The August congressional recess is just around the corner. Preservation Action encourages you to ramp up your advocacy efforts around the Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act (H.R. 1785), S. 639) by encouraging your members of Congress to visit a Historic Tax Credit (HTC) project. Members of Congress are scheduled to be back in-district/state from July 29th to Sept. 4th. We're asking members and supporters to reach out to your Representative and Senators and urge them to co-sponsor the bipartisan Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act and invite them to tour a Historic Tax Credit project in their district/state, especially projects that would be made easier to complete if the HTC-GO Act is enacted.

The August recess is the best opportunity for lawmakers to see the incredible benefits of the Historic Tax Credit and potential benefits of the HTC-GO Act first-hand. If your Representative or Senators serve on the House Ways and Means Committee or Senate Finance Committee, these members are especially important to contact. Reach out to your members of Congress today!

Take Action!

• Reach out to your members of Congress and urge them to cosponsor the Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act. If your Representative or Senators have already cosponsored, be sure to thank them! Preservation Action has made it easy for you to take action through our online advocacy tool! 
• Invite your members of Congress to tour a completed, in-progress, or potential HTC project in their district/state. This is one of most effective ways to demonstrate the value of the HTC. Be sure to also discuss how the HTC-GO could further benefit communities across their district/state. Be flexible with possible dates to meet, but if your member of Congress is unavailable, offer to meet with their staff. Be persistent. Sometimes it will take multiple touches.
• Review the Congressional site-visit guide put together by our partners at the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the National Trust Community Investment Corporation to make it easy for advocates to reach out to their lawmakers.

If you need any assistance arranging a site visit or meeting contact Rob Naylor at Preservation Action (rnaylor@preservationaction.org). Also be sure share stories and photos from your site visits with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!

Resources:

• Historic Tax Credit One Pager- Preservation Month
• HTC State Maps and Project Lists
• National Preservation Organizations Release in Support
• Preservation Action HTC-GO Action Alert

This week the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies held the FY24 Interior Appropriations bill markup. The bill calls for steep cuts across the board, including a $436.25 million or a 13% cut to the National Park Service. The bill funds the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) at $175.4 million, which is $29.115 million below FY23 enacted levels or a nearly 17% cut. It appears that the vast majority, if not all, of the decrease comes from the elimination of community project funding (or earmarks) for HPF projects, which included $29.115 million in funding last year. The Subcommittee voted along party lines to advance the bill to the full committee.

We are still waiting for the bill's report language, which would provide the full picture of funding for HPF, but the bill provides the following levels for HPF grant programs:

• $26.5 million for Save America's Treasures (equal to FY23 enacted)
• $30.25 million for Competitive Subgrants, which includes African American Civil Rights, History of Equal Rights, and Underrepresented Communities grants (equal to FY23 enacted)
• $11 million for HBCU preservation grants (equal to FY23 enacted)
• $12.5 million for Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization grants (equal to FY23 enacted)
• $10 million for the Semiquincentennial grant program (equal to FY23 enacted)

The bill level funds these critically important HPF grant programs at FY23 enacted levels. Additionally, the bill funds the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation at $8.285 million, $300,000 below FY23 levels. While we are disappointed in the cut to the HPF, the program largely avoids some of the steeper cuts seen in other parts of the bill. Preservation Action submitted testimony in March requesting $225 million for the HPF, including much-needed support for State and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices and important grant programs. The Senate could release their FY24 Interior Appropriations bill in the next few weeks.

Preservation Action will continue to monitor the appropriations process. Stay tuned for more.

Last chance! The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) is seeking feedback from the public on the Secretary on the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties. The ACHP says these comments will help provide a snapshot of the public's views on the application and interpretation of the Secretary's Standards. Comments are due July 20th.

The Secretary's Standards identifies four treatments: preservation, rehabilitation, restoration and reconstruction. While comments will be accepted on all four treatments, the ACHP is particularly interested in the application and interpretation of the Secretary's Standards for the Rehabilitation of Historic Properties. Major themes that emerge from the comments will be shared with the Department of Interior and the National Park Service.

Comments must be submitted by July, 20th at 5pm ET and can be emailed to dnull@achp.gov.

Novogradac: "Variety of Rehabilitations Capture Annual Journal of Tax Credits HTC Awards"

National Trust for Historic Preservation: "Grant Applications for Preserving Black Churches Now Open"

Pennsylvania: "Ciresi Introduces Downtown Revitalization Bill to Bring Older Buildings Up to Code"

Rhode Island: "Rhode Island Governor Signs Bill to Extend State HTC by One Year"

Oregon: "Grants Awarded to Historic Property and Archaeology Projects Across the State"

Rhode Island: "Reed Hails Preliminary Agreement to Transfer Ownership of 3 Historic Lighthouses from US, to R.I. Government, Nonprofits for Historic Preservation"