California sues over relocation of national archive facility

The state attorney general said it's impossible to digitize many of the records, necessitating people to visit the archive in person.SAN BRUNO, Calif. (CN) — California sued the Trump administration Wednesday claiming the federal government intends to improperly close an archive and relocate documents detailing the history of Native American and minority communities.Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a press conference that the National Archives and Records Administration will close and relocate records at the National Archives at San Francisco, located in nearby San Bruno. The decision by the Donald Trump administration occurred without public notice or a chance for people to speak on the issue.The first box of records could be moved this week, Bonta said.The facility holds records almost 200 years old. It has documents linked to the 100-year-old immigration process in San Francisco, information from the era of the Chinese Exclusion Act, as well as the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II and Native American boarding schools.Bonta wants a federal judge to declare the relocation unlawful and a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. He also asks that the judge prohibit the relocation and vacate the decision to close the California facility.“Most of these records are not digitized,” Bonta said, so moving them could be disastrous.The National Archives and Records Administration said in August that the closures addressed the issue of underused space created by the government’s transition to electronic records.Bonta says California agencies need the records because they underpin research required for certain state construction projects. Additionally, groups that rely on them will face significantly increased costs to access records no longer in the Bay Area.The records will be inaccessible during the relocation, which could take years, Bonta says in the suit.Heather Hostler, executive director of California Indian Legal Services, called the records vital to the future. Tribes need them to gain federal recognition and exercise their sovereignty.Mike Ishii, executive director of Tsuru for Solidarity, said the records include stories about the families that faced imprisonment, and the resistance against Japanese internment.“This is a form of historical erasure,” he added.According to Bonta, since 1973 the San Bruno facility has held over 75,000 cubic feet of records and is one of the National Archives’ 27 public research rooms. It has particular significance to the Japanese American community, as it’s adjacent to a former temporary detention site used during World War II. The archives contain records of that internment.“It is home to case files and immigration records from the Chinese Exclusion Act era and after, including those of the famous martial artist Bruce Lee, and case records of Japanese American internment such as court records from the famous case of Fred Korematsu, who sued the United States to challenge his arrest for refusing to report for internment during World War II,” Bonta says in the suit.The facility also holds Native American records, along with Navy and Coast Guard documents linked to Pearl Harbor.The Native American records detail tribal enrollments and land holdings, along with maps, pictures, genealogies and language materials. The information is critical for people attempting to show tribal membership, Bonta says.The state has leaned on the archives for research. Bonta points to documents housed there which California needs for environmental evaluations. One example is the Angel Island Immigration Station barracks refurbishment project, which led staff to visit the archives 10 times.“Numerous California communities rely on the National Archives at San Francisco to research their family histories, establish citizenship, and learn about and connect with their cultures,” Bonta says, adding: “Despite NARA’s recent attempts to digitize the National Archives’ holdings, the pure volume of records housed at the San Bruno facility makes it unrealistic for them to be digitally available anytime soon.”The National Archives and Records Administration couldn’t be reached for comment by press time.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads