ABPP - Battlefield Restoration Grants

The National Park Service through the American Battlefield Protection Program is offering the FY2025 Battlefield Restoration Grants under funding opportunity number P25AS00475. This program is supported by the Land and Water Conservation Fund and is intended to assist with restoring historic battlefields to the conditions present during the time of battle. The total estimated program funding is three million dollars, with an expected six awards ranging from thirty thousand dollars to seven hundred fifty thousand dollars each. The program is authorized under 54 U.S.C. § 308105 and the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act, as amended. Projects funded must adhere to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and Guidelines for the Treatment of Historic Landscapes. The program supports two categories of grants. Scoping Grants provide between thirty thousand and one hundred thousand dollars for one to two years to support early planning activities such as research, documentation, and evaluation of treatment options. Implementation Grants provide between fifty thousand and seven hundred fifty thousand dollars for two to five years to support activities based on completed planning documentation. Eligible treatments may include rehabilitation, preservation, or restoration work. Proposals for reconstruction are limited to specific features when sufficient documentation exists, and full reconstructions of landscapes or buildings that have lost integrity are not eligible. Eligibility is limited to projects involving properties associated with the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, and Civil War that fall within boundaries identified in the Civil War Sites Advisory Commission Report (1993) or the NPS report to Congress (2007). Properties must be outside the external boundaries of the National Park System and must either have been acquired with Battlefield Land Acquisition Grant funds, be owned by state or local government entities, or be owned by nonprofit organizations. Multiple applications per applicant are allowed, but each property may only receive one award in FY25. Applicants are required to provide a non-Federal cost share of at least fifty percent of total project costs. This requirement is enforced through letters of commitment and compliance with 2 CFR §200.306. Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov and require multiple forms, including the SF-424, budget forms, project abstract, narrative, budget justification, and documentation of preservation easements or letters of agreement. Letters of landowner consent and acknowledgment from the easement holder and the State Historic Preservation Office are also required for implementation proposals. Applications must also include research and design documents, maps, GIS data, and photographs of project sites. The deadline for submission is January 8, 2026, at 11:59 PM Eastern Time. Registration in SAM.gov and Grants.gov is required and may take several weeks to complete. Evaluation will occur through a merit review based on historical significance and integrity, technical merits, feasibility, and sustainability, with points weighted at 20, 30, 20, and 30 respectively. Applications will also undergo eligibility and risk review, including checks against the SAM exclusions database. Awards are expected to be announced approximately six months after the deadline, with projects anticipated to begin on July 1, 2026, and end by June 30, 2029. Notices of Federal Award will be issued electronically through GrantSolutions. After awards are made, recipients are required to enter into a perpetual conservation easement with the relevant State Historic Preservation Office or another approved nonprofit organization. This easement ensures the long-term preservation of the assisted property and must be recorded with the deed. Reporting requirements include submission of financial and performance reports, disclosure of conflicts of interest, and compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and other applicable federal reviews. Recipients must also follow federal standards for geospatial data and provide metadata when collecting GIS information. Questions regarding the program must be directed to ABPP@nps.gov.