Records Management Manual [4.6] Cabinet Documents

Records Management Standards and Procedures
B.C. Ministry of Forests [GIF 1K]

Chapter 4 - File Creation and Management

Section 4.6 - Cabinet Documents

Effective: September 15, 1997

General

This section provides guidelines for managing Cabinet Documents.

Definition

Cabinet Documents (or records) include:

draft and final Cabinet and Treasury Board submissions, agendas, and minutes
decision letters of Cabinet and its committees
regulations and Orders in Council (OICs) prior to release
requests for legislation and draft legislation
financial impact assessments
memoranda regarding confidential work for the consideration of Cabinet, and any other material for the use of Cabinet, or that would indicate matters that Cabinet is discussing

Security Requirements

Cabinet Documents are confidential and require high security. Deputy Ministers are accountable for the security of the document handling system in their respective ministries and ministers' offices. Each Deputy Minister must appoint:

a ministry security officer, who will ensure that security requirements are met, and
a Cabinet Document coordinator, who will have day-to-day responsibility for maintaining a ministry Cabinet Document tracking system

Responsibilities

A ministry developing a Cabinet Document is the "Office of Primary Responsibility" (OPR) for this document while it is in draft (i.e., unsigned) form. In the Ministry of Forests, Financial Management Branch is the OPR for Treasury Board Submissions. Corporate Policy and Planning Branch is the OPR for Cabinet Submissions.

Personnel who will be working on or handling Cabinet Documents should be made aware of the expectations set out in the Security of Cabinet Documents Directive, and the approved records classification systems (ARCS) and retention requirements for Cabinet Documents.

Ministries must advise any consultants involved in the development of Cabinet Documents or material for use in Cabinet deliberations of specific expectations regarding the security of these documents.

Cabinet submissions, agendas, minutes, or decisions letters are not to be copied in ministries.

Cabinet Documents must only be available to those who "need to know" as identified by the Deputy Minister, and must be handled in such a manner that they cannot be read by unauthorized people (e.g., they are not to be left unattended unless locked away in secure storage).

Documentation

To ensure that a document can be entered into the ministry's Cabinet Document tracking system, ministry staff must contact the ministry Cabinet Document Coordinator (phone (250) 387-2112):

when they begin developmental work on any Cabinet Document, or
if the ministry executive determine that matters in a briefing document are likely to proceed to Cabinet

References

Cabinet Document Security Directive, issued by Cabinet Operations

Information Management Group, B.C. Ministry of Forests

Comments to: RMHELP
This page last updated: November 18, 1997.
URL: http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/tasb/manuals/recman/rm4-3.htm