18th District Congressman Darin LaHood has re-introduced legislation to Congress to make Route 66 a National Historic Trail. LaHood along with California Democrat Representative Grace Napolitano introduced House Resolution 8240 to Congress yesterday.
LaHood says that the Mother Road has long been a source of economic power in the 18th District and throughout the country for communities that are located along its corridor. He says the designation would provide federal funding to help preserve, promote, and further economically develop the historic highway.
Napolitano says that along with preserving the highway, the federal funding would safeguard landmark properties, artifacts, memorabilia, and other historical items in cities and stakeholders along the route.
The 2,448-mile highway stretches from Chicago to Santa Monica, California and served as the primary migration route to the West, especially during the Great Depression in the 1930s. The highway was established on November 11th, 1926, celebrating its 95th anniversary of existence next year. The current bill has received endorsement from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The previous bill in the 115th Congress passed the House, but a parent bill by New Mexico Democratic Senator Tom Udall failed to make it out of committee in 2018. The current resolution now sits in the House Committee on Natural Resources prior to a vote by the full House.