As you all know, I work as an historian at a federal agency. I occasionally visit NARA to do research for that agency; I also sometimes do personal research. As of today, I hold a researcher card for NARA. That card expires tomorrow (NARA issues picture ID researcher cards of one year duration). I took time away from my job today to go to Archives I to renew my researcher card. Before doing so, I carefully checked NARA's website to see what it said anything about procedures for renewing cards. To my astonishment, NARA refused to let me get a new card today. Three people in the research room at Archives I told me that NARA's policy is to have researchers renew their cards only on the day they expire or after that date. That is not stated anywhere on NARA's website. So my taking time away from job to go to NARA was futile. I can't go to NARA tomorrow. Who knows when I'll next get a chance to go there so I'm stymied right now. I'm flabbergasted. When I asked the research room staff why the renewal policy was not spelled out on the agency website, no one could tell me. When I told one research room attendant that I used to work at NARA but did not understand this rebuff or why NARA's policy was not stated publicly, he asked of my employment, "was that before 9/11." I'm afraid I replied with a sigh, "yeah, yeah, 9/11 changed everything. I've heard that before." While I understand why NARA went to picture IDs for researchers after 9/11, I fail to see a connection between 9/11 and not telling researchers on its website that an attempt to renew one day prior to expiration will be rebuffed. Even the DMV allows you to renew its cards prior to the expiration date. (Virginia states "You may renew your driver's license as early as two years prior to the expiration date on your license." And I doubt that the state of Virginia, which suffered horrible losses in the attack on the Pentagon, takes 9/11 less seriously than government agencies.) This was my second discouraging contact with NARA this month. Earlier in April, I enquired how I could get copies of the oral history interview that NARA staff did with H. R. Haldeman in 1987. I was told I could come to the research room at Archives II and xerox it on the self-service copiers. However, the transcript is over 500 pages long (I know that, since I typed it into the computer at NARA in the late 1980s), so I don't see how I can do that. The research room attendants at Archives II would not allow a single researcher to hog a machine while she xeroxes a 500+ page long transcript. The staff cannot copy the transcript for me. I don't know why a digitized version is not available. So, I'm stymied on that one, too. If any of outside Washington work with researchers who want to do research at NARA, please do warn them that the agency will decline their attempts to renew their researcher cards if they only can stop in Washington a day before the card expires. I wasted part of a morning; I'd hate to see someone come in from out of town and think they could renew a card on a day when they cannot. NARA needs to spell this out on its website, for sure! Maarja A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org. For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] In body of message: SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname *or*: UNSUB ARCHIVES To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html Problems? Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>