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Ohio Senate Bill 225 Paves the Way for Greater Investment in Opportunity Zones and Historic Districts

Client Alert

Ohio Senate Bill 225 is poised to make dramatic enhancements to certain tax credit programs in Ohio, specifically those surrounding investments in “Opportunity Funds” and historic buildings. Signed into law by Governor Mike DeWine in June 2022, the Bill is positive news for real estate developers working to revitalize Ohio communities with investment and rehabilitation projects. 

Features include: 

Tax Credits for Opportunity Zones 

  • Awarded tax credits cannot exceed $75 million for the fiscal biennium beginning July 1, 2021, ending June 30, 2023; $50 million for fiscal year 2024; or $25 million for each fiscal year thereafter. 

  • A critical element of the Bill is that the term “taxpayer” is differentiated from the term “person,” allowing non-taxpaying entities to take advantage of the program as well as Ohio residents and taxpayers who have different qualifications. 

  • The tax credit equals 10-percent of the amount of the person’s investment in the fund that the fund invested during the immediately preceding investment period in Ohio opportunity zones, with a $2 million cap for all applicants.  

  • The investment period is the six-month period from January 1 to June 13, or from July 1 to December 31. 
  • In 2021, there were $10 million in tax credits left over; therefore the increase in funding incentivizes investors to contribute to low-income communities and opportunity zones with a high probability of being awarded credits. 

Tax Credits for the Restoration of Historic Buildings 

  • There is a $120 million limit on rehabilitation tax credits for 2023 and 2024, and $60 million of rehabilitation tax credits for each year thereafter. This allocation is doubled from the current $60 million cap. 

  • Total tax credits for any single project cannot exceed $10 million for any year. 

  • The certificate holder may claim a tax credit equal to 35-percent of the dollar amount indicated on the tax credit certificate if any county, township, or municipal corporation within which the project is located has a population of less than 300,000 according to the 2020 census, and 25-percent otherwise. 
  • For rehabilitations not exceeding 24 months, a rehabilitation tax credit certificate cannot be issued before the rehabilitation is complete. For rehabilitations not exceeding 60 months, a rehabilitation tax credit certificate cannot be issued before a stage of rehabilitation is complete.  

  • This program will be critical for continued investments by developers in low-income areas and will also serve in further expanding Ohioans’ pride through revitalization of Ohio’s most important landmarks. 

For more information about this opportunity, please contact Jason Butterworth at jabutterworth@bmdllc.com.


President Biden Seeks to Limit Non-Compete Agreements

Today, President Biden announced he would issue an Executive Order that calls on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to adopt rules to curtail worker non-compete agreements. Interestingly, a week ago, the FTC approved changes to its Rules of Practice to modernize and expedite the way it issues Trade Regulation Rules. If you have followed our alerts, we predicted the elimination of non-competes would probably happen. In 2016, then-Vice President Biden was a vocal opponent against non-compete agreements. He led the Obama administration’s initiative seeking to limit or eliminate non-compete agreements. In his presidential campaign, Biden promised to “work with Congress to eliminate all non-compete agreements, except the very few that are absolutely necessary to protect a narrowly defined category of trade secrets . . ..”

New NIL Opportunities for Student-Athletes Require Diligent Review

On June 28, 2021, Governor Mike DeWine signed Executive Order 2021-10D, “Establishing the Duties of Colleges and Universities as to Name, Image, and Likeness Compensation of Student-Athletes.” The Executive Order was motivated by the passage of similar name, image, and likeness (“NIL”) regulations in seventeen (17) other states; Ohio followed suit to avoid a significant competitive disadvantage in attracting student-athletes to the state.

Tax Savings Potentially on the Chopping Block under President Biden’s American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan

Recently, President Biden has proposed several tax law changes in his American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan. Outlined below, are a few of the tax savings that could be significantly changed or eliminated under Biden’s plans.

Here are the Final Candidates for Mayor of Cleveland

Earlier this year, current Cleveland Mayor, Frank Jackson, announced he would not run for re-election this fall. With no need to beat an incumbent, the Cleveland mayoral race suddenly became competitive. Thirteen individuals declared their intent to run for mayor. The City of Cleveland, however, has a difficult qualification requirement to run: 3,000 valid signatures from Cleveland residents. The deadline to file a petition to run, with the 3,000 valid signatures, had to be submitted by June 16 (yesterday).

What Happens to a Pandemic Stimulus Payment Upon Death?

On January 1, 2021, the federal government issued stimulus payments (also known as Economic Impact Payments) to American citizens – on paper. However, many of the stimulus payments were not received until several months later. Sometimes the stimulus payments did not arrive until after an individual died.