State’s Historic Tax Credit Expires this Month
From the Lyric Theater in downtown Birmingham to the Howell School in Dothan, a number of renovations have been supported by the state’s historic tax credit. It offered developers financial incentives to take on projects that might have come with big risks. But the bill to renew those tax credits has died this legislative session, and the tax will expire this month.
Opponents to the tax credit say extending it would strain the state budget. The state for the last three years had set aside up to $60 million for different renovation projects. If all the developers who have put in for the tax credit claim their share all at once, it could be a financial burden, Senator Del Marsh is reported to have said. He didn’t return calls for comment.
Former Representative Paul DeMarco worked on the original bill. He doesn’t buy the argument the bill amounts to a government subsidy for developers who should be using their own money for these projects.
“What we have seen is it is private dollars,” DeMarco says. “They’re just seeing a benefit by having this credit, and you’re incentivizing businesses to look at buildings that were sitting empty.”
The bill had strong support in both the House and the Senate. But Senate leaders put the brakes on it. Some have called it welfare for rich people. David Fleming, president and CEO of REV Birmingham says that’s unfair, as both small and large projects have benefited. “Even individual homeowners in historic houses have the opportunity to take advantage of this on a very, very small scale,” Fleming says.
He says every developer takes a risk, especially in areas that have been neglected for decades. And historic buildings come with a lot of construction risk.
“You really don’t know what you’re getting into ’til you get into it,” Fleming says. “And you have a lot of expense that comes up that’s unexpected. Ask anyone who’s ever done a historic building.”
That tax credit helped offset some of those risks. Fleming says the tax credit has also brought more than $400 million of investment across the state. And there was a waiting list for developers planning more projects. He and other supporters of the bill are afraid that now that those credits will expire, those projects might not move forward.
4 lives are upended by an impulsive kiss in the epic novel ‘Buckeye’
Patrick Ryan's novel focuses on two married couples and stretches from pre-WWII to the close of the 20th century, capturing both the sweep of history and the mundane particularity of everyday life.
Trump makes a rare D.C. restaurant visit to tout his federal crackdown on crime
In his first term, President Trump only dined out at the steakhouse in his former hotel. He visited a steakhouse near the White House on Tuesday, saying, "I wouldn't have done this three months ago."
Fired FBI agents allege retribution, incompetence at top security agency
The lawsuit from three senior and lauded FBI agents at the bureau says Trump administration demanded loyalty for those staying at the bureau.
Happy 75th birthday to Henry Huggins, Ramona Quimby’s big-kid neighbor
Beverly Cleary's fictional third grader with an adopted dog named Ribsy made his debut in 1950. Cleary was praised for writing simple, humorous stories that kids wanted to read.
California considers allowing doctors to prescribe abortion drugs anonymously
If passed, the law would protect doctors from legal risk by letting them omit their names from prescription labels for abortion pills. It would affect the many doctors who use California pharmacies.
Sabrina Carpenter crashes the charts at No. 1, again
This week's albums and singles charts are both dominated by the same record: Sabrina Carpenter's Man's Best Friend, which debuts at No. 1 and lands all 12 of its songs in the Hot 100's top 40.
