After risks are assessed, the costs associated with the electronic transaction should be documented. There are both technology-related and records-related costs that should be accounted for. For example, the nice thing about paper records is that if you put them in a box on the shelf, you’ll be able to read them in 50 or 100 years without having done anything. Put a box of electronic records on a backup tape, or even the whole server, on a shelf for 50 years, and you almost certainly will not be able to read them. Imagine the costs of having to photocopy all paper records in the office every five to ten years to ensure that they remain readable. If agencies fail to recognize that there will be significant costs in maintaining electronic records and electronic records systems, they may find themselves in a real bind in the future. Among the types of costs agencies should include in their analysis are the following:

• Design, development, implementation and maintenance of the new system.
• This should include ongoing operating expenses such as Data Center chargebacks.
• Proper migration of electronic records from existing system to the new system.
• On-going or continuing maintenance, migration and conservation of electronic records, especially permanently valuable records.
• Training of staff and end users.
• Re-training of staff that may be reassigned to other job duties as a result of the automation of current processes.
• New management, administrative and/or process controls required by the electronic transaction
• Potential damage to reputation, credibility and public trust

These various costs should then be weighed against the benefits. The following are examples of potential benefits agencies should include in their analysis:

• Increased speed of the transaction.
• Increased partner participation and customer satisfaction.
• Improved record keeping efficiency and data analysis opportunities.
• Increased employee productivity and improved quality of the final product.
• Greater information benefits to the public, especially for those who do not live near the agency and will no longer need to travel.
• Improved security and reduction in fraud.
• Extensive security for highly sensitive information.
• Improvement in reputation, credibility and public trust.

In order to create and maintain an electronic transaction system that also allows for proper electronic records management, the project team should identify and attempt to mitigate the risks associated with the type of transactions the system will enable. A cost benefit analysis can help determine how many resources to devote to mitigating those risks. Once this is completed, then the following guidelines can be used to develop a more specific set of system requirements that will help ensure that the system can properly manage the records it creates.