The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) submitted its annual report on Historic Preservation Tax Credit Assistance program to the Joint Committee on Finance (JFC).

The report provides a summary of the total level of credits awarded under the program from its inception and details on the projects that received the credit. The historic tax credit, which began on January 1, 2014, has been awarded to 39 projects for a total amount of $41.7 million. The report, which includes both the Historic Preservation Tax Credit and the Historic Preservation Tax Credit-Qualified Rehabilitation program, is statutorily required to be submitted to the JFC by WEDC and state historical society.

While many of the credits were awarded to recipients in Madison and Milwaukee, a number of other projects are located across the state, ranging from Rice Lake to Ashland to Fort Atkinson.

In the governor’s proposed budget, the governor limits the amount of tax credits that may be certified by WEDA in any calendar year to no more than $10 million.  The governor’s budget also includes a clawback provision that requires that four years after the receipt of the credit, the original claimant of the credit to must report to WEDC the number of full-time jobs created by activity using the credit. If the claimant does not meet the projected number of full-time jobs created, the claimant would have to repay the state a portion of the credit, in proportion to the number of jobs created.

The governor’s budget also proposes eliminating the state’s supplement to the federal historic rehabilitation tax credit for qualified rehabilitated buildings. According to the latest report submitted to the JFC, over $6.6 million has been awarded under this program to eight entities since January 2014.