AB 1265: Income taxes: credits: rehabilitation of certified historic structures.

The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow a credit against the taxes imposed by those laws, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2027, for rehabilitation of certified historic structures, as defined, and, under the Personal Income Tax Law, for a qualified residence, as defined. Existing law allows an increased credit of 25% of the qualified rehabilitation expenditures with respect to a certified historic structure meeting any of certain criteria, including a rehabilitated structure that includes affordable housing for lower income households. Existing law requires a taxpayer to receive an allocation from the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee (CTCAC) to be eligible for the credit. Existing law limits the aggregate amount of money that can be allocated for these credits per calendar year and reserves a portion of that money to be allocated for a qualified residence or for projects less than $1,000,000.

Existing law requires, on an annual basis beginning January 1, 2021, until January 1, 2027, the Legislative Analyst to collaborate with the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee CTCAC and the Office of Historic Preservation to review the effectiveness of these tax credits, as described.

This bill would extend the operative dates of the above-described credit through bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2027, and before January 1, 2031. The bill would increase the credit for certain certified historic structures from 25% to 30% of qualified rehabilitation expenditures. The bill, for purposes of certified historic structures eligible for the 30% credit, would require a rehabilitated structure for affordable housing for lower income households to include improvements to preserve existing affordable housing, as defined, and would authorize that credit percentage for a structure that is adaptively reused for housing with no less than 50% of the existing floor area used for housing. 2031, would enact a similar credit for the rehabilitation of certified historic structures, as provided. The bill, for tax credits allocated for those taxable years, would remove the above-described increased credit of 25% and would remove the credit for a qualified residence. The bill would also remove the limit on the amount of money that can be allocated per calendar year, including the above-described reservations. The bill would also extend the Legislative Analysts annual review requirement to January 1, 2031. 2031, and would make conforming changes.

Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure, as defined, to include exclusions from income, to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax credit will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements.

This bill declares the intent of the Legislature to comply with this requirement.

This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.