An Illinois

Community Wealth Building

Action Agenda

Presentation to the Governor’s Task Force on Social

Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise

Ted Howard

The Democracy Collaborative

April 24, 2013 – Chicago, IL

The Prevailing Economic

Development Paradigm

Some of its characteristics and elements include:

• Subsidies and tax breaks to entice corporations to relocate ($80B)

• Workforce training not linked to actual jobs ($37B)

• Regional trickle down strategies that do not reach low- and

moderate-income neighborhoods

• Growth & GDP – toward what end?

• Low-wage (non-living wage) job creation, often without benefits

• Exclusion of ex-offenders and others with barriers to employment

• Gentrification and dispersal of traditional residents

• “Throwaway cities” and their infrastructure

• Privatization of publicly owned goods

What is the Community Wealth

Building Paradigm?

A New Approach to Economic Development that:• emphasizes democratization of wealth• focuses on place & local economy• promotes broader ownership of capital• anchors jobs locally• stops the leakage of dollars from communities• supports individual & family wealth building• reinforces stewardship over capital• generates revenues to finance public services• leverages anchor institutions for local benefit• contributes to local economic stability• total cost accounting of economic decisions

An Integrated Community Wealth Approach

Key Components

Putting the Pieces Together

Help individuals build wealth

and savings

Create community-owned

businesses and other entities

that provide living wage jobs

and root wealth in communities

Link community businesses with

anchor procurement needs and

public expenditures

Family

Wealth

Building

Broader

Ownership

Anchor

Institutions

Retaining Jobs and Building Wealth

through Employee Ownership

Action Agenda:

• Develop an Illinois Employee Ownership Center to retain existing jobs

• Assist Illinois banks to refinance employee ownership

Deploying State and Other Public Assets to

Reinvest in Illinois

Action Agenda:

• Leverage Hospital investment

• Promote greater community investment by universities in Illinois

• Invest state pension fund dollars in Illinois

Investing in Resident-owned Affordable

Housing

Action Agenda:

• Convert manufactured housing into resident-owned communities

• Redirect housing dollars to support permanently affordable

housing.

Supporting Cooperative Business Development

Action Agenda:

• Reform Illinois’ Cooperative Statute

• Support cooperative development in rural Illinois

• Catalyze cooperative job creation strategies in low-income

communities

Promoting a New Paradigm of Economic

Development for Illinois

Action Agenda:

• Convene Community Wealth Building Roundtables in key Illinois

cities

For more information:

thoward1@umd.edu

www.Community-Wealth.org