Missouri’s archaeological sites are at risk, and we could use your help. Recent reductions in the federal budget have severely impacted many federal, state, and tribal archaeological and historic preservation agencies and organizations including the National Park Service, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, and many state and tribal historic preservation offices. Many of these organizations have a critical role in the review of proposed project impacts to archeological and cultural resources. Inadequate federal funding jeopardizes this important regulatory review and could lead to the destruction of significant archaeological resources that might otherwise have been preserved. Funding for some forms of archaeological investigations probably will be substantially reduced or eliminated. It is likely that the Missouri Archaeological Society will lose access to certain funding sources that have supported past archaeological education efforts. With reduced SHPO staffing, individual MAS members could find it much more difficult to report previously undocumented archaeological sites.

The MAS Board of Directors has agreed that the MAS membership should be encouraged to contact their congressional representatives requesting that the previously approved level of federal funding to these organizations be restored. Visit https://ncshpo.org/2025/05/05/hpunderthreat/ for more information. If you choose to send a letter or email to your representative, feel free to use SAA letter template drafted by the Society of American Archaeology. If you are unsure who to contact, please visit https://www.commoncause.org/find-your-representative/ to determine the name and contact information for your congressional representatives. If you do communicate with elected officials regarding this issue, please let the MAS business office know so that we can track MAS efforts.

Please consider contacting your elected officials to share your concerns about the reduced level of federal funding for archaeological and historic preservation organizations. At risk are archaeological resources that can never be restored or replaced once destroyed. Thank you for consideration of this request.