The Genealogy and Heraldry Bill 2006 was a private member's bill introduced in Seanad Éireann by Brendan Ryan to reform the statutory basis for the office of Chief Herald of Ireland. It was not passed into law and the bill lapsed in 2007. History The bill was drafted by Michael Merrigan, co-founder of the Genealogical Society of Ireland (GSI). and was amended by the National Cultural Institutions Act 1997. The GSI has described the 1997 Act as "fundamentally flawed". The proposed bill had its second reading in December 2006, but lapsed with the dissolution of the Dáil and Seanad for the 2007 election.