SU56 How You Can Help Support Records Preservation and Access

Sunday, 25 May 2025, 4:00 p.m., Stopher room

A review of recent record access challenges at the state and federal level. Learn how you can help advocate for greater records access.

We will discuss RPAC’s April 2024 visit with legislators in Washington, D.C. and plans for April 2025. We will discuss the National Association of Public Health Statistics and Information Systems (NAPHSIS) which controls access to state vital records, as well as efforts to regain access to the Social Security Death Index.

The Records Preservation and Access Coalition (RPAC) is sponsored by the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies (IAJGS), and the National Genealogical Society (NGS) and supported by the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG), the American Society of Genealogists (ASG), and the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists (ICAPGen). Members of the RPAC steering committee meet monthly to advise the genealogical community on ensuring proper access to vital records and on supporting strong records preservation policies and practices.

Jan Alpert, FNGS, is chair of the Records Preservation and Access Coalition (RPAC), and previous NGS president, board member, conference committee, and conference chair.

Jennifer Zinck, CG, is a genealogical researcher and educator with a passion for applying genealogy standards to help reclaim stories of our ancestors.

Suzanne Hoffman, “The Genealogy Maven,” is the current Vice President of the Association of Professional Genealogists, a professional Forensic Genealogist, and Secretary of the Illinois State Genealogical Society.

Registrants who check in at the Louisville registration desk can access this and all the lectures they don’t catch in person on the Whova app until 15 July 2025.

Registration is now open!