The House of Representative will be voting on this July 10th. Those who want to support this will have that opportunity by following the link in the note from NGS. -- Join the Act: Preserving the American Historical Record Act by Jan Alpert, NGS President For the last several weeks the evening news has been full of pictures of the flooded Midwest. One can only imagine the number of historical records that have been lost just in the month of June. After Katrina hit New Orleans and the Gulf coast, the State Archivists began to formulate a strategy that would help state and local governments preserve their historical records. Preserving the American Historical Record Act (PAHR) is the joint effort of three institutions: the Council of State Archivists, The Society of American Archivists, and the National Association of Government Archives and Records Administrators. U. S. House of Representatives Bill 6056, was introduced in May 2008, sponsored by Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) and Chris Cannon (R-UT). HR 6056 is requesting an additional $50 million a year for preservation and use of historical records at the state and local level, including records held by government agencies, historical societies, and libraries. Possible uses of the funds include archival finding aids, indexing, and imaging records online. It also includes money for historical preservation and disaster preparedness and recovery. The bill proposes that the National Archives will distribute the funds, using a population-based formula. There is much more information available about PAHR at http://www.archivists.org/pahr As a genealogist, you can help support PAHR in several ways. First, write your Congressional representative and tell him or her that you support PAHR. A sample letter is posted on the web site http://www.archivists.org/pahr as well as a list of all the Congressional Representatives with their mailing addresses and fax numbers. The web site also lists the members of the House who sit on key committees. These are the people who can help push the bill through the legislative process. If you are an officer or board member of a genealogical society, ask your board to endorse HR 6056 "Preserving the American Historical Record Act." The web site http://www.archivists.org/pahr includes a "draft resolution" that your genealogical organization can approve. Then have your society president or secretary forward your endorsement to Kathleen Roe, Chair, Joint Task Force on PAHR, kroe@mail.nysed.gov. If you have questions, you can email or call Kathleen Roe at 518 473-4254. The archivists have initiated this ground-breaking legislation. With the support of the genealogical community, this bill can pass, and we can make a difference.