WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and James Lankford (R-OK) have introduced a bipartisan bill to save taxpayer dollars and reduce government bureaucracy. The legislation would eliminate the Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress (ACRC), which would save taxpayer dollars on operating costs for an advisory committee that is no longer needed. The ACRC was created in 1990 to report on the preservation of congressional records, but significant enhancements have been made since then by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Secretary of the Senate, and the Clerk of the House of Representatives to ensure the effective management and preservation of congressional records. In its place, the legislation would require NARA to submit an annual report to Congress.
“This advisory committee has outlived its original purpose, and eliminating it is an easy way for Congress to save taxpayer dollars and help improve government efficiency,” said Senator Peters. “This is a commonsense way to streamline Congressional record management while ensuring they are still appropriately preserved for the future.”
The Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress Sunset Act of 2025 would require the Director of the Center for Legislative Archives of the National Archives to submit an annual report on the management and preservation of the records of Congress during the previous year to the Archivist of the United States, the Secretary of the Senate, the Clerk of the House of Representatives, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, the Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate, the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, and the Committee on House Administration. The Archivist, Secretary, and Clerk would then meet to review this report within 60 days of submission. The Advisory Committee would sunset 60 days after this bill is enacted.
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