[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2171 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2171

   To authorize the Archivist of the United States to make grants to 
  States for the preservation and dissemination of historical records.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 29, 2009

   Mr. Hinchey (for himself, Mr. McHugh, Mr. Platts, Mr. Fattah, Ms. 
   Slaughter, Mr. Barrow, Mr. Gordon of Tennessee, Mr. Loebsack, Mr. 
Gerlach, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Poe of Texas, Mr. Arcuri, Mr. Ackerman, Mr. 
Israel, Mrs. Maloney, Mr. Gonzalez, Mr. Nadler of New York, Mr. Tonko, 
 Mrs. Lowey, and Mr. Crowley) introduced the following bill; which was 
      referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To authorize the Archivist of the United States to make grants to 
  States for the preservation and dissemination of historical records.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Preserving the American Historical 
Record Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Much of the American historical record, such as 
        evidence of births, education, marriage, divorce, property 
        owned, obligations satisfied, and criminal conduct, is held at 
        the State and local level by organizations that preserve the 
        records that protect the rights of the Nation.
            (2) The United States has recognized the importance of 
        history by its support of national institutions such as the 
        National Archives, the Library of Congress, and the Smithsonian 
        Institution. Yet, this support is not adequate to reach the 
        rest of the Nation's archives being held in State and local 
        historical societies, archives, and library history 
        collections.
            (3) More resources need to be directed to State and local 
        organizations to ensure essential care of documents and 
        archival records in their many forms so that they can be 
        readily used by the people of this Nation.
            (4) History connects people to community--whether the 
        community is a family, a neighborhood, a city, a State, or a 
        Nation. Connections to the past are essential to sustaining 
        democracy, educating students, creating a sense of place in 
        family and community, supporting information needs in business 
        and legal affairs, and making reasoned decisions about the 
        Nation's future direction.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to protect historical records from harm, to prolong 
        their life, and to preserve them for public use, through the 
        use of electronic records initiatives and plans for disaster 
        preparedness, recovery and other preservation activities;
            (2) to use historical records in new and creative ways to 
        convey the importance of State, territorial, and community 
        history, including the development of teaching materials for 
        elementary, secondary, and post-secondary teachers, active 
        participation in National History Day, and support for life-
        long learning opportunities;
            (3) to provide education and training to archivists and 
        others who care for historical records, ensuring that they have 
        the necessary knowledge and skills to fulfill their important 
        responsibilities; and
            (4) to create a wide variety of access tools, including 
        archival finding aids, documentary editions, indexes, and 
        images of key records maintained on Internet websites of State 
        and local organizations.

SEC. 4. AUTHORITY TO MAKE GRANTS.

    The Archivist may make grants under this Act to States to carry out 
programs consistent with the purposes of this Act.

SEC. 5. USE OF GRANT AMOUNTS.

    (a) Requirements.--The Archivist may not award grants to any State 
under this Act unless--
            (1) the State agrees to use grant amounts only to carry 
        programs consistent with the purposes of this Act;
            (2) the State certifies the availability of State or 
        private funds, or an in-kind equivalent, equal to half the 
        amount of the grant to be awarded; and
            (3) the State ensures that grant amounts are used to 
        supplement, and not supplant, non-Federal funds that would 
        otherwise be available for those purposes.
    (b) Additional Conditions.--The Archivist may require additional 
terms and conditions in connection with the use of grant amounts 
provided under this Act as the Archivist considers appropriate.

SEC. 6. SELECTION CRITERIA.

    (a) Awarding of Grants.--The Archivist shall award grant amounts 
under this Act in accordance with criteria to be established by the 
Archivist consistent with the purposes of this Act.
    (b) Consultation With State Archivists and Secretaries of State.--
In establishing the criteria under subsection (a), the Archivist shall 
consult with appropriate State and local officials.

SEC. 7. APPLICATION.

    The Archivist may award grant amounts under this Act only to a 
State that has submitted an application to the Archivist at such time, 
in such manner, and containing such information as the Archivist may 
require.

SEC. 8. REVIEW AND SANCTIONS.

    (a) Annual Report by State.--Each State receiving funds under this 
Act during a calendar year shall provide to the Archivist, no later 
than January 31 of the following year, a report on activities supported 
by such funds during the previous calendar year.
    (b) Annual Review.--The Archivist shall review annually the report 
provided by each State under subsection (a) to determine the extent to 
which the State has complied with the provisions of this Act.
    (c) Imposition of Sanctions.--The Archivist may impose sanctions on 
any State for any failure to comply substantially with the provisions 
of this Act. The Archivist shall establish the sanctions to be imposed 
for a failure to comply substantially with the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 9. ANNUAL REPORT.

    Not later than March 1 of each year, the Archivist shall submit to 
the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 
Senate and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the 
House of Representatives a report describing the activities carried out 
under this Act and containing any related information that the 
Archivist considers appropriate.

SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) State.--The term ``State'' includes the District of 
        Columbia and Puerto Rico.
            (2) Archivist.--The term ``Archivist'' means the Archivist 
        of the United States appointed under section 2103 of title 44, 
        United States Code.
            (3) Historical records.--The term ``Historical Record'' 
        means unpublished materials created or received by a person, 
        family, or organization, public or private, in the conduct of 
        their affairs that are preserved because of the enduring value 
        contained in the information they contain or as evidence of the 
        functions and responsibilities of their creator.
            (4) State archivist.--The term ``State Archivist'' means 
        the individual mandated by law within each State with 
        responsibility for managing the archival records of State 
        government.

SEC. 11. REGULATIONS.

    The Archivist shall prescribe any regulations necessary to carry 
out this Act.

SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to the Archivist $50,000,000 
each fiscal year for five fiscal years, beginning with the first fiscal 
year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act, to make 
grants under this Act.
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