EDA Policy Actions and Investments in Support of Opportunity Zones Prominently Featured in White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council Report to the President

Report Outlines Best Practices and Features Examples of Community Revitalization Occurring Across the Nation in Opportunity Zones

A White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council (Council) report that was delivered to (PDF) President Donald J. Trump this month outlining Opportunity Zone best practices and examples of revitalization occurring across America prominently features policy actions and grants made by the Economic Development Administration (EDA) that are generating investment in Opportunity Zones.

Created by President Donald J. Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, Opportunity Zones are spurring economic development in economically-distressed communities nationwide.

The report includes inspiring stories happening in real time, with action being taken by state governments, local governments, Qualified Opportunity Funds, public-private partnerships, and others to spur revitalizing investments in communities of most need across the country.

EDA’s role in making investments in economically distressed communities fits hand in glove with the goal of the Opportunity Zones initiative.

Since Fiscal Year 2018, EDA has invested $456 million in 345 projects in and near Opportunity Zones across the United States. With $1.5 billion in EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance funding now available to help communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, these numbers will continue to grow.

EDA has made several significant policy changes in regard to Opportunity Zones, including:

• In 2018, EDA made Opportunity Zones eligible for funding from any bureau Notice of Funding Opportunity, or NOFO, the agency issues by putting them in its special needs category. This allows the agency to consider Opportunity Zone applications regardless of the specific level of economic distress.
• Last year, EDA also added Opportunity Zones as an Investment Priority, which further prioritized them as an area of focus for grantmaking.

Through these policy actions the number of catalytic Opportunity Zone-related projects that EDA has funded has increased dramatically and are anticipated to continue to do so.

EDA congratulates our grantees that are featured in this report, Council partners, and the many others working to transform their communities on the incredible work they are doing!

We encourage you to read the report and see how our grantees and others are capitalizing on the Opportunity Zone initiative to spur transformative economic development in their communities and regions.

For more information on how the Trump Administration is working to support investment in Opportunity Zones, including a Community Tool Kit, please visit OpportunityZones.gov. For more on how EDA can help spur investment in Opportunity Zones, please visit our Opportunity Zone webpage.