Senate Bill No. 530
(By Senators Wooton, Walker, Snyder, Unger, Love, Ball and
Hunter)
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[Introduced February 17, 2000; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section seven-c, article one, chapter
fifty-seven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to authorizing
optical image media preservation of certain county records.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section seven-c, article one, chapter fifty-seven of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. LEGISLATIVE ACTS AND RESOLUTIONS; PUBLIC RECORDS.
§57-1-7c. Use of microfilm or microcards or optical image storage
media to reproduce and preserve records; destruction or transfer of originals to archivist.
The clerk of any court of record of the state may, with the
approval of the court for which he or she is clerk, cause any or
all records, papers, plats, or other documents kept by him or her
to be reproduced on photographic microfilm, or microcards or
optical storage utilizing nonerasable write once read many [WORM]
optical image media, and may, with the approval of the court for
which he or she is clerk, record, keep and preserve any and all
records, papers, plats or other documents required by the laws of
this state to be recorded or kept by said clerk or court
exclusively upon photographic microfilm, or microcards, or optical
image media instead of in well-bound books or instead of by any
other method heretofore prescribed by law: Provided, That any
storage media utilized may not allow changes to stored documents
upon preservation.
Such The photographic microfilm, optical image storage media
and microcards shall be of durable material and possess good,
archival qualities. The device used to reproduce such these
records on such film, and cards or optical storage media shall be
one which accurately reproduces the original thereof in all details
Such photographic microfilm and microcards and shall be deemed considered to be an original record for all purposes, including
introduction into evidence in all courts or administrative
agencies. A transcript, exemplification, or photographic
reproduction thereof shall, when properly authenticated by the
clerk of such the court, be deemed considered for all purposes to
be a transcript, exemplification or certified copy of the original.
Such The photographic microfilm, optical image storage media
and microcards shall be put in convenient, accessible fireproof
files and adequate provision shall be made for preserving,
examining and using the same.
Any such records, papers, plats, or other documents not held
for others by said the clerk or court or required by law to be
delivered to some other person, court, corporation or agency, may
with the approval of the court keeping such these records, papers,
plats, or other documents be destroyed; but before any such
records, papers, plats or other documents are authorized to be
destroyed the court keeping them or the clerk thereof shall obtain
the advice and counsel of the state historian or archivist, or his
or her designated representatives, as to the desirability of
placing the said records, papers, plats or other documents in the
department of archives and history. However, prior to destroying or otherwise disposing of the same, the court or clerk thereof
shall give written notice of the intention to do so to the director
of the section of archives and history of the division of culture
and history. Upon the written request of the director, given to
the court or clerk thereof within ten days of receipt of said the
notice, the court or clerk thereof shall retain the original record
for a period of thirty days. In the event the director fails to
retrieve the original document from the court or clerk thereof
within the thirty-day period, the court or clerk thereof may
destroy or otherwise dispose of the original without further notice
to the director.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize the use of
optical image media preservation to preserve documents by circuit
and county clerks.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.