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Committee approves using electronic copies as official county records with limits
Summary
The committee approved a county resolution to recognize properly processed digital images as official records for departments that participate in the county's records-imaging program, while retaining paper for certain historical items and setting verification and retention steps.
The Saratoga County Legislative and Government Affairs Committee approved a resolution authorizing electronic copies to serve as official county records where those copies are produced and verified under established procedures.
Charles, Saratoga Countyrecords manager, told the committee the county has imaged more than 400,000 documents with a small crew since the county began the program in 2022 and that participating departments will follow defined scanning, verification and metadata protocols before a digital image can be treated as the official record.
Committee discussion clarified several limits: documents deemed historical must be retained in paper form (the records manager cited a cutoff for some records at 1950), departments will perform front-end analysis to determine what can be digitized, and the county has an internal policy to hold scanned paper copies for one year before disposal. The committee heard that the county has worked with the Office of Court Administration and the New York State Archives on procedures and that some items already used in county practice (vouchers, court filings) are accepted as digital originals when they meet required parameters.
Officials described technology steps taken to support expansion: the county has been using Laserfiche (an electronic content management system) and upgraded software two weeks before the meeting; planning board referral records from 1962 to 2013 have been inventoried and digitized as an intermunicipal example, and the county said towns that share compatible systems (for example, Clifton Park) can transfer records electronically. Staff said a public portal and broader intermunicipal transfer features are possible but likely two years away while internal controls are completed.
A supervisor moved the resolution to authorize electronic copies under the county program; another supervisor seconded the motion and the committee voted in favor. The resolution establishes standards and gives participating departments a process to follow; departments may choose to retain paper copies where appropriate.
