Posted: | April 14, 2021 12:56 PM |
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From: | Representative Amen Brown |
To: | All House members |
Subject: | Community Revitalization - Growth Reinvestment Opportunity Workforce (GROW) Act |
Over the past few years, many attempts have been made to engage and invest in marginalized communities within urban areas. In order to improve the overall well-being and quality of life, we must take a holistic approach in bettering our communities by looking to increase and stabilize economic security – aiming to fix systemic issues that contribute to community problems such as crime. We have to get creative in developing solutions to bring jobs to our neighborhoods that are suffering economically and in need of community revitalization. And a way that can invest in our communities and bring living wage jobs is by incentivizing private industry investment to build a meaningful workforce out of the residents. In the near future, I intend to introduce legislation that attempts to combat the issues plaguing economically disadvantaged areas, namely high crime rates and low employment rates, through the Growth Reinvestment Opportunity Workforce (GROW) Act. The GROW Act will establish a tax credit program for job creating employers who enter economically disadvantaged areas. This legislation will create tax credits for employers who engage in the community through efforts to rehabilitate or reinvest in blighted properties and hire a workforce of individuals with criminal histories. By turning these blighted properties around and hiring individuals who often face hardship when seeking employment due to a criminal history, this legislation will aid in the movement to rebuild struggling communities into thriving neighborhoods of relatively low crime and economic productivity – while also providing economic security for residents. I hope you will join me in co-sponsoring this cutting-edge legislation. |