404A.3  Approval of rehabilitation project.
  1.  a.  In order for costs of a rehabilitation project to qualify for a tax credit, the rehabilitation project must receive approval from the state historic preservation office of the department of cultural affairs.
  b.  Applications for approvals from the state historic preservation office of the department of cultural affairs shall be on forms approved by the state historic preservation office and shall contain information as required by the state historic preservation office. The information shall at least include the approximate date of the start of rehabilitation, the approximate date of completion, as well as the cost.
  c.  The approval process shall not exceed ninety days beginning from the date on which a completed application is received by the state historic preservation office. After the ninety-day limit, the rehabilitation project is deemed to be approved unless the state historic preservation office has denied the application or contacted the applicant for further information regarding the application.
  2.  The state historic preservation office shall establish selection criteria and standards for rehabilitation projects involving eligible property. The main emphasis of the standards shall be to ensure that a rehabilitation project maintains the integrity of the eligible property. To the extent applicable, the standards shall be consistent with the standards of the United States secretary of the interior for rehabilitation of eligible property.
  3.  a.  A rehabilitation project for which the state historic preservation office has reserved tax credits pursuant to section 404A.4 shall begin rehabilitation of the property before the end of the fiscal year in which the project application was approved and for which the tax credits were reserved.
  b.  The eligible property shall be placed in service within sixty months of the date on which the project application was approved under this section.
  c.  A rehabilitation project for which a project application was approved and tax credits reserved prior to July 1, 2009, shall complete the project and place the building in service on or before June 30, 2011, notwithstanding the time period specified in paragraph “b”.
  4.  A rehabilitation project that does not meet the requirements of subsection 3 is subject to revocation, repayment, or recapture of tax credits reserved or approved pursuant to this chapter.
2000 Acts, ch 1194, §5, 20; 2002 Acts, ch 1119, §162; 2005 Acts, ch 150, §22; 2009 Acts, ch 98, §2; 2011 Acts, ch 99, §3, 6

2011 amendment to subsection 3, paragraph b, applies retroactively to July 1, 2009, for projects approved and tax credits reserved on or after that date; 2011 Acts, ch 99, §6