Treasury Reports Continued Growth in Opportunity Zones Investment

The U.S. Department of the Treasury recently released a working paper, Use of the Opportunity Zones Tax Incentive through 2024: An Update, reporting continued growth in Opportunity Zones (OZ) investment. Total qualified investment reached $112 billion through tax year 2024, up from $44 billion reported through tax year 2020. The report also found that 77 percent of designated Opportunity Zones have received qualified investment, compared to 48 percent in Treasury's original analysis. The paper updates Treasury's 2023 analysis of the program and provides additional data on the use of the OZ tax incentive as policymakers continue to evaluate the program's future.

Read the Working Paper Here


House Passes FY 2027 NDAA with Major Maritime Provisions

On July 23, 2026, Representatives Mike Kelly (R-PA) and Nathaniel Moran (R-TX) introduced the Shipbuilding Investment and Workforce Act (H.R.9911), legislation that would establish a new Maritime Prosperity Zones (MPZ) program modeled after the Opportunity Zones initiative. The bill would authorize up to 100 Maritime Prosperity Zones to attract private investment into shipbuilding, maritime manufacturing, workforce development, and critical supply chain industries. Through targeted tax incentives, the legislation aims to encourage investment in waterfront communities while expanding domestic shipbuilding capacity and strengthening the nation’s maritime competitiveness. The proposal comes as Congress continues to focus on rebuilding the U.S. maritime industrial base and addressing the workforce and infrastructure needs of the domestic shipbuilding industry.

Read the Shipbuilding Investment and Workforce Act


House Passes FY 2027 NDAA with Major Maritime Provisions

On July 22, 2026, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes significant provisions aimed at strengthening the nation’s maritime industry and shipbuilding capacity. The legislation would modernize federal maritime policy through expanded shipbuilding financing tools, workforce development initiatives, new cargo preference requirements favoring U.S.-flagged vessels, and the creation of a Maritime Security Trust Fund to support long-term investment in maritime infrastructure. The provisions reflect growing congressional interest in rebuilding the U.S. maritime industrial base, strengthening domestic supply chains, and supporting America’s ports and shipyards. The NDAA now moves to the Senate, where lawmakers will consider the legislation and work to reconcile differences later this year.

Read the Fiscal Year 2027 NDAA


Fiscal Sponsorship Transparency Act (H.R. 9721) Advances to Full House

On July 22, 2026, the House Ways and Means Committee voted 23-15 to advance the Fiscal Sponsorship Transparency Act (H.R. 9721) to the full House for consideration. Introduced by Representative Lloyd Smucker (R-PA) on July 16, the legislation would require certain public charities that serve as fiscal sponsors for non-exempt or unincorporated projects to report additional information about those arrangements on their annual IRS Form 990 filings. Fiscal sponsorship allows established charities to accept tax-deductible donations on behalf of projects or organizations that have not yet obtained their own tax-exempt status. H.R. 9721 would require public disclosure of fiscal sponsorship arrangements and establish penalties for organizations that improperly funnel charitable donations to non-exempt entities.

Read the Fiscal Sponsorship Transparency Act Here


Biomass Facility Construction Act (H.R. 9746) Introduced in U.S. House

On July 16, 2026, Representative Kevin Kiley (R-CA) introduced the Biomass Facility Construction Act (H.R. 9746), which would establish a tax credit equal to 30 percent of the cost of constructing qualified biomass facilities. The bill would also allow eligible facilities to claim the new construction tax credit in addition to the existing federal tax credit for electricity generated from biomass. The legislation aims to encourage the development of additional biomass facilities that could support wildfire mitigation efforts by increasing capacity to process excess forest biomass. H.R. 9746 has been referred to the House Ways and Means Committee for consideration.

Read the Biomass Facility Construction Act


Major Housing Package Becomes Law

On July 11, 2026, the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act became law, marking the first major bipartisan housing package enacted since the 1990s. The legislation is intended to increase housing affordability through a range of housing policy reforms and previously passed both the House and Senate with bipartisan support. CDFA will continue monitoring implementation of the law and any related federal guidance as the new provisions are put into effect.

Read the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act Here


Tax-Exempt Hospital Transparency Act (H.R. 9504) Advances to Full House

On July 1, 2026, the House Ways and Means Committee advanced the Tax-Exempt Hospital Transparency Act (H.R. 9504) to the full House for consideration. Introduced on June 29, the legislation would require tax-exempt hospitals to report additional information on their existing IRS Form 990, including details on charity care, community health needs assessments, and facility policies. Larger tax-exempt hospitals with more than 100 inpatient beds and/or more than $100 million in net patient revenue would face additional reporting requirements covering financial assistance, spending to address community health needs, quality improvement, nonclinical programming, advertising, health service lines, and use of the 340B drug discount program.

Read the Tax-Exempt Hospital Transparency Act


IRS Issues Transitional Opportunity Zones Guidance

On June 18, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Notice 2026-40, providing transitional guidance for the Opportunity Zones (OZ) program following changes enacted in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The notice outlines how the current OZ framework will transition to the revised program beginning in 2027 and previews proposed regulations that Treasury and the IRS intend to issue. For the development finance community, the guidance provides greater clarity on the timeline for newly designated Qualified Opportunity Zones (QOZs), transition rules for existing Qualified Opportunity Funds (QOFs), and how certain projects may continue to qualify after current zone designations expire. While the notice does not finalize the regulations, it provides important direction as stakeholders prepare for the next phase of the Opportunity Zones program. CDFA will continue monitoring Treasury's forthcoming regulations and share additional guidance as it becomes available.

Read the Transitional Guidance Here


CDFA's Modernizing Agricultural and Manufacturing Bonds Act (MAMBA) Introduced in U.S. House (H.R.9100)

The Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) and the National Council of State Agricultural Finance Programs (NCOSAFP) are pleased to announce that U.S. Representatives Darin LaHood (IL-16), Randy Feenstra (IA-04), Terri Sewell (AL-07) and Dwight Evans (PA-03) have introduced the Modernizing Agricultural and Manufacturing Bonds Act (MAMBA) in the U.S. House as H.R.9100. MAMBA represents the most comprehensive reform to manufacturing and agricultural bonds since the 1980s. This piece of legislation will help drive U.S. global competitiveness, grow small manufacturers, and drive growth in American communities. With a companion bill introduced in the Senate–S.2100–MAMBA has now been introduced in both chambers. CDFA and NCOSAFP will work with their members and partners across the country to push this legislation through Congress for full passage.

Learn About MAMBA


CDFA Featured in The Bond Buyer: Mega Muni Bill Explored

In a recent interview with The Bond Buyer, CDFA President and CEO Toby Rittner discussed ongoing efforts to work with members of the Public Finance Network and other stakeholders to develop a broad municipal bond reform package aimed at expanding and modernizing development finance tools. The proposed “mega muni bill” would include a range of technical corrections and policy updates, including restoring advance refunding, increasing the bank-qualified debt limit, reforming manufacturing and agriculture bonds, reinstating the Federal Home Loan Bank letter of credit program, and making 501(c)(3) bonds bank qualified. CDFA and its partners view the current congressional environment as an opportunity to advance long-standing bond priorities that would strengthen issuers’ ability to finance infrastructure, community facilities, manufacturing, and economic development projects nationwide.

Read the Full Article


The Municipal Investment and Neighborhood Transformation (MINT) Act Introduced in Congress

CDFA strongly supports the introduction of the Municipal Investment and Neighborhood Transformation (MINT) Act (H.R. 7769 / S. 3941) by Senators Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Young (R-IN), and Representatives McClain (R-MI) and Liccardo (D-CA). This bipartisan legislation would restore the authority of Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks) to provide letters of credit for non-housing related tax-exempt bonds, an authority CDFA has long supported. By leveraging the FHLBanks’ strong credit ratings, the MINT Act would help reduce borrowing costs and expand access to credit enhancement, particularly for small and mid-sized issuers. During its temporary authorization from 2008 to 2010, this tool supported nearly $4 billion in financing across 129 projects. Restoring this authority would strengthen municipalities’ ability to finance critical infrastructure and community development projects including schools, healthcare facilities, water systems, and more. CDFA will continue advocating for passage of the MINT Act and will provide updates as the legislation advances.

Read the MINT Act


Development finance agencies are encouraged to let their voices be heard on Capitol Hill. To get engaged, contact CDFA.

Overview

CDFA is committed to fulfilling numerous development finance policy objectives in the 119th Congress (2025-2026), including the improvement of tax-exempt bonds, reinstatement of the brownfields redevelopment tax incentive, and continued support for critical federal financing programs. This agenda is borne out of CDFA’s four decades as a national leader in the development finance industry and is crafted to address market-based access to capital challenges. CDFA is prepared to assist Congress with implementation of the following policy priorities:

• INTRODUCED: Priority 1: Reform Manufacturing and Agricultural Bonds - Passing the Modernizing Agricultural and Manufacturing Bonds Act will update the tax code's private activity bond rules for Industrial Development Bonds and Agricultural Bonds.


• Priority 2: Create Permanent Disaster Recovery Bonds - Create a permanent bond financing tool that can be accessed immediately after disaster strikes, and that can leverage private investment for longer-term redevelopment of essential infrastructure.


• ACHIEVED: Priority 3: - Preserving and Protecting Tax-Exempt Bonds - It is imperative that the Administration and Congress preserve and protect tax-exempt bonds as part of any update to the federal tax code. Proposals to restrict, cap, and/or eliminate the tax-exemption status of municipal and private activity bonds should be opposed, while the tax exemption itself should be strengthened where possible.


• Priority 4: Strengthening the State Small Business Credit Initiative - The State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) is a practical, pragmatic, and proven program that is helping America’s small businesses access lower-cost capital, thereby creating high-quality jobs – especially in underserved communities. An opportunity exists to bolster SSBCI by expediting Treasury’s review of applications and disbursement of funds for this program. In addition, additional funding for the SSBCI program would go a long way toward ensuring an evergreen state presence in supporting small business development.


• ACHIEVED: Priority 5: Revitalizing Opportunity Zones - Opportunity Zones, created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017, were established to spur economic development and job creation in distressed and rural parts of the country. Opportunity Zones 2.0 was enacted as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), which was signed into law on July 4, 2025. The legislation made the Opportunity Zones program permanent while updating its framework to strengthen and improve the program. As implementation moves forward, ensuring effective guidance and supporting successful deployment of the updated program should remain a major policy priority for the Administration and the 119th Congress.


• Priority 6: Expanding Affordable Housing Inventory - Affordable housing development must be a critical focus of the Administration and the 119th Congress. In 2024, bipartisan, thoughtful legislation known as the Revitalizing Downtowns and Main Streets Act was introduced and would create a temporary federal tax credit to encourage the conversion of vacant and underutilized commercial properties into residential housing.


• ACHIEVED: Priority 7: Permanently Authorizing New Markets Tax Credit - The New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program, created in 2000 to incentivize community development and economic growth in under-resourced neighborhoods, was made permanent through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Permanently extending the NMTC program provides greater certainty for community development efforts and gives private sector investors an enhanced ability to drive capital where it is most needed. As implementation continues, ensuring the long-term success of the program should remain a key federal policy priority.

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