Last chance to vote for your favorite conference sessions; Opportunity Zones research; and more!
NCRC

Just News

for October 10, 2025

 

News and views from the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. Find more at ncrc.org.

For continuous updates, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok.

Announcement

 

Last Chance To Vote For Your Favorite Just Economy Conference Sessions

Today is the last day to make your voice heard! [Vote Now]

Views

 

Opportunity Zones: A Taxpayer-Funded Program That Primarily Benefits Wealthy Investors

By Jason Richardson and Bruce Mitchell

Seven years after its creation, the federal Opportunity Zones program has manifested a troubling pattern: creating massive taxpayer-funded benefits for wealthy investors while failing to meaningfully help the communities they were designed to serve. With the wealthiest Americans receiving substantial tax benefits on over $100 billion in capital gains through this program, Opportunity Zones represent one of the most opaque and regressive tax policies in recent history. [Read more]

 

NCRC And Its Members Leverage The Community Advisory Councils Model To Strengthen Underserved Communities

By Nicole Rothstein

Investing in underserved communities takes more than a promise – it also takes a plan to keep that promise. The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) has developed multiple techniques to ensure that bank commitments translate into meaningful change for historically disadvantaged neighborhoods and that the people who live there, and organizations that service them, have a say in the process. [Read more]

 

South Memphis Residents Skeptical of Musk’s xAI Economic Growth Claims as Pollution Concerns Grow

By Kaitlyn Ridel

A debate is boiling in South Memphis over whether the potential economic benefits of an artificial intelligence facility outweigh the pollution-related health impacts to residents. Many low-income communities elsewhere may soon find themselves grappling with the same question. [Read more]

News

 

NCRC Statement On New Rule Delaying Section 1071 Implementation

By NCRC

“Everyone agrees that small business owners and entrepreneurs deserve to be evaluated on their individual merit, free from presumptions, inadvertent bias or outright discrimination,” said Jesse Van Tol, President and CEO of NCRC. “The Section 1071 rule finalized in 2023 does just that by gathering data we need to make sure every small business gets a fair shake." [Read more]

 

NCRC To White House: Don’t Let CDFI Funding Get Mashed In The Government Shutdown Gears

By NCRC

The White House can protect basic economic opportunity from unnecessary further harm in the federal government shutdown by preserving the bipartisan CDFI Fund’s operations. [Read more]

Research

 

The Labor Market is Frozen: September 2025 Race, Jobs and the Economy Update

By Joseph Dean

No one is hiring. That is the key finding from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest jobs report showing only 22,000 jobs were added in August with nearly all industries remaining stagnant or in decline. The goods-producing industries, including the construction and manufacturing sectors, lost 25,000 jobs. There were steep losses in the professional/business services and wholesale trade industries as well. The only industries that experienced healthy job gains were healthcare, leisure and hospitality. [Read more]

 

The Jobs Recession Is Affecting The Entire Black Community

By Joseph Dean

Since the beginning of this year, the Black unemployment rate has risen to 7.5%, its highest level since 2021. As a kind of “canary in the coalmine,” Black workers have historically been the first to have their employment terminated when times get tough for businesses. While the current labor market has been described as a no-hire/no-fire environment, this doesn’t adequately apply to the situation of Black Americans. [Read more]

Events

 

Group Counseling Session: Building Your First Sales Funnel (A Step-by-Step Automating Guide)

October 14, 10 - 11 am ET

An effective sales funnel can turn prospects into loyal customers while saving you time and effort through automation. In this hands-on webinar, we’ll walk you through: Optimizing your funnel for long-term growth; The key stages of a high-converting sales funnel; How to attract, nurture, and convert leads with automation; Choosing the right tools and platforms for your funnel; Crafting compelling email sequences and follow-ups. [Register here]

 

Optimizing Loan Utilization & Financial Stability: Maximize Funding Impact

October 16, 10 am - 11:30 am ET

Taking on a business loan is just the beginning – how you manage and deploy those funds can make all the difference between financial growth and long-term strain. Join us for an insightful webinar focused on helping entrepreneurs strategically utilize loan funding to strengthen their operations and achieve lasting financial health. [Register here]

In The News

 

Economists Say Job Losses Likely, Even As Shutdown Delays Report

By Tim Henderson, Stateline

Black unemployment, which has spiked from 4.8% in April 2023 to 7.5% in August, has likely increased again, said Joseph Dean, who monitors it for the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, which encourages more investment in underserved communities. [Read more]

 

CFPB Officially Delays Small-Business Reporting Rule

By Claire Williams, American Banker

“Today’s rule delays implementation by at least another year, adding up to 16 years since the underlying statute was passed by Congress in 2010,” said Jesse Van Tol, president and CEO of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. “Every year of delay means more small businesses are left without the transparency they deserve and the ability to hold lenders accountable for fair lending and access to credit.” [Read more]

On Our Radar

 

Why This One Area Of Cities Is Usually The Poorest

By Andrew Van Dam, The Washington Post

When you simply split America’s metropolitan areas into East-West or North-South halves and see which has higher poverty rates according to Census Bureau data, East tops the list 25 percent more often than its nearest competitor, South. [Read more]

 

Recent Tariffs Threaten Residential Construction

By Elena Patel, Rober McClelland, and John Wong, The Brookings Institution

These taxes raise costs across the board—whether for new construction, renovations, or affordable housing development. Using TPC’s tariff model, we calculated that current tariffs, including those just announced, will add roughly $30 billion to the costs of investment in residential structures. Our calculations show that about 90% of the costs to residential investment will fall on construction of new homes, including apartments. [Read more]

 

Government Shutdown: Disrupting Nonprofits’ Ability To Serve Communities

By National Council of Nonprofits

Government shutdowns disrupt the vital work of nonprofits in local communities, preventing them from delivering the critical services the American people and their communities rely on. The longer a 
government shutdown lasts, the more severe the negative impacts. 
[Read more]

Resources

Work And Meet At The Just Economy Club
It's a DC hub for nonprofits and the social sector, around the corner from the White House. Move your team into a private office or host your meetings and events. [Read more]

Learning & Training Hub
Register for NCRC's catalog of professional development courses. [Learn more]

Research And Reports
We have an extensive library of research and reports that dates back many years! [View all]

 

Fair Lending Tool
Use our interactive tool to produce a report on mortgages, small business lending and bank branch networks for any city, county or metro area in the nation. [Access the tool here]

 

Sign And Share The Just Economy Pledge
Help us expand the movement for a Just Economy. [Sign and Share]

 

Member Hub
NCRC members: Don't forget you have access to our member hub! Learn more about membership here. You can join as an organization or an individual.

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