Amoco Production Company v. United States Department of the Interior

Amoco Production Company (Amoco) (plaintiff) sought judicial review of the Department of the Interior’s (department) (defendant) denial of Amoco’s application to certify renovation of its building under the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981, which would allow Amoco to claim an income-tax credit on the renovation or to retroactively remove the building from the National Register of Historic Places. The building, located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was completed in the early 1930s and included several notable interior and exterior features. Amoco began construction on the building in the early 1980s, with the intent of meeting safety code while maintaining the building’s historical character. Amoco also sought tax incentives for the renovation under the Act, which created two avenues for tax credits related to renovation of historic buildings. Owners could pursue a 20 percent tax credit for rehabilitating any building at least 40 years old or a 25 percent tax credit for rehabilitating a certified historic building. Certified historic buildings were not eligible for the 20 percent credit. Amoco pursued the 25 percent credit despite being subject to a more rigorous certification process that required Amoco to first have the building included on the National Register and then have the rehabilitation project certified by the National Park Service (NPS), with whom the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation vested the discretion to determine whether the rehabilitation was consistent with the historic character of the building and complied with the standards. Amoco successfully sought placement on the National Register but failed to obtain the NPS’s certification of the rehabilitation project. Based on photographs, architectural drawings, and other information, the NPS found the rehabilitation did not meet the standards and was inconsistent with the building’s historic character. After Amoco’s administrative appeals were denied, Amoco sought rescission of the building’s inclusion on the National Register so Amoco could pursue the 20 percent tax credit. The NPS denied Amoco’s request, and Amoco filed for judicial review on grounds that the department’s denial of certification was arbitrary and capricious.