In ceremonies held in the General Assembly Chamber at the State House, Union County Freeholder Daniel P. Sullivan received the award from Secretary Wells, Archivist of the United States Allen Weinstein, and Javier Inclán, Governor Jon Corzine’s Director of Constituent and Intergovernmental Affairs.

Nearly 150 state and local officials attended the ceremonies.  Dr. Weinstein, head of the National Archives and Records Administration, presented the keynote address, applauding New Jersey for launching a program that has become a national model for meeting the challenge of managing local government records, whether from the ancient past or in the information technology age.

The Award for Excellence recognizes Union County’s special achievement in the category of “Outstanding Project Management, County.” It was one of eight awards given by the Department of State’s Division of Archives and Records Management to outstanding county and municipal governments participating in the PARIS program during its inaugural year.

Upon receipt of it is initial PARIS grant in May 2005, Union County’s dedication to the program has been unmatched. Excellent project management is not only the key to success with PARIS grants, but the indispensable ingredient for records management leadership within the organization and throughout the county.  Union County holds the distinction of being the first county to have its records management needs assessment, inventory and strategic planning document accepted by the State Records Committee.  The county has also worked tirelessly with PARIS to support its municipal constituents eligible for PARIS grants.  The county demonstrated its commitment to a long-term records management program by assuming responsibility for 100 percent records manager’s salary and benefits prior to the end of the first grant year.

Freeholder Sullivan accepted the award on behalf of the county, stating "The PARIS grants program allows local governments to make much needed changes in how business in New Jersey in conducted, and has provided the much needed funding and support for Union County to move forward with a centralized approach to records management." Freeholder Sullivan was joined by PARIS Project Manager and Clerk of Board of Freeholders Nicole DiRado, County Archivist John Celardo, and Records Manager Anita McNamara.

Besides Union County, seven other local governments received a PARIS Award for Excellence.   Other recipients and award categories were Atlantic County for “Enterprise-wide Approach to Electronic Records,” Monmouth County for “Shared Services: County-to-County,”  Camden County for “Shared Services: County-to-Municipalities,” Woodbridge Township for “Outstanding Project Management: Municipal,” Passaic County for “Public Access to Historical Records,” Cape May County for “Disaster Preparedness,” and Gloucester County for “Comprehensive and Enterprise-Wide Approach to Archives and Records Management.”

The Public Archives and Records Infrastructure Support Grants Program is the nation’s leading state program for upgrading the security, integrity and efficiency of local government records administration.  Administered by the Division of Archives and Records Management (DARM) in the Department of State, PARIS distributes between $17 and $27 million annually to county and municipal governments to support archives and records management infrastructure improvements.  Since its inception in 2005, PARIS has emphasized comprehensive strategic planning, promoting intergovernmental shared services, and encouraged enterprise solutions to records management challenges in the electronic information age, transforming local governments’ business practices and responsiveness to citizens.

“It doesn’t get any better than this!” said Secretary Wells, commending the success of the PARIS program.  She continued, “Through a strong focus on shared services, more and more local governments are benefiting from the PARIS program, and counties and larger cities are offering centralized services.  This has created an increase in government efficiency, while realizing significant cost savings to taxpayers.”  Karl J. Niederer, Director of DARM, shared this view, stating “The model of cooperative intergovernmental shared services nurtured through PARIS – encouraging the 21 counties to become archives and records management “hubs” serving both the county and the municipalities within their borders – is worthy of emulation in other states.”

Allen Weinstein, who traveled to the event from the National Archives in Washington, D.C., expressed appreciation for the PARIS program and its successes achieved to date, stating “What you are accomplishing in New Jersey—working collaboratively through PARIS at all levels of government to improve local records preservation and access—meshes remarkably well with the strategic vision and mission of the National Archives.”

More information on the PARIS grants program may be found online at www.njarchives.org/links/paris.html.