MINNEAPOLIS -- Racial disparities in Minnesota were getting more focus before the police killing of George Floyd. Black entrepreneurs hope the increased awareness raised by national and worldwide protests will turn the heads of larger banks so communities of color will see more investment.

A number of bank presidents in Minnesota have issued statements pledging to help end any systemic racism within their sector. Kenya McKnight, CEO of the Black Women's Wealth Alliance, said regional banks do well helping nonprofits, but she said there's not enough direct help for black business owners.

"I just feel like there's a lack of value that some of these larger institutions have on our cultural market," McKnight said. "They look at the businesses and they go, 'Is it a viable business?' And the viability of it is based on the broader market. And the broader markets are determined greatly by the dominant culture."

Unlike home loans, where the financial system also has a history of discrimination, banks say regulations prevent them from collecting the racial background of business loan applicants. They point to high grades they earn under the federal Community Reinvestment Act, which urges banks to invest in low- to moderate-income communities.

But McKnight said the act doesn't do enough to spur investment in black neighborhoods that have struggled to build wealth.

Making a Pledge

Jeanne Crain, CEO of Bremer Bank, said there's no denying the nation's banking system has a history of redlining, a practice now considered illegal due to federal laws such as the CRA.

Locally, Crain said her company has made strides through partnerships with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity in serving minority communities. She added the Bremer's board has a presence on the Metropolitan Economic Development Association, which supports businesses of color.

Moving forward, Crain said Bremer is establishing a plan that includes increased investment in businesses owned by historically underrepresented groups. And they plan to identify ways to better serve areas where they have lacked a presence in the past.

"I'm very interested in trying to understand how Bremmer determines a geographic presence that really speaks to and leans into serving black-owned businesses," Crain said.

Despite its "outstanding" rating under the Community Reinvestment Act, their most recent evaluation noted Bremer has only two branches in low-income communities in the Twin Cities.

Digital Presence is Not Enough

McKnight said in North Minneapolis, where she's based, having only a small handful of banks in the area prevents black residents from accessing useful information about loan criteria. Though banks may offer multiple options online, she said, it can be difficult for business owners to navigate the process by themselves.

"[The banks] need a marketing campaign to talk to businesses about the services they provide," McKnight said.

She added images and marketing inside the branches could better reflect the communities in which they're located so as to make customers feel welcome.

Jermaine Toney, assistant professor of economics at Rutgers University, has studied banking access issues in the Twin Cities. He said the lack of services opens the door to non-traditional options that can leave black residents in a never-ending cycle of debt and prohibit them from building wealth.

"Payday loans, auto-title loans, check-cashing institutions," Toney said.

Economists have repeatedly cited these kinds of lenders as contributing to a system in which the accumulation of generational wealth becomes near impossible in black communities.

A number of studies have shown that even when black business owners meet the criteria for a loan, they are still denied at higher rates or are approved for smaller loan amounts than white applicants. A 2017 report issued by the U.S. Federal Reserve showed less than 47% of loans applications submitted by black business owners got approved.

Long-term Accountability

Another of the larger bank chains based in the region, U.S. Bank, said it has made investments in areas lacking economic infrastructure, and they intend to do more in light of growing demands for racial equality.

Like Bremer, U.S. Bank touted its "outstanding" rating under the Community Reinvestment Act. But the bank also received a "D+" grade in the Economic Opportunity Report Card issued by the NAACP. That report, from 2011, praised U.S. Bank for having diversity in its governing body and having a solid presence in African-American neighborhoods, but said the chain needed more diversity in its overall workforce, not just at the top.

U.S. Bank officials have pointed to recent investments made by the bank in communities like North Minneapolis - including a $50,000 grant to Camdentown and Houston White Men's Room earlier this year to support entrepreneurs and small businesses.

But like Bremer, U.S. Bank is also making a public pledge to enhance its work for communities of color. Bank President Andy Cecere said, "If we are truly going to draw strength from diversity, we have to do better. We have to create opportunities that bridge gaps, that generate economic prosperity, and that allow people to achieve their potential."

But economists like Toney say all stakeholders, including residents and local governments, need to ensure banks follow through on these commitments, or he said, black communities will continue to question the promises of American economic mobility.


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By Frank Jossi for Energy News Network.
Broadcast version by Mike Moen for Minnesota News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism Network-Public News Service Collaboration

One installation at a time, a solar nonprofit that matches socially conscious investors' cash with lower-income homeowners is spreading the benefits of solar in North Minneapolis.

Solstar was formed three years ago by solar entrepreneur Ralph Jacobson following his retirement from IPS Solar, the pioneering Twin Cities' solar company he founded three decades ago earlier.

In his entire career, "I hardly ever had Black customers or Black subcontractors," Jacobson recalled.

Solstar is a collective effort for clean energy leaders in North Minneapolis to address those racial disparities.

Jacobson, 71, works his network to persuade wealthy individuals to invest in residential solar installations. Kristel Porter, a well-known community activist, recruits low- or moderate-income homeowners who are interested in having solar on their homes. J.T. Thomas of the Black-owned Go Solar Construction trains and supervises students who help install the projects.

Solstar takes care of applications for all of the available incentives. Homeowners pay nothing and immediately benefit from a lower monthly electricity bill.

"It's a no-brainer," said Jacques Beech, who signed up with Solstar and now has solar panels on the roof of the 2,700-square-foot ranch home he shares with his wife and two kids.

His electricity bill so far has dropped by around $100 a month.

'It has been harder than expected'

The model is working, though slower than Solstar's founders would have hoped. The nonprofit initially wanted to finish 24 projects in its first two years. Instead, it's completed ten and expects to hit the two dozen mark later this year.

"We found it has been harder than expected and needed a different skill set," Jacobson said.

Among the challenges were managing investors, timing projects around incentives, convincing skeptical homeowners the offer wasn't too good to be true, and keeping trainees employed in the still sporadic industry.

Solstar's financing is complex. The nonprofit pays for installations by attracting investors and offering them a modest rate of return. Three major equity investors take advantage of the tax credits and depreciation on the projects. Solstar's microlenders do not get tax credits but instead receive 3.5% on investments ranging from $5,000 to $50,000.

Solstar investors reduce their taxes by taking advantage of the 30% tax credit and a six-year depreciation schedule on solar projects. After exhausting tax incentives, Solstar plans to sell the solar systems to their commercial and residential customers at a significantly reduced price. Clients hosting Solstar panels on their roofs receive discounts on their electricity by as much as 20% and, in some cases, more.

Jacobson reduces his costs by taking advantage of other programs. Every project is sized up to 120% of the client's electricity use, the highest amount allowed under Xcel Energy's Solar Rewards incentive program. Solar Rewards pays more per kilowatt hour for participating low-income households. A production incentive from the city of Minneapolis's Green Zone program adds another layer of support.

None of this is easily absorbed by investors or clients. Jacobson quickly discovered interested investors, but many would require multiple conversations and several weeks of consideration before betting on his new program.

Eventually, crowdsourcing cash paid off. "I certainly developed a bit of a following, a little community of maybe 70 to 75 people, who have put money into these projects," he said.

One of those is Eric Pasi, a former partner at IPS Solar who now runs the community solar company Enterprise Energy. He saw an opportunity to move solar beyond helping reduce energy bills of middle- and upper-class clients to a BIPOC mixed-income neighborhood.

"We love projects like this because for a modest investment the impact for these projects is so great," said Pasi, who is also a board member of Fresh Energy, which publishes the Energy News Network.

Job-training challenges

After Solstar began knocking on doors of North Minneapolis residents in early 2021, Jacobson discovered the annual budget for Xcel's Solar Rewards program had already run out of money for the year. Porter kept marketing Solstar and speaking to potential clients to prepare installations for 2022 and 2023.

The Solar Rewards issue was just the start of problems. "I didn't realize we were going to run into as many potholes as we ended up running into," Porter said.

Some homeowners sat on the fence, not making a final decision for months. At least four who signed up in 2023 delayed solar projections because they needed new roofs after an August hail storm.

Trying to pay professional contractors and their trainees became expensive and "tricky and financially just too much," Porter said.

Solstar eventually broadened the contractor pool beyond Go Solar to finish projects within the Solar Rewards deadlines. If a project does not meet deadlines, Solstar would have to reapply for Solar Rewards the following year "and go through the whole process again," Porter said.

Other projects were slowed when Xcel laid off several employees who were familiar with Solstar and its model.

Solstar's job training pipeline has also run into hurdles. Thomas onboards students from training programs offered by the city of Minneapolis and partnering institutions such as the Regional Apprenticeship Training Center. Four students who received classroom training then worked with Thomas on Solstar projects.

Some students struggle with getting transportation to installation jobs, he said. Training is often scheduled so far in advance that job opportunities may not be immediately available when students finish their classes.

Many students can't spend a month or two waiting for a job, Thomas said, and when a job emerges, they may not be available because they are already working.

"It's taken a while to ramp up, but now it seems like the jobs are trickling in and we're getting the processes down," he said. "Hopefully, as we go on to it next year, it will be a little more seamless."

Replicating the model

Still, according to attorney Jeremy Kalin, the program's approach and hard-won success means that other nonprofits could use the same approach. His firm, Avisen, has worked with similar programs in Maryland and others are starting in Arizona, Georgia and New Mexico.

The difference between Solstar and those initiatives is that Jacobson recruited wealthy investors who could take advantage of the tax credits and depreciation. Nonprofits in other states will use the Inflation Reduction Act's "direct pay" option rather than rely on investors. The act allows nonprofits and government agencies to receive tax credits as cashback from the IRS.

Nonprofits using direct pay did not have a way to "monetize the depreciation deduction," but "they have a simpler task because finding tax credit investors with the right kind of taxable income is hard," Kalin said.

Jacobson has not determined whether Solstar will continue the same structure or lean into direct pay. He said several early investors in Solstar and a separate initiative he helps lead in the Red Lake Indian community want to continue participating in Solstar.

Early customers like the program. Beech said he would have never made such a significant investment with such a long payback without the program. "It's not a cost-effective thing, unless you just have the money, which I don't," Beech said. "This is an affordable way to do it."

After completing the first iteration of Solstar, Jacobson wants to start another limited liability company and start recruiting 24 more homes and small businesses. "If White people can build wealth by owning solar, then I guess Black people should be able to build wealth by owning solar, too," he said.


Frank Jossi wrote this article for Energy News Network.


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President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress have promised to pass a new tax bill, and a new report breaks down the expected winners and losers.

Joe Hughes, senior policy analyst with the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, says based on Trump's campaign proposals, the top one percent - those making more than $900,000 a year - will see their tax bill go down by more than $36,000, on average.

"The top 5% of households make more than $360,000 a year. They will likely see their taxes go down. For the other 95% of Americans, they will likely see their taxes go up," he said.

Hughes added that Americans earning between $55,000 and $94,000 a year would have to pay over $1,500 more in taxes. The combined increases would further shift the tax burden - to pay for bridges, schools, health care and highways from corporations and higher-income individuals to low- and middle-income families. Trump has claimed, without evidence, that increasing tariffs on foreign goods would cover revenues lost due to tax cuts.

Hughes says because companies pass the costs of tariffs along to consumers, Americans will also be hit with what is essentially a national sales tax. He added the incoming administration's proposals, if enacted, could increase the national debt by as much as $15 trillion over the next decade.

"The proposals to increase tariffs are not going to raise enough revenue to offset the tax cuts that he's proposed to give to high-income individuals and to corporations," Hughes continued.

Trump has called the election results a mandate for his policies. But Hughes noted a strong majority of Americans support a tax code that's fair, one that asks those who can afford it to contribute more. They don't think billionaires such as Elon Musk should pay less than working families.

"Most Americans, even a majority of Republicans, support higher income taxes on the wealthy and on corporations," he said. "So, there is some disconnect here between the candidate that they voted for and the policies that actually poll well with voters."


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Montana citizens and environmental advocates have sued the state for withholding documents that have, for decades, been considered public information.

The division that provides bill drafting and other support to the Montana Legislature has announced a new policy that requires a legislator's approval before releasing documents to the public.

That includes all the correspondence and communication that goes into drafting a bill, including lawmakers conferring with lobbyists and other legislators.

Upper Seven Law's Founder Rylee Sommers-Flanagan said Montana's Constitution protects residents' right to know about and participate in the legislative process.

"The right to know is meant to protect our ability to examine the documents of any public agency," said Sommers-Flanagan. "This includes all Executive Branch agencies. It includes all aspects of the Legislature. Anything that relates to their official business belongs to the people of Montana."

A Helena judge over the summer ruled that correspondence used to draft bills - so called "junque files" - are not public record, reversing a 25-year-old policy.

Sommers-Flanagan argued the move undermines transparency, which she said has been the backbone of Montana's lawmaking process, and calls into question interactions between lawmakers and lobbyists who often work together to create a bill.

"We could literally be deprived of opportunity to see bribery happening in writing," said Sommers-Flanagan. "And, of course, I doubt that our legislators are engaged in bribery - but what this does is, it protects them fully from any sort of disclosure around what they might be exchanging."

The rule was implemented when a district court ruled in favor of a state senator who argued that junque files related to a gerrymandering law should not be made public.




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