OFN Members Receive $110.5 Million from the CDFI Fund
Jamal Habibi
On September 24, the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) awarded $204.1 million in grants and loans to 397 community development financial institutions (CDFIs) through its fiscal year (FY) 2020 round of the CDFI Program and Native American CDFI Assistance (NACA) Program.
OFN congratulates all recipients, especially our 142 members and allies who received more than 54 percent, or more than $110.5 million, of the total dollars awarded in the FY 2020 funding round.
Of the $110.5 million, 15 OFN members received $9.1 million through the NACA program and 12 OFN members received $19.3 million in Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI) Financial Assistance Awards. Forty-five OFN members received Persistent Poverty County (PPC) Awards and 12 OFN members received Disability Funds Financial Assistance Awards.
Congratulations to all awardees!
To learn more about the awards, please visit the links below:
The award announcement comes just days before the start of FY 2021 and still no agreement in place to fund federal agencies. Congress continues to negotiate a short-term funding bill to avoid a government shutdown on October 1, which would keep programs funded at FY 2020 levels ($262 million for the CDFI Fund) until a longer-term funding agreement is in place.
In addition to pushing for robust appropriations in the annual budget, OFN continues to advocate for at least $1 billion in emergency appropriations for the CDFI Fund as part of the next COVID-19 relief package. In May, the House of Representatives passed the HEROES Act which included $1 billion for the CDFI Fund. The Senate has not taken up the HEROES Act.
As Congress remains deadlocked, we encourage CDFI supporters to urge your Members of Congress to include at least $1 billion for the CDFI Fund. For more information about getting involved, please visit OFN’s Policy Action Center.
For more information on OFN’s appropriations advocacy, contact Dafina Williams, OFN Senior Vice President, Public Policy.