November 4, 2021

CDFI Fund: CY 2021 Round of New Markets Tax Credit Program Opened

$5 Billion in Allocation Authority Available

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) released today the Notice of Allocation Availability (NOAA) for the calendar year (CY) 2021 round of the New Markets Tax Credit Program (NMTC Program). The CDFI Fund is providing the NOAA on its website in anticipation of its publication in the Federal Register on November 8, 2021.

Pursuant to the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2021, included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (Public Law 116-260), the NOAA makes up to $5.0 billion in tax credit allocation authority available for the CY 2021 round.

The NMTC Program spurs investment of private sector capital into distressed communities by providing a tax credit to corporate or individual taxpayers who make Qualified Equity Investments (QEIs) in designated Community Development Entities (CDEs). The CDEs, in turn, invest the capital raised into businesses in low-income communities. The credit provided to the investor totals 39% of the investment in a CDE and is claimed over a seven-year credit allowance period.

Since the inception of the NMTC Program in 2000, the CDFI Fund has completed 17 allocation rounds and has made 1,354 awards totaling $66.0 billion in tax allocation authority. More information about the NMTC Program can be found on the program’s webpage, www.cdfifund.gov/nmtc, or in the program’s fact sheet.

Significant Updates

The CDFI Fund is implementing several changes to the NMTC Program in the CY 2021 NOAA, which include:

Important CY 2021 Deadlines

Please refer to the NOAA for more details about these and other deadlines.

Application Materials 

Learn About Applying to the NMTC Program 

To provide more information about the NMTC Program and the application process, the CDFI Fund has made available pre-recorded webinars demonstrating: 1) the electronic application’s features and the submission process in AMIS; and 2) the process for completing the Application Registration process in AMIS. The webinars can be access on the NMTC Program page, www.cdfifund.gov/nmtc under Step 2: Apply.

Q&A Webinar

In addition to the detailed information that is available through the NOAA, NMTC Allocation Application, NMTC Allocation Application FAQ, and pre-recorded webinars, the CDFI Fund will conduct a one-hour long webinar to answer application questions on Wednesday, November 10, 2021 at 3:00 pm Eastern Time.

In order to ensure the webinar is an effective and efficient use of time, the CDFI Fund is asking participants to submit questions by Monday, November 8, 2021 via a service request in AMIS

Viewing this webinar requires the use of WebEx. To download the WebEx Desktop Application, please see the instructions on the WebEx Downloads page. No prior registration is necessary. Requests for reasonable accommodations under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act should be directed to Jay Santiago at 202-653-0300 no later than 48 hours before the conference calls begin.

Access Details:

Compliance Information

The CDFI Fund has also provided an updated FAQ document for NMTC Program compliance on its website. This document supersedes the September 2020 publication of the FAQ document by adding, revising, or updating select questions from the earlier edition. Updates include:

The updated FAQ document may found on the NMTC Program webpage, https://www.cdfifund.gov/nmtcunder Step 5: Compliance and Reporting.

Questions

For more information on the NMTC application or certification as a CDE, please contact the CDFI Fund’s Help Desk by submitting a service request in AMIS.

Learn more about the CDFI Fund and its programs at www.cdfifund.gov

This post was originally published here.