Essential Records: Washington’s Blueprint for Government Continuity

Natural and manufactured disasters pose a significant risk to local governments in Washington State. Earthquakes, flooding, fires, cyber attacks, and infrastructure failures can disrupt public services and permanently damage records that document government actions and protect agency property.

Recognizing this risk, Washington State Archives (State Archives) emphasizes that protecting essential records is a core element of disaster preparedness for all local governments, regardless of size or structure.

This blog summarizes guidance for identifying, protecting, and recovering essential records.

What Is an Essential Record?

Chapter 40.10 RCW ensures the continuity and preservation of civil government during and after emergencies by requiring state and local governments to:

• Proactively identify and document ‘essential’ records;
• Review those designations annually;
• Implement document protection and management strategies (see RCW 40.10.010); and
• Work with State Archives to ensure records survive emergencies without authorizing destruction of the originals.

Records are considered essential based on their content and not on their format. They provide local and state agencies with the information needed to conduct business under emergency conditions and to resume normal business afterward. Without essential records, daily agency business would stop, and public interest could be endangered because of:

• Vulnerability to litigation;
• Exposure to unplanned expenses of financial settlements or revenue loss;
• Disruption of efficiency due to gaps in information; and
• Breaks in the continuity of operations.

While state statutes require local government agencies to identify and protect essential records, the Common Records Retention Schedule (CORE) retention schedule helpfully identifies which records are deemed essential. This information can be found within the CORE records table as well as in an essential records index at the end of the document.

With this guidance, agencies can craft their own list of essential records, taking into account CORE guidance as well as agency priorities. For example, the King County Records Retention Schedules table indicates which documents have been identified as essential, such as access authorizations.

Essential records are found in many formats—paper, electronic, microfilm, photographs—so staff should be consulted on where such records might be located, in what format, and the potential risks to the records, including natural disasters, tech failures (software and/or hardware), civil emergencies, and, increasingly, cyber threats (malware, denial of service attacks, etc.).

Protecting Your Agency’s Essential Records

When thinking of protecting and maintaining essential records, agencies can also split these into two camps: records needed for emergency response and those needed for continuity of operations.

• Records needed for emergency response will need to be employed immediately, including the local emergency management plan, jurisdictional maps, building plans, delegated authority records, the essential records inventory and recovery plan, insurance records, and emergency management contact names, numbers, and chain of command.
• Records needed for agency continuity are those required for legal, financial, and public responsibilities. Examples include payroll; accounts receivables; contracts, agreements, and other legally binding documents; software source codes, access, and permissions lists; lists of delegated authority to contract; and a local records retention schedule, to name a few.

State Archives has developed a list of steps local governments can take to protect essential documents in the event of a disaster and emphasizes that prevention and preparedness are far more effective than post‑disaster recovery.

Prime among the recommendations (and echoed in the 2018 Essential Records Guide from the National Archives, or NARA) is that local governments maintain a Disaster Recovery Plan for essential records, either as a standalone plan or integrated into a broader plan, such as a comprehensive emergency management plan (CEMP). For example, see the Sammamish CEMP (updated 2024), which identifies broad categories of records essential for continuity of operations.

A records disaster recovery plan should include:

• A list of essential records, location, type, or format (i.e., digital, print, photography, microfilm) and summary of what the record entails.
• Preventative/protective measures.
• Emergency contacts and roles and responsibilities of assigned personnel.
• Risk factors and plans for records recovery (e.g., contacts, equipment, and supplies).
• Plans for post-incident analysis.

And, while integrating records protection into disaster and emergency planning is a good first step, Washington State applies the following additional principles across all local government types when it comes to protecting essential records:

• Maintain offsite and accessible backups, including for physical records, which should be kept off the ground (see Selecting Appropriate Shelving for Records Storage from State Archives).
• Secure and restrict access to confidential records.
• Designate staff responsible for records disaster response and train them. For example, see Spokane Administrative Policy and Procedure ADMIN 0260-17-05 (2017) which covers the city’s public records management program and requires city departments work with Records Coordinators to identify and protect records essential to the city’s authority and operations.
• Follow state‑recommended recovery procedures after an incident.
• Routinely inspect records storage for safety, security, and organization.
• Evaluate your records disaster recovery plans regularly.

When the Worst Happens

Sometimes, despite all the preparation, essential records are damaged during a disaster or other catastrophe. In the event that this happens, the Essential Records Guide offers the following guidance:

• Make sure the affected area where the records are stored is safe for staff to access (Washington State concurs);
• Assess and document the extent and type of damage;
• Identify priorities and available resources;
• Identify outside recovery advice and services needed; and
• Prepare a records recovery action plan.

NARA’s Contracting Records Recovery Services webpage offers links to companies that specialize in records restoration and recovery. Appendix C: Records Disaster Response and Recovery Procedures and Treatments from State Archives offers detailed information on recommended recovery procedures for records damaged by mold, fire, water, sewage, or other contaminants.

Conclusion and Resources

Essential records represent only a small portion of total records of a public agency, but they must be deliberately identified to ensure they can be safely accessed when normal facilities or systems are unavailable.

State Archives is the go-to state agency to consult for records maintenance and recovery. The How to Prepare for Records Disasters series offers:

• Checklists and worksheets for identifying essential records;
• Templates for disaster preparedness and recovery planning;
• Advice on how to store records; and
• Consultation and training for local governments. 

State Archives also offers the Essential Records Protection Program, free storage for essential local government records on microfilm, and guidance on moving from paper to digital records through the Scan and Toss resources.

Washington State’s approach to essential records protection emphasizes preparedness, selectivity, redundancy, and staff readiness. By following state guidance, local governments can significantly reduce service disruption, legal exposure, and long‑term recovery costs—ensuring continuity of government even in the face of disaster.