Colorado Politics

Trump to ask federal agencies to move offices into ‘opportunity zones’

President Trump reportedly will encourage federal agencies to move their office spaces to “opportunity zones” his administration has designated in order to spur investments in poor areas.

The change in policy will apply to all federal agencies and ask that they “stop prioritizing city centers and central business districts,” according to the New York Post, and instead place their offices in low-income communities designated as opportunity zones by the Trump administration.

“Today’s executive order that the president is signing will ask agencies to, in their determination of where they’re going to build and lease new offices, include opportunity zones in that competitive process,” a senior White House official told the publication.

Opportunity zones were created in the tax overhaul of 2017, offering capital gains advantages to investors as a way to encourage new businesses, housing, and jobs. The program has driven more than $75 billion in private investment into low-income communities in the past two years after it was created, according to a report released Monday by the White House Council of Economic Advisers.

The zones were expected to reduce federal revenues by $1.6 billion over a 10-year period, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation, Congress’s official scorekeeper.

Democrats opposed the tax breaks and have drawn attention to reports that very wealthy people, such as financier Michael Milken, have taken advantage of opportunity zone designations. 

ProPublica reported last November that a “superyacht marina” qualified as an opportunity zone. Because there is no requirement to provide an overarching view of how the zones are working, the prevalence of such examples is unknown.

Tags

PREV

PREVIOUS

Department of Corrections formalizes restorative justice partnership

The Colorado Department of Corrections on Monday formalized its partnership with the Colorado Organization for Victim Assistance to provide victim-offender dialogue in the prison system. “We believe that creating opportunities for incarcerated men and women to take accountability for their actions not only helps the victim and the incarcerated individual heal and find grace, but […]

NEXT

NEXT UP

Buck joins GOP letter asking Amazon about charity program's treatment of conservative groups

U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, who is also the chair of the Colorado Republican Party, has signed on to a letter from Republican members of the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary asking Amazon to explain how its program allowing donations to charities penalizes conservative organizations. Amazon’s CEO, Jeff Bezos, “acknowledged that Amazon relies in part […]


Welcome Back.

Streak: 9 days i

Stories you've missed since your last login:

Stories you've saved for later:

Recommended stories based on your interests:

Edit my interests