FAQ: Amicus Brief to Protect White House
After months of discussions with the lead plaintiff on the case, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and others, AIA joined ten allied organizations in filing an amicus brief in the D.C. Circuit supporting a challenge to the demolition of the White House East Wing and construction of a large new White House ballroom.
The core argument is that the White House and President’s Park are federal property within the National Park System, and that presidents are temporary stewards who cannot unilaterally demolish major components or undertake a massive new building project there without explicit congressional authorization.
Main Points:
- The Constitution and federal statutes give control of federal property and national park units to Congress, and that laws governing construction on federal parks in Washington, D.C., forbid new structures like the ballroom absent “express authority” from Congress.
- National Park Service’s own planning documents and cultural landscape standards are inconsistent with a 90,000 square foot, above ground ballroom that alters the historic symmetry, scale, and open space of the grounds.
- Private donor funding does not cure these legal defects or create new authority for the President to proceed.
The brief also describes how the President ordered the East Wing demolished before completing the comprehensive review typically required for major projects affecting the federal city’s plan, and key review bodies were reconstituted with close presidential allies shortly before they approved the project over significant public opposition. Those circumstances are presented as further reason for the courts to look closely at whether statutory planning and preservation safeguards have been honored.
The immediate ask to the court is to reinstate the preliminary injunction halting above ground construction while the legality of the project is fully adjudicated.
FAQ: Amicus Brief to Protect White House
A filing submitted by someone who isn't a party to a lawsuit but has a strong interest in the outcome. It allows AIA to share relevant expertise and perspective with the court.
A filing submitted by someone who isn't a party to a lawsuit but has a strong interest in the outcome. It allows AIA to share relevant expertise and perspective with the court.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued after the Trump administration demolished the White House East Wing and began building a 90,000-square-foot ballroom without congressional authorization. A federal court halted construction; the government appealed. Oral argument is June 5, 2026.
Federal law (40 U.S.C. §8106) explicitly prohibits erecting any new building on federal grounds in Washington, D.C. without congressional authorization. Congress never gave approval for this ballroom and the Senate explicitly rejected funding the ballroom in May 2026.
Yes- within limits. The President can fund routine maintenance and redecorating of the Executive Residence. That authority doesn't extend to demolishing an entire wing and constructing a massive new building on the grounds.
Congress designated the White House and its 82-acre grounds as a national park in 1961. Federal law requires national parks to be managed to conserve their historic character—not to accommodate a president's personal construction preferences. Even the National Park Service's own environmental assessment acknowledged the project would cause "permanent adverse impacts on the cultural landscape."
Major federal construction in D.C. normally requires review by the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts. The East Wing was demolished before either body was consulted. When reviews eventually occurred, both commissions had been stacked with administration loyalists; one approved the project in twelve minutes despite 97% public opposition.
The project bypassed the professional design review processes AIA champions, ignored the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Historic Properties that members routinely work within, and threatens the architectural integrity of the most prominent federal landmark in the country.
Uphold the preliminary injunction blocking above-ground construction of the ballroom.
Ten organizations: American Society of Landscape Architects, Association for Preservation Technology, Coalition to Protect America's National Parks, Committee of 100 on the Federal City, Cultural Landscape Foundation, DC Preservation League, National Mall Coalition, National Preservation Partners Network, Olmsted Network, and Society of Architectural Historians.
Oral argument before the D.C. Circuit is June 5, 2026. AIA will keep members informed of significant developments.
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