Tester Announces $65 Million in Community Development Tax Credits to Support Montana Small Businesses

MoFi awarded $65 million in tax credits to help Montana small businesses create jobs, expand projects

In a big win for the Treasure State’s small businesses, U.S. Senator Jon Tester today announced that MoFi—a Montana community development group—will receive a $65 million tax credit to help create jobs and foster economic growth across the state.

The tax credit comes as part of the New Market Tax Credit (NMTC) program, which benefits rural and low-income communities by providing financing and consulting services to small businesses and nonprofits. This tax credit will allow MoFi to use funding to finance small business projects across Montana.

“Whether it’s our bars and breweries, mom and pop shops, or outdoor recreation companies, Montana’s small businesses are the heart and soul of our local economies and our state,” said Tester. “During this time of crisis, when so many of these businesses are facing uncertain futures, it’s absolutely critical that we make investments into Montana’s main streets. This tax credit will help MoFi provide businesses with the resources they need to be successful, create jobs and opportunities, and help jump start our state’s economy.”

The NMTC Program is financed through the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund and provides businesses with non-refundable tax credits in exchange for making investments in Community Development Entities. MoFi has used the NMTC Program to help finance projects like the new Health Science and Education Building at Blackfeet Community College.

As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Tester is an avid proponent of the NMTC Program. He has helped MoFi secure millions of dollars in tax credits through the program, and he is pushing the U.S. Department of Treasury ensure that CDFIs like MoFi are able to disperse Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding to Montana small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.

Tester has been working closely with Montana’s main street businesses to ensure they have the resources they need to keep the lights on amid the COVID-19 pandemic. He helped create the PPP in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to help small businesses stay afloat, and he has been fighting to improve the program ever since. He recently introduced the Reviving the Economy Sustainably Towards a Recovery in Twenty-twenty (RESTART) Act to create a long-term loan program that targets small- and mid-sized businesses devastated by the public health crisis, and successfully secured expansions to the PPP allowing electric co-ops and rural hospitals to qualify for relief.