NCH Issues Report Assessing the State of the National Archives

In 2023, the National Coalition for History’s (NCH) Board of Directors appointed a working group to prepare a report assessing the current state of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). On July 8, 2024, the NCH Board of Directors approved the report (linked here).

The panel consisted of representatives from a broad cross-section of NCH member organizations all with experience in working with NARA records at its many facilities across the country.  The group also included archival professionals and records managers with expertise in the field. Seven member organizations comprised the working group: the American Historical Association (AHA), the Association for Documentary Editing (ADE), the National Association of Government Archives and Records Administrators (NAGARA), the National Security Archive (NSA), the Society of American Archivists (SAA), the Society for History in the Federal Government (SHFG), and the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR).

This in-depth paper aims to set a new agenda to support and strengthen the National Archives. It identifies acute institutional needs and recommends steps that Congress, the White House, federal agencies, and NARA’s leadership can take to ensure the agency is properly funded and supported to fulfill its critical mission. An executive summary is provided at the beginning of the report.

Topics addressed in the report include:

• Funding/Appropriations
• Declassification
• Presidential Libraries
• Subject Matter Expertise
• Infrastructure
• National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC)
• Reforming the Presidential Records Act
• Management of Permanent Federal Records by Executive Branch Entities

We thank the members of the panel for their hard work and dedication in preparing this report which will bring attention to this agency that is so vital to all our work. We also hope it will stimulate discussion both within and outside NCH, resulting in a more robust and adequately funded National Archives.

Please direct any questions or comments to Lee White, NCH Executive Director, at lwhite@historycoalition.org