N.J. Admin. Code § 15:3-1.2 - Definitions
The words and phrases used in this chapter shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Accession" means:
1. The transfer of the legal and physical
2. The records, also called "accessioned records," so transferred; or
3. The physical and recordkeeping process involved in transferring
legal and physical
"Agency" or "agencies" means:
1. Generally, an organization that provides some service, a body having the authority to represent another or others, a government bureau or administrative division, or the place of business of the same; or
2. Specifically, any, or all, or any combination of the following public agency or agencies, as defined herein, currently or previously existing or to be established, depending on the context:
i. The Office of the Governor and any of the departments of the Executive Branch of State government, and any division, board, bureau, office, commission, institution, or other instrumentality within or created by such department;
ii. The Legislature of the State, and any office, board, bureau, committee, or commission within or created by the Legislative Branch;
iv. Any
v. Any department, division, board, bureau, office, commission,
district, or institution, or other instrumentality within or created by a
vi. Any school, fire, or water district or other district or districts;
ix. Any subordinate office or agency of i through
x. Any office, officer, official, board, or governing body of i through ix above; or
xi. Any combinations of i through x above.
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"Archival records" means:
1. Records which have a permanent or enduring administrative, legal, fiscal, research or historical value, and in consequence thereof should be retained and preserved in perpetuity, and which are noncurrent and are not required to be retained in the office which they originated; or
2. Records found by the Division to contain significant information about the government and history of this State that are therefore worthy of long-term preservation and systematic management for historical and other research. (See definitions of "record.")
"Archives" means:
1. The noncurrent records of an organization preserved because of
their continuing or enduring value and which have been determined to have sufficient
historical value to warrant their continued preservation and have been transferred
to the legal
2. One or more buildings, or portions thereof, established and maintained for the preservation, management, administration, and use of such permanent records.
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"Current year" means:
1. The period of a year (365 days or 366 days for a leap year); or
2. In the case of a
"Custodian of public records" or "custodian" means:
1. The head of a public agency having
2. As established under
47:1A-1.1 et seq., the officer
designated by formal action of that agency's
3. In the case of a municipality, the municipal clerk.
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"Data" means:
1. Facts, statistics, pieces of information, or body of information, either historical or derived from calculation or information gathering activities, relating to a particular subject of interest to an agency, which are collected, created, and recorded for the production of records and information;
2. Symbols, numbers, or other representations of facts or ideas that can be communicated, interpreted, or processed by manual or automated means, often associated with electronic data or statistics and measurements; or
3. A general term used to describe raw facts and figures which may be manipulated and from which conclusions may be inferred.
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"Disaster planning" or "disaster response and recovery program" means:
1. Generally, a set of policies and procedures for implementation in the event of a sudden, unplanned calamitous event that creates an inability of an agency to perform critical operational functions for some period of time;
2. A plan consisting of a disaster recovery plan, information about disaster preparedness, procedures during a disaster in progress, and plans for disaster recovery; or
3. Specifically, pursuant to the provisions of 15:3-2.5, Vital Records Program, measures taken to prevent damage, loss or destruction of public records in the event of a disaster and methods of recovery and restoration of damaged records.
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"Division" means:
1. The Division of Archives and Records Management in the Department of State, as established Governor's Reorganization Plan, filed April 25, 1983 and as set out under 18A:73-26, whose primary responsibilities include the implementation and enforcement of the provisions of N.J.S.A. Title 47 (Public Records) et al.;
2. Pursuant to P.L. 1994, c.140, § 10 (47:1-15 ), whenever in any law, rule, regulation, order, contract, document, judicial or administrative proceeding, or otherwise, reference is made to the Bureau of Archives and History in the Department of Education or the administrator thereof, the same shall be considered to mean and refer to the Division of Archives and Records Management in the Department of State, established pursuant to the Governor's Reorganization Plan, filed April 25, 1983; and
3. The successor to the Public Records Office established under P.L. 1920, c.46, as amended by P.L. 1924, c.203 (N.J.S.A. 47:2-1 through 8).
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"Image processing" means:
1. Generally, the computer-related discipline wherein analog or digital images are the main data object, or the manipulation and control of data representing two-dimensional images, including raster images generated by scanning and raster conversions of electronic data created in other formats, vector-based data from computer-aided design (CAD) and other illustration systems, and digital images from digital, video and other camera systems; or
2. Specifically, the creation, preparation, capture, recording, indexing, storage, retrieval, reproduction, control, use and management of direct representations or images of documents using these techniques.
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"Inventory" means:
1. A survey of agency records and nonrecord materials conducted primarily for the development of retention schedules or to identify records management problems, such as inadequate applications of recordkeeping technologies;
2. The documented results of such a survey; or
3. A type of finding aid used in archives administration for accessioning permanent records.
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"Life expectancy" or "LE rating" means:
1. The estimated length of time a recording
2. A rating system for various types of recording
3. The life expectancy (LE) rating of any recording
4. Any manufacturer's claims for the continuing viability of a
recording
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1. Any county, city, town, municipality, or other government of a
2. Any school, fire, or water district or other district or districts;
3. Any independent local authority, commission, district, institution, or instrumentality;
4. Any subordinate office or agency of 1 through 3 above;
5. Any office, officer, official, board, or governing body of 1 through 4 above; or
6. Any combination of 1 through 5 above.
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"Micrographics" means:
1. The process of creating photographic reproductions greatly reduced in size from the original on fine grain, high resolution film, usually of a document or some other type of record; or
2. The archival and records management technologies and techniques
concerned with microimaging and reprographics, including producing, using and
preserving
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"Noncurrent records" means:
1. Records that are not needed for the conduct of current operations and are not required to be retained in the office in which they originate (see the definition of "record"); or
2. Records stored in a records storage facility that are not needed for the conduct of current operations and are not required to be retained in the office in which they originate. (See the definitions of "records center" or "records storage facility.")
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"Permanent records" means:
1. Records which have a permanent or enduring administrative, legal, fiscal, research or historical value and, in consequence thereof, must be retained and preserved indefinitely by the originating agency or transferred to an archives; or
2. Records which have a permanent or enduring administrative,
legal, fiscal, research or historical value and, in consequence thereof, are
retained and preserved indefinitely by the
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"Records center" or "records storage facility" means:
1. Generally, a facility established and maintained pursuant to
the provision of N.J.A.C 15:3-6, Storage of Public Records, for economical and
efficient storage and servicing of noncurrent records pending the expiration of
their approved retention periods and their
2. Specifically, the
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"Records management" means:
1. The systematic application of professional methodologies, practices and techniques for the effective, efficient and economical management, use, processing, protection, preservation, and disposition of records; or
2. The planning, managing, controlling, directing, organizing, training, promoting, and other managerial activities related to the creation, maintenance, use, and disposition of records to achieve adequate and proper documentation of State and local policies and transactions and effective, efficient and economical management, operation, and administration of public agencies.
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"Register" means:
1. Generally, a book, list or record of items, acts, names, or events recorded and kept for reference, access, control, or planning purposes; or
2. Specifically, the centralized list or record maintained for
systematic recording and retrieval of information regarding public records
pertaining to the administration of the provisions of this title, including but not
limited to identification of record series and the function, location, custodian,
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"Semicurrent records" means:
1. Any records that are needed only infrequently for the conduct of current operations of an agency and are not required to be retained in the office in which they were created, received, or accumulated (see also the definitions of "record" and "noncurrent record"); or
2. Records stored in a records storage facility that are needed only infrequently for the conduct of current operations and are not required to be retained in the office in which they originate. (See the definitions of "records center" or "records storage facility.")
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1. The Office of the Governor and any of the departments in the Executive Branch of State government;
2. Any division, board, bureau, office, commission, council, authority, institution, office or officers or other instrumentality within or created by the departments in 1 above;
3. The Legislature of the State and any office, board, bureau or commission within or created by the Legislative Branch of the State government;
4. Any independent State authority, commission, district, institution, or instrumentality or agency;
5. Any subordinate office or agency of 1 through 4 above;
6. Any office, officer, official, board, or governing body of 1 through 5 above; or
7. Any combination of 1 through 6 above.
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1. For the preservation of those public records and related material that have been determined by the Division to have sufficient historical and other permanent or enduring value to warrant their continued preservation by the State;
2. For the maintenance, administration, and use of public records
that have been accepted by the division for physical and legal transfer to its
3. For publishing, exhibiting, and disseminating, by means of public educational programs and research materials, information relating to the management and preservation of public records and to the history of the State of New Jersey and its political subdivisions.
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"Vital records" means records which:
1. Contain information required by public agencies to continue functioning during a disaster or to reestablish operations after a calamity has ended;
2. Must be protected from destruction because they offer direct evidence of legal status, ownership, accounts receivable, and the particulars of obligations incurred by governments; or
3. Provide accountability and establish the policies that direct the operation of government.
"Vital records program" means:
1.
2.
Notes
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