County Records

OPINION 45-70 April 25, 1945 (OPINION) COUNTY RECORDS RE: Destruction of Old Re: Destruction of Old County Records, Chapter 128, Laws of 1941. Your letter of April 24, asking whether or not the register of deeds can turn over old records, which he is authorized to destroy by the above law, to the paper salvage, or whether these records must be burned, has been received. It is the opinion of this office that the object of this law is to allow the register of deeds to destroy old records, which are taking up storage space, and the method of destruction provided by the law is merely incidental to the purpose of cleaning out storage space taken by old records, which are of no further value. It is, therefore, our opinion that these records may, instead of being burned, be turned over to the paper salvage. NELS G. JOHNSON Attorney General