Government records must be preserved according to state law. In Minnesota, local governments may destroy government records only pursuant to:

• An approved "Application for Authority to Dispose of Records";
• An adopted and approved records retention schedule; or
• An adopted general records retention schedule that has been pre-approved by the State Records Disposition Panel.

If the governmental entity has adopted the pre-approved general records retention schedule and that schedule is subsequently updated by the State Records Disposition Panel, the governmental entity does not have to adopt the new version of the general schedule. Instead, the State Records Disposition Panel will assume the governmental entity will use the most recent version of the general schedule.

 

Links to various records retention schedules for Minnesota governmental entities, including counties, cities, townships, and school districts are found on the Minnesota Historical Society's website at:

 

http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/records/retentionsched.html

 

In addition, the Minnesota Historical Society and State Archives website offer guidelines, information leaflets and forms to assist governmental entities in managing their paper and electronic records. For example, the site provides information leaflets for records of watershed districts, soil and water conservation districts, law enforcement, county auditors, public libraries, public health care facilities, heritage preservation commissions, towns, cities, and school districts.

 

The information can be found at:

 

http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/records/recser.html 

To date, the Legislature and the Governor have not been able to come to terms concerning the budget deficit.  If they are not able to do so by June 30, 2011, there will be a government shutdown.  In that event, only "critical" state services will continue.  All other government services will cease.

It is unlikely the Alcohol & Gambling Enforcement Division will be considered "critical" and, accordingly, will cease to function as of June 30, 2011.

Many distributor and retail licenses expire June 30, 2011.  If these licenses expire and if the applications for renewal are not processed and reissued by July 1, 2011, the distributors or retailers in question will be prohibited from selling alcohol.

Furthermore, there may be pending applications for buyer cards or label registrations that have not been acted upon.

Thus, even if a distribution licenses does not expire, the wholesaler will be legally prohibited from selling to a retailer who does not have a license and the distributor will be legally prohibited from selling any product that does not have an approved label.

 

Therefore, it is critical to determine when your license / buyers card expires.  If it expires at the end of this month, all reasonable steps should be taken to complete, submit, and have the license application approved by the end of the month.

 

It is also important to note that temporary non-profit license approvals will be impacted by the shutdown.

 

 

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Three men are sitting at a bar discussing coincidences.

  

The first man says, "My wife was reading A Tale of Two Cities and she gave birth to twins."

  

"Funny you should say that, " the second man remarks.  "My wife was reading The Three Musketeers and she gave birth to triplets."

  

With that, the third man jumps up from his bar stool and shouts, "I have to rush home!  When I left the house, my wife was reading Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves!"