The federal government supports the preservation of historic places and landmark properties through many loan and grant programs. Your historic preservation group may be able to use one of these programs to help preserve a historic building or place in your community. Types of federal programs are described below.

Historic Preservation Fund

The federal Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) is a great example of an important federal program with direct impact on local communities. This fund is administered by the National Park Service. It provides a percentage of financial support to state historic preservation offices (SHPOs) for administering federal preservation programs, such as the federal tax credit program and the National Register of Historic Places. The HPF is fairly invisible because the money is spent primarily on administration rather than on capital projects.

Wisconsin's State Historic Preservation Office is part of the Wisconsin Historical Society.

In 2012, Wisconsin preservation advocates made their case for the HPF program by spotlighting the fund's economic impact in each congressional district. For example, in district 7 alone (which covers the northwest portion of the state), the fund:

• Supported the proper review of $25.1 million in historic rehabilitations
• Created 515 jobs over an eight-year period
• Helped to provide $4.8 million in federal tax savings and $1.5 million in state tax savings

Programs for Urban Areas

Most grant programs that focus on the revitalization of urban areas are clustered within the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program is the best known, but not the only HUD program, that can be used to rehabilitate historic buildings.

City governments use CDBG funds for infrastructural improvements, but the program has provided significant support for preservation projects since it was established in 1974. The CDBG has even been used to provide federal emergency aid to states and communities after natural disasters. If you are looking for brick-and-mortar funding from your Congressional representative, talk about the possibility of support through the CDBG program.

Your group should get familiar with CDBG use in your community. This knowledge will help your group to maximize CDBG funds that may already be earmarked for your community. You may be able to use a non-preservation-specific program to cover a necessary portion of a historic building rehabilitation. For example, the City Hall in Independence, Wisconsin, received a CDBG grant of $220,800 for a building addition that was made accessible for people with disabilities. CDBG funds can also be used for survey projects.

Programs for Rural Areas

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) supports preservation activity in rural areas. The USDA helps small towns tackle economic development projects through its Rural Economic Development Loans and Grants. This program provides grants and loans to local electric and telephone utility companies who then lend the funds to public and private organizations. These funds can be used to purchase buildings or fund other economic development activities.

For example, the Tigerton Village Hall and Engine House in northeastern Wisconsin received a $100,000 loan from the USDA's Rural Development Loan and Grant program. The project's overall budget was $500,000. Thanks to clear community support from a number of sources, the USDA provided a substantial part of the project's rehabilitation cost. The USDA's support then leveraged an additional $167,000 grant from the Jeffris Family Foundation.

The USDA also provides help for small town revitalization and funding to purchase easements on unique agricultural land.

Programs for Special Natural Areas

The National Park Service has numerous programs that support the protection of special natural areas with historic importance. These programs are the primary federal sources for supporting land- and building-related preservation. In addition, all federal agencies are required by law to foster conditions under which the nation's historic and prehistoric resources are adequately protected and respected. Each agency must have a federal preservation officer (FPO) to ensure the federal government respects and protects historic resources as a part of its work.

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Historic Preservation Advocacy Guide

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