NR 51.85(1)(1) Applications for stewardship grants under this subchapter shall be submitted to the department property manager on forms provided by the department. Applications shall include a detailed description of the proposed project, a cost estimate, timetable and other information required by the department.

NR 51.85(2)(2) The department shall establish one or two application deadlines each year and shall evaluate and prioritize applications received by those deadlines according to the priorities in this subchapter. The department shall allocate funds to projects based upon their priority until all funding is exhausted. Sponsors whose projects are not funded will receive an explanation of eligibility or priority ranking results. Sponsors may request that their projects be reconsidered in another fiscal year if the project is eligible for funding. Resubmissions will be judged without prejudice or preferential priority.

NR 51.85(3)(3) Sponsors shall develop grant applications cooperatively with the department property manager.

NR 51.85(4)(4) The department is responsible for any environmental analyses, historical or cultural assessments, permits, and miscellaneous approvals required to implement the project. Friends groups may not begin work until all applicable permits have been obtained.

NR 51.85(5)(5) The department may award grants for up to 50 percent of project costs. The sponsor shall provide the other 50 percent of project costs. Up to 50 percent of the sponsor’s share of project costs may be donated materials, equipment, services and labor, according to the provisions in s. NR 51.09 (1) (c).

NR 51.85(6)(6) The department may advance up to 100 percent of the grant award to the sponsor once the sponsor has signed the grant agreement and returned it to the department. The department shall only provide one advance to a sponsor for each grant awarded under this subchapter. If the department does not provide an advance totaling 100 percent of the grant award, a sponsor may request partial reimbursement from the department of the grant award balance only after that sponsor has submitted to the department all documentation to justify costs associated with the expenditure of the entire advance. Sponsors requesting partial reimbursement shall do so in increments of not less than ten percent of the total grant award. Sponsors shall provide adequate documentation in support of their partial reimbursement request before the department considers the request. Sponsors may submit partial reimbursement requests to the department at any time after an advance is issued and before submitting a final report for the project.

NR 51.85(7)(7) Sponsors may complete projects in up to 3 phases and funded for a maximum of 3 fiscal years, subject to the project’s annual priority ranking and availability of funds. No sponsor may receive more than $60,000 under this subchapter for any one project that is completed in phases. A sponsor shall complete a usable component of the project at the end of each phase. The department shall require that one phase be completed and that grant closed out before it awards a grant for the next phase.

NR 51.85(8)(8) Each sponsor that receives a grant under this subchapter shall maintain accurate and complete financial records of project expenses in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and practices. A final report, which documents project expenses, shall be submitted to the department property manager within 90 days of the completion of the project or by the end date indicated in the grant agreement, whichever is sooner. Upon completion and submittal of the final grant report, the department shall reimburse remaining grant funds for which the sponsor is eligible. If expenses for the project are less than estimated, the sponsor shall return any unused advance with the final report. Sponsors that have not submitted a final report or returned unused advances within 90 days of the completion of the project or by the end date indicated in the grant agreement will not be eligible for new grant awards under this chapter until the past-due grant is closed out.

NR 51.85 HistoryHistory: Emerg. cr. eff. 9-1-00; CR 00-135: cr. Register July 2001, No. 547 eff. 8-1-01; CR 10-127: am. (1) to (4), (6) to (8) Register February 2012 No. 674, eff. 3-1-12; CR 13-022: am. (4) Register March 2014 No. 699, eff. 4-1-14.

NR 51.880NR 51.880 Purpose. The purpose of this subchapter is to establish standards and procedures for implementation of a grant program to acquire property under s. 23.0917 (4m), Stats. Grants shall be used only to acquire property for conservation purposes in the Baraboo hills.

NR 51.881NR 51.881 Applicability. This subchapter is applicable to governmental units and nonprofit conservation organizations, lake sanitary districts as defined in s. 30.50 (4q), Stats., and public inland lake protection and rehabilitation districts applying for grants for the acquisition of property for the purposes set forth in s. 23.0917 (4m), Stats.

NR 51.882NR 51.882 Definitions. In addition to the definitions in s. NR 51.002, the following definition applies to this subchapter: “Baraboo hills” means the area within the boundaries of the Baraboo Range national natural landmark, as officially designated by the U.S. national park service as of March 29, 1999.

NR 51.883(1)(1) Sponsors shall submit applications on the prescribed department form. The department may consider applications as they are submitted year-round, to the extent that funds are available, or if substantially oversubscribed for available funding, the department may establish application deadlines in order to evaluate and prioritize competing applications.

NR 51.883(2)(2) Grants for the acquisition of property shall be distributed according to the standards and priorities in this subchapter.

NR 51.883(3)(3) Grants shall be awarded for any amount up to 100 percent of the purchase price paid by the sponsor plus eligible acquisition costs, or the fair market value of property plus eligible acquisition costs, whichever is less.

NR 51.883(4)(4) If a sponsor accepts a grant for any amount less than 100 percent of the fair market value of the property plus eligible acquisition costs, the remaining value shall be certified as matching property acquisition under sub. (7) (b).

NR 51.883(5)(5) Acquisition of eligible property may occur at any time on or after October 29, 1999.

NR 51.883(6)(6) The department shall provide a grant contract to the successful sponsor that shall be signed by both the department and the sponsor before any funds can be released to the sponsor.

NR 51.883(7)(7) Grants may not be awarded until the following 2 criteria are met:

NR 51.883(7)(a)(a) The Wisconsin department of transportation has certified to the department that highway construction that will result in at least 4 traffic lanes has begun on the portion of USH 12 between the city of Middleton and the village of Sauk City.

NR 51.883(7)(b)(b) Matching property acquisition of sufficient valuation to equal or exceed the value of any grants given through this program shall be certified by the department according to department appraisal guidelines. Matching property acquisition shall meet the following requirements: