Treasury Pairs New Markets Tax Credit Awards with Program Reforms

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) today announced New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) awards to promote U.S. economic growth. Treasury also announced reforms to focus NMTC awards on community revitalization and ensure NMTC awardees' compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws.

The awards announced today are a double round, covering 2024 and 2025. Secretary Scott K.H. Bessent said, "Under President Trump's leadership, the One Big Beautiful Bill made the NMTC program permanent. Investors, businesses, and communities now have the long-term certainty they need to plan ahead. With the NMTC program now permanent, it is imperative that these federal incentives are focused on lasting job creation rather than the latest political trends."

The Biden Administration sought to use the NMTC program to support woke DEI and ESG priorities at the expense of the program's statutory community revitalization purpose. Starting this year, the CDFI Fund within Treasury will modify the NMTC allocation agreements to strengthen the provisions governing permitted uses of NMTCs, particularly to ensure compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws. The CDFI Fund also will enhance its monitoring of how awardees use NMTCs, to ensure compliance with the President's Executive Orders and applicable law. In the event of noncompliance with NMTC requirements, Treasury intends to vigorously exercise its remedies, to the extent permitted by law, including potentially decertification of the infringing community development entity, termination of any unused NMTCs, and recapture of past NMTC awards.

The NMTC allocations announced today reflect a 20 percent increase in investments in rural and non-metro communities. These investments will help expand rural hospitals, strengthen small businesses, build domestic manufacturing capacity, and support job creation.

Looking forward, Treasury will pursue other reforms that focus the NMTC program on its core mission through measurable outcomes, not ideological experimentation. To the extent permitted by law, in the next NMTC cycle Treasury is looking to further advance:

• affordable housing development;
• small business growth and expansion;
• domestic manufacturing and reliable job-producing projects; and
• rural hospitals and essential community health infrastructure.