As shown in the figure below, the primary unit of analysis for the Record Level of the RREC is the record itself. In general terms, this section of the tool seeks to capture records management requirements associated with access and use over time, for both the record in aggregate and its component parts. The questions are focused on capturing records management requirements related to the access and maintenance of records once they have been created, or after a business transaction has been completed.

This section of the RREC identifies the specific components of the record that must be retrievable and reproducible for use by both internal and external secondary users. It also focuses on the identification of an organization's records disposition plan, including the individual(s) responsible for disposing of records according to the plan and those responsible for modifying or updating the plan.

The Record Level specifies the information that must be collected in identifying a comprehensive set of records management requirements, but it does not dictate the mechanisms by which the questions are asked and answered. Several methods can be used. For example, the answers can be acquired through interviews of relevant staff, conversations with experts such as legal staff, group decision conferences, or surveys. The method used to answer the questions outlined in the Record Level of the RREC should be determined in much the same way a research method would be selected to answer a research question. A variety of factors need to be considered and the most cost-effective mechanism for gathering the information should be used.

Records Requirements Eliciation Component Record Level
1. What are the current components of a complete or final record of the transaction?
2. What are the minimal components to provide evidence of the transaction? (If you went to court, what would be the minimum information that you would need?)
3. Are there any laws, regs, or professional best practices that specify the structure (including medium, format, relationships) of the record or any of its components?
4. What information must be created to control, manage, and access the record throughout its life-cycle? (What information about the record do you need: e.g. who created it, when, etc.)
5. For each of the components of the record, what information is essential to access, verify the authenticity, interpret the contents, etc.?
6. During what other business processes might you need access to this record? For each of these other business processes, which components of the record need to be accessed? For each of these business processes, what are the best ways to access the records (i.e. indexing)?*
7. Who are the external secondary users of the record? Which components of the record are required by external secondary users? For each of these secondary uses, what are the most efficient/effective ways of accessing components of the records (i.e. indexing)? How will the record be reproduced to meet the needs of internal and external secondary users? What are the rules, laws, and regulationss that restrict or open access to these records to external users? If these records are covered by FOIL: For those components of the record that the Agency wishes to restrict access to, which category of exemption does the component fall under? For each of the components, what format are they currently in (e.g. GIS, database, WP, paper forms, narrative maps) and how will they be reproduced for distribution?
8. What is the record disposition plan?
9. Who is responsible for authorizing the disposition of records?
10. Who is responsible for authorizing the development or changes to the records disposition plan?
* Identify the business process that requires the most robust access and then determine if the other processes require additional access methods