The CDFA Legislative Team will be hosting its second Quarterly Legislative Update of 2019, where we'll discuss the latest news on CDFA advocacy efforts. The primary topics for discussion will include a progress report on pending CDFA legislation, a discussion of other pending development finance legislation, as well as what to expect from Congress in the coming months.

LISC, with support from the Ford Foundation and in collaboration with CDFA, has released Navigating the Opportunity Zones: Community Partners. The release is the first installment of the LISC Opportunity Zones Playbook series and is geared to the people and organizations committed to community revitalization and shared prosperity for all residents.

With little fanfare, crews recently broke ground at "The 78," a massive development replacing a 62-acre vacant lot along the Chicago River's south branch. The work is significant because it marks the initial phase of the construction of mixed-use megadevelopment as well as the final stage of the Wells-Wentworth Connector project.

Appleton Partners has announced a strategy to invest in select tax-exempt bonds offered by municipal bond issuers that may be poised for credit upgrades and price appreciation sparked by Opportunity Zones.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has more than $2 billion still available this year to invest in community facilities and infrastructure projects in rural areas through the Community Facilities Direct Loan Program for 40 rural communities, benefiting 631,000 rural residents.

USDA is making the $192 million investment through the Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant program. Rural communities, water districts, and other eligible entities can use the funds for drinking water, stormwater drainage, and waste disposal systems in rural communities with 10,000 or fewer residents.

Emboldened by the authority to issue bonds to fund broadband infrastructure, rural communities are taking the deployment of high-speed internet into their own hands, frankly because they have no other choice.

Legislation, which would authorize municipalities to facilitate public or private financing of water conservation, storm resiliency projects, and energy projects through the use of voluntary special assessments, was passed by the Senate.

The House of Representatives passed a five-bill appropriations package allocating $86.6 billion to the Department of Transportation, $167 million more than in 2019. The funds would be dispersed to BUILD grants, the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, and port infrastructure among others.

Municipal Water Bond Deals priced in Ohio and New York City. Revenue Bonds issued by the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority were also priced. This article covers them, as well as a bevy of additional bond deals.

The CDFA Legislative Team will be hosting its second Quarterly Legislative Update of 2019, where we'll discuss the latest news on CDFA advocacy efforts. The primary topics for discussion will include a progress report on pending CDFA legislation, a discussion of other pending development finance legislation, as well as what to expect from Congress in the coming months

>>> SEARCH HEADLINES   

EPA's Brownfields Program provides direct funding for brownfields assessment, cleanup, revolving loans, environmental job training, technical assistance, training, and research. To facilitate the leveraging of public resources, EPA's Brownfields Program collaborates with other EPA programs, other federal partners and state agencies to identify and make available resources that can be used for brownfield activities.

Although household growth is returning to a more normal pace, Harvard's new State of the Nation's Housing report shows that housing production still falls short of what is needed, which is keeping the pressure on house prices and rents and eroding affordability. While demographic trends alone should support a vibrant housing market over the coming decade, realizing this potential depends heavily on whether the market can provide a broader and more affordable range of housing options for tomorrow's households...

On April 25, 2017, the President of the United States established the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity through Executive Order 13790. The purpose and function of the Task Force was to identify legislative, regulatory, and policy changes to promote agriculture, economic development, job growth, infrastructure improvements, technological innovation, energy security, and quality of life in rural America.

>>> SEARCH ONLINE RESOURCE DATABASE