[Senate Report 118-265]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 668
118th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 118-265
_______________________________________________________________________
ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE RECORDS OF CONGRESS SUNSET ACT OF 2024
__________
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
to accompany
S. 5093
TO SUNSET THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE
RECORDS OF CONGRESS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
December 5, 2024.--Ordered to be printed
_______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
59-010 WASHINGTON : 2025
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
GARY C. PETERS, Michigan, Chairman
THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware RAND PAUL, Kentucky
MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada MITT ROMNEY, Utah
JON OSSOFF, Georgia RICK SCOTT, Florida
RICHARD BLUMENTHAL, Connecticut JOSH HAWLEY, Missouri
LAPHONZA R. BUTLER, California ROGER MARSHALL, Kansas
David M. Weinberg, Staff Director
Alan S. Kahn, Chief Counsel
Lena C. Chang, Director of Governmental Affairs
Emily I. Manna, Senior Professional Staff Member
William E. Henderson III, Minority Staff Director
Christina N. Salazar, Minority Chief Counsel
Andrew J. Hopkins, Minority Counsel
Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk
Calendar No. 668
118th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 118-265
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ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE RECORDS OF CONGRESS SUNSET ACT OF 2024
_______
December 5, 2024.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Peters, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 5093]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 5093) to sunset the
Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress, and for other
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon
with an amendment, in the nature of a substitute, and
recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose and Summary.............................................. 1
II. Background and Need for the Legislation.......................... 2
III. Legislative History.............................................. 3
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported............. 3
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact.................................. 4
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 4
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............ 5
I. Purpose and Summary
S. 5093, the Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress
Sunset Act of 2024, would sunset the Advisory Committee on the
Records of Congress (ACRC), a federal advisory committee that
provides advice to the National Archives and Records
Administration (NARA) and Congress on the preservation of
legislative branch records, and replace it with new reporting
requirements. The bill removes an outdated advisory committee
to improve efficiency and save taxpayer funds, while
maintaining accountability and oversight of congressional
records management.
II. Background and Need for the Legislation
The ACRC was established in 1990 to advise the National
Archives and Congress on the management and preservation of the
records of Congress.\1\ The purpose of the ACRC was to monitor,
guide, and support various congressional partners to document
the history of the legislative branch, at a time before
Congress or NARA had any professional congressional records
experts on staff. One key purpose of the law was requiring the
ACRC to draft two reports on the effect of transferring
congressional records to a new NARA facility outside in College
Park, Maryland. The ACRC is comprised of officials responsible
for congressional records, including the Clerk of the House of
Representatives, the Secretary of the Senate, the Archivist of
the United States, the Historian of the U.S. Senate, and the
Historian of the House of Representatives. Additional scholars
and records managements experts from a variety of institutions
currently sit on the committee including from the Library of
Congress, New York Public Library, American Enterprise
Institute, the McConnell Center, the State of Vermont, and the
California Digital Library at the University of California.\2\
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\1\Pub. L. No. 101-509 (1990).
\2\National Archives and Records Administration, Center for
Legislative Archives: Advisory Committee (January 18, 2024) (https://
www.archives.gov/legislative/cla/advisory-committee).
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Since its creation the ACRC has met twice a year as
directed by statute, issued six reports, and made 50
recommendations--49 of which have been fully implemented.\3\
Following the two originally-required reports on the transfer
of congressional records to the College Park campus, the ACRC
issued four subsequent reports that focused on a variety of
topics including preserving the personal papers of Members of
Congress, the 2001 anthrax attacks, construction of the Capitol
Visitor Center, the administrative status of the Center for
Legislative Archives at NARA, and electronic congressional
records. In Fiscal Year 2023, the ACRC's operating costs
totaled $55,000, the majority of which were attributable to
personnel costs at the National Archives.\4\
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\3\General Services Administration, Federal Advisory Committee
Database (https://www.facadatabase.gov) (accessed October 3, 2024).
\4\Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress, Sixth Report
(December 31, 2018) (https://www.archives.gov/files/legislative/cla/
advisory-committee/sixth-report.pdf).
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In 2024, the Secretary of the Senate communicated to the
Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
that the Secretary, in concurrence with other members of the
ACRC, such as the Clerk of the House and the Archivist, believe
that the ACRC has achieved its key goals and now outlived its
intended purpose, is obsolete, and should be sunset. Committee
members believe that key records officials have developed the
necessary coordination processes to ensure efficient and
effective preservation of congressional records without the
ACRC's advisory role. In the years since the committee was
authorized, the Senate Historical Office, the House Office of
History, Art, and Archives, and the Center for Legislative
Archives at NARA have all acquired professional congressional
records management experts. These offices are now well-equipped
to handle emerging congressional records issues, and the bill
would formalize the ongoing coordination between the Senate,
House, and NARA.\5\
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\5\Secretary of the Senate, Email Correspondence on April 3, 2024
(on file with the Committee); United States House of Representatives
Office of History, Art, and Archives, Archives (https://
history.house.gov/About/Archives/) (accessed Oct. 16, 2024); United
States Senate, The Senate Historical Office (https://www.senate.gov/
history/senate-historical-office.htm) (accessed Oct. 16, 2024);
National Archives and Records Administration, About the Center for
Legislative Archives (https://www.archives.gov/legislative/cla)
(accessed Oct. 16, 2024); Congressional Research Service, Archival
Records of Congress: Frequently Asked Questions (Dec. 7, 2023) (https:/
/crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R47590/3).
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The Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress Sunset
Act of 2024 would sunset the ACRC, including its biannual
meeting requirements. In order to maintain oversight and
accountability over congressional records, the bill mandates a
new annual report on congressional records management from the
Center for Legislative Archives at NARA. The bill also requires
continued coordination efforts by mandating that the Secretary
of the Senate, Clerk of the House, and the Archivist meet
annually and when a new individual assumes one of the
aforementioned positions.
III. Legislative History
Chairman Gary Peters (D-MI) introduced S. 5093, the
Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress Sunset Act of
2024, on September 18, 2024 with original cosponsor Senator
James Lankford (R-OK). The bill was referred to the Senate
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
The committee considered S. 5093 at a business meeting on
September 25, 2024. At the business meeting, Senator Peters
offered a substitute amendment that added the Senate Committee
on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration, the House Committee on
Oversight and Accountability, and the House Committee on House
Administration as recipients of the required annual report on
congressional records management from the NARA Center for
Legislative Archives. The Committee adopted the Peters
substitute amendment by unanimous consent with Senators Peters,
Carper, Hassan, Sinema, Rosen, Blumenthal, Butler, Paul,
Lankford, and Hawley present. The bill, as amended by the
Peters substitute amendment, was ordered reported favorably by
a roll call vote of 8 yeas to 0 nays, with Senators Peters,
Carper, Hassan, Rosen, Blumenthal, Butler, Lankford, and Hawley
voting in the affirmative. Senator Paul voted present. Senators
Sinema, Ossoff, Johnson, Romney, Scott, and Marshall voted yea
by proxy, for the record only.
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported
Section 1. Short title
This section designates the short title of the bill as the
``Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress Sunset Act of
2024.''
Section 2. Management and preservation of the Records of Congress
Subsection (a) provides the definitions of ``Archivist,''
``Clerk,'' ``Director,'' ``Member of Congress,'' and
``Secretary.''
Subsection (b) requires the Director of the NARA Center for
Legislative Archives to submit an annual report on the
management and preservation of congressional records to the
Archivist, Secretary of the Senate, Clerk of the House of
Representatives, Senate Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs, Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration, House Committee on Oversight and
Accountability, and House Committee on House Administration.
Subsection (c) requires the Archivist, Secretary of the
Senate, and Clerk of the House to meet annually and when a new
individual is appointed to one of those positions.
Subsection (d) sunsets the Advisory Committee on the
Records of Congress 60 days after enactment.
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill and determined
that the bill will have no regulatory impact within the meaning
of the rules. The Committee agrees with the Congressional
Budget Office's statement that the bill contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs
on state, local, or tribal governments.
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
S. 5093 would eliminate the Advisory Committee on the
Records of Congress and instead require the National Archive
and Records Administration (NARA) to report annually on the
management and preservation of Congressional records to the:
Clerk of the House of Representatives;
Secretary of the Senate;
Archivist of the United States;
Committees on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs, and on Rules and Administration
in the Senate; and
Committees on Oversight and Accountability
and on House Administration in the House of
Representatives.
Using information from NARA and the General Services
Administration, CBO estimates that any net changes in
administrative costs under the bill would not be significant
over the 2025-2029 period. Any related spending would be
subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
On October 21, 2024, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for
H.R. 9489, the Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress
Sunet Act of 2024, as reported by the House Committee on House
Administration on September 17, 2024. The two pieces of
legislation are similar and CBO's estimates of their costs are
the same.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew
Pickford. The estimate was reviewed by Ann E. Futrell, Senior
Adviser for Budget Analysis.
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director, Congressional Budget Office.
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in brackets, new matter is
printed in italic, and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
UNITED STATES CODE
* * * * * * *
TITLE 44--PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS
* * * * * * *
[CHAPTER 27--ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE RECORDS OF CONGRESS]
* * * * * * *
[SEC. 2701. ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE RECORDS OF CONGRESS]
[(a) There is established the Advisory Committee on the
Records of Congress (hereafter in this chapter referred to as
the Committee).
[(b) The Committee shall be subject to the provisions of
chapter 10 of title 5, except that the Committee shall be of
permanent duration, notwithstanding any provision of section
1013 of title 5.]
* * * * * * *
[SEC. 2702. MEMBERSHIP; CHAIRMAN; MEETINGS
[(a)
[(1) The Committee shall consist of the eleven
members including--
[(A)
[(i) the Secretary of the Senate;
[(ii) the Clerk of the House of
Representatives;
[(iii) the Archivist of the United
States;
[(iv) the Historian of the Senate;
and
[(v) the Historian of the House of
Representatives; and
[(B) six members of whom one shall be
appointed by each of the following:
[(i) the Speaker of the House of
Representatives;
[(ii) the Minority Leader of the
House of Representatives;
[(iii) the Majority Leader of the
Senate;
[(iv) the Minority Leader of the
Senate;
[(v) the Secretary of the Senate; and
[(vi) the Clerk of the House of
Representatives.
[(2) Each member appointed under paragraph (1)(B)
shall have knowledge or expertise in United States
history, archival management, publishing, library
science, or use of legislative records.
[(b) The Secretary of the Senate shall serve as Chairman
during the two-year period beginning on January 1, 1991, and
the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall serve as
Chairman during the two-year period beginning on January 1,
1993. Thereafter, such members shall alternate serving as
Chairman for a term of two years.
[(c)
[(1) Members of the Committee referred to in
subsection (a)(1)(A) shall serve only while holding
such offices. Members appointed to the Committee under
subsection (a)(1)(B) shall serve for a term of two
years, and may be reappointed without limitation. The
initial appointments for such terms shall begin on
January 1, 1991.
[(2) Any vacancy on the Committee shall not affect
the powers of the Committee. Any vacancy in an
appointed position on the Committee shall be filled in
the same manner in which the original appointment was
made.
[(d)
[(1) No later than thirty days after the date on
which the first session of the 102d Congress begins,
the Committee shall hold its first meeting. Thereafter,
the Committee shall meet semiannually or at the call of
a majority of its members.
[(2) Seven members of the Committee shall constitute
a quorum, but a lesser number may hold hearings.]
* * * * * * *
[SEC. 2703. FUNCTIONS OF THE COMMITTEE
[The Committee shall--
[(1) review the management and preservation of the
records of Congress;
[(2) report to and advise the Congress and the
Archivist of the United States on such management and
preservation; and
[(3)
[(A) no later than December 31, 1991, conduct
a study and submit a report to the Congress
on--
[(i) the effect any transfer of
records of the National Archives and
Records Administration from facilities
located in Washington, D.C., to any
location outside of Washington, D.C.,
shall have on the management and
preservation of the records of
Congress; and
[(ii) the five year plan for the
management and preservation of the
records of Congress; and
[(B) no later than December 31, 1995, conduct
a study to update the report submitted under
subparagraph (A)(ii), and submit a report to
the Congress.]
* * * * * * *
[SEC. 2704. POWERS OF THE COMMITTEE
[(a) For purposes of carrying out the duties referred to
under section 2703, the Committee or, on the authorization of
the Committee, any subcommittee or member thereof, may hold
such hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such
testimony, and receive such evidence as is appropriate.
[(b) The Committee may secure directly from any department
or agency of the United States such information as the
Committee may require to carry out the duties referred to under
section 2703. Upon request of the Chairman of the Committee,
the head of such department or agency shall furnish such
information to the Committee.]
* * * * * * *
[SEC. 2705. COMPENSATION AND TRAVEL EXPENSES
[A member of the Committee may not be paid compensation for
service performed as a member of the Committee. However,
members of the Committee shall be allowed travel expenses,
including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized
for employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of
title 5, United States Code, while away from their homes or
regular places of business in the performance of service for
the Committee.]
* * * * * * *
[all]