U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo and Mark R. Warner, Co-Chairs of the Senate Community Development Finance Caucus, are leading a bipartisan group of Senators in a letter to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought, requesting action to disburse congressionally appropriated funding from the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund.
The CDFI Fund plays a vital role in generating economic growth and opportunity in some of our nation’s most distressed communities. By offering tailored resources and innovative programs that invest federal dollars alongside private sector capital, the CDFI Fund serves mission-driven financial institutions that take a market-based approach to supporting economically disadvantaged communities. These organizations are encouraged to apply for CDFI Certification, and participate in CDFI Fund programs that inject new sources of capital into neighborhoods that lack access to financing.
The letter, signed by 26 U.S. Senators, calls for transparency and timeliness in deploying the $324 million allocated in the Fiscal Year 2025 spending package to support more than 1,400 CDFIs across the nation.
“Since its inception over three decades ago, the CDFI Fund has proven critical to the CDFI sector’s success and has met the mission to create a public-private partnership to promote access to capital in our most underserved rural and urban communities,” wrote the Senators in the letter. “Each year, CDFIs leverage federal dollars from the CDFI Fund with private-sector investment to boost small business formation, increase housing production, and deliver new capital to America’s forgotten communities.”
In addition to Sens. Crapo and Warner, the letter was also signed by Sens. Cory Booker, John Boozman, Bill Cassidy, Kevin Cramer, Steve Daines, Dick Durbin, Ruben Gallego, John Hickenlooper, Cindy Hyde-Smith, Jim Justice, John Kennedy, Amy Klobuchar, Gary Peters, Jack Reed, Mike Rounds, Chuck Schumer, Tim Scott, Tim Sheehy, Tina Smith, Chris Van Hollen, Reverend Raphael Warnock, Roger Wicker, Ron Wyden, and Todd Young.
“It’s imperative that congressionally approved funds for the CDFI Fund are deployed strategically and in a timely manner. Delay in the obligation of funds hinders critical projects in our states and could constrain the flow of capital to businesses and consumers who need it the most,” continued the Senators. “To date, the CDFI Fund has yet to announce and disburse awards for five programs within its portfolio even though application periods closed months ago. Furthermore, other programs have yet to publish applications for the current fiscal year. The uncertainty around the deployment of federal funds from the CDFI Fund is concerning but can be addressed expeditiously. Therefore, we request that your Office issue a spending plan to Congress outlining the timelines for the obligation of all discretionary funds. The plan should provide Congress and the CDFI community with certainty that there will be continuity in the programs that have been lawfully funded.”
Click here for more on the letter to OMB Director Vought on the disbursement of funding from the CDFI Fund.
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