PRESERVATION ACTION LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
 



LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
VOLUME 22, NUMBER 16
MAY 17, 2019

Interior Appropriations Bill Passes House Subcommittee, Includes Significant Increases for Historic Preservation Fund

This week the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies released their FY20 Interior Appropriations Bill. The bill calls for $3.39 billion for the National Park Service, a $168 million increase over FY19 enacted levels. This includes a $19 million increase for the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) over FY19 levels and $89 million above the President's request. A full breakdown is below.

SHPO/THPO: $67.41 Million ($6 Million above FY19 Enacted Levels)
Civil Rights Movement Grants: $22.5 Million ($8 Million above FY19 Enacted Levels)
Save America's Treasures: $16 Million ($3 Million above FY19 Enacted Levels)
HBCU Preservation Program: $10 Million ($2 Million above FY19 Enacted Levels)
Historic Revitalization Grants: $5 Million (Equal to FY19 Enacted Levels)
Underrepresented Communities Grants: $750,000 (Equal to FY19 Enacted Levels)

Total: $121.66 Million ($19 Million above FY19 Enacted Levels)

The bill also includes $523.9 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a $85 million increase over FY19 levels, and $74 million for National Recreation and Preservation, part of which supports National Heritage Areas. This bill represents a strong commitment to historic preservation, especially considering the extreme cuts to critical preservation programs proposed in the administration's budget. Preservation Action thanks the committee for their continued, strong support of the Historic Preservation Fund, and other preservation priorities. The Subcommittee approved the FY20 Interior Appropriations bill by voice vote, which now moves to the full House Appropriations Committee for consideration. Watch the subcommittee hearing below.

Preservation Action Submits Testimony to Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee

This week Preservation Action submitted testimony to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies as they work on drafting FY20 Interior Appropriations. This includes funding for important historic preservation programs like the Historic Preservation Fund and National Heritage Areas.

Preservation Action requests $148.5 million for the Historic Preservation Fund, including increases for State and Tribal Historic Preservation Officers and key historic preservation grant programs like the Historic Revitalization Subgrant Program and Save America's Treasures program. We also request $5 Million to establish a new competitive grant program for SHPOs and THPOs to invest in geographic information systems-based mapping of historic resources. Preservation Action also supports $32 million for the Preservation Partnership Program, which supports National Heritage Areas.

Read our full testimony to the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee below.

Preservation Action Hosts Preservation Month Congressional Briefing

In recognition of Preservation Month, Preservation Action is excited to announce that we are working with the co-chairs of the Historic Preservation Caucus , Representatives  Earl Blumenauer  (D-OR) and  Mike Turner (R-OH) to  host a Preservation Month Congressional Briefing on  May 20th.  The briefing will allow congressional staff to engage with top national preservation organizations and learn more about scheduling a visit to a historic site in their district.

At the briefing we'll highlight the soon to be introduced Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act which will make several important improvements to the Historic Tax Credit aimed at expanding access and increasing the value of the tax credit. The briefing will also discuss appropriations for key preservation programs, like the Historic Preservation Fund.

Check out the  Preservation Month Congressional Briefing flyer below. Be sure to share the flyer with your members of Congress and encourage their office to attend!

Preservation Action at the Keeping History Above Water Conference

Castillo De San Marcos, St. Augustine, FL
Preservation Action hosted a Changing Climate Happy Hour discussion during the Keeping History Above Water Conference in St. Augustine, FL. The discussion brought together 40 people from around the country. Preservation Action's formed the changing climate committee in 2018 with the purpose of proposing and supporting policy and legislation that will better enable the preservation community to sensitively adapt historic structures while preserving their historic integrity.

The conference's keynote speaker Jeff Goodell perhaps said it best and brought attention to our mission in his remarks by stating "getting politically involved is the most important thing you can do - not recycling or driving a Prius."

Preservation Action
2020 Pennsylvania Ave NW #313
Washington, DC 20006
p. 202-463-0970


Preservation Action is the only national  non-profit dedicated exclusively to lobbying for the best preservation policies at the federal level. We seek to make historic preservation a national priority by advocating to all branches of government through a grassroots constituency empowered with information and training.