Which congressional body was created to organize the United States’ 250th anniversary celebration?

The United States Semiquincentennial Commission was created to organize the United States’ 250th anniversary celebration.

Congress established the commission through Public Law 114-196, signed in 2016. The body is nonpartisan and was created years before the 2026 anniversary so that national, state, territorial, and local planning could begin well in advance.

The commission is commonly associated with the name America250. Its work includes coordinating commemorative programs, encouraging participation across the country, and connecting federal planning with state and territory commissions. The commission’s structure reflects the scale of a national anniversary involving all parts of the United States.

This organization should not be confused with the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration, which coordinated the 1976 bicentennial. Nor is it the same as the Second Continental Congress, the Revolutionary-era body that adopted the Declaration of Independence.