LISC to testify before Congress on May 17th on the potential for significant economic gains in newly designated Opportunity Zones

WASHINGTON, May 17, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Maurice A. Jones, president and CEO of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), one of the nation's top community investment organizations, is testifying before the Joint Economic Committee of Congress at 10 a.m. on Thursday, May 17 in room 216 of the Hart Senate Office Building. He will speak on the economic promise of the nation's recently designated "Opportunity Zones" and their potential to attract capital for better housing, businesses, and jobs.

• Read Jones' full testimony here. Jones will be available for media interviews following the hearing.

Jones will call on the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to enact regulations and guidance that support positive outcomes. These guidelines will not only provide investors with the clarity they need to make investments in Opportunity Funds, but also protect against abuse and thereby ensure the integrity of the program. 

Jones will also encourage states, localities and community development practitioners to work together to identify investors that have not traditionally financed community development and to help steer new capital to high-impact efforts. 

"With strong continued leadership from Congress and the implementation of our recommendations," said Jones, "we believe that the Opportunity Zones incentive can spur billions in private investment activity in the country's most distressed census tracts and play a major role in closing the existing opportunity gap that is leaving these communities behind."

For more on LISC's view of Opportunity Zones, read High Stakes Race for Tax Breaks that Could Help Low Income Communities on CNN.com or visit www.lisc.org.

Media Contact:
Amanda Fox 
[email protected] 
Cell/347-581-6498

About The Opportunity Zone Initiative
The Opportunity Zones initiative, created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, offers federal tax benefits to investors that provide long-term, patient equity to businesses and real estate projects in low-income communities that have been designated as "Opportunity Zones" by states and territories.

About LISC
LISC is a national nonprofit that has invested $18.6 billion to transform communities and spur economic opportunity in thousands of metropolitan and rural areas across the country.

SOURCE LISC

Related Links

http://www.lisc.org