Here are five of the most intriguing Opportunity Zones articles from the past week or so. Several articles, notably the big New York Times piece from August 31, were critical of the OZ program and how little it has helped low-income communities so far. How a Trump Tax Break to Help Poor Communities Became a … Read more
The staffs of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) have issued preliminary guidance on how Qualified Opportunity Fund (QOF) investing may be subject to securities law. The joint statement issued last week is not official rules or regulations, and therefore has no legal force. It is merely a … Read more
On Tuesday, July 9, approximately 100 people attended the auditorium at the IRS New Carrollton Federal Building just outside of Washington DC as 19 groups of Opportunity Zone stakeholders testified during the public hearing on proposed regulations: “Investing in Qualified Opportunity Funds” [REG-120186-18]. This was the second hearing on proposed IRS regulations, following the second … Read more
On Tuesday, July 9, the IRS hosted a public hearing on the second tranche of proposed regulations on Investing in Qualified Opportunity Funds [REG-120186-18]. The hearing took place at the IRS New Carrollton Federal Building just outside of Washington DC. Recap of the hearing Below is the full audio recording of the hearing. If you … Read more
Today, July 1, is the final day to submit a public written comment to the IRS ahead of next week’s hearing on Qualified Opportunity Funds. Click here to listen to the live stream of the IRS hearing on July 9. The IRS received 178 written comments following its issuance of the first set of proposed … Read more
Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rosselló signed the Puerto Rico Opportunity Zones Development Act last week. The bill creates the regulatory framework for investing in Opportunity Zones on the island and establishes conformity with the federal tax incentive. Several additional incentives are also created by the new law, including: 18.5 percent tax on the net income … Read more
Last Thursday, May 9 at the SALT Conference in Las Vegas, Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson announced two new Federal Housing Administration incentives for multifamily properties located in Opportunity Zones. Firstly, FHA has designated a team of senior underwriters who will ensure expedited review of applications for properties located in opportunity … Read more
Senate Bill 1344 would require the Treasury Department to collect data and issue a report on the effectiveness of the Opportunity Zones tax policy. The bill is sponsored by Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tim Scott (R-SC), Todd Young (R-IN), and Margaret Hassan (D-NH). The original Opportunity Zones legislation that was first introduced to Congress in February … Read more
The second tranche of IRS regulatory guidance on Qualified Opportunity Funds was released last month. This morning, it was posted to the Federal Register. Public comments on the proposed rules can be submitted at Regulations.gov. Comments are due July 1. A public hearing is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. EDT on July 9 at the New … Read more
It’s been one week since the IRS released the second tranche of regulatory guidance on Qualified Opportunity Funds. This guidance is a huge step in the right direction in terms of clarifying the biggest questions that OZ participants had following the first tranche of proposed rules. And it goes a long way toward finally clearing … Read more