Robert NAHUET*
* Bibliotheque et Archive Canada Library and Archives Canada
The Appraisal of Government Records: a Comparison of Legislations, Strategies, Goals, Processes and Tools Between Two Levels of Government. The Federal and the Quebec Provincial Government
NAHUET, Robert, The Appraisal of Government Records: a Comparison of Legislations, Strategies, Goals, Processes and Tools Between Two Levels of Government. The Federal and the Quebec Provincial Government. Atlanti, Vol. 18, Trieste 2008, pp. 235-240.
Original in English, abstract in English, Italian and Slovenian, summary in English
Appraisal is an essential function of contemporary archival science, the principal purpose of which is to separate the wheat from the chaff. I will consider two different perspectives on the identification and selection of institutional records of archival value - the respective approaches of the Government of Quebec and of the Canadian federal government. These two approaches differ in terms of the tools used, and in the timing of their application vis-a-vis interventions within the source institutions. My talk will focus on the principle of respect des fonds as a reliable and appropriate methodology for appraising the archival value of the records of government institutions.
1.	Par exemple, selon la Loi sur la Bibliotheque et les Archives du Canada, aucune institution federale ne peut detruire des documents sans l'autorisation du Bibliothecaire et Archiviste du Canada; cependant, cette loi reste muette quant aux sanctions pouvant etre exercees afin de faire respecter cet element de la legislation. Ce qui est tout different de la Loi quebecoise sur les archives qui prevoit des sanctions contre les contrevenants.
2.	«L'art raffine de la destruction», Discours de Ian E. Wilson, archiviste national du Canada dans le cadre d'un Colloque et seance de formation d'une journee sur la reforme de la Loi sur l'acces a l'information: Ottawa (Ontario), le 1er mai 2000. http://www.collectionscanada. gc.ca/gestion-information/001/007001-3004-f.html.
3.	Angelika Menne-Haritz, ^.JANUS
Theory and process of appraisal in contemporary organizations
Appraisal is an essential function of contemporary archival science whose principal impact is to separate the wheat from the chaff. Appraisal also constitutes one of the essential characteristics of the archival discipline, differentiating it from the other information sciences and from information management. Archivists have the training, competencies and experience necessary to determine the "right of life or death" of documentary holdings.
As numerous well-respected archivists have demonstrated, several challenges distinguish the processes of analysis and selection from the enormous quantity of records produced by contemporary organizations. These important challenges are of several types. They relate to the concepts, methodologies and tools, the identification of sets of records which can be the subject of appraisal, the phases of the life cycle; and finally, the legislative context of laws, policies and regulations which frames the appraisal process and to w hich any government institution must conform1.
However, methodological and empirical benchmark guidelines do exist. Faced with the mountains of information produced annually by contemporary organizations - both public and private -from the outset, all agree on the absolute need for appraisal (analysis and selection)2. Moreover, the practice of item-by-item triage does not rest on any practical basis and is impractical for large contemporary organizations which produce masses of information.
We are persuaded of the absolute need to approach the appraisal of institutional records from the perspective of the archival fonds, that is, by implementing the principle of respect des fonds^. This approach seems a reliable and appropriate methodology to use to anayze and select sets of records of Canadian and Quebecois government institutions. But are this principle and its implementation for the appraisal of contemporary records still relevant and applicable in an environment of government institution interdependence?
Over the past few years, the BAnQ has set up a renewal project with the goal of developing concrete solutions for managing and pre-
serving both paper and digital records. To do this, the government of Quebec has designed a government Reference Framework for integrated records management (Cadre de reference gouvernemental en gestion integree des documents, or CRGGID) to manage the both record types from the moment of creation4.
Methodological approaches of the two levels of governments
Background
Canada is a parliamentary democracy composed of ten provinces, three self-administering territories and a central federal government responsible for providing overall public policy cohesion and for delivering specific public programs and services across Canada.
The appraisal of the institutional records of governments is a complex task particularly because of the great number of producing institutions, the diversity of the functions assumed by these institutions and the impact of shared departments/agencies responsibilities. This is why we will consider two different perspectives on the identification and selection of institutional records - the government of the province of Quebec and the Canadian federal government. These differ in the nature of the tools used and in the timing of intervention in the client institutions.
Various approaches and methodologies are advocated by the two levels of government selected. For each of these two levels of government, a central agency is responsible for the acquisition of, preservation of, and provision of continued access to the historical record of all government departments and agencies. For Quebec, this organization is the Bibliotheque et Archives nationales du Quebec (BAnQ); for Canada, Library and Archives Canada / Bibliotheque et Archives Canada (LAC/BAC) plays this role. These two heritage institutions are the fruit of relatively recent fusions of national library and public records functions: 2004 for LAC/BAC and 2006 for the BAnQ.
The government of Quebec
In Quebec, the cornerstone of records and archives management is inescapably the Loi sur les archives (Archives Act)5, which came into force in 1983. Associated with a policy on the management of active records, this legislation aims to ensure the management of public records from their creation until disposition (disposal or permanent preservation). The Archives Act applies to the entire public and parapublic sector of the government of Quebec. Not only must provincial ministries and agencies conform to this legislation5, but also provincial and local courts of justice, health networks and social services institutions as well as the municipal and education sectors6.
In the Archives Act, the principal requirement is the obligation for all public and parapublic organizations to establish retention schedules7 which must be approved by the BAnQ (formerly the Archives nationales du Quebec) before any record may be disposed of. This records management tool defines the active and semi-active phases and specifies which inactive records must be permanently pre-
NAHUET, Robert, La selezione dei dati govemativi: confronto fra due livelli di governo di legislazioni, Strategie, obietti-vi, processi e strumenti. Il governo federale e quello provinciale del Quebec. Atlanti, Vol. 18, Trieste 2008, pp. 235240.
La selezione e funzione essenziale della scienza archivistica contemporanea, il cui scopo prin-cipale e quello di separare ilgrano dalla pula. Prendero in considerazione due diverse pro-spettive per l'identificazione e la selezione di documenti istituzionali di rilevanza archivi-stica — i rispettivi approcci del Governo del Quebec e del Governo federale canadese. Que-sti due approcci differiscono in termini di strumenti utilizzati e nella tempistica di in-tervento presso gli enti produttori. La mia re-lazione si focalizzerä sul principio di prove-nienza come rilevante ed appropriata metodologia per la selezione del valore archi-vistico dei documenti delle istituzioni gover-native.
4.	«Son but est de repondre aux exigences d'affaires, de preuves legales, de reperage, de protection des renseignements personnels ou confi-dentiels, et ce, dans un contexte oü des documents papier et numeriques doivent etre integres au meme dossier. », Archives nationales du Quebec, Cadre de reference gouvernemental en gestion integree des documents, Version 1.1. Publie 2004-09-01. http://www.banq.qc.ca/ documents/services/archivistique_ged/crggid/ CRGGID.pdf.
5.	Son impact est grand car cette legislation de-finit ainsi le terme «archives»: l'ensemble des documents, quelle que soit leur date ou leur nature, produits ou regus par une personne ou un organisme pour ses besoins ou l'exercice de ses activites et conserves pour leur valeur d'infor-mation generale dans LOI SUR LES ARCHIVES, L.R.Q., chapitre A-21.1; a voir sous http://www2.publicationsduquebec.gouv. qc.ca/home.php#.
6.	On trouvera a l'Annexe 1, les differentes categories d'organismes publics qui ont l'obligation de respecter cette loi et leurs responsabilites res-pectives.
7.	Selon l' Article 7 - «Tout organisme public doit etablir et tenir a jour un calendrier de conservation qui determine les periodes d'utilisa-tion et les supports de conservation de ses documents actifs et semi-actifs et qui indique quels documents inactifs sont conserves de maniere permanente et lesquels sont elimines.» Outre des politiques concernant respectivement la gestion des documents actifs, semi-actifs et inacti-fs, la Loi sur les archives fait appel a divers reglements, notamment en ce qui touche la confection, le versement, le depot et l'elimina-tion des archives publiques. A-21.1,r.1 Reglement sur le calendrier de conservation, le verse-ment, le depot et l'elimination des archives publiques; voir sous: http://www2.publication-sduquebec.gouv.qc.ca/home.php#.
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8.	Archives nationales du Quebec, Recueil des delais de conservation des d des ministeres et organismes Decembre 1988, version rev p. II. http://www.banq.qc ces/archivistique_ged/Re 1988-12.pdf.
9.	Jacques Ducharme, «Preface» a Michel Champagne et Denys Chouinard, Le traitement d'un fonds d'archives : ses documents historiques. La Pocatiere, Documentor, 1987, p. 3.
10.	Archives nationales du Quebec, Recueil de delais de conservation des documents communs de ministeres et organismes gouvernementaux. Decembre 1988 (version revisee). http://www. banq.qc.ca/documents/services/archivistique_ ged/RecueilDelaisMO_1988-12.pdf.
11.	La creation d'un ministere ou organisme gouvernemental releve de la volonte du parle-ment (Assemblee nationale au Quebec) de con-stituer un organisme qui sera responsable d'un mandat au sein de l'ensemble de l'administra-tion publique quebecoise. Tout organisme public a besoin de ces fonctions administratives communes afin de soutenir les activites specifi-ques a son mandat particulier, que ce soit les ressources financieres, humaines, materielles ou la gestion de l'information.
12.	Les ANQ distinguent ainsi le dossier prin-l du dossier secondaire: Dossier principal:
n dossier qui contient l'information la plus mplete sur une sujet donne.» C'est en fait le issier 'officiel' ou le dossier 'maitre' de l'orga-sme. Le detenteur du dossier principal est bituellement l'unite administrative 'manda-
ci?::
«Le premier ministre, les ministres titulai-res de ministere, les ministres d'Etat et les ministres delegues constituent le Conseil executif ou Conseil des ministres. Principal organe de-cisionnel du gouvernement, le Conseil executif assume la direction du gouvernement, la definition des orientations de l'activite gouvernementale, la mise en application des lois et l'adoption des reglements qui en decoulent ainsi que l'ad-ministration de l'Etat. Il constitue, avec le lieutenant-gouverneur, le gouvernement du Quebec. (_) Afin d'accroitre ses efforts de planification et de coordination et d'ameliorer l'efficacite et la coherence de l'action gouvernementale, le Conseil des ministres s'est dote de comites ministeriels, dont le Conseil du tresor
et le Comite de l tent trois comites mi sont principalement coordination de l'act tamment celle des m d'activite respectifs. steriel du developpem nisteriel de la pros
lati
on. A ces de steriels perm oues a une n g
anents, qui mission de vernementale, no-itres dans leurs secteurs 'agit du Comite minit social, le Comite mite economique et du developpement durable et le Comite ministeriel de la citoyennete et de la culture». http://www. gouv.qc.ca/portail/quebec/pgs/commun/por-trait/politique/institutionspolitiques/?lang=fr.
served and which may be eliminated.
According to the Archives Act, centralized public organizations, in particular provincial ministries and agencies, must transfer their records for permanent preservation to BAnQ; institutions within the health and social services networks, as well as municipal and education sectors must manage their historical records themselves.
In order to help public organizations create their own retention schedules, BAnQ has established master retention guidelines (^ecueils des delais minimaux or Guides de gestion) which establish legal retention periods for government records.
To accomplish this, the BAnQ called upon managers and other professionals directly concerned in these organizations, as well as archivists, analysts and historians8. In this manner, the development of the retention schedules and especially of the master retention guidelines was enriched by the expertise of knowledgeable professionals. In this process, one can detect the development of a particularly Quebecois approach to archival science which intends to reconcile the perspective of records management and a more traditional approach based on the principle of provenance or respect des fonds. And we understand that the basis of this new approach is the attempt to reconcile the requirement for efficient and effective management of organizations and of their records with the long-term perspective which takes into consideration research needs9.
An analysis of the master retention guidelines for common administrative records (R^ecueil des delais de conservation des documents communs des ministeres et organismes gouvernementaux) applicable to all departments and agencies10 highlights the fact that this records management tool adopts an interdepartmental perspective while recognizing departments' autonomy with respect to their specific activities11. This records management tool establishes retention periods for the records, by distinguishing the official record from its copies12; and identifies the organizational entity responsible for the official record. Consequently, if a set of records is identified as having long-term value, only the records produced by the responsible entity will then be transferred to BAnQ for permanent preservation.
A study of the various components of these master guidelines for administrative records helps us to identify two types ofentity responsible for the official record: 1) a central or specific organization for with horizontal responsibility for a particular activity across the whole of government; 2) cases where responsibilities are shared between a central agency and departments and agencies; or, quite simply, shared among ministries and agencies13.
The simple fact of developing and disseminating the master retention guidelines for common administrative records, begun in 1988, demonstrates the desire of the government of Quebec to manage the growth of records production from the outset and to provide departments and agencies with tools to adequately manage their records throughout the lifecycle. It should be noted that this instrument for appraisal and selection applies exclusively to the mass of records produced by administrative functions common to departments and agencies, and by no means to the records created under the core mission and specific mandate and functions of an individual
organization. This role falls to the retention schedules developed by each department and agency individually.
The government of Canada
According to the Library and Archives of Canada Act (LAC Act), LAC's role is to "serve as the continuing memory of the government of Canada and its institutions" and to "facilitate the management of information by government institutions"14. More concretely, LAC preserves records which provide evidence of the way in which the Canadian government has done business: developing policies, taking decisions, deliberating issues, and interacted with Canadian citizens15. However, the responsibility of LAC in managing active records is restricted to the provision of advice to federal institutions.
Within federal public administration, organizations have clearly defined fields of specialization or specific responsibilities16. For example, LAC has the responsibility to permanently preserve and ensure continued access to records produced by departments and agencies. In contrast, some other responsibilities or functions may be shared among federal organizations. For example, LAC has a certain autonomy related to recordkeeping for departments and agencies. This function is shared with the Treasury Board Secretariat which has overall responsibility for information management policy for the Canadian federal government.
In the field of transportation in Canada, several institutions share responsibility. For example, the Minister of Transport administers and manages transportation policy and regulation in the main department (Transport Canada), but the investigation of transportation accidents is the responsibility of the Transportation Safety Board. Public hearings about transportation safety and other regulations are the responsibility of the Canadian Transportation Agency; fleet management of the Canadian Coast Guard is the responsibility of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans; and the supervision of Canadian air-space is the responsibility of a not-for-profit quasi-gov-ernment agency called NAV Canada17.
For the identification, analysis and selection of records from the masses of records produced by federal government institutions, the methodology rests on macro-appraisal: an overall analysis of the functions of government institutions, followed by analysis of each entity individually.
Traditionally, this macro-appraisal occurs at the end of the active/semi-active phase as an inescapable mandatory step before the
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transfer of records to LAC. The Recordkeeping Reg by LAC will allow intervention in the active phase19.
At the moment, the method and timing of LAC's intervention in departments and agencies differ from the approach adopted by the government of Quebec.
In order to identify and select the records for permanent preservation and to destroy those which do not have any further administrative, financial or legal utility, LAC has developed Records Disposition Authorities (RDAs)20. These Authorities have a quasi-legal character, insofar as they constitute a signed agreement between a
14.	Loi sur la Bibliotheque et les Archives du Canada, Preambule d)et article 7d) http://laws. justice.gc.ca/fr/ShowFullDoc/cs/L-7.7///fr.
15.	BAC, Methodologied'evaluation: macro-evaluation et analyse fonctionnelle. Partie A: concepts et theorie. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/ gouvernement/007/007007-1035-f.htm.
16.	L'administration publique se voit essentiel-lement confier des responsabilites ou fonctions par un corps elu de representants: le Parlement; celui-ci emet des lois, des reglements et des po-litiques. Pour accomplir ces fonctions, le gou-
ee des institu nseils et bur mandats de es mandats so
ions (ministeres, or-:aux) dont chacune competence precis. nt exclusifs a une in-utres sont partages . BAC, Methodolo-ation et analyse fon-http://
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www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/gouverne-ment/007/007007-1035-f.html.
17.	BAC, Methodologie d'eval^u^ation: macro-evaluation et analyse fonctionnelle. Partie A: concepts et theorie. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/ gouvernement/007/007007-1035-f.html.
18.	De son cote, BAC est a mettre en place un nouveau regime en ce qui touche la gestion de l'information gouvernementale, mais des sa phase de creation. Le nouveau regime en Tenue des documents propose notamment la creation de normes de documentation qui permettront ainsi d'identifier les documents d'affaires (business records) lies aux fonctions et activites essentielles d'une institution federale et assurer leur gestion tout au long de leur cycle de vie.
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http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/govern-ment/001/007001-5000-e.html. 20. Les Autorisations de disposer des documents ne remplacent pas ni n'eludent les calendriers de conservation des institutions federales, en fait, elles les completent. Car ces Autorisations sont des outils de gestion (evaluation et selection des documents) qui n'interviennent qu'a la fin de la periode active des documents, entre au-tres, lors du transfert des documents identifies reconnus archivistiques vers BAC. Il y a deux grandes categories d'Autorisations de disposer des documents: la premiere concerne les autori-sations qui sont specifiques a UNE institution federale en particulier; il s'agit alors d'une «Au-torisation specifique de disposer des documen-ts». Par contre, des Autorisations peuvent s'ap-pliquer a plusieurs institutions federales a la fois; il est alors question d'«Autorisation plu-riinstitutionnelle de disposer des documents». Pour en savoir davantage sur les Autorisations pluriinstitutionnelles, on pourra consulter: http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/gouverne-ment/007/007007-1008-f.html. L'Annexe 1 presente la liste hierarchique de mise en reuvre des Autorisations de disposer des documents.
NAHUET, Robeft, Vrednotenje vladne dokumentacije: primerjava zakonodaje, strategije, ciljev, postopkov in orodij med zvezno vlado in vlodo province Quebeck. Atlanti, Zv. 18, Trst 2008, str. 235-240.
Vrednotenje je prav gotovo zelo pomembna funkcija v arhivski znanosti, je postopek, ko se loči zrno od plev. Avtor ima v mislih dve različni perspektivi vrednotenja, ki slonita na istovetenju in izboru dokumentov določene institucije na eni strani in dokumentov arhivske vrednosti na drugi strani. To je tudi razvidno iz zasnove in določitve obeh vlad, tako v Quebecku kot v zvezni kanadski vladi. Oba pristopa se razlikujeta glede na orodje, s kateri se vrednotenje izvaja, obenem pa tudi glede na aplikativni čas. V prispevku avtor zato prikaže načela upoštevanja in vrednotenja fondov in prikazuje metodologijo arhivskega vrednotenja za vladne ustanove v Kanadi.
government department or agency and LAC for the transfer of records for permanent preservation. The basic rule is therefore to obtain the legal assent of LAC before carrying out any records destruction or transfer21.
The RDAs make it possible to distinguish between operational records (business records) and common administrative records. Recall that these Authorities are concerned, first of all with the functions and activities of a federal organization, and then with the records which provide evidence of these functions.
I mentioned previously that responsibilities can be shared among various institutions of the Canadian government within the same sector. To clarify these functions and activities in a shared environment, LAC implemented the concept of Office of Primary Interest, or, OPI. The OPI constitutes an administrative entity of government which has exclusive responsibility for policy development, decision-making, program and/or service delivery to Canadians under the terms of^ laws, regulations or mandates22.
In fact, the OPI is the place where the "official" archival records related to a specific activity are found. The OPI documents a function or a particular activity within the federal public administration in a holistic manner. And, for this reason these records should be permanently preserved.
CONCLUSION
21.	Deux elements des articles 12 et 13 de la loi sur BCA sont importants: «12. (1) L'elimina-tion ou l'alienation des documents federaux ou ministeriels, qu'il s'agisse ou non de biens de surplus, est subordonnee a l'autorisation ecrite de administrateur general ou de la personne a qui il a delegue, par ecrit, ce pouvoir». Alors que «13. (1) Le transfert, sous la garde ou la re-sponsabilite de l'administrateur general, des documents federaux ou ministeriels qui, a son avis, presentent un interet historique ou archi-vistique s'effectue selon les accords convenus a cet effet entre lui-meme et le responsable des documents».	http://laws.justice.gc.ca/fr/ ShowFullDoc/cs/L-7.7///fr.
22.	BAC, Methodologie d'evaluation: macro-evaluation et analyse fonctionnelle. Partie A: concepts et theorie. http://www.collectionscanada. gc.ca/gouvernement/007/007007-1035-f.html.
As a conclusion, now let us review the similarities and differences between these approaches.
Common denominators:
•	a single organization at each level of government is responsible for the creation, preservation and provision of access to the documentary heritage of the departments and agencies of these two levels of government;
•	a global perspective which tries to include all federal institutions;
•	a perspective based on the recognition of the specific character of each department and agency according to its mandate, mission and core functions;
•	recognition of the need to reduce administrative records as far as possible;
•	perspectives which take into account of all types of records, regardless of format;
•	an attempt to reconcile (or at least to take into count) the requirements of good government information management and the research requirements for long-term preservation and access to the documentary heritage of government institutions; in other words, to be memory of these institutions and of their evolution within their respective civil society.
Differences and specific elements Quebec:
•	an approach based primarily on retention schedules, therefore focused on records producers (departments and agencies and administrative units within them);
•	consideration of records providing evidence of a particular activity;
•	a records management regime which encompasses the entire information lifecycle;
•	the Archives Act which covers not only departments and agencies but has made room for institutions in health and social services, for educational institutions, and for municipalities. However, these various categories of organizations have the responsibility to self-manage records for permanent preservation.
Canada:
•	an approach based on the identification of functions and activities of federal institutions;
•	identification of the organizational entity which discharge these responsibilities and is the recognized responsible entity i.e., the Office of Primary Interest;
•	the intervention of LAC and its archivists traditionally takes place at the end of the active period of records;
•	the verification of the extent to which the records of an organization document the functions of a particular entity adequately (validation of the preliminary archival assumption bel ore transfer of the records).
From a more theoretical perspective, we are confronted with a new paradigm: the interdependence between government institutions where several may take part in the same activity while being responsible for a particular role.
The appraisal of the records of these government institutions must be done from a holistic perspective, where institutions take part in a process of collaboration within a governance structure. However, in other cases, where a government institution has sole responsibility for an activity or function, the approach based on the principle of the respect des fonds seems to us to still be relevant. After all, every organization has its particular legislation, a clear mandate, autonomy, and specific functions and activities all of which result in the production of related records. This will remain true even if the context becomes more complex since organizations do not evolve in silos.
SUMMARY
Appraisal is an essential function of contemporary archival science whose principal impact is to separate the wheat from the chaff. Appraisal also constitutes one of the essential characteristics of the archival discipline, differentiating it from the other information sciences and from information management. I will consider two different perspectives on the identification and selection of institutional records - the government of the province of Quebec and the Canadian federal government. These differ in the nature of the tools used and in the timing of intervention in the client institutions. Anapproach based on the principle of respect des fonds seems a reliable and appropriate methodology to use to analyze and select sets of records of government institutions. But are this principle and its implementation for the appraisal of contemporary records still relevant and applicable in an environment of government institution interdependence?