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State Senator Bill Beagle
Local Advocates
Successfully Restore Historic Preservation Tax Credit
"No!" If you ask most people if they could have an influence on their
state government that is how most would answer, "No!"
But, in the last couple of weeks the Ohio legislature has listened,
your voice has been heard and your advocacy at the local level has had
a huge impact.
The Ohio Historic Tax Credit Program is highly competitive and has
affected many communities throughout the state. In just the last round
of awards, $41.8 million was awarded through the program, and is
expected to attract almost $600 million in private investment. Talk
about economic development!
This is significant because these tax credits are often critical in
making it feasible to renovate and reuse historic buildings, like the
Fort Piqua Hotel and the Weustoff and Getz building, which I visited a
few months ago. Without the credit, it is typically more
economical to tear an old building down and build new.
The Ohio Senate is working on the state budget and a provision was
placed in the bill that would put a two-year moratorium on the popular
Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credit program. The state would have
ceased to issue these credits for the next two years while the
Development Services Agency transitioned the program to one that offers
grants instead of tax credits.
Well, the outcry was immediate, overwhelming, and fierce.
Locally and across the state, advocates for the Historic Tax Credit got
busy contacting Senators like me, their State Representatives and even
the Governor's office.
So, along with Senator Peggy Lehner and others, I submitted an
amendment to reverse this policy change. Last week Senate removed the
freeze and restored the program, removing uncertainty that suddenly put
local projects that were counting on these credits at risk.
This outcome was the direct result of locals reaching out to be heard.
Advocating to your State Senator and State Representative can work. It
isn’t always this successful this quickly, but it is always worth the
effort.
If the idea of changing this tax credit program to a grant program is
recommended by the Development Services Agency, further advocacy may be
necessary by those who like the current program. Preservation and
economic development advocates have great cause to celebrate… for the
moment.
Whether you want to advocate for preservation, tax policy, or against
regulatory hassles, it is always beneficial to let all levels of
government officials know how your business or family is being impacted
by government. Let us know when government is working well too; you
never know when someone will try to convince policy makers that
something that is working is broken.
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