OZ Resources Ask to Join

Charitable Foundations have a unique opportunity to get out of the box to amplify the impact of their charitable giving by embracing Opportunity Zones and coupling their investments with those of high net worth investors looking to secure the long-term tax benefits from the new tax law. 

In 2017, Americans gave more than $400 billion ($410.02 billion according to Giving USA 2018: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2017, published by the IUPUI Lilly Family School of Philanthropy) to charity, yet many of these Opportunity Zone communities fail to see any meaningful investment from this massive amount of charitable giving. 

Now consider what might happen if some of that charitable giving was directed to supporting Opportunity Zone community development. Where are the challenge grants? Where are the public/private endeavors that can move the needle? Where is the support for new technologies that can address climate change, food shortages and fresh water supplies? 

The basic economic requirement to resuscitate a floundering community is the creation of jobs and jobs require business investment. So where are the charitable activities designed to drive investments in these neighborhoods that create jobs and build economic activity? 

Full document in the OppZone media library. 

About JMP OppZone Services LLC – JMP OppZone Services (“JMP”) assists investors interested in taking advantage of the tax deferral opportunities associated with Opportunity Zone investments. JMP also assists project sponsors in creating commingled vehicles to pool assets to fund investments in Opportunity Zone locations. JMP provides investors with a platform that provides maximum flexibility to leverage the benefits of the law and corresponding regulations. We can assist with getting the clock started on the deferral and holding periods. Through our network of professionals, JMP assists with structuring and support services to form the QOF creating a structure through an underlying investment in a Qualified Opportunity Zone Business (“QOZB”) that provides the investor with time to evaluate, select and invest in appropriate Opportunity Zone investments. 

See: https://radio.wosu.org/post/ohio-launches-portal-showcase-opportunity-zone-projects#stream/0

Does anyone have information on how Ohio is progressing with it's efforts?

Attached you can find: 

Opportunity Zone White Paper, written by the "Wizard of OZ" Jessica Millett of Duval & Stachenfeld LLP. 

About Jessica Millett:

Jessica Millett  (a.k.a. The Wizard of OZ) has been living and breathing opportunity zones since Congress created them in 2017.  Ms. Millett has been at the forefront of structuring investments into Opportunity Zones along with the D&S real estate team. Opportunity Zones are a game changer for the real estate industry and Ms. Millett is a leader in this space on the tax side.   To date, she has been quoted in Bloomberg, Real Estate Weekly,The Commercial Observer, and The Wall Street Journal and she has made numerous presentations to industry groups and professional organizations.

#j...@...com 

Although dated, the attached letter is a good one to follow the who's who among lawmakers that are weighing in on OZ.

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Democratic Lawmakers Express Worries About OZ’s Impacts on Low-Income Residents
In letters sent to the Treasury, IRS and the Office of Management and Budget, 11 members of the Congressional Black Caucus expressed concerns that, without the proper safeguards, the federal opportunity zones program could lead to rapid gentrification and hurt low-income residents.

The letter expresses many of the reservations some Democratic lawmakers have raised about the program, which was originated as a bipartisan effort between Sens. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and Tim Scott, R-S.C. The original bill had certain data tracking requirements that were not included in the final legislation, but Booker and Scott are planning to reintroduce them in a standalone bill.

The lawmakers responsible for the letter asked the agencies what they intend to do to prevent gentrification and ensure positive economic outcomes for residents in opportunity zones, whether there would be tenant affordability requirements placed on real estate investments funded by qualified opportunity funds and if there would be oversight to ensure prevention of corruption and overinvestment in already-thriving areas. Additionally, they expressed concern surrounding anti-abuse provisions and questioned how investors would be prevented from using opportunity zones as a tax haven.

While there is a lot of enthusiasm around the intended benefits of the opportunity zone program, the letter shows potential problems the initiative could face in the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives.