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CDFI Fund opens FY 2014 funding round for CDFI program and NACA program

WASHINGTON, DC (October 28, 2013) — The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) released today its fiscal year (FY) 2014 Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) for the Community Development Financial Institutions Program (CDFI Program) and Native American CDFI Assistance Program (NACA Program).

The Administration’s FY 2014 Budget for the CDFI Fund requests up to $191 million in Financial Assistance (FA) and Technical Assistance (TA) awards:

  • $144 million for CDFI Program awards;
  • $35 million for Healthy Food Financing Initiative Financial Assistance awards; and
  • $12 million for NACA Program awards.

The amounts available to make awards under the CDFI Program and NACA Program are subject to final appropriations. The awards will support Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) that are providing affordable financing and related services to low-income communities and populations that lack access to credit, capital, and financial services.

“I am excited to open the 2014 round of the CDFI Program and NACA Program,” said CDFI Fund Director Donna J. Gambrell. “With this round we are unveiling a redesigned application that will reduce the burden on applicants and streamline our process by improving the quality of information collected. This new application is a result of fantastic feedback from the CDFI industry and is one more example of how the CDFI Fund continually strives to improve our service to our stakeholders.”

When the CDFI Fund published a Request for Public Comment on the previous version of the application in 2012, many responses focused on hardships associated with using a fillable PDF document for data. The new application is in an Excel format, and will make data entry less of a burden this round and for future rounds.

In order to provide potential applicants with as much time as possible, the CDFI Fund is posting the CDFI Program and NACA Program NOFAs and application materials on the Grants.gov website today in advance of the publication of the NOFAs in the Federal Register during the week of October 28, 2013. Each program is listed as a separate funding opportunity in the Grants.gov application portal and all applicants must apply through Grants.gov.

Please note important information in the NOFAs regarding CDFI Certification requirements. In order to receive a FA award in the FY 2014 funding round, all Applicants must be certified or recertified as of June 1, 2014. This includes all Applicants that are in a cure period resulting from the 2013 recertification effort.

CDFI Program Overview

Through the CDFI Program, the CDFI Fund invests in and builds the capacity of CDFIs to serve low-income people and communities lacking adequate access to affordable financial products and services. The CDFI Fund invests in certified CDFIs by awarding Financial Assistance awards to applicants who have demonstrated the financial and managerial capacity to provide financial products and services to a low-income target market and to leverage additional resources effectively. Through Technical Assistance grants, the CDFI Fund enables certified CDFIs and emerging entities working toward certification to build their capacity as lending institutions.

In FY 2014, the Healthy Food Financing Initiative will serve as a supplemental funding opportunity under the CDFI Program for eligible CDFIs that express an interest in expanding their healthy food-focused financing activities and are selected to receive Financial Assistance awards under the FY 2014 round of the CDFI Program.

NACA Program Overview

In 2004, the CDFI Fund introduced the NACA Program, which was specifically designed to encourage the creation and strengthening of CDFIs that primarily serve Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities (Native Communities). Organizations funded serve a wide range of Native Communities, and reflect a diversity of institutions in various stages of development – from organizations in the early planning stages of creating a CDFI, to tribal entities working to certify an existing lending program, to established CDFIs in need of further assistance. The CDFI Fund awards both Financial Assistance and Technical Assistance awards under the NACA Program.

Deadlines

  • The deadline for submission of the CDFI Program and NACA Program applications is December 23, 2013 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
  • The CDFI Fund strongly encourages all applications be submitted at least three days before the deadline.

All Applicants must submit their applications electronically through Grants.gov. The CDFI Fund will not accept CDFI Program or NACA Program applications through myCDFIFund accounts, nor will applications be accepted via mail, overnight courier, e-mail, facsimile, or other forms of communication. Please see the NOFAs for more information on submitting the CDFI Program and NACA Program applications.

Application Materials

Reference copies of the NOFAs and all application materials can be found on the CDFI Fund’s website.

All application materials are also available in Grants.gov, under each funding opportunity.

All applicants must be registered in SAM.gov, Grants.gov, and myCDFIFund to apply for funding. Organizations should confirm their accounts are up to date as soon as possible in order to avoid potential application submission problems. New potential applicants are encouraged to begin the registration process now and will find registration guidance at each website.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to read and view all application materials, including the NOFA, application guidance, and webinars.

Learn About Applying to the CDFI and NACA Programs

The CDFI Fund is providing the following opportunities to learn more about the FY 2014 CDFI Program and NACA Program funding round:

    1. Online Presentations:The CDFI Fund pre-recorded webinars providing guidance on completing each section of the new application. The webinars can be found on the CDFI Fund’s website under the Application Materials sections found at www.cdfifund.gov/cdfi and www.cdfifund.gov/native.
    2. Live Q&A Webinars: The CDFI Fund is conducting two 1.5 hour live webinars to provide a forum to answer applicant questions about the FY 2014 CDFI Program application. In addition, the CDFI Fund will host one 1.5 hour live webinar to answer applicant questions about the FY 2014 NACA Program application. Please see the 2014 Q&A Webinar Access Table for the dates, times, and access information for each webinar
    3. On–site Application Workshop: CDFI Fund staff will conduct a FY 2014 CDFI Program and NACA Program Application Workshop in Washington, D.C. on November 14, 2013, and will be available to answer application questions.

      Registration: Due to security requirements at the following federal facility, anyone wishing to attend the application workshop must register through the following online registration system. Individuals who do not register before the applicable registration deadline, and thus do not appear on the registration list for the facility, will not be admitted. The registration period is currently open. To register, please visit: FY 2014 CDFI and NACA Programs Application Workshop in Washington, DC

Questions

For more information on the CDFI Program, the NACA Program, the Q&A webinars, or the application workshops, please contact the CDFI Fund’s Help Desk by e-mailing cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov or by calling (202) 653-0421 (option 1).

CDFI Fund Background

The CDFI Fund invests in and builds the capacity of community-based, private, for-profit and non-profit financial institutions with a primary mission of community development in economically distressed communities. These institutions – certified by the CDFI Fund as Community Development Financial Institutions or CDFIs – are able to respond to gaps in local markets that traditional financial institutions are not adequately serving. CDFIs provide critically needed capital, credit and other financial products in addition to technical assistance to community residents and businesses, service providers, and developers working to meet community needs. The CDFI Fund’s vision is an America in which all people have adequate access to affordable capital, credit and financial services.

For more information about these awards, or about the CDFI Fund and its programs, please visit the CDFI Fund’s website at: http://www.cdfifund.gov.

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