Policy Update
Opportunity Zones — Federal Updates + Model Legislation in Maryland
There has been a flurry of recent federal activity on Opportunity Zones (OZs). The IRS released its second round of proposed OZ guidance, several major developments came from the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council, HUD released an overview of activities in OZs and a request for input, and important bipartisan legislation is reported to be advancing. Read the update from Enterprise.
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan signed a bill on April 30 requiring reporting on projects in Opportunity Zones that also receive state tax credits, financing or funding. The Maryland legislation requires these projects to report the full financing, who the investors are, the number of jobs created, and economic impact. "This legislation goes a long way toward ensuring transparency and community involvement in Opportunity Zone investments,” said Odette Ramos, Executive Director of the Community Development Network of Maryland, a NACEDA member. Ramos was intimately involved in crafting and passing this legislation. “Adding tax incentives and enhancements will also help make sure the investments are spread throughout our state,” she noted.
Regulators Provide Public Comment on CRA Progress; Congressional Subcommittee Holds Hearing
Officials from the Federal Reserve, OCC, and FDIC made public comments in April about their progress on reforms to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). According to an American Banker article, "Regulators signaled the agencies agree on the need for a clearer and consistent method for grading CRA compliance, but may stop short of developing a single CRA metric. They appeared to support some type of expansion for CRA assessment areas to capture more of a bank's digital activities, but not do so in a way to detract from community reinvestment now centered on the branch networks. Officials also hinted that regulators may consider limiting the amount of CRA credit a bank can receive for securities-related activities." FDIC Chairwoman Jelena McWilliams said she was hopeful CRA reforms could be completed by March 2020.
Meanwhile, the Housse Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions convened a hearing on April 9 entitled, The Community Reinvestment Act: Assessing the Law's Impact on Discrimination and Redlining.
Get Ready for "Our Homes, Our Voices" National Housing Week of Action
On May 30 - June 5, housing and community development advocates across the country will urge Congress to to invest in solutions to homelessness and housing poverty. Organizations across the country will help put the housing crisis on a national stage by hosting a rallies, congressional call-in days, voter-registration drives, press conferences, teach-ins, meetings with elected officials, affordable housing site visits with members of Congress, and more. Get involved.
People & Places 2019 participants went to Capitol Hill to protect federal appropriations for housing and community development, the Community Reinvestment Act, the CFPB Payday Lending Rule, more. View issue priorities in the Hill Day packet.
Thriving Networks
Luke Forrest Named Executive Director of Community Economic Development Association of Michigan
Luke has dedicated most of his professional career to assisting and advocating on behalf of Michigan's communities. For the past eight years, he led a team of staff and consultants that created innovative education and technical assistance programs at the Michigan Municipal League. This team worked in communities large and small, rural and urban, on topics such as placemaking, redevelopment, and environmental sustainability. Previously, Luke worked as a legislative staffer and lobbyist in Washington, DC and as the public policy director for Metro Matters, an organization focused on regional collaboration in metro Detroit. He holds degrees in urban planning and real estate development from the University of Michigan. Most importantly, he is a proud father of two elementary-aged children who teach him patience, humility, new methods of long division, and the lyrics to "Hamilton". He volunteers as a youth baseball and basketball coach. His favorite album of all time is "What's Going On?" by Marvin Gaye.
California's $6 Billion Legislative Victory - Associations Share Best Practices
In November 2018, Californians overwhelmingly passed Propositions 1 and 2, a combined $6 billion for affordable and supportive housing after a highly coordinated multi-sector, multi-regional effort. Four of the associations that organized the campaign share lessons learned in the Shelterforce article, The Collaboration Behind California’s Successful Statewide Ballot Campaign for Housing. Nur Kausar of Housing California, a NACEDA member, emphasizes the importance of resident engagement networks in the campaign.
Watch for a NACEDA State Legislative Update Next Week
Learn about legislative victories in Washington, Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, and Cook County, Illinois — and the community development associations that helped make them possible.
National CAPACD Releases Small Business, Big Dreams
The report documents the challenges faced by Asian American and Pacific Islander small businesses in low-income communities and highlights the innovative strategies deployed by the organizations that serve them.
Healthy Places
Health Partnerships and Grassroots Capacity-Building Spotlighted at People & Places 2019
Build Healthy Places Network and Community Catalyst were co-hosts of People & Places 2019. They brought together health providers and community development practitioners from across the country to discuss solutions working in their communities. Click on these session titles to access presentations, session descriptions, and speaker bios on Community Development Partnerships in Rural and Small Cities and Building Grassroots Capacity to Engage Local Healthcare Institutions in Community Development. Citi Community Development, BBVA Compass, and ArtPlace America were the premier sponsors of People & Places 2019.
Philadelphia Association Magazine Focuses On Health & Community Development
Vital Signs: The Intersection of Health & Community Development was just released by the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations, a NACEDA member. "This year's publication focuses on the compelling and inspiring work being undertaken in collaboration with a range of health care institutions, health care practitioners, community activists, and CDCs, all working to advance Philadelphia’s neighborhoods," said their Board Chair Maria Gonzalez and Executive Director Rick Sauer. The magazine includes articles on a trauma-informed care approach to community development, place-based arts and health equity, a healthcare partnership playbook for community developers, the Philadelphia Collaborative for Health Equity, and much more.
5 Principles for Building Healthy & Prosperous Communities
Build Healthy Places Network has identified these principles for building cross-sector partnerships and collaborations with the health sector.
1. Collaborate with the community
2. Embed equity
3. Mobilize across sectors
4. Increase prosperity to improve health
5. Commit over the long term.
Learn more.
Creative Places
People & Places participants created living pictures of the change they want to create.
People & Places 2019 Featured Arts-Based Engagement
The arts and placemaking were woven into People & Places 2019 thanks to generous funding from ArtPlace America, and guidance from PolicyLink and ArtPlace. The event provided participants with concrete and inspiring examples how they can utilize arts and culture to advance racial equity, organize communities, and invigorate community identity. NACEDA partnered with PolicyLink to present the pre-conference workshop, Claiming the Torch: Community Organizations Advancing Racial Equity in which participants used a technique called Tableau Vivant to create living pictures of their organizational challenges then physically model solutions. Arts and culture strategies and experiences were key components of sessions on Voter Engagement, Rural Arts & Design, and Reimagining Community Engagement sessions. Americans for the Arts, an event co-host, organized a session on Cultivating Diverse Talent. Spoken Word Storyteller Hannah Hasan closed People & Places 2019 with a poem written at the event. View her inspiring performance of To the People Who Hold Space.
Upcoming Events
Ohio CDC Association
How Creative Placemaking Can Unlock The Power Of Your Small Town
May 8 | Lancaster, Ohio
The National Consortium for Creative Placemaking
Creative Placemaking Leadership Summit
June 20-22 | Los Angeles, CA
Resources
$99 GrantStation Special
1-year membership available through Tech Soup | May 14-15 only
Job Postings
Executive Director
South Florida Community Development Coalition | Miami, FL
Associate Director
Community Development Network of Maryland | Virtual Office
Executive Director
Center For Neighborhoods | Louisville, Ky
Communications & Policy Associate
Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania | Jenkintown, PA with some flexibility to Philadelphia, PA
Digital Communications Associate
Housing California | Sacramento, CA
Statewide Organizer
Housing California | Sacramento, CA
Director of Field Building
Build Healthy Places Network | San Francisco, CA
Fundraising Manager
National Coalition of Asian Pacific American Community Development | Washington, DC
Application Reviewers - Call for Community Economic Development Practitioners
Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund
May 3 deadline - payment by honorarium
To post a job opportunity, contact Suzanne Gunther. A $25 donation is suggested.
Funding Opportunities
Go to our website for current grant opportunities. They're updated throughout the month.
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