Panelists urge inclusion focus in American Rescue Plan – Finance and Commerce

The Minneapolis-St. Paul region is set to receive $1.14 billion from the American Rescue Plan, which local leaders say should be used to close the racial wealth gap that has existed for far too long.

The Center for Economic Inclusion held a virtual panel and discussion Thursday on strategies and opportunities that would aid in distributing funds in a way that eliminates long-existing gaps in the immediate and long-term future.

Earlier this year, the American Rescue Plan was signed into law. It directs $1.9 trillion toward rescuing the nations economy from pandemic-related fallout. Its funding a nationwide vaccine program, personal stimulus checks, increases in the child tax credit, small-business support, extended unemployment insurance and more.

As we recovered from the last economic downturn, Minnesotans, in particularly this region, failed miserably at doing so in an inclusive way, according to the Urban Institute, who ranked Minneapolis and St Paul last in a record of 274 cities in our ability to ensure that all people moved forward and are coming forward out of that economy, said Tawanna Black, CEO and founder of the Center for Economic Inclusion.

The rescue plan was design in a way that elevates solutions that address the pandemics disproportionate impact on low-income communities and communities of color, said Joseph Parilla, a fellow with the Brookings Institutions Metropolitan Policy Program.

The funds are being distributed in two rounds. An estimated two-thirds of funding from the first round, which was distributed in the spring, went to public health, stabilizing government budgets, and housing and homelessness, he said.

Several priorities could be funded in the second round of the rescue plan which is set to be distributed next spring that elevate inclusive rebuilding momentum. To achieve this, funds should be direct to stabilizing and improving the upward mobility of low-income communities, like funding programs that close the digital divide, Parilla said. Additionally, money could help secure a better rebuilding of the economy by being directed toward initiatives that fund workforce services, emergency financial assistance, and the racially equitable creation of jobs.

Being inclusive goes beyond funding and planning, said Aarica Coleman, housing and redevelopment authority administrator for the city of Bloomington.

Governments need to work with organizations, nonprofit and for-profit leaders who are already established in the communities to reach other community members, Coleman said.

The first thing is to make sure that just as the country and this region has been intentional about excluding and extracting, lets be intentional about including and growing, she said.

Government entities can also use the funding to lay a foundation for how they operate in the future, while also being more innovative and creative in their solutions for challenges identified in a citys long-term comprehensive plan. For example, in the housing sector, city staff in charge of housing or zoning decisions may have more resources to look at creative solutions to housing shortages, like tiny homes, Coleman said.

In his work with other Minnesota mayors, Edina Mayor James Hovland said he found that they recognize the need for communities to pool resources when planning for the distribution of rescue plan funds. Their communities have shared interests, like housing, workforce development and racial equity.

If we can really leverage these resources, we can really make some significant inroads, he said.

But local governments likely want to stabilize their budget problems first. Once these problems are solved, local governments could establish networks between other local entities to target issues that challenge numerous communities. This is where the second round of rescue plan funding could come into play, Hovland said.

We can create these pooled resources, particularly out of that second [round], I think where people are going to feel more comfortable committing some of that to the common good and to develop a strategy that gets all boats rising, he said.

Related:

MN leaders reflect on missed Legislative opportunities

Read more from the original source:

Panelists urge inclusion focus in American Rescue Plan - Finance and Commerce