WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) is joining bipartisan legislation to expand affordable housing availability in Maine through redevelopment incentives of historic buildings. The Historic Tax Credit Growth & Opportunity (HTC-GO) Act would create a new 30 percent tax credit for qualified rehabilitation projects that cost less than $3.75 million while maintaining the existing 20 percent credit. The bill lowers the threshold cost a project must meet to be eligible, bringing the HTC in line with other credits such as the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.

The legislation further expands the category of eligible renovation projects by decreasing the rehabilitation investment threshold from 100 percent to 50 percent of the project’s expenses. Rehabilitation expenses would only have to exceed half of the project’s cost to qualify for the credit, meaning, for example, that a project could include building an addition to an historic building as well as renovating the original structure. It also amends rules for tax-exempt entities – such as health care centers, arts organizations, community services, and workforce training providers – to allow better access to the credit.

“Communities across America are facing a serious affordable housing crisis, while there are large, historical structures nationwide that could be renovated to fight this problem,” said Senator King. “The Historic Tax Credit Growth & Opportunity (HTC-GO) Act is a commonsense way to expand affordable housing availability by providing tax credits to people rehabbing and modernizing existing historical structures. There’s no one easy solution to our housing affordability problems, but this bipartisan effort is an important step forward.”

"From Biddeford to Bangor, communities across Maine have benefited from the historic rehabilitation tax credit, whether through housing and job creation, cultural and economic revitalization, or all of the above," said Tara Kelly, Executive Director of Maine Preservation. "Our 2020 economic impact report found that in the prior ten-year period alone, these projects generated $525 million of construction investment; rehabilitated 3.6 million square feet of commercial and residential space; created or preserved 1,911 housing units, of which nearly 1,300 were affordable; and generated between 200-700 full-time-equivalent jobs annually. Moreover, nearly 700 new full-time, year-round jobs were created through building maintenance and occupancy, resulting in $13 million of income per year for families living in these communities."

Elimination of the basis adjustment will increase the value of the credit and simplify transaction structures. Under current tax law, a building owner must subtract the amount of credits received from a building’s basis (the amount a property is worth for tax purposes). Eliminating this requirement will bring more value to all HTC projects by increasing the basis of rehabilitated historic buildings for building owners, providing additional depreciation and other tax benefits, and attracting more capital from tax credit investors.

U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Bob Casey (D-PA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Jerry Moran (R-KS), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) are also cosponsors on this legislation.

Senator King has long been committed to ensuring Maine people across the state can access safe and affordable housing. He recently introduced the bipartisan Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act to create nearly two million new affordable homes across the country – including thousands in Maine. He also worked with his Republican colleagues to improve affordability of rural homes and farms through the Access to Credit for our Rural Economy (ACRE) Act of 2023. Additionally, he has worked to expand affordable workforce housing on Mount Desert Island to support the economic development surrounding Acadia National Park.

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