Politicians reintroduce Democracy in Design Act to "reflect the diversity" of US

Two US senators have reintroduced legislation to counter president Donald Trump's traditional architecture mandates for federal buildings, prompting another senator to announce a codification of Trump's mandate.

Maryland-based Chris Van Hollen and New Mexico-based Ben Ray Luján, both democrats, recently introduced the Democracy in Design Act (DDA) to the Senate.

It mirrors legislation put forward in the House of Representatives in 2020 by congresswoman Dina Titus to counter the pro-classical executive order from Trump's first term.

These pro-classical orders were overturned by Joe Biden in 2021, making the congressional legislation less relevant. However, the House bill was put back into the docket in the House following Trump's reinstatement of the pro-classical executive orders.

Bill needs to pass through both houses of Congress

Van Hollen and Luján's bill helps the chances of the legislation passing, and signals broader interest in the initiative, though the bill would need to pass through both houses of Congress in an identical form, and the process is still at its early stages.

Where Trump's executive order sets a mandated "traditional and classical" style for federal buildings, the DDA would codify the Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture, in place since the 1960s, that delegated design choices to localities.

"There should not be a one-size-fits-all mandate for the design of federal architecture. This legislation will help ensure that federal buildings reflect the diversity of our nation and the American people, and meet the needs of the communities they serve," said senator Van Hollen in a press release.

Trump declared "traditional and classical" styles as "preferred modes of architectural design" after an eight-month-long review process called for by his Promoting Beautiful Federal Civic Architecture order on the first day of his second term in January.

The AIA, which has consistently opposed the Trump executive orders, has come out in support of the reintroduction of the DDA, with AIA president Evelyn Lee praising the politicians for "leadership in preserving democratic values in the design process".

Almost immediately after Van Hollen and Luján's announcement, Republican senator Jim Banks from Indiana and National Civic Art Society president Justin Shubow published an opinion announcing the forthcoming Beautifying Federal Civic Architecture Act bill to codify the executive orders.

Preferred styles to express "Western values"

Shubow and Banks' piece notes the prevalence of modernist buildings and those resembling "bizarre art projects", such as Thom Mayne's Nancy Pelosi San Francisco Federal Building.

The authors highlight a focus on public input, which they claim was not previously a requirement, and note that the act will not mandate specific designs but rather "require a preference" for classical styles.

"My legislation doesn't mandate any specific style for buildings across the country – it only requires a preference for classical and traditional architecture designs, which include everything from neoclassical to art deco to Romanesque to Pueblo revival," said Banks and Shubow.

Banks and Shubow linked this requirement directly to an expression of "Western values".

Shubow has been an outspoken proponent of the classical and traditional focus. Earlier this year, he told Dezeen that the AIA and other architecture establishments are overreacting, noting the number of building projects would be relatively small but symbolically important.

Trump has released several executive orders in an attempt to shape design policy in the United States, including the recent formation of a National Design Studio.
Work is reportedly underway on a new ballroom wing that Trump has planned for the White House.

The photograph of the Robert C Weaver Federal Building in Washington DC by Marcel Breuer is by Carol M Highsmith, courtesy of the Library of Congress Catalog.

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