Victory for the Georgia Archives

The Georgia Archives will find itself on more stable ground in the coming year, thanks to several key victories in the recently closed legislative session.  Both houses of the Georgia General Assembly unanimously voted to transfer authority for the Archives from the Secretary of State's Office to the Board of Regents of the University System. With its dedication to scholarship, research, and public service, the University System is well positioned to offer a nurturing home for the Archives.

The General Assembly also agreed to add $300,000 to the Archives budget, over and above what Governor Nathan Deal had recommended at the beginning of the legislative session.  Starting in July, these additional funds should allow the Archives to re-hire some of the staff lost last fall and open to the public an extra day or so per week.  Until those decisions are made, the Archives will keep its current Friday and Saturday schedule.  Final details regarding the budget allocation will be worked out between the Board of Regents and the Archives.

Though the total budget for the Archives is still far below where it was in past years, Georgia lawmakers have demonstrated their commitment to the organization by taking these initial steps to restore funding.  On behalf of the Coalition to Save the Georgia Archives, we thank the General Assembly and Governor Deal for their efforts to keep the valuable resources in the Archives freely available to the public. We look forward to working together in the years to come to fully restore the Archives budget.