On Tuesday, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) aimed at increasing the President’s power over independent regulatory agencies. This EO would require review by the President of any proposed regulatory changes and make the White House the sole arbiter of how to interpret an agency’s regulations, guidance, and positions advanced in litigation, thus politicizing federal agency decision making. Much of the news coverage has focused on this EO’s impact on financial regulatory bodies such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The media is paying less attention to how this EO may impact the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP), the independent federal agency charged with historic preservation oversight in the United States government and across the country. The ACHP plays a critical role in setting the agenda, tone, and priorities for the protection of historic properties in communities across the country. Will the EO restrict the ACHP’s independence and cause harm to America’s cultural heritage?
While the EO uses terms interchangeably, causing confusion as to which provisions might apply to the ACHP, it is also written to expand the President’s authority over “all executive departments and agencies.” For example, the EO requires all agencies “to submit for review all proposed and final significant regulatory actions to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) within the Executive Office of the President” before they are published. The EO also asserts that the President and the Attorney General “shall provide authoritative interpretations of law for the executive branch,” and these interpretations “are controlling on all employees in the conduct of their official duties.” Congress established the ACHP to advise the President and Congress on historic preservation policy, and to provide its own opinions to the executive and the legislative branches. But how can the ACHP advise the White House on matters related to its expertise if the White House must approve the advice beforehand?
If upheld by the courts, this EO would change the independent nature of the ACHP, which Congress established as an independent agency to separate the ACHP’s decisions from political influence. And yet we may not fully appreciate the fallout from this EO for some time, because the Administration has removed key ACHP members, including the Vice Chair. Indeed, the business and committee meetings scheduled for March 2025 are indefinitely postponed. Until the President appoints members to the ACHP, the agency cannot perform critical functions like signing nationwide programmatic agreements or making regulatory changes.
It is our hope that the ACHP will retain its independence and continue to fulfill its important mission in helping protect the nation’s historic properties and developing new policies to make historic preservation more effective and efficient. How do you think the EO will affect historic preservation? Email Marion with your thoughts and let us know what you are hearing about the impacts of the new Administration’s changes.
This post was revised at 11:12am on February 21, 2025. Thanks to our friends and colleagues for their feedback that helped us improve this post.