JEFFERSON CITY, MO, APRIL 18, 2005 -- According to a recent report by the National Park Service, developers invested more than $350 million in the rehabilitation of Missouri buildings certified for federal historic preservation tax credits in fiscal year 2004.
In fact, Missouri leads the nation. The $357,783,822 invested by developers here is $134 million more than in Pennsylvania, ranked second, and more than twice the $157 million invested by developers in Illinois, which ranked third.
"Missouri leads the nation not only in the dollars invested in the rehabilitation of historic buildings, but also in the number of projects successfully completed in fiscal year 2004," said Gov. Blunt. That is crucial: Missouri's 92 projects benefited communities across the state.
The National Park Service's report devotes a full page to the subject of "Combining Federal and State Tax Incentives: Preservation Activity in Missouri." It links the fact that rehabilitation using the federal tax credits doubled in Missouri after 1998, to the state historic rehabilitation tax credit program created by the General Assembly in 1997 and notes that out-of-state firms have begun investing in Missouri projects.
Like the state historic preservation tax credits administered by the Missouri Department of Economic Development, the federal credits are issued only at the end of projects meeting strict standards for investment and rehabilitation. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources' State Historic Preservation Office reviews both state and federal tax credit projects for their compliance with the Secretary's Standards for Historic Rehabilitation.
According to the federal report, "In the seven years since the passage of the state tax credit program, 340 historic projects in Missouri have been certified by the National Park Service."
The report is available at www.cr.nps.gov/hps/tps/tax/download/2004report.pdf.
Contact: Larry Archer (573) 751-3807