Putting Assets to Work

Governments are sitting on a gold mine without realizing it. Just as private individuals and corporations use assets (like machines or buildings) to generate income, governments can do the same with their assets. Governments across the United States own underutilized real estate assets – dormant parking lots, empty plots of land, vacant buildings in prime locations, and more. What could happen if governments could make better use of those assets? What if governments could generate revenue from those assets – without losing ownership? And use that new money, earned without raising taxes on a single person, to stabilize government revenues, deliver benefits for residents, and even lower taxes?

The Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), with support from Urban3 and the Common Ground Institute (CGI), is seeking applications from government entities seeking to unlock opportunities and revenue from publicly-owned real estate assets to participate in GFOA’s Putting Assets to Work initiative.

This concept, sometimes referred to as urban wealth funds or other similar terms, has been successfully used around the globe in places like Australia, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Sweden and has significant potential to benefit communities in the U.S.

Previous participants in GFOA’s Putting Assets to Work initiative have identified their underutilized government-owned real estate valued at billions of dollars. Jurisdictions that include Atlanta, Georgia; Annapolis and Anne Arundel County, Maryland; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Cleveland, Ohio; Harris County, Texas; Lancaster, California; and Salt Lake County, Utah, are beginning to realize new revenues to invest in community benefits, including affordable housing, clean energy, infrastructure, criminal justice innovations, and other high priorities.

Participants in this webinar will hear from leaders who have participated in the Putting Assets to Work initiative and already beginning to realize new revenues and other community benefits, including affordable housing, clean energy, infrastructure, criminal justice innovations, and other high priorities.

Following the presentation from current government leaders who are implementing GFOA’s Putting Assets to Work initiative, participants will receive information about how to apply to join the initiative and have an opportunity to ask questions about the application.

See gfoa.org/paw for more information.

Who Will Benefit: CFO/Finance Directors, Budget Managers, and Department Directors

• Learn about opportunities to work with GFOA on Putting Assets to Work
• Understand the work of other jurisdictions that participated in the first round of the program
• Gain conceptual framework of Putting Assets to Work