Over the past several months, federal agencies have been coordinating to prioritize their own financial and programmatic resources to communities with, and projects in Opportunity Zones. Through an Executive Order, the agencies have a mandate to explore all of the ways they can support the Opportunity Zones incentive, including

• the reduction of regulatory burdens for loan and grant applicants in Opportunity Zones;
• the assistance of community-based applicants in identifying and applying for federal assistance;
• and implementing inter-agency strategies to support comprehensive planning and advanced regional collaboration.

To advance the conversation and facilitate a greater understanding of how federal resources can be layered to support the Opportunity Zones incentive, the Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) is renewing its Federal Financing Webinar Series with a focus on Opportunity Zones. The CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series: Opportunity Zones is an exclusive, four-part online offering that will convene finance experts, federal agencies, and local development finance practitioners to discuss the variety of ways federal grants, loans, guarantees and credit enhancements can leverage greater investment in Opportunity Zones. The webinar series will address issues related to the following areas:

• Opportunity Zones and Rural Development featuring USDA and EPA
• Opportunity Zones and Affordable Housing featuring HUD and USDA
• Opportunity Zones and Transportation featuring DOT and EDA
• Opportunity Zones and Small Business Development featuring SBA and EDA

CDFA encourages all stakeholders to participate in the webinars and bring project questions and ideas to our expert panelists. The four-part series will be offered throughout the year, and those interested in attending can register for each webinar individually or all at once as a package deal.

>>>Learn More About the Webinar Series