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In the Land of OZ: Designating Opportunity Zones

Author

Listed:
  • James Alm

    (Tulane Economics)

  • Trey Dronyk-Trosper

    (Amazon)

  • Sean Larkin

    (Tulane University)

Abstract
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 allowed governors of the fifty states to designate low-income areas as a “Qualified Opportunity Zone” (QOZ), which entitled the investors in these QOZs to significant tax incentives. As a result, each governor’s designation of QOZs provided an opportunity for the governor to introduce investments in low-income communities that would, in principle, increase economic opportunities in these areas. At the same time, each governor’s decision also provided an opportunity for the governor to reward political allies, to buy voter support, and to help business interests. Which of these many factors influenced the designation of QOZs? In this paper we estimate the impact of economic and political variables on the governors’ decisions to choose which areas among all eligible areas would receive QOZ status and which would not. We find that the QOZ selection process overall seems to have been relatively technocratic, with many of the strongest factors that determine QOZ designation being indicators of economic distress such as higher rates of unemployment, welfare receipt, or lower median income, all of which are consistent with the presumed goals of QOZs. Even so, we also find that political factors are significant in QOZ designation, with Democratic representation being negatively associated with QOZ nomination and with political representation by a local politician of the same party as the governor being positively associated with QOZ nomination. Of some note, we also find that areas with higher college attainment are favored.

Suggested Citation

  • James Alm & Trey Dronyk-Trosper & Sean Larkin, 2020. "In the Land of OZ: Designating Opportunity Zones," Working Papers 2006, Tulane University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:tul:wpaper:2006
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Freedman, Matthew & Khanna, Shantanu & Neumark, David, 2023. "JUE Insight: The Impacts of Opportunity Zones on Zone Residents," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    2. James Alm & Trey Dronyk‐Trosper & Sean Larkin, 2024. "Do opportunity zones create opportunities? The impact of opportunity zones on real estate prices," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 52(1), pages 214-238, January.
    3. Jonathan A. Wiley & Hana Nguyen, 2022. "Cherry‐picking industrial properties in opportunity zones," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 50(5), pages 1201-1230, September.
    4. Margaret Frank, Mary & Hoopes, Jeffrey L. & Lester, Rebecca, 2022. "What determines where opportunity knocks? Political affiliation in the selection of Opportunity Zones," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    5. Aycan Katitas & Sonal Pandya, 2024. "Investment incentives attract foreign direct investment: evidence from the great recession," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 200(1), pages 323-345, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Opportunity zones; Tax incentives; Place-based development policies.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H24 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • O23 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy - - - Fiscal and Monetary Policy in Development
    • R38 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - Government Policy

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