To: Board of Supervisors
From: John Kopchik, Director, Conservation and Development
Report Title: Recommendation of Census Tracts to the State Governor's Office of Business & Economic Development (GO-Biz) for Nomination for inclusion in Opportunity Zones 2.0
?Recommendation of the County Administrator ? Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Conservation and Development Director, or designee, to recommend 17 census tracts in order of preference to the State Governor's Office of Business & Economic Development (GO-Biz) for nomination as Opportunity Zones 2.0 before July 25, 2026.
2. DIRECT staff to seek letters of support from legislators and community and regional partners in support of these recommendations, and submit such letters to GO-Biz.
3. AUTHORIZE the Chair of the Board to sign letters of support requested by cities within the County to GO-Biz in support of the cities' recommended census tracts for Opportunity Zones 2.0.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no direct fiscal impact of the recommended actions. Selection of eligible census tracts for participation in Opportunity Zones 2.0 is anticipated to generate investment in economic development and associated tax revenue.
BACKGROUND:
Description of Opportunity Zone Program
The Opportunity Zone (OZ) Program is a federal tax incentive program designed to encourage investment and economic development in lower income communities. The program is administered by census tract, and federal law prescribes which tracts are eligible according to criteria such as average income. State governors may nominate eligible tracts for participation in the program. These nominations are submitted to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, which makes the final determination of which census tracts receive OZ designation.
On March 13, 2018, the Board of Supervisors recommended 14 census tracts to the State for nomination for OZ 1.0. Nine of these census tracts were in cities and 5 were in the u...
Click here for full text