Section 4110.10  Eligibility

a)         An application for acquisition or development funding assistance must be associated with a site or structure which has been nominated by the State Historic Preservation Officer (Director of the Department of Natural Resources) to the National Register of Historic Places.

b)         An application for preservation planning funding assistance must be associated with a site, structure, or area which has been nominated by the State Historic Preservation Officer (Director of the Department of Natural Resources) to the National Register of Historic Places, or which has potential for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places.

c)         The components of an acquisition or development project must be in accordance with the U.S. Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Acquisition and Development Projects. The following standards apply to all treatments undertaken on historic properties listed in the National Register:

1)         Every reasonable effort shall be made to provide a compatible use for a property that requires minimal alteration of the building, structure, or site and its environment, or to use a property for its originally intended purpose.

2)         The distinguishing original qualities or character of a building, structure, or site and its environment shall not be destroyed. The removal or alteration of any historic material or distinctive architectural features shall be avoided when possible.

3)         All buildings, structures, and sites shall be recognized as products of their own time. Alterations which have no historical basis and which seek to create an earlier appearance shall be discouraged.

4)         Changes which may have taken place in the course of time are evidence of the history and development of a building, structure, or site and its environment. These changes may have acquired significance in their own right and this significance shall be recognized and respected.

5)         Distinctive stylistic features or examples of skilled craftsmanship which characterizes a building, structure, or site, shall be treated with sensitivity.

6)         Deteriorated architectural features shall be repaired rather than replaced whenever possible. In the event replacement is necessary the new material should match the material being replaced in composition, design, color, texture, and other visual qualities. Repair or replacement of missing architectural features should be based on accurate duplications of features, substantiated by historical, physical, or pictorial evidence rather than on conjectural designs or the availability of different architectural elements from other buildings or structures.

7)         The surface cleaning of structures shall be undertaken with the gentlest means possible. Sandblasting and other cleaning methods that will damage the historic building materials shall not be undertaken.

8)         Every reasonable effort shall be made to protect and preserve archeological resources affected by, or adjacent to, any acquisition, protection, stabilization, preservation, rehabilitation, restoration, or reconstruction project.

Section 4110.20  General Procedures for Grant Awards

a)         Project sponsors seeking Grants-in-Aid assistance must file a preliminary application with the Grants Management Section, Department of Natural Resources, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, Illinois  62702. The preliminary application form for Historic Preservation Grants-in-Aid assistance is included in the Illinois Department of Natural Resources' Historic Preservation Grants-in-Aid Local Participation Manual. The Local Participation Manual may be obtained from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources' Grants Management Section, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, Illinois  62702. Copies of this manual are also available from the state library system.

b)         The State Historic Preservation Officer (Director of the Department of Natural Resources), the Illinois Historic Sites Advisory Council, and the staff of the Department of Natural Resources will evaluate each proposal to determine if it qualifies for assistance in accordance with the National Preservation Objectives for Acquisition and Development or Survey and Planning Projects. The National Preservation Objectives for Acquisition and Development or Survey and Planning Projects change annually at the dictate of the Secretary of the Interior and the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service. Each qualifying project proposal will be evaluated to determine the priority of the proposed project.

c)         Project sponsors will be notified whether or not the project has received state approval and the amount of Grant-in-Aid assistance approved. There is not a specified amount of time in which a project sponsor will be notified of whether a project has received state approval and the maximum amount of Grant-in-Aid assistance approved. The Department of Natural Resources makes every effort to notify each potential project sponsor at the earliest opportunity.

d)         The Department of Natural Resources will prepare and submit the individual project applications to the U.S. Department of Interior for review and approval.

e)         The U.S. Department of the Interior reviews the individual project applications and notifies the Department of Natural Resources of their decision. The Department of Natural Resources then notifies the project sponsor of federal approval and the local sponsor may initiate the project.

f)         Claims for reimbursement must be submitted to the Department of Natural Resources by the sponsors of approved projects. Each project is assigned a project period by the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service during which all claims for reimbursement must be submitted to the Department of Natural Resources. Claims for costs incurred prior to, or after the project period, are not eligible for reimbursement. The following is information which must be submitted with a claim for reimbursement:

1)         One copy of each invoice (bill) received for work accomplished and one copy of each canceled check as evidence of payment attached to the completed billing summary form.

2)         For all material purchases, purchase orders and/or invoices and corresponding canceled checks shall be submitted.

Section 4110.30  Selection Criteria

The principal priority-determining criteria for awarding grants are whether a project:

a)         would permit the State of Illinois to accomplish the greatest number of the National Preservation Objectives;

b)         is in compliance with the Secretary of Interior's Standards;

c)         is of National (National Historic Landmark), State, or Local significance. A project is rated as being of National, State, or Local significance with the evaluated significance of the property stated on the nomination form to the National Register of Historic Places. The evaluation of the significance of the property is certified by the State Historic Preservation Officer, in consultation with the members of the State Historic Sites Advisory Board and the Department of Natural Resources.

d)         meets the objectives of the State Historic Preservation Program as noted in the State Historic Preservation Plan.

Section 4110.40  Key Provisions

a)         Financial assistance on any project cannot exceed 50% of the total eligible project costs. The actual amount of financial assistance to be granted is determined by a comparison of the project proposal with the National and State priorities.

b)         This assistance is available only to sponsors of projects on sites, structures, or districts nominated to the National Register of Historic Places.

c)         Project work which is initiated prior to federal agency approval is ineligible for funding.

d)         Projects must be completed and reimbursement requested within the time frame authorized by the U.S. Department of Interior.

Section 4110.50  Auditing Requirements

a)         Projects must be administered in accordance with the following:

1)         Federal Management Circular 74-4 – Cost Principals applicable to grants and contracts with state or local governments.

2)         Office of Management and Budget Circular A-102, Revised – Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants-in-Aid to State and Local Governments or Office of Management and Budget Circular A-110 – Uniform Administrative Requirements – Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and other Non-Profit Organizations.

3)         Audit guide for National Park Service Historic Preservation Grant Program.

4)         All pertinent materials collected, received, or distributed during the course of the grant program shall be maintained for a three-year period after final project payment, or longer, if audit findings are not resolved.

b)         Projects are audited by the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Comptroller General of the United States or any of their duly authorized representatives.

c)         Each project sponsor is given one copy of the publications noted above by the Grants Management Section of the Department of Natural Resources.

Section 4110.60  Program Information

Information on the Historic Preservation Grants-in-Aid Program may be obtained by writing: Grants Management Section, Department of Natural Resources, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, Illinois  62702.