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Ohio public agencies cannot simply delete or destroy government records whenever they are no longer convenient to keep. Public records generally must be retained according to an approved records retention schedule and disposed of only when legally permitted. Ohio’s 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual also adds an important warning for the digital age: public officials should avoid messaging platforms and applications that automatically delete records when conducting public business.
For cities, counties, townships, school districts, public universities, libraries, law enforcement agencies, and other government offices, the update reinforces an important distinction: records retention and records destruction are two parts of the same information-management process.
Once records have satisfied applicable retention requirements and are authorized for disposal, secure destruction can help ensure confidential information contained within those records does not remain readable or recoverable.
Black Ops Destruction provides secure document shredding, hard drive destruction, electronics recycling, and other destruction services for organizations throughout Ohio and the Midwest.
Quick Answer: What Changed in Ohio’s 2026 Sunshine Laws Guidance?
The Ohio Attorney General released the 2026 Ohio Sunshine Laws Manual, commonly known as the Yellow Book, in March 2026.
One notable addition concerns disappearing digital communications. The Attorney General's new records-management guidance tells public officials to avoid platforms or applications that automatically delete records when conducting public business.
Why?
Whether a communication qualifies as a public record depends on its content, not simply the device, application, or platform used to create it. Automatically deleting a communication before it can be properly retained or reviewed could create problems under Ohio's Public Records Act.
For public agencies, the takeaway is straightforward:
- Know which communications and documents qualify as records
- Follow approved retention schedules
- Do not rely on automatically disappearing communications for public business
- Do not destroy records before they are eligible for disposal
- Document records destruction when applicable
- Securely destroy sensitive information once disposal is properly authorized
Key Takeaways
- Ohio public records generally must be retained according to approved records retention schedules
- Ohio's 2026 Sunshine Laws guidance advises public officials to avoid apps that automatically delete records when conducting public business
- Records should not be destroyed simply because they are no longer actively used
- Agencies should confirm that retention and disposition requirements have been satisfied before destroying records
- Records destruction should be documented when applicable
- Secure shredding and data destruction can protect sensitive information after records are properly authorized for disposal
What Are Ohio Public Records?
Ohio's Public Records Act generally defines a public record through three basic elements.
A record must exist on a fixed medium, be created or received by or come under the jurisdiction of a public office, and document the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of that office.
That means public records can extend well beyond traditional paper files.
Depending on their content and purpose, records may include:
- Emails
- Text messages
- Reports
- Contracts
- Financial records
- Personnel documents
- Meeting materials
- Photographs
- Videos
- Electronic files
- Other communications documenting public business
The format alone does not determine whether something is a public record.
Why Disappearing Messages Are a Records-Retention Concern
Messaging technology has complicated government records management.
Some platforms allow messages, photographs, or videos to disappear automatically after being viewed or after a predetermined amount of time.
Ohio's 2026 guidance specifically advises public officials to avoid using platforms or applications that automatically delete records for public business. The Attorney General cited Signal, WhatsApp, and Snapchat as examples of applications that can offer disappearing-message functionality.
The important issue is not the brand of application.
It is whether public business is being documented and whether records that should be retained are instead disappearing automatically.
A text message discussing government business does not necessarily stop being a public record simply because it was sent from a phone rather than written on paper.
Can Ohio Public Agencies Destroy Public Records?
Yes, public records can be destroyed when their disposal is permitted under applicable law and an approved records retention schedule. They should not simply be destroyed because an office no longer wants or regularly uses them.
Ohio law provides that public-office records generally cannot be removed, destroyed, mutilated, transferred, damaged, or otherwise disposed of except as provided by law and applicable records-management procedures.
The 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual further explains that records may be destroyed only in compliance with a properly approved records retention schedule.
If a retention schedule does not address a particular category of record, the manual says the record must be retained until the schedule is properly amended to cover it.
What Is an Ohio Records Retention Schedule?
A records retention schedule establishes how long different categories of records should be maintained before they become eligible for disposition.
When developing proposed schedules, Ohio public offices should evaluate how long records need to be kept for:
- Administrative purposes
- Legal purposes
- Fiscal purposes
- Historical value
Public offices must also maintain a copy of their current records retention schedules in a location readily available to the public.
A retention schedule therefore serves two purposes.
It helps prevent premature destruction, but it also gives an agency a structured process for disposing of records that have legitimately reached the end of their required retention period.
Should Public Agencies Keep Records Forever?
Not necessarily.
In fact, the 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual advises public offices to follow their retention schedules and destroy records after they have met their applicable retention periods.
There is an important practical reason for this: if a public record is retained beyond its scheduled destruction date, it can remain subject to public-records requests until it is actually destroyed.
A well-managed records program therefore is not simply about keeping information.
It is about retaining records for the appropriate period and disposing of them properly when that period ends.
What Are Transient Records?
Not every government record needs to be retained for years.
Ohio's 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual describes transient records as records containing information of short-term usefulness or value to a public office.
Examples may include:
- Voicemail messages
- Telephone message slips
- Sticky notes
- Calendar invitations
- Superseded drafts
An approved schedule for transient records can allow an office to dispose of those records once they no longer have administrative value.
Public agencies should still rely on their applicable retention schedules rather than assuming that every informal communication automatically qualifies as transient.
Records Retention vs. Records Destruction
These terms are closely related, but they are not interchangeable.
Records retention determines how long information must be kept. Records destruction is the controlled disposal process that occurs after records become eligible for destruction.
A practical records lifecycle can look like this:
1. Create or receive the record
The agency determines how the information relates to public business
2. Classify the record
The record is assigned to the appropriate category and retention schedule
3. Retain the record
Information remains accessible and protected for the required period
4. Confirm eligibility for disposition
The agency verifies that the applicable retention period and other required procedures have been satisfied
5. Document the disposition
Applicable destruction or disposal information is recorded
6. Securely destroy sensitive material
Paper records, storage media, or other confidential materials are destroyed using an appropriate method
This distinction matters because secure shredding does not determine when a government record may legally be destroyed.
It determines how the physical material can be securely destroyed once the agency has determined that destruction is authorized.
Why Public Agencies Should Document Records Destruction
Documentation can be just as important as destruction itself.
The 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual recommends that public offices document destruction of records that have met their approved retention periods. Properly tracking disposal helps an office establish what it still maintains and respond to allegations of improper destruction.
Depending on the agency and applicable schedule, additional disposition procedures may also apply.
For example, when required by the applicable retention schedule, a local government records commission must submit a Certificate of Records Disposal, known as an RC-3, to the State Archives at the Ohio History Connection at least 15 days before disposing of the applicable public records.
Public agencies should verify their specific requirements before authorizing destruction.
Why Secure Destruction Matters After Retention Requirements Are Met
Authorization to dispose of a record does not mean the information within it suddenly becomes harmless.
Government records can contain sensitive information such as:
- Social Security numbers
- Employee information
- Payroll information
- Financial information
- Tax records
- Medical information
- Account numbers
- Internal administrative information
- Personally identifiable information
Simply placing expired records in an ordinary trash or recycling container can leave that information exposed.
Professional document destruction adds a controlled final step to the records lifecycle by rendering paper records unreadable before the material enters the recycling process.
What About Electronic Public Records?
Public records increasingly exist on computers, servers, hard drives, SSDs, phones, and other electronic devices.
The same fundamental distinction applies.
First determine whether the records stored on the device must still be retained. Then determine whether the records can be transferred, deleted, or disposed of according to the agency's applicable policies and retention requirements.
When a storage device itself reaches the end of its useful life, deleting files or reformatting the device may not be the same as physically destroying the storage media.
For devices containing sensitive information, agencies may need an appropriate data-destruction process before electronics are recycled or otherwise leave organizational control.
Black Ops Destruction provides hard drive destruction and electronics recycling services for organizations managing retired technology and sensitive storage media.
Public Records Destruction Checklist for Ohio Agencies
Before destroying government records, consider this basic checklist:
- Identify the record category
- Check the agency's current approved retention schedule
- Confirm that the required retention period has expired
- Determine whether any legal, administrative, audit, historical, or other requirement prevents disposal
- Complete required records-disposition procedures
- Document what is being destroyed
- Keep sensitive records secured while awaiting destruction
- Use an appropriate destruction method
- Maintain applicable destruction documentation afterward
This checklist is a practical starting point, not a substitute for guidance from an agency's records officer, legal counsel, records commission, or other appropriate authority.
How Secure Shredding Fits Into Ohio Public Records Management
A shredding provider should not decide when an Ohio public record has satisfied its legal retention requirement.
That responsibility remains with the public agency and the appropriate records-management authorities.
Once an agency has properly authorized records for destruction, however, professional shredding can help create a controlled transition from authorized record to destroyed material.
Black Ops Destruction provides options including:
- Scheduled document shredding
- One-time purge shredding
- Mobile on-site shredding
- Secure off-site shredding
- Hard drive destruction
- Electronics recycling
- Certificates of Destruction
- Secure collection containers
For agencies handling large volumes of records, documented destruction can also help maintain a clearer chain of custody between storage, collection, transportation, and final destruction.
Frequently Asked Questions About Ohio Public Records Retention and Destruction
What changed in Ohio's Sunshine Laws in 2026?
The Ohio Attorney General's 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual added guidance advising public officials to avoid platforms or applications that automatically delete records when conducting public business. The concern is that automatically disappearing communications may prevent records from being properly retained or reviewed.
Can public records be shredded in Ohio?
Yes, public records can be destroyed after they are legally eligible for disposition and applicable records-management requirements have been satisfied. Ohio's 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual states that public-office records may be destroyed only in compliance with a properly approved records retention schedule.
Can an Ohio public agency destroy records after the retention period expires?
Generally, records that have met their approved retention periods should be disposed of according to the applicable retention schedule and records-disposition procedures. Agencies should also account for any other applicable legal or administrative requirements before destruction.
Are text messages public records in Ohio?
They can be. Whether something constitutes a public record depends on its content and whether it documents the activities of a public office, rather than simply the platform used to communicate.
Are disappearing messages allowed for Ohio public business?
The 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual advises public officials to avoid platforms or applications that automatically delete records when conducting public business.
What happens if a record is not listed on the retention schedule?
According to the 2026 Sunshine Laws Manual, if a retention schedule does not address the particular type of record, the record must be retained until the schedule is properly amended to cover that category.
Should an agency document shredded records?
The 2026 manual recommends documenting destruction of records that have met approved retention periods. This helps an office verify what records it continues to maintain and respond to allegations of improper destruction.
Does a Certificate of Destruction replace an Ohio records retention schedule?
No. A Certificate of Destruction can document that a destruction service occurred, but it does not determine whether a record was legally eligible for destruction. The public agency must first follow its applicable retention and disposition requirements.
Build a Defensible Records Destruction Process
Ohio's 2026 Sunshine Laws guidance highlights an important principle for every public agency: government records should not disappear simply because technology makes deletion easy.
Public offices need to know what records they have, how long those records must be retained, and when they can properly be disposed of. Once records are authorized for destruction, using a controlled and documented destruction process can help prevent sensitive information from remaining readable or accessible.
Black Ops Destruction provides secure document shredding, hard drive destruction, electronics recycling, and related destruction services for government agencies and organizations throughout Ohio and the Midwest. Our team can provide secure collection, documented chain of custody, mobile or facility-based destruction, and Certificates of Destruction for materials your organization has authorized for disposal.
Contact Black Ops Destruction to discuss secure destruction for records that have completed your agency's required retention and disposition process.
Call: 330-888-5410
Email: mmarzullo@blackopsdestruction.com
Contact: Request a Quote
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