Published: May 2, 2016 by Anna Maloney

In March 2011, the Archivist of the United States, David Ferriero, appointed Paul Wester to the position of Chief Records Officer for the U.S. Government. Wester was the first person to fill this role, which was created to lead records management throughout the Federal Government. According to a press release, the Chief Records Officer “is responsible for issuing Federal records management policy and guidance; liaisoning with Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Congress, the U.S. Government CIO Council, and other stakeholders on records management issues; and serving as an ombudsman between agencies and the Archivist to ensure that NARA and the agencies it serves meet their statutory mandates and records management requirements.”

In October 2015, Wester left his position as Chief Records Officer to pursue an opportunity as the director of the Agriculture Department’s National Agricultural Library. Since his departure, Laurence Brewer has served as the acting Chief Records Officer. Effective May 1, 2016, Brewer will serve as the officially appointed Chief Records Officer. A recent press release stated that “Brewer will work directly with agencies to improve records management across the federal government and promote the goals of the Managing Government Records Directive.”