Oppose S 5653's Section 106 Changes and Protect Community Voices

Oppose the Section 106 provisions in S. 5653. This bill would gut one of the most effective tools Americans have to protect historic places and ensure their voices are heard before federal projects cause irreversible harm. Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act does not slow projects down. It improves them by requiring agencies to hear from the people who actually live with the consequences, including tribal communities whose perspectives and histories are too often the first things lost. S. 5653 would make that consultation optional, let agencies end the conversation on their own terms, and shrink both the places and the harms that qualify for review. Neighbors would find out about plans to demolish their history when the bulldozers arrive. Sixty years ago, President Johnson signed the NHPA to "give part of our country back to its people." S. 5653 takes it back. Vote no on these provisions and demand meaningful changes to the bill's historic preservation language before it moves forward.