Notice of Funds Availability, 12422-12431 [2010-5025]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability
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Funding Opportunity Title: Notice of
Funds Availability (NOFA) inviting
Applications for the FY 2010 Funding
Round of the Capital Magnet Fund
(CMF).
Announcement Type: Announcement
of funding opportunity.
Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance (CFDA) Number: 21.011
DATES: Applications for awards through
the FY 2010 Funding Round of the CMF
must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern Time
(ET), April 15, 2010.
Executive Summary: Subject to
funding availability, this NOFA is
issued in connection with the FY 2010
Funding Round of the CMF (the FY
2010 Funding Round). The CMF is
administered by the Community
Development Financial Institutions
Fund (the CDFI Fund).
I. Funding Opportunity Description
A. Through the CMF, the CDFI Fund
provides financial assistance awards to
Community Development Financial
Institutions (CDFIs), and to Nonprofit
Organizations that have as at least one
of their principal purposes the
development or management of
affordable housing.
B. The proposed regulations that will
eventually govern the CMF have been
simultaneously published for comment
with this NOFA and will provide
guidance on the requirements of the
CMF. The CDFI Fund encourages
Applicants to review the proposed CMF
regulations. Detailed application
content requirements are found in the
applicable funding application and
related guidance materials. Each
capitalized term in this NOFA is
defined herein, in the application, or in
the guidance materials.
C. Definitions: For the purposes of
this NOFA, the following terms shall
have the following definitions:
1. Act means the Housing and
Economic Recovery Act of 2008, as
amended, Public Law 110–289, section
1131;
2. Affiliate means any company or
entity that Controls, is Controlled by, or
is under common Control with another
company;
3. Affordable Housing means rental or
for-sale single-family or multi-family
housing that meets the requirements set
forth in the Assistance Agreement or
CMF regulations;
4. Affordable Housing Activities
means the Development, Preservation,
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Rehabilitation, or Purchase of
Affordable Housing;
5. Affordable Housing Fund means a
loan, grant, or investment fund,
managed by the Awardee, whose capital
is used to finance Affordable Housing
Activities;
6. Appropriate Federal Banking
Agency has the same meaning as in
section 3 of the Federal Deposit
Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. 1813(q), and
includes, with respect to Insured Credit
Unions, the National Credit Union
Administration;
7. Applicant means any entity
submitting an application for assistance
under this Notice of Funds Availability;
8. Appropriate State Agency means an
agency or instrumentality of a State that
regulates and/or insures the member
accounts of a State-Insured Credit
Union;
9. Assistance Agreement means a
formal, written agreement between the
CDFI Fund and an Awardee which
specifies the terms and conditions of an
award under this NOFA;
10. Awardee means an Applicant
selected by the CDFI Fund to receive an
award pursuant to this NOFA;
11. Capital Magnet Fund (or CMF)
means the program authorized by
section 1131 of the Act, Public Law
110–289;
12. Certified Community Development
Financial Institution (or Certified CDFI)
means an entity that has been
determined by the CDFI Fund to meet
the eligibility requirements set forth in
12 CFR 1805.201;
13. Community Development
Financial Institutions Fund (or CDFI
Fund) means the Community
Development Financial Institutions
Fund, an office of the U.S. Department
of Treasury, established under the
Community Development Banking and
Financial Institutions Act of 1994, as
amended, 12 U.S.C. 4701 et seq.;
14. Community Service Facility means
the physical structure in which
community-based programs (including,
but not limited to, health care,
childcare, educational, cultural, and/or
social services) operate which, In
Conjunction With Affordable Housing
Activities, implements a Concerted
Strategy to stabilize or revitalize a LowIncome Area or Underserved Rural
Area;
15. Concerted Strategy means a formal
planning document that evidences the
connection between Affordable Housing
Activities and Economic Development
Activities or Community Service
Facilities. Such documents include, but
are not limited to, a comprehensive,
consolidated, or redevelopment plan, or
some other local or regional planning
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document adopted or approved by the
jurisdiction;
16. Control means: (i) Ownership,
control, or power to vote 25 percent or
more of the outstanding shares of any
class of Voting Securities of any
company, directly or indirectly or acting
through one or more other persons; (ii)
control in any manner over the election
of a majority of the directors, trustees,
or general partners (or individuals
exercising similar functions) of any
company; or (iii) the power to exercise,
directly or indirectly, a controlling
influence over the management, credit
or investment decisions, or policies of
any company;
17. Depository Institution Holding
Company means a bank holding
company or a savings and loan holding
company as defined in section 3 of the
Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12
U.S.C. 1813(w)(1);
18. Development means land
acquisition, demolition of existing
facilities, and construction of new
facilities, which may include site
improvement, utilities development and
rehabilitation of utilities, necessary
infrastructure, utility services,
conversion, and other related activities;
19. Economic Development Activity
means the Development, Preservation,
Rehabilitation, or Purchase of
Community Service Facilities and/or
other physical structures in which
neighborhood-based businesses operate
which, In Conjunction With Affordable
Housing Activities, implements a
Concerted Strategy to stabilize or
revitalize a Low-Income Area or
Underserved Rural Area;
20. Eligible Project Costs means
Leverage Costs plus those costs funded
directly by a CMF award, exclusive of
Operations;
21. Extremely Low-Income means (i)
in the case of owner-occupied housing
units, income not in excess of 30
percent of the area median income and
(ii) in the case of rental housing units,
income not in excess of 30 percent of
the area median income, with
adjustments for smaller and larger
families, as determined by HUD;
22. HOME Program means the HOME
Investment Partnership Program set
forth in the HOME Investment
Partnerships Act under title II of the
Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable
Housing Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C.
12701 et seq.;
23. Homeownership means ownership
in fee simple title or a 99-year leasehold
interest in a one- to four-unit dwelling
or in a condominium unit, or equivalent
form of ownership (which shall include
cooperative housing and mutual
housing project). The ownership interest
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may be subject only to the following: (i)
Restrictions on resale permitted in the
Assistance Agreement; (ii) mortgages,
deeds of trust, or other liens or
instruments securing debt on the
property; or (iii) any other restrictions or
encumbrances that do not impair the
good and marketable nature of title to
the ownership interest. For purposes of
housing located on trust or restricted
Indian lands, homeownership includes
leases of 50 years;
24. Housing means single- and multifamily residential units, including, but
not limited to, manufactured housing
and manufactured housing lots,
permanent housing for disabled and/or
homeless persons, transitional housing,
single-room occupancy housing, and
group homes. Housing also includes
elder cottage housing opportunity
(ECHO), 24 CFR 92.258;
25. HUD means the Department of
Housing and Urban Development
established under the Department of
Housing and Urban Development Act of
1965, 42 U.S.C. 3532–3537;
26. In Conjunction With means
physically proximate to Affordable
Housing and reasonably available to
residents of Affordable Housing
27. Insured CDFI means a Certified
CDFI that is an Insured Depository
Institution or an Insured Credit Union;
28. Insured Credit Union means any
credit union, the member accounts of
which are insured by the National
Credit Union Share Insurance Fund by
the National Credit Union
Administration pursuant to authority
granted in 12 U.S.C. 1783 et seq.;
29. Insured Depository Institution
means any bank or thrift, the deposits of
which are insured by the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation, 12
U.S.C. 1813(c)(2);
30. Leveraged Costs means those costs
as described Section II.B.4. of this
NOFA and in the CMF regulations;
31. Loan Guarantee means an
agreement to indemnify the holder of a
loan all or a portion of the unpaid
principal balance in case of default by
the borrower;
32. Loan Loss Reserves means funds
that the Applicant or Awardee will set
aside in the form of cash reserves, or
through accounting-based accrual
reserves, to cover losses on loans,
accounts, and notes receivable, or for
related purposes that the CDFI Fund
deems appropriate;
33. Low-Income means (i) in the case
of owner-occupied housing units,
income not in excess of 80 percent of
area median income and (ii) in the case
of rental housing units, income not in
excess of 80 percent of area median
income, with adjustments for smaller
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and larger families, as determined by
HUD;
34. Low-Income Area or LIA means a
census tract or block numbering area in
which the median income does not
exceed 80 percent of the median income
for the area in which such census tract
or block numbering area is located. With
respect to a census tract or block
numbering area located within a
Metropolitan Area, the median family
income shall be at or below 80 percent
of the Metropolitan Area median family
income or the national Metropolitan
Area median family income, whichever
is greater. In the case of a census tract
or block numbering area located outside
of a Metropolitan Area, the median
family income shall be at or below 80
percent of the statewide NonMetropolitan Area median family
income or the national NonMetropolitan Area median family
income, whichever is greater;
35. Low-Income Families means those
households that reside within the
boundaries of the United Sates (which
shall encompass any State of the United
States, the District of Columbia or any
territory of the United States, Puerto
Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the
Virgin Islands, and the Northern
Mariana Islands) meeting the criteria as
set forth in Section I.C.(34) of this
NOFA;
36. Low Income Housing Tax Credit
Program or LIHTC Program means the
program as set forth under Title I of the
U.S. Housing Act of 1937, as amended,
42 U.S.C. 1437 et seq.;
37. Metropolitan Area means an area
designated as such by the Office of
Management and Budget pursuant to 44
U.S.C. 3504(e) and 31 U.S.C. 1104(d)
and Executive Order 10253, as
amended, 16 FR 5605;
38. Non-Metropolitan Area means a
county or adjacent counties not
contained within either a Consolidated
Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) or
a Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area
(PMSA), as such areas are defined in
OMB Bulletin No. 99–04, with respect
to the most recent decennial census.
Non-Metropolitan Counties can be
identified in the CDFI Fund’s mapping
system (CIMS), and are also listed on
the CDFI Fund’s Web site;
39. Nonprofit Organization means any
corporation, trust, association,
cooperative, or other organization that is
(i) designated as a nonprofit or not-forprofit entity under the laws of the
organization’s State of formation and (ii)
exempt from Federal income taxation
pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986;
40. Non-Regulated CDFI means any
entity meeting the eligibility
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requirements described in 12 CFR
1805.200 which is not a Depository
Institution Holding Company, Insured
Depository Institution, or Insured Credit
Union;
41. Operations means all allowable
expenses as defined by Office of
Management and Budget (OMB)
Circular A–122, ‘‘Cost Principles for
Non-Profit Organizations,’’ and OMB
Circular A–87, ‘‘Cost Principles for
State, Local, and Indian Tribal
Governments,’’ incurred by the Awardee
related to the administration, operation,
and implementation of a CMF award.
42. Participating Jurisdiction means a
jurisdiction designated by HUD, as a
participating jurisdiction under the
HOME Program in accordance with the
requirements of 24 CFR 92.105;
43. Preservation means: (i) Activities
to refinance, with or without
Rehabilitation, single-family or multifamily rental property mortgages that, at
the time of refinancing, are subject to
affordability and use restrictions under
State or federal affordable housing
programs, including but not limited to,
the HOME Program, the LIHTC Program,
the Section 8 Tenant-Based Assistance
and the Section 8 Rental Voucher
programs (24 CFR part 982), or the
Section 515 Rural Rental Housing
program (7 CFR Part 3560), hereinafter
referred to as ‘‘similar State or federal
affordable housing programs’’, where
such refinancing has the effect of
extending the term of any affordability
and use restrictions on the properties;
(ii) activities to refinance and acquire
single-family or multi-family properties
that, at the time of refinancing or
acquisition, were subject to affordability
and use restrictions under similar State
or federal affordable housing programs,
by the former tenants of such properties,
where such refinancing has the effect of
extending the term of any affordability
and use restrictions on the properties; or
(iii) activities to refinance the mortgages
of single-family, owner-occupied
housing that at the time of refinancing
are subject to affordability and use
restrictions under similar State or
federal affordable housing programs,
where such refinancing has the effect of
extending the term of any affordability
and use restrictions on the properties;
44. Purchase means to acquire
ownership in fee simple title or a 99year leasehold interest in a one-to-four
unit dwelling or in a condominium unit,
through an exchange of money;
45. Rehabilitation means any repairs
and or capital improvements that
contribute to the long-term preservation,
current building code compliance,
habitability, sustainability, or energy
efficiency of affordable housing;
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46. Revolving Loan Fund means a
pool of funds managed by the Applicant
or Awardee wherein repayments on
Affordable Housing Activities loans,
Economic Development Activities loans
and/or Community Services Facilities
loans are used to finance additional
loans;
47. Risk-Sharing Loan means loans for
Affordable Housing Activities and/or
Economic Development Activities in
which the risk of borrower default is
shared by the Applicant or Awardee
with other lenders (e.g., participation
loans);
48. Service Area means the
geographic area in which the Applicant
proposes to use CMF funding, and the
geographic area approved by the CDFI
Fund in which the Awardee shall use
CMF funding as set forth in its
Assistance Agreement;
49. Single-family housing means a
one- to four-family residence,
condominium unit, cooperative unit,
combination of manufactured housing
and lot, or manufactured housing lot;
50. State means the States of the
United States, the District of Columbia,
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Island, Guam, the Virgin Islands,
American Samoa, the Trust Territory of
the Pacific Islands, and any other
territory of the United States;
51. State-Insured Credit Union means
any credit union that is regulated by,
and/or the member accounts of which
are insured by, a State agency or
instrumentality;
52. Subsidiary means any company
which is owned or Controlled directly
or indirectly by another company;
53. Underserved Rural Area means a
Non-Metropolitan Area that (i) Qualifies
as a Low-Income Area; (ii) is
experiencing housing stress evidenced
by 30 percent or more of resident
households with one or more of these
housing conditions in the last decennial
census: (A) Lacked complete plumbing,
(B) lacked complete kitchen, (C) paid 30
percent or more of income for owner
costs or rent, or (D) had more than 1
person per room; or (iii) is remote-rural
county (i.e., is neither located in, nor
adjacent to, a Non-Metropolitan Area);
54. Very Low-Income means (i) in the
case of owner-occupied housing units,
income not greater than 50 percent of
the area median income; and (ii) in the
case of rental housing units, income not
greater than 50 percent of the area
median income, with adjustments for
smaller and larger families, as
determined by HUD.
D. The CDFI Fund reserves the right
to fund, in whole or in part, any, all, or
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none of the applications submitted in
response to this NOFA.
II. Award Information
A. Funding Availability: Through this
NOFA, the CDFI Fund expects that it
will award approximately $80 million
in appropriated funds for the FY 2010
Funding Round.
B. Funding Cap: The CDFI Fund is
prohibited from obligating more than 15
percent of the available funding in the
aggregate to any Applicant, its
Subsidiaries and Affiliates in the same
funding year. The CDFI Fund
anticipates that the maximum award for
the FY 2010 Funding Round will
therefore be $12 million in the aggregate
to any Applicant, its Subsidiaries and
Affiliates.
C. Types of Awards: The CDFI Fund
will provide CMF awards in the form of
grants. Applicants may request a grant
of up to $12 million under this award
announcement. The CDFI Fund reserves
the right, in its sole discretion, to
provide a CMF award in an amount
other than that which the Applicant
requests; however, the award amount
will not exceed the Applicant’s award
request as stated in its application. CMF
awards must be used to support the
Applicant’s activities; CMF awards
cannot be used to support the activities
of, or otherwise be ‘‘passed through’’ to,
third-party entities, whether Affiliates,
Subsidiaries, or others, without the
prior written permission of the CDFI
Fund.
1. Eligible Uses: An Applicant may
submit an application for a CMF award
intended to support financing activities
related to (i) the Development,
Preservation, Rehabilitation, or
Purchase of Affordable Housing for
primarily Low-, Very Low- and
Extremely Low-Income families, and (ii)
Economic Development Activities or
Community Service Facilities, such as
day care centers, workforce
development centers, and health care
clinics. CMF awards can be used as
follows: (i) To provide Loan Loss
Reserves, (ii) to capitalize a Revolving
Loan Fund, (iii) to capitalize an
Affordable Housing Fund, (iv) to
capitalize a fund to support Economic
Development Activities and Community
Service Facilities, (v) for Risk-Sharing
Loans, (vii) to provide Loan Guarantees,
and (viii) to support Operations
pertaining to the administration of the
CMF award.
2. Limitations on Use: Each Awardee
that uses CMF funding to support
Affordable Housing Activities shall
ensure that 100 percent of Eligible
Project Costs pertaining to such
activities are attributable to housing
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units that meet the CMF affordability
qualifications for Homeownership and
rental properties for families whose
annual income does not exceed 120
percent of the median income for the
area. In addition, greater than 50 percent
of the Eligible Project Costs must be
attributable to housing units that meet
the CMF affordability qualifications for
Homeownership and rental units for
either Low-Income, Very Low-Income,
or Extremely Low-Income Families.
These affordability restrictions must
remain in place for a period of 10 years
from the date of project completion,
which includes the transfer of title,
completion of construction, and other
criteria as described in the Awardee’s
Assistance Agreement.
Awardees may use no more than 30
percent of their CMF award pursuant to
this NOFA to support Economic
Development Activities and Community
Service Facilities. In addition, no more
than five percent of an Awardee’s CMF
grant pursuant to this NOFA may be
used for Operations.
3. Designation of a Service Area: Each
Applicant shall indicate its proposed
Service Area in its application and shall
use its CMF award in the Service Area
approved by the CDFI Fund and
designated in its Assistance Agreement.
4. Leverage: Each CMF award is
expected to result in total Eligible
Project Costs equal to at least ten (10)
times the CMF award amount. Such
costs may be for activities including
Affordable Housing Activities,
Economic Development Activities or
Community Service Facilities. Thus, an
Awardee shall demonstrate that it
leveraged its CMF award at least 10
times the CMF grant amount or some
other standard established by the CDFI
Fund in the Awardee’s Assistance
Agreement. For the purposes of this
NOFA, Eligible Project Costs include
Leveraged Costs plus those costs funded
directly by a CMF award, excluding
costs associated with Operations.
Leveraged Costs are costs that exceed
the dollar amount of the Awardee’s
CMF contribution to each CMF-funded
activity. An Awardee may report to the
CDFI Fund all Leveraged Costs with the
following limitations:
(a) No costs attributable to Operations
may be reported as Leveraged Costs.
(b) No costs attributable to prohibited
uses as defined in the Assistance
Agreement may be reported as
Leveraged Costs.
An Awardee shall self-report its
leveraging information through a
standardized data collection system
developed by the CDFI Fund.
Consequently, an Awardee should
maintain appropriate documentation,
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such as audited financial statements,
wire transfers documents, pro-formas,
and other relevant records, to support
its reports.
5. Commitment for Use: CMF awards
shall be committed for use within two
years of the effective date of the
Awardee’s Assistance Agreement. An
Awardee shall demonstrate that its CMF
award is committed by having executed
a written, legally binding agreement
under which CMF assistance will be
provided to the developer or project
sponsor for an identifiable project under
which:
(a) Construction can reasonably be
expected to start within 12 months of
the agreement date; or
(b) Property title will be transferred
within six months of the agreement
date.
An Awardee shall make an initial
disbursement of its CMF award for
Affordable Housing Activities,
Economic Development Activities, or
Community Service Facilities within
three years of the effective date of its
Assistance Agreement.
6. Project Completion: All projects
funded through CMF grants must be
placed into service within 5 years of the
effective date of the Assistance
Agreement.
7. Limitation on Awards: An
Applicant may receive only one award
through the FY 2010 Funding Round of
the CMF. A CMF Applicant, its
Subsidiaries, or Affiliates also may
apply for and receive an award through
the CDFI Program, Native American
CDFI Assistance (NACA) Program, Bank
Enterprise Award (BEA) Program,
Financial Education and Counseling
(FEC) Pilot Program, or New Markets
Tax Credit (NMTC) Program, but only to
the extent that the activities approved
for CMF awards are different from those
activities for which the Applicant
receives an award under another CDFI
Fund program.
D. Assistance Agreement: Each
Awardee under this NOFA must sign an
Assistance Agreement in order to
receive a disbursement of award
proceeds by the CDFI Fund. The
Assistance Agreement will include a
Notice of Award and these documents
will contain the terms and conditions of
the award. For further information, see
Sections VI.A and VI.B of this NOFA.
III. Eligibility Information
A. Eligible Applicants: The following
sets forth the eligibility requirements
that each Applicant must meet in order
to be eligible to apply for assistance
under this NOFA.
1. CMF Applicant Categories: All
Applicants for CMF awards through this
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NOFA must be Certified CDFIs or
eligible Nonprofit Organizations. An
Applicant will be deemed eligible to
apply for a CMF award if it is:
(a) A Certified CDFI that has been in
existence as a legally formed entity for
at least three years prior to the
application deadline under this NOFA;
(b) An entity that has been in
existence as a legally formed entity for
at least three years prior to the
application deadline under this NOFA,
and the CDFI Fund has received that
entity’s CDFI certification application
materials by April 1, 2010; or
(c) A Nonprofit Organization that: (i)
Has been in existence as a legally
formed entity for at least three years
prior to the application deadline under
this NOFA; (ii) demonstrates, through
articles of incorporation, by-laws, or
other board-approved documents, that
the development or management of
affordable housing are among its
principal purposes; and (iii) can
demonstrate that at least one-third of the
Applicant’s resources (either as a
portion of total staffing or as a portion
of total assets) are dedicated to the
development or management of
affordable housing.
2. CDFI Certification Status: Eligible
CMF Applicants include Certified CDFIs
and certain entities that have applied for
CDFI certification, defined as follows:
(a) Certified CDFIs: For purposes of
this NOFA, a Certified CDFI is an entity
that has received official notification
from the CDFI Fund that it meets all
CDFI certification requirements as of the
date of publication of this NOFA, the
certification of which has not expired,
and that has not been notified by the
CDFI Fund that its certification has been
terminated. In cases where the CDFI
Fund provided certified CDFIs with
written notification that their
certifications had been extended, the
CDFI Fund will consider the extended
certification date (the later date) to
determine whether those certified CDFIs
meet this eligibility requirement. When
applicable, each such Applicant must
submit a Certification of Material Events
form to the CDFI Fund not later than
April 1, 2010 (see Table 1—FY 2010
CMF Deadlines). The Certification of
Material Events form can be found on
the CDFI Fund’s Web site at https://
www.CDFIfund.gov.
(b) Entities that have applied for CDFI
Certification: For purposes of this
NOFA, these are entities from which the
CDFI Fund has received a complete
CDFI Certification application not later
than April 1, 2010. Please note: While
an entity that has applied for CDFI
certification may be deemed eligible to
apply for a CMF award, the CDFI Fund
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will not provide an award to such an
entity unless and until the CDFI Fund
has officially certified the organization
as a CDFI.
B. Prior Awardees: Applicants must
be aware that success in a prior round
of any of the CDFI Fund’s programs is
not indicative of success under this
NOFA. For purposes of this section, the
CDFI Fund will consider an Affiliate to
be any entity that meets the definition
of Affiliate in this NOFA or any entity
otherwise identified as an Affiliate by
the Applicant in its funding application
under this NOFA. Prior awardees
should note the following:
1. Failure to Meet Reporting
Requirements: The CDFI Fund will not
consider an application submitted by an
Applicant if the Applicant, or an
Affiliate of the Applicant, is a prior
awardee or allocatee under any CDFI
Fund program and is not current on the
reporting requirements set forth in a
previously executed assistance,
allocation, or award agreement(s), as of
the applicable application deadline of
this NOFA. Please note that the CDFI
Fund only acknowledges the receipt of
reports that are complete. As such,
incomplete reports or reports that are
deficient of required elements will not
be recognized as having been received.
2. Pending Resolution of
Noncompliance: If an Applicant is a
prior awardee or allocatee under any
CDFI Fund program and if (i) it has
submitted complete and timely reports
to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate
noncompliance with a previous
assistance, allocation or award
agreement, and (ii) the CDFI Fund has
yet to make a final determination as to
whether the entity is in default of its
previous assistance, allocation, or award
agreement, the CDFI Fund will consider
the Applicant’s application under this
NOFA pending full resolution, in the
sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of
the noncompliance. Further, if an
Affiliate of the Applicant is a prior CDFI
Fund awardee or allocatee and if such
entity (i) has submitted complete and
timely reports to the CDFI Fund that
demonstrate noncompliance with a
previous assistance, allocation, or award
agreement, and (ii) the CDFI Fund has
yet to make a final determination as to
whether the entity is in default of its
previous assistance, allocation, or award
agreement, the CDFI Fund will consider
the Applicant’s application under this
NOFA pending full resolution, in the
sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of
the noncompliance.
3. Default Status: The CDFI Fund will
not consider an application submitted
by an Applicant that is a prior awardee
or allocatee under any CDFI Fund
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program if, as of the applicable
application deadline of this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that such Applicant is in
default of a previously executed
assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s). Further, an entity is not
eligible to apply for an award pursuant
to this NOFA if, as of the applicable
application deadline of this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that an Affiliate of the
Applicant is a prior awardee or allocatee
under any CDFI Fund program and has
been determined by the CDFI Fund to be
in default of a previously executed
assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s). Such entities will be
ineligible to apply for an award
pursuant to this NOFA so long as the
Applicant’s, or its Affiliate’s, prior
award or allocation remains in default
status or such other time period as
specified by the CDFI Fund in writing.
4. Termination in Default: The CDFI
Fund will not consider an application
submitted by an Applicant that is a
prior awardee or allocatee under any
CDFI Fund program if (i) within the 12month period prior to the applicable
application deadline of this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that such Applicant’s
prior award or allocation terminated in
default of a previously executed
assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s), and (ii) the final reporting
period end date for the applicable
terminated assistance, allocation, or
award agreement(s) falls within the 12month period prior to the application
deadline of this NOFA. Further, an
entity is not eligible to apply for an
award pursuant to this NOFA if (i)
within the 12-month period prior to the
applicable application deadline, the
CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that an Affiliate of the
Applicant is a prior awardee or allocatee
under any CDFI Fund program whose
award or allocation terminated in
default of a previously executed
assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s), and (ii) the final reporting
period end date for the applicable
terminated assistance, allocation or
award agreement(s) falls within the 12month period prior to the application
deadline of this NOFA.
5. Undisbursed Award Funds: The
CDFI Fund will not consider an
application submitted by an Applicant
that is a prior awardee under any CDFI
Fund program if the Applicant has a
balance of undisbursed award funds (as
defined below) under said prior
award(s), as of the applicable
application deadline of this NOFA.
Further, an entity is not eligible to apply
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for an award pursuant to this NOFA if
an Affiliate of the Applicant is a prior
awardee under any CDFI Fund program,
and has a balance of undisbursed award
funds under said prior award(s), as of
the applicable application deadline of
this NOFA. In a case where another
entity that Controls the Applicant, is
Controlled by the Applicant, or shares
common management officials with the
Applicant (as determined by the CDFI
Fund) is a prior awardee under any
CDFI Fund program, and has a balance
of undisbursed award funds under said
prior award(s), as of the applicable
application deadline of this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund will include the combined
awards of the Applicant and such
Affiliated entities when calculating the
amount of undisbursed award funds.
For purposes of the calculation of
undisbursed award funds for the BEA
Program, only awards made to the
Applicant (and any Affiliates) three to
five calendar years prior to the end of
the calendar year of the application
deadline of this NOFA are included
(‘‘includable BEA awards’’). Thus, for
purposes of this NOFA, undisbursed
BEA Program award funds are the
amount of FYs 2005, 2006, and 2007
awards that remain undisbursed as of
the application deadline of this NOFA.
For purposes of the calculation of
undisbursed award funds for the CDFI
Program and the Native Initiatives
Funding Programs, only awards made to
the Applicant (and any Affiliates) two to
five calendar years prior to the end of
the calendar year of the application
deadline of this NOFA are included
(‘‘includable CDFI/NI awards’’). Thus,
for purposes of this NOFA, undisbursed
CDFI Program and NI awards are the
amount of FYs 2005, 2006, 2007 and
2008 awards that remain undisbursed as
of the application deadline of this
NOFA. The term ‘‘Native Initiatives
Funding Programs’’ refers to the NACA
Program and all prior funding programs,
through which funds are no longer
available, including the Native
American CDFI Technical Assistance
(NACTA) Component of the CDFI
Program, the Native American CDFI
Development (NACD) Program, and the
Native American Technical Assistance
(NATA) Component of the CDFI
Program.
To calculate total includable BEA/
CDFI/NI awards: amounts that are
undisbursed as of the application
deadline of this NOFA cannot exceed
five percent of the total includable
awards.
The ‘‘undisbursed award funds’’
calculation does not include: (i) Tax
credit allocation authority made
available through the NMTC Program;
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(ii) any award funds for which the CDFI
Fund received a full and complete
disbursement request from the awardee
by the applicable application deadline
of this NOFA; (iii) any award funds for
an award that has been terminated in
writing by the CDFI Fund or deobligated
by the CDFI Fund; or (iv) any award
funds for an award that does not have
a fully executed assistance or award
agreement. The CDFI Fund strongly
encourages Applicants requesting
disbursements of ‘‘undisbursed funds’’
from prior awards to provide the CDFI
Fund with a complete disbursement
request at least 10 business days prior
to the application deadline of this
NOFA.
6. Contact the CDFI Fund: Applicants
that are prior CDFI Fund awardees are
advised to: (i) Comply with
requirements specified in assistance,
allocation, and/or award agreement(s),
and (ii) contact the CDFI Fund to ensure
that all necessary actions are underway
for the disbursement or deobligation of
any outstanding balance of said prior
award(s). An Applicant that is unsure
about the disbursement status of any
prior award should contact the CDFI
Fund’s Senior Resource Manager via email at
CDFI.disburseinquiries@cdfi.treas.gov.
7. Entities that Submit Applications
Together with Affiliates; Applications
from Common Enterprises:
(a) As part of the CMF application
review process, the CDFI Fund
considers whether Applicants are
Affiliates, as such term is defined in the
CMF application. If an Applicant and its
Affiliates wish to submit CMF
applications, they must do so
collectively, in one application; an
Applicant and its Affiliates may not
submit separate CMF applications. If
Affiliated entities submit multiple
applications, the CDFI Fund reserves
the right either to reject all such
applications received or to select a
single application as the only
application considered for an award.
For purposes of this NOFA, in
addition to assessing whether applicants
meet the definition of the term
‘‘Affiliate,’’ the CDFI Fund will consider:
(i) Whether the activities described in
applications submitted by separate
entities are, or will be, operated and/or
managed as a common enterprise that,
in fact or effect, may be viewed as a
single entity; (ii) whether the
applications submitted by separate
entities contain significant narrative,
textual or other similarities, and (iii)
whether the business strategies and/or
activities described in applications
submitted by separate entities are so
closely related, in fact or effect, they
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may be viewed as substantially identical
applications. In such cases, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right either to reject
all applications received from all such
entities; to select a single application as
the only one that will be considered for
an award; and, in the event that an
application is selected to receive an
award, to deem certain activities
ineligible.
(b) Furthermore, an Applicant that
receives an award in this CMF round
may not become an Affiliate of or
member of a common enterprise (as
defined above) with another Applicant
that receives an award in this CMF
round at any time after the submission
of a CMF application under this NOFA.
This requirement will also be a term and
condition of the Assistance Agreement
(see Section VI.B. of this NOFA and
additional application guidance
materials on the CDFI Fund’s Web site
at https://www.cdfifund.gov for more
details).
IV. Application and Submission
Information
A. MyCDFIFund Accounts: All
Applicants must register User and
Organization accounts in myCDFIFund,
the CDFI Fund’s Internet-based
interface. An Applicant must be
registered as both a User and an
Organization in myCDFIFund as of the
applicable application deadline in order
to be considered to have submitted a
complete application. As myCDFIFund
is the CDFI Fund’s primary means of
communication with Applicants and
Awardees, organizations must make
sure that they update the contact
information in their myCDFIFund
accounts before the applicable
application deadline. For more
information on myCDFIFund, please see
the ‘‘Frequently Asked Questions’’ link
posted at https://www.cdfifund.gov/
myCDFI/Help/Help.asp.
B. Form of Application Submission:
Applicants must submit applications
under this NOFA electronically.
Applications sent by mail, facsimile, or
other form will not be permitted, except
in circumstances that the CDFI Fund, in
its sole discretion, deems acceptable.
C. Applications Submitted via
myCDFIFund: Applicants must submit
applications under this NOFA
electronically, through myCDFIFund,
the CDFI Fund’s Internet-based
interface. Please note that the CDFI
Fund will not accept applications
through Grants.gov. Applications sent
by mail, facsimile, or other form will
generally not be accepted, except in
circumstances approved by the CDFI
Fund, in its sole discretion. The CDFI
Fund will post to its Web site at
https://www.cdfifund.gov instructions for
accessing and submitting an application
as soon as they become available.
D. Application Content Requirements:
Detailed application content
requirements are found in the
application and guidance. Please note
that, pursuant to OMB guidance (68 FR
38402), each Applicant must provide, as
12427
part of its application submission, a Dun
and Bradstreet Data Universal
Numbering System (DUNS) number. In
addition, each application must include
a valid and current Employer
Identification Number (EIN), with a
letter or other documentation from the
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
confirming the Applicant’s EIN. An
application that does not include an EIN
is incomplete and cannot be transmitted
to the CDFI Fund. Applicants should
allow sufficient time for the IRS and/or
Dun and Bradstreet to respond to
inquiries and/or requests for
identification numbers. Once an
application is submitted, the Applicant
will not be allowed to change any
element of the application. The
preceding sentences do not limit the
CDFI Fund’s ability to contact an
Applicant for the purpose of obtaining
clarifying or confirming application
information (such as a DUNS number or
EIN information).
E. Under the Paperwork Reduction
Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), an agency
may not conduct or sponsor a collection
of information, and an individual is not
required to respond to a collection of
information, unless it displays a valid
OMB control number. Pursuant to the
Paperwork Reduction Act, the
application has been assigned the
following control number: 1559–0036.
F. Application Deadlines:
1. The following are the deadlines for
submission of the documents related to
the FY 2010 Funding Round:
TABLE 1—FY 2010 CMF DEADLINES
[All 5 p.m. ET deadlines]
Document
Deadline
Certified CDFIs ..............................
Entities Applying for CDFI Certification.
All Applicants .................................
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Applicant Type
Certification of Material Events ....
CDFI Certification Application ......
Thursday, April 1, 2010 ................
Thursday, April 1, 2010 ................
Tuesday, March 30, 2010.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010.
CMF Funding Application .............
Thursday, April 15, 2010 ..............
Tuesday, April 13, 2010.
All CMF funding applications must be
electronic and submitted through
myCDFIFund. No paper submittals or
attachments will be accepted.
2. Late Delivery: The CDFI Fund will
neither accept a late application nor any
portion of an application that is late; an
application that is late, or for which any
portion is late, will be rejected. The
CDFI Fund will not grant exceptions or
waivers. Any application that is deemed
ineligible will not be returned to the
Applicant.
G. Intergovernmental Review: Not
applicable.
H. Funding Restrictions: CMF awards
may not be used for the following: (i)
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16:14 Mar 12, 2010
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Political activities; (ii) advocacy; (iii)
lobbying, whether directly or through
other parties; (iv) counseling services
(including homebuyer or financial
counseling); (v) travel expenses; (vi)
preparing or providing advice on tax
returns; (vii) emergency shelters
(including shelters for disaster victims);
(viii) nursing homes; (ix) convalescent
homes; (x) residential treatment
facilities; (xi) correctional facilities; (xii)
student dormitories; or (xiii) other uses
identified in the Awardee’s Assistance
Agreement.
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Last date to contact CDFI Fund
V. Application Review Information
A. Format: Each narrative response
required in the application has
limitations with respect to the amount
of words or characters that the
Applicant may provide. Applicants are
encouraged to read each question
carefully and to remain within
limitations set forth in the question, to
avoid the electronic application
submission form from truncating the
Applicant’s response. Also, the CDFI
Fund will read only information
requested in the application and will
not read attachments that have not been
specifically requested in this NOFA or
the application.
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B. Criteria: Applicants will be
evaluated across several key areas:
1. Business Strategy: The Applicant
must provide a detailed strategy for
implementing its CMF award. The
Applicant is required to identify and
describe, among other things: (i) Its
track record of financing Affordable
Housing and related activities; (ii) its
proposed activities including a
description of the financing tools and
specific debt or equity products that
will be offered; and (iii) its pipeline of
proposed projects and activities.
2. Leveraging Strategy: The Applicant
must be able to demonstrate its ability
to leverage CMF award funding. To this
end, the Applicant must identify and
describe, among other things, its
anticipated strategy for leveraging
dollars, including private capital: (i) At
the pre-investment stage (e.g., use of the
CMF award to secure additional thirdparty capital prior to investing into
projects); (ii) through reinvestment of
CMF award dollars into additional
projects (e.g., use of the CMF award to
fund a revolving loan pool to invest in
projects); and (iii) at the project level
(e.g., use of the CMF award to invest in
projects with total costs in excess of the
CMF award investment).
3. Community Impact: The Applicant
must describe the extent to which the
Applicant will target its activities
towards underserved populations and
areas of high housing need; and describe
the extent to which the Applicant’s
strategy will have positive community
development and economic impacts.
4. Organizational Capacity: The
Applicant must demonstrate its ability
and capacity to undertake its proposed
activities, use its award successfully,
and maintain compliance with its
Assistance Agreement. To this end, the
Applicant will be required to identify
and describe, among other things: (i) Its
management team and key staff; (ii) the
role of its governing board or advisory
board; (iii) its timelines for committing
its CMF award funds to activities and
projects; (iv) its procedures and systems
to track and ensure compliance with the
affordability and community impact
commitments; (v) its current financial
condition, including results of recent
audits; and (vi) its experience
administering other public funds
including federal government awards, if
applicable.
C. Review and Selection Process
1. Eligibility and Completeness
Review: The CDFI Fund will review
each application to determine whether
it is complete and the Applicant meets
the eligibility requirements set forth
above. An incomplete application that
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16:14 Mar 12, 2010
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does not meet eligibility requirements
will be rejected. Any application that
does not meet eligibility requirements
will not be returned to the Applicant.
2. Substantive Review: If an
application is deemed to be complete
and the Applicant is determined to be
eligible, the CDFI Fund will conduct the
substantive review of the application in
accordance with the criteria and
procedures described in this NOFA, the
application, and any application
guidance. As part of the review process,
the CDFI Fund may contact the
Applicant by telephone, e-mail, mail, or
through an on-site visit for the sole
purpose of obtaining clarifying or
confirming application information. The
CDFI Fund reserves the right to collect
such additional information from
Applicants as it deems appropriate.
After submitting its application, the
Applicant will not be permitted to
revise or modify its application in any
way nor attempt to negotiate the terms
of an award. If contacted for clarifying
or confirming information, the
Applicant must respond within the time
parameters set by the CDFI Fund.
3. Application Review; Selection:
Awards will be made based on
Applicants’ experience and ability to
use CMF award dollars to support
Affordable Housing Activities,
Economic Development Activities, and
Community Service Facilities, in
accordance with the criteria set forth
above in Section V.B.
(a) Quantitative Peer Review: The
CDFI Fund may undertake an initial
review of all applications prior to
assigning the application to a reviewer.
This review will be based upon
quantitative information provided by
the Applicant in its application
materials, with specific focus on: (i) The
Applicant’s commitments to using CMF
award dollars to generate additional
funds through leveraging; (ii) the
Applicant’s commitments to targeting
projects that serve underserved
populations or areas of high housing
need; and (iii) the Applicant’s
demonstrated ability to obligate funds
and undertake activities in a timely
matter. Applicants that, when compared
with the rest of the Applicant pool,
score lowest in one or more of these key
areas may not be forwarded to the next
level of review.
(b) Application Review: Reviewers
will be assigned a set number of
applications to review. Once the
reviewer has completed all of his/her
review assignments, he/she will provide
a score for each of the applications that
was reviewed, in accordance with the
scoring criterion outlined in the
application materials.
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(c) Evaluating Prior Award
Performance: In the case of an
Applicant that has received awards from
other federal programs, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right to contact officials
from the appropriate federal agency or
agencies to determine whether the
Awardee is in compliance with current
or prior award agreements, and to take
such information into consideration
before making a CMF award. In the case
of an Applicant that has previously
received funding through any CDFI
Fund program, the CDFI Fund will
consider and may, in its discretion,
deduct points for those Applicants (or
their Affiliates) that have a history of
providing late reports. The CDFI Fund
may also bar from consideration an
Applicant that has, in any proceeding
instituted against the Applicant in, by,
or before any court, governmental, or
administrative body or agency, received
a final determination within the last
three years indicating that the Applicant
has discriminated on the basis of race,
color, national origin, disability, age,
marital status, receipt of income from
public assistance, religion, or sex.
(d) Selection: After all applications
have been reviewed and scored, the
CDFI Fund will make award
determinations in descending order of
scores, subject to Applicants’ meeting
all eligibility requirements; provided,
however, that the CDFI Fund, in its sole
discretion, reserves the right to reject an
application and/or adjust award
amounts as appropriate based on
information obtained during the review
process. After preliminary award
determinations are made, the CDFI
Fund will review the list of potential
awardees to determine whether: (i) the
potential awardees’ service areas
collectively represent broad geographic
coverage throughout the United States;
and (ii) the potential awardees will
collectively, based upon projections
made by each Applicant, direct at least
20 percent of total activities to NonMetropolitan Areas. To the extent
practicable, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right to make alterations to award
amounts and/or make awards to
additional organizations if deemed
necessary to ensure these desired
outcomes.
4. Regulated Applicants: In the case of
Insured Depository Institutions and
Insured Credit Unions, the CDFI Fund
will take into consideration the views of
the Appropriate Federal Banking
Agencies; in the case of State-Insured
Credit Unions, the CDFI Fund may
consult with the appropriate State
banking agencies (or comparable entity).
5. Award Notification: Each Applicant
will be informed of the CDFI Fund’s
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award decision through an Assistance
Agreement if selected for an award (see
Assistance Agreement section, below) or
written declination if not selected for an
award. The CDFI Fund will notify
Awardees by e-mail using the addresses
maintained in the Awardee’s
myCDFIFund account.
6. The CDFI Fund reserves the right
to reject an application if information
(including administrative errors) comes
to the attention of the CDFI Fund that
adversely affects an Applicant’s
eligibility for an award, adversely affects
the CDFI Fund’s evaluation or scoring of
an application, or indicates fraud or
mismanagement on the part of an
Applicant. If the CDFI Fund determines
that any portion of the application is
incorrect in any material respect, the
CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to reject the application. The
CDFI Fund reserves the right to change
its eligibility and evaluation criteria and
procedures, if the CDFI Fund deems it
appropriate; if said changes materially
affect the CDFI Fund’s award decisions,
the CDFI Fund will provide information
regarding the changes through the CDFI
Fund’s Web site. There is no right to
appeal the CDFI Fund’s award
decisions. The CDFI Fund’s award
decisions are final.
VI. Award Administration Information
A. Notice of Award: The CDFI Fund
will signify its conditional selection of
an Applicant as an Awardee by
delivering an Assistance Agreement to
the Applicant via e-mail using the
addresses maintained in the Awardee’s
myCDFIFund account. The Assistance
Agreement will contain the Notice of
Award and general terms and
conditions underlying the CDFI Fund’s
provision of assistance. The Awardee
must confirm receipt of the Assistance
Agreement once received. By
confirming receipt of the Assistance
Agreement, the Awardee agrees, among
other things, that, if prior to executing
and entering into an Assistance
Agreement with the CDFI Fund,
information (including administrative
errors) comes to the attention of the
CDFI Fund that either adversely affects
the Awardee’s eligibility for an award,
or adversely affects the CDFI Fund’s
evaluation of the Awardee’s application,
or indicates fraud or mismanagement on
the part of the Awardee, the CDFI Fund
may, in its discretion and without
advance notice to the Awardee,
terminate the award or take such other
actions as it deems appropriate.
Moreover, by confirming receipt of the
Assistance Agreement, the Awardee
agrees that, if prior to executing and
entering into an Assistance Agreement
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16:14 Mar 12, 2010
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with the CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund
determines that the Awardee or an
Affiliate of the Awardee is in default of
any Assistance Agreement previously
entered into with the CDFI Fund, the
CDFI Fund may, in its discretion and
without advance notice to the Awardee,
either terminate the award or take such
other actions as it deems appropriate.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its
sole discretion, to rescind its award if
the Awardee fails to return the
Assistance Agreement, signed by the
authorized representative of the
Awardee, along with any other
requested documentation, within the
deadline set by the CDFI Fund. For
purposes of this section, the CDFI Fund
will consider an Affiliate to mean any
entity that meets the definition of
Affiliate in this NOFA.
1. Failure to Meet Reporting
Requirements: If an Awardee or an
Affiliate of the Awardee is a prior
awardee or allocatee under any CDFI
Fund program and is not current on the
reporting requirements set forth in the
previously executed assistance,
allocation or award agreement(s), as of
the date of the NOA, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole discretion,
to delay entering into an Assistance
Agreement until said prior awardee or
allocatee is current on the reporting
requirements in any previously
executed assistance, allocation, or
award agreement(s). Please note that the
CDFI Fund only acknowledges the
receipt of reports that are complete. As
such, incomplete reports or reports that
are deficient of required elements will
not be recognized as having been
received. If said prior awardee or
allocatee is unable to meet this
requirement within the timeframe set by
the CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund reserves
the right, in its sole discretion, to
terminate and rescind the award made
under this NOFA.
2. Pending Resolution of
Noncompliance: If an Applicant is a
prior awardee or allocatee under any
CDFI Fund program and if: (i) it has
submitted complete and timely reports
to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate
noncompliance with a previous
assistance, award, or allocation
agreement; and (ii) the CDFI Fund has
yet to make a final determination as to
whether the entity is in default of its
previous assistance, award, or allocation
agreement, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to delay
entering into an Assistance Agreement,
pending full resolution, in the sole
determination of the CDFI Fund, of the
noncompliance. Further, if an Affiliate
of the Awardee is a prior CDFI Fund
awardee or allocatee and if such entity
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12429
(i) has submitted complete and timely
reports to the CDFI Fund that
demonstrate noncompliance with a
previous assistance, award, or allocation
agreement, and (ii) the CDFI Fund has
yet to make a final determination as to
whether the entity is in default of its
previous assistance, award, or allocation
agreement, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to delay
entering into an Assistance Agreement,
pending full resolution, in the sole
determination of the CDFI Fund, of the
noncompliance. If the prior awardee or
allocatee in question is unable to
satisfactorily resolve the issues of
noncompliance, in the sole
determination of the CDFI Fund, the
CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to terminate and rescind the
award made under this NOFA.
3. Default Status: If, at any time prior
to entering into an Assistance
Agreement through this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that an Awardee that is a
prior awardee or allocatee under any
CDFI Fund program is in default of a
previously executed assistance,
allocation, or award agreement(s), the
CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to delay entering into an
Assistance Agreement, until said prior
awardee or allocatee has submitted a
complete and timely report
demonstrating full compliance with said
agreement within a timeframe set by the
CDFI Fund. Further, if at any time prior
to entering into an Assistance
Agreement through this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that an Affiliate of the
Awardee is a prior awardee or allocatee
under any CDFI Fund program and is in
default of a previously executed
assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s), the CDFI Fund reserves
the right, in its sole discretion, to delay
entering into an Assistance Agreement,
until said prior awardee or allocatee has
submitted a complete and timely report
demonstrating full compliance with said
agreement within a timeframe set by the
CDFI Fund. If said prior awardee or
allocatee is unable to meet this
requirement and the CDFI Fund has not
specified in writing that the prior
awardee or allocatee is otherwise
eligible to receive an Award under this
NOFA, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to terminate
and rescind the award made under this
NOFA.
4. Termination in Default: If (i) within
the 12-month period prior to entering
into an Assistance Agreement through
this NOFA, the CDFI Fund has made a
final determination that an Awardee
that is a prior awardee or allocatee
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under any CDFI Fund program whose
award or allocation was terminated in
default of such prior agreement, and (ii)
the final reporting period end date for
the applicable terminated agreement
falls within the 12-month period prior
to the application deadline of this
NOFA, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to delay
entering into or determine not to enter
into an Assistance Agreement. Further,
if (i) within the 12-month period prior
to entering into an Assistance
Agreement through this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that an Affiliate of the
Awardee is a prior awardee or allocatee
under any CDFI Fund program whose
award or allocation was terminated in
default of such prior agreement, and (ii)
the final reporting period end date for
the applicable terminated agreement
falls within the 12-month period prior
to the application deadline of this
NOFA, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to delay
entering into or determine not to enter
into an Assistance Agreement.
5. Compliance with Federal AntiDiscrimination Laws: If at any time prior
to entering into an Assistance
Agreement through this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund is made aware of a final
determination, made within the last
three years, in any proceeding instituted
against the Awardee in, by, or before
any court, governmental, or
administrative body or agency,
declaring that the Awardee has
discriminated on the basis of race, color,
national origin, disability, age, marital
status, receipt of income from public
assistance, religion, or sex, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to terminate and rescind the
award made under this NOFA.
B. Assistance Agreement: Each
Applicant that is selected to receive an
award under this NOFA must enter into
an Assistance Agreement with the CDFI
Fund in order to receive disbursement
of award proceeds. The Assistance
Agreement will set forth certain
required terms and conditions of the
award, which will include, but not be
limited to: (i) The amount of the award;
(ii) the approved uses of the award; (iii)
the approved Service Area in which the
award may be used; (iv) performance
goals and measures; and (v) reporting
requirements for all Awardees. It is
anticipated that CMF awards under this
NOFA generally will have ten-year
performance periods.
The Assistance Agreement shall
provide that in the event of fraud,
mismanagement, noncompliance with
the Act or the CDFI Fund’s regulations,
or noncompliance with the terms and
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conditions of the Assistance Agreement
on the part of the Awardee, the CDFI
Fund, in its discretion, may: (1) Require
changes in the performance goals set
forth in the Assistance Agreement; (2)
revoke approval of the Awardee’s
application; (3) reduce or terminate the
Awardee’s assistance; (4) require
repayment of any assistance that has
been distributed to the Awardee; (5) bar
the Awardee from reapplying for any
assistance from the CDFI Fund; or (6)
take such other actions as the CDFI
Fund deems appropriate or as set forth
in the Assistance Agreement.
Prior to imposing any sanctions
pursuant to this section or an Assistance
Agreement, the CDFI Fund shall, to the
maximum extent practicable, provide
the Awardee with written notice of the
proposed sanction and an opportunity
to comment. Nothing in this section,
however, shall provide an Awardee the
right to any formal or informal hearing
or comparable proceeding not otherwise
required by law.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in
its sole discretion, to terminate and
rescind an award if the Awardee fails to
return the Assistance Agreement, signed
by the authorized representative of the
Awardee, and/or provide the CDFI Fund
with any other requested
documentation, within the deadlines set
by the CDFI Fund.
In addition to entering into an
Assistance Agreement, each Applicant
selected to receive a CMF award must
furnish to the CDFI Fund an opinion
from its legal counsel, the content of
which will be further specified in the
Assistance Agreement, which may
include, among other matters, an
opinion that: (i) The Applicant (and its
Subsidiary transferees, if any) is duly
formed and in good standing in the
jurisdiction in which it was formed and
the jurisdiction(s) in which it operates;
(ii) the Applicant (and its Subsidiary
transferees, if any) has the authority to
enter into the Assistance Agreement and
undertake the activities that are
specified therein; (iii) the Applicant
(and its Subsidiary transferees, if any)
has no pending or threatened litigation
that would materially affect its ability to
enter into and carry out the activities
specified in the Assistance Agreement;
(iv) the Applicant (and its Subsidiary
transferees, if any) is not in default of its
articles of incorporation, bylaws or
other organizational documents, or any
agreements with the Federal
government; and (v) the CMF
affordability restrictions that are to be
imposed by deed restrictions, covenants
running with the land, or other CDFI
Fund approved mechanisms are
recordable and enforceable under the
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 4701
Sfmt 4703
laws of the State and locality where the
Awardee will undertake its CMF
activities.
C. Reporting
1. Reporting requirements: The CDFI
Fund will collect information, on at
least an annual basis, from each
Awardee which may include, but are
not limited to: (i) Financial reports
(including an OMB A–133 audit, as
applicable); (ii) reports on Awardee
information and transactional
information; (iii) reports on uses of CMF
award; (iv) verification of affordability
standard maintenance; (v) explanation
of noncompliance (as applicable); and
(vi) such other information that the
CDFI Fund may require. Each Awardee
is responsible for the timely and
complete submission of the annual
reporting documents, even if all or a
portion of the documents are completed
by another entity or signatory to the
Assistance Agreement. If such other
entities or signatories are required to
provide annual report documentation,
or other documentation that the CDFI
Fund may require, the Awardee is
responsible for ensuring that the
information is submitted timely and
complete. The CDFI Fund reserves the
right to contact such additional entities
or signatories to the Assistance
Agreement and require that additional
information and documentation be
provided. The CDFI Fund will use such
information to monitor each Awardee’s
compliance with the requirements set
forth in the Assistance Agreement and
to assess the impact of the CMF. The
CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to modify these reporting
requirements if it determines it to be
appropriate and necessary; however,
such reporting requirements will be
modified only after notice to Awardees.
2. Accounting: The CDFI Fund will
require each Awardee that receives CMF
awards through this NOFA to account
for and track the use of said CMF
awards. This means that for every dollar
of CMF awards received from the CDFI
Fund, the Awardee will be required to
inform the CDFI Fund of its uses. This
will require Awardees to establish
separate administrative and accounting
controls, subject to the applicable OMB
Circulars. The CDFI Fund will provide
guidance to Awardees outlining the
format and content of the information to
be provided on an annual basis,
outlining and describing how the funds
were used. Each Awardee that receives
an award must provide the CDFI Fund
with the required complete and accurate
Automated Clearinghouse (ACH) form
for its bank account prior to award
closing and disbursement.
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VII. Agency Contacts
A. The CDFI Fund will respond to
questions and provide support
concerning this NOFA and the funding
application between the hours of 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m. ET, starting the date of the
publication of this NOFA through two
days prior to the application deadline.
The CDFI Fund will not respond to
questions or provide support concerning
the applications that are received after
5 p.m. ET on said dates, until after the
funding application deadline.
Applications and other information
regarding the CDFI Fund and its
12431
programs may be obtained from the
CDFI Fund’s Web site at https://
www.cdfifund.gov. The CDFI Fund will
post on its Web site responses to
questions of general applicability
regarding the CMF.
B. The CDFI Fund’s contact
information is as follows:
TABLE 2—CONTACT INFORMATION
Telephone number
(not toll free)
Type of question
E-mail addresses
Fax number for all offices: 202–622–7754
CMF ...............................................................................................................................
CDFI Certification ..........................................................................................................
Compliance Monitoring and Evaluation .........................................................................
Information Technology Support ...................................................................................
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C. Communication with the CDFI
Fund: The CDFI Fund will use the
myCDFIFund Internet interface to
communicate with Applicants and
Awardees, using the contact information
maintained in their respective
myCDFIFund accounts. Therefore, the
Applicant and any Subsidiaries,
Signatories, and Affiliates must
maintain accurate contact information
(including contact person and
authorized representative, e-mail
addresses, fax numbers, phone numbers,
and office addresses) in its
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202–622–6355
202–622–6355
202–622–6330
202–622–2455
myCDFIFund account(s). For more
information about myCDFIFund (which
includes information about the CDFI
Fund’s Community Investment Impact
System), please see the Help documents
posted at https://www.cdfifund.gov/ciis/
accessingciis.pdf.
VIII. Information Sessions and
Outreach
The CDFI Fund may conduct
webcasts, webinars, or information
sessions for organizations that are
considering applying to, or are
interested in learning about, the CDFI
PO 00000
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Fmt 4701
Sfmt 9990
...................
...................
...................
...................
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
cme@cdfi.treas.gov.
IThelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
Fund’s programs. For further
information, please visit the CDFI
Fund’s Web site at https://
www.cdfifund.gov.
Authority: Pub.L. 110–289, 12 U.S.C.
4701, 12 CFR part 1805, 12 CFR part 1807,
12 CFR part 1815, 12 U.S.C. 4502.
Dated: March 4, 2010.
Donna J. Gambrell,
Director, Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund.
[FR Doc. 2010–5025 Filed 3–12–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810–70–P
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 49 (Monday, March 15, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12422-12431]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-5025]
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 49 / Monday, March 15, 2010 /
Notices
[[Page 12422]]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability
Funding Opportunity Title: Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA)
inviting Applications for the FY 2010 Funding Round of the Capital
Magnet Fund (CMF).
Announcement Type: Announcement of funding opportunity.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 21.011
DATES: Applications for awards through the FY 2010 Funding Round of the
CMF must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern Time (ET), April 15, 2010.
Executive Summary: Subject to funding availability, this NOFA is
issued in connection with the FY 2010 Funding Round of the CMF (the FY
2010 Funding Round). The CMF is administered by the Community
Development Financial Institutions Fund (the CDFI Fund).
I. Funding Opportunity Description
A. Through the CMF, the CDFI Fund provides financial assistance
awards to Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), and to
Nonprofit Organizations that have as at least one of their principal
purposes the development or management of affordable housing.
B. The proposed regulations that will eventually govern the CMF
have been simultaneously published for comment with this NOFA and will
provide guidance on the requirements of the CMF. The CDFI Fund
encourages Applicants to review the proposed CMF regulations. Detailed
application content requirements are found in the applicable funding
application and related guidance materials. Each capitalized term in
this NOFA is defined herein, in the application, or in the guidance
materials.
C. Definitions: For the purposes of this NOFA, the following terms
shall have the following definitions:
1. Act means the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, as
amended, Public Law 110-289, section 1131;
2. Affiliate means any company or entity that Controls, is
Controlled by, or is under common Control with another company;
3. Affordable Housing means rental or for-sale single-family or
multi-family housing that meets the requirements set forth in the
Assistance Agreement or CMF regulations;
4. Affordable Housing Activities means the Development,
Preservation, Rehabilitation, or Purchase of Affordable Housing;
5. Affordable Housing Fund means a loan, grant, or investment fund,
managed by the Awardee, whose capital is used to finance Affordable
Housing Activities;
6. Appropriate Federal Banking Agency has the same meaning as in
section 3 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. 1813(q), and
includes, with respect to Insured Credit Unions, the National Credit
Union Administration;
7. Applicant means any entity submitting an application for
assistance under this Notice of Funds Availability;
8. Appropriate State Agency means an agency or instrumentality of a
State that regulates and/or insures the member accounts of a State-
Insured Credit Union;
9. Assistance Agreement means a formal, written agreement between
the CDFI Fund and an Awardee which specifies the terms and conditions
of an award under this NOFA;
10. Awardee means an Applicant selected by the CDFI Fund to receive
an award pursuant to this NOFA;
11. Capital Magnet Fund (or CMF) means the program authorized by
section 1131 of the Act, Public Law 110-289;
12. Certified Community Development Financial Institution (or
Certified CDFI) means an entity that has been determined by the CDFI
Fund to meet the eligibility requirements set forth in 12 CFR 1805.201;
13. Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (or CDFI
Fund) means the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, an
office of the U.S. Department of Treasury, established under the
Community Development Banking and Financial Institutions Act of 1994,
as amended, 12 U.S.C. 4701 et seq.;
14. Community Service Facility means the physical structure in
which community-based programs (including, but not limited to, health
care, childcare, educational, cultural, and/or social services) operate
which, In Conjunction With Affordable Housing Activities, implements a
Concerted Strategy to stabilize or revitalize a Low-Income Area or
Underserved Rural Area;
15. Concerted Strategy means a formal planning document that
evidences the connection between Affordable Housing Activities and
Economic Development Activities or Community Service Facilities. Such
documents include, but are not limited to, a comprehensive,
consolidated, or redevelopment plan, or some other local or regional
planning document adopted or approved by the jurisdiction;
16. Control means: (i) Ownership, control, or power to vote 25
percent or more of the outstanding shares of any class of Voting
Securities of any company, directly or indirectly or acting through one
or more other persons; (ii) control in any manner over the election of
a majority of the directors, trustees, or general partners (or
individuals exercising similar functions) of any company; or (iii) the
power to exercise, directly or indirectly, a controlling influence over
the management, credit or investment decisions, or policies of any
company;
17. Depository Institution Holding Company means a bank holding
company or a savings and loan holding company as defined in section 3
of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. 1813(w)(1);
18. Development means land acquisition, demolition of existing
facilities, and construction of new facilities, which may include site
improvement, utilities development and rehabilitation of utilities,
necessary infrastructure, utility services, conversion, and other
related activities;
19. Economic Development Activity means the Development,
Preservation, Rehabilitation, or Purchase of Community Service
Facilities and/or other physical structures in which neighborhood-based
businesses operate which, In Conjunction With Affordable Housing
Activities, implements a Concerted Strategy to stabilize or revitalize
a Low-Income Area or Underserved Rural Area;
20. Eligible Project Costs means Leverage Costs plus those costs
funded directly by a CMF award, exclusive of Operations;
21. Extremely Low-Income means (i) in the case of owner-occupied
housing units, income not in excess of 30 percent of the area median
income and (ii) in the case of rental housing units, income not in
excess of 30 percent of the area median income, with adjustments for
smaller and larger families, as determined by HUD;
22. HOME Program means the HOME Investment Partnership Program set
forth in the HOME Investment Partnerships Act under title II of the
Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act, as amended, 42
U.S.C. 12701 et seq.;
23. Homeownership means ownership in fee simple title or a 99-year
leasehold interest in a one- to four-unit dwelling or in a condominium
unit, or equivalent form of ownership (which shall include cooperative
housing and mutual housing project). The ownership interest
[[Page 12423]]
may be subject only to the following: (i) Restrictions on resale
permitted in the Assistance Agreement; (ii) mortgages, deeds of trust,
or other liens or instruments securing debt on the property; or (iii)
any other restrictions or encumbrances that do not impair the good and
marketable nature of title to the ownership interest. For purposes of
housing located on trust or restricted Indian lands, homeownership
includes leases of 50 years;
24. Housing means single- and multi-family residential units,
including, but not limited to, manufactured housing and manufactured
housing lots, permanent housing for disabled and/or homeless persons,
transitional housing, single-room occupancy housing, and group homes.
Housing also includes elder cottage housing opportunity (ECHO), 24 CFR
92.258;
25. HUD means the Department of Housing and Urban Development
established under the Department of Housing and Urban Development Act
of 1965, 42 U.S.C. 3532-3537;
26. In Conjunction With means physically proximate to Affordable
Housing and reasonably available to residents of Affordable Housing
27. Insured CDFI means a Certified CDFI that is an Insured
Depository Institution or an Insured Credit Union;
28. Insured Credit Union means any credit union, the member
accounts of which are insured by the National Credit Union Share
Insurance Fund by the National Credit Union Administration pursuant to
authority granted in 12 U.S.C. 1783 et seq.;
29. Insured Depository Institution means any bank or thrift, the
deposits of which are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation, 12 U.S.C. 1813(c)(2);
30. Leveraged Costs means those costs as described Section II.B.4.
of this NOFA and in the CMF regulations;
31. Loan Guarantee means an agreement to indemnify the holder of a
loan all or a portion of the unpaid principal balance in case of
default by the borrower;
32. Loan Loss Reserves means funds that the Applicant or Awardee
will set aside in the form of cash reserves, or through accounting-
based accrual reserves, to cover losses on loans, accounts, and notes
receivable, or for related purposes that the CDFI Fund deems
appropriate;
33. Low-Income means (i) in the case of owner-occupied housing
units, income not in excess of 80 percent of area median income and
(ii) in the case of rental housing units, income not in excess of 80
percent of area median income, with adjustments for smaller and larger
families, as determined by HUD;
34. Low-Income Area or LIA means a census tract or block numbering
area in which the median income does not exceed 80 percent of the
median income for the area in which such census tract or block
numbering area is located. With respect to a census tract or block
numbering area located within a Metropolitan Area, the median family
income shall be at or below 80 percent of the Metropolitan Area median
family income or the national Metropolitan Area median family income,
whichever is greater. In the case of a census tract or block numbering
area located outside of a Metropolitan Area, the median family income
shall be at or below 80 percent of the statewide Non-Metropolitan Area
median family income or the national Non-Metropolitan Area median
family income, whichever is greater;
35. Low-Income Families means those households that reside within
the boundaries of the United Sates (which shall encompass any State of
the United States, the District of Columbia or any territory of the
United States, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands,
and the Northern Mariana Islands) meeting the criteria as set forth in
Section I.C.(34) of this NOFA;
36. Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program or LIHTC Program means
the program as set forth under Title I of the U.S. Housing Act of 1937,
as amended, 42 U.S.C. 1437 et seq.;
37. Metropolitan Area means an area designated as such by the
Office of Management and Budget pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 3504(e) and 31
U.S.C. 1104(d) and Executive Order 10253, as amended, 16 FR 5605;
38. Non-Metropolitan Area means a county or adjacent counties not
contained within either a Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area
(CMSA) or a Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA), as such areas
are defined in OMB Bulletin No. 99-04, with respect to the most recent
decennial census. Non-Metropolitan Counties can be identified in the
CDFI Fund's mapping system (CIMS), and are also listed on the CDFI
Fund's Web site;
39. Nonprofit Organization means any corporation, trust,
association, cooperative, or other organization that is (i) designated
as a nonprofit or not-for-profit entity under the laws of the
organization's State of formation and (ii) exempt from Federal income
taxation pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
40. Non-Regulated CDFI means any entity meeting the eligibility
requirements described in 12 CFR 1805.200 which is not a Depository
Institution Holding Company, Insured Depository Institution, or Insured
Credit Union;
41. Operations means all allowable expenses as defined by Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-122, ``Cost Principles for Non-
Profit Organizations,'' and OMB Circular A-87, ``Cost Principles for
State, Local, and Indian Tribal Governments,'' incurred by the Awardee
related to the administration, operation, and implementation of a CMF
award.
42. Participating Jurisdiction means a jurisdiction designated by
HUD, as a participating jurisdiction under the HOME Program in
accordance with the requirements of 24 CFR 92.105;
43. Preservation means: (i) Activities to refinance, with or
without Rehabilitation, single-family or multi-family rental property
mortgages that, at the time of refinancing, are subject to
affordability and use restrictions under State or federal affordable
housing programs, including but not limited to, the HOME Program, the
LIHTC Program, the Section 8 Tenant-Based Assistance and the Section 8
Rental Voucher programs (24 CFR part 982), or the Section 515 Rural
Rental Housing program (7 CFR Part 3560), hereinafter referred to as
``similar State or federal affordable housing programs'', where such
refinancing has the effect of extending the term of any affordability
and use restrictions on the properties; (ii) activities to refinance
and acquire single-family or multi-family properties that, at the time
of refinancing or acquisition, were subject to affordability and use
restrictions under similar State or federal affordable housing
programs, by the former tenants of such properties, where such
refinancing has the effect of extending the term of any affordability
and use restrictions on the properties; or (iii) activities to
refinance the mortgages of single-family, owner-occupied housing that
at the time of refinancing are subject to affordability and use
restrictions under similar State or federal affordable housing
programs, where such refinancing has the effect of extending the term
of any affordability and use restrictions on the properties;
44. Purchase means to acquire ownership in fee simple title or a
99- year leasehold interest in a one-to-four unit dwelling or in a
condominium unit, through an exchange of money;
45. Rehabilitation means any repairs and or capital improvements
that contribute to the long-term preservation, current building code
compliance, habitability, sustainability, or energy efficiency of
affordable housing;
[[Page 12424]]
46. Revolving Loan Fund means a pool of funds managed by the
Applicant or Awardee wherein repayments on Affordable Housing
Activities loans, Economic Development Activities loans and/or
Community Services Facilities loans are used to finance additional
loans;
47. Risk-Sharing Loan means loans for Affordable Housing Activities
and/or Economic Development Activities in which the risk of borrower
default is shared by the Applicant or Awardee with other lenders (e.g.,
participation loans);
48. Service Area means the geographic area in which the Applicant
proposes to use CMF funding, and the geographic area approved by the
CDFI Fund in which the Awardee shall use CMF funding as set forth in
its Assistance Agreement;
49. Single-family housing means a one- to four-family residence,
condominium unit, cooperative unit, combination of manufactured housing
and lot, or manufactured housing lot;
50. State means the States of the United States, the District of
Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Island, Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and any other territory of the
United States;
51. State-Insured Credit Union means any credit union that is
regulated by, and/or the member accounts of which are insured by, a
State agency or instrumentality;
52. Subsidiary means any company which is owned or Controlled
directly or indirectly by another company;
53. Underserved Rural Area means a Non-Metropolitan Area that (i)
Qualifies as a Low-Income Area; (ii) is experiencing housing stress
evidenced by 30 percent or more of resident households with one or more
of these housing conditions in the last decennial census: (A) Lacked
complete plumbing, (B) lacked complete kitchen, (C) paid 30 percent or
more of income for owner costs or rent, or (D) had more than 1 person
per room; or (iii) is remote-rural county (i.e., is neither located in,
nor adjacent to, a Non-Metropolitan Area);
54. Very Low-Income means (i) in the case of owner-occupied housing
units, income not greater than 50 percent of the area median income;
and (ii) in the case of rental housing units, income not greater than
50 percent of the area median income, with adjustments for smaller and
larger families, as determined by HUD.
D. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to fund, in whole or in part,
any, all, or none of the applications submitted in response to this
NOFA.
II. Award Information
A. Funding Availability: Through this NOFA, the CDFI Fund expects
that it will award approximately $80 million in appropriated funds for
the FY 2010 Funding Round.
B. Funding Cap: The CDFI Fund is prohibited from obligating more
than 15 percent of the available funding in the aggregate to any
Applicant, its Subsidiaries and Affiliates in the same funding year.
The CDFI Fund anticipates that the maximum award for the FY 2010
Funding Round will therefore be $12 million in the aggregate to any
Applicant, its Subsidiaries and Affiliates.
C. Types of Awards: The CDFI Fund will provide CMF awards in the
form of grants. Applicants may request a grant of up to $12 million
under this award announcement. The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its
sole discretion, to provide a CMF award in an amount other than that
which the Applicant requests; however, the award amount will not exceed
the Applicant's award request as stated in its application. CMF awards
must be used to support the Applicant's activities; CMF awards cannot
be used to support the activities of, or otherwise be ``passed
through'' to, third-party entities, whether Affiliates, Subsidiaries,
or others, without the prior written permission of the CDFI Fund.
1. Eligible Uses: An Applicant may submit an application for a CMF
award intended to support financing activities related to (i) the
Development, Preservation, Rehabilitation, or Purchase of Affordable
Housing for primarily Low-, Very Low- and Extremely Low-Income
families, and (ii) Economic Development Activities or Community Service
Facilities, such as day care centers, workforce development centers,
and health care clinics. CMF awards can be used as follows: (i) To
provide Loan Loss Reserves, (ii) to capitalize a Revolving Loan Fund,
(iii) to capitalize an Affordable Housing Fund, (iv) to capitalize a
fund to support Economic Development Activities and Community Service
Facilities, (v) for Risk-Sharing Loans, (vii) to provide Loan
Guarantees, and (viii) to support Operations pertaining to the
administration of the CMF award.
2. Limitations on Use: Each Awardee that uses CMF funding to
support Affordable Housing Activities shall ensure that 100 percent of
Eligible Project Costs pertaining to such activities are attributable
to housing units that meet the CMF affordability qualifications for
Homeownership and rental properties for families whose annual income
does not exceed 120 percent of the median income for the area. In
addition, greater than 50 percent of the Eligible Project Costs must be
attributable to housing units that meet the CMF affordability
qualifications for Homeownership and rental units for either Low-
Income, Very Low-Income, or Extremely Low-Income Families. These
affordability restrictions must remain in place for a period of 10
years from the date of project completion, which includes the transfer
of title, completion of construction, and other criteria as described
in the Awardee's Assistance Agreement.
Awardees may use no more than 30 percent of their CMF award
pursuant to this NOFA to support Economic Development Activities and
Community Service Facilities. In addition, no more than five percent of
an Awardee's CMF grant pursuant to this NOFA may be used for
Operations.
3. Designation of a Service Area: Each Applicant shall indicate its
proposed Service Area in its application and shall use its CMF award in
the Service Area approved by the CDFI Fund and designated in its
Assistance Agreement.
4. Leverage: Each CMF award is expected to result in total Eligible
Project Costs equal to at least ten (10) times the CMF award amount.
Such costs may be for activities including Affordable Housing
Activities, Economic Development Activities or Community Service
Facilities. Thus, an Awardee shall demonstrate that it leveraged its
CMF award at least 10 times the CMF grant amount or some other standard
established by the CDFI Fund in the Awardee's Assistance Agreement. For
the purposes of this NOFA, Eligible Project Costs include Leveraged
Costs plus those costs funded directly by a CMF award, excluding costs
associated with Operations. Leveraged Costs are costs that exceed the
dollar amount of the Awardee's CMF contribution to each CMF-funded
activity. An Awardee may report to the CDFI Fund all Leveraged Costs
with the following limitations:
(a) No costs attributable to Operations may be reported as
Leveraged Costs.
(b) No costs attributable to prohibited uses as defined in the
Assistance Agreement may be reported as Leveraged Costs.
An Awardee shall self-report its leveraging information through a
standardized data collection system developed by the CDFI Fund.
Consequently, an Awardee should maintain appropriate documentation,
[[Page 12425]]
such as audited financial statements, wire transfers documents, pro-
formas, and other relevant records, to support its reports.
5. Commitment for Use: CMF awards shall be committed for use within
two years of the effective date of the Awardee's Assistance Agreement.
An Awardee shall demonstrate that its CMF award is committed by having
executed a written, legally binding agreement under which CMF
assistance will be provided to the developer or project sponsor for an
identifiable project under which:
(a) Construction can reasonably be expected to start within 12
months of the agreement date; or
(b) Property title will be transferred within six months of the
agreement date.
An Awardee shall make an initial disbursement of its CMF award for
Affordable Housing Activities, Economic Development Activities, or
Community Service Facilities within three years of the effective date
of its Assistance Agreement.
6. Project Completion: All projects funded through CMF grants must
be placed into service within 5 years of the effective date of the
Assistance Agreement.
7. Limitation on Awards: An Applicant may receive only one award
through the FY 2010 Funding Round of the CMF. A CMF Applicant, its
Subsidiaries, or Affiliates also may apply for and receive an award
through the CDFI Program, Native American CDFI Assistance (NACA)
Program, Bank Enterprise Award (BEA) Program, Financial Education and
Counseling (FEC) Pilot Program, or New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC)
Program, but only to the extent that the activities approved for CMF
awards are different from those activities for which the Applicant
receives an award under another CDFI Fund program.
D. Assistance Agreement: Each Awardee under this NOFA must sign an
Assistance Agreement in order to receive a disbursement of award
proceeds by the CDFI Fund. The Assistance Agreement will include a
Notice of Award and these documents will contain the terms and
conditions of the award. For further information, see Sections VI.A and
VI.B of this NOFA.
III. Eligibility Information
A. Eligible Applicants: The following sets forth the eligibility
requirements that each Applicant must meet in order to be eligible to
apply for assistance under this NOFA.
1. CMF Applicant Categories: All Applicants for CMF awards through
this NOFA must be Certified CDFIs or eligible Nonprofit Organizations.
An Applicant will be deemed eligible to apply for a CMF award if it is:
(a) A Certified CDFI that has been in existence as a legally formed
entity for at least three years prior to the application deadline under
this NOFA;
(b) An entity that has been in existence as a legally formed entity
for at least three years prior to the application deadline under this
NOFA, and the CDFI Fund has received that entity's CDFI certification
application materials by April 1, 2010; or
(c) A Nonprofit Organization that: (i) Has been in existence as a
legally formed entity for at least three years prior to the application
deadline under this NOFA; (ii) demonstrates, through articles of
incorporation, by-laws, or other board-approved documents, that the
development or management of affordable housing are among its principal
purposes; and (iii) can demonstrate that at least one-third of the
Applicant's resources (either as a portion of total staffing or as a
portion of total assets) are dedicated to the development or management
of affordable housing.
2. CDFI Certification Status: Eligible CMF Applicants include
Certified CDFIs and certain entities that have applied for CDFI
certification, defined as follows:
(a) Certified CDFIs: For purposes of this NOFA, a Certified CDFI is
an entity that has received official notification from the CDFI Fund
that it meets all CDFI certification requirements as of the date of
publication of this NOFA, the certification of which has not expired,
and that has not been notified by the CDFI Fund that its certification
has been terminated. In cases where the CDFI Fund provided certified
CDFIs with written notification that their certifications had been
extended, the CDFI Fund will consider the extended certification date
(the later date) to determine whether those certified CDFIs meet this
eligibility requirement. When applicable, each such Applicant must
submit a Certification of Material Events form to the CDFI Fund not
later than April 1, 2010 (see Table 1--FY 2010 CMF Deadlines). The
Certification of Material Events form can be found on the CDFI Fund's
Web site at https://www.CDFIfund.gov.
(b) Entities that have applied for CDFI Certification: For purposes
of this NOFA, these are entities from which the CDFI Fund has received
a complete CDFI Certification application not later than April 1, 2010.
Please note: While an entity that has applied for CDFI certification
may be deemed eligible to apply for a CMF award, the CDFI Fund will not
provide an award to such an entity unless and until the CDFI Fund has
officially certified the organization as a CDFI.
B. Prior Awardees: Applicants must be aware that success in a prior
round of any of the CDFI Fund's programs is not indicative of success
under this NOFA. For purposes of this section, the CDFI Fund will
consider an Affiliate to be any entity that meets the definition of
Affiliate in this NOFA or any entity otherwise identified as an
Affiliate by the Applicant in its funding application under this NOFA.
Prior awardees should note the following:
1. Failure to Meet Reporting Requirements: The CDFI Fund will not
consider an application submitted by an Applicant if the Applicant, or
an Affiliate of the Applicant, is a prior awardee or allocatee under
any CDFI Fund program and is not current on the reporting requirements
set forth in a previously executed assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s), as of the applicable application deadline of this NOFA.
Please note that the CDFI Fund only acknowledges the receipt of reports
that are complete. As such, incomplete reports or reports that are
deficient of required elements will not be recognized as having been
received.
2. Pending Resolution of Noncompliance: If an Applicant is a prior
awardee or allocatee under any CDFI Fund program and if (i) it has
submitted complete and timely reports to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate
noncompliance with a previous assistance, allocation or award
agreement, and (ii) the CDFI Fund has yet to make a final determination
as to whether the entity is in default of its previous assistance,
allocation, or award agreement, the CDFI Fund will consider the
Applicant's application under this NOFA pending full resolution, in the
sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of the noncompliance. Further, if
an Affiliate of the Applicant is a prior CDFI Fund awardee or allocatee
and if such entity (i) has submitted complete and timely reports to the
CDFI Fund that demonstrate noncompliance with a previous assistance,
allocation, or award agreement, and (ii) the CDFI Fund has yet to make
a final determination as to whether the entity is in default of its
previous assistance, allocation, or award agreement, the CDFI Fund will
consider the Applicant's application under this NOFA pending full
resolution, in the sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of the
noncompliance.
3. Default Status: The CDFI Fund will not consider an application
submitted by an Applicant that is a prior awardee or allocatee under
any CDFI Fund
[[Page 12426]]
program if, as of the applicable application deadline of this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund has made a final determination that such Applicant is in
default of a previously executed assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s). Further, an entity is not eligible to apply for an award
pursuant to this NOFA if, as of the applicable application deadline of
this NOFA, the CDFI Fund has made a final determination that an
Affiliate of the Applicant is a prior awardee or allocatee under any
CDFI Fund program and has been determined by the CDFI Fund to be in
default of a previously executed assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s). Such entities will be ineligible to apply for an award
pursuant to this NOFA so long as the Applicant's, or its Affiliate's,
prior award or allocation remains in default status or such other time
period as specified by the CDFI Fund in writing.
4. Termination in Default: The CDFI Fund will not consider an
application submitted by an Applicant that is a prior awardee or
allocatee under any CDFI Fund program if (i) within the 12-month period
prior to the applicable application deadline of this NOFA, the CDFI
Fund has made a final determination that such Applicant's prior award
or allocation terminated in default of a previously executed
assistance, allocation, or award agreement(s), and (ii) the final
reporting period end date for the applicable terminated assistance,
allocation, or award agreement(s) falls within the 12-month period
prior to the application deadline of this NOFA. Further, an entity is
not eligible to apply for an award pursuant to this NOFA if (i) within
the 12-month period prior to the applicable application deadline, the
CDFI Fund has made a final determination that an Affiliate of the
Applicant is a prior awardee or allocatee under any CDFI Fund program
whose award or allocation terminated in default of a previously
executed assistance, allocation, or award agreement(s), and (ii) the
final reporting period end date for the applicable terminated
assistance, allocation or award agreement(s) falls within the 12-month
period prior to the application deadline of this NOFA.
5. Undisbursed Award Funds: The CDFI Fund will not consider an
application submitted by an Applicant that is a prior awardee under any
CDFI Fund program if the Applicant has a balance of undisbursed award
funds (as defined below) under said prior award(s), as of the
applicable application deadline of this NOFA. Further, an entity is not
eligible to apply for an award pursuant to this NOFA if an Affiliate of
the Applicant is a prior awardee under any CDFI Fund program, and has a
balance of undisbursed award funds under said prior award(s), as of the
applicable application deadline of this NOFA. In a case where another
entity that Controls the Applicant, is Controlled by the Applicant, or
shares common management officials with the Applicant (as determined by
the CDFI Fund) is a prior awardee under any CDFI Fund program, and has
a balance of undisbursed award funds under said prior award(s), as of
the applicable application deadline of this NOFA, the CDFI Fund will
include the combined awards of the Applicant and such Affiliated
entities when calculating the amount of undisbursed award funds.
For purposes of the calculation of undisbursed award funds for the
BEA Program, only awards made to the Applicant (and any Affiliates)
three to five calendar years prior to the end of the calendar year of
the application deadline of this NOFA are included (``includable BEA
awards''). Thus, for purposes of this NOFA, undisbursed BEA Program
award funds are the amount of FYs 2005, 2006, and 2007 awards that
remain undisbursed as of the application deadline of this NOFA.
For purposes of the calculation of undisbursed award funds for the
CDFI Program and the Native Initiatives Funding Programs, only awards
made to the Applicant (and any Affiliates) two to five calendar years
prior to the end of the calendar year of the application deadline of
this NOFA are included (``includable CDFI/NI awards''). Thus, for
purposes of this NOFA, undisbursed CDFI Program and NI awards are the
amount of FYs 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 awards that remain undisbursed
as of the application deadline of this NOFA. The term ``Native
Initiatives Funding Programs'' refers to the NACA Program and all prior
funding programs, through which funds are no longer available,
including the Native American CDFI Technical Assistance (NACTA)
Component of the CDFI Program, the Native American CDFI Development
(NACD) Program, and the Native American Technical Assistance (NATA)
Component of the CDFI Program.
To calculate total includable BEA/CDFI/NI awards: amounts that are
undisbursed as of the application deadline of this NOFA cannot exceed
five percent of the total includable awards.
The ``undisbursed award funds'' calculation does not include: (i)
Tax credit allocation authority made available through the NMTC
Program; (ii) any award funds for which the CDFI Fund received a full
and complete disbursement request from the awardee by the applicable
application deadline of this NOFA; (iii) any award funds for an award
that has been terminated in writing by the CDFI Fund or deobligated by
the CDFI Fund; or (iv) any award funds for an award that does not have
a fully executed assistance or award agreement. The CDFI Fund strongly
encourages Applicants requesting disbursements of ``undisbursed funds''
from prior awards to provide the CDFI Fund with a complete disbursement
request at least 10 business days prior to the application deadline of
this NOFA.
6. Contact the CDFI Fund: Applicants that are prior CDFI Fund
awardees are advised to: (i) Comply with requirements specified in
assistance, allocation, and/or award agreement(s), and (ii) contact the
CDFI Fund to ensure that all necessary actions are underway for the
disbursement or deobligation of any outstanding balance of said prior
award(s). An Applicant that is unsure about the disbursement status of
any prior award should contact the CDFI Fund's Senior Resource Manager
via e-mail at CDFI.disburseinquiries@cdfi.treas.gov.
7. Entities that Submit Applications Together with Affiliates;
Applications from Common Enterprises:
(a) As part of the CMF application review process, the CDFI Fund
considers whether Applicants are Affiliates, as such term is defined in
the CMF application. If an Applicant and its Affiliates wish to submit
CMF applications, they must do so collectively, in one application; an
Applicant and its Affiliates may not submit separate CMF applications.
If Affiliated entities submit multiple applications, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right either to reject all such applications received or
to select a single application as the only application considered for
an award.
For purposes of this NOFA, in addition to assessing whether
applicants meet the definition of the term ``Affiliate,'' the CDFI Fund
will consider: (i) Whether the activities described in applications
submitted by separate entities are, or will be, operated and/or managed
as a common enterprise that, in fact or effect, may be viewed as a
single entity; (ii) whether the applications submitted by separate
entities contain significant narrative, textual or other similarities,
and (iii) whether the business strategies and/or activities described
in applications submitted by separate entities are so closely related,
in fact or effect, they
[[Page 12427]]
may be viewed as substantially identical applications. In such cases,
the CDFI Fund reserves the right either to reject all applications
received from all such entities; to select a single application as the
only one that will be considered for an award; and, in the event that
an application is selected to receive an award, to deem certain
activities ineligible.
(b) Furthermore, an Applicant that receives an award in this CMF
round may not become an Affiliate of or member of a common enterprise
(as defined above) with another Applicant that receives an award in
this CMF round at any time after the submission of a CMF application
under this NOFA. This requirement will also be a term and condition of
the Assistance Agreement (see Section VI.B. of this NOFA and additional
application guidance materials on the CDFI Fund's Web site at https://
www.cdfifund.gov for more details).
IV. Application and Submission Information
A. MyCDFIFund Accounts: All Applicants must register User and
Organization accounts in myCDFIFund, the CDFI Fund's Internet-based
interface. An Applicant must be registered as both a User and an
Organization in myCDFIFund as of the applicable application deadline in
order to be considered to have submitted a complete application. As
myCDFIFund is the CDFI Fund's primary means of communication with
Applicants and Awardees, organizations must make sure that they update
the contact information in their myCDFIFund accounts before the
applicable application deadline. For more information on myCDFIFund,
please see the ``Frequently Asked Questions'' link posted at https://www.cdfifund.gov/myCDFI/Help/Help.asp.
B. Form of Application Submission: Applicants must submit
applications under this NOFA electronically. Applications sent by mail,
facsimile, or other form will not be permitted, except in circumstances
that the CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion, deems acceptable.
C. Applications Submitted via myCDFIFund: Applicants must submit
applications under this NOFA electronically, through myCDFIFund, the
CDFI Fund's Internet-based interface. Please note that the CDFI Fund
will not accept applications through Grants.gov. Applications sent by
mail, facsimile, or other form will generally not be accepted, except
in circumstances approved by the CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion. The
CDFI Fund will post to its Web site at https://www.cdfifund.gov
instructions for accessing and submitting an application as soon as
they become available.
D. Application Content Requirements: Detailed application content
requirements are found in the application and guidance. Please note
that, pursuant to OMB guidance (68 FR 38402), each Applicant must
provide, as part of its application submission, a Dun and Bradstreet
Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number. In addition, each
application must include a valid and current Employer Identification
Number (EIN), with a letter or other documentation from the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) confirming the Applicant's EIN. An application
that does not include an EIN is incomplete and cannot be transmitted to
the CDFI Fund. Applicants should allow sufficient time for the IRS and/
or Dun and Bradstreet to respond to inquiries and/or requests for
identification numbers. Once an application is submitted, the Applicant
will not be allowed to change any element of the application. The
preceding sentences do not limit the CDFI Fund's ability to contact an
Applicant for the purpose of obtaining clarifying or confirming
application information (such as a DUNS number or EIN information).
E. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), an
agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and an
individual is not required to respond to a collection of information,
unless it displays a valid OMB control number. Pursuant to the
Paperwork Reduction Act, the application has been assigned the
following control number: 1559-0036.
F. Application Deadlines:
1. The following are the deadlines for submission of the documents
related to the FY 2010 Funding Round:
Table 1--FY 2010 CMF Deadlines
[All 5 p.m. ET deadlines]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last date to contact
Applicant Type Document Deadline CDFI Fund
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Certified CDFIs...................... Certification of Thursday, April 1, 2010 Tuesday, March 30,
Material Events. 2010.
Entities Applying for CDFI CDFI Certification Thursday, April 1, 2010 Tuesday, March 30,
Certification. Application. 2010.
All Applicants....................... CMF Funding Application Thursday, April 15, Tuesday, April 13,
2010. 2010.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All CMF funding applications must be electronic and submitted
through myCDFIFund. No paper submittals or attachments will be
accepted.
2. Late Delivery: The CDFI Fund will neither accept a late
application nor any portion of an application that is late; an
application that is late, or for which any portion is late, will be
rejected. The CDFI Fund will not grant exceptions or waivers. Any
application that is deemed ineligible will not be returned to the
Applicant.
G. Intergovernmental Review: Not applicable.
H. Funding Restrictions: CMF awards may not be used for the
following: (i) Political activities; (ii) advocacy; (iii) lobbying,
whether directly or through other parties; (iv) counseling services
(including homebuyer or financial counseling); (v) travel expenses;
(vi) preparing or providing advice on tax returns; (vii) emergency
shelters (including shelters for disaster victims); (viii) nursing
homes; (ix) convalescent homes; (x) residential treatment facilities;
(xi) correctional facilities; (xii) student dormitories; or (xiii)
other uses identified in the Awardee's Assistance Agreement.
V. Application Review Information
A. Format: Each narrative response required in the application has
limitations with respect to the amount of words or characters that the
Applicant may provide. Applicants are encouraged to read each question
carefully and to remain within limitations set forth in the question,
to avoid the electronic application submission form from truncating the
Applicant's response. Also, the CDFI Fund will read only information
requested in the application and will not read attachments that have
not been specifically requested in this NOFA or the application.
[[Page 12428]]
B. Criteria: Applicants will be evaluated across several key areas:
1. Business Strategy: The Applicant must provide a detailed
strategy for implementing its CMF award. The Applicant is required to
identify and describe, among other things: (i) Its track record of
financing Affordable Housing and related activities; (ii) its proposed
activities including a description of the financing tools and specific
debt or equity products that will be offered; and (iii) its pipeline of
proposed projects and activities.
2. Leveraging Strategy: The Applicant must be able to demonstrate
its ability to leverage CMF award funding. To this end, the Applicant
must identify and describe, among other things, its anticipated
strategy for leveraging dollars, including private capital: (i) At the
pre-investment stage (e.g., use of the CMF award to secure additional
third-party capital prior to investing into projects); (ii) through
reinvestment of CMF award dollars into additional projects (e.g., use
of the CMF award to fund a revolving loan pool to invest in projects);
and (iii) at the project level (e.g., use of the CMF award to invest in
projects with total costs in excess of the CMF award investment).
3. Community Impact: The Applicant must describe the extent to
which the Applicant will target its activities towards underserved
populations and areas of high housing need; and describe the extent to
which the Applicant's strategy will have positive community development
and economic impacts.
4. Organizational Capacity: The Applicant must demonstrate its
ability and capacity to undertake its proposed activities, use its
award successfully, and maintain compliance with its Assistance
Agreement. To this end, the Applicant will be required to identify and
describe, among other things: (i) Its management team and key staff;
(ii) the role of its governing board or advisory board; (iii) its
timelines for committing its CMF award funds to activities and
projects; (iv) its procedures and systems to track and ensure
compliance with the affordability and community impact commitments; (v)
its current financial condition, including results of recent audits;
and (vi) its experience administering other public funds including
federal government awards, if applicable.
C. Review and Selection Process
1. Eligibility and Completeness Review: The CDFI Fund will review
each application to determine whether it is complete and the Applicant
meets the eligibility requirements set forth above. An incomplete
application that does not meet eligibility requirements will be
rejected. Any application that does not meet eligibility requirements
will not be returned to the Applicant.
2. Substantive Review: If an application is deemed to be complete
and the Applicant is determined to be eligible, the CDFI Fund will
conduct the substantive review of the application in accordance with
the criteria and procedures described in this NOFA, the application,
and any application guidance. As part of the review process, the CDFI
Fund may contact the Applicant by telephone, e-mail, mail, or through
an on-site visit for the sole purpose of obtaining clarifying or
confirming application information. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to
collect such additional information from Applicants as it deems
appropriate. After submitting its application, the Applicant will not
be permitted to revise or modify its application in any way nor attempt
to negotiate the terms of an award. If contacted for clarifying or
confirming information, the Applicant must respond within the time
parameters set by the CDFI Fund.
3. Application Review; Selection: Awards will be made based on
Applicants' experience and ability to use CMF award dollars to support
Affordable Housing Activities, Economic Development Activities, and
Community Service Facilities, in accordance with the criteria set forth
above in Section V.B.
(a) Quantitative Peer Review: The CDFI Fund may undertake an
initial review of all applications prior to assigning the application
to a reviewer. This review will be based upon quantitative information
provided by the Applicant in its application materials, with specific
focus on: (i) The Applicant's commitments to using CMF award dollars to
generate additional funds through leveraging; (ii) the Applicant's
commitments to targeting projects that serve underserved populations or
areas of high housing need; and (iii) the Applicant's demonstrated
ability to obligate funds and undertake activities in a timely matter.
Applicants that, when compared with the rest of the Applicant pool,
score lowest in one or more of these key areas may not be forwarded to
the next level of review.
(b) Application Review: Reviewers will be assigned a set number of
applications to review. Once the reviewer has completed all of his/her
review assignments, he/she will provide a score for each of the
applications that was reviewed, in accordance with the scoring
criterion outlined in the application materials.
(c) Evaluating Prior Award Performance: In the case of an Applicant
that has received awards from other federal programs, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right to contact officials from the appropriate federal
agency or agencies to determine whether the Awardee is in compliance
with current or prior award agreements, and to take such information
into consideration before making a CMF award. In the case of an
Applicant that has previously received funding through any CDFI Fund
program, the CDFI Fund will consider and may, in its discretion, deduct
points for those Applicants (or their Affiliates) that have a history
of providing late reports. The CDFI Fund may also bar from
consideration an Applicant that has, in any proceeding instituted
against the Applicant in, by, or before any court, governmental, or
administrative body or agency, received a final determination within
the last three years indicating that the Applicant has discriminated on
the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age, marital
status, receipt of income from public assistance, religion, or sex.
(d) Selection: After all applications have been reviewed and
scored, the CDFI Fund will make award determinations in descending
order of scores, subject to Applicants' meeting all eligibility
requirements; provided, however, that the CDFI Fund, in its sole
discretion, reserves the right to reject an application and/or adjust
award amounts as appropriate based on information obtained during the
review process. After preliminary award determinations are made, the
CDFI Fund will review the list of potential awardees to determine
whether: (i) the potential awardees' service areas collectively
represent broad geographic coverage throughout the United States; and
(ii) the potential awardees will collectively, based upon projections
made by each Applicant, direct at least 20 percent of total activities
to Non-Metropolitan Areas. To the extent practicable, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right to make alterations to award amounts and/or make
awards to additional organizations if deemed necessary to ensure these
desired outcomes.
4. Regulated Applicants: In the case of Insured Depository
Institutions and Insured Credit Unions, the CDFI Fund will take into
consideration the views of the Appropriate Federal Banking Agencies; in
the case of State-Insured Credit Unions, the CDFI Fund may consult with
the appropriate State banking agencies (or comparable entity).
5. Award Notification: Each Applicant will be informed of the CDFI
Fund's
[[Page 12429]]
award decision through an Assistance Agreement if selected for an award
(see Assistance Agreement section, below) or written declination if not
selected for an award. The CDFI Fund will notify Awardees by e-mail
using the addresses maintained in the Awardee's myCDFIFund account.
6. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to reject an application if
information (including administrative errors) comes to the attention of
the CDFI Fund that adversely affects an Applicant's eligibility for an
award, adversely affects the CDFI Fund's evaluation or scoring of an
application, or indicates fraud or mismanagement on the part of an
Applicant. If the CDFI Fund determines that any portion of the
application is incorrect in any material respect, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject the application.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to change its eligibility and
evaluation criteria and procedures, if the CDFI Fund deems it
appropriate; if said changes materially affect the CDFI Fund's award
decisions, the CDFI Fund will provide information regarding the changes
through the CDFI Fund's Web site. There is no right to appeal the CDFI
Fund's award decisions. The CDFI Fund's award decisions are final.
VI. Award Administration Information
A. Notice of Award: The CDFI Fund will signify its conditional
selection of an Applicant as an Awardee by delivering an Assistance
Agreement to the Applicant via e-mail using the addresses maintained in
the Awardee's myCDFIFund account. The Assistance Agreement will contain
the Notice of Award and general terms and conditions underlying the
CDFI Fund's provision of assistance. The Awardee must confirm receipt
of the Assistance Agreement once received. By confirming receipt of the
Assistance Agreement, the Awardee agrees, among other things, that, if
prior to executing and entering into an Assistance Agreement with the
CDFI Fund, information (including administrative errors) comes to the
attention of the CDFI Fund that either adversely affects the Awardee's
eligibility for an award, or adversely affects the CDFI Fund's
evaluation of the Awardee's application, or indicates fraud or
mismanagement on the part of the Awardee, the CDFI Fund may, in its
discretion and without advance notice to the Awardee, terminate the
award or take such other actions as it deems appropriate. Moreover, by
confirming receipt of the Assistance Agreement, the Awardee agrees
that, if prior to executing and entering into an Assistance Agreement
with the CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund determines that the Awardee or an
Affiliate of the Awardee is in default of any Assistance Agreement
previously entered into with the CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund may, in its
discretion and without advance notice to the Awardee, either terminate
the award or take such other actions as it deems appropriate. The CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to rescind its award
if the Awardee fails to return the Assistance Agreement, signed by the
authorized representative of the Awardee, along with any other
requested documentation, within the deadline set by the CDFI Fund. For
purposes of this section, the CDFI Fund will consider an Affiliate to
mean any entity that meets the definition of Affiliate in this NOFA.
1. Failure to Meet Reporting Requirements: If an Awardee or an
Affiliate of the Awardee is a prior awardee or allocatee under any CDFI
Fund program and is not current on the reporting requirements set forth
in the previously executed assistance, allocation or award
agreement(s), as of the date of the NOA, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to delay entering into an Assistance
Agreement until said prior awardee or allocatee is current on the
reporting requirements in any previously executed assistance,
allocation, or award agreement(s). Please note that the CDFI Fund only
acknowledges the receipt of reports that are complete. As such,
incomplete reports or reports that are deficient of required elements
will not be recognized as having been received. If said prior awardee
or allocatee is unable to meet this requirement within the timeframe
set by the CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to terminate and rescind the award made under this NOFA.
2. Pending Resolution of Noncompliance: If an Applicant is a prior
awardee or allocatee under any CDFI Fund program and if: (i) it has
submitted complete and timely reports to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate
noncompliance with a previous assistance, award, or allocation
agreement; and (ii) the CDFI Fund has yet to make a final determination
as to whether the entity is in default of its previous assistance,
award, or allocation agreement, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in
its sole discretion, to delay entering into an Assistance Agreement,
pending full resolution, in the sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of
the noncompliance. Further, if an Affiliate of the Awardee is a prior
CDFI Fund awardee or allocatee and if such entity (i) has submitted
complete and timely reports to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate
noncompliance with a previous assistance, award, or allocation
agreement, and (ii) the CDFI Fund has yet to make a final determination
as to whether the entity is in default of its previous assistance,
award, or allocation agreement, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in
its sole discretion, to delay entering into an Assistance Agreement,
pending full resolution, in the sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of
the noncompliance. If the prior awardee or allocatee in question is
unable to satisfactorily resolve the issues of noncompliance, in the
sole determination of the CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund reserves the right,
in its sole discretion, to terminate and rescind the award made under
this NOFA.
3. Default Status: If, at any time prior to entering into an
Assistance Agreement through this NOFA, the CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that an Awardee that is a prior awardee or allocatee
under any CDFI Fund program is in default of a previously executed
assistance, allocation, or award agreement(s), the CDFI Fund reserves
the right, in its sole discretion, to delay entering into an Assistance
Agreement, until said prior awardee or allocatee has submitted a
complete and timely report demonstrating full compliance with said
agreement within a timeframe set by the CDFI Fund. Further, if at any
time prior to entering into an Assistance Agreement through this NOFA,
the CDFI Fund has made a final determination that an Affiliate of the
Awardee is a prior awardee or allocatee under any CDFI Fund program and
is in default of a previously executed assistance, allocation, or award
agreement(s), the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion,
to delay entering into an Assistance Agreement, until said prior
awardee or allocatee has submitted a complete and timely report
demonstrating full compliance with said agreement within a timeframe
set by the CDFI Fund. If said prior awardee or allocatee is unable to
meet this requirement and the CDFI Fund has not specified in writing
that the prior awardee or allocatee is otherwise eligible to receive an
Award under this NOFA, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to terminate and rescind the award made under this NOFA.
4. Termination in Default: If (i) within the 12-month period prior
to entering into an Assistance Agreement through this NOFA, the CDFI
Fund has made a final determination that an Awardee that is a prior
awardee or allocatee
[[Page 12430]]
under any CDFI Fund program whose award or allocation was terminated in
default of such prior agreement, and (ii) the final reporting period
end date for the applicable terminated agreement falls within the 12-
month period prior to the application deadline of this NOFA, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to delay entering into
or determine not to enter into an Assistance Agreement. Further, if (i)
within the 12-month period prior to entering into an Assistance
Agreement through this NOFA, the CDFI Fund has made a final
determination that an Affiliate of the Awardee is a prior awardee or
allocatee under any CDFI Fund program whose award or allocation was
terminated in default of such prior agreement, and (ii) the final
reporting period end date for the applicable terminated agreement falls
within the 12-month period prior to the application deadline of this
NOFA, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
delay entering into or determine not to enter into an Assistance
Agreement.
5. Compliance with Federal Anti-Discrimination Laws: If at any time
prior to entering into an Assistance Agreement through this NOFA, the
CDFI Fund is made aware of a final determination, made within the last
three years, in any proceeding instituted against the Awardee in, by,
or before any court, governmental, or administrative body or agency,
declaring that the Awardee has discriminated on the basis of race,
color, national origin, disability, age, marital status, receipt of
income from public assistance, religion, or sex, the CDFI Fund reserves
the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate and rescind the award
made under this NOFA.
B. Assistance Agreement: Each Applicant that is selected to receive
an award under this NOFA must enter into an Assistance Agreement with
the CDFI Fund in order to receive disbursement of award proceeds. The
Assistance Agreement will set forth certain required terms and
conditions of the award, which will include, but not be limited to: (i)
The amount of the award; (ii) the approved uses of the award; (iii) the
approved Service Area in which the award may be used; (iv) performance
goals and measures; and (v) reporting requirements for all Awardees. It
is anticipated that CMF awards under this NOFA generally will have ten-
year performance periods.
The Assistance Agreement shall provide that in the event of fraud,
mismanagement, noncompliance with the Act or the CDFI Fund's
regulations, or noncompliance with the terms and conditions of the
Assistance Agreement on the part of the Awardee, the CDFI Fund, in its
discretion, may: (1) Require changes in the performance goals set forth
in the Assistance Agreement; (2) revoke approval of the Awardee's
application; (3) reduce or terminate the Awardee's assistance; (4)
require repayment of any assistance that has been distributed to the
Awardee; (5) bar the Awardee from reapplying for any assistance from
the CDFI Fund; or (6) take such other actions as the CDFI Fund deems
appropriate or as set forth in the Assistance Agreement.
Prior to imposing any sanctions pursuant to this section or an
Assistance Agreement, the CDFI Fund shall, to the maximum extent
practicable, provide the Awardee with written notice of the proposed
sanction and an opportunity to comment. Nothing in this section,
however, shall provide an Awardee the right to any formal or informal
hearing or comparable proceeding not otherwise required by law.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
terminate and rescind an award if the Awardee fails to return the
Assistance Agreement, signed by the authorized representative of the
Awardee, and/or provide the CDFI Fund with any other requested
documentation, within the deadlines set by the CDFI Fund.
In addition to entering into an Assistance Agreement, each
Applicant selected to receive a CMF award must furnish to the CDFI Fund
an opinion from its legal counsel, the content of which will be further
specified in the Assistance Agreement, which may include, among other
matters, an opinion that: (i) The Applicant (and its Subsidiary
transferees, if any) is duly formed and in good standing in the
jurisdiction in which it was formed and the jurisdiction(s) in which it
operates; (ii) the Applicant (and its Subsidiary transferees, if any)
has the authority to enter into the Assistance Agreement and undertake
the activities that are specified therein; (iii) the Applicant (and its
Subsidiary transferees, if any) has no pending or threatened litigation
that would materially affect its ability to enter into and carry out
the activities specified in the Assistance Agreement; (iv) the
Applicant (and its Subsidiary transferees, if any) is not in default of
its articles of incorporation, bylaws or other organizational
documents, or any agreements with the Federal government; and (v) the
CMF affordability restrictions that are to be imposed by deed
restrictions, covenants running with the land, or other CDFI Fu