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  2. Help Stop USCIS Genealogy Program Fee Hikes

Re: Help Stop USCIS Genealogy Program Fee Hikes

Bob Bloomberg
 

Marion,

I agree.  It does not remotely compare to the USCIS costs.

But my point is that Litvack records are NOT free.  You have to pay $100 or wait 18 months to get new records. That is NOT free.  

Yes, a lot of time and effort have gone in to compiling and digitizing these records.  The same can be said for the Internet Archive, the Hathi Trust, the Library of Congress, Harvard University and endless other repositories of records.  They are supported by donations, legacies, etc.  That way everybody gets equal access, and no one is left out because they can't afford $100.

On Mon, Nov 25, 2019 at 12:01 PM Marion Werle <werleme@...> wrote:
Bob,

LitvakSIG membership in a District Research Group (DRG) is a multiyear membership (5 years) which supports the translation and acquisition costs of Lithuanian Jewish records. It makes the records available to DRG members via spreadsheets as soon as they are translated and compiled. After 18 months, they are made available free to everybody on the LitvakSIG website and on JewishGen, so there is a huge number of records freely available, since the SIG has been in existence for 25 years.

This doesn't even remotely compare to the proposed USCIS per record search and individual file charges which far exceed that of a 5-year DRG membership.

Marion Werle
<werleme@...>
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