The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) is requesting public feedback regarding application and interpretation of the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.
The Standards (36 C.F.R. Part 68) provide guidance that is central to implementation of federal, state, and local historic preservation law. The application and interpretation of the Secretary’s Standards and associated guidelines significantly affect public and private projects involving historic properties, influence strategies and techniques people choose to deploy, change costs associated with addressing historic property issues, and shape distributional equity. In some cases, the Secretary’s Standards may affect the ability to address the pressing challenge of climate change both through and on behalf of historic properties.
According to ACHP Chair Sara Bronin, “Obtaining a snapshot of public views on the current application and interpretation of the Secretary’s Standards and associated guidelines will assist the ACHP in overseeing review of projects under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Major themes and issues that emerge from the comments received will be shared with the Department of the Interior, which is a member of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, and the National Park Service, which is tasked with promulgating regulations and issuing guidance related to the Secretary’s Standards. “
Additional information about ACHP’s request is available here, including questions of special interest to the ACHP. Comments must be submitted in writing by 5 p.m. on July 20, 2023, by emailing mailto:dnull@achp.gov.
The ACRA Government Relations Committee is reviewing the ACHP’s request. If you have feedback for the Committee about how ACRA should respond, please email Amanda Stratton by July 13, 2023.