The U.S. House Natural Resources Committee on April 21 approved bipartisan legislation led by U.S. Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-VA) that would modify certain cost-sharing requirements for grant programs under the American Battlefield Protection Program.
“With less than three months away from the 250th birthday of our great nation, honoring those that came before us is more important than ever,” Rep. Kiggans said. “My legislation strengthens the American Battlefield Protection Program and equips state and local partners with the tools they need to preserve the hallowed ground where Americans fought to secure the freedoms we enjoy today.”
The congresswoman sponsored the American Battlefield Protection Program Amendments Act of 2026, H.R. 7618, on Feb. 20 alongside lead original cosponsor U.S. Rep. Seth Magaziner (D-RI) to extend and increase federal resourcing for the American Battlefield Protection Program through 2035, and to continue the work of preserving and restoring America’s historic battlefields, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Kiggans’ staff.
“I’m grateful to Rep. Magaziner for his partnership on this effort and I look forward to the bill receiving a vote on the House floor,” she said on Tuesday following the committee’s vote, which advances H.R. 7618 to the full chamber for action.
If enacted, the measure would make four improvements to the law: Extend the program from 2028 through 20235 at $20 million a year in funding; combine two separate authorizations from the Restoration Grant Program and the the Interpretation Grant Program into a single $2 million authorization; direct the National Park Service to study the potential for preservation of the U.S. battlefields in the French and Indian War and the Mexican-American War; and reduce the non-federal match of the combined Restoration and Interpretation Grants program to 25 percent from 50 percent.