Section 3003. Powers and duties

The commissioner: 1. shall be the chief
  archivist of the city and shall advise the mayor, borough presidents and
  council on those matters  concerning  the  preservation  of  the  city's
  historical documentation:
    2.  shall  act  as  the chief reference and research librarian for the
  mayor,  borough  presidents  and  council  and  shall  ensure  that  all
  significant  research  material pertaining to the operations of the city
  as well as other municipalities shall be preserved and readily available
  for use;
    3. shall act as the  chief  public  records  officer  for  the  mayor,
  borough  presidents  and council and shall, except as otherwise provided
  by law, establish standards for proper records management in any  agency
  or  government instrumentality funded in whole or in part from local tax
  levy monies, and
    4. shall have the power to exercise or delegate any of  the  functions
  and duties vested in such commissioner by law, subject to the provisions
  of subdivision five of this section.
    5.  In addition to the above duties, the commissioner shall ensure the
  city's custody and control of city records as follows:
    a. Pursuant to an approved records disposition schedule as  set  forth
  in section eleven hundred thirty-three of this charter, the commissioner
  shall  ensure that the records of any city officer or agency that are of
  historical,  research,  cultural  or  other  important  value  shall  be
  delivered   directly   to  the  department's  municipal  archives.  Upon
  delivery, the department shall begin to review such records and  publish
  a  survey  of  such  records  with  appropriate specificity, and, to the
  extent practicable, the contents of such records. Where the commissioner
  has certified in  writing  as  to  its  necessity,  under  extraordinary
  circumstances,   such   records   may  be  transferred  to  an  archival
  establishment to be organized and prepared  for  archival  preservation,
  provided   that  such  establishment  meets  the  specific  requirements
  specified in paragraph b of this subdivision.
    b. If the commissioner decides that it is necessary to enter  into  an
  agreement  or  contract  with another archival establishment outside the
  department, to organize and prepare records for  archival  preservation,
  it  may not be with a private entity as defined by this chapter, and may
  not be with any entity outside the city. The commissioner shall  include
  with the agreement or contract a plan for strictly monitoring the status
  and  progress of the archiving operations. The commissioner shall devise
  and publish such plan, which shall include at least the following: (i) a
  list of the tasks to be conducted and a timetable for the completion  of
  each  such  task;  (ii)  a  description  of  the resources, staffing and
  training dedicated by the archival establishment to  carrying  out  such
  tasks; (iii) allowances for direct supervision by department archivists;
  and  (iv)  an  agreement  by  the  archival establishment to issue, at a
  minimum, quarterly reports of its activities to  the  commissioner.  The
  commissioner  shall  also  include  with  such  agreement  and publish a
  schedule, where applicable, for the municipal archives to send  original
  records  to such archival establishment and to receive such records when
  processing is completed. To the extent practicable, such schedule  shall
  take  into account that original records should be sent in a limited and
  controlled manner and that no new such original records should  be  sent
  until  receipt  of  any  previously  sent  under such schedule. Any such
  agreement, contract, plan and schedule  must  be  approved  by  the  law
  department  for  compliance with this subdivision. The commissioner will
  at all times remain responsible for the proper handling and archiving of
  records, notwithstanding any agreement with  an  archival  establishment
  outside the department.

    c. No agreement provided for in subdivision five of this section shall
  be entered into during the term of office of any elected official of the
  city with regard to whose records such agreement applies.
    d.  Nothing  in  this subdivision shall prevent officers or members of
  such officer's administration from donating money  to  the  department's
  municipal  archives  or  other  archival  establishment  so long as such
  officers or members are not involved  in  the  supervision,  control  or
  management  of  the  archival  processing pertaining to their respective
  administrations.
    e. Nothing in this subdivision should be construed to limit access  by
  the  public  to  city  records.  The department shall be responsible for
  granting access to records in accordance with applicable  provisions  of
  law.  Additionally,  agencies of the city shall have free access to such
  records as needed.