H.R. 8501House119th Congress (2025-2027)In Committee

Rehabilitation of Historic Schools Act of 2026

Introduced April 27, 2026

AI-Generated Summary

Updated May 5, 2026 at 1:10 PM UTC

The Rehabilitation of Historic Schools Act of 2026 changes the tax code so that money spent fixing up public school buildings can qualify for the federal rehabilitation tax credit. It adds a new rule that the credit can be claimed for any public school that was used as an educational facility within the five years before the renovation and continues to be used as such afterward. The law also requires the Treasury to report on how the credit is used, especially in low‑income areas.

Key Provisions

  • Amends the Internal Revenue Code to create a new sub‑clause that allows rehabilitation expenditures for public school buildings to be eligible for the rehabilitation tax credit.
  • Specifies that the credit applies to schools that were used as qualified public educational facilities within the five‑year period before the renovation and remain in use after the work is done.
  • Mandates that the Secretary of the Treasury, after consulting with relevant agencies, report to Congress within five years on the number of schools and students benefiting, especially in low‑income communities, and the amount of qualified expenditures.
  • The amendment takes effect for any property placed in service after the law’s enactment.

Legislative Activity

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HouseIntro Referral Latest Action

Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

April 27, 2026

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HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

April 27, 2026

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

April 27, 2026

Floor Debate

1 member

What members said about H.R. 8501 on the floor

1 Republican
Monica De La Cruz
Rep. Monica De La CruzR-TX-15 · Jul 9, 2026

Under clause 7 of rule XII, sponsors were added to public bills and resolutions, as follows: H.R. 7: Mr. Van Epps. H.R. 138: Ms. Norton, Ms. Hoyle of Oregon, and Mr. Calvert. H.R. 491: Ms. Wilson of…

Bill Text

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Introduced in HouseIssued April 27, 2026

I

119th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 8501

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 27, 2026

Mr. Evans of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Ms. Norton, Ms. Scanlon, and Ms. Schakowsky) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

A BILL

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow rehabilitation expenditures for public school buildings to qualify for rehabilitation credit.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Rehabilitation of Historic Schools Act of 2026.

2.

Qualification of rehabilitation expenditures for public school buildings for rehabilitation credit

(a)

In general

Section 47(c)(2)(B)(v) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new subclause:

(III)

Clause not to apply to public schools

This clause shall not apply in the case of the rehabilitation of any building which was used as a qualified public educational facility (as defined in section 142(k)(1), determined without regard to subparagraph (B) thereof) at any time during the 5-year period ending on the date that such rehabilitation begins and which is used as such a facility immediately after such rehabilitation.

.

(b)

Report

Not later than the date which is 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, after consultation with the heads of appropriate Federal agencies, shall report to Congress on the effects resulting from the amendment made by subsection (a), including—

(1)

the number of qualified public education facilities rehabilitated (stated separately with respect to each State) and the number of students using such facilities (stated separately with respect to each such State),

(2)

the number of qualified public education facilities rehabilitated in low income communities (as section 45D(e)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) and the number of students using such facilities,

(3)

the amount of qualified rehabilitation expenditures for each qualified public education facility rehabilitated, and

(4)

and any other data determined by the Secretary to be useful in evaluating the impact of such amendment.

(c)

Effective date

The amendment made by this section shall apply to property placed in service after the date of the enactment of this Act.