Ohio stands at a financial crossroads — and public banking offers a powerful path forward. As private institutions continue to prioritize shareholder profit over community well-being, neighborhoods across the state remain trapped in credit deserts while local revenues are funneled out of Ohio and into Wall Street coffers. Public banking, by contrast, would redirect those […]| Public Banking Institute
The San Francisco Public Bank Coalition is preparing to put a measure on the 2026 ballot that would create the nation’s first municipal bankin the city. Supporters hope that such an institution could provide lower-cost lending for affordable housing, small businesses, and green infrastructure. A recently released poll shows 67 % of likely San Francisco […]| Public Banking Institute
North Dakota officials report that, so far, the impact of the federal shutdown has been minimal on state operations. According to Joe Morrissette of the state’s Office of Management and Budget, no state employees who rely on federal funding will be furloughed or lose pay, and the state expects interruptions in federal funds to be […]| Public Banking Institute
In Fresno, a coalition of local and statewide poverty-fighting groups is pushing the city to explore creating a public bank — a financial institution owned by the government (not private shareholders) whose mission is to serve the community. Fresno lags behind in small business lending (having ranked 97th out of 100 in a national study) and argues that a public bank could help correct that gap by keeping public tax dollars local rather than shipping profits to Wall Street.| Public Banking Institute
Several principal elements of the U.S. economy continue to deteriorate such as the catastrophe unfolding in America’s farm sector. The convergence of low commodity prices, mass deportation of farm labor, and the strangulation of U.S. farm exports, especially soybeans, has combined to produce a nightmare in U.S. agriculture. Adding to that critical background reality is another: public infrastructure.| Public Banking Institute
Donald Trump’s latest foray into financial innovation, the proposed USD1 Stablecoin, raises serious concerns about conflicts of interest and the potential looting of the U.S. Treasury. As advocates point out, if Trump were to consolidate control over what could soon become the largest stablecoin exchange, he would gain a private channel to influence and profit […]| Public Banking Institute
Major U.S. banks are lobbying the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish national standards that would override state-level rules governing lending, investment banking, and compliance practices. While banks argue this would create efficiency and uniformity, the practical effect would be to weaken state consumer protections. States often enact stricter rules to […]| Public Banking Institute
As federal support for communities continues to shrink, local governments are looking for ways to sustain critical services and strengthen their economies. A growing body of work, including an opinion piece Terri Friedline and Sarah Treuhaft, highlights how public banks can serve as a powerful tool for reclaiming local power and steering investment toward long-term community needs. By keeping capital circulating within municipalities instead of flowing out to Wall Street, cities and counties ...| Public Banking Institute
Zohran T. reports in Next City that federal disaster relief systems are slow, fragmented, and deeply inefficient—especially when it comes to flood-related property buyouts. Although buyouts are one of the most cost-effective climate resilience tools—delivering an estimated $5–$9 in benefits for every $1 invested—federal programs like FEMA and HUD remain reactive, overly bureaucratic, and inaccessible […]| Public Banking Institute
Zohran Mamdani’s campaign for economic transformation in New York City is deeply aligned with the principles of Community Wealth Building (CWB), a model championed by The Democracy Collaborative. CWB emphasizes local ownership, democratic control, and reinvestment in communities rather than extraction by private capital. Mamdani’s platform includes municipal grocery stores, community land trusts, worker cooperatives, […]| Public Banking Institute
With the dramatically growing need for new infrastructure finance, County Executive attendees to the 2025 Natonal Association of Counties (NACo) have voted overwhelmingly to support adoption of House bill HR 4052, which would establish a National Infrastructure Bank. This bank is based on an updated version of the iconic New Deal public banking institution called the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC). The RFC was largely responsible for getting the US out of the Great Depression, fin...| Public Banking Institute
