Albany County Land Bank Corporation, Inc. Document Retention Policy

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1 Albany County Land Bank Corporation, Inc. Document Retention Policy The corporate records of Albany County Land Bank Corporation, Inc. ( ACLB ) are important assets. Corporate records include essentially all records produced as an employee, Board Member of Key Volunteer whether paper or electronic. A record may be as obvious as a memorandum, an , a contract, or a case study, or, something not as obvious, such as a computerized desk calendar, an appointment book, or an expense record. The law requires the organization to maintain certain types of corporate records, usually for a specified period of time. Failure to retain those records for those minimum periods could subject you and the organization to penalties and fines, cause the loss of rights, obstruct justice, spoil potential evidence in a lawsuit, place the organization in contempt of court, or seriously disadvantage the organization in litigation. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act makes it a crime to alter, cover up, falsify, or destroy any document to prevent its use in an official proceeding. Failure on the part of employees to follow this policy can result in possible civil and criminal sanctions against ACLB and its employees and possible disciplinary action against responsible individuals (up to and including termination of employment). Each employee has an obligation to contact the chief executive or chief financial officer of a potential or actual litigation, external audit, investigation, or similar proceeding involving ACLB. The information listed in the retention schedule below is intended as a guideline and may not contain all the records ACLB may be required to keep in the future. Questions regarding the retention of documents not listed in this chart should be directed to the chief executive. From time to time, the chief executive may issue a notice, known as a legal hold, suspending the destruction of records due to pending, threatened, or otherwise reasonably foreseeable litigation, audits, government investigations, or similar proceedings. No records specified in any legal hold may be destroyed, even if the scheduled destruction date has passed, until the legal hold is withdrawn in writing by the chief executive. The organization expects all employees, Board Members, and Key Volunteers to fully comply with any published records retention or destruction policies and schedules, provided that all employees should note the following general exception to any stated destruction schedule: If you believe, or the organization informs you, that organization records are relevant to litigation, or potential litigation (i.e., a dispute that could result in litigation), then you must preserve those records until the legal department determines the records are no longer needed. That exception supersedes any previously or subsequently established destruction schedule for those records. If 1

2 you believe that exception may apply, or have any question regarding the possible applicability of that exception, please contact the legal department. From time to time the organization establishes retention or destruction policies or schedules for specific categories of records in order to ensure legal compliance, and also to accomplish other objectives. Several categories of documents that bear special consideration are identified below. While minimum retention periods are suggested, the retention of the documents identified below and of documents not included in the identified categories should be determined primarily by the application of the general guidelines affecting document retention identified above, as well as any other pertinent factors. File Category Item Retention Period Corporate Records Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation Corporate resolutions Board and committee meeting agendas and minutes Conflict-of-interest disclosure forms 4 years Finance and Administration Financial statements (audited) Auditor management letters Payroll records Journal entries Check register and checks Bank deposits and statements Charitable organizations registration statements (filed with [State] Attorney General) Chart of accounts Expense reports General ledgers and journals (includes bank reconciliations, fund accounting by month, payouts allocation, securities lending, single fund allocation, trust statements) Accounts payable ledger [/ ] 2

3 File Category Item Retention Period Investment performance reports Investment consultant reports Investment manager correspondence Equipment files and maintenance records Contracts and agreements Investment manager contracts Correspondence general after disposition after all obligations end after all obligations end Insurance Records Policies occurrence type Policies claims-made type Accident reports Fire inspection reports Safety (OSHA) reports Claims (after settlement) Group disability records after end of benefits Real Estate Deeds Tax Communications Leases (expired) Mortgages, security agreements Purchase agreements IRS exemption determination and related correspondence IRS Form 990s Withholding tax statements Correspondence with legal counsel or accountants, not otherwise listed Timecards One set of all communication documents kept on-site and one set kept off-site Press releases after all obligations end after all obligations end after disposition requirement after return is filed 3

4 File Category Item Retention Period Donor Services Community Philanthropy Annual reports Other publications Photos Press clippings Fund agreements (paper and digital copies) Correspondence acknowledgment of gifts and grant requests Donor fund statements Records from advisory committee or family fund meetings, including minutes, if any, and lists of grants recommended for approval. Scholarship grant records, including applications if foundation staff participates in selection decisions Approved grants all documentation supporting grant payment, including application/recommendation, due diligence, grant agreement letters, grant transmittal letters, and post grant reporting information, if any. Foundation funding requests, correspondence, and reports (funding received) Declined/withdrawn grant applications Foundation funding requests (denied) (5 copies) after completion of funded program, or date of grant if general operating support after completion of program Consulting Services Consulting contracts/filed after all obligations end Human Resources Employee personnel files Retirement plan benefits (plan descriptions, plan documents) Employee medical records Employee handbooks 4

5 File Category Item Retention Period Technology Workers comp claims (after settlement) Employee orientation and training materials Employment offer letter Employment applications IRS Form I-9 (store separate from personnel file) Résumés Software licenses and support agreements after use ends after all obligations end Greater of 1 year after end of service, or 1 year after all obligations end Library Other foundations annual reports 2 years General Administration Directories and periodicals Correspondence chief executive and general Appointment calendars chief executive 2 years Electronic Documents and Records Electronic documents will be retained as if they were paper documents. Therefore, any electronic files, including records of donations made online, that fall into one of the document types on the above schedule will be maintained for the appropriate amount of time. If a user has sufficient reason to keep an message, the message should be printed in hard copy and kept in the appropriate file or moved to an archive computer file folder. Backup and recovery methods will be tested on a regular basis. By: Chief of Staff/Corporate Secretary 5

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