Accountable Development

Reducing inequality and rewarding work means engaging the core problems of our economy: how to support competitive industries, how to train workers in the skills required, and how to ensure the creation of sufficient numbers of good jobs. Solving these problems will mean reforming both economic and workforce development policy.

The core principles driving that reform should be standards and accountability. States and cities across the country are therefore exploring a range of new tools to ensure that economic development delivers living wage jobs, quality training, career ladders, affordable housing, and environmental sustainability. Some promising examples of such tools include subsidy accountability policies, local hiring requirements, community impact reports, and community benefits agreements.

Building on these advances, the Brennan Center is working with policymakers and community coalitions to develop new strategies for making economic development accountable to community needs.

In our leading initiative, the Brennan Center is partnering with the Pratt Center for Community Development and New York Jobs with Justice on a new campaign to reorient New York's economic development policy.  Called One City / One Future, the initiative is bringing together a broad network of stakeholders to develop a blueprint for ensuring that growth delivers the living wage jobs, affordable housing, and sustainable communities that cities need.  More information is available at the One City / One Future website.