Feb. 24, 2026: Opportunity Zones: What’s Coming Next?

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), approved July 4, 2025, made the opportunity zone (OZ) incentive permanent and made several significant changes to the program. One key change is that, effective Jan. 1, 2027, each state will designate new OZs. On this episode of the Tax Credit Tuesday podcast, Michael Novogradac, CPA, and Novogradac partner Jason Watkins, CPA, discuss these changes and how they will impact tax incentives and eligibility criteria for qualified OZ investors. Novogradac and Watkins explain where the program stands and discuss a variety of issues that require guidance or clarification from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, including the designation of new census tracts. The pair also discuss how Treasury will implement the transition from OZ 1.0 to OZ 2.0. Finally, Novogradac and Watkins discuss the various efforts of the Novogradac OZ Working Group to highlight potential issues and offer recommendations for implementation guidance in the form of three letters to Treasury.