Nonprofit Organization and Public Agency Funding
For nonprofit organizations and federal, state, or local government agencies
The Thurgood Marshall Center
Built in 1912 as the first full-
service YMCA for African-
Americans, the Thurgood
Marshall Center for Service and
Heritage now houses a Shaw
Heritage Museum.
There are several publications available to help with your preservation project. The National Trust's Historic Building Information Sheet can help you get started, along with publications from Preservation Books, including Quest for Funds Revisited: A Fundraising Starter Kit and Successful Fundraising Activities for Preservation Organizations.
Funding and tax incentives may be available for your restoration project at the federal, state and local level. To begin your search, contact your state historic preservation office and your statewide preservation organization (SHPO). The National Trust has prepared a state-by-state list of tax incentives, detailing state tax incentive programs for historic preservation; however, the most up to date information will be available from your SHPO. You may also be able to find assistance at the local level by contacting your local preservation commission and your local planning, community development, or housing offices. In addition, please review the following programs.
Funding Available through the National Trust Preservation Fund
The National Trust Preservation Fund includes funds that provide two types of assistance to nonprofit organizations and public agencies: 1) matching grants from $500 to $5,000 for preservation planning and educational efforts, and 2) intervention funds for preservation emergencies. Matching grant funds may be used to obtain professional expertise in areas such as architecture, archeology, engineering, preservation planning, land-use planning, fund raising, organizational development and law as well as to provide preservation education activities to educate the public.
The Johanna Favrot Fund for Historic Preservation provides nonprofit organizations and public agencies grants ranging from $2,500 to $10,000 for projects that contribute to the preservation or the recapture of an authentic sense of place. Individuals and for-profit businesses may apply only if the project for which funding is requested involves a National Historic Landmark. Funds may be used for professional advice, conferences, workshops and education programs.
The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Fund for Historic Interiors provides nonprofit organizations and public agencies grants ranging from $2,500 to $10,000 to assist in the preservation, restoration, and interpretation of historic interiors. Individuals and for-profit businesses may apply only if the project for which funding is requested involves a National Historic Landmark. Funds may be used for professional expertise, print and video communications materials, and education programs.
If you would like more information on any of these grant programs, please contact the National Trust Regional Office nearest you.
- National Trust Preservation Fund grant application
- Examples of previously funded Mitchell Fund projects
National Trust Loan Fund
The National Trust Loan Fund (NTLF) has more than 35 years of experience in supporting preservation-based community development projects across the country. As a certified Community Development Financial Institution, it has a mission of providing financial and technical resources to organizations that use historic preservation to support the revitalization of underserved and distressed communities.
NTLF specializes in predevelopment, acquisition, mini-permanent, bridge and rehabilitation loans for residential, commercial and public use projects. Eligible borrowers include not-for-profit organizations, revitalization organizations or real estate developers working in certified
National Trust Community Investment Corporation
The National Trust Community Investment Corporation (NTCIC), makes equity investments in the rehabilitation of historic properties eligible for the 20 percent federal historic rehabilitation tax credit, and where available, state historic tax credits and the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC). NTCIC invests in projects that have at least $6.0 million in total development costs and that generate at least $1.5 million in historic tax credit equity. Smaller deals will be referred to the Small Deal Fund for equity investment consideration. Tax-exempt nonprofit organizations and public-sector developers may be eligible for an NTCIC equity investment by creating a limited liability partnership. NTCIC has a special interest in those projects with a high community benefit.
NTCIC pays a referral fee to National Trust Advisors, Regional Offices, Statewide and Local Partners and Main Street programs who refer deals that ultimately result in an equity investment by NTCIC.
Save America's Treasures
Established by Executive Order in 1998, Save America's Treasures (SAT) is a public-private partnership that includes the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the National Park Service, the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities and the federal cultural agencies. The program celebrates America's great historic and cultural legacy by identifying and raising resources to preserve historically significant sites and collections. Each year, Save America's Treasures federal challenge grants are awarded to eligible historic resources for approved preservation activities.
The public partners of Save America's Treasures recently announced that applications are now available for the fiscal year 2007 federal SAT grant round. These grants help fund preservation and/or conservation work on nationally significant intellectual and cultural artifacts and nationally significant historic structures and sites. Eligible applicants include nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c), U.S. organizations, units of state or local government, and federally recognized Indian tribes. Grants are awarded through a competitive process and require a dollar-for-dollar, non- federal match. The minimum grant request for collections projects is $25,000 federal share; the minimum grant request for historic property projects is $125,000 federal share. The maximum grant request for all projects is $700,000 federal share.
In 2006, SAT awarded $7.6 million to 42 projects, including Birmingham's Civil Rights Landmark the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church and the Nebraska State Historical Society's Native American Collection. The average grant size for collections was $132,000 and $223,000 for historic properties.
The 2008 federal Save America's Treasures guidelines and application can be accessed at http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/treasures/index.htm when they are available.
Save America's Treasures at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, as the partnership's principal private partner, plays an important role as an on-the-ground 'eyes and ears' for the federal program. We work closely with a variety of projects across the country, meeting with project representatives, providing advice and guidance on the federal grant process, often reviewing draft applications as appropriate, and providing assistance in meeting the required match when possible. We are dedicated to reaching out and identifying strong candidates and encourage you to keep us informed of any projects you think worthy. The offices of Save America's Treasures at the National Trust are staffed by Director Bobbie Greene McCarthy, and Program Manager Fiona Lawless. Please call us at (202) 588-6012 if you have questions or would like further information.
Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit
Federal law provides a federal income tax credit equal to 20% of the cost of rehabilitating a historic building for commercial use. To qualify for the credit, the property must be a certified historic structure—that is, on the National Register of Historic Places or contributing to a registered historic district. (Non-historic buildings built before 1936 qualify for a 10% tax credit.) A substantial rehabilitation is necessary, and the work must meet the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. Applications for the credit are available through your state historic preservation office, and the final decisions are made by the National Park Service. For more information, take a look at our Rehabilitation Tax Credit Guide, prepared by our for-profit subsidiary, NTCIC. In addition, the National Park Service's website offers helpful information on this tax credit. (At present, individuals rehabilitating a historic property for their primary residence do not qualify for this tax credit.)
Transportation Enhancements Funding
Since 1991, states have dedicated over $2 billion in Federal-aid highway funds to thousands of transportation-related historic preservation projects; historic resources have also benefited from transportation enhancement money for landscaping, land acquisition, historic bridge and road activities, and streetscapes in historic commercial districts. For more information on transportation enhancements funding, download Building on the Past, Traveling to the Future, a free guide prepared by the National Trust and the Federal Highway Administration, or visit the Transportation section of this website.
Historic Preservation Fund
The Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) provides grants to states, tribes, and local governments to use for activities like education, preparation of National Register nominations and development of comprehensive preservation plans. The HPF receives annual appropriations from Congress, and this federal money is matched by state dollars. The fund is administered in a partnership between the National Park Service and the states through state historic preservation offices, tribes and local governments.
National Park Service
Since 1968, the National Park Service has provided funding for a variety of grant programs aimed at protecting our most significant historic and cultural sites and our diverse cultural heritage. More than one billion dollars has been awarded to federal, state and local governments, tribes, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions for preservation projects in all 50 states and the U.S. Territories. The Historic Preservation Grants Division is responsible for the administration of the National Park Service's preservation grant programs.
A quick search of the Internet using "historic preservation" and "funding" will bring up a number of other websites that will be useful, including those of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the Foundation Center, and Cornell University. These sites include listings of private foundations and other groups that offer grants for historic preservation.
For more information on funding for nonprofit organizations and government agencies, please contact the National Trust's Resource Center.
