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REVITALIZING AMERICAN COMMUNITIES: Opportunity Zones are a critical part of President Trump’s efforts to bring economic opportunity to communities that have been left behind.

  • The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) included a new Opportunity Zones incentive designed to bring investment to struggling communities across the country.
  • Under the TCJA, investors can get tax benefits by investing in communities designated as Opportunity Zones.
    • Investors receive tax benefits on capital gains that they reinvest into Opportunity Zones through investment vehicles called Qualified Opportunity Funds.
    • These benefits are structured to promote long-term investment that will help these communities recover and thrive.
  • All States, Territories, and the District of Columbia nominated low-income communities to be designated as Opportunity Zones.
  • 8,762 communities home to nearly 35 million Americans have now been designated.
  • Opportunity Zones will help encourage investors to fund new businesses, develop properties, and finance construction in these struggling communities.

A NEW DAY FOR THE AMERICAN ECONOMY: The TCJA is driving renewed growth and has lifted Americans’ optimism in the economy.

  • For the first time in more than a decade, the economy reached 3 percent growth over the 4 quarters of 2018.
    • Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 3 percent from the fourth quarter of 2017 to the fourth quarter of 2018.
  • American workers and job creators have expressed renewed confidence following the passage of the TCJA and the resurgence of the American economy.
  • Optimism among small businesses and manufacturers soared to record highs last year.
  • Americans’ optimism about their ability to find a good job hit a record high last year, according to a poll by Gallup.

OPEN FOR BUSINESS: The TCJA is bringing money back from overseas and leading to more investment here in America.

  • The TCJA is generating more investment right here America and helping to deliver an economic resurgence in communities across the country.
  • As promised, companies are finally bringing money back from overseas thanks to the TCJA.
    • In 2018, companies repatriated over half a trillion dollars held overseas.
    • Companies repatriated nearly $295 billion in the first quarter of 2018 following the signing of the tax cuts.
  • The TCJA enabled businesses to invest more in their own operations by allowing for capital investments to be immediately written off.
    • Key Federal Reserve indices have suggested over 2018 and the first quarter of 2019 that manufacturers are planning to continue investing in capital going forward.