[OMS_MANAGERS] Opportunity to get more federal tax credit dollars for Main Street Rehabs

[Peggy Moretti]

*Main Street Friends - *

I'm sharing a communique from the National Trust for Historic Preservation
(Restore Oregon is their partner in Oregon) and encourage you to reach out
to your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators in support of a bill that
would provide significant financial assistance for historic rehabs on Main
Street. Federal Historic Tax Credits can offset 20% of rehab costs, but
until now, Main Street-sized projects have had difficulty qualifying for
them.  This bill aims to fix that.  Please read on...

****************

As must-pass legislation is considered this fall, industry lobbyists and
advocates will attempt to insert the provisions from the Historic Tax
Credit-Growth and Opportunity (HTC-GO) Act into larger, must-pass bills
that address tax issues. The August congressional recess presents the best
opportunity for advocates to engage with their lawmakers at home and voice
support for HTC-GO. Advocates are encouraged to join HTC supporters across
the nation in ramping up August advocacy efforts by inviting members of
Congress to local projects or scheduling local in-district meetings.

Introduced in the House of Representatives by Representatives Earl
Blumenauer (D-OR), Darin LaHood (R-PA), Terri Sewell (D-AL) and Mike Kelly
(R-PA), HTC-GO would eliminate the HTC basis adjustment requirement, which
will bring more value to HTC transactions, encourage more private
investment in smaller “Main Street” size deals, and make changes to
tax-exempt property rules that will make the HTC more usable by
non-profits. Support for the HTC-GO bill is gaining strong momentum with 35
House co-sponsors and the Senate introduction of similar legislation
expected this summer.


The Historic Tax Credit Coalition hosted a lobby day on June 19th with over
30 historic rehab industry professionals and historic preservation
advocates participating. Organized prior to the HTC IPED Conference,
advocates met with 54 congressional offices (representing 10 states) to
discuss the Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act. Coupled with
grassroots advocacy across the nation, these meetings have contributed
significantly to the surge of House members joining the bill as co-sponsors
<https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/2825/cosponsors?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22hr+2825%22%5D%7D&s=1&r=1&overview=closed#tabs>



*Arrange a Site-visit or in-district meeting with your House and Senate
Members during the August Summer Recesses*



To show Members of Congress the impact of the HTC in revitalizing
communities and preserving our heritage, as well as the potential of future
projects, please plan a site visit or in-district/in-state meeting. Both
House and Senate Members of Congress will be *home from August
3rd-September 8th.*  Please send requests ASAP to get on your legislators’
recess schedules!


To arrange a site visit or in-district meeting with a member of Congress:

1)     Identify the HTC project and/or gather the necessary stakeholders in
order to execute the site-visit or meeting. Projects discussed or toured
should highlight the benefits of the HTC incentive or the HTC-GO
legislation.

2)     Locate the name, contact information number of your House
Representative <http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/>*.  *Or locate
the names and contact information of your Senators
<http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?OrderBy=state&Sort=ASC>

3)     Ask for the contact information for schedulers in offices of your
Members of Congress. Once connected, make a request to accompany the Member
on an HTC project tour (or a meeting) during the upcoming recesses. Or
request a meeting with advocates in the local office.

4)    Use this sample meeting request letter and site-visit guidance
document
<https://hpjqb1rpvg71gq8tazgnw6gn-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Congressional-Site-Visit-Guide.pdf>


*Ask Members of Congress: “Please co-sponsor the Historic Tax Credit Growth
and Opportunity Act”*

HTC-GO brings more value to HTC transactions and encourages redevelopment
of smaller, income-producing properties by:

·       Eliminating the HTC Basis Adjustment requirement. Presently, the
tax code requires that building owners subtract the amount of HTCs from a
building’s basis (the amount a property is worth for tax purposes). In
short, the federal government is giving an incentive and then taxing that
incentive. Eliminating this requirement will bring more value to all HTC
projects by increasing the basis of rehabilitated historic buildings for
building owners, provide additional depreciation and other tax benefits,
and attract more capital from tax credit investors.

·       Increasing the credit from 20 to 30 percent for projects with
rehabilitation expenses of less than $2.5 million;

·       Encouraging more outside investment for smaller projects (under 2.5
million) by allowing the transfer of the credits as a tax certificate;

·       Making it easier to meet the substantial rehabilitation test.

·       Creating greater flexibility for non-profit organizations to
partner with developers in redevelopment projects.



*Resources*

HTC Project Maps, Fact Sheets and Summaries can be found at:

https://forum.savingplaces.org/learn/fundamentals/economics/tax-credits/federal-htc
*****************
If you're able to host a Congressman or Senator for a tour, do take photos
and share them with Restore Oregon via email and on Facebook!

Peggy Moretti
Executive Director

1130 SW Morrison, Suite 318 | Portland, OR  97205
503 243-1923
503 946-6446 (direct)
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://omls.oregon.gov/pipermail/oms_managers/attachments/20190722/d0100ddb/attachment.html>