REP. MIKE KELLY, SEN. TIM SCOTT AND SECRETARY SCOTT TURNER: Save the Opportunity Zones before it’s too late

Rep. Mike Kelly, Sen. Tim Scott and Secretary Scott Turner all agree about the need to protect Opportunity Zones. They brought in $89 in investment and created 500,000 jobs.

 In 2018, the city’s downtown ZIP code, 16501, was named the poorest in Pennsylvania and among the poorest nationwide.  However, through the potential of OZs, the stigma of Pennsylvania’s poorest ZIP code served as a springboard for investment in the area.  Rep. Mike Kelly, a Republican, represents Pennsylvania’s 16th Congressional District and serves on the Ways and Means Committee, where he chairs the Subcommittee on Tax.

The Opportunity Zone (OZ) initiative allows investors from all over the United States to invest their capital gains earnings in economically distressed communities where new investments can be eligible for preferential capital gains tax treatment. Instead of sitting idle in a brokerage or bank account, this money is put to work in communities that have not seen significant private investment for some time.