FY2006 Annual Report
May 2007
Governor Blunt and Members of the General Assembly:
I am proud to share the Records Services Division Annual Report for fiscal year 2006. This division consists of three units: the Missouri State Archives, Local Records Preservation Program, and State Records Management Program. These three units work collaboratively to make government records available to all the citizens of Missouri and the nation. The division's success is evident in the release of new historical resources, creation of educational programs, and financial and technical assistance provided to citizens and public officials throughout the state.
The Missouri State Archives is committed to fostering an appreciation of our common past through increased access to historical records and educational opportunities. During fiscal year 2006, the Archives continued to add digitized records, educational resources, research guides, and other resources to its award-winning website. A major new online resource added this year is the Missouri Death Certificate Database, a searchable index with over two million individual death certificates from 1910 to 1956; the Archives is also scanning the individual certificates and posting them online so that anyone can locate and print them through the Internet. The Archives unveiled its first online collection, Progress Amidst Prejudice: Portraits of African Americans in Missouri, 1880-1920, and created a supplemental lesson plan geared to students from grades eight through twelve. Such accomplishments, and ongoing projects, have made the Missouri State Archives a leader in online historical research. Family Tree Magazine selected the Archives website as one of the best in the country for the fourth consecutive year. The Archives is efficiently getting information into the hands of the public. This year the staff assisted over 50,000 people in-person and through telephone, e-mail, and postal requests, representing a 25% increase over last year. Internet searches grew even more dramatically – to 11.9 million Web requests, representing a 165% increase.
The Local Records Preservation Program (LRPP) helps county and municipal governments preserve their records and make them accessible to the public. LR archivists provided in-depth records consultations, helping public officials inventory records, dispose of extraneous documents, create computerized indexes, and preserve and microfilm those of historical value. We have the state's only publicly-funded laboratory for conservation of paper-based documents. During fiscal year 2006, conservators treated a wide variety of damaged documents from across the state, including a group of Excelsior Springs architectural plans with original George Kessler drawings (dating from 1890 to 1923) and literally hundreds of early 19th-century documents from the New Madrid and St. Charles Circuit Courts and Missouri Supreme Court. The Local Records Grant Program awarded $373,246 in grants to support 54 preservation and records management projects in 45 Missouri counties.
The State Records Management Program promotes the efficiency and continuity of state government by providing state agencies with the resources necessary to manage their records effectively. Staff members help state agencies develop guidelines for the retention of documents, offer training on records management, and provide off-site storage. The Missouri Electronic Records Education and Training Initiative (MERETI) sponsored workshops, led by nationally recognized experts, on electronic records management for state and local government officials and staff. During FY2006, the State Records Center accepted 25,504 cubic feet of records for off-site storage. Acting on behalf of state agencies, the staff disposed of over 13,000 cubic feet of records that had met their legal retention requirements. Based on a five-year retention schedule, off-site storage of these records at the State Records Center will save Missouri taxpayers more than $1 million.
I am pleased to lead a division whose efforts are of such benefit to the state and its taxpayers. The Records Services Division places a priority on the "public" in public records. In focused and creative ways, the division is efficiently delivering public records into the hands and onto the computer screens of our citizens and government officials. This report highlights the achievements mentioned above and many others. I invite you to take a closer look at the Records Services Division and discover where the story of our state begins.
Very truly yours,
Robin Carnahan
Secretary of State