Work To Break the Cycle

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Shelby County, TN Mayor Lee Harris’s “Work to Break the Cycle” is a job website featuring updated Shelby County Government positions for individuals with arrest or conviction records. It complements the 2020 Ban the Box Ordinance, which removed questions about criminal history from job applications. This initiative has facilitated numerous opportunities for previously incarcerated individuals to join the county government workforce, with over 100 employment offers extended. By offering tailored jobs, Harris aims to reduce recidivism rates, as employment cuts reoffending chances by 20%. This dedicated job site enhances application confidence, promotes local economic engagement, and reduces incarceration expenses, aligning with the goal of reintegrating justice-impacted individuals into the community.

Impact:

Harris believes each hire is a marker of success. Since launching in May 2023, the program has resulted in employment offers to over 100 individuals so far, with plans to partner with the local Chamber of Commerce to provide more job opportunities. These jobs not only change their situation, but it has a ripple impact for their families and the Shelby County Community as a whole.

Georgia Educational Opportunity Act

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Georgia Representative Phil Olaleye introduced HB 668 which aims to update the state’s 30-year-old Quality Basic Education (QBE) funding formula. The bill introduces an “opportunity weight” to allocate additional resources for students in poverty. Georgia is only one of six states that does not allocate specific state funds to help educate students living in poverty. This ensures schools can meet diverse educational needs, from rural transportation to mental health support and urban meal programs. The bill strives to eliminate disparities and enhance education statewide.

 

Impact

The Georgia Educational Opportunity Act would provide a much needed update to the state’s funding formula and provide additional funding to serve economically disadvantaged students. This would ensure that all students entering a public school in Georgia would receive the resources needed for success, regardless of their zip code and economic situation. For example, schools in rural Georgia might use the funds to transport students to dual enrollment programs or provide Wi-Fi hotspots. Suburban schools might use the funds to enhance mental health counseling and increase after-school tutoring. While urban districts might use the funds to pay for school meal programs and provide critical wraparound services.

Home Act/Rent Stabilization

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Montgomery County Councilmember Will Jawando authored the Housing Opportunity, Mobility, and Equity (HOME) Act that would protect tenants through rent stabilization, provide predictable housing costs, and help them stay in their homes over time, just like homeowners. The County Council approved renter regulations that balance the need to protect tenants with providing landlords with economic tools to maintain and build housing. Montgomery County is the first county in Maryland to establish permanent rent stabilization at a maximum cap of 6%.

The compromise bill that passed, Rent Stabilization, prevents rent gouging, reduces displacement, and creates cost predictability for tenants and landlords by:

 – Setting an annual rental increase allowance of CPI-U plus three percent, capped at a maximum of six percent;

 – Establish guidelines for fees and fee increases for regulated rental units;

 – Establishing provisions for the landlord to increase the rent above the cap and apply a surcharge for renovations; and

 – Defining a process for landlords to bank unused rental increase allowances.

Impact:

The bill is already having an impact, sending a clear message that the county cares for renters and believes they should have sustainable housing with predictable costs. 

As the bill goes into effect, the county will monitor its implementation to ensure that it balances the need to protect tenants with providing landlords with economic tools to maintain and build housing. A protection or right is also only as good as it is known by the public, particularly those most impacted, and the next steps will include raising awareness among tenants and landlords about their rights and responsibilities.

The Maryland Fair Chance in Housing Act 2024

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Maryland Delegate Adrian Boafo introduced a “Ban the Box” policy for rental applications to prohibit discrimination against those with a criminal history from applying. Criminal history inquiries will be limited to the past three years, enabling individuals with older criminal histories to have a fair chance at securing housing, with an exception for individuals on the sex offender registry. Additionally, this bill requires housing providers to provide a physical disclosure stating the reasons for denying an applicant, fostering a more open and accountable housing system. Further, this bill mandates that all housing providers restrict their application fees to cover only the actual cost of the screening process.

Impact

Housing continues to be one of the most significant barriers for those transitioning out of prison. This bill will help send a message by helping returning citizens access essential housing.

Free School Meals for Eligible Kids

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Little Rock State Senator Clarke Tucker’s bill to offer free school meals for low-income students was signed into law. The USDA provides income eligibility guidelines for public school students throughout the United States to qualify for either free or reduced-price school meals. Tucker’s Act 656 eliminates the cost of all school meals for students who come from families that qualify for reduced-priced meals. This will have a huge impact on families who rely on school meals for their kids to eat and who need their dollars to stretch a little further.

The law creates a tiered system of funding. The Arkansas Department of Education will utilize any available federal funds to pay for these meals, and then the state will cover any remaining costs (including dedicated funding from medical marijuana tax revenue).

Impact:

Students who qualify for reduced-priced meals come from families with limited means and are still required to make some payment to receive their school meals. The price of those families’ school meals, even when reduced, can add up and even create debt. As part of the legislation, the state auditing entity will audit the Arkansas Department of Education Child Nutrition Unit and provide a report to the Senate and House Committees on Education every year to monitor the program, ensure that every eligible child in Arkansas is receiving these meals, and help the legislature budget appropriately.

Reducing Emissions Across the Colorado Economy

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Colorado State Senator Chris Hansen introduced Senate Bill 23-016 which will help the state achieve emission reduction goals through a comprehensive approach addressing many sectors of the climate crisis. The bill activates every part of the economy to mitigate the climate crisis, incentivizing action from individuals, businesses, and state regulators. 

The bill advances bold greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction goals and provides incentives to reach them, such as a 33% tax incentive for individuals to transition to electric lawn equipment and a new authority of the energy and carbon management commission to promote carbon capture and storage (CCS) in Colorado. 

The bill also establishes a requirement of the Air Quality Control Commission to establish a first-of-its-kind fee/ton on GHGs, a requirement of the Public Utility Commission (PUC) to consider and prioritize transmission line upgrades, and a requirement of the Public Employees Retirement Association to describe its climate-related investment risks, impacts, and strategies.

In addition, the legislation promotes renewable energy, including the recovery of wastewater thermal energy by allowing it to be included in utilities clean heat plans, a clause to prevent Home Owner Associations (HOAs) from disallowing heat pump systems, and a new fee for utilities if they are slow to interconnect distributed generation sources (e.g., rooftop solar systems).

Impact:

The bill will be successful if Colorado is on track to meet its emission reduction targets measured against its next interim target (26% reduction from 2005 levels by 2025). Also, if the state reaches its EPA ozone attainment levels, if there is additional transmission capacity added to existing lines to create a more resilient grid, and if we see geothermal, heat pump, and CCS projects built throughout the state.

Middle Income Housing Authority (MIHA)

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Colorado Senator Jeff Bridges’ advanced legislation to created the Middle Income Housing Authority (MIHA), an innovative tool to drive the development of affordable housing for middle-income folks. Colorado faces an acute shortage of “missing middle” housing, housing that is many working families, such as nurses, teachers, and firefighters. The program provides market-based incentives to leverage private capital and minimizes government investments. 

By treating middle-income housing like the infrastructure investment it is, MIHA represents a significant shift in addressing affordable housing by using a market-oriented approach driven by public-private partnerships. By leveraging tax-free municipal bonds and social impact investors, MIHA reduces reliance on government financing and creates a sustainable and scalable model that reinvests all profits into additional affordable housing. 

MIHA aims to increase the supply of rental housing. While developers may get a higher return by building market-rate housing, they pay significant taxes on those returns. By allowing access to the same kinds of tax-free bonds used to finance other infrastructure investments, developers using tax-free bonds for MIHA projects will see roughly equal returns. This drives investment in middle-income housing without competing for government dollars that should go toward low-income housing subsidies.

Impact:

Success will be measured by the number of affordable housing units built for middle-income earners, especially in our mountain resort communities and in gentrifying neighborhoods where long-established communities are being pushed out by increased housing costs. While currently focused on rental housing, the success of this unique financial model should allow for the construction of for-sale MIHA housing as well. Over the next two years the initial six projects representing several hundred new housing units will demonstrate what works best, where it works, and why it works. The long term goal is to show a measurable decrease in the number of middle-income individuals and families across Colorado who are cost burdened, alongside a measurable increase in the supply of housing units that are affordable for those families.

Richmond Pathways Program

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney launched the Richmond Pathways Program pilot program that will cover the tuition of any Richmond Public School graduate to attend the local community college. With an initial investment of $1.7 million from the City of Richmond, The award will also be paired with a monthly cash allowance, mentorship, and additional resources to open more pathways for students to access postsecondary institutions and achieve success. Students would be able to pursue instruction in career-specific or skilled-trades credentials in addition to earning credits to transfer to a four-year college.

 

Impact

Currently a pilot program, the city is working to achieve a fundraising goal of $4 million through donations and contributions before launching.

New Requirements for Flood Resilient Infrastructure Investments

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Florida Representative Christine Hunschofsky’s Sea Level Rise Impact Projection legislation requires that public entities using state funding conduct sea level rise studies for any construction projects in areas threatened by sea level rise. This policy aims to give communities a better understanding of how flooding affects them and will empower them to take appropriate steps to prepare. The policy will lead to smart investments, saving communities money down the line and protecting residents and communities for future generations.

Impact:

Hunschofsky hopes this program will help raise awareness of the threat of sea level rise in vulnerable communities prone to flooding and sea level rise. Ultimately, the program aims to incentivize more investments in infrastructure planning and to build more resilient communities to flooding and sea level rise.

Community Co-Design

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

The City of Rochester’s Mayor Kim Norton has taken steps to ensure the authentic and meaningful use of community engagement to drive decision-making at the policy, program, and community design levels. Involving people directly impacted by decisions from the start and utilizing their experiences, ideas, and input alongside the expertise of professionals helps optimize the city’s development. 

Rochester used the co-design methodology on issues such as housing, workforce, sustainability, and street design. The program is bringing together community members and industry professionals to address cultural, economic, and other barriers to create an equitable, just, and sustainable city. Norton aims to ensure the city takes action with people and not to them as the city grows and changes in size and demographics.

Impact:

The program has resulted in more diverse representation on committees and community boards. Including: local artists working on street design in the downtown redevelopment effort, secured a $1 million grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies focused on Equity in the Built Environment, which helped to diversify the city’s construction and trades, and in their sustainability and resiliency planning. Additionally, the city hopes to see growing diversity at their community events and are pleased to see Mayor Norton invited to many cultural events.

Subscribe

Recent News

State Official: 1864 abortion ban gives Arizona ‘black eye’

The nonprofit NewDEAL—short for Developing Exceptional American Leaders, and reminiscent of the expansion of progressive...
LEARN MORE

State and local leaders from across the nation shine spotlight on Phoenix’s vitality

Four years ago, Phoenix and the nation faced a global pandemic that we had not...
LEARN MORE

New Poll: Freedom and Democracy Key to Vote Choice in 2024

New Poll find freedom and democracy will be key to voters choices in 2024
LEARN MORE

NewDEAL Statement on Arizona Supreme Court Decision: One More Step in Stripping Away Rights of Millions of Women

Statement from NewDEAL CEO on Arizona Supreme Court Decision
LEARN MORE