Elections 2020 & Opportunity Zones Analysis
Regardless of the administration, Opportunity Zones were created out of bipartisan legislation and continues to have support on both sides of the aisle. The nuances are in how each candidate and Senate would expand on the legislation, so take a look at the full broadcasts below and we'll summarize key points as well:
Podcast: OpportunityDb The 2020 Election and Opportunity Zones, with Mike Novogradac and John Sciarretti
Article: GlobeSt What Biden Could Mean for Opportunity Zones
According to analysts, Biden wants to:
Incentivize Opportunity Zone funds to partner with community organizations and produce a community benefits plan for each investment
Review Opportunity Zone regulations to ensure the tax incentives have clear economic, social, and environmental benefits to a community
Increase transparency and public reporting
A Democratic Senate is expected to want to:
Phase-out of future investments in higher-income zones and contiguous tracts
Disallow some business types
Tie additional grants into OZs and create deeper investing subsidies
Increase transparency and public reporting
According to analysts, Trump wants to: (from podcast discussion above)
Expand zones at Governors and Mayors discretion up to a certain percent
Extend the deadline an additional to allow additional time for the 15% reduction in basis benefit to the investor
Increase transparency and public reporting
A Republican Senate is expected to want to:
Extend by at least 2 years
Limit investments in a few zones, eg contiguous tracts
Increase reporting, specifically referencing Senator Scott's Impact Act and Community Impact study every 5 years