Historic Preservation Enhancement Act (H.R. 5914)

• •Increases the annual deposit into the Historic Preservation Fund from $150 million to $300 million.
• •Mandates that if specific revenues are insufficient to meet the $300 million target, the difference must be covered by the general fund of the U.S. Treasury.
• •Makes funds available for expenditure without requiring further annual congressional appropriations starting in fiscal year 2027.
• •Requires that at least 40% of the fund be allocated to State Historic Preservation Offices.
• •Requires that at least 20% of the fund be allocated to Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, with provisions to increase this share if the number of tribal offices grows.
• •Requires the President to submit cost estimates for allocations to Congress within 90 days of enactment for FY 2027, and annually thereafter.
• •Allows Congress to pass legislation for 'alternate allocations' of the funds if desired.
• •Authorizes the President to allocate funds if Congress fails to pass alternate allocation legislation by the time the Department of the Interior's annual budget is enacted.
• •Allows the President to continue funding state and tribal offices at the previous year's rate if the government is operating under a continuing resolution.
• •Requires the President to submit an annual report to Congress detailing the final allocation of funds by program.
• •Explicitly authorizes funding for the African American Civil Rights Movement Initiative, History of Equal Rights Grants, Survey Grants for Underrepresented Communities, and Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grants.

If passed, this bill would permanently increase federal investment in historic site preservation by $150 million annually, with guaranteed minimum shares for state and tribal preservation programs starting in fiscal year 2027.

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.