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The naming or renaming of geographic features (e.g., mountains, lakes, streams) for federal usage is the responsibility of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN). However, in certain instances, the President or Congress has directed the name change of certain geographic features for federal use. Since January 2025, President Trump has issued several executive orders (EOs) directing the names of certain geographic features be changed. This includes changing the names of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and Lake Ontario to Lake America, and reinstating the name of Mount McKinley in Alaska from Denali. In addition, the President provided broader directives for future policy regarding the federal process for establishing geographic names.
On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order (E.O.) 14172, "Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness," to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, reinstate the name of Mount McKinley in Alaska from Denali, and guide future policy regarding the federal process for establishing geographic names.
Generally, the process for federal naming or renaming of geographic features involves public petition to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) for consideration on an individual basis. The BGN performs its duties through committees, such as the Domestic Names Committee (DNC) and the Foreign Names Committee (FNC). Additionally, under previous Administrations, the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) has directed the name change of geographic features for federal use, including for Denali in 2017 (Secretarial Order [S.O.] 3337). Congress also has enacted legislation establishing or changing geographic names. This In Focus describes the BGN and its role in federal nomenclature of geographic features, the E.O. and its implementation and potential implications, and issues for Congress.
In 1947, P.L. 80-242 (43 U.S.C. §§364-364f) formally authorized the BGN. The BGN comprises representatives of various federal agencies. The Secretary, jointly with the BGN, provides for uniformity in geographic nomenclature throughout the federal government. The BGN is tasked with solving name discrepancies; approving new names; validating and recording existing names; and promulgating all official names. Table 1 describes the DNC and FNC committee structures and duties. The committees meet to decide on geographic name issues pursuant to their principles, policies, and procedures.
With some exceptions, the BGN considers name proposals on a case-by-case basis. Any individual or agency may submit a proposal to the BGN to change an existing name or to establish a new name for unnamed features; however, FNC policy states that it does not encourage proposals for foreign geographic names. When the FNC does receive foreign name proposals, "FNC staff and the Committee addressesaddress them, as appropriate." For" For domestic names, , DNC policy recognizes two classes of name changes: (1) those made to bring official federal usage into agreement with established local usage and (2) those made to eliminate potential name issues (e.g., names asserted to be offensive or duplicate names). DNC policy states that no decision will be made on any proposal that is also being considered by Congress.
With regard to commemorative naming proposals, DNC policy generally limits such naming to individuals who have been deceased at least five years and requires the individual to have some direct or long-term association with the feature or to have made a significant contribution to the area. For features that cross the Canadian border—which also fall within the purview of the DNC—policies direct the BGN to coordinate such proposals with the appropriate foreign names authority pursuant to an agreement signed in 1989. No equivalent agreement with Mexico has been signed; however, DNC procedures specify that the BGN should coordinate proposals for features crossing the Mexican border with the relevant naming authority (i.e., Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía).Table 1. Information for Selected Board on Geographic Names (BGN)
|
Feature |
DNC |
FNC |
|
Geographic Domain |
Geographic names in the 50 states and in other areas under U.S. sovereignty, including U.S. territorial waters |
Foreign geographic names for federal use, including oceans and seas but excluding Antarctica |
|
Members |
Departments of the Interior, Commerce, Agriculture, Defense, and Homeland Security; U.S. Postal Service; Government Publishing Office; Library of Congress |
Departments of Commerce, Defense, Homeland Security, and State; Central Intelligence Agency; Library of Congress |
|
Official Database |
||
|
Agency for Staff Support |
Sources: DNC, Principles, Policies, and Procedures, December 2016; and FNC, Principles, Policies, and Procedures, September 2024March 2026.
Notes: DNC = Domestic Names Committee; FNC = Foreign Names Committee. Does not include BGN committees on Antarctic Names and Undersea Features.
Gulf of America and Mount McKinley. Citing 43 U.S.C. §§364-364f, President Trump's E.O. directs the Secretary to take all appropriate actions within 30 days to rename the features described in the E.O. as Mount McKinley (Section 3) and Gulf of America (Section 4). The E.O. then directs the Secretary to update the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) to reflect these renamings and to remove all references to the previous names, consistent with applicable law. The E.O. directsIn general, the BGN's policies that guide its consideration of geographic naming do not apply to names established by Congress, by treaty, or pursuant to an EO. In such instances, the BGN's role is to promulgate such names for official use, including updating the feature names in the relevant federal databases. In addition, DNC policy states that no decision will be made on any proposal that is also currently being considered by Congress.
Recent Executive Orders
Gulf of America and Mount McKinley. On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed EO 14172, "Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness," to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and reinstate the name of Mount McKinley in Alaska from Denali. Specifically, the EO directed the Secretary to take all appropriate actions within 30 days to rename the features, update the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) to reflect these renamings, and remove all references to the previous names, consistent with applicable law. The EO also directed the BGN to provide guidance to ensure all federal references, including on agency maps, contracts, and other documents and communications, reflect the Gulf of America renaming.
On February 7, 2025, the Secretary issued S.O. 3423 directing the BGN to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and to update the GNIS to appropriately reflect the change. The GNIS and the Geographic Names Server (GNS) now list the name as the Gulf of America. On February 14, 2025, the Secretary issued S.O.SO 3424 directing the BGN to reinstate the name Mount McKinley and, update the GNIS. The GNIS now identifies the summit as Mount McKinley. The S.O. also directs department entities to work with Alaska Native entities and nonfederal organizations to "pursue adopting names for landmarks to honor the history and culture of Alaskan people."
Lake America. On August 27, 2026, President Trump signed EO 14422, "Honoring the American History of the Great Lakes and Renaming Lake Ontario as Lake America." Similar to EO 14172, the EO directed the Secretary to take all appropriate actions within 30 days to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America, update the GNIS, remove all references to the previous names, and provide guidance to ensure all federal references reflect the name change. Subsequently, the Secretary issued SO 3453 directing BGN to implement the renaming and update the GNIS. Both the GNIS and the GNS reflect this change.
Geographic place names set forth by the BGN apply only to the standardization of federal publications. Administrative decisions by the BGN and other executive actions pertaining to geographic name changes do not necessarily apply in an international context. For example, the BGN has previously determined that the "Sea of Japan" is the appropriate standard name for the body of water separating the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese Archipelago. However, the Republic of Korea historically has objected to the name and instead refers to this body of water as the "East Sea." Similar disputes could arisehave arisen surrounding the namingrenaming of the Gulf of America or Lake America. To address such discrepancies, the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names (UNGEGN)—an international body established by the United Nations Economic and Social Council—has issued a resolution indicating that "when countries sharing a given geographical feature do not succeed in agreeing on a common name ... the name used by each of the countries concerned will be accepted" (Resolution II/25). Thus, depending on the context, one or both of the "Gulf of America" and "Gulf of Mexico" —or "Lake America" and "Lake Ontario"—may appear on international maps or publications.
Similarly, BGN decisions are not required to be adopted forby nonfederal domestic entities. For example, the E.O. does not require , such as private company applications (such ase.g., Google Maps and Apple Maps) or other nonfederal entities to adopt the changed names; however, some nonfederal entities have chosen to do so or generally defer to GNIS nomenclature. Whether or to what degree nonfederal publications adopt the name changes resulting from E.O. 14172 has raised issues and concerns both domestically and internationally.
BGN Membership. BGN members serve two-year terms but may be reappointed to successive terms (43 U.S.C. §364a). Section 2 of the E.O. directs the Secretary and appropriate agencies to review appointments to the BGN. Within seven days of the E.O., each agency head with authority to appoint BGN members was to review their respective appointees and consider replacing those appointees in accordance with applicable law. The E.O. directs the Secretary to review and consider additional BGN appointments to assist in fulfilling the directives of the E.O. As of February 20, 2025, CRS has not identified announcements regarding changes to BGN membership.
Commemorative Naming and BGN Policies. Section 1 of the E.O. directs the BGN to advance a policy to honor "the contributions of visionary and patriotic Americans in our Nation's rich past" by "the naming of our national treasures." Section 5 states that the Secretary may solicit input regarding additional commemorative naming and is to recommend action to the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy. Section 2 further specifies that the BGN "may update its principles, policies, and procedures as needed to achieve this policy."
DNC policy generally requires commemorative name proposals to meet the same basic criteria required of other name proposals. DNC policy also limits commemorative naming to individuals who have been deceased at least five years. For features that cross the Canadian border, DNC policy mandates that the BGN coordinate such proposals with the appropriate foreign names authority pursuant to an agreement signed in 1989 (Treatment of Names of Geographical Features Shared by the United States and Canada). No equivalent agreement with Mexico has been signed; however, DNC procedures specify that the BGN should coordinate proposals for features crossing the Mexican border with the relevant naming authority (i.e., Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía).
In certain instances, geographic name changes require an act of Congress. In particular, the BGN generally does not have the authority to change geographic names of federal land units named and established by Congress. For example, in 1980, Congress changed the name of the national park and preserve where the mountain; however, some nonfederal entities have chosen to do so or generally have a policy to defer to GNIS nomenclature. For example, Google's policy is to "reflect name changes in official government sources." This means updates in the GNIS are reflected for Google Maps users in the United States, while users in Canada see "Lake Ontario," as the Canadian naming authority has not made such a change. Whether or to what degree nonfederal publications adopt the name changes resulting from President Trump's EOs has raised issues both domestically and internationally.
Issues for Congress
In certain instances, Congress has established names for geographic features in statute or directed the BGN to change certain geographic names. For example, multiple Congresses have considered legislation related to the naming of Mount McKinley/Denali, as well as the surrounding national park. In 1980, Congress changed the name of the national park where Mount McKinley is located to Denali National Park and Preserve, from its earlier name of Mount McKinley National Park (P.L. 96-487). The E.O.EO 14172 specifies that the park area surrounding Mount McKinley "shall retain the name Denali National Park and Preserve." Changing the name of this land unit would likely require an act of Congress.
Congress has also considered legislation to codify certain geographic names promulgated by the BGN. For example, on May 8, 2025, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 276, which, if enacted, would codify the name Gulf of America for federal use. Following the issuance of EO 14422, H.R. 10196 was introduced to do the same for Lake Ontario.At times, Congress has directed the BGN to make name changes or has On February 13, 2025, following the issuance of EO 14172, legislation was introduced to, once again, designate the mountain as Denali (S. 573).
considered legislation to codify certain geographic names. For example, P.L. 117-358 directed the BGN to rename a volcanic peak in Alaska known as "Mount Cerberus" to "Mount Young" in commemoration of the late Representative Don Young. In addition, legislation has been introduced in multiple Congresses to address the naming of Mount McKinley/Denali (e.g., S. 2272 in the 112th Congress, H.R. 402 in the 113th Congress, S. 319 in the 114th Congress). On February 13, 2025, legislation was introduced to, once again, designate the mountain as Denali (S. 573). Also, apart from E.O. 14172, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 276 on May 8, 2025, which, if enacted, would codify the name Gulf of America for federal use.
Previous Congresses have differed in their approaches related to adjustments of BGN authorities or directives. For example, the Reconciliation in Place Names Act (S. 24002894/H.R. 44542843) in the 117119th Congress would have directeddirect the Secretary to establish a committee to advise the BGN on proposals for revising geographic feature names considered offensive or derogatory. The legislation also would have defined what constitutes an "offensive place name" and would have established policies for consideration of potential geographic name changes. In the 118th Congress, the Preserve Geographic Names Act (H.R. 7303) would have removed the BGN's authorization while retaining the Secretary's authority to provide for federal uniformity of geographic names. Congress also previously has considered proposals to prohibit funding to the BGN in appropriations laws (e.g., H.Amdt. 1152/H.Amdt. 549 in the 118th Congress)Other legislation in the 119th Congress—the Hands Off Our Boca Chica Beach Act (H.R. 9779)—would, among other provisions, require the DNC to notify Members when it receives proposals that would affect areas the Member represents. Congress has also previously considered proposals to prohibit or condition funding to the BGN in appropriations laws. For example, the Senate-passed Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2026 (S. 2431) would have prohibited the use of funding for the promulgation of any other name than "Denali" for the currently named Mount McKinley. The provision was not included in the full-year Interior appropriations law for FY2026.