N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law § 57.25: Records retention and disposition

§ 57.25. Records retention and disposition. 1. It shall be the

responsibility of every local officer to maintain records to adequately

document the transaction of public business and the services and

programs for which such officer is responsible; to retain and have

custody of such records for so long as the records are needed for the

conduct of the business of the office; to adequately protect such

records; to cooperate with the local government's records management

officer on programs for the orderly and efficient management of records

including identification and management of inactive records and

identification and preservation of records of enduring value; to dispose

of records in accordance with legal requirements; and to pass on to his

successor records needed for the continuing conduct of business of the

office. In towns, records no longer needed for the conduct of the

business of the office shall be transferred to the custody of the town

clerk for their safekeeping and ultimate disposal.

2. No local officer shall destroy, sell or otherwise dispose of any

public record without the consent of the commissioner of education. The

commissioner of education shall, after consultation with other state

agencies and with local government officers, determine the minimum

length of time that records need to be retained. Such commissioner is

authorized to develop, adopt by regulation, issue and distribute to

local governments records retention and disposition schedules

establishing minimum legal retention periods. The issuance of such

schedules shall constitute formal consent by the commissioner of

education to the disposition of records that have been maintained in

excess of the retention periods set forth in the schedules. Such

schedules shall be reviewed and adopted by formal resolution of the

governing body of a local government prior to the disposition of any

records. If any law specifically provides a retention period longer than

that established by the records retention and disposition schedule

established herein the retention period established by such law shall

govern.