BOMA commends Congress for extension of tax provisions.

The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International applauded Congress for its passage of the tax extenders package this past weekend that included a two-year extension of the 15-year depreciation for leasehold improvements and the immediate expensing of brownfields cleanup costs.

The two provisions expired at the end of 2005 and will now be made retroactive to January 1, 2006 and extend through 2007. In addition, negotiators inserted a one-year extension of the tax deduction for energy efficient buildings that was a part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and was set to expire at the end of 2007.

This was a late edition to the package of extenders and an issue BOMA International has actively supported. The bill is expected to be signed by President Bush immediately. "These common sense tax provisions are a great victory for the commercial real estate industry" said BOMA International Chairman, Kurt R. Padavano, RPA, CPM, FMA, SMA, chief operating officer of Advance Realty Group of Bedminster, New Jersey.

"The 15-year depreciation on leasehold improvements and the immediate expensing of brownfields clean-up costs more closely reflect the realities of the marketplace. The energy tax extension will give building owners and managers a more realistic timeframe to implement energy efficient upgrades that qualify for the tax deductions included in the Energy Policy Act of 2005." BOMA International will work to extend these policies further or make them part of the permanent tax code.