislators; the Council is not making new laws, but rather applying existing laws to specific facts, concerning one person or a small number of people rather than the entire City, at a public hearing. External ResourcesYou must be a CMCA Member to access this document library. No results found.
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