# 119-s-2726: Beautifying Federal Civic Architecture Act of 2025 119-s-2726, Beautifying Federal Civic Architecture Act of 2025, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Banks, Jim [R-IN] (R-IN); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-10). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2726 - As of: 2026-09-10 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: 119-s-2726 - Congress: 119 - Title: Beautifying Federal Civic Architecture Act of 2025 - Status: introduced - Introduced: 2025-09-04 - Sponsor: Sen. Banks, Jim [R-IN] (R-IN) - Cosponsors: 5 - Policy area: Government Operations and Politics - Touches household money: yes - Last recorded action: 2026-09-10 ## Summary **This bill would make a national policy to prefer classical and traditional architecture for major federal public buildings and to ground design choices in regional traditions and public input.** It directs the General Services Administration to prioritize designs that uplift public spaces, inspire the human spirit, and be visually identifiable as civic buildings while allowing alternatives only in defined circumstances. - Families and local communities: New federal buildings would be planned to respect regional architectural heritage, include substantial local public input, and aim to improve surrounding streets and landscapes so public spaces feel more civic and welcoming. - Architects, design firms, and artists: The Administration must recruit and weight firms with classical or traditional experience in design-build competitions, require staff with relevant training, create a Senior Advisor for Architectural Design, and encourage use of living American artists where appropriate. - Federal agencies and project selection: The bill covers courthouses, agency headquarters, National Capital Region buildings, and any public building with design and finish costs over $50 million in 2025 dollars. In Washington, D.C. classical architecture is the default and the Administrator must notify the Assistant to the President at least 30 days before approving a nonpreferred design and justify lifecycle costs. ## Cosponsors (5) - Sen. Marshall, Roger [R-KS] (R-KS), 2025-09-04T00:00:00.000Z - Sen. Blackburn, Marsha [R-TN] (R-TN), 2025-09-04T00:00:00.000Z - Sen. Hyde-Smith, Cindy [R-MS] (R-MS), 2025-09-04T00:00:00.000Z - Sen. Hagerty, Bill [R-TN] (R-TN), 2025-09-09T00:00:00.000Z - Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT] (R-UT), 2025-09-09T00:00:00.000Z ## Provisions PRIA read - Design competitions favor classical firms: benefit, medium. This bill would require agencies to treat site choice as the first design step and use competitions where appropriate. It would direct GSA to recruit firms with classical or traditional experience and, in design-build competitions, list that experience as specialized and give it substantial weight.… - GSA Senior Architectural Advisor role: benefit, low. This bill would create a Senior Advisor for Architectural Design at the General Services Administration. The advisor would need experience in classical or traditional architecture. They would help write procedures, advise on standards, and guide design reviews and juries. - No private right to sue: cost, low. This bill would say that nothing in the Act creates a legal right that a person can enforce against the United States or its agencies. In other words, people would not be able to sue the federal government for failing to follow this law. - New federal civic design rules: mixed, medium. This bill would set a national design policy for large federal public buildings. It would say buildings should uplift public spaces, inspire the human spirit, and be visually identifiable as civic buildings. It would make classical and traditional architecture the preferred style, and make classica… - Extra notice for non-classical designs: mixed, low. If the GSA Administrator wants to approve a design that departs from the preferred architecture, this bill would require a notice to the White House domestic policy assistant at least 30 days before approval. The notice would have to explain the justification and provide expected total lifecycle co… - GSA must adopt design rules: mixed, low. This bill would require the GSA Administrator to update policies and procedures quickly to follow the Act's guiding principles. It would require GSA architects who review or approve designs to have formal training or substantial experience in classical or traditional architecture. It would make adv… ## Related bills - 119-s-3752: SAVE America Act - 119-s-587: Death Tax Repeal Act of 2025 - 119-s-186: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2025 - 119-s-6: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act - 119-s-3697: SAVE Moms and Babies Act of 2026 - 119-s-1715: Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act ## Sources - [119-s-2726 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2726) ## Related - [119-s-3752: SAVE America Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3752) - [119-s-587: Death Tax Repeal Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-587) - [119-s-186: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-186) - [119-s-6: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-6) - [119-s-3697: SAVE Moms and Babies Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3697) - [119-s-1715: Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1715) - [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2726 (as of 2026-09-10).