To require congressional approval before the sale, disposal, declaration of excess or surplus, transfer, or conveyance of Federal property with historical significance, and for other purposes.
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill puts a congressional approval gate around disposal of federally owned historic property. A President, agency head, or other federal official may not sell, dispose of, declare excess or surplus, transfer, or convey a covered building unless the official first gives Congress notice of intent and Congress passes a joint resolution approving that specific transaction. Covered property is broad: any United States-owned land, building, structure, monument, or site that is or has ever been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The measure therefore shifts historically significant federal property from ordinary executive-branch disposal control into a process where Congress can block or approve the transaction.
Who Benefits and How
Historic preservation advocates benefit because National Register properties receive a congressional review step before disposal. Communities near federal historic sites benefit because Congress can scrutinize transfers that could affect local heritage assets. Congressional oversight committees benefit from mandatory notice before executive officials dispose of covered historic property. National Register-listed federal sites benefit from a higher procedural barrier before sale or surplus designation.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Federal agency property managers must identify covered historic assets and prepare congressional notices before disposal. The General Services Administration faces slower disposal options when covered federal buildings or sites are involved. Presidents and agency heads lose unilateral flexibility to transfer or convey National Register-listed federal property. Potential buyers or transferees bear timing risk because a joint resolution must pass before a transaction can proceed.
Key Provisions
- Requires congressional notice before disposal or transfer of covered historic federal property.
- Requires a joint resolution approving the covered building transaction before it may proceed.
- Defines covered building to include United States-owned land, buildings, structures, monuments, and sites ever listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
- Limits disposal authority of the President, agency heads, and other federal officials for covered property.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Requires congressional notice and joint-resolution approval before specified federal officials can sell, dispose of, declare surplus, transfer, or convey federally owned property that is or has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Key Policy Areas
Federal Property, Historic Preservation, Congressional Oversight
Primary Purpose
Requires congressional notice and joint-resolution approval before specified federal officials can sell, dispose of, declare surplus, transfer, or convey federally owned property that is or has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Policy Domains
Resolution provisions
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Historic preservation advocates
- Communities near federal historic sites
- Congressional oversight committees
- National Register-listed federal sites
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Federal agency property managers
- General Services Administration
- Presidents and agency heads
- Potential property transferees
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMr. Figures (for himself and Ms. Sewell) introduced the following …
Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and …
Referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition …
Introduced in House
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
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