What is a Records Schedule?

Records schedules, or Records Retention and Disposition Authorities (RRDAs), dictate to offices throughout the state of Wisconsin how long to keep their records (called the retention period) and what to do with those records once that time has passed (called the disposition instructions). UWM produces many records which are scheduled under general records schedules, which are RRDAs which cover record types produced by multiple offices. Some units at UWM may also be covered by specific records schedules, which dictate retention and disposition of records for that office only. Under Wisconsin state law, records may not be destroyed unless they have been scheduled under an approved RRDA. All records schedules sunset, or expire, after 10 years, at which point their associated records groups must be re-scheduled.

To determine whether your office produces scheduled records, please consult the following pages, which are listed in decreasing order of generality:

Wisconsin Department of Administration Records Schedules

These schedules apply to records produced by all state government agencies, including the University of Wisconsin. In many cases the UW System has opted out of these schedules, so consult with the records officer before taking disposition actions based on these schedules.

UWM-Wide and UW System-Wide Records Schedules

Schedules applying to entire schools, divisions, or all of UWM, as well as those schedules applying to records common to all UW System institutions. The UW System-wide schedules are in the process of being updated, so consult with the records officerbefore taking disposition actions based on these schedules.

Specific Records Schedules

Records schedules which apply only to a particular office, department, or other campus unit. At this time, only the list of scheduled offices is presented on this page; please contact the records officer for a list of your specific office's RRDAs.

What if my records have no associated RRDAs, or the RRDAs are expired or otherwise in need of updating?

Contact the records officer to set up an appointment for a records survey. Please fill out a Record Series Description Worksheet and email or send a hard copy via campus mailer to records management in advance of your appointment in order to expedite the process.

I've met with records management and signed off on RRDAs. Now what?

All RRDAs must be approved by UWM Internal Audit and the Public Records Board before they go into effect. The Public Records Board (PRB) meets on a quarterly basis to discuss RRDAs received from state agencies and either approve or return schedules with suggested changes. To ensure timely receipt and approval by the PRB, all proposed RRDAs should be signed and returned to UWM Records Management by September 12, 2008 for the next quarter. Once the RRDAs are approved, the records manager will return copies to offices for reference and dissemination among staff.

When do new approved RRDAs take effect?

Immediately! RRDAs are also retroactive, which means that if you have, for example, 6 year-old records scheduled for destruction 3 years after creation, you may dispose of those records upon receipt of the approved RRDA.