The 83rd Annual Meeting of the US Conference of Mayors begins today in San Francisco, CA, and the fate of the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) – a critical tool for both urban areas and small towns – is on the minds of many of the conference attendees. The program expired last December, and without an extension, low income communities will lose billions in annual investment for businesses, community facilities, and revitalization projects.
Each year, the Conference of Mayors debates and passes resolutions endorsing effective programs and policies. This year, Mayor Francis Slay of St. Louis, MO introduced a resolution in support of the NMTC. The resolution also endorses the two bipartisan NMTC extension bills currently pending before Congress:
- S. 591, introduced by Senators Blunt (R-MO) and Schumer (D-NY); and
- H.R. 855, by Representatives Tiberi (R-OH), Neal (D-MA), and Reed (R-NY).
Mayor Slay introduced the resolution along with ten other mayors from every corner of the country: Eric Garcetti, Mayor of Los Angeles; Rahm Emanuel, Mayor of Chicago; Martin J. Walsh, Mayor Boston; Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Mayor of Baltimore; Michael A. Nutter, Mayor of Philadelphia; Carolyn G. Goodman, Mayor of Las Vegas; Charlie Hales, Mayor of Portland (OR); Greg Stanton, Mayor of Phoenix; Paul Soglin, Mayor of Madison; Marilyn Strickland, Mayor of Tacoma; and Michael F. Brennan, Mayor of Portland (ME).
The slideshow below gives a small flavor of some of the important NMTC investments in the above mayors’ home cities:
The resolution cites data from the NMTC Coalition’s Economic Impact Report, showing the tremendous efficiency of the NMTC in creating jobs at a low cost to the federal government:
WHEREAS, the New Markets Tax Credit, between 2003 and 2012, generated $31 billion nationwide in direct investments to businesses, which created approximately 750,000 jobs, at a cost to the federal government of less than $20,000 per job, and these New Markets Tax Credit investments leveraged over $60 billion in total capital investment in businesses located in communities with high rates of poverty and unemployment;
It also urges support for a permanent extension of the NMTC, which expired last year:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors does hereby support the “New Markets Tax Credit Extension Act” (S. 591 and H.R. 855), which would make certain the New Markets Tax Credit continues to be available as a financial tool for economically distressed communities, spurring investment and revitalizing areas that need it the most.
Today, at 3:30pm Pacific Time, the Metro Economies Committee will convene to discuss the resolution. Rosie Rios, Treasurer of the United States, will give remarks entitled “Using New Market Tax Credits and Other Federal Tools to Promote Economic Growth in Local Communities”. The Department of Treasury administers the NMTC program through the CDFI Fund.
