R.S. 44:36 requires that all persons or public bodies that have custody or control of any public record, other than those such as conveyance, mortgage, and other similar permanent records that are required to be preserved forever by law, must maintain the record according to a formal retention schedule developed and approved by the state archivist and director of the division of archives, records management, and history of the Department of State.

If a formal retention schedule has not been executed and no period is otherwise prescribed by law, public records must be preserved and maintained for a period of at least three years from the date on which the public record was made.

Many documents must be kept longer than the default three year period. Therefore, the entity, working with the Secretary of State, should develop an appropriate records retention schedule.