Heartland Renaissance Fund receives $65 million in tax credits

BusinessCentral ArkansasFinanceFort SmithNews BriefsNortheast ArkansasNorthwest Arkansas

by Talk Business & Politics staff ([email protected]) November 18, 2016 10:51 am 401 views 

Heartland Renaissance Fund of Little Rock will receive $65 million in New Markets Tax Credits, and the award amount is the organization’s second largest in its 15 years in operation, according to a news release.

On Thursday (Nov. 17), U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew announced the award for Heartland Renaissance Fund, which is a subsidiary of nonprofit lender Arkansas Capital Corp. Heartland provides low-cost capital to nonprofit and for-profit businesses for projects promoting economic development, healthcare, and education in areas “underserved by traditional financing sources.”

Heartland was one of 120 organizations across the nation that received tax credits to be used in low-income areas. The U.S. Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institution Fund issued $7 billion in credits for the 2015-2016 segment of the New Markets Tax Credits program.

Sam Walls III, president of Heartland Renaissance Fund, said in the release, the credits will be used to “finance projects that result in job creation, enhanced community services and more access to healthcare and education.”

The process to obtain these credits is “highly competitive,” Walls said. “We are eager to invest these credits in a manner which is most beneficial to underserved communities, and we look forward to working without our partners to create more positive community impacts and economic growth.”

In the release, U.S. Rep. French Hill (R-Arkansas) said Heartland has received a total of $265 million from the New Markets Tax Credits program, and this is the organization’s fifth award.

“The Heartland Renaissance Fund provides an important service to our underserved communities in Arkansas, stimulating economic development, improving healthcare services and educational opportunities and bringing jobs back for hardworking Americans,” Hill said. The tax credit award “will ensure that the HRF can continue its important work across Arkansas that will allow local communities to once again thrive.”