I'm catching up on reading List postings, having a lighter schedule today.  Thanks for the good comments, Bob!  Yes, I'm familiar with the Indian records case. One of my agency's (the Government Accountability Office) letters to an Interior official is part of the court record.  GAO isn't a party to the case, I should note.  The U.S. Department of Justice posts some of its pleadings on the Indian trust fund case on its website -- if anyone is interested, go to http://www.usdoj.gov and type "Cobell" in the search box.  The plaintiffs' perspective is available through the large volume of documents available on http://www.indiantrust.com.  Many of the pleadings relate to various aspects of recordkeeping.

You wrote that "Until we can find a system that will replace the human element, we will have to rely on people to make their best judgement about email, paper and other electronic documents (word, excel, etc.,)."  I agree, and would note that for the permanent records generated by U.S. federal government agencies, there's a second part to the question about judgment.  Initially, we rely on the judgment of records managers to ensure records are handled properly.  Once records are designated permanent, we later rely on the judgment of federal archivists to decide what can be released to the public and what requires restriction on the grounds of national security, privacy, statutory restriction, etc.

Something else to consider.  This List reflects a mix of private and public sector perspectives.  Obviously, there are some differing dynamics in the two sectors.   As Bill points out, the private sector has exposure to liability.  Companies deal with different entitites (shareholders, competitors, consumers, etc.) than do government agencies.  The risks are different and so are the sensibilities.  A limited amount of information sometimes comes out during litigation but much of what companies say and do remains behind closed doors.   A company does not necessarily even need to have an historian, even to do internal research, and most don't, although some do.

It's very different in government.  Not only do permanent federal records end up in the U.S. National Archives, but current executive branch records are subject to the Freedom of Information Act.   For anyone who is interested in FOIA, either as a potential user or as someone whose records are affected by it, there is legislation before the U.S. Congress at present to revise that Act.  One of the provisions relates to use of the Internet by citizens to track their FOIA requests.  See http://cornyn.senate.gov/FOIA/speech.cfm and related links on the left of that page to see how all that is playing out.  The author of the bill is a former Texas Attorney General.

Maarja

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