Tina,
I take it you are working with a state agency? Are all the regulations you described archived somewhere else? In other words, what impact would disposing of the sets you hold have? I take it what you have are just convenience or reference copies, is that right?
I don't work in state government. I only know the federal side. On the federal level, many government agencies consider their own published regulations to be permanent records under their records retention schedules. See, for example, http://www.epa.gov/records/policy/schedule/sched/149.htm :
"Item a: Published regulations, standards and guidelines (microform or non-microformed paper)
Permanent
If record is paper, break file upon promulgation of rule or approval of guideline. If record is microformed, break file upon completion of quality assurance check. If record is paper, keep inactive materials in office up to 5 years after file break, then retire to the FRC along with indices. Transfer to the National Archives 20 years after file break."
Of course, an agency such as EPA would keep a current up-to-date set of regulations available as a library reference set. Until they are transferred to NARA, the superceded regulations most likely are preserved separately, for historical, legal or administrative research purposes.
Naturally, there is a need to keep such information somewhere, either within the federal agency or at NARA, although obviously not where an attorney might mistake it for up to date material. For example, a government lawyer or historian may have to respond to a question such as what an agency's stated policy was as of a set date (say, March 1991). Or a manager or agency lawyer might need to know "when did we first articulate policy x? When did we replace it with policy y" Depending on the way an agency issues its directives (regulations, manuals, whatever), the only way to determine that might be by looking through old, superceded publications.
For an example of an agency having to draw on research in superceded regulations, see the GAO letter posted by the plaintiff in Cobell v. Norton at http://www.indiantrust.com/_pdfs/2002.04.23_GAO_Letter.pdf, especially Appendix II. Some of the questions from the Department of the Interior centered on what GAO was doing under its then current regulations as far back as during the 1920s. I and my colleagues at GAO couldn't have done the research on contracts and other issues and answered the questions covered in this letter, had my agency not preserved old, superceded regulations and directives! .
Maarja
Maarja Krusten
GAO Historian
Office of Quality and Continuous Improvement
>>> [log in to unmask] 08/08/05 2:39 PM >>>
I am researching, organizing and recording expired regulations and some
have reference books. QUESTION: must the out-dated reference books be
maintained with the obsolete regulation(s) ?
The agency I work for holds all the regulations issued from the various
state agencies but I am not sure if we need to keep these reference books
and have not been able to find an answer.
Sincerely
Tina Long
Record Officer
The Virginia Register and Administrative Code
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