May 15, 2024 Second allocation round for Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program opens on May 28, 2024 On May 13, 2024, the IRS and Treasury Department announced that taxpayers can begin applying for the second round of allocations of the annual capacity limitation under the Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program (program) beginning on May 28, 2024, at 9 a.m. EST. The program increases the investment tax credits (ITCs) under IRC Section 48(e) for certain solar and wind facilities placed in service in low-income communities. Background The IRS established the program in Notice 2023-17, specifying that a total annual capacity limitation of 1.8 gigawatts of direct current capacity will be allocated for calendar years 2023 and 2024. To qualify, an individual project cannot exceed five megawatts. In determining how to allocate capacity limitation within certain categories of facilities, the program may also consider criteria such as whether the facility is owned or developed by a community-based organization, provides substantial benefits to a low-income community and has a higher degree of commercial readiness (see Tax Alert 2023-0333). In June 2023, the Treasury and IRS proposed regulations with more details on the program and the selection process (see Tax Alert 2023-1018). In August 2023, they finalized the regulations (TD 9979) and issued Revenue Procedure 2023-27, which provided guidance on implementing the 2023 program. The IRS application window for the 2023 program was open from October 19, 2023 until February 29, 2024 (see Tax Alert 2023-1647). In April 2024, the Treasury and IRS released Revenue Procedure 2024-19, which superseded Revenue Procedure 2023-27 and provided guidance for implementing the 2024 program (see Tax Alert 2024-0733), including changes to how the annual capacity limitation will be divided among the categories of facilities. The IRS said any unused capacity limitation from the 2023 program year would be carried over to the 2024 program. Second round The application window for the second round will open at 9 a.m. EST on May 28, 2024. All applications submitted by 11:59 p.m. EST on June 27, 2024, will be treated as being submitted at the same time. After this period, the Department of Energy will accept applications on a rolling basis. Over 2.1 gigawatts of capacity will be available for the 2024 round. This number is the sum of the annual 1.8 gigawatts of capacity plus approximately 325 megawatts of available capacity that are rolling over to the 2024 program year (see Announcement 2024-25 for more details). Implications Taxpayers with projects that qualify will want to submit their applications before the June 27 deadline. The instructions released by the IRS in April give taxpayers the information they need to submit their applications.
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