Support Historic Preservation

Help Enhance the Federal Historic Tax Credit. Let's Preserve More & Preserve Better.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) on the importance of HTC enhancements and your advocacy

As a result of your unwavering support, provisions to improve the historic tax credit were included in the initial drafting of the Build Back Better legislation in the House of Representatives where many other tax proposals did not make the cut. Unfortunately, as a result of the reduced spending targets, the revised legislation strips out all of the Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act (HTC-GO) provisions. Spending for community development tax incentives was significantly reduced and there continues to be pressure to reduce the size and scope of the Build Back Better legislation.

Once the House passes the legislation, it will be considered by the Senate where it is highly likely the bill will be amended. This presents an opportunity for preservation advocates to raise our voices and let the Senate know that historic rehabilitation projects are exactly the type of infrastructure investment our communities need and that HTC-GO must be included in the final Build Back Better legislation.

With persistent advocacy over the next several weeks, the preservation community can create opportunities to reinsert HTC-GO provisions into the legislation and substantially improve and modernize the federal historic tax credit.

We need you to contact your Senators to support the Historic Tax Credit enhancement provisions included in the infrastructure legislation. Click below to send an automated email to your Senator and help us preserve more and preserve better!

Help us bring 5 more tools to HTC projects nationwide:
More Credits
More Value
More Buildings
More Nonprofit Uses
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HTC advocacy on Capitol Hill

How you can help:

Call Members of Congress and ask them to enhance the HTC. Click here to search for your Representative’s contact information.

Use the National Trust for Historic Preservation email tool to advocate for the enhancement.

Tell your friends, neighbors, and associates to do the same.

Share the video above on social media and spread the word!

what to say in your outreach

Here are some key talking points when advocating for HTC enhancements with your Representatives:
  • The Historic Tax Credit (HTC) is a highly effective incentive to direct private funding to the rehabilitation of historic properties.  The HTC is the federal government’s largest investment in historic preservation and a vital tool for community development, job creation, and small business development.
  • The HTC is a proven tax incentive for both revitalizing historic community assets and supporting economic development and recovery. Since FY1977, the program accomplishments include $173 billion in estimated investment, 46,000 certified rehabilitation projects, and more than 178,000 units of low- and moderate-income housing units created.
  • Since its inception 40 years ago, the HTC also has generated more tax revenue than it costs, generating approximately $38.1 billion in federal tax revenue from the $32.9 billion in federal tax credits.
  • We ask for your strong support of the HTC provisions included in the House Ways and Means Committee mark-up and urge your support for including these important provisions in the final budget reconciliation bill.
  • Unfortunately, the historic rehabilitation community, like so many others, has experienced slowing, stopping, and in some cases, devastating outcomes resulting from the pandemic. Labor shortages, increased costs for materials, limited access to capital, greater investment risk, and an uncertain tenant market have caused significant harm to the future pipeline of HTC projects.
  • The HTC brings hope and stability to neighborhoods by breathing new life into vacant or underutilized historic properties, setting the stage for additional investment. When the private sector rehabilitates a building utilizing the HTC, data shows there is a catalytic effect, driving development nearby.
  • The HTC provisions would make much-needed changes to the credit, help close financing gaps for more historic properties, bring more value to the credit, and increase investor pricing in distressed projects. The provisions would also better align the HTC with the affordable housing credit, increase the ability of smaller projects to use the credit, and make it easier for nonprofits to partner with developers in using the HTC.
  • Making these long-overdue improvements to the HTC will spur the development of more projects, expand the number of historic buildings eligible for rehabilitation, and help create more affordable housing.
  • These changes to the HTC will help preserve the history of our state and help revitalize our larger cities and our smaller main street communities.
  • Please support and protect the HTC provisions in the final budget reconciliation infrastructure bill.

about the provisions

Increase the credit from 20-30% for all projects for at least 5 years +

All projects (placed in service after April 1, 2021) would receive a temporary increase to the credit to 30% through 2025. The credit would phase down to 26% in 2026, 23% in 2027, and return to 20% in 2028. This will help address unforeseen financing gaps and contribute to the economic recovery by invigorating many new historic rehabilitation projects, both big and small.

Elimination of the basis adjustment +

All projects would benefit from eliminating the requirement to subtract the amount of the HTC from a building’s basis for depreciation purposes. This provision would bring more value to the HTC and would make it easier to pair with other community development incentives like affordable housing and opportunity zone investments.

Sustain the 30% credit amount for small projects +

This provision would permanently extend the increase from 20% to 30% beyond 2025 for small projects (less than $2.5 million) to ensure smaller investments such as those common in rural and non-urban areas have a better ability to take advantage of the credit.

Modification of substantial rehabilitation definition +

This provision lowers the substantial rehabilitation threshold for all projects from 100% to 50% of a building’s basis. Reducing this eligibility threshold will make more buildings eligible for rehabilitation before they have deteriorated too significantly. This change will also allow historic building owners to more easily adapt projects to new uses in a changing economic landscape.

Modifications of tax-exempt use leasing rules +

This change would allow nonprofits and other tax-exempt entities to more easily rehabilitate their own historic properties. These changes would make more projects led by health care centers, arts organizations, community services, affordable housing organizations, and workforce training providers possible.

Enabling HTC to be used for public school buildings +

This provision would eliminate certain “prior use” limitations for government entities to rehabilitate historic public school buildings.

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  • Public Policy
  • Historic Tax Credit
What’s Proposed in the Infrastructure Legislation?

Congress has the opportunity to make the biggest improvements and enhancements to the Historic Tax Credit (HTC) in a generation.

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  • News
  • Public Policy
  • Historic Tax Credit
House Passes “Build Back Better” Without HTC Provisions, Contact Your Senators!

Last week, the House passed a $1.75 trillion version of the “Build Back Better” (BBB) reconciliation bill on a vote of 220 to 213. The bill did not include Historic Tax Credit (HTC) enhancements.

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Public Policy
Stay Up to Date on NTCIC's Public Policy Efforts

NTCIC's Public Policy team is actively working to ensure the Historic Tax Credit remains the country's strongest resource for historic preservation. Learn More

Support Advocacy Efforts to Enhance the Historic Tax Credit

Your advocacy is needed to ensure that enhancements to the HTC remain top of mind for decision-makers. Learn More

Historic Tax Credit Advocacy Resources

Equip yourself with the knowledge and resources for historic preservation advocacy. Learn More

""In a time of austere federal budgets, we need to look at meaningful ways of getting the most out of every dollar and the economic impacts of historic tax credits have been transformational.""
Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD)
"Our tax credits have made the preservation of our older buildings not only a matter of respect for beauty and history, but of economic good sense."
President Ronald Reagan in 1984