Sponsors (19)
The bill shifts federal naming practices to remove offensive names and give tribes more say—advancing civil rights and consistency—while imposing implementation costs, administrative burdens, and risks of local backlash or reduced review discretion.
Racially marginalized and Indigenous communities will see derogatory or honorific place names on federal maps and lands identified and removed, reducing federal endorsement of slurs and offensive commemorations.
Indigenous tribes will gain formal standing, consultation rights, and an advisory role in renaming decisions, increasing their influence over geographic names that affect their communities.
Federal naming authority and processes are clarified and standardized (which offices are responsible and how reviews proceed), making reviews and renamings more consistent across federal maps and lands.
Residents, businesses, local governments, and property owners will likely incur direct costs and confusion to update signs, maps, addresses, marketing, and legal documents when place names change.
Some community members will view renaming as erasing local history, which can produce social and political backlash, dispute, and local polarization.
Establishing and operating the Committee and expanded renaming reviews will require federal administrative resources and staffing, increasing costs to taxpayers and federal workload.
Based on analysis of 5 sections of legislative text.
Introduced April 10, 2025 by Al Green · Last progress April 10, 2025
Creates a 17-member federal advisory committee to review U.S. geographic names on federal lands that are derogatory, honor people who promoted racist policies or committed atrocities, or otherwise offend racial, ethnic, or gender groups. The committee will solicit proposals from Tribes, governments, agencies, and the public, recommend new names, and submit proposals to the Board on Geographic Names and to Congress for Federal land units. The Board must accept or reject committee proposals for geographic features within three years and implement approved changes. Sets deadlines and membership rules, requires Tribal consultation for appointments, allows public input, provides staff and technical support from the Department of the Interior, and directs the committee to complete its core duties within about five years, with a one-year termination window after Board action on its proposals.