When it comes to community development, it is difficult to separate the billions of dollars in private-sector investments that fuel housing, businesses, and jobs every year from the broad base of public programs that make it possible for that capital to flow.
Without one, the other cannot succeed. That’s why organizations like LISC are so deeply engaged in policy efforts. From our vantage point of working in thousands of under-resourced urban and rural communities, the partnership between the public and private sectors is a major driver of economic growth and quality-of-life gains—particularly in communities where high rates of poverty and unemployment make it difficult for residents to thrive.
The partnership between the public and private sectors is a major driver of economic growth and quality-of-life gains—particularly in communities where high rates of poverty and unemployment make it difficult for residents to thrive.”
In the document that follows, we lay out the key federal policies that are needed to drive local progress, identifying our top community development priorities for the 119th Congress and Administration. We detail the programs that make it possible for institutional and philanthropic investors to drive local economic development and empower families to achieve financial independence. We discuss initiatives that attract capital to address our national housing crisis, revive local manufacturing and retail, and expand access to health care and child care. We outline the federal groundwork needed to help communities recover from catastrophic storms and fires, while we also consider the impact of community safety programs that improve lives, property values, and commercial corridors across the country.
These are all interconnected pieces of healthy communities, from strong schools to quality jobs to high-impact local nonprofits. Our economic infrastructure does not depend on government funding alone, of course. But if public programs are dismantled, then a great deal of private capital will likely be left on the sidelines.
Public policymakers care about community development because it directly impacts the well-being of the people and places that they serve. We see that in the work we do nationwide in collaboration with our community partners and the more than $35 billion LISC has raised and invested over the last 45 years. Opportunity and growth are issues that benefit us all.
We know this work is vital. We invite you to read the proposals that follow, think about what they mean to your communities, and join us to advocate for policies that give families and communities the best chance possible to prosper.
Michael Pugh LISC President and CEO
Matt Josephs LISC Senior Vice President for Policy