2020-08 - OTOWN OF PROSPER, TEXAS
ORDINANCE NO. 2020-08
AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF PROSPER,
TEXAS, REPEALING ARTICLE 1.06, "RECORDS MANAGEMENT," OF
CHAPTER 1, "GENERAL PROVISIONS," OF THE TOWN'S CODE OF
ORDINANCES AND REPLACING IT WITH A NEW ARTICLE 1.06, "RECORDS
MANAGEMENT"; PROVIDING FOR REPEALING, SAVINGS, AND
SEVERABILITY CLAUSES; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, Title 6, Subtitle C, of the Local Government Code (Local Government
Records Act) provides that a municipality must establish by ordinance an active and continuing
records management program to be administered by a Records Management Officer; and
WHEREAS, the Town Council of the Town of Prosper, Texas, ("Town Council") desires to
adopt updated records management policies and procedures consistent with the Local
Government Records Act; and
WHEREAS, the Town Council hereby finds and determines that it will be advantageous,
beneficial, and in the best interests of the citizens of the Town to revise the Town's records
management policies and procedures, as hereinafter referenced.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF
PROSPER, TEXAS, THAT:
SECTION 1
The findings set forth above are incorporated into the body of this Ordinance as if fully set
forth herein.
SECTION 2
From and after the effective date of this Ordinance, existing Article 1.06, "Records
Management," of Chapter 1, "General Provisions," to the Town's Code of Ordinances is hereby
amended by repealing existing Article 1.06 "Records Management," and replacing it with a new
Article 1.06, "Records Management," to read as follows:
"ARTICLE 1.06 RECORDS MANAGEMENT
Sec.1.06.001 Definitions
Department head - the officer who by ordinance or administrative policy is in charge of an office
of the Town that creates or receives records.
Permanent record - any record of the Town for which the retention period on a records control
schedule is given as permanent.
Record retention schedule - a document prepared by or under the authority of the Records
Management Officer listing the records maintained by the Town, their retention periods, and other
records disposition information that the records management program may require.
Records management - the application of management techniques to the creation, use,
maintenance, retention, preservation, and disposal of records for the purposes of reducing the
costs and improving the efficiency of recordkeeping. The term includes the development of
records control schedules, the management of filing and information retrieval systems, the
protection of vital and permanent records, the economical and space -effective storage of inactive
records, control over the creation and distribution of forms, reports, and correspondence, and the
management of micrographics and electronic and other records storage systems.
Records management officer- the person designated in Section 1.06.005 of this ordinance.
Records management plan - the plan developed under Section 1.06.006 of this ordinance.
Retention period - the minimum time that must pass after the creation, recording, or receipt of a
record, or the fulfillment of certain actions associated with a record, before it is eligible for
destruction.
Town record - any document, paper, letter, book, map, photograph, sound or video recording,
microfilm, magnetic tape, electronic media, or other information -recording media, regardless of
physical form or characteristic and regardless of whether public access to it is open or restricted
under the laws of the state, created or received by the Town or any of its officers or employees
pursuant to law, including an ordinance, or in the transaction of public business is hereby declared
to be a record of the Town, and such record shall be created, maintained, and disposed of in
accordance with provisions of this article and procedures authorized by it.
Vital record - any record of the Town necessary to the resumption or continuation of its operations
in an emergency or disaster, to the re-creation of its legal and financial status, or to the protection
and fulfillment of obligations to the people of the state.
Sec. 1.06.002 Town records declared public property
All Town records as defined in this ordinance are hereby declared to be property of the Town. No
Town official or employee has, by virtue of his/her position, any personal or property right to such
records even though he or she may have developed or compiled them. The unauthorized
destruction, removal from files, or use of such records is prohibited.
Sec.1.06.003 Policy
It is hereby declared to be the policy of the Town to provide for a records management program
that will provide efficient, economical, and effective controls over the creation, distribution,
organization, maintenance, use, and disposition of all Town records through a comprehensive
system of integrated procedures for the management of records from their creation to their
ultimate disposition, consistent with the requirements of the Texas Local Government Records
Act and accepted records management practices.
Sec. 1.06.004 Adoption of records retention schedules
The Texas State Library and Archives Commission Local Government Retention Schedules, as
they exist or may be amended, are hereby adopted as the records retention schedules of the
Town. All records of the Town shall be maintained and kept in accordance with this article and
the adopted records retention schedules.
Sec. 1.06.005 Designation of Records Management Officer
The Town Secretary, and the successive holders of said office, or his/her designee, shall serve
as Records Management Officer for the Town. As provided by state law, each successive holder
Ordinance No. 2020-08 Page 2
of the office shall file his/her name with the director and librarian of the Texas State Library within
thirty days of the initial designation, or of taking up the office, as applicable.
Sec. 1.06.006 Records Management Plan to be Developed; Approval of Plan; Authority
of Plan
(a) The Records Management Officer shall develop and implement a Records Management
Plan for the Town for approval by the Town Manager. The plan must contain
administrative policies and procedures designed to reduce the costs and improve the
efficiency of recordkeeping, to adequately protect the vital records of the Town, and to
properly preserve those records of the Town that are of historical value. The plan must
be designed to enable the Records Management Officer to carry out his/her duties
prescribed by state law and this ordinance effectively.
(b) Once approved by the Town Manager, the Records Management Plan shall be binding on
all offices, departments, divisions, programs, commissions, boards, commissions,
committees, or similar entities of the Town, and records shall be created, maintained,
stored, scanned, or disposed of in accordance with the plan.
Sec. 1.06.007 Duties of Records Management Officer
In addition to other duties assigned in this ordinance, the Records Management Officer shall have
the following duties:
(a) Administer the Records Management Plan and provide assistance to department heads
in its implementation.
(b) Plan, formulate, and prescribe basic records management and records disposition
policies, systems, standards, and procedures.
(c) In cooperation with Town officials and department heads, identify vital and permanent
records and establish a disaster plan for each Town office and department to ensure
maximum availability of records for reestablishing operations quickly and with minimum
disruption and expense.
(d) Develop procedures to ensure the permanent preservation of the historically valuable
records of the Town.
(e) Monitor records retention schedules and administrative rules issued by the Texas State
Library and Archives Commission to determine if the records management program is in
compliance with state regulations.
(f) Disseminate to Town officials and department heads information concerning state laws
and administrative rules relating to local government records.
(g) Ensure that the maintenance, preservation, destruction, or other disposition of the records
of the Town are carried out in accordance with the policies and procedures of the records
management program and the requirements of state law.
(h) Maintain records on the volume of records destroyed under approved record retention
schedules.
Ordinance No. 2020-08 Page 3
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Sec. 1.06.008 Duties of Town officials and Department Heads
a) Cooperate with the Records Management Officer in carrying out the policies and procedures
established by the Town for the efficient and economical management of records and in
carrying out the requirements of this article;
b) Adequately document the transaction of government business and the services, programs,
and duties for which the department head and his/her staff are responsible;
c) Maintain the records in his/her care and carry out their preservation, destruction, or other
disposition of records only in accordance with the policies and procedures of the Records
Management Plan of the Town and the requirements of this article.
d) Designate at least one qualified staff member in his/her Department to serve as Records
Liaison Officer for the implementation of this article and other applicable Town policies.
Sec. 1.06.009 Public access to records
All requests received for records, and any fees or charges made therefor (including fees for
research and all other fees authorized by state law), shall be handled by the Town Secretary or
his/her designee in accordance with the Texas Public Information Act, Chapter 552 of the Texas
Government Code, as it exists or may be amended. Any fees shall be collected by the Town
Secretary, or his/her designee, prior to or upon the distribution of said records to members of the
public.
Sec. 1.06.010 Destruction of Records Under Record Retention Schedules
A record whose retention period has expired on a record retention schedule shall be destroyed
unless an open records request is pending on the record, the subject matter of the record is
pertinent to a pending law suit, or the department head requests in writing to the Records
Management Officer that the record be retained for an additional period."
SECTION 3
All provisions of any ordinance in conflict with this Ordinance are hereby repealed to the
extent they are in conflict; but such repeal shall not abate any pending prosecution for violation of
the repealed ordinance, nor shall the repeal prevent a prosecution from being commenced for
any violation if occurring prior to the repeal of the ordinance. Any remaining portion of conflicting
ordinances shall remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 4
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason
held to be unconstitutional or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not
affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The Town hereby declares that it
would have passed this Ordinance, and each section, subsection, clause or phrase thereof,
irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, and
phrases be declared unconstitutional.
Ordinance No. 2020-08 Page 4
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SECTION 5
This Ordinance shall become effective after its passage and publication, as required by
law.
DULY PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF
PROSPER, TEXAS, ON THIS 25T" DAY OF FEBRUARY 2020.
APPROVED:
t
Ray Smith,; Mayor
ffifFAle, Town Secretary
APPROVED ASTO)FORM AND LEGALITY:
Terrence S. Welch, Town Attorney
Ordinance No. 2020-08 Page 5