Overview

• Signed on Aug. 28, the executive order sets classical and traditional design as the preferred and default standard for federal public buildings, with special emphasis on projects in Washington, D.C.
• The General Services Administration is tasked with implementing the policy and managing processes to ensure compliance across federal building designs.
• The White House must be alerted when designs deviate from the preferred style, with The Hill reporting a 30-day advance notice for proposals featuring Brutalist or Deconstructivist elements.
• The guidance discourages modernist styles such as Brutalism and Deconstructivism, asserting that federal buildings should uplift public spaces and be recognizable as civic institutions.
• The move revives a Trump-era approach to federal civic architecture and drew immediate pushback from architects and preservationists, who warn of effects on upcoming projects including new courthouses in Hartford, Connecticut, and Chattanooga, Tennessee.