Every day, millions flock to museums to gaze at the bleaching bones of long extinct species. Now, thanks to the virtual archeological efforts of the University of North Texas' Cyber Cemetery, students, researchers and the politically nostalgic can view the bleaching bones of good intent -- the archived remains of defunct U.S. government agency and commission Web sites.

Government agencies rarely die, but when they do, death typically comes few weeks or months after an election-day vanquishing of the politicians who created them. 

Unlike other dinosaurs, most Web sites of departed government agencies leave no traces of their existence. With the exit from Washington of their founders, we "funders" are left looking at error messages where vital information once roamed. The exceptions being those sites "preserved" at the Cyber Cemetery.

A small sample of archived Web sites now on display at the Cyber Cemetery include:

U.S. Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations [Died in May, 1996]
Billing itself a "permanent, independent, bipartisan intergovernmental agency ... to strengthen the American federal system and improve the ability of federal, state, and local governments to work together cooperatively, efficiently, and effectively," the ACIR was established by Public Law 86-380 way back in 1959. While the exact date it went online is not known, the disappearance of the ACIR's Web site in May of 1996, proved that especially in politics, few things are "permanent."

National Bioethics Advisory Commission [Died in October. 2001]
By Executive Order 12975, President Clinton created this commission to advise government officials on "the appropriateness of departmental, agency, or other governmental programs, policies, assignments, missions, guidelines, and regulations as they relate to bioethical issues arising from research on human biology and behavior;" During its lifetime, the Commission members focused on protecting of the rights and welfare of human research subjects, and issues in the management and use of genetic information, including but not limited to, human gene patenting.

Access America [Died in January, 2001]
As the public showpiece of the Clinton administration's National Performance Review and Government Information Technology Services Board, Access America owed its existence to Vice President Al Gore. In its pages, Gore hoped Access America would present the physical manifestation of his "vision of using information technology to deliver comprehensive government services to Americans and to dramatically increase government productivity." During its life, the Government Information Technology Services Board developed a truly impressive list of action items designed to harness the Internet as "the great enabler for changing the way government interacts with citizens."

National Partnership for Reinventing Government (NPR) (Died in January, 1999)
Under Vice President Al Gore, the Partnership to Reinvent Government evolved out of the National Performance Review in 1996, undertaking a mission to "reinvent government to work better, cost less, and get results Americans care about." To accomplish their mission, NPR members developed over 1,200 specific changes in government operations, along with an aggressive agenda of new Internet-based "e-government" services designed to make the processes of government more accessible and responsive to the public. During its tenure, NPR accomplished many of its initiatives.

Created through a partnership between the University of North Texas Libraries and the U.S. Government Printing Office, the Cyber Cemetery serves to "provide permanent public access to the electronic Web sites and publications of defunct U.S. government agencies and commissions." The Cyber Cemetery's collection grows regularly, with Web sites listed both alphabetically and by category.