Opportunity Zones are economically distressed communities, defined by individual census tract, nominated by America’s governors, and certified by the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury via his delegation of that authority to the Internal Revenue Service. Under certain conditions, new investments in Opportunity Zones may be eligible for preferential tax treatment. There are 8,764 Opportunity Zones in the United States, many of which have experienced a lack of investment for decades. The Opportunity Zones initiative is not a top-down government program from Washington but an incentive to spur private and public investment in America’s underserved communities.

 
 
 
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Secretary Carson Eric Scott Turner

Welcome Letter from Secretary Carson and Scott Turner
 
 

Welcome Community Residents, Local Leaders, Entrepreneurs, and Investors!

As Ronald Reagan foretold a generation ago – it is morning again in America. Today’s booming economy, under President Donald J. Trump, stands in stark contrast to the stagnation and volatility Americans endured over the past decade.

One of our Nation’s bedrock beliefs is that America is the land of opportunity. Every street in every city, every stretch down every country road, should indeed be a zone where opportunity calls home. In pursuit of that bold ideal, Opportunity Zones were created under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to stimulate economic development and job creation, by incentivizing long-term investments in low-income neighborhoods.

Few initiatives in modern American history have the potential to touch the lives of so many people as powerfully as Opportunity Zones, which are home to approximately 31.3 million Americans across all 50 States, District of Columbia, and the five U.S. territories.

The more than 8,700 Opportunity Zones are urban and rural, black and white, coastal and inland, from Alaska to Florida. These economically distressed areas were designated as Opportunity Zones not by bureaucrats in Washington, but by the governors of each state and territory, who are in the best position to understand the unique challenges facing their constituents.

Opportunity Zones deliver fast-acting and long-lasting solutions by allowing current investments to qualify and structuring rewards to serve local communities for the long-term. Only investors who commit capital for five, seven, and ten years receive the tax law’s formidable financial benefits. That means new growth becomes consistent growth, and new jobs become steady jobs.

This long-term lens is critical. When investors are “here today, gone tomorrow,” residents face an uncertain future. But when residents know new businesses are “here today, here to stay,” they can plan for the growth of their communities, provide a stable future for their families, and ultimately become homeowners.

Through the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council (“Council”), which includes representatives from 17 different Federal agencies and Federal-State partnerships working together to spark a wave of innovation in these distressed parts of our country, we have seen firsthand the current and future potential of Opportunity Zones.

We are embarking upon a landmark approach that offers an ambitious, unique, and comprehensive way to incentivize investment in underserved areas— investment that will enhance the well-being of so many fellow Americans for years to come.

Every single one of us can play a role in making Opportunity Zones a success for our nation, so please use this website to stay updated on important information and follow the work of the Council. Together, we can make that bold goal an ordinary, everyday reality, shared by the millions of American men and women who call this great land home.


Sincerely,

Ben Carson
Secretary
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Scott Turner
Executive Director
White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council