How Long Must Local or Commonwealth Agencies Keep Records?

Records retention is the key to successful implementation of the Right-to-Know law. This law is written with the idea that local and Commonwealth agencies are able to quickly and easily access their records. Many agencies struggle to meet the five business day response because they have boxes and boxes of 20-year-old records and they don't know what is in them.

The OOR recommends strongly that agencies review their records and keep them up-to-date in accordance with Pennsylvania laws that govern how long an agency must keep particular records.

The Office of Open Records doesn't have jurisdiction over records retention, although we get many questions related to how long records, such as emails, contracts, invoices, and audio tapes, must be kept. Please consult with the Pennsylvania Historic Museum Commission at the link below to find out how long you must keep records of your agency. 

PHMC record retention information