Published: Jun 15, 2018
US Treasury Designates 9 Census Tracts in Marion County as Opportunity Zones
The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) today announced the final round of Opportunity Zone designations for Florida including 9 in Ocala and Marion County.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act created Opportunity Zones to spur investment in communities throughout the country. New investments in Opportunity Zones can receive preferential tax treatment.
The CEP partnered with the City of Ocala and Marion County to recommend qualified census tracts to Governor Scott for inclusion in this new program. The Governor’s recommendations were forwarded to the US Treasury and approval was granted today.
Qualified Opportunity Zones retain this designation for 10 years. Investors can defer tax on any prior gains until no later than December 31, 2026, so long as the gain is reinvested in a Qualified Opportunity Fund, an investment vehicle organized to make investments in Qualified Opportunity Zones. In addition, if the investor holds the investment in the Opportunity Fund for at least ten years, the investor would be eligible for an increase in its basis equal to the fair market value of the investment on the date that it is sold.
Treasury and the IRS recently released Opportunity Zones Frequently Asked Questions to provide additional information on this new tax incentive. To see a map of qualified census tracts, please view the CDFI mapping feature.