Targeting Opportunity Zones and Other Distressed Communities for Federal Site Locations

2020-08-27Executive Order 13946
Signed by: Donald Trump
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Headline: Directs Federal Sites to Favor Opportunity Zones and Distressed Communities

What it does: Agencies must prefer locating federal facilities in qualified opportunity zones, other distressed areas, and centralized business districts, and the agency that manages federal buildings must develop programs to implement this.

Real World Impact:
  • Encourages federal facility placement in economically distressed neighborhoods and opportunity zones.
  • Alters how federal property is selected, acquired, and disposed.
  • State, local, and tribal governments can recommend sites to federal decisionmakers.
Topics: federal real estate, economic development, urban policy, community investment

Summary

This order changes how the federal government chooses locations for its offices and facilities. It directs agencies to give preference, except where prohibited or where cost and security require otherwise, to qualified opportunity zones, other distressed areas, and centralized community or business districts when meeting federal space needs.

The agency that manages federal buildings (the General Services Administration) must develop programs to implement these policies through efficient acquisition, use, and disposal of space. The order also updates prior orders to emphasize distressed communities and references state, local, and tribal governments for site recommendations.

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