Is a federal agency legally required to have a vital records program?

Yes. Federal agencies are required to identify and protect their vital records as part of their broader recordkeeping and continuity responsibilities. A vital records program is not an optional best practice for federal entities; it is an established expectation built into federal records management and emergency-preparedness requirements.

What “vital records” means

Vital records (sometimes called essential records) are the information an agency needs to:

• Continue or resume operations during and after an emergency or disruption.
• Protect the legal and financial rights of the government and of the individuals it serves.

These typically include two broad categories: emergency operating records (such as plans, delegations of authority, and orders of succession) and rights-and-interests records (such as payroll, retirement, contractual, and entitlement records). They usually make up a small fraction of an agency’s total records but carry outsized importance.

Why it is required

Federal recordkeeping obligations flow from the Federal Records Act and related regulations, which direct agencies to make and preserve records that document their activities and to safeguard them against loss. Layered on top of this is continuity-of-operations planning, which expects agencies to ensure essential functions can keep running through disruptions. A vital records program is the mechanism that connects those duties: it identifies which records are essential, protects copies of them, and makes them retrievable when normal operations are interrupted.

In practice, an agency demonstrates compliance by maintaining a documented program, not merely by storing backups informally.

What a program generally includes

A sound vital records program typically:

• Identifies which records are essential and reviews that list periodically.
• Protects them through duplication, dispersal to another location, or secure off-site or electronic storage.
• Assigns responsibility and integrates with the agency’s continuity and disaster-recovery plans.
• Tests and updates procedures so records remain accessible and current.

You can find related guidance and connected topics through the Archives and Preservation hub.

Bottom line

For federal agencies, maintaining a vital records program is an expected part of meeting federal records and continuity requirements, not a discretionary add-on. State, local, and private organizations are not bound by the same federal rules, but the same logic applies: identifying and protecting essential records is a core safeguard for any organization.