1,000 groups launch campaign to defend historic preservation law

A new coalition of 1,000 organizations and Tribal Nations has launched 106 Strong on the 60th anniversary of the National Historic Preservation Act to fight proposed changes to Section 106. The group is targeting Senate bill S. 5653 and separate Trump administration regulatory changes that it says would weaken consultation, Tribal sovereignty and public participation.

Why it matters: - The campaign aims to preserve Section 106, the federal review process that requires agencies to consider effects on historic places before acting. - 106 Strong says the fight is about more than buildings. It frames the issue as protection for Tribal sovereignty, local communities, and public input on federal decisions. - The coalition warns that weakening Section 106 could make infrastructure and development fights more contentious, not less, by replacing early consultation with litigation.

What happened: - On the 60th anniversary of the National Historic Preservation Act, a coalition of 1,000 organizations and Tribal Nations launched 106 Strong to defend Section 106. - The coalition says its members represent more than 9 million Americans and include Tribal Nations, preservation groups, architecture firms, archaeological associations, museums, local governments, civil rights groups, and community organizations in all 50 states. - The group unveiled its website, released a short film, and sent a letter to Congress urging lawmakers to reject S. 5653. - The campaign is also organizing citizen outreach, preparing legal challenges to unlawful actions, and planning a national day of protest around the expected Nov. 9 Senate vote.

The details: - Section 106 requires federal agencies to consider the effects of their decisions on historic places and to consult with Tribal Nations, states, local governments, and communities before causing harm. - Congress is considering S. 5653, a permitting reform bill that 106 Strong says would dismantle historic preservation safeguards. - The Trump administration is separately pursuing regulatory changes that the coalition says would undermine Section 106. - The coalition’s letter says the bill would remove the public’s voice from Section 106 review, attack Tribal sovereignty, and let the federal government decide that “other considerations” outweigh historic preservation. - The letter argues that if the bill passes, neighbors could learn about threats to historic places only when bulldozers arrive. - Nine leading national and regional Tribal organizations, representing hundreds of Tribal Nations, have separately condemned the legislation and said it threatens sacred places, Tribal sovereignty, and federal trust obligations. - The film marks the NHPA’s 60th anniversary and highlights places and stories preserved through Section 106. - The film also revisits the 1966 crisis that led Congress to act. About half of the 12,000 historic places documented by the Historic American Buildings Survey since 1933 had already been destroyed or ruined at the time. - The landmark report With Heritage So Rich described the surviving documentation as a “death mask of America.”

Between the lines: - The coalition is trying to turn preservation into a broad public-interest fight, not a niche heritage issue. - By tying Section 106 to Tribal sovereignty and civic participation, 106 Strong is broadening the political stakes beyond preservation advocates. - The group is also signaling that it expects the conflict to move from Congress to the courts and, if needed, to the House. - Greg Werkheiser, co-founder of Cultural Heritage Partners and an organizer of 106 Strong, said the bill could pave the way to destruction of tens of thousands of historic places in communities across the country. - Ira Matt, executive director of the National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers, said the proposed changes would erode decades of progress in recognizing Tribal rights and would tell Americans their history and voices no longer matter.

What's next: - 106 Strong’s first goal is to defeat S. 5653 in the Senate. - If the Senate passes the bill, the coalition plans to continue the fight in the House. - The group will also keep opposing the administration’s proposed regulatory changes and push to strengthen Section 106 for future federal planning and consultation. - The coalition says its longer-term goal is to ensure future generations inherit the historic and cultural places that define American communities.

The bottom line: - The battle over Section 106 is emerging as a high-stakes test of how much public input, Tribal authority, and historic preservation Congress is willing to keep in federal decision-making.