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How Federal Agencies Are Approaching Email Disposition

  Download NARA's Email Disposition Spreadsheet for more information about specific approaches and disposition authorities that agencies are using.  Please note this is not a comprehensive list of agencies.  Details of the spreadsheet are in the table below.

 

Agencies have several options to approach email disposition and may use a combination of any of the following:

  • Implement the General Records Schedule (GRS) 6.1 disposition authority, otherwise known as the Capstone GRS. Agencies must request to use this GRS authority with a NARA form 1005, Verification for Implementing GRS 6.1.  
  • Request disposition authority through the submission and approval of an agency-specific schedule.
  • The traditional approach to records management which requires individuals to make a records disposition decision on every email they send or receive based on its content.  Users determine if the email is permanent or temporary; and if temporary, how long the records schedule requires it be kept.
  • Combination of the above

The information in the spreadsheet is derived from several NARA data collection sources.  They show:

  • An agency has submitted a NA-1005 for NARA’s review (form is approved or pending approval); 
  • An agency has a NARA- approved records schedule for their email;
  •  An agency reported via the annual Records Management Self-Assessment (RMSA) that they use  traditional records management to manage their email;
  • An agency reported via the RMSA that it has not decided which approach it will use to manage its email; or 
  • We have no information from the agency.

More information about the RMSA may be found here.  A list of approved Capstone forms can be found on the Records Control Schedule here.

 

NARA's Email Disposition Spreadsheet contains the following information:

Column Header Description
Organizational Placement (Executive Branch unless otherwise indicated). (Column A) Name of Department OR Boards, Commissions and Committees OR Independent Agencies.
Agency Name. (Column B) Name of the component within a department, if applicable.

(NOTE the letter A in this column is so the column has proper alphabetical sorting)
GRS 6.1: Email Managed under a Capstone Approach. Agency has an approved NA-1005 form. (Column C) Agency has an approved form.
GRS 6.1: Email Managed under a Capstone Approach. Agency has submitted a NA-1005, pending approval. (Column D) Agency has submitted a form, it is under review.
GRS 6.1: Email Managed under a Capstone Approach. Agency has submitted a NA-1005, pending approval. (Column E) Agency is using an agency-specific schedule.
An agency reported via the RMSA that it will use Tradition RM. (Column F) Agency responded to the RMSA stating they are using traditional records management for email.
An agency reported via the RMSA that it has not decided which approach it will use to manage its email. (Column G) Agency responded to the RMSA stating they are still deciding how to manage their email.
Agency did not report status in RMSA. (Column H) Agency does not receive RMSA survey so we have no data

 

For questions about this list or to request that additional agencies be added, please contact us at GRS_Team@nara.gov

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