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Executive Order 13233



Fellow Archivists:  On behalf of the Council and Executive Committee of the
Society of American Archivists, I want to urge all archivists, whether SAA
members or not, to communicate to their representatives in the House and
Senate, their concern over the implications of Executive Order 13233,
entitled "Further Implementation of the Presidential Records Act" (the text
of the order itself can be found at:
http://www.fas.org.sgp/news/2001/11/e0-pra.html).  This order, far from
being a "further implementation," is more like a complete abnegation of the
original 1978 Presidential Records Act (the text of which can be found at:
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/44/2201.text.html).  The archival and
public information implications aspects of this order are profound, being
contrary to established archival principles and standards, being
inconsistent with existing statutory law, and, most important, being at odds
with the principles of open access to information upon which our country is
founded.  There will soon be additional information and links at the SAA
Website (http://www.archivists.org) for those of you who would like to
research this issue further.  The official letter that I wrote on behalf of
SAA last week is also posted at the site at this time.

Meanwhile, letters to your representatives should be sent as soon as
possible (I would suggest faxing them as the mails are understandably slow
and unreliable these days).  I would also urge you to copy Rep. Stephen
Horn, who chairs the House Subcommittee on Government Efficiency, which held
hearings on this matter last Friday.  His fax number is 202-225-2373.  In
addition, a fax to Judge Alberto Gonzales (White House Council) at:
202-456-6279 wouldn't hurt either.  While all of these letters will be
important in building awareness in Congress and the White House, letters
received by tomorrow will go into the Subcommittee's files to be consulted
as part of the next step in the hearings process.  I'm sorry to give you
such short notice, but this has been a fast breaking event and we have done
our best to keep on top of it.  Thank you for your efforts in this important
matter.

Steve Hensen
President, Society of American Archivists


****************************************************************
Steven L. Hensen
Director, Planning and Project Development
Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library
Duke University
Box 90185
Durham, NC 27708-0185
919.660.5826 Fax 919.660.5934
hensen@duke.edu
http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu
***************************************************************

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