The Neighborhood Revitalization and Land Banking Act: The Bipartisan Legislative Proposal that Could Help Communities Tackle Vacancy

A recently introduced bipartisan legislative proposal would, if enacted, bring new, much-needed federal resources to land banking work.

The Neighborhood Revitalization and Land Banking Act (NRLBA) was introduced by Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) in April 2024. The NRLBA would create new federal grant programs for property condition mapping ($10,000), planning ($100,000–$250,000), and implementing land bank-led neighborhood revitalization projects ($2–$15 million). The NRLBA would also create a vacant property remediation fellowship program to grow the land bank sector workforce and offer free technical assistance to land bank grantees and grant applicants.

This legislation began with outreach from Pennsylvania land banks directly to Senator Casey’s office. The NRLBA evolved through Community Progress and land bank leaders providing constructive feedback and became a bipartisan reality thanks to thoughtful collaboration with Senator Capito’s team and land bank stakeholders in West Virginia. While work remains to build additional bipartisan support in the Senate and the House, this first-of-its-kind federal proposal has enormous potential to create powerful, positive change in communities addressing vacancy by uplifting and investing in land banks.  

Join this webinar to:

• Learn how local outreach to and engagement with Congress can translate into the development of new legislative ideas
• Understand how the NRLBA would work if enacted and what this program would help land banks offer their communities
• Hear what residents and stakeholders working to address vacancy and support land banks can do to help generate additional support for the NRLBA

Speakers:

• Rob Finn, Vice President, Policy and Research, Center for Community Progress
• Kennedy O’Dell, Appropriations and Economic Development Director, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (PA)
• Taylor Bennett, Executive Director, West Virginia Land Stewardship Corporation
• Brian Lawrence, Executive Director, Westmoreland County Redevelopment Authority and Land Bank