An Analysis of the Twenty Percent Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit Program\u27s Administration in the States of Tennessee and South Carolina from Fiscal Years 2005-2015

The Twenty Percent Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit is one of the most valuable incentive tools in the field of historic preservation. This thesis analyzes the application and review process of the Twenty Percent Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit in the states of South Carolina and Tennessee. The thesis explored how the two states\u27 State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPO) and the National Park Service enforce regulations and rehabilitation protocols during the tax credit process. The factors examined are efficacy of the tax credit system in the two states as measured by the rate of projects\u27 successful matriculation through the process, efficiency of the process in the two states as measured by the time line of review and feedback, and the consistency with which SHPOs and the National Park Service interpret the Secretary of the Interior\u27s Standards and apply these standards in the application approval process. To investigate how the two states compare in terms of the constancy, efficacy, and efficiency of the tax credit program, a case study methodology was adopted. Six case studies, three chosen from each state, which utilized the Twenty Percent Credit are explored. Data tracked for the six case studies consisted of: dates of submissions, amendments, determinations, project completion, the content of the comments made on the projects. This data reveals that the National Park Service and each states\u27 SHPO met efficiency measures by the timely return of comments, and interpreted and enforced the Secretary of the Interior\u27s Standards consistently across the two states