The National Opportunity and Community Renewal Act


(Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) S. 3854, and Rep. Jim McGovern, (D-MA) H.R. 6222) 

 The introduction of this legislation will utilize 21st century technology, ideas and policy proposals to confront the complex issues of poverty in America.

“Last year, 43.6 million people in the United States, or one in seven residents, lived in poverty. Of those, 15.5 million were children. This is unacceptable and it is time to look at new ideas and solutions to end poverty,” said Senator Casey. “I am proud to introduce the National Opportunity and Community Renewal Act, a bill to confront the complex issues of poverty in our country.”

The National Opportunity and Community Renewal Act will give 10 communities the opportunity to test new ideas to combat poverty. These communities will receive five-year waivers and would be released from many of the bureaucratic rules and procedures that currently prevent communities from addressing the root causes of poverty. For example, a qualified area’s allocable funds under the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families Program (TANF) and the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) for the first year of the program may be aggregated with the $10 million grant in a separate account, distributions out of which will be made in furtherance of the approved plan and not under the provisions of TANF or WIA. Funds also will be available to qualified areas from the sale of Community Renewal Bonds. These bonds will be sold nationwide, the funds of which will be divided among the qualified areas and subsequently paid back by the qualified areas at the end of the seven-year bond term. Community Renewal Bonds will enable individuals to participate in the alleviation of poverty.

In addition, qualified area’s will have access to specialized tax incentives to encourage a wide array of community participation in the program, including providers, recipients, and supporters of poverty-related services. The amount of tax incentives available within each qualified area will be based in part on the value of the total federal and state funds directly or indirectly saved under the local plan in successfully assisting individuals. Tax incentives under the Act include a high school graduation refundable tax credit, eligible employer refundable business credit, unrelated business taxable income deduction for eligible nonprofit entities, and modified charitable contribution deductions for certain donations. Qualified areas also will be able to modify the requirements of the earned income tax credit with the approval of the national board and will be considered a “low-income community” for purposes of the new markets tax credit.

The bill recognizes that there is no singular solution on how to reduce poverty. It also accounts for different geographic areas needing different programs and different people needing different levels of help. This legislation creates tiers of intervention to ensure that individuals and families get the help they need. The tiers would be three targeted levels of social services—services to prevent people from falling into poverty, services to help those who have fallen on hard times recover and services for those who require long-term support to live a dignified life.

For more information or questions, please contact jcameron@voa.org.