Date:
October 6, 2026 13
To: Board of Supervisors
Title
Strengthening Accountability and Transparency by Establishing a Five-Year Minimum Retention Requirement for County Public Records and Communications (Districts: All)
End
Overview
California Government Code Sections 12236 and 26202 et seq. mandates that county governments properly retain, appraise, and manage public records based on their type and purpose pursuant to guidelines set by the Secretary of State. Additionally, Government Code Section 7920.000 et seq., known as the California Public Records Act, requires government agencies to disclose certain public records upon request. Public records may include paper documents, emails, computer data and audio or visual recordings.
To comply with State law, the County of San Diego governs its document lifecycle using three primary mechanisms: 1) Board Policy A-129, “Compliance with the Countywide Records Management Program,” (maintenance of master Global Retention Schedule that has been adopted); 2) Chief Administrative Officer Administrative Manual Policy 0040-09, “Document and Records Management Program,” (standardized operational and destruction protocols); and 3) tailored departmental Records Retention Schedules. These requirements apply to what are considered “official records,” which generally exclude drafts, notes, and inter-agency memoranda not kept in the ordinary course of business.
Although the County has been successful in using these policies and plans to comply with the State’s retention and disclosure requirements for public records, there are no requirements to ensure all records and communications created using County equipment and resources are adequately retained. In addition, the policies and plans that guide the retention and management of official records allow for variations depending on individual departmental retention schedules and management practices and the lack of requirements to retain other documents and commu...
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