FINANCE
NEW MARKETS TAX CREDITS
Latest, Possibly Last,
Round of NMTCs Opens
BY DONNA KIMURA
AFFORDABLE HOUSING FINANCE • MARCH 2008
As supporters seek reauthorization
of the New Markets
Tax Credit (NMTC) program,
the sixth round of
allocations has opened, with
applications due March 5.
Applicants will compete for tax credits
on $3.5 billion of equity investments
under the federal program.
This year’s round will have an emphasis
on placing investments in underserved
rural communities.
“It’s a very competitive program,” said
Donna Gambrell, director of the
Community Development Financial
Institutions (CDFI) Fund,
which administers the
NMTC program. “The
competition is increasing,
and the number of applicants
is increasing.”
When applying for
an allocation, organizations
need to show the
impact they will have in
the communities they plan to serve,
advised Gambrell.
Applicants should be specific in their
applications about how communities will
benefit, she said.
Officials also stressed the March 5
application deadline. They recommend
that applicants get their forms in early in
case they run into any technical difficulties
with filing their submissions. Awardees are
scheduled to be announced in the fall.
Program supporters are pushing
Congress to reauthorize the NMTC program.
Without an extension, 2008 would
be the final allocation round for the program,
which has made 294 awards totaling
$16 billion in allocation authority
since its beginning.
In 2007, 61 organizations were selected
to receive $3.9 billion in tax credits, including
$400 million in NMTCs for use in the
Hurricane Katrina Gulf Opportunity Zone.
(For information, see AHF November 2007 article, $3.9 Billion in NMTCs Announced
.)
Gambrell said one of the strengths of
the NMTC program has been its flexibility
in financing different types of projects and
economic programs, which encourage
investments in low-income communities.
She cited the recent opening of a
Giant supermarket in Washington, D.C.,
which is part of a mixed-used development
that was financed with the help of NMTCs.
The project, which was developed by the
William C. Smith Co. and East of the River
Community Development Corp., brings
the first new grocery store to the neighborhood
in a decade. The new Giant is also
providing 200 jobs for local residents. The
Local Initiatives Support Corp. provided
about $18.6 million in NMTCs for the construction
of the shopping center. The
investment was made in partnership with
Wachovia.
New boss
Gambrell joined the CDFI Fund at the
end of November 2007. She said she is
unlike prior CDFI Fund directors because
she is a career employee and not a political
employee.
In the past, directors have come and
gone when there has been a change in
White House administrations. Gambrell
has a three-year appointment to lead the
CDFI Fund, which is expected to provide
the agency with continuity through the
upcoming elections.
She replaced Kimberly Reed, who
resigned as head of the CDFI Fund last year.
Gambrell previously served at the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) as
deputy director of consumer protection
and community affairs in the Division of
Supervision and Consumer Protection.
She joined the FDIC in 1991 as a community
affairs officer for the New York region.
A little more than a month into her
new job, she cited several initial goals,
including seeing the CDFI Fund become
more of a “knowledge leader” by analyzing
and sharing the data that it collects.
Gambrell said she also wants to look
at the pool of qualified applicants that are
competing for CDFI Fund awards and
explore ways to reach the widest variety of
organizations.
Visit www.cdfifund.gov for more
information.
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