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Records Retention and
Disposition Statutes

Overview

Retention and disposition of public records is determined per statute by Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records through analysis by the professional staff of RMD. Retention is based upon the legal, administrative, historical, fiscal or informational value of the record.

The Law

Arizona Revised Statutes §41-1347.B.

Records shall not be Destroyed or otherwise disposed of by any agency of the state, unless it is determined by the State Library that the record has no further administrative, legal, fiscal, research or historical value. The original of any record produced or reproduced pursuant to section § 41-1348 may be determined by the State Library to have no further administrative, legal, fiscal research or historical value. A person who destroys or otherwise disposes of records without the specific authority of the State Library is in violation of section 38-421.

Arizona Revised Statutes §41-1351

Every public officer who has public records in the public officer's custody shall consult periodically with the state library and the state library shall determine whether the records in question are of legal, administrative, historical or other value shall be preserved. Those records determined to be of no legal, administrative, historical or other value shall be disposed of by such method as the state library may specify. A report of records destruction that includes a list of all records disposed of shall be filed at least annually with the state library on a form prescribed by the state library.

Arizona Revised Statutes §38-421

1. An officer having custody of any record, map or book, or of any paper or proceeding of any court, filed or deposited in any public office, or placed in his hands for any purpose, who steals, or knowingly and without lawful authority destroys, mutilates, defaces, alters, falsifies, removes or secretes the whole or any part thereof, or who permits any other person to do so is guilty of a class 4 felony.
2. A person not an officer who is guilty of the conduct specified in subsection A of this section is guilty of a class 6 felony.

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Updated:  06/07/2006