H.R. 6201 would extend, through September 30, 2027, the authority of the National Mall Liberty Fund to construct a commemorative work on federal land within the District of Columbia honoring enslaved and free Black soldiers and civilians who contributed to the nation’s independence during the American Revolutionary War.
The project would be subject to the provisions of the Commemorative Works Act. Under that act, any entity that receives a construction permit for a commemorative work must donate an amount equal to 10 percent of the memorial’s estimated construction costs to the National Park Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose subsequent donations to the National Park Service are recorded on the budget. That donation and any project funds remaining after construction would be available for maintenance of the memorial without further appropriation.
Based on the experience from similar projects, CBO expects that any amounts collected by the federal government for maintenance of the monument would not be received for several years and would be offset by expenditures soon thereafter. Thus, CBO estimates that the legislation’s net effect on direct spending would be negligible.
