Guidelines for Use of
the State Records Center
State Records Center
Transfers
Selecting
Records for Transfer
As already stated, only records which
appear on an approved active records retention schedule and call for
Records Center retention are eligible for transfer to the Records
Center. In selecting records for transfer, you should comply with
the recommended time periods for retention in your office, and
afterwards in the Records Center. Through periodic review of your
agency's files, you should determine which records are eligible for
transfer.
Preparing
Records for Transfer
In preparing records for transfer,
you will need standard records storage boxes, Records Transfer
Sheets, and Records Center Box Labels. The standard
records storage boxes can be obtained from the Department of
Corrections at (217) 522-2666, extension 7001, or the office
supplier used by your agency. The Records Transfer Sheets and
Box Labels can be obtained from the State Records Center by
calling (217) 782-6809.
All records sent to the Records
Center are to be packed in standard one cubic foot records storage
boxes. Its dimensions of 15" x 12" x 10" require one
to file legal-size paper upright alongside the 15" side of the
box. Letter-size materials are filed upright along the 12" side
of the box. Materials of lesser dimensions such as 5" x 8"
or 4" x 6" cards and microfilm reels should also be placed
in the standard records storage box being careful not to fill it
above the handles. If the material is too large for the standard box
such as oversized blueprints, x-rays, and papers which cannot be
folded to fit, please contact the supervisor of the Records Center.
You can determine the number of boxes
you will need by using this guide:
- For letter-size files, one full
drawer will fill 1 1/2 boxes.
- For legal-size files, one full
drawer will fill 2 boxes.
- For undersized materials, you must
calculate the total number of linear inches of items which fit
in a standard box and divide by the total number of linear
inches of the materials.
Preparing
the Records Transfer Sheet
In preparing the Records Transfer
Sheet, use the Application for Authority to Dispose of State
Records (i.e., records retention schedule) to obtain the
necessary information. List only one type of record series on a
transfer sheet or sheets. If you have more than one record series to
transfer or more than one year, please use a separate transfer sheet
or sheets for each record series. Each records transfer sheet should
be prepared in triplicate.
Consult the sample form provided
below while reading these guidelines. Please complete the transfer
form as follows:
- Agency
The name of your agency.
- Division
The name of the 2nd level in your organizational structure.
- Date
When the transfer sheet was prepared.
- Department
The name of the 3rd level in your organizational structure.
- Individual
to Contact
The records officer of the agency responsible for the control of
the records. The name of the person who prepared the transfer
sheets should also be included.
- Phone
The phone number of these persons.
- Agency
Box Number
The purpose of this section is to uniquely identify each
transfer of record series. The agency box number consists of two
numbers separated by a hyphen. The first number (transfer
number) remains constant for all the boxes in each records
transfer and is assigned from a numerical sequence for your
first records transfer beginning with #101. Using the year of
the record series is also acceptable and many times very helpful
(e.g., 95-1, 95-2, 95-3, etc.).
The second (box number) is
assigned from a consecutive numerical order beginning with #1
and continuing sequentially for each box in the transfer series.
An example for this is: 101-1,
101-2, 101-3, etc.
The next transfer of the records
should be listed as: 102-1, 102-2, 102-3, etc.
Any remaining transfers should be
listed in a like fashion.
- Title and
Date of Records
The title of the record series should be taken from the
appropriate records retention schedule. The date span of the
records in the transfer should be listed next to the title. Ship
only 1 year at a time unless annual accumulation is very small.
For each corresponding agency box number on the transfer sheet,
the specific contents of this box should be listed. This listing
generally is a description of the arrangement of the records in
the box or a listing of the first and last files in the box
(e.g., Claim #2-49006 thru 2-49192).
- Schedule
Number
This is obtained from the appropriate retention schedule. It is
located in the upper right hand corner of the records retention
schedule.
- Item
Number
This identifies the specific record series on the retention
schedule. This again may be found on the retention schedule.
The remaining columns (11-16) are to
be left blank. The Records Center staff will complete them.
As you will notice, there is a first
page form and additional sheet form. Please make certain to use them
appropriately by paginating them. It is also important to fully
describe the records on the top line of each page. The title, year,
schedule number, and item number need only be listed once at the top
of each page, leaving the remaining columns blank.
When completed, the form should be
signed by the Agency Records Officer.
If any questions arise while
completing the Records Transfer Sheets, contact the Records
Center at (217) 782-6809.
A State Records
Center Records Transfer Sheet form is provided in a PDF
(Portable Document Format) file, which can be viewed, completed and
printed using your Web browser and Adobe Acrobat Reader software.
Macintosh and Windows versions of Acrobat Reader may be downloaded
free of charge from Adobe.
Preparing
the Records Center Box Labels
The Records Center Box Label
should be prepared by using the Records Transfer Sheet and
through examination of the arrangement of the contents of the box.
The title of the first and last file in the box should be marked in
the "Series This Box" section of the label. The remaining
entries on the label should correspond with what is listed on the
transfer sheets. Only the entry for "Total Boxes This
Transfer" which should list the number of boxes to be
transferred as one record series is a new addition. You do not have
to fill out the "Disposal Date" and "Records Center
Box Number" section.
After the labels are
completed, they should be placed under the handle on the front of
the box.
Transferring
the Boxes
After completing the necessary forms,
send two copies of each Records Transfer Sheet by messenger to:
Supervisor of the Illinois State
Records Center
3765 Winchester Road
Springfield, IL 62707
Retain the third copy of this
transfer sheet for immediate reference purposes.
After receiving the transfer sheet, a
member of the Records Center staff will examine it for correctness.
If the transfer sheet is correct, the Records Center supervisor will
make arrangements with you to pick up the records. The Records
Center can only pick up records within the Springfield area.
However, it is usually more expedient if agencies in the Springfield
area arrange for themselves delivery to the Records Center. If you
hold records outside of this area, you should ship the boxes through
the state messenger or a prepaid common carrier. You must wait for
authorization from the Records Center before shipping.
After the boxes are received, the
Records Center staff will complete the form by filling in the
"disposal date," "retention period" and
"records center box number" columns. A copy of the
completed transfer sheet is then sent to you.
Staff also complete entries for
"Disposal Date" and "Records Center Box Number"
on the Records Center Box Label.
 Back
to Guidelines for Use of the State
Records Center Introduction page
|
![[get Acrobat]](/images/getacro.gif){kind=small}
