GOP’s Beloved Low-Income Area Tax Break Could Get Stricter Rules

The House tax-writing committee is pushing bipartisan legislation to revise a break for investments in distressed areas, following concerns that the areas most in need aren’t reaping the most benefit.

The legislative push comes after a wave of criticism that investors in areas known as opportunity zones aren’t required to report their assets or economic impact to the Treasury Department. Opportunity zones have come under fire for encompassing areas, such as parts of Brooklyn and Portland, Ore., that would have been developed without the tax incentive.

One of the proposals would require funds investing in opportunity zones to provide annual ...