Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA)¹ requires federal agencies to take into account the effects of their undertakings on properties eligible for or listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Agencies must afford the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (the Council)² an opportunity to comment on those undertakings, prior to any licensing or approval of the expenditure of funds.³ In 1979, the Council issued regulations setting out the means by which federal agencies were to comply with §106.⁴ The process set forth in the regulations became known as the "Section 106 process."

In 1981, the President instituted a government-wide regulatory reform effort, calling on agencies to review existing regulations and revise them when necessary to reduce regulatory burden, increase agency accountability, and ensure well-reasoned regulations.⁵ The chairman of the Council initiated a review of the §106 regulations. In September 1986, after considerable deliberation within the government, the Council published revised §106 regulations.⁶