Substitute Bill No. 456 Summary

• Establishes an Office of Neighborhood Investment and Community Engagement within the Department of Economic and Community Development to develop and implement ten-year plans aimed at reducing concentrated poverty in eligible census tracts to 20% or lower.

• Creates a pilot program for the four municipalities with the greatest number of concentrated poverty census tracts, requiring community development corporations to be established to assist municipalities in plan implementation.

• Ten-year plans must include measurable implementation steps, state-wide educational benchmarks (kindergarten-readiness, grade-level reading/math, college/career-readiness), and lists of eligible projects including capital improvements, workforce development, housing, and education initiatives.

• Authorizes $50 million in state bonds for the Office of Community Economic Development Assistance to provide grants to certified community development corporations for target area projects, with priority given to projects included in the ten-year plans after submission to the General Assembly by January 1, 2026.

• Requires annual progress reports beginning February 1, 2027, and informational forums by the finance committee; Commissioner must recommend by January 1, 2029 whether to expand the pilot program statewide, and allows community development corporations to sue officials for failure to carry out plan requirements.