1) Memorandum of Understanding Regarding Community Investment Programs
Press release: Today, Vice President Kamala Harris announced a new coordinated effort by six federal agencies – the Departments of the Treasury, Commerce, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Agriculture and the Small Business Administration— to maximize federal dollars flowing into underserved communities, including communities of color, rural, and Tribal communities. These federal agencies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to enhance and expand their collective efforts to strengthen access to public-and private-sector capital to address longstanding economic disparities in underserved communities, building on the historic investments in the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and other statutes.
Specifically, the agencies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to enhance and expand their efforts to:
Align key definitions and procedures for programs directing capital and financial resources to underserved communities, including documentation requirements and others;
Coordinate local deployment and use of resources, such as staff, office space, and approaches to working with local implementing partners;
Seek flexibility and complementarity, to the extent feasible, in the requirements governing the deployment of federal funds and other support—including tax credits, loans, equity, grants, and others—to enhance impact and increase private capital support; and
Identify opportunities to enhance the provision of technical assistance and other non-financial resources that support the deployment of capital in underserved communities.
Pursuant to the MOU, the agencies will also form a new Interagency Community Investment Committee to facilitate ongoing collaboration and operational coordination of federal community investment and place-based economic development programs. These efforts will not only ensure better coordination of federal dollars to maximize impact, they will also facilitate greater private sector investment and support.
MOU:
https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Memorandum_of_Understanding_TreasSBA_USDA_HUD_DOT_DOC.pdf
2) Economic Opportunity Coalition
As part of this effort to enhance investment in underserved communities, Vice President Harris also announced the formation of a newly created Economic Opportunity Coalition, a coalition of leading private sector, philanthropic, and community organizations that has committed tens of billions of dollars and other resources to strengthen community finance organizations, especially community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and minority depository institutions (MDIs); support small businesses in underserved communities, especially minority entrepreneurship; broaden financial inclusion and provision of financial services in underserved communities; and leverage investments in infrastructure to improve access and mobility and create more community wealth.
Twenty-one corporations and 3 foundations have come together to create the Economic Opportunity Coalition, committing themselves to aligning major investments in communities of color with investments made by the Biden-Harris Administration. The EOC will coordinate across public, private, and social sector organizations to develop and deploy products that solve challenges in getting resources where most needed and drive towards outcomes for meaningful action.
The founding members of the Coalition include Ariel Investments, Bank of America, BNY Mellon, Capital One, Citi, Discover, Ford Foundation, Goldman Sachs, Google, Key Bank, Kresge Foundation, Mastercard, McDonald’s, McKinsey & Company, Micron, Momentus Capital, Moody’s, Netflix, Next Street, PayPal, PNC, The Rockefeller Foundation, TIAA, and Upstart.
The EOC members have made significant commitments across each of its four focus areas . . . :
Investing in CDFIs and MDIs.
Supporting entrepreneurship and minority-owned businesses.
Expanding inclusive and equitable access to credit and other financial services facilitating financial health.
Making infrastructure investments that create more community wealth by preserving and expanding affordable rental housing and homeownership in underserved neighborhoods.
EOC members have worked with seventeen social sector advisors to inform the development and implementation of its commitments and will continue to engage with these organizations and additional social sector advisors. Social sector advisors to the Coalition include African American Alliance of CDFIs, Applachian Community Capital, Enterprise Community Partners, Financial Health Network, Hope Credit Union, Momentus Capital, National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders, National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, National Bankers Association, Next Street, Opportunity Finance Network, Policy Link, Prosperity Now, SaverLife, The Resurrection Project, TruFund, and Urban Institute.
Citi:
https://www.citigroup.com/citi/news/2022/220728a.htm
Alphabet and Google:
https://blog.google/outreach-initiatives/public-policy/our-support-for-the-economic-opportunity-coalition/
PayPal:
https://www.pymnts.com/financial-inclusion-3/2022/paypal-mastercard-citi-and-others-join-new-economic-opportunity-coalition/
Momentus Capital:
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/momentus-capital-commends-biden-harris-administration-for-supporting-economic-opportunity-coalition-committing-to-address-economic-disparities-in-communities-of-color-301595617.html
Next Street:
https://www.blackenterprise.com/next-street-spearheads-historic-economic-opportunity-coalition-to-align-historic-investment-in-communities-of-color-across-the-united-states/
Ford Foundation, Kresge Foundation and Rockefeller Foundation:
https://kresge.org/news-views/philanthropic-and-corporate-leaders-join-biden-harris-administrations-call-to-invest-in-underserved-communities/
Sources:
WH Fact Sheet:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/07/28/fact-sheet-vice-president-announces-new-private-and-public-sector-efforts-to-align-tens-of-billions-in-investments-in-underserved-communities/
Treasury press release:
https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0893