Hello, The Massachusetts Senate adjourned approximately one hour ago and they did not act on H5158, so it is dead. However earlier in the afternoon, several events made things look pretty grim. Despite a flood of emails and phone calls to Massachusetts Senators, at noon time Senator Fargo was positively beaming about the progress made on this bill as the "best that we would ever get" and that it WOULD BE PASSED to the great consternation of a knowledgeable and outspoken critic reading the exact text in Senator Fargo's office. (third hand report but from reliable sources, though so I was concerned) At 3pm I received word that the House had engrossed the bill and sent it to the Senate at approximately 2:30 pm. But things started to break around 4pm when the Massachusetts Genealogical Council (MGC) Director of Civil Records received an irate phone call from a previous ally suggesting that the bill WOULD NOT BE PASSED and that it would have been the "best that you would ever get". This previous ally had since caved in but had been instrumental in trying to work the language issues since the July formal sessions. Unfortunately, the substance behind the language was not clearly understood and political pressures weigh on logic. At 4:45 pm, a call to the Clerk of the Senate revealed that the bill had had no action in the Senate, that House had just come back from recess and that the Senate was due back momentarily. At 6:30pm, a call to the Clerk of the Senate revealed that the bill had had no action in the Senate and that the Senate had adjourned for the year. End of H5158, but clearly not an end to the ignorance that causes so many folks to make statements about such legislation being the "best that you would ever get" - when it would have closed currently open records and restricted access. It's only the end of one legislative session and one chapter in addressing ignorance and reasonable remedies for realistic problems. Thank you one and all for your efforts and support. Happy New Year! Sharon Sergeant, Program Director Massachusetts Genealogical Council http://massgencouncil.home.attbi.com/index.htm --- Sharon Sergeant <info@genealogyfair.com> wrote: > > MASSACHUSETTS HOUSE BILL H5158 - OPEN RECORDS CLOSED! > > The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) initiative to RESTRICT the current and > historically OPEN vital records of the Commonwealth with House Bill H5158 HAS PASSED THE MA > HOUSE > TODAY December 30, 2002! > > All that remains is the Massachusetts Senate and Exiting Governor�s rubber stamp � > > Did YOU have the opportunity to review the text and give your testimony in HEARINGS? NO! > > Do you even have ACCESS to the H5158 text? NO! > <snip> ===== Sharon Sergeant Ancestors and Ephemera http://GenealogyFair.com Bring Your Ancestors Home!