Appendix 1
Terms of reference for the ADM Taskforce on Recordkeeping

Background
In 2005, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) initiated a process with the Privy Council Office to seek approval to hold Deputy Minister Roundtable sessions on Recordkeeping and Information Management. The goal was to seek Deputy level engagement and stewardship recognizing five key principles:

1. Proper Recordkeeping facilitates sound business management within the Government of Canada;
2. Records are a key business asset and must be effectively managed;
3. A comprehensive understanding of Recordkeeping is an invaluable part of creating a culture of accountability and transparency;
4. All Public Service employees benefit when they engage in proper Recordkeeping throughout their daily work in the Government of Canada; and
5. Proper Recordkeeping is an essential enabler for the multitude of programs and services within the Government of Canada to meet regulatory and performance requirements.

There is now recognition by senior Government of Canada officials that we need to modernize the management of records and information just as the key management regimes of finance and human resources have been modernized under the umbrella of modern comptrollership, the Management Accountability Framework and the Public Service Modernization Act.

Recordkeeping solutions will require collaboration from key players across Government. As a result of Round Table consultations, the Deputy Minister community has endorsed the creation of an ADM Level Taskforce on Recordkeeping led by Library and Archives Canada.

Mandate
The mandate of the Taskforce is to develop a way forward and to recommend an action plan to the Chair on the creation of a sustainable culture, a regulatory regime for recordkeeping in government and strategies to support implementation.

Deliverables
The proposed action plan will focus on the five following areas:

1. A strategic and operational framework for the administration of recordkeeping and implementation of a:
   • Regulatory regime for the Government of Canada; and
   • A culture of Recordkeeping.
2. A monitoring strategy.
3. Sustainability of long term business records including permanent electronic records
4. Legacy solutions (including current and future storage models).
5. Increased departmental capacity.