Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and a group of bipartisan Senators together re-introduced S. 1442, which would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to make permanent the minimum low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) rate for unsubsidized buildings and provide a minimum 4 percent credit rate for existing buildings. In other words, the bill would bill would permanently extend the flat 9% credit rate and create a flat 4% credit rate for LIHTC allocations.
Congress temporarily fixed the 9% credit in the 2008 Housing and Economic Recovery Act by setting the annual rate on the 70% credit at a flat 9%, but this only applied to properties placed in service by the end of 2013. Congress then extended the fixed 9% rate for projects with allocations made before January 1, 2014 in the American Taxpayer Relief Act (HR 8), which addressed the tax provisions of the “fiscal cliff”. If Congress does not extend the fixed credit rate, the lower credit rates will apply to any credit allocation made after January 1, 2014, which could reduce the amount of equity that properties could receive by about 18%.
The Senate version currently has 20 cosponsors from both sides of the aisle, including:
- Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)
- Barbara Boxer (D-CA)*
- Sherrod Brown (D-VT)*
- Ben Cardin (D-MA)*
- Susan Collins (R-ME)*
- Diane Feinstein (D-CA)
- Al Franken (D-MN)*
- Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)*
- Tom Harkin (D-IA)*
- Mazie Hirono (D-HI)
- Angus King (I-ME)
- Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)*
- Ed Markey (D-MA)
- Bob Menendez (D-NJ)*
- Pat Roberts (R-KS)
- Chuck Schumer (D-NY)*
- Bernard Sanders (I-VT)*
- Brian Schatz (D-HI)
- Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
- Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)*
*Denotes Senators who were also co-sponsors of S. 1989 in the 112th Congress
A companion bill in the House of Representatives has not been introduced.
Click here to read S. 1989 .
Click here to read a summary of S. 1989.
