Salem Maritime National Historical Park Redesignation and Boundary Study Act

The law redesignates the Salem Maritime National Historic Site as the Salem Maritime National Historical Park, and provides that any existing reference to the historic site in federal law, regulation, maps, or documents is now deemed a reference to the historical park. It also directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a boundary study evaluating whether sites and resources in Salem, Massachusetts, and its vicinity — including the Salem Armory Visitor Center building and Salem Armory Park — associated with maritime history, coastal defenses, or military history (including National Guard and militia activity) should be added to the park. The Secretary must report the study's results, findings, conclusions, and recommendations to the House Natural Resources Committee and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee within three years of funds being made available for the study. The law does not itself expand the park's boundaries or appropriate funding for the study.

The National Park Service and Department of the Interior, which must conduct the study and manage the renamed park; residents and property owners in Salem, Massachusetts, and its vicinity whose land could be evaluated for future inclusion; and the congressional committees that will receive the study's findings.

The redesignation elevates the site's official status without changing its operations, while the boundary study could lay the groundwork for a future, separate expansion of the park to include additional historic sites in the Salem area, affecting nearby landowners and local land-use planning if pursued.

The Department of the Interior must first secure funding to begin the boundary study, which triggers a three-year clock to complete evaluation of the study area — Salem, Massachusetts and its vicinity, including the Salem Armory Visitor Center and Armory Park — for suitability and feasibility of inclusion in the park. The Secretary then submits a report with findings and recommendations to the House Natural Resources Committee and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Any actual boundary expansion would require separate future legislative or administrative action beyond this study and report.