In 55 places around the U.S. there’s a unique congressional designation that supports and funds grant programs and preservation efforts, which contribute to community enrichment. But the people behind the “National Heritage Areas,” experience constant uncertainty about the future of these federally funded sites.
Alaska’s only heritage area is pushing for a change.
Most tourists and residents in Southcentral Alaska have benefited from the efforts of the Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm Heritage Area, the area that includes Girdwood, Cooper Landing, Hope, Seward, Moose Pass and lots of national forest.
National Heritage Areas like KMTA were created during the Reagan administration as a cost-effective way of promoting and preserving American cultural and historic resources. They’re authorized and funded by Congress. And unlike National Parks, heritage areas are lived-in and designed to drive economic development within their boundaries.
KMTA runs educational programs, does trail maintenance, hosts events and awards grants to community projects.
Rachel Blakeslee is the executive director of KMTA. She said that congressional funding is the engine of KMTA’s work.
“It’s the money that funds grant projects, that supports communities and cultural preservation, and historic preservation,” she said.
But authorization from Congress expires, or sunsets, after 15 years. That means the country’s 55 heritage areas are up for reauthorization at different times, creating more work for both Congress and heritage area staff. When their future status is unknown, Blakeslee said heritage areas struggle to hire staff or plan events in the long-term.
For two years, the Alliance of National Heritage Areas, a collaborative effort between all of the heritage areas across the county, has been advocating for a congressional bill that will move all of the heritage areas to the same reauthorization cycle.
“So instead of having all these hodgepodge sunset dates, where every few years there are heritage areas that have to go through a massive, herculean advocacy effort to try to get their heritage areas reauthorized, this program bill would essentially put us all on the same renewal date,” Blakeslee said.
The bill is on the Senate’s calendar for this legislative session. after receiving strong, bipartisan support in the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources committee.
But the session is coming to a close, and the clock is ticking. Just because a bill is on the docket doesn’t mean the Senate will get to it. And if they don’t, heritage areas will have to start all over again, when a new Congress comes in this January.
Blakeslee said that would be a disservice to the communities served by heritage areas.
“We’d have to start from ground zero, which is significant time, resources, manpower that’s invested into this advocacy effort, versus into the actual work that the National Heritage Areas are trying to do,” she said.
KMTA is up for reauthorization in 2024. If the bill doesn’t pass, there are other avenues they could pursue to get reauthorized, like through a member of the state’s congressional delegation.
