Brief A New Agenda for Community Development Finance
Subtitle
Seven Big Ideas to Expand Access to Capital, Lessen Racial Disparities, and Tackle Persistent Poverty
Brett Theodos, Tim Ferguson, Robin Hacke, Lisa Mensah, Brady Meixell
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In this brief, we identify seven big ideas to address these concerns that together constitute our “New Agenda for Community Development Finance.” These are (1) an expansion of the Community Reinvestment Act to cover insurance companies, pension funds, investment firms, and other financial institutions; (2) a new federal corporate standard to promote investment in local communities; (3) time-limited disbursal requirements for donor-advised funds (DAFs); (4) revisions to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to encompass social as well as financial outcomes; and three new federal expenditure proposals: (5) the creation of a Local Equity Tax Credit, (6) the quadrupling of CDFI Fund grant awards, and (7) substantial revisions to the Opportunity Zone incentive. This brief builds upon “Building the Double Bottom Line: How a New Corporate Compact Could Birth a Community Development Renaissance” from the Urban Institute’s Opportunity for All project.

Research and Evidence Research to Action Housing and Communities Upward Mobility
Expertise Community and Economic Development Thriving Cities and Neighborhoods Wealth and Financial Well-Being Upward Mobility and Inequality Center for Local Finance and Growth
Tags Wealth inequality Mobility Inequality and mobility Capital flows Community development finance and CDFIs