H.R. 10813
Historic Preservation and Land Conservation Certainty Act
Sponsor: Mike Carey
In plain English: what this bill does
This bill has two main parts. The first lets partnerships that claimed charitable deductions for donating conservation easements (agreements that protect land) from 2025 and earlier settle their open tax disputes with the IRS by paying a set amount. The second changes the definition of a "contributing building" in two tax rules about historic districts, so that a building counts if the National Register listing identifies it as contributing, or if the Secretary of the Interior certifies it as contributing to the district's historic significance.
Who this affects
- Partnerships with open conservation easement donations: they could choose to resolve those cases by filing an election and paying a settlement amount within 360 days after the law is enacted.
- Partners in those partnerships, including non-contributing partners: a partner who does not pay their share could be assessed the amount plus 25 percent of the tax component.
- The IRS (the Secretary of the Treasury): it would accept elections, compute and verify settlement amounts, and assess amounts owed by non-contributing partners.
- Owners of buildings in historic districts: a building would qualify as "contributing" under the tax rules if it is identified that way in the district's National Register nomination or related documents, or if the Secretary of the Interior certifies it.
Words to know
- Conservation easement: a legal agreement that permanently limits how a piece of land can be developed, often to protect its natural or historic value.
- Partnership: a business owned by two or more partners, which passes its income and deductions through to them.
- Settlement limitation amount: the largest deduction the election would allow, equal to 2.5 times (or 3.2 times, for certain excepted contributions) the capital the partners put in.
- Contributing building: a building that adds to the historic character of a historic district, as recognized in official records.
- Closing agreement: a binding written agreement between a taxpayer and the IRS that settles tax matters.
For example
Made-up numbers: A partnership claimed a $1,000,000 deduction for a conservation easement, and its partners contributed $200,000 of capital. Its settlement limitation amount is 2.5 × $200,000 = $500,000. The excess deduction is $1,000,000 − $500,000 = $500,000. The bill then sets the tax component as that excess times the highest individual tax rate, and adds a penalty component based on the bill's penalty rates, to reach the total settlement amount the partnership must pay to make the election.
Written by AI from the bill's text below; it can be wrong. How it's written
Official summary
No official summary yet.