There are several steps you can take within your community to ensure Colorado’s economy is working for all.

As an elected official or community leader, you can:

• Volunteer to mentor and support small business owners and entrepreneurs.
• Connect employers to alternative and more diverse hiring pools.
• Develop targeted networking opportunities among successful small business owners.
• Reduce land costs by changing zoning codes (density, parking, Accessory Dwelling Units).
• Maximize publicly and privately owned land to build affordable housing such as parking lots at hospitals or school district land to build workforce housing.
• Expand partnerships between BIPOC and traditional lenders.
• Engage the government at the local and federal levels.
• Increase down payment assistance programs and first-time homebuyer incentives for broader income range.
• Advocate for increased post-secondary educational attainment and decrease the financial burden for students by maximizing federal assistance, scholarships, concurrent enrollment, flexibility and lower-cost options.
• Support incentives for employers who are training, upskilling, or doing Fair Chance Hiring.
• Support greater flexibility for childcare provider licensure.
• Increase access, proximity and availability of training for small businesses.