01-21
COUNTY OF ELGIN
By-Law No. 01-21
BEING A BY-LAW TO ESTABLISH THE MANDATE AND ACTIVITIES OF THE
ELGIN CQUNTY ARCHIVES'
WHEREAS by Subsection 45 of Section 207 of the Municipal Act, being Chapter
M.45 of the Revised Statutes of Ontario, 1990, a council of a municipality may pass by-
laws for appointing such officers and employees as may be necessary for the purposes of
the corporation; and
and
the mandate and activities of the
in May 2001
the County did appoint an archivist
WHEREAS it is deemed necessary to establish
archives under the management of said position
WHEREAS
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
The archives shall be called the ELGIN COUNTY ARCHIVES (herein referred to as
the archives) and shall be administered by the Library Services Department.
1
The archives strives to be a comprehensive resource for records documenting the
County's economic, political, geographic and social development. The mandate of
the archives with respect to acquisition is therefore as follows:
2
to act as the repository for all inactive records in all formats of the County's
executive, management and administrative functions and related agencies that
are designated for permanent retention according to legislative requirements
and/or the County's records retention by-law (see Schedule "A" attached to and
forming part of this by-law for a glossary of terms);
a)
to establish policies for the management of active and semi-active records within
all County departments, including authority for the destruction of all corporate
records as well as maintenance of the County's records retention by-law;
b)
nactive records of the
to enter into transfer agreements for the management of
County's former and current local municipalities;
c)
to acquire archival records from private sources that have bearing upon the
history of the County of Elgin as appraised by the archivist and in accordance with
an acquisition policy approved by Council. It is generally understood that such
donations are the property of the archives upon completion of a donation
agreement unless otherwise stated;
d)
e) to enter into agreements pending Council approval for the management of records
of other agencies and levels of government.
The archives exists to ensure the long-term preservation of records under its care.
The mandate of the archives with respect to preservation is therefore as follows:
3.
to maintain the records in a suitable repository wherein temperature, relative
humidity, lighting and air quality are all controlled according to archival
preservation standards as defined by the Canadian Conservation Institute and the
archivist;
a)
potential hazards such as fire, water
b) to promote the security of records against
damage and theft;
times;
to promote responsible care and handling of the records at al
c)
n-
-2
to engage in active conservation treatment of records when necessary, either
house under the direction of the archivist or under contract to a qualified
conservator as warranted
d)
e) to engage in reproduction of records by various means In order to preserve their
evidence or reduce their care and handling
The archives exists to provide access to the records to the general public, County
staff and officials in order to promote accountability, efficient delivery of County
services and historical research. The archives mandate with respect to access is
therefore as follows
4.
to offer access to holdings at a minimum of five days per week and at al
reasonable hours, with an adequate number of professional, technical and clerical
staff on duty during these hours. Ample space will be provided in the archives to
conduct this research;
a)
to ensure that records are adequately arranged and described according to
archival principles to facilitate their efficient retrieval and use;
b)
to permit reproduction of records for research purposes according to established
fees and within bounds of Canadian copyright law. The archivist reserves the
right to prohibit such reproductions should this be deemed harmful to the originals;
c)
to abide by pertinent legislation with regards to access and privacy, specifically
the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act;
d)
their records when applicable and as
to respect the privacy of donors and
stipulated in donation agreements;
e)
to establish fees from time to time for research services provided by staff at the
archives on behalf of patrons;
f)
g) to engage in community outreach and public awareness activities, including
promotion of local tourism and economic development.
This mandate shall be carried out by the archivist in accordance with the Employee
Code of Ethics as established by County Council and the professional Code of Ethics
as established by the Association of Canadian Archivists.
5.
time this 26th day of June, 2001
time and finally passed this 26th day of June, 2001
J. . Wilson
Deputy Warden
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cDonald,
Chief Administrative Officer.
and second
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3
Schedule" A"
By-Law No. 01-21
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Records:
Information, however recorded, on paper, on film, by electronic means or otherwise
possessing identifiable authorship and having integrity as evidence of a transaction
Archival Records:
Primary records (generally unpublished) in all formats permanently preserved because
they possess enduring evidential, administrative or cultural value
Active records:
Records in all formats that continue to be maintained in their place of origin and are
regularly used to conduct the business of a department or institution
Semi-active records:
Records in all formats required less frequently in the conduct of current business resulting
in their transfer from offices to a records centre or other holding area, pending their
ultimate disposition and review by the archivist.
business and transferred to the
Inactive records:
Records in all formats no longer needed for current
archives for disposition