Weaknesses Threaten Electronic Records Archive Program

The National Archives and Records Administration must provide more detailed information on its progress creating a system to store the federal government's electronic records, and develop a better contingency plan in case the system fails, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. Auditors found NARA's 2009 spending strategy did not specify the outcomes or capabilities the agency expected to achieve with funding for the Electronic Records Archive, which will house the federal government's massive volumes of electronic records independent of their original hardware or software. "Cost, schedule and performance data in the expenditure plan do not provide a clear picture of ERA system progress," the report stated. NARA also has made very little progress on adding records from the Bush administration into a piece of ERA called the Executive Office of the President system. Less than 3 percent of electronic records from the Bush presidency had been entered into the EOP system at the time of the review, and NARA officials did not expect the rest to be added until October.