Highway Department Records

Tennessee Code Annotated
Tennessee Attorney General Opinions

Reference Number: CTAS-2058

Highway Department. The records included in this schedule are only those specific to the office of the Highway Department. Records that may be kept in the same format by several county offices (such as employment records, purchasing records, etc.) will be found listed under topical retention schedules elsewhere in this manual. Included in this table is a listing of “obsolete” records. Your office should no longer be generating these records. They are still included in the disposition schedule so that anyone discovering those materials in older records of the office will know how to deal with them. To a certain extent, the records kept by county offices vary from county to county in either the format of record kept, the name given to the record, or the frequency of its occurrence. The fact that a certain record is listed in this schedule does not necessarily indicate that you should have it in your office. It may be a format for record-keeping that was never utilized in your county, or you may keep the record under a different name. If you have records in your office that are not listed in this schedule by name, check the descriptions of the records to see if we may have called it by a different term. If you still cannot locate any entry relative to the record. Contact us at the County Technical Assistance Service for guidance in determining the proper disposition of the record and so that we can make note of that record’s existence to include it in future revisions of this manual.

Retention Schedule for the 0ffice of the County Highway Department
Description of Record	Retention Period	Legal Authority/Rationale
10-001 Annual Work Program for State Aid—Plans made annually projecting roads, projects, etc.	Retain one year after audit, then destroy.	T.C.A. §§ 54-4-403, 54-7-111.
10-002 Bids—All bids for goods or services, including any advertisements.	Successful bids—retain seven years after contract expires, then destroy. Unsuccessful bids— retain one year after audit, then destroy.	Based on statute of limitations for legal action for breach of contract plus one year. (T.C.A. § 28-3-109).
10-003 Bridge Project Files, Federal, State and Local— Project files, including contracts and invoices.	Retain seven years, then destroy.	Based on statute of limitations for legal actions for breach of contract plus one year (T.C.A. § 28-3-109).
10-004 County Road List—Record of all roads under the control of the county (T.C.A. § 54-10-103) and any associated maps.	Permanent record.	Necessary for operation of the office and to protect Highway Department from allegations of working on private property.
10-005 Deeds of Rights of Way, Easements, Etc.—Instruments of conveyance of interests in real property to the county so that the county may establish a roadway.	Permanent record.	Important for establishing property rights of the county.
10-006 Equipment Inventory— Record of all equipment of the highway dept. showing the manufacturer’s serial number and other descriptions.	Retain five years from date of creation.	Keep for audit and review purposes (T.C.A. §§ 54-7-112, 10-7-404(a)).
10-007 Fence Row Agreement— Documentation of agreements between a landowner and the county granting permission for the highway department to push out a fence row.	Retain five years from date of creation.	Keep in case any liability or litigation arises from the action.
10-008 Grant Documentation and Files— Records and materials regarding grants applied for and/or money received through state and federal grants. These records may include info regarding monies received and expended under the litter grant program.	Retain seven years, then destroy.	Based on statute of limitations for legal actions for breach of contract plus one year (T.C.A. § 28-3-109).
10-009 Insurance Policies	Retain seven years after expiration, then destroy.	Based on statute of limitations for contracts plus one year (T.C.A. § 28-3-109).
10-010 Invoices (not part of a bridge or road project file)	Retain five years, then destroy.	Keep for audit and review purposes.
10-011 Mining Report—Copies of quarterly report to U.S. Bureau of Mines containing information on the quantity of stone mined and the use made of the stone.	Retain five years, then destroy.	Keep for audit and review purposes.
10-012 Minutes of Bid Openings—Record of bid openings showing item vendor, bid price and whether bid was successful.	Retain five years (unless part of highway commission minutes), then destroy.	Necessary in case of challenge to bid award.
10-013 Minutes of Highway Commission Meetings	Permanent record.	Actions taken in meetings will be effective until superceded or rescinded. Record also has historical significance.
10-014 OSHA Records and other Records on Injuries	See schedule for employment records in retention schedule 16.
10-015 Outstanding Warrants, List of	Retain one year after audit, then destroy.	Keep for audit purposes (T.C.A. § 10-7-404(a)).
10-016 Personnel Records	See schedule for employment records in retention schedule 16.
10-017 Reports to County Legislative Body	Retain three years, then destroy.	Keep for audit purposes (T.C.A. § 10-7-404(a)).
10-018 Road Project Files—Project files, including contracts and invoices.	Retain seven years after completion of project, then destroy.	Based on statute of limitations for legal actions for breach of contract plus one year (T.C.A. § 28-3-109).
10-019 Settlement Agreements—Instruments evidencing the settlement of claims against the county highway department.	Retain seven years, then destroy.	Based on statute of limitations for legal actions for breach of contract plus one year (T.C.A. § 28-3-109).
10-020 Sign Inventory—List of all traffic signs and traffic signals in the county.	Retain a current copy at all times.	Necessary to track inventory and maintenance of signs.
10-021 Vehicle Maintenance Records— Record of repairs, service, etc. related to county owned vehicles.	Retain five years or life of vehicle, whichever is longer.	Keep for management purposes.
10-022 Warrants (copies) and/or Warrant Book Stubs—Copies of warrants and/or stubs showing date warrant was issued, amount, payee and purpose of warrant.	Retain five years, then destroy.	Keep for audit purposes (T.C.A. § 10-7-404).
10-023 Work Orders—For repair and maintenance of roads, traffic signs, traffic signals and utilities.	Retain five years.	Possible evidence in lawsuit arising from road and bridge maintenance issues.
Obsolete Records
10-024 Gasoline Report to State (copy)—Monthly report of number of gallons of gasoline purchased for use by the county highway department.		Destroy. This record is obsolete. There is no need to retain it.