The Texas Historical Commission announced in June 1999 that the Texas Legislature and Gov. George W. Bush had established, through House Bill (HB) 1341, the Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program (THCPP). The program provides partial matching grants to Texas counties for the restoration of their historic county courthouses. The program began with a $50 million appropriation for the grants, which were awarded in two rounds in 2000 and 2001.
Subsequently, the program's success led to continued funding from the Texas Legislature. In 2001, legislators approved another $50 million allocation to fund Round III grants. In 2003, the 78th Texas Legislature approved the sale of $45 million in bonds to continue the program. In 2005, the legislature earmarked $80 million for courthouses from the federal transportation enhancement program; however, these funds were not approved for use by the Federal highway Administration. As a consequence, in 2007 the 80th Texas Legislature appropriated $62 million in bond funding for a long-awaited Round V grant cycle. The 81st Texas Legislature allocated $20 million in bond funding for the 2010-2011 grant cycle and the 82nd Texas Legislature allocated $20 million in bond funding for the 2012-2013 biennium.
2013 Courthouse Cornerstone (pdf)
