CHAPTER 15
E-MAIL RETENTION
671—15.1(17A,305) Definitions.
“E-mail” is a computer-generated message transmitted or received by means of a computer network. An E-mail may contain any combination of text, Internet Uniform Resource Locator (URL) links, attached files and associated metadata.
“E-mail messages” are individual E-mail transmissions sent or received.
“Metadata” is the contextual information (i.e., sender, recipient, creation date, transmission information) that is used to understand and access other information.
“Record” means a document, book, paper, electronic record, photograph, sound recording, or other material regardless of physical form or characteristics, made, produced, executed, or received pursuant to law in connection with the transaction of official business of state government. “Record” does not include library and museum material made or acquired and preserved solely for reference or exhibition purposes, additional copies of records maintained or distributed for reference purposes, or stocks of publications and unprocessed forms.
671—15.2(17A,305) E-mail messages as records.
	15.2(1) E-mail messages are records as defined in rule 671—15.1(17A,305) when sent or received in the course of conducting state business.
	15.2(2) In order to determine the proper retention and disposition, E-mail messages must be evaluated for content and purpose. E-mail messages that meet the definition of “record” must be retained and disposed of in accordance with records series retention and disposition schedules which have been approved by the records commission.
	15.2(3) Approved record series retention and disposition schedules for state government records of Iowa are available through the state records manual. Agencies may request additions and changes to the schedules by submitting a request to the records commission in accordance with 671—Chapter 3.
	15.2(4) To protect the integrity of information contained in E-mail messages that meet the definition of “record,” they must be maintained as authentic, reliable and trustworthy records for their entire retention period. Unauthorized users must not be able to modify, destroy or distribute E-mail messages from an E-mail storage system.
These rules are intended to implement Iowa Code chapter 305.
[Filed 9/9/05, Notice 8/3/05—published 9/28/05, effective 11/2/05]