To make improvements in the enactment of title 54, United States Code, into a positive law title and to correct related technical errors.
This bill, H.R. 5182, is aimed at converting Title 54 of the United States Code into a positive law title (a codified statute with the force of law) and fixing related technical and cross-reference errors across several titles. In addition to codification improvements, the measure makes a number of substantive amendments and reorganizations within Title 54 and related public laws. Among the notable changes are new or revised provisions governing housing for federal field employees, cost-sharing for deferred maintenance, urban parks and recreation funding, and commemorative programs (such as those recognizing the Underground Railroad and preservation efforts). The bill also establishes transitional rules for moving to the restated provisions, and it repeals or restores certain historic laws as part of the broader effort to align the statute with a positive-law title. In practical terms, if enacted, Title 54 would be reorganized and clarified as a stand-alone, enforceable body of federal law, with updated definitions, cross-references, funding provisions, and program authorities. It also introduces new programmatic themes (urban parks, preservation incentives, commemorative initiatives) and adds guardrails (e.g., “Willing Sellers” for land acquisitions, lobbying prohibitions on certain funding uses, and non-federal cost-sharing requirements). The overall effect is to modernize and consolidate several related historic preservation and land management authorities while fixing technical inconsistencies that have arisen from prior revisions and cross-references. Sponsor and status indicate it's an introduced bill in the 119th Congress (sponsored by Mr. Goldman of New York) and referred to the Judiciary Committee. The text includes extensive amendments across multiple titles and public laws, plus transitional and repeal provisions.
Key Points
- 1Positive-law codification and cross-reference fixes
- 2- The bill’s core purpose is to convert Title 54 into a positive-law title and to correct related technical errors and mis-citations that span Titles 15, 16, 43, and 54, as well as Public Law 113-287. It realigns references to the National Historic Preservation Act and related provisions, ensuring consistency with a single, enforceable codified framework.
- 3New housing-related and acquisition provisions (Chapter 1013)
- 4- The bill creates a consolidated set of purposes and definitions for housing for federal field employees (with terms like “field employee,” “quarters,” and “seasonal quarters”). It also describes financing and procurement aims, including private-sector participation and long-term maintenance, and adds an acquisition-related framework that includes the concept of “Willing Sellers” and a prohibition on lobbying with certain funds.
- 5Funding and cost-sharing for deferred maintenance (Sec. 101701)
- 6- It adds a new funding authority for direct, non-appropriated use of Treasury funds to cover the federal share of deferred-maintenance projects, with specific annual amounts ($20 million for 2018 and $30 million for 2019, to remain available until expended) and a requirement that at least 50% of total project costs come from non-federal sources.
- 7New and reorganized program authorities (Chapters 2005, 3083, 3111)
- 8- Chapter 2005 establishes an urban park and recreation recovery program with defined terms (e.g., at-risk youth recreation grants, innovation grants, maintenance, and capital rehabilitation), designed to complement existing federal programs and spur local park revitalization.
- 9- Chapter 3083 adds purposes related to the Underground Railroad, authorizing coordination of commemorative and interpretive activities.
- 10- Chapter 3111 reinterprets Preserve America with updated purpose and definitions, including a defined heritage-tourism concept and a revised appropriation rule that would reduce funding by a specified amount if not yet appropriated by a date.
- 11Additional technical corrections and minor edits
- 12- The bill makes numerous spelling and nomenclature corrections (e.g., “Acquistion” to “Acquisition,” “Occur” vs. “Occur,” “commission” spelling) and adjusts headings and tables of contents to ensure alignment with the restated provisions.
- 13Transition and repeal framework
- 14- It creates transitional rules to govern how restated provisions replace source provisions, maintain effective dates, and handle references, regulations, and ongoing actions. It also lists extensive repeals of older acts as part of moving toward a unified positive-law title, while preserving rights, penalties, and ongoing proceedings.