Electronic Records: A Challenge for Archivists
One of the thorniest problems facing the archival profession, and particularly the National Archives, is how to identify, preserve, and make available for researchers historically significant records stored in an electronic format Governments are increasingly using computers for the creation, maintenance and storage of records and some suggest that by the year 2000, 75 percent of all federal transactions will be handled electronically. Several recent reports have highlighted the difficulties archives face in dealing with electronic records.
In July, 1991, the National Archives issued the report, “Management, Preservation and Access for Electronic Records With Enduring Value,” which was a Congressionally requested response to the recommendations in House Report 101-978, ”Taking a Byte Out of History: The Archival Preservation of Federal Computer Records.” This 1990 report of the House Committee on Government Operations concluded that the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) should have a key role in federal policy to preserve electronic records. Yet the report found NARA’s policies “inadequate” and made seven recommendations that involved increased commitment and leadership from NARA, with a requirement that NARA respond in writing to the recommendations by July 1, 1991.
While many had thought that NARA would use the opportunity offered by the required response to make a case for additional authority and funding for handling what many perceive as the Archives’ most serious challenge, NARA defended the steps it has taken in reviewing and planning for the preservation of computer records and stressed that guidelines for use by agency records managers for the preservation of computer records of historic significance are being developed. In response to the recommendation that NARA should make recommendations to the Congress for amendments to the law that are needed to reflect the changes in recordkeeping practices resulting from the widespread use of computers in the Federal Government, NARA stated that it did not believe that changes in recordkeeping practices warranted amendments to the law. However, the National Archives did note that if the Archivist had the authority to issue binding regulations which would guide agency heads in determining what constitutes a record and to inspect agency records for purposes of evaluating records management practices, then NARA could more effectively promote the preservation of electronic records. Language regarding these additional authorities are a part S. 1044, The Federal Information Resources Management Act, a bill dealing with paperwork reduction and information issues. This legislation, however, which has been discussed for several years has not passed.
NARA made clear in their response to the House report that their first priority and the first requirement in making records available is the preservation of records. NARA is still exploring options for delivering records to a researcher for use. Currently NARA provides no computer resources for accessing electronic records. However, researchers may visit or contact the Center for Electronic Records within NARA to receive information on the documentation of specific data sets, and then may purchase copies of a data set or a single reel for approximately $90 each. Part of the National Archives’ strategy for preserving electronic records has been a study undertaken by the National Academy of Public Administration at the request of the NARA to identify the major electronic agency databases that have significant historical and research value. The Academy’s report, “The Archives of the Future: Archival Strategies for the Treatment of Electronic Databases,” completed in November, was the second report on electronic records prepared by the Academy for NARA. The first one, issued two years ago, ”The Effect of Electronic Recordkeeping on the Historical Record of the U.S. Government,” looked at the broad issues while this second report examined federal agency databases and identified issues that the National Archives must face in developing criteria for the appraisal of electronic databases. Recognizing the magnitude of the task facing the National Archives, the Academy’s report calls on an aggressive and decisive role for NARA. The need for strong leadership from NARA and the development of agency-wide standards are most acute, the report states, for too often agencies place low priority on archival considerations and the documentation for databases is often skimpy or nonexistent. On the complicated and controversial issue of the preservation of electronic mail, the report notes: “In areas of research such as diplomatic/foreign affairs history, there is a need to know ‘who saw documents and who made changes.’ Electronic mail, bulletin boards, and efforts to preserve staff inputs at lower decision levels continue to be important in determining how policy was formulated.” On another thorny issue, centralized vs decentralized archives, the report points out that in some instances it maybe appropriate for some agency sponsors of electronic databases to maintain the historical or archival records of those databases. “With today’s technology, physical location,” the report states “is not as important as the accessibility, quality of preservation and maintenance of integrity of the data.” Since the sponsoring agencies may be better able to pro vide the software and hardware for public access and have the technical and subject matter expertise for using the databases, the report suggests that it may be best for an agency to house the records while NARA retains control over the records to ensure that appropriate standards and guidelines are met. Among the thirteen recommendations which form the core of the report, the National Academy of Public Administration urges the National Archives to place a greater emphasis on developing guidelines and agreements with the agencies to ensure that data is retained in a usable form, to develop a long-term strategy for accessibility of electronic databases that provides networks for accessing data and textual databases in the National Archives’ holdings, and to continue to work with scholars and other users and specialists in developing documentation strategies that will anticipate the research needs of the future.
In November the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the grantmaking arm of the National Archives, announced the release of a report on “Research Issues in Electronic Records.” Based on the results of a working meeting in Washington of forty-six people from varying disciplines who tried to con struct a national agenda for research in the archival management of electronic records, the report seeks to provide guidance to the NHPRC and other funding agencies interested in supporting archival electronic records research and development projects. The report focuses on the kinds of questions that could constitute the foundation for a research agenda and the establishment of a criteria for the solicitation and evaluation of proposed projects.
Single copies of the above mentioned reports may be obtained by writing to Dr. Donn Neal, Director of Congressional and External Affairs, National Archives, Washington, DC 20408.
1920 Census to Open in March
On March 2, the National Archives will open the 1920 census to researchers. It will be avail able in the Microfilm Reading Room of the National Archives Building in Washington and in the twelve regional archives across the nation, and through the National Archives microfilm sales and rental program. The 1920 census con sists of 2,076 rolls of population schedules and 8,585 rolls of Soundex, phonetically coded indexes. The data elements in the schedules include: address; name; relationship to family head; sex; race; age; marital status; year of immigration to the U.S. if foreign born; whether naturalized and if so, year of naturalization; school attendance; literacy; birthplace of person and parents; mother tongue of foreign born; ability to speak English; occupation, industry, and class of worker; home owned or rented and if owned whether mortgaged.
