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_____ 711 H. All revenue from the payment rate assessment shall be deposited into the Health Care Provider Payment Rate Assessment Fund, a special non-reverting fund in the state treasury. Proceeds from the payment rate assessment, excluding penalties, shall not be used for any other purpose than to fund (i) an increase in inpatient and outpatient payment rates paid to private acute care hospitals operating in Virginia up to the private hospital “upper payment limit" and “managed care organization hospital payment gap" for care provided to recipients of medical assistance services, and (ii) the administrative costs of collecting the assessment and of implementing and operating the associated payment rate actions. I. The department shall have the authority to submit a State Plan amendment and preprint to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to revise the “net patient service revenue" calculation for the state in accordance with CMS regulations to include currently excluded providers to attain the maximum assessment allowed under federal law as the upper limit of total assessments. The department shall have the authority to implement this change effective July 1, 2024, and prior to the completion of any regulatory process undertaken in order to effect such change. I.J. Any provision of this Section is contingent upon approval by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services if necessary. § 3-5.16 TOBACCO TAX STUDY The Joint Subcommittee to Evaluate Tax Preferences is hereby directed to continue studying options for the modernization of § 58.1-1001(A), Code of Virginia, to reflect advances in science and technology in the area of tobacco harm reduction, and the role innovative non-combustible tobacco products can play in reducing harm, including products that produce vapor or aerosol from heating tobacco or liquid nicotine. In addition, the Joint Subcommittee shall study possible reforms to the taxation of tobacco products that will provide fairness and equity for all local governments and also ensure stable tax revenues for the Commonwealth. The Joint Subcommittee shall complete its study and submit a final report with recommended reforms to the Finance Committees of the Virginia Senate and Virginia House of Delegates. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance for this study, upon request. §3-5.17 HISTORIC PRESERVATION TAX CREDIT A. Notwithstanding § 58.1-339.2 or any other provision of law, effective for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2017, but before January 1, 2025, the amount of the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit that may be claimed by each taxpayer, including amounts carried over from prior taxable years, shall not exceed $5 million for any taxable year. B. Notwithstanding § 58.1-339.2 or any other provision of law, effective for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2025, the amount of the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit that may be claimed by each taxpayer, including amounts carried over from prior taxable years, shall not exceed $7.5 million for any taxable year. § 3-5.18 NEIGHBORHOOD ASSISTANCE ACT TAX CREDIT A. Notwithstanding § 58.1-439.20 or any other provision of law, for fiscal Year 2025 and fiscal year 2026, the amount of the Neighborhood Assistance Act Tax Credit available under § 58.1-439.18 et seq., Code of Virginia, shall be limited to $20 million allocated as follows: $12.0 million for education proposals for approval by the Superintendent of Public Instruction and $8.0 million for all other proposals for approval by the Commissioner of the State Department of Social Services. In making such equitable allocation of credits, the Commissioner of Social Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall consider the portion of a neighborhood organization's revenues and expenses that are used to serve low-income persons and shall not rely solely on the amount of credits allocated to the neighborhood organization in the prior year in allocating available credits. B. For purposes of this section, the term "individual" means the same as that term is defined in § 58.1-302, but excluding any individual included in the definition of a "business firm" as such term is defined in § 58.1-439.18. C. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or regulation, in order to be eligible to receive an allocation of credits pursuant to § 58.1-439.20:1, Code of Virginia, at least 50 percent of the persons served by the neighborhood organization, either directly by the neighborhood organization or through the provision of revenues to other organizations or groups serving such persons, shall be low-income persons or eligible students with disabilities and at least 50 percent of the neighborhood organization's revenues shall be used to provide services to low-income persons or to eligible students with disabilities, either directly by the neighborhood organization or through the provision of revenues to other organizations or groups providing such services. A tax credit shall be issued by the Superintendent of Public Instruction or the Commissioner of Social Services to an individual only upon receipt of a certification made by a neighborhood organization to whom tax credits were allocated for an approved program pursuant to § 58.1-439.20, § 58.1-439.20:1 or this language. § 3-5.19 CIGARETTE TAX, TOBACCO PRODUCTS TAX AND TAX ON LIQUID NICOTINE A.1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law except as provided in subdivision 2, the cigarette tax imposed under subsection A1 of § 58.1-1001 of the Code of Virginia shall be 3.0 cents on each cigarette sold, stored or received on and after July 1, 2020. 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the excise tax imposed under subsection A2 of § 58.1-1001 of the Code of