Demand for New Markets Tax Credits Remains Strong

250 Applications Received Requesting $23.5 Billion

Washington, DC- The U.S. Treasury Department's Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) announced today that it received a total of 250 applications under the 2010 round of the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program, requesting an aggregate total of $23,457,767,104 in NMTC allocation authority. A total of $5 billion of allocation authority is available this round, pending Congressional approval.

"I am very pleased to see demand for the New Markets Tax Credit continue to rise in light of the challenges that the current economic climate presents for underserved communities," said CDFI Fund Director Donna Gambrell. "The sustained increase in the number of applications indicates how important the New Markets Tax Credit is for attracting new investment and promoting job creation and economic recovery in distressed communities."

The NMTC Program, established by Congress in December of 2000, permits individual and corporate taxpayers to receive a credit against federal income taxes for making qualified equity investments in Community Development Entities (CDEs). The credit provided to the investor totals 39 percent of the cost of the investment and is claimed over a seven-year period. Substantially all of the taxpayer's investment must in turn be used by the CDE to make qualified investments in low-income communities. Successful applicants are selected only after a competitive application and rigorous review process that is administered by the CDFI Fund.

The application deadline was June 4, 2010. The CDFI Fund anticipates announcing the organizations that will receive New Markets Tax Credit allocations in December of 2010.

Through the first seven rounds of the NMTC Program, the CDFI Fund has made 495 awards totaling $26 billion in tax credit allocation authority.

Additional information can be found on the CDFI Fund's web site at www.cdfifund.gov.