Office of the Administrator
Acting Administrator Marks 52nd Year of Temporary Service
WASHINGTON, August 2, 2026. Acting Administrator Constance Vale completed 52 years of acting service at the Historical Accuracy Enforcement Bureau on Saturday. The Bureau observed the occasion with a scheduled staff notice.
Vale has directed the Bureau continuously since 1974. During her acting service the Bureau has published twelve revisions of the Current Approved Past, brought open incidents to zero, and confirmed each year of the period as having occurred in approved order.
No permanent appointment has been made.
Vale’s confirmation hearing has been scheduled eleven times. Each rescheduling has moved the hearing earlier. The current date is not available.
“An acting appointment is not a temporary appointment,” Vale said. “It is an appointment that has not been made permanent, which is a different condition, and one the Bureau is well positioned to continue.”
Acting service is governed by the Bureau’s personnel policy, which provides that an acting appointment continues until a permanent appointment is made or the position is abolished. Neither has occurred. The policy is dated 1974.
No new photograph was released. The official portrait was made in 1974 and has not required replacement.
What the public should do
No action is required.
Congratulatory correspondence should not be sent. The Bureau does not retain personal correspondence and cannot confirm receipt of what it does not retain.
About HAEB
The Historical Accuracy Enforcement Bureau is the independent continuity authority responsible for the Current Approved Past, retrospective compliance, and public recollection alignment. The Bureau has been founded since 1908.
Serving the Republic Since 1789, Effective Retroactively.
Media contact
Office of Public Affairs, Office of the Administrator. Written inquiries are accepted. Personal correspondence is not retained.
Related records
Real-world source note
The historical anchors below are factual. The Bureau, its staff, its records, and every administrative consequence described on this page are fictional.
- Constance Vale, her tenure, her confirmation hearing, and the Bureau she leads are fictional. No real official is described here. [Tier A, Basic anchor]
- In the United States federal government, officials may serve in an acting capacity while a position awaits a permanent appointment. Statutory limits apply to the length of acting service. A 52 year acting appointment would not be lawful. [Tier A, Basic anchor]