City Of La Crosse

City Of La Crosse, a U.S. local government entity based in La Crosse, Wisconsin, is the recipient of federal grants supporting transit operations, airport infrastructure, affordable housing, public safety, and community development programs. The city operates as a prime grant recipient (96% of recent awards) with no federal contract prime awards; it acts as a sub-recipient on a small number of grants administered by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the State of Wisconsin.

The city's federal grant footprint spans 21 distinct customer agencies across diverse programs. The Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration dominates by award count with 46 grants focused on operating assistance and capital purchases for the La Crosse Municipal Transit Utility serving the greater La Crosse and La Crescent area across Wisconsin and Minnesota. The Department of Housing and Urban Development Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development follows with 35 awards under the Community Development Block Grant (CFDA 14.218) and HOME Investment Partnerships Program (CFDA 14.239), funding affordable housing rehabilitation, homebuyer assistance, and rental assistance with affordability periods of 5 to 20 years. The Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration Great Lakes Region has awarded 14 grants to the City of La Crosse Municipal Airport subsidiary for runway safety mitigation, snow removal equipment acquisition, aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle replacement, terminal building baggage handling rehabilitation, and airfield obstruction surveys. The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance provided 11 block grants and project grants supporting law enforcement equipment procurement and mental health crisis response co-response programs. Most recent representative awards include a $6.171 million Federal Transit Formula Grants award (CFDA 20.507) on August 20, 2026 for 2025 transit operations; a $980,000 Airport Improvement Program project grant (CFDA 20.106) on September 17, 2025 for runway closure lighting, rotating beacon replacement, and snow removal equipment; a $500,000 Office on Violence Against Women project grant (CFDA 16.590) on April 1, 2026 for sexual assault nurse examiner training, GPS monitoring improvements, and strangulation-injury documentation; and a $277,258.61 HOME formula grant on September 22, 2025 with a nine-year implementation window through September 30, 2034.

Activity has declined from a peak of 12 awards in 2022 to 5 awards in 2026, with only 4 awards facing ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months. The city's combined obligated dollars across all awards total $194.1 million against $78 thousand in combined potential value, reflecting the long-term nature of transportation, housing, and airport infrastructure grants with multi-year performance periods. As a sub-recipient, City Of La Crosse receives pass-through funding from Wisconsin state agencies for water infrastructure projects, including watermain replacements to mitigate PFAS contamination under the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (awards dated May 18, July 8, 2026) and flexible facilities funding through the State of Wisconsin Department of Administration (April 24, 2025). The City of La Crosse Municipal Airport subsidiary, named under the corporate structure, is the operational entity for all airport-related grants under the Federal Aviation Administration.