Abstract
On September 30, 2010, Connecticut began its journey to the passage of an Abandoned Property/Old Loan Law. On this day, Kendall F. Wig-gin, Connecticut State Librarian; Barbara Austen, Florence M. Crofut Archivist, Connecticut Historical Society; Dianne Lee, Collections Manager, Connecticut Historical Society; and I met for the first time. We discussed the need for the legislation, how we might tackle the work and planned for our next meeting. From this humble beginning, we undertook a journey that culminated on June 15, 2012, when history was made for Connecticut's museums, libraries and archives. On this day, Governor Dannel Malloy signed Public Act 12-171 into law. While it is not a perfect example of abandoned property/old loan legislation, it is an effective tool that was needed badly by Connecticut's cultural institutions. With it, they can now proceed to clear titles to abandoned property and old loans following best practices and being more effective stewards of our shared cultural heritage.
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