November 4, 2011

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) is soliciting comments on the New Markets Tax Credit Program (NMTC Program), seeking to increase its effectiveness, while reducing cost and burden on program participants. This request is part of that on-going effort. The request for comments will be published in the Federal Register on November 7, 2011.

The NMTC Program was authorized by the Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-554) on December 15, 2000. It has been extended and amended since initial authorization. The NMTC Program is jointly administered by the CDFI Fund and the Internal Revenue Service.

The NMTC Program was established to spur new or increased investments into operating businesses and real estate projects located in low-income communities. The NMTC Program attracts investment capital to low-income communities by permitting individual and corporate investors to receive a tax credit against their Federal income tax return in exchange for making equity investments in specialized financial institutions called Community Development Entities (CDEs). A CDE is an organization certified by the CDFI Fund that acts as a financial intermediary through which investment capital flows from an investor to a qualified business located in a low-income community.

Written comments should be received on or before February 6, 2012 to be assured of consideration. Comments submitted in response to this notice will become a matter of public record.

The CDFI Fund is particularly interested in comments in the following areas regarding the NMTC Program:

• Census Tract Eligibility and Commitment to Areas of Higher Distress
• Treatment of Certain Businesses
• Community Accountability
• Transaction Costs
• Evaluation of Financial Products
• Use of other federally subsidized financing in conjunction with NMTCs

Comments may be sent by mail to: Bob Ibanez, Manager, NMTC Program, CDFI Fund, U.S. Department of the Treasury, 601 Thirteenth Street, NW, Suite 200 South, Washington, DC 20005; by e-mail to cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov; or by facsimile at (202) 622-7754. Please note this is not a toll free number.

View Related Federal Register Notice