(1) Much of the American historical record, 
such as evidence of births, education, marriage, di-
vorce, property owned, obligations satisfied, and 
criminal conduct, is held at the State and local level 
by organizations that preserve the records that pro-
tect the rights of the Nation. 
(2) The United States has recognized the im-
portance of history by its support of national institu-
tions 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 Na-
tion’s archives being held in State and local histor-
ical societies, archives, and library history collec-
tions. 
(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 stu-
dents, creating a sense of place in family and com-
munity, supporting information needs in business 
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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 
postsecondary teachers, active participation in Na-
tional History Day, and support for lifelong learning 
opportunities; 
(3) to provide education and training to archi-
vists and others who care for historical records, en-
suring that they have the necessary knowledge and 
skills to fulfill their important responsibilities; and 
(4) to create a wide variety of access tools, in-
cluding archival finding aids, documentary editions, 
indexes, and images of key records maintained on 
Internet websites of State and local organizations. 
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SEC. 4. AUTHORITY TO MAKE GRANTS. 
The Archivist shall 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 out 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 to the 
State; 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. STATE ALLOCATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Archivist shall award grant 
amounts under this Act in accordance with this section. 
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(b) CALCULATION OF ALLOCATIONS.—The Archivist 
shall allocate funds made available to carry out this Act 
to the States as follows: 
(1) 10 percent of the total available funds di-
vided equally among the States. 
(2) 82 percent of such funds allotted to the 
States on the basis of their relative total population, 
adjusted every decade based on the United States 
Census. 
(3) 8 percent of such funds allotted to the 
States by geographic size. 
(c) STATE GRANTS.—From funds allocated under 
subsection (b), the Archivist shall make grants to the 
State archival administrative agency of each State. 
(d) REALLOCATION.—The State archival administra-
tive agency shall return any funds received under sub-
section (c) that the State archival administrative agency 
does not obligate within one year of receiving a grant, and 
the Archivist shall reallocate such funds to the remaining 
States in accordance with subsection (b). 
(e) CONSULTATION WITH STATE ARCHIVISTS AND 
SECRETARIES OF STATE.—In carrying out this section, 
the Archivist shall consult with State archivists, State sec-
retaries of state, or other appropriate State and local offi-
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cials who have administrative responsibilities for archival 
functions. 
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 receiv-
ing funds under this Act during a calendar year shall pro-
vide to the Archivist, no later than January 31 of the fol-
lowing year, a report on activities supported by such funds 
during the previous calendar year. 
(b) ANNUAL REVIEW.—The Archivist shall review an-
nually the report provided by each State under subsection 
(a) to determine the extent to which the State has com-
plied 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 April 1 of each year, the Archivist 
shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
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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’’ means each 
State, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the 
Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 
(2) ARCHIVIST.—The term ‘‘Archivist’’ means 
the Archivist of the United States appointed under 
section 2103 of title 44, United States Code. 
(3) HISTORICAL RECORD.—The term ‘‘histor-
ical 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 Archi-
vist’’ means the individual mandated by law within 
each State with responsibility for managing the ar-
chival records of State government. 
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(5) STATE ARCHIVAL ADMINISTRATIVE AGEN-
CY.—The term ‘‘State archival administrative agen-
cy’’ means the agency mandated by law within each 
State with the responsibility for managing the archi-
val records of State government. 
SEC. 11. REGULATIONS. 
The Archivist shall prescribe any regulations nec-
essary to carry out this Act. 
SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Archi-
vist $50,000,000 each fiscal year for five fiscal years, be-
ginning with the first fiscal year beginning after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, to make grants under this 
Act. 
Æ 
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