With more dollars flowing to Wall Street and fewer available to Main Street, interest in investing public and private pension fund dollars back in communities is growing. States are being pressured to find job creation strategies and the labor community is playing a critical role in creating and sustaining livable wage jobs for working families.

This scenario will be the focus of the Heartland Labor Investment Forum in Washington, DC on April 29. The Forum will bring together representatives from the U.S. and Canada to showcase a new labor-sponsored fund for community investment that will initially operate in Seattle, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Cleveland, Boston, Toronto, Winnipeg and Madison, Wisconsin.

CPA’s groundbreaking work on economically targeted investments and public pension funds have highlighted policy models where state pension dollars are used to support community building opportunities.

State employee pension dollars, usually managed by state treasurers or comptrollers, provide a range of financing options that can fill the investment gap for low-income communities. Economically targeted investments (ETIs) in the form of pension funds control well over $5 trillion in assets.

Economically Targeted Investment Publications Available from CPA: Pension Investments Through Non-profit Intermediaries
Investment Intermediaries: Four Model State Programs
Economically Targeted Investments: Rebuilding America’s Communities" Conference Report

Contact CPA for copies.