Main Street Tax Incentive Program

What is the Main Street Tax Incentive Program?

In 2005, the State of Washington passed legislation allowing businesses to earmark their state B&O tax dollars for communities with approved downtown revitalization programs. Experiene Chehalis was awarded the Main Street status in May 2014.

A look at the program

A tax credit equal to 75% of your contribution is available through the Washington State Department of Revenue’s Main Street tax credit program. The credit may be claimed in the calendar year immediately following the calendar year in which the credit was approved by the department and the contribution was made to the program. Your credit may not be carried over to subsequent years and no refund may be granted for your credit.

How it works

An example: a business contributes $10,000 to our Experience Chehalis Main Street program this year. The business will receive a $7,500 B&O tax credit to be used next year. The contribution can be made with a single payment or incremental payments throughout the calendar year. In addition, all or part of the contribution may qualify as a 501(c)(3) charitable deduction on the federal income tax return for this year. Check with your tax advisor for more information on this deduction.

Currently, $5 million in B&O tax credits are available statewide to eligible Main Street communities. Experience Chehalis can receive up to $213,333 in B&O tax contributions annually. The credits are on a first-come, first-serve basis for Main Street communities, so don’t delay.

Why make a contribution?

Become a part of Chehalis’ vitality and success! By redirecting your B&O taxes to our local Experience Chehalis Main Street Program, you invest directly in the health and viability of Chehalis. Your B&O tax dollars are put to work here in your own community by your decision. Experience Chehalis is the only non-profit organization in our Chehalis community that can utilize the Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program. Through Main Street tax incentive contributions, Experience Chehalis will be able to continue projects. A sampling of projects include:

Coordinating ongoing projects supporting economic development and our business community. These include choose local programs, six grants programs for businesses, actively promoting available spaces for rent/sale, and ongoing conversations with our businesses. As of 2024, nearly 100 small business grants have been awarded by Experience Chehalis.
Downtown beautification efforts highlight the uniqueness and vibrancy of Chehalis. This includes new murals and artwork throughout town, banners, benches, downtown flower plantings, holiday decorations, bike racks, wayfinding signage, and much more!
Protecting the historic nature of downtown Chehalis. With all projects, you can be assured that Chehalis’ unique character will be preserved and highlighted with thought and care.
Utilizing marketing and promotion to highlight Chehalis through our website, social media, e-newsletter, brochures and other collateral pieces, event promotion, and the list goes on…
Partnerships are key! Whenever possible, we leverage our projects with our local partners, including our local business community, the City of Chehalis, Port of Chehalis, Lewis County, Centralia Downtown Association, Economic Alliance of Lewis County, United Way of Lewis County, the Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce, Twin Cities Rotary, Lewis County Historical Museum, Chehalis-Centralia Railroad, Veterans Memorial Museum, and many others.

Make your pledge today!

Designating your tax dollars toward your community can be completed in eight easy steps.

Sign into your account by clicking “Log in”. The website is dor.wa.gov.
Click “More Excise Tax Options” in the excise tax account.
Click “Manage/Apply for a Tax Credit”.
Click “Add Main Street Application”.
Enter the contribution amount you want in the “Contribution Column” for the Chehalis Community Renaissance Team. (Organization announced name change to Experience Chehalis on March 14, 2022. Organization on DOR system will have organization listed as Chehalis Community Renaissance Team in 2022). The remaining credit shows in the far right column. Note: If the credit remaining for CCRT is 0.00, you will not be able to contribute to CCRT until after April 1st, if the statewide cap has not been met. On April 1st, eligible main street communities may receive additional contributions if the statewide cap has not been met, based on the following:
- A first-come, first-serve basis
- Up to the $213,333.33 individual main street community cap
Fill in the required information and hit submit.
Your application is now complete. Print a copy of the confirmation for your records.

To ensure your B&O tax credit, write a check for the approved amount of your pledge to our new name, Experience Chehalis. The check must be received by Experience Chehalis no later than November 15. The credit can only be used on excise tax return(s) due the following calendar year. You must make your total approved contribution to Experience Chehalis by November 15 to be eligible to use the credit toward your Business and Occupation (B&O) and/or Public Utility Tax (PUT) liability. And remember, this contribution is renewable annually.