Bulletin of historical and technical sources, Vol. 2 No. 9, 9

So. doA.
BULLETIN
SEP-SI
OF HISTORICAL AND TECHNICAL RESOURCES
c
r^n H t T F >
Published by:
Historical
Services
;
Division
^
l/'South Carolina Department of
Archives and History
P. O .
Box
T i
11 6 6 9
Editor:
Janet
T,
S PA C E S ^ ^ ■
1804 NortK Van Ness
C o l u m b i a , S C 2 9 2 11
803/758-5816
Los Angeles, OA 90028
Lamb
Volume 2, Number 9V September 198
E C O N O M I C R E C O V E RY A C T O F 1 9 8 1 FAV O R S
P R E S E R VAT I O N
The existing certification process, adminis
tered by the State Historic Preservation Of
fice (SHPO) and the US Department of the Inte
During the past few months preservationists
nationwide have been working tirelessly to se
cure favorable treatment for historic proper
ties under the tax package before the current
rior (Interior), will be used to identify eli
gible buildings and qualify their rehabilita
tions. If the building is determined not to
contribute to the historic district, the owner
Congress. The new law, knownas the Economic
R e c o v e r y Ta x A c t o f 1 9 8 1 > i n c l u d e s s i g n i fi c a n t
revisions to the historic preservation tax in
c e n t i v e s w h i c h w e r e fi r s t a u t h o r i z e d b y C o n
may be eligible for other tax credits.
gress
or the "adjusted basis" of the building (actual
cost minus any depreciation already taken). The
monetary test to qualify for the tax credit
in
t h e Ta x
Reform Act
of
1976. The
new
provisions should provide major impetus to en
courage capital investment in historic build
ings and to spur revitalization of historic
districts.
In general, the new law provides a 25% invest
ment
tax
credit
for
" c e r t i fi e d "
rehabilitations
u i n l s Ti o r i c r e n t a l r e s i a e n t i a i , c o m m e r c i a i , a n a
industrial buildings which can be combined with
a 15-year accelerated cost recovery (deprecia
tion) period.
A number of the existing lax provisions (Act of
1976) have been repealed. The five-year amor
tization provisions will be repealed effective
A-building must be "substantially rehabilita
ted" in order to qualify. This means the re
habilitation costs must be greater than $5,000
must be met within a two-year period or, for
phased projects where architectural plans and
specifications are completed before the rehab
ilitation begins, over a five-year period.
The rehabilitatibft work musx be reviewed and
certified by both the SHPO and certified by In
t e r i o r. L e s s e e s w i t h a l e a s e t e r m o f 1 5 - y e a r s
or greater can qualify for the investment tax
credit. The owners of buildings leased to tax
exempt organizations and government entities
are eligible. This provision was made retro
1 January 1982, CIRC Section 191). Owners may
active to 30 July 1980.
use the five-year write off for expenditures
Non-historic building rehabilitations are also
made in projects through 31 December 1981, and
use the investment tax credit for expenditures
i n c l u d e d i n t h e n e w l a w. A 1 5 % i n v e s t m e n t t a x
made after that date. (In some cases where a
and older, and a 20% investment tax credit for
buildings UO years and older. These credits
apply only to commercial and industrial build
ings , which do qualify under the 25% historic
provision. Review by the SHPO and Interior
is required only when the buildings are in re
gistered historic districts or are individually
project will continue through 1981 into 1982,
special provisions will have to be established
by the IRS,) The old accelerated depreciation
provision is repealed (IRC Section 167 (o)),
effective 1 January 1982. The denial of accel
erated depreciation for a new building con
credit may be granted for buildings 30 years
historic
listed in the National Register. In computing
building is repealed effective 1 January 1982
depreciation, owners of non-historic buildings
structed
on
the
site
of
a
demolished
(IRC Section 167 (n)). The 10% investment
credit (Revenue Act of 1978) is replaced effec
tive 1 January 1982, (IRC Sections 38 and 48).
Owners may use the 19% credit for costs incur
red through 31 December 1981, and the larger
credit
for
costs
incurred
after
that
date.
Buildings will qualify for this treatment if
they are listed individually in the National
Register of Historic Places or located in his
t o r i c d i s t r i c t s a n d c e r t i fi e d a s c o n t r i b u t i n g
t o t h e c h a r a c t e r a n d s i g n i fi c a n c e o f t h e d i s
trict.
Historical
districts
include:
1)
Na
tional Register historic districts and 2) State
and locally designated historic districts if
the ordinance authorizing or creating the dis
trict as well as the district, itself, is
c e r t i fi e d .
(continued)
are required to reduce the basis of the build
ing by the amount of the credit they have taken,
Historic buildings receive additional tax sav
ings by their exemption from this requirement.
The new investment tax credits are available
for projects which begin 1 January 1982, and
after. The provisions were enacted with no
expiration date. The 15-year accelerated re
covery period is available for buildings pur
c h a s e d 1 J a n u a r y 1 9 8 1 , o r a f t e r.
More information on these provisions is avail
a b l e f r o m t h i s o f fi c e a n d , a s r e g u l a t i o n s a r e
being revised currently, please contact us for
a tax packet.
Article credit: Some Words About Preserva
tion (SWAP), August 1981.
REHAB/TECH - AN OCTOBER CONFERENCE
NEW PROGRAM SPONSORED BY THE
VICTORIAN SOCIETY IN AMERICA
The Association for Preservation Technology
(APT) will hold a conference on common prob
The Victorian Society has initiated a na
lems in rehabilitation 7-10 October 1981 in
tional preservation campaign to stop the
Washington, DC.
destruction of 19th-century buildings. The
For further details > contact:
program, S.O.S, — Save Our Structures, is
designed to save endangered buildings of
which preservation-minded citizens are
BAIRD SMITH
a w a r e . O n c e n o t i fi e d o f a b u i l d i n g ' s
Association for Preservation Technology
threatened situation and reviewing de
Suite 301
tailed information on the building, the
1555 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Victorian Society in America Preservation
Committee will contact the appropriate of
fi c i a l s w i t h t h e h o p e o f o f f e r i n g a l t e r n a t e
uses for the building and averting its
202/272-3761
destruction.
CONFERENCE PLANNED BY THE SMITHSONIAN
INSTITUTION AND THE HISTORIC HOUSE
A S S O C I AT I O N
OF
AMERICA
More information is available on this new
program from:
1-6 November 1981 is the time slated by the
ROY EUGENE GRAHAM
Historic House Association of America (HHAA)
Chairman, Victorian Society in America
and the Smithsonian Institution for their
conference, HISTORIC HOUSE PRESERVATION:
HOW TO. The program will include lectures
by nationally known preservation experts and
there will be tours of restored country es
Preservation
Committee
The Ludwell-Paradise House
W i l l i a m s b u r g , VA 2 3 1 8 5
804/229-1000, Ext. 2303
tates, urban homes, and townhouses in the
Washington, DC area.
B O O K S F O R T H E E N E R G Y- C O N S C I O U S H O M E
For detailed information and registration
OWNER
Home Remedies, A Guidebook for Residential
materials, contact:
R e t r o fi t , e d i t e d b y To m W i l s o n , i s a c o m
SELECTED STUDIES
A
£
I
pilation of topics covered during The First
11 9 0 A
N a t i o n a l R e t r o fi t C o n f e r e n c e h e l d i n
Smithsonian Institution
P r i n c e t o n , N J , d u r i n g 1 9 8 1 . T h i s c l e a r,
how-to book covers subjects such as natural
Washington, DC 20560
cooling, solar energy, stopping wintertime
heat leaks, and includes a home inspection
202/357-21+75
checklist and book reviews.
O L D - FA S H I O N E D A R C H I T E C T U R A L M I L LW O R K
C ATA L O G
Home Remedies is 253 pages long, paperback
a n d c o s t s $ 1 0 . 0 0 . To o r d e r, s e n d p a y m e n t
AVA I L A B L E
Silverton Victorian Mill Works has old-style
mouldings in stock — a fact that can save
(publisher pays postage) to:
the old house owner considerable time and
MID-ATLANTIC SOLAR ENERGY ASSOCIATION
m o n e y. L i s t e d i n i t s n e w c a t a l o g a r e o v e r
2233 Gray's Ferry Avenue
P h i l a d e l p h i a , PA 1 9 1 4 6
150 mouldings, 4-9 of which are stock items.
Silverton Victorian Mill Works' catalog is
32 pages long and can be ordered for $2,00
All Through the House, A Guide to Home
f r o m :
Weatherization, by Thomas Blandy and Denis
Lamoureux, is written to help people control
the energy systems in their homes. All
Through the House is intended to help the
homeowner diagnose the efficiency level
of his house and improve its efficiency
S I LV E R TO N V I C TO R I A N M I L L W O R K S
Box
523
Silverton, CO 81^33
303/387-5716
rating.
P R E S E R VAT I O N R E S O U R C E G R O U P, I N C .
OFFERS
C ATA L O G
With subject headings of Basic Books; Case
Studies; Design, Adaptive Use and Economics
E n e r g y ; H o w To ; I n t e r i o r s ; L o g B u i l d i n g s ;
Maintenance and Inspection; Masonry, Mois
ture; Other Materials; Reference; Reprints;
To o l s ; a n d W o o d , t h e P r e s e r v a t i o n R e s o u r c e
Group (PRG) catalog presents over 60 pres
ervation
books
for
sale.
Complete with ideas on how to diagnose, what
materials to use, this 184-page paperback
£;houid help the homeowner made some important
decisions. All Through the House costs
£7.95, plus $1.00 postage, and can be or
dered
from:
MCGRAW HiLL BOOK COMPANY
Attention:
Order
Service
Princeton Road
Hightstown, NJ 08520
To o b t a i n y o u r
write
to:
PRESERVATION RESOURCE GROUP, INC.
5519 Southhampton Drive
COMING NEXT MONTH: A report on the annual
conference of the American Association for
S p r i n g fi e l d , VA 2 2 1 5 1
S t a t e a n d L o c a l H i s t o r y.