There are two main types of essential records:
- Rights and Interest Records: These are records essential to the protection of the legal and financial rights of an organization and individuals affected by the organization's activities. Examples include accounts receivable records, social security records, payroll records, retirement records, insurance records, and any records related to contracts, entitlements, leases, or obligations whose loss would pose a significant risk to legal and financial rights.
- Emergency Operating Records: These are records essential to the continued functioning of an organization during and after an emergency. Examples include system backups, emergency preparedness plans, orders of succession, delegations of authority, emergency staffing assignments, building plans, equipment inventories, file plans describing records series and electronic systems, essential records inventories, and system documentation for electronic information systems designated as emergency operating records.
