(1) ELIGIBLE INDUSTRIES.—

(a) The department, in consultation with Enterprise Florida, Inc., shall designate industries using the North American Industry Classification System which are eligible to receive low-income community investments. The designated industries must be those industries that have the greatest potential to create strong positive impacts on or benefits to the state, regional, and local economies.

(b) A qualified community development entity may not make a qualified low-income community investment in a business unless the principal activities of the business are within an eligible industry. The department may waive this limitation if the department determines that the investment will have a positive impact on a community.

(2) APPLICATION.—A qualified community development entity must submit an application to the department to approve a proposed investment as a qualified investment. The application must include:

(a) The name, address, and tax identification number of the qualified community development entity.

(b) Proof of certification as a qualified community development entity under 26 U.S.C. s. 45D.

(c) A copy of an allocation agreement executed by the entity, or its controlling entity, and the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, which authorizes the entity to serve businesses in this state.

(d) A verified statement by the chief executive officer of the entity that the allocation agreement remains in effect.

(e) A description of the proposed amount, structure, and purchaser of an equity investment or long-term debt security.

(f) The name and tax identification number of any person authorized to claim a tax credit earned as a result of the purchase of the proposed qualified investment.

(g) A detailed explanation of the proposed use of the proceeds from a proposed qualified investment.

(h) A nonrefundable application fee of $1,000, payable to the department.

(i) A statement that the entity will invest only in the industries designated by the department.

(j) The entity’s plans for the development of relationships with community-based organizations, local community development offices and organizations, and economic development organizations. The entity must also explain steps it has taken to implement its plans to develop these relationships.

(k) A statement that the entity will not invest in a qualified active low-income community business unless the business will create or retain jobs that pay an average wage of at least 115 percent of the federal poverty income guidelines for a family of four.

(3) REVIEW.—

(a) The department shall review applications to approve an investment as a qualified investment in the order received. The department shall approve or deny an application within 30 days after receipt.

(b) If the department intends to deny the application, the department shall inform the applicant of the basis of the proposed denial. The applicant shall have 15 days after it receives the notice of the intent to deny the application to submit a revised application to the department. The department shall issue a final order approving or denying the revised application within 30 days after receipt.

(c) The department may not approve a cumulative amount of qualified investments that may result in the claim of more than $216.34 million in tax credits during the existence of the program or more than $36.6 million in tax credits in a single state fiscal year. However, the potential for a taxpayer to carry forward an unused tax credit may not be considered in calculating the annual limit.

(4) APPROVAL.—

(a) The department shall provide a copy of the final order approving an investment as a qualified investment to the qualified community development entity and to the Department of Revenue. The notice shall include the identity of the taxpayers who are eligible to claim the tax credits and the amount that may be claimed by each taxpayer.

(b) The department shall approve an application for part of the amount of the proposed investment if the amount of tax credits available is insufficient.

(c) If more than one application is found to comply with subsection (3) on the same day and the amount of tax credits available is insufficient for all of the applications, the tax credits available to each applicant shall be in proportion to the proposed purchase price to the total purchase price of all of the proposed investments.

(5) DURATION OF APPROVAL.—The qualified community development entity must issue the qualified investment in exchange for cash within 60 days after it receives the order approving an investment as a qualified investment, otherwise the order is void.

(6) REPORT OF ISSUANCE OF A QUALIFIED INVESTMENT.—The qualified community development entity must provide the department with evidence of the receipt of the cash in exchange for the qualified investment within 30 business days after receipt.

History.—ss. 7, 15, ch. 2009-50; s. 197, ch. 2011-142; s. 16, ch. 2012-32; s. 36, ch. 2013-42; s. 16, ch. 2014-38.

1Note.—Expires December 31, 2022, pursuant to s. 15, ch. 2009-50.