A sometimes raucous State of the Union address last week, featuring President Biden sparring verbally with his Republican Congressional opponents in the House chamber, was an apt microcosm of the current mood in Washington, where neither political party has a monopoly on power and both are trying to gain the upper hand on big debates over government spending, the economy, national security and other issues.
Although preservation wasn’t directly mentioned in the address, it was clear that Congress and the White House are headed for a showdown over government spending, which could impact funding for preservation programs at the Department of the Interior and other agencies.
The biggest flashpoint is what to do about the debt ceiling, the legal cap on how much the federal government can borrow for expenses already incurred. The Treasury Department estimates that the government will exhaust its borrowing authority this summer. House Republicans, led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), want to see deficit reduction in exchange for a vote to raise the debt ceiling. But with Republicans ruling out any tax increases and unlikely to cut defense spending – and seemingly joining with the President at the State of the Union to oppose cuts to entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security – any deficit reduction would have to come on the back of domestic programs, from education to housing to the environment – and historic preservation.
Congressional Republicans indicated last week that they will propose “examples” of potential domestic spending cuts as they prepare to draft a fiscal 2024 budget resolution by April. House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey C. Arrington (R-TX) said they hope to lower spending in 2024 to 2022 levels, which would mean an 8 percent cut in funding levels across government programs. ACRA will continue watching the process as it moves forward to determine impacts on CRM.
Meanwhile, talks are continuing on Capitol Hill on another issue that could impact cultural resources: permitting reform. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Joe Manchin (D-WV) and House Natural Resources Committee Chair Bruce Westerman (R-AR) met last week to discuss a permitting overhaul measure. The Republican-led House is likely to take the lead on advancing a reform plan this year following multiple failed attempts last year by Manchin to pass a bill.
Government funding and permitting reform are two of the issues that ACRA’s government relations team covered in their webinar last week on the 2023 policy outlook for CRM. If you missed the webinar, you can watch a recording of it here.
ACRA Files NAGPRA Comments
ACRA submitted comments to the National Park Service late last month responding to their proposed rules outlining a systematic process under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) for the disposition and repatriation of Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony.
Noting that NAGPRA is “the federal government’s cornerstone statute recognizing that” such items “belong to lineal descendants, Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations, and must be treated with dignity and respect,” ACRA’s comments expressed concern with the proposal’s procedures for inadvertent discovery: “ACRA is concerned that the proposed regulations make an automatic presumption that any human remains encountered on Federal or Indian trust lands in a discovery situation are Native American. That is not always the case. The regulations do not provide for any process for making a determination that such remains are or are not Native American, and they do not specify who would make such a determination. . . As a result, any situation in which human remains are discovered would automatically trigger an extensive process that could take up to two months to resolve before a resumption of activity.”
ACRA urged NPS to develop processes to determine the heritage of any human remains at the point of discovery, and clarify which parties are responsible for making such a determination.
Join Us in Washington!
Debates over the federal budget for preservation and CRM and permitting reform are just two reasons why it is crucial that Congress hears from the CRM industry on the issues that matter to it. ACRA members have a powerful story to tell policymakers about the importance of cultural resources management. As Congress debates these policies, it’s more important than ever to make sure lawmakers hear that story.
That’s why ACRA announced last week that it is holding its annual Capitol Hill Fly-In April 25-26, 2023. For the first time since the pandemic began, ACRA members are going to meet with their House and Senate representatives in person in Washington, DC.
ACRA will arrange meetings and provide training beforehand. There is no cost to register for the Fly-In, but attendees are responsible for making your travel and lodging accommodations.
Please sign up today and show your support for the CRM industry!