Records Management

All employees are required to manage BCER information according to information schedules, relevant policies, and legislation. There are many recordkeeping practices that can be applied every day. In this section, we’ll cover the basics, and good practices you need to know.

See here for a glossary of records management definitions.

Why do we create records?

The information we create and receive is fundamental to good government and accountable public administration. Adequate records and reliable practices support efficiency and the delivery of quality services. Records and data are enterprise assets that must be managed according to their value.

They can have different values:

• Administrative
• Operational
• Evidential
• Legal
• Informational
• Financial and audit
• Historical

We rely on records every day to support the work we do. They may document key decisions and they require our care and attention.

Please keep in mind that when you’re at work, you might also create or receive information that is not related to your work. Keep this information to a minimum and separate from BCER information.

What is our framework for managing records?

To understand the framework for managing records, we need to be aware of current and updated legislation and policy, as well as standards, guides, and resources. Let’s introduce some of the key parts of our framework.

The Information Management Act (IMA) is government’s primary information management law, and applies to the BC Energy Regulator.

What does the IMA do? The IMA is the Province’s legislative framework for digital information practices. It modernizes and streamlines government information management by:

• Transitioning government to the digital storage and management of information
• Establishing digital archives and requiring the archiving of information in digital form (subject to reasonable exceptions)
• Establishing a Chief Records Officer to approve information schedules, manage the digital archives and to promote effective information management across government
• Establishing an obligation to ensure that an appropriate system is in place to create adequate records of government decisions, and to manage and secure all government information from creation to disposal or archiving

In short, the IMA supports productivity, cost reduction, timelier services for the people of British Columbia, and improved access to information.

The BCER’s Information Management Policy helps staff understand their information management (IM) obligations as they relate to IMA requirements. Policy requirements are established for the full lifecycle of information. We recommend staff read this policy.

The information lifecycle

The information life cycle is the life span of a record from its creation or receipt to its final disposition. A record’s lifecycle includes three main phases: active, semi-active, and final disposition. During this life cycle a record may be created, received, classified, scheduled, maintained, used, stored, destroyed and/or transferred for permanent retention in the government archives.

Documenting decisions

You must take reasonable steps to ensure that adequate records of decisions are created and maintained.

It’s important that the Regulator manages information so it’s reliable and available to those who need it, and to ensure that it’s kept for the required length of time.

The IMA establishes an obligation to ensure that an appropriate system is in place to create adequate records of government decisions. Under the IMA, the Chief Records Officer has issued a directive and guidelines to assist government bodies in meeting their obligations related to documenting their decisions.

In general, a record of decision is adequate if someone who’s not familiar with the decision could be reasonably informed about the decision.

Carefully consider what is required to adequately document a decision. In some cases, an adequate record of a decision may be a brief note in a case management system or a case file; in other cases, it may be made up of numerous extensive studies.

Ensure you’re storing records of decisions and the records you create in the most appropriate place in your office’s recordkeeping system. Office recordkeeping systems do not include locations that are only available to you, such as your email account or desktop.

The BCER does not have to create and keep records of every decision made by every employee. BCER staff need to identify which decisions are to be documented by applying your judgement in the context of our specific mandates and with consideration to the purpose and intent of the IMA, the directive and the guidelines, and other obligations that may exist in law and policy respecting documenting decisions.

See here to learn more about the Documenting Government Decisions CRO Directive and Guidelines.

See here for Regulator Documenting Decisions guidance.

Shared responsibility

BCER staff are responsible for documenting their work by ensuring records they create or receive are adequate, and are filed in their office recordkeeping system, including email.

Program areas are responsible for maintaining a shared office recordkeeping system that’s organized and administered in accordance with information management legislation and policy.

Your office recordkeeping system does not include locations that are only available to you, such as your email account, computer hard drive, OneDrive or desktop.

And remember, the directive and guidelines for Documenting Decisions specifically define the requirements for creating and maintaining government information that is an adequate record of a government body’s decisions.

Information schedules

Information schedules are our primary tools to manage government information effectively over time. They:

• Describe and classify government information
• Set out the final disposition of a record (that is, whether it will ultimately be transferred, archived or destroyed)
• Are approved under the IMA
• Increase efficiency
• Uphold the trust that comes with the obligation to protect government information

Understanding schedules is critical to help your organization meet its obligations under the IMA. In the BCER, we use ARCS, ORCS (the Oil and Gas Regulation Operational Records Classification System), and Special Schedules, such as the Transitory and Executive Records Schedules.

Transitory information

Transitory information is information of temporary usefulness that’s needed only for a limited time to complete a routine action or prepare a final record. It can exist in any format or medium (paper or digital) and can be created and shared using a variety of technologies (e.g., email, social media, Teams, SharePoint).

By promptly removing transitory information (also known as transitory records), employees are better able to identify and file key records into their recordkeeping system, where they can be easily found. As well, the BCER avoids unnecessary costs for storing and processing transitory records. Transitory records are covered by the Special Schedule for Transitory Records (schedule 102901). They do not need to be filed using ARCS or ORCS.

Who can apply the Transitory Records schedule? You! The authority to identify transitory records is delegated to each B.C. public servant. Transitory information can and should be disposed of when it’s no longer of value, with one important exception: if the Regulator receives an FOI or litigation search request, all relevant records must be provided, including transitory information that exists at the time of the request. Transitory information that’s subject to such requests must be retained pending completion of the applicable FOI response process and review period or the applicable litigation activities.

Use this Transitory Records Guidance to determine whether the information is transitory.

Creating and managing email

All employees are encouraged to follow email management best practices, as set out in the email guidance on the Energy Exchange.This material provides detailed information on using your email account, including sending, searching and managing email, and protecting sensitive information. If you apply these and other best practices, it will make it easier to find the information you need, while also ensuring that information is available to your colleagues when you are not in the office, and in the event of an FOI request or litigation search.

Do I need to keep every email? When can I delete an email?

You need to save all emails that pertain to the business of the Regulator, except for transitory emails. You may delete transitory emails when they're no longer needed. You must not delete any emails that may be responsive to an active FOI request or request for legal discovery. You should save emails that document an important government decision.

Disposal of BCER information

We’ve already established that information schedules govern how long records are needed and when they may be appropriately archived, disposed of or transferred to another organization. The BCER Records and Information Services Branch manages the disposal of information through the transfer of records to the government archives, or following our Documented Destruction Process.

Resources

BCER’s Records and Information Services (RIS) is committed to providing services, resources and learning tools that support you and the BCER. Our Energy Exchange pages contain guidance on everything we covered in this section and more.

RIS is here to help you with the following services:

• Records management advice for all types of records
• Online guides and eLearning
• Information schedule advice
• Shared Drive Organization and Collaborative Digital Workplace (SharePoint) projects
• Accessing physical records

We encourage you to contact RecordsManagement@bc-er.ca for assistance.