Government Archive Files Audit Checklist Infographic

Archival repositories, particularly government archives, must strive to secure an unrestricted deed of gift that grants full ownership and physical custody over any content in their custody. Furthermore, an unrestricted license or legal instrument must also be in place.

Draft Audit Checklist and International Certification Standard Process that it forms part of evaluate these and other aspects of repository commitment to preservation.

Organization
The draft Audit Checklist puts a variety of traditional archival concepts and practices under scrutiny in novel ways, particularly their nature of ownership. One notable change involves ownership rights: while repositories generally seek to hold exclusive records that they possess clear title for through deeds of gift or explicit deposit agreements, according to this document a repository must also accept data loss as part of its operations as part of their ongoing business practices.

Government archives that tested the draft Audit Checklist found it extremely valuable as a self-evaluation tool, with many finding confidence that their programs could meet certification criteria even though there has yet to be an official criteria set forth for certification. According to RLG/NARA Task force members, being able to demonstrate compliance with audit checklist requirements will inspire trust within sponsoring agencies, resources allocators and users that a digital repository will continue providing access to collections over time.

Designated Community
In response to the six month public comment period on the draft Audit Checklist, many government archives expressed serious reservations regarding its metrics and their impact on their programs. Most notably was one requirement that requires repositories to identify probable users of their collections – although taken alone this seems unjustifiable; when placed within an established and accepted practice it becomes more acceptable.

A key metric evaluated by this checklist is a repository’s commitment to preservation. While no repository establishes their program with the intention of losing data, digital materials can be highly unpredictable; as a result, the checklist accounts for this by encouraging repositories to define and communicate a level of loss acceptable to them. In addition, disaster planning measures evaluated include duplicate copies stored offsite and access to alternative processing systems; when combined together these measures help donors and resource allocators assess a repository’s preservation readiness.

Technologies and Technical Infrastructure
An effective archiving system is necessary to ensuring compliance with legal regulations. Such an archive must capture, record, process, store, and dispose of documents according to specific rules. Furthermore, processes must be documented with system logs created for each activity that could serve as evidence that conformity was met when changing archiving policies; when migrating from one storage device to another device for instance – migration should follow OAIS reference model/ ISO 14721:2012 principles.