AC 04.2015

November 13, 2014

MEMORANDUM TO FEDERAL AGENCY CONTACTS: NARA’s 2013 Records Management Self-Assessment Report

I am pleased to announce the publication of National Archives and Records Administration’s 2013 Records Management Self-Assessment (RMSA) report. It is now available on our web site http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/resources/self-assessment.html.

Each year, all Federal agencies are required to conduct a Records Management Self-Assessment (RMSA) and submit the findings to NARA. The goal of the self-assessments is to determine whether Federal agencies are compliant with statutory and regulatory records management requirements.  In FY 2013, of the 266 agencies that received the self-assessment, 255 responded, including all Cabinet-level agencies and those under the Executive Office of the President.

This is our fifth RMSA and we are very pleased to see real progress being made by agencies. While the majority of Federal agencies remain at high to moderate risk of compromising the integrity, authenticity, and reliability of their records, we believe as the requirements of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and NARA Managing Government Records Directive, M-12-18, are fully implemented in the coming years, along with our other records management oversight activities we will continue to see improvements.  We hope that agencies can use the RMSA data to chart the progress of their own programs.

The 2013 report highlights some positive trends for improving recordkeeping by Federal agencies.  This year, 52% of agencies made improvements to their records management programs and increased their RMSA score. This is the first time the number of agencies in low risk exceeds the number in the high risk.  Also increasing is the frequency with which agency records management staff conduct routine RM evaluations, inspections, and audits.

NARA is committed to continuing to work with Federal agencies to strengthen their records management programs so these scores improve. We look forward to working with Congress, OMB, and the Federal agencies to improve records management performance across the Federal Government.

If you have any questions about the report or need additional information please contact your Appraisal Archivist. If you do not know who your assigned Appraisal Archivist is, you will find a list of the appraisal and scheduling work groups and regional contacts on the NARA website at http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/appraisal/index.html.

PAUL M. WESTER, JR.
Chief Records Officer
for the U.S. Government

Attachment: AC 04.2015 - self-assessment-2013.pdf