H.R. 3114, a bill to provide funds to the Army Corps of Engineers to hire veterans and members of the Armed Forces to assist the Corps with curation and historic preservation activities, and for other purposes

H.R. 3114 would clarify that the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has the authority to hire veterans to catalogue artifacts and historic items. Based on information from the Corps, CBO estimates that enacting the bill would not affect the federal budget.

Because enacting H.R. 3114 would not affect direct spending or revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. CBO also estimates that enacting the bill would not increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2027.

Under current law, agencies are required to preserve and catalogue artifacts discovered during the course of their work. In 2009, the Corps began hiring veterans to process uncatalogued artifacts with funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The initial funding of $3.5 million provided by ARRA was used to purchase equipment, rent facilities, negotiate contracts, and hire veterans. Since then, expenditures for the program have increased to about $4.5 million annually and under current law the Corps expects to continue hiring veterans to perform the work. H.R. 3114 would provide specific authority for the Corps to continue those activities.

H.R. 3114 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.