Special Category Grants
About Special Category Grants
The Department of State, Division of Historical Resources, provides state funds for historic preservation. The purpose of this program is to provide funding to assist major local, regional and state-wide efforts to preserve significant historic and archaeological resources, to assist major archaeological excavations or research projects, and assist in the development and fabrication of major museum exhibits that will promote knowledge and appreciation of the history of Florida. The program does not fund operational support for historic preservation organizations. This program provides historic preservation grants on a competitive basis. The Legislature determines the amount appropriated annually for the program, and funding for all eligible applications is not guaranteed. The Special Category Guidelines specify program policies and procedures.
The Historic Preservation Grants Program utilizes an online grant system via which prospective applicants submit their applications. Applications from previous solicitation periods are also available upon request (for viewing only).
Applicant Eligibility
Public entities such as counties or municipalities, school districts, state colleges or universities, agencies of state government and non-profit organizations are eligible Applicant Organizations.
Project Types
- Development projects with the mission of Preservation, Restoration, Rehabilitation, or Reconstruction of historic properties regularly open to the public, and site-specific planning required for these activities such as structural or condition assessment reports. Development activities on historic Religious Properties shall be limited to building exterior envelope, excluding accessibility upgrades, and structural elements of the building. State-funded Development activities for historic cemeteries shall be limited to work on stabilizing, cleaning and repairing historic gravemarkers and other funerary items, repairing historic fences or structures within the cemetery, and installing minimal security lighting;
- Archaeological Research projects for all phases of terrestrial and underwater fieldwork, analyses of findings and write-up, or to conduct collection research at established federal, state or public institutions;
- Museum Exhibit projects to aid Florida history museums in exhibit work, including research of exhibit content, exhibit design, fabrication and installation. Exhibits must be permanently affixed to the building. For Museum Exhibit projects, Organizations must be a governmental or non-profit Florida history museum established permanently in Florida, promoting and encouraging knowledge and appreciation of Florida history through the collection, presentation, exhibition, and interpretation of artifacts and other historical items related to Florida. The mission of the museum must relate directly to the history of Florida. Project oversight of museum exhibit projects funded by the Special Category Grant Program must be provided by a historian meeting the Secretary of the Interior’s Professional Qualifications Standards for History, which are set forth in the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation incorporated in paragraph 1A-39.001(7)(c), F.A.C; and
- Acquisition of a single Historic Property or archaeological site, or group of Historic Properties or archaeological sites, in which all the resources have the same owner. For archaeological sites, an exception to the single owner provision may be made if the archaeological site extends on land that is contiguous, but owned by different property owners.
Application Limitations
An Applicant Organization shall submit no more than one (1) Special Category grant application under a single application deadline for a particular application cycle. State agencies, county or city governments or universities may submit single applications from more than one division or department under a single application cycle provided that those divisions or departments are separate and distinct budgetary units and provided that applications do not address the same facility, project or site.
Additionally, an Applicant Organization must NOT have multiple active Special Category projects under contract at one time. Special Category projects have a grant period of 24 months. Unless an Applicant Organization has a smaller project that will be completed in a single year, new applications should be submitted every other year. Furthermore, no organization may receive more than $3 million in historic preservation Special Category grant funding from the Division during a consecutive 5 state fiscal year period.
Review Process
Applications are evaluated by the Florida Historical Commission. The criteria for evaluation includes historic significance, endangerment, appropriateness of the preservation treatment proposed, administrative capability of the organization, adequacy of technical and financial resources, compatibility with statewide historic preservation priorities, educational potential, economic benefits and public good resulting from the project.
Grant Award and Match
Special Category grants provide assistance up to $1,000,000. There is no minimum request amount. An Applicant Organization is required to provide a 50% match except as specified in the Special Category Guidelines. Twenty-five percent of the required match must be cash-on-hand at the time of application. All match must be accounted for during the grant period.
- Rural Economic Development Initiative (REDI). Projects located in REDI areas are eligible for a match reduction. A REDI list can be found on the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity's REDI webpage. This match reduction is not available for Applicant Organizations that are state agencies, state colleges or state universities, regardless of proposed project location.
Special Category Application Information
FY2026 Special Category Solicitation
When applying for a grant from the Division of Historical Resources the following information should prove useful.
- The Solicitation Notice on the Special Category Grants program.
- A PDF version of the “How to Apply” webinar is available on the right hand side of this page. Registration for scheduled webinars can be found on the Division's Upcoming Events page.
- A Substitute W9 form will be required with all applications. Note that this is not the Federal W-9, but the State of Florida’s Substitute W-9 form. You can retrieve a copy of the form by going to the Department of Financial Services’ website. Upload the form in your application in the Support Materials section of your application.
- A UEI number will also be required at the time of application. This can be obtained here. This must be included in your organization details page on com in order for you to submit the application.
The documents provided here are in the process of being update as part of our regular rule update. They will apply to the FY2026 application and award of the grants:
- Special Category Solicitation Notice (pdf)
- Special Category Grants Guidelines (pdf)
- For a sample application click here (not the actual application)
All applications must be completed and submitted via the online grant system by the application deadline. To access dosgrants.com click here.
Information and Documents for Current Grantees
- For information on how to manage your grant funds, you may access a PDF version of the How To Manage webinar is available on the right hand side of this page.
- For information on how to complete and submit progress reports, expenditure logs, and payment requests, follow these instructions.
- For information on the procurement of services (i.e. architect, historic preservation consultant, archivist, historian, etc.) as required by the grant award agreement, see this FAQ document.
Photographs are requested not only at the time of application but also to evidence the progress and completion of all funded projects. All projects must adhere to the specifications stipulated in the guidelines.
Grantees are required to comply with the Single Audit Act. Compliance requires submission of a Certification Form through a feature on dosgrants.com at the conclusion of each fiscal year during which the Grantee has an open grant project. Submission of a subsequent Financial Report is also required if the spending threshold is met. Further instructions on compliance with the Single Audit Act are provided in the following document.
a. "This project is sponsored in part by the Department of State, Division of Historical Resources and the State of Florida." Any variation in this language must receive prior approval in writing by the Division.
b. All site-specific projects must include a Project identification sign, with the aforementioned language, that must be placed on site. The cost of preparation and erection of the Project identification sign are allowable project costs. Routine maintenance costs of Project signs are not allowable project costs. A photograph of the aforementioned sign must be submitted to the Division as soon as it is erected.
- An example of a project identification sign can be viewed here and a jpg copy of the DHR Logo can be downloaded here.
Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Archaeology and Historic Preservation (36 C.F.R. 68)
- Professional Qualification Standards (48 FR 44716, September 29, 1983)
- Standards and Guidelines for Archaeology and Historic Preservation (as amended and annotated by the National Park Service)
- Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties, 2017
You can choose to use electronic funds transfer (EFT) to receive your grant payments.
- If EFT has already been set up with the Department of Financial Services (DFS) for your organization, you do not need to submit another form.
- To download this form visit the Direct Deposit sign-up on the DFS website.
