Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) Inviting Applications for the FY 2015 Funding Round of the Bank Enterprise Award Program (BEA Program), 25769-25780 [2015-10432]
Download as PDF
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
The exemptions are extended subject
to the following conditions: (1) That
each individual has a physical
examination every year (a) by an
ophthalmologist or optometrist who
attests that the vision in the better eye
continues to meet the requirements in
49 CFR 391.41(b)(10), and (b) by a
medical examiner who attests that the
individual is otherwise physically
qualified under 49 CFR 391.41; (2) that
each individual provides a copy of the
ophthalmologist’s or optometrist’s
report to the medical examiner at the
time of the annual medical examination;
and (3) that each individual provide a
copy of the annual medical certification
to the employer for retention in the
driver’s qualification file and retains a
copy of the certification on his/her
person while driving for presentation to
a duly authorized Federal, State, or local
enforcement official. Each exemption
will be valid for two years unless
rescinded earlier by FMCSA. The
exemption will be rescinded if: (1) The
person fails to comply with the terms
and conditions of the exemption; (2) the
exemption has resulted in a lower level
of safety than was maintained before it
was granted; or (3) continuation of the
exemption would not be consistent with
the goals and objectives of 49 U.S.C.
31136(e) and 31315.
III. Basis for Renewing Exemptions
Under 49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(1), an
exemption may be granted for no longer
than two years from its approval date
and may be renewed upon application
for additional two year periods. In
accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and
31315, each of the 10 applicants has
satisfied the entry conditions for
obtaining an exemption from the vision
requirements (74 FR 19267; 74 FR
28094; 76 FR 32016; 78 FR 32703). Each
of these 10 applicants has requested
renewal of the exemption and has
submitted evidence showing that the
vision in the better eye continues to
meet the requirement specified at 49
CFR 391.41(b)(10) and that the vision
impairment is stable. In addition, a
review of each record of safety while
driving with the respective vision
deficiencies over the past two years
indicates each applicant continues to
meet the vision exemption
requirements. These factors provide an
adequate basis for predicting each
driver’s ability to continue to drive
safely in interstate commerce.
Therefore, FMCSA concludes that
extending the exemption for each
renewal applicant for a period of two
years is likely to achieve a level of safety
equal to that existing without the
exemption.
IV. Public Participation and Request for
Comments
FMCSA encourages you to participate
by submitting comments and related
materials.
Submitting Comments
If you submit a comment, please
include the docket number for this
notice (FMCSA–2008–0106; FMCSA–
2009–0086), indicate the specific
section of this document to which each
comment applies, and provide a reason
for each suggestion or recommendation.
You may submit your comments and
material online or by fax, mail, or hand
delivery, but please use only one of
these means. FMCSA recommends that
you include your name and a mailing
address, an email address, or a phone
number in the body of your document
so the Agency can contact you if it has
questions regarding your submission.
To submit your comment online, go to
https://www.regulations.gov and put the
docket number, ‘‘FMCSA–2008–0106;
FMCSA–2009–0086’’ in the ‘‘Keyword’’
box, and click ‘‘Search.’’ When the new
screen appears, click on ‘‘Comment
Now!’’ button and type your comment
into the text box in the following screen.
Choose whether you are submitting your
comment as an individual or on behalf
of a third party and then submit. If you
submit your comments by mail or hand
delivery, submit them in an unbound
format, no larger than 81⁄2 by 11 inches,
suitable for copying and electronic
25769
filing. If you submit comments by mail
and would like to know that they
reached the facility, please enclose a
stamped, self-addressed postcard or
envelope. FMCSA will consider all
comments and material received during
the comment period and may change
this notice based on your comments.
Viewing Comments and Documents
To view comments, as well as any
documents mentioned in this preamble
as being available in the docket, go to
https://www.regulations.gov and in the
search box insert the docket number,
‘‘FMCSA–2008–0106; FMCSA–2009–
0086’’ in the ‘‘Keyword’’ box and click
‘‘Search.’’ Next, click ‘‘Open Docket
Folder’’ button choose the document
listed to review. If you do not have
access to the Internet, you may view the
docket online by visiting the Docket
Management Facility in Room W12–140
on the ground floor of the DOT West
Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE.,
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays.
Issued on: April 29, 2015.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2015–10445 Filed 5–4–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA)
Inviting Applications for the FY 2015
Funding Round of the Bank Enterprise
Award Program (BEA Program)
Announcement Type: Announcement
of funding opportunity.
Funding Opportunity Number: CDFI–
2015–BEA.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
(CFDA) Number: 21.021.
KEY DATES:
TABLE 1—FY 2015 BEA PROGRAM FUNDING ROUND KEY DATES FOR APPLICANTS
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Description
Deadline
Time
(Eastern daylight
time—EDT)
Last day to contact BEA Program staff ...............
June 11, 2015 ........
5:00 p.m. EDT .......
Last day to contact Certification, Compliance
Monitoring and Evaluation staff.
Application Part I: BEA Program Application Due
Date (Forms include: SF–424 Mandatory, Environmental Review Form, Certifications and
Excel charts).
June 11, 2015 ........
5:00 p.m. EDT .......
June 15, 2015 ........
11:59 p.m. EDT .....
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
PO 00000
Frm 00110
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Submission method
CDFI Fund Helpdesk: 202–653–0421
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
CDFI Fund Helpdesk: 202–653–0421
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
Electronically via Grants.gov.
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
or
or
25770
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
TABLE 1—FY 2015 BEA PROGRAM FUNDING ROUND KEY DATES FOR APPLICANTS—Continued
Description
Deadline
Time
(Eastern daylight
time—EDT)
Last day to contact IT Help Desk ........................
June 17, 2015 ........
5:00 p.m. EDT .......
Application Part II: myCDFIFund Due Date: (Includes: myCDFIFund account registration,
BEA Signature Page and Documentation of
Qualified Activities).
June 17, 2015 ........
5:00 p.m. EDT .......
This NOFA is issued in
connection with the fiscal year (FY)
2015 funding round of the Bank
Enterprise Award Program (BEA
Program). The BEA Program is
administered by the U.S. Department of
the Treasury’s Community Development
Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI
Fund). Through the BEA Program, the
CDFI Fund awards formula-based grants
to depository institutions that are
insured by the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for
increasing their levels of loans,
investments, service activities, and
technical assistance within Distressed
Communities, and financial assistance
to Community Development Financial
Institutions (CDFIs) through equity
investments, equity-like loans, grants,
stock purchases, loans, deposits, and
other forms of financial and technical
assistance, during a specified period.
SUMMARY:
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
I. Program Description
A. History: The CDFI Fund was
established by the Riegle Community
Development Banking and Financial
Institutions Act of 1994 to promote
economic revitalization and community
development through investment in and
assistance to CDFIs. Since its creation in
1994, the CDFI Fund has awarded over
$2 billion to CDFIs, community
development organizations, and
financial institutions through the
Community Development Financial
Institutions Program (CDFI Program),
the Native American CDFI Assistance
Program (NACA Program), the BEA
Program, the Capital Magnet Fund, and
the Financial Education and Counseling
Pilot Program. In addition, the CDFI
Fund has allocated $40 billion in tax
credit allocation authority through the
New Markets Tax Credit Program
(NMTC Program) and has obligated $525
million in bond guarantees through the
CDFI Bond Guarantee Program.
The BEA Program complements the
community development activities of
banks and thrifts (collectively referred
to as banks for purposes of this Notice)
by providing financial incentives to
expand investments in CDFIs and to
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
increase lending, investment, and
service activities within Distressed
Communities. Providing monetary
awards to banks for increasing their
community development activities
leverages the CDFI Fund’s dollars and
puts more capital to work in Distressed
Communities throughout the nation.
B. Priorities: Through the BEA
Program, the CDFI Fund specifies the
following priorities:
1. Estimated award amounts for
Applicants that are CDFIs will be equal
to three times the award percentages for
activities undertaken by Applicants that
are not CDFIs;
2. Priority Factors based on
Applicant’s asset size, as described in
Section V.D. of this NOFA
(‘‘Application Review Information:
Priority Factors’’); and
3. Priority of awards: The CDFI Fund
will rank Applicants in each category of
Qualified Activity according to the
priorities described in Section V.F.4 of
this NOFA (‘‘Application Review
Information: Award Percentages, Award
Amounts, Application Review Process,
Selection Process, Programmatic
Financial Risk, and Application
Rejection: Selection Process’’).
C. Baseline Period and Assessment
Period dates: A BEA Program Award is
based on an Applicant’s increases in
Qualified Activities from the Baseline
Period to the Assessment Period. For the
FY 2015 funding round, the Baseline
Period is calendar year 2013 (January 1,
2013 through December 31, 2013), and
the Assessment Period is calendar year
2014 (January 1, 2014 through December
31, 2014). If Qualified Activities in a
specific category result in a decrease in
activity from the Baseline Period to the
Assessment Period, there is no need to
report the activity.
D. Authorizing Statutes and
Regulations: The BEA Program was
authorized by the Bank Enterprise
Award Act of 1991, as amended. The
regulations governing the BEA Program
can be found at 12 CFR part 1806
(Interim Rule). The Interim Rule
provides guidance on evaluation criteria
and other requirements of the BEA
Program. Detailed BEA Program
PO 00000
Frm 00111
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Submission method
CDFI Fund Helpdesk: 202–653–0421
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
Electronically via myCDFIFund.
or
requirements are also found in the
Application associated with this NOFA.
The CDFI Fund encourages interested
parties and Applicants to review the
Interim Rule, this NOFA, the
Application, and the Uniform
Administrative Requirements, Cost
Principles, and Audit Requirements for
Federal Awards (Uniform
Requirements) for a complete
understanding of the program.
Capitalized terms in this NOFA are
defined in the authorizing statute, the
Interim Rule, this NOFA, the
Application, and the Uniform
Requirements. Details regarding
Application content requirements are
found in the Application and related
materials. Application materials can be
found on Grants.gov and the CDFI
Fund’s Web site at www.cdfifund.gov/
bea.
E. Uniform Administrative
Requirements, Cost Principles, and
Audit Requirements for Federal Awards
(2 CFR 200): In December 2014, the
Department of the Treasury published a
final rule, Uniform Administrative
Requirements, Cost Principles, and
Audit Requirements for Federal Awards
(2 CFR part 1000) (Uniform
Requirements), which adopted the
government-wide framework for grants
management codified by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) at 2
CFR part 200, combining several OMB
guidance circulars, reducing
administrative burden for award
Recipients, and reducing the risk of
waste, fraud and abuse of Federal
financial assistance. The Uniform
Requirements establish financial,
administrative, procurement, and
program management standards that
Federal award-making agencies,
including the CDFI Fund, and award
Recipients must follow. When
evaluating award applications, awarding
agencies must evaluate the risks to the
program posed by each applicant, and
each applicant’s merits and eligibility.
These requirements are designed to
ensure that applicants for Federal
assistance receive a fair and consistent
review prior to an award decision. This
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
review will assess items such as the
Applicant’s financial stability, quality of
management systems, history of
performance, and audit findings. In
addition, the Uniform Requirements
include guidance on audit requirements
and other award requirements with
which award Recipients must comply.
F. Funding limitations: 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. The CDFI Fund also
reserves the right to reallocate funds
from the amount that is anticipated to
be available through this NOFA to other
CDFI Fund programs, or reallocate
remaining funds to a future BEA
Program funding round, particularly if
the CDFI Fund determines that the
number of awards made through this
NOFA is fewer than projected.
II. Federal Award Information
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
A. Funding Availability
1. FY 2015 Funding Round and
Award Amounts: The CDFI Fund
expects to award approximately $18
million in FY 2015 BEA Program
Awards in appropriated funds under
this NOFA. The CDFI Fund reserves the
right to award in excess of said funds
under this NOFA, provided that the
appropriated funds are available. The
CDFI Fund reserves the right to impose
a maximum Award amount; however,
under no circumstances will an Award
be higher than $2 million for any
Recipient. The CDFI Fund also reserves
the right to impose a minimum Award
amount due to availability of funds.
2. Anticipated Start Date and Period
of Performance: The CDFI Fund
anticipates the period of performance
for the FY 2015 Funding Round will
begin in the Fall of calendar year 2015.
Specifically, the period of performance
begins with the date the CDFI Fund
issues the notice of award and will
conclude one (1) full calendar year after
the date of the notice of award, during
which the Recipient must meet the
performance goals set forth in the
Award Agreement.
B. Types of Awards: BEA Program
Awards are made in the form of grants.
C. Eligible Activities: Eligible
Activities for the BEA Program are
referred to as Qualified Activities and
are defined in the Interim Rule to
include CDFI Related Activities,
Distressed Community Financing
Activities, and Service Activities (12
CFR 1806.103). It is the explicit policy
of the CDFI Fund that BEA Program
Awards may not be used by Recipients
to recover overhead or indirect costs.
Each of the Qualified Activities will be
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
ineligible for indirect costs and an
associated indirect cost rate. CDFI
Related Activities (12 CFR 1806.103(p))
include Equity Investments, Equity-Like
Loans, and CDFI Support Activities.
Distressed Community Financing
Activities (12 CFR 1806.103(u)) include
Affordable Housing Loans, Affordable
Housing Development Loans and related
Project Investments; Education Loans;
Commercial Real Estate Loans and
related Project Investments; Home
Improvement Loans; Small Business
Loans and related Project Investments,
and Small Dollar Consumer Loans.
Service Activities (12 CFR 1806.103(oo))
include Deposit Liabilities, Financial
Services, Community Services, Targeted
Financial Services, and Targeted Retail
Savings/Investment Products. When
calculating BEA Program Award
amounts, the CDFI Fund will only
consider the amount of a Qualified
Activity that has been fully disbursed
or, in the case of a partially disbursed
Qualified Activity, will only consider
the amount that an Applicant
reasonably expects to disburse for a
Qualified Activity within 12 months
from the end of the Assessment Period.
Subject to the requirements outlined in
Section VII. B.1. of this NOFA, in the
case of Commercial Real Estate Loans
and related Project Investments, the
total principal amount of the transaction
must be $10 million or less to be
considered a Qualified Activity.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the CDFI
Fund, in its sole discretion, may
consider transactions with a total
principal value of over $10 million,
subject to review. An activity funded
with prior BEA Program Award dollars,
or funded to satisfy requirements of a
BEA Program Award Agreement from a
prior Award, shall not constitute a
Qualified Activity for the purposes of
calculating or receiving an Award.
D. Designation of Distressed
Community: Each CDFI Partner that is
the recipient of CDFI Support Activities
from an Applicant must designate a
Distressed Community. CDFI Partners
that receive Equity Investments, EquityLike Loans or Grants are not required to
designate a Distressed Community.
Applicants applying for a BEA
Program Award for performing
Distressed Community Financing
Activities or Service Activities must
verify that addresses of both Baseline
and Assessment Period activities are in
Distressed Communities when
completing their Application.
Please note that a Distressed
Community as defined by the BEA
Program is not necessarily the same as
an Investment Area as defined by the
CDFI Program or a Low-Income
PO 00000
Frm 00112
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
25771
Community as defined by the NMTC
Program.
1. Definition of Distressed
Community: A Distressed Community
must meet certain minimum geographic
area and eligibility requirements, which
are defined in the Interim Rule at 12
CFR 1806.103(t) and more fully
described in 12 CFR 1806.401.
Applicants should use the CDFI Fund’s
Information Mapping System (CIMS3) to
determine whether a Baseline Period
activity or Assessment Period activity is
located in a qualified Distressed
Community.
2. Distressed Community Designation
by a CDFI Partner: A CDFI Partner (as
appropriate) shall designate an area as a
Distressed Community by:
a. Selecting a census tract that meets
the minimum area and eligibility
requirements; or by
b. selecting two or more contiguous
census tracts that, in the aggregate, meet
minimum area and eligibility
requirements set forth in paragraph (1)
of this section. A CDFI Partner
designates a Distressed Community by
submitting a map of the Distressed
Community as described in the BEA
Program Application. CDFI Partners
must use CIMS3 to designate a
Distressed Community. CIMS3 is
accessed through myCDFIFund and
contains step-by-step instructions on
how to create and save the
aforementioned map of the Distressed
Community. myCDFIFund is an
electronic interface that is accessed
through the CDFI Fund’s Web site
(www.cdfifund.gov). Instructions for
registering with myCDFIFund are
available on the CDFI Fund’s Web site.
If you have any questions or problems
with registering, please contact the CDFI
Fund IT HelpDesk by telephone at (202)
653–0300, or by email to ITHelpDesk@
cdfi.treas.gov.
3. Distressed Community
Determination by a BEA Applicant: A
BEA Applicant shall determine an area
is a Distressed Community by:
a. Selecting a census tract where the
Qualified Activity occurred that meets
the minimum area and eligibility
requirements; or
b. selecting the census tract where the
Qualified Activity occurred, plus one or
more census tracts directly contiguous
to where the Qualified Activity occurred
that when considered in the aggregate,
meet the minimum area and eligibility
requirements set forth in paragraph (1)
of this section.
E. Award Agreement: Each Recipient
under this NOFA must sign an Award
Agreement prior to disbursement by the
CDFI Fund of the Award proceeds. The
Award Agreement contains the terms
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
25772
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
III. Eligibility Information
and conditions of the Award. For
further information, see Section VI of
this NOFA.
A. Eligible Applicants: For the
purposes of this NOFA, the following
table sets forth the eligibility criteria to
receive an award from the CDFI Fund.
TABLE 2—ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICANTS
Criteria
Description
Eligible Applicants ......................................
Eligible Applicants for the BEA Program must be Insured Depository Institutions, as defined in Section 3 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act 12 U.S.C. 1813(c)(2). For the FY 2015 funding round,
an Applicant must be FDIC-insured as of December 31, 2014 to be eligible for consideration for a
BEA Program Award under this NOFA. The depository institution holding company of an Insured
Depository Institution may not apply on behalf of an Insured Depository Institution. Applications
received from depository institution holding companies will be disqualified.
For the FY 2015 funding round, an eligible certified-CDFI Applicant is an Insured Depository Institution that was certified as a CDFI as of December 31, 2014 and that maintains its status as a certified CDFI at the time BEA Program Awards are announced under this NOFA.
No CDFI Applicant may receive a FY 2015 BEA Program Award if it has: (1) An application pending
for assistance under the FY 2015 round of the CDFI Program; (2) been awarded assistance from
the CDFI Fund under the CDFI Program within the 12-month period prior to the date of the FY
2015 notice of award issued by the CDFI Program; or (3) ever received assistance under the
CDFI Program for the same activities for which it is seeking a FY 2015 BEA Program Award.
Please note that Applicants may apply for both a CDFI Program Award and a BEA Program
Award in FY 2015; however, receiving a FY 2015 CDFI Program award removes an Applicant
from eligibility for a FY 2015 BEA Program Award.
The CDFI Fund will conduct a debarment check and will not consider an Application submitted by
an Applicant if the Applicant is delinquent on any Federal debt. The Do Not Pay Business Center
was developed to support Federal agencies in their efforts to reduce the number of improper payments made through programs funded by the Federal government. The Do Not Pay Business
Center provides delinquency information to the CDFI Fund to assist with the debarment check.
CDFI Applicant ...........................................
Debarment/Do Not Pay Verification ..........
Prior Award Recipients: The previous
success of an Applicant in any of the
CDFI Fund’s programs will not be
considered under this NOFA. Prior BEA
Program Award Recipients and prior
Award Recipients of other CDFI Fund
programs are eligible to apply under this
NOFA, except as noted in the following
table:
TABLE 3—ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICANTS WHICH ARE PRIOR AWARD RECIPIENTS
Criteria
Description
Pending resolution of noncompliance .......
If an Applicant that is a prior Award Recipient or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund program: (i) Has
submitted reports to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate noncompliance with a previous assistance
agreement, award agreement, allocation agreement, bond loan agreement, or agreement to guarantee and (ii) the CDFI Fund has yet to make a final determination as to whether the entity is in
default of its previous 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.
The CDFI Fund will not consider an Application submitted by an Applicant that is a prior CDFI Fund
Award Recipient or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund 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 agreement, award agreement, allocation agreement,
bond loan agreement, or agreement to guarantee. Such entities will be ineligible to apply for an
Award pursuant to this NOFA so long as the Applicant’s prior award or allocation remains in default status or such other time period as specified by the CDFI Fund in writing.
For the purposes of this section, the term ‘‘undisbursed funds’’ is defined as: (i) In the case of prior
BEA Program Award(s), any balance of Award funds equal to or greater than five percent of the
total prior BEA Program Award(s) that remains undisbursed more than three years after the end
of the calendar year in which the CDFI Fund signed an Award Agreement with the Award Recipient, or (ii) in the case of prior CDFI Program or other CDFI Fund program award(s), any balance
of award funds equal to or greater than five percent of the total prior award(s) that remains
undisbursed more than two years after the end of the calendar year in which the CDFI Fund
signed the applicable assistance agreement with the Award Recipient.
The term ‘‘undisbursed funds’’ does not include (i) tax credit allocation authority allocated through
the NMTC Program; (ii) any award funds for which the CDFI Fund received a full and complete
disbursement request from the Award Recipient as of the Application deadline of this NOFA; (iii)
an award that does not have a fully executed award agreement; or (iv) any award funds for an
award that has been terminated, expired, rescinded, or de-obligated by the CDFI Fund.
Default status .............................................
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Undisbursed funds .....................................
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
PO 00000
Frm 00113
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
25773
TABLE 3—ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICANTS WHICH ARE PRIOR AWARD RECIPIENTS—Continued
Criteria
Description
The CDFI Fund will not consider an Application submitted by an Applicant that is a prior CDFI Fund
award Recipient under any CDFI Fund program if the Applicant has a balance of undisbursed
funds under said prior award(s), as of the 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
CDFI Fund award Recipient under any CDFI Fund program, and has a balance of undisbursed
funds under said prior Award(s), as of the Application deadline of this NOFA. In the case where
an Affiliate of the Applicant is a prior CDFI Fund award Recipient under any CDFI Fund program,
and has a balance of undisbursed funds under said prior award(s), as of the Application deadline
of this NOFA, the CDFI Fund will include the combined awards of the Applicant and such Affiliates when calculating the amount of undisbursed funds.
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Contact the CDFI Fund: Accordingly,
Applicants that are prior Recipients
and/or Allocatees under any CDFI Fund
program are advised to: (i) Comply with
requirements specified in an assistance
agreement, award agreement, allocation
agreement, bond loan agreement, or
agreement to guarantee and (ii) contact
the CDFI Fund to ensure that all
necessary actions are underway for the
disbursement of any outstanding
balance of a prior award(s). An
Applicant that is unsure about the
disbursement status of any prior award
should contact the CDFI Fund by
sending an email to cdfihelp@
cdfi.treas.gov. All outstanding reports
and compliance questions should be
directed to the Certification,
Compliance Monitoring, and Evaluation
helpdesk by email at ccme@
cdfi.treas.gov or by telephone at (202)
653–0421. The CDFI Fund will respond
to Applicants’ reporting, compliance, or
disbursement questions between the
hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET,
starting on the date of the publication of
this NOFA through June 11, 2015. The
CDFI Fund will not respond to
Applicants’ reporting, compliance, or
disbursement telephone calls or email
inquiries that are received after 5:00
p.m. ET on June 11, 2015 until after the
Application deadline. The CDFI Fund
will respond to technical issues related
to myCDFIFund Accounts through 5:00
p.m. ET on June 17, 2015 at ithelpdesk@
cdfi.treas.gov or by telephone at (202)
653–0422.
B. Cost sharing or matching fund
requirements: Not applicable.
IV. Application and Submission
Information
A. Address to Request an Application
Package: Application materials can be
found on Grants.gov and the CDFI
Fund’s Web site at www.cdfifund.gov/
bea. Applicants may request a paper
version of any Application material by
contacting the CDFI Fund Help Desk at
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
B. Content and Form of Application
Submission: All Application materials
must be prepared using the English
language and calculations must be made
in U.S. dollars. Detailed Application
content requirements are found in the
Application associated with this NOFA.
Applicants must submit all materials
described in and required by the
Application by the applicable deadlines.
Additional information, including
instructions relating to the submission
of the Application via Grants.gov, and
the submission of the FY 2015 BEA
Signature Page and supporting
documentation via myCDFIFund, is set
forth in further detail in the
Application.
C. Dun and Bradstreet Universal
Numbering System (DUNS) Number and
System for Award Management (SAM):
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 and a current Employer
Identification Number (EIN). Applicants
should allow sufficient time for the IRS
and/or Dun and Bradstreet to respond to
inquiries and/or requests for
identification numbers. Applicants
without a DUNS number will not be
able to register and submit an
Application in the Grants.gov system.
An active SAM account is required to
submit Applications via Grants.gov.
Neither the SAM account, EIN, nor the
DUNS number can be that of the
depository institution holding company
of the Applicant. Applicants are advised
to allow ample time to complete the
entire registration and submission
process prior to the application
deadline. The SAM registration process
can take several weeks to complete.
Applicants that have previously
completed the SAM registration process
must verify that their SAM accounts are
current and active. Each Applicant must
continue to maintain an active SAM
registration with current information at
all times during which it has an active
PO 00000
Frm 00114
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Federal award or an Application under
consideration by a Federal awarding
agency. The CDFI Fund will not
consider any Applicant that fails to
properly register or activate its SAM
account and, as a result, is unable to
submit its Application by the
Application deadline. Applicants must
contact SAM directly with questions
related to registration or SAM account
changes as the CDFI Fund does not
maintain this system. For more
information about SAM, please visit
https://www.sam.gov.
An Application that does not include
an EIN or DUNS number is incomplete
and cannot be transmitted to the CDFI
Fund. The preceding sentences do not
limit the CDFI Fund’s ability to contact
an Applicant for the purpose of
confirming or clarifying information
regarding a DUNS number or EIN. Once
an Application is submitted, the
Applicant will not be allowed to change
any element of the Application.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to
request and review other pertinent or
public information that has not been
specifically requested in this NOFA or
the Application. As set forth in further
detail in the Application, any Qualified
Activity missing the required
documentation will be disqualified.
Applicants will not be allowed to
submit missing documentation for
Qualified Activities after the
Application deadline. Information
submitted by the Applicant that the
CDFI Fund has not specifically
requested will not be reviewed or
considered as part of the Application.
Applicants must submit Applications
under this NOFA via Grants.gov and
with certain required documentation via
myCDFIFund according to the
instructions in the Application.
1. Grants.gov: In order to submit an
Application via Grants.gov, Applicants
must complete a multi-step registration
process. This includes providing a
DUNS and registration at www.sam.gov.
The CDFI Fund strongly encourages
Applicants to start the Grants.gov
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
25774
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
registration process as soon as possible
(refer to the following link: https://
www.grants.gov/web/grants/
register.html) as it may take several
weeks to complete. An Applicant that
has previously registered with
Grants.gov must verify that its
registration is current and active.
Applicants should contact Grants.gov
directly with questions related to the
registration or submittal process as the
CDFI Fund does not maintain the
Grants.gov system.
2. myCDFIFund: All Applicants and
CDFI Partners must complete a FY 2015
BEA Signature Page in myCDFIFund,
the CDFI Fund’s Internet-based
interface. All Applicants and CDFI
Partners must register User and
Organization accounts in myCDFIFund
by the applicable Application deadline.
Failure to register and complete a FY
2015 BEA Signature Page in
myCDFIFund could result in the CDFI
Fund being unable to accept the
Application. As myCDFIFund is the
CDFI Fund’s primary means of
communication with Applicants and
Award Recipients, institutions must
make sure that they update their contact
information in their myCDFIFund
accounts. In addition, the Applicant
should ensure that the Applicant name
is the same institution’s name on the
Application materials (SF–424 and
other forms). EINs and DUNS numbers
in the Applicant’s System for Award
Management (SAM) account must
match those listed in myCDFIFund. For
more information on myCDFIFund,
please see the ‘‘Frequently Asked
Questions’’ link posted at https://
www.cdfifund.gov/myCDFI/Help/
Help.asp. Qualified Activity
documentation and other attachments as
specified in the applicable BEA Program
Application must be submitted
electronically via the BEA Signature
Page interface in myCDFIFund. Detailed
instructions regarding submission of
Qualified Activity documentation is
provided in the Application
instructions. Applications, attachments,
and Qualified Activity documentation
delivered by hard copy to the CDFI
Fund’s Washington, DC office address
will be rejected, unless the Applicant
previously requested a paper version of
the Application as described in Section
IV.A.
D. Submission Dates and Times: The
following table provides the critical
deadlines for the FY 2015 Funding
Round. Applications and other required
documents and other attachments
received after the deadline on the
applicable date will be rejected. Please
note that the document submission
deadlines in this NOFA and the
Application are strictly enforced. The
CDFI Fund will not grant exceptions or
waivers for late submissions except
where the submission delay was a direct
result of a Federal government
administrative or technological error.
TABLE 4—FY 2015 BEA PROGRAM FUNDING ROUND CRITICAL DEADLINES FOR APPLICANTS
Deadline
Time
(eastern daylight
time—EDT)
Application Part I: BEA Program Application Due Date ...............
(Application Part I Forms include: SF–424 Mandatory, Environmental Review Form, Certifications and Excel charts).
Application Part II: myCDFIFund Due Date (This includes
myCDFIFund account registration, BEA Signature Page and
Documentation of Qualified Activities).
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Description
June 15, 2015 ........
11:59 p.m. EDT .....
Electronically via Grants.gov.
June 17, 2015 ........
5:00 pm EDT .........
Electronically via myCDFIFund.
1. Confirmation of Application
Submission: Applicants may verify their
Application submission in Grants.gov
and myCDFIFund.
a. Grants.gov: Each Applicant will
receive an email from Grants.gov
immediately after Application
submission confirming that the
submission has entered the Grants.gov
system. This email will contain a
tracking number for the submitted
Application package. Within 48 hours,
the Applicant will receive a second
email which will indicate if the
submitted Application package was
either successfully validated or rejected
with errors. However, Applicants
should not rely on the second email
notification from Grants.gov to confirm
that their Applications were validated.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to
use the tracking number provided in the
first email to closely monitor the status
of their Application package by
contacting the helpdesk at Grants.gov
directly. The Application package is not
officially accepted by the CDFI Fund
until Grants.gov has validated the
Application.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
b. myCDFIFund.gov: Applicants will
not receive an email confirmation for
the BEA Signature Page and related
materials submitted in myCDFIFund.
Instead, Applicants should check their
myCDFIFund account to ensure that the
BEA Signature Page is listed under
‘‘Submitted Applications.’’ Step-by-step
instructions are provided in the
Application and supplemental guidance
materials.
2. Multiple Application Submissions:
If an Applicant submits multiple
versions of its Application, the CDFI
Fund will only review the last
Application submitted in Grants.gov.
3. Late Submission: The CDFI Fund
will not accept an Application
submitted after the Application
deadline except where the submission
delay was a direct result of a Federal
government administrative or
technological error. In such case, the
Applicant must submit a request for
acceptance of late Application
submission and include documentation
of the error no later than two business
days after the applicable Application
deadline. The CDFI Fund will not
PO 00000
Frm 00115
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Submission method
respond to request for acceptance of late
Application submissions after that time
period. Applicants must submit late
Application submission requests to the
CDFI Helpdesk at cdfihelp@
cdfi.treas.gov with a subject line of
‘‘Late Application Submission Request.’’
E. Funding Restrictions: BEA Program
Awards are limited by the following:
1. A Recipient shall use BEA Program
funds only for the eligible activities
described in Section II. D. of this NOFA
and its Award Agreement.
2. A Recipient may not distribute BEA
Program funds to an Affiliate,
Subsidiary, or any other entity, without
the CDFI Fund’s prior written approval.
3. BEA Program funds shall only be
disbursed to the Recipient.
4. The CDFI Fund, in its sole
discretion, may disburse BEA Program
funds in amounts, or under terms and
conditions, which are different from
those requested by an Applicant.
F. Other Submission Requirements:
None.
V. Application Review Information
A. Criteria: If the Applicant submitted
a complete and eligible Application, the
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
CDFI Fund will conduct a substantive
review in accordance with the criteria
and procedures described in the
Regulations, this NOFA, the Application
guidance, and the Uniform
Requirements. The CDFI Fund reserves
the right to contact the Applicant by
telephone, email, or mail for the sole
purpose of clarifying or confirming
Application information. If contacted,
the Applicant must respond within the
time period communicated by the CDFI
Fund or run the risk that its Application
will be rejected.
1. CDFI Related Activities: CDFI
Related Activities include Equity
Investments, Equity-Like Loans, and
CDFI Support Activities provided to
eligible CDFI Partners.
2. Eligible CDFI Partner: CDFI Partner
is defined as a CDFI that has been
provided assistance in the form of CDFI
Related Activities by an unaffiliated
Applicant (12 CFR 1806.103(o)). For the
purposes of this NOFA, an eligible CDFI
Partner is an entity that has been
certified as a CDFI as of the end of the
applicable Assessment Period and is
Integrally Involved in a Distressed
Community.
3. Integrally Involved: Integrally
Involved is defined as having provided:
(i) At least 10 percent of financial
transactions or dollars transacted (e.g.,
loans or equity investments), or 10
percent of Development Service
Activities (as defined in 12 CFR
1805.104(s)), in one or more Distressed
Communities identified by the
Applicant or the CDFI Partner, as
applicable, in each of the three calendar
years preceding the date of the
applicable NOFA, (ii) having transacted
at least 25 percent of financial
transactions (e.g., loans or equity
investments) in one or more Distressed
Communities in at least one of the three
calendar years preceding the date of this
NOFA, or (iii) demonstrated that it has
attained at least 10 percent of market
share for a particular product in one or
more Distressed Communities (such as
home mortgages originated in one or
more Distressed Communities) in at
least one of the three calendar years
preceding the date of this NOFA.
4. Limitations on eligible Qualified
Activities provided to certain CDFI
Partners: A CDFI Applicant cannot
receive credit for any financial
assistance or Qualified Activities
provided to a CDFI Partner that is also
an FDIC-insured depository institution
or depository institution holding
company.
5. Certificates of Deposit: Section
1806.103(q) of the Interim Rule states
that any certificate of deposit (CD)
placed by an Applicant or its Subsidiary
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
in a CDFI Partner that is a bank, thrift,
or credit union must be: (i) Uninsured
and committed for at least three years;
or (ii) insured, committed for a term of
at least three years, and provided at an
interest rate that is materially below
market rates, in the determination of the
CDFI Fund.
a. For purposes of this NOFA,
‘‘materially below market interest rate’’
is defined as an annual percentage rate
that does not exceed 100 percent of
yields on Treasury securities at constant
maturity as interpolated by Treasury
from the daily yield curve and available
on the Treasury Web site at
www.treas.gov/offices/domesticfinance/debt-management/interest-rate/
yield.shtml. For example, for a threeyear CD, Applicants should use the
three-year rate U.S. Government
securities, Treasury Yield Curve Rate
posted for that business day. The
Treasury updates the Web site daily at
approximately 5:30 p.m. ET. CDs placed
prior to that time may use the rate
posted for the previous business day.
The annual percentage rate on a CD
should be compounded daily, quarterly,
semi-annually, or annually. If a variable
interest rate is used, the CD must also
have an interest rate that is materially
below the market interest rate over the
life of the CD, in the determination of
the CDFI Fund.
b. For purposes of this NOFA, a
deposit placed by an Applicant directly
with a CDFI Partner that participates in
a deposit network or service may be
treated as eligible under this NOFA if it
otherwise meets the criteria for deposits
in 1806.103(q) and the CDFI Partner
retains the full amount of the initial
deposit or an amount equivalent to the
full amount of the initial deposit
through a deposit network exchange
transaction.
6. Equity Investment: An Equity
Investment means financial assistance
in the form of a grant, a stock purchase,
a purchase of a partnership interest, a
purchase of a limited liability company
membership interest, or any other
investment deemed to be an Equity
Investment by the CDFI Fund provided
by an Applicant or its Subsidiary to a
CDFI Partner that meets the criteria set
forth in the applicable NOFA.
7. Equity-Like Loan: An Equity-Like
Loan is a loan provided by an Applicant
or its Subsidiary to a CDFI Partner, and
made on such terms that it has
characteristics of an Equity Investment,
as such characteristics may be specified
by the CDFI Fund (12 CFR 1806.103(z)).
For purposes of this NOFA, an EquityLike Loan must meet the following
characteristics:
PO 00000
Frm 00116
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
25775
a. At the end of the initial term, the
loan must have a definite rolling
maturity date that is automatically
extended on an annual basis if the CDFI
borrower continues to be financially
sound and carry out a community
development mission;
b. Periodic payments of interest and/
or principal may only be made out of
the CDFI borrower’s available cash flow
after satisfying all other obligations;
c. Failure to pay principal or interest
(except at maturity) will not
automatically result in a default of the
loan agreement; and
d. The loan must be subordinated to
all other debt except for other EquityLike Loans. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right to determine, in its sole discretion
and on a case-by-case basis, whether an
instrument meets the above-stated
characteristics of an Equity-Like Loan.
8. CDFI Support Activity: A CDFI
Support Activity is defined as assistance
provided by an Applicant or its
Subsidiary to a CDFI Partner, in the
form of a loan, technical assistance, or
deposits.
9. CDFI Program Matching Funds:
Equity Investments, Equity-Like Loans,
and CDFI Support Activities (except
technical assistance) provided by a BEA
Applicant to a CDFI and used by the
CDFI for matching funds under the CDFI
Program are eligible as a Qualified
Activity under the CDFI Related
Activity category.
10. Distressed Community Financing
Activities and Service Activities:
Distressed Community Financing
Activities comply with consumer
protection laws and include Affordable
Housing Loans, Affordable Housing
Development Loans and related Project
Investments, Education Loans,
Commercial Real Estate Loans and
related Project Investments, Home
Improvement Loans, Small Business
Loans and related Project Investments
(12 CFR 1806.103(ll)), and Small Dollar
Consumer Loans. In addition to the
regulatory requirements, this NOFA
provides the following additional
requirements:
a. Commercial Real Estate Loans and
related Project Investments: For
purposes of this NOFA, eligible
Commercial Real Estate Loans (12 CFR
1806.103(k)) and related Project
Investments (12 CFR 1806.103(ll)) are
generally limited to transactions with a
total principal value of $10 million or
less. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the
CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion, may
consider transactions with a total
principal value of over $10 million,
subject to review. For such transactions,
Applicants must provide a separate
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
25776
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
narrative, or other information, to
demonstrate that the proposed project
offers, or significantly enhances the
quality of, a facility or service not
currently provided to the Distressed
Community.
b. Small Dollar Consumer Loan: For
purposes of this NOFA, eligible Small
Dollar Consumer Loans are affordable
loans that serve as available alternatives
to the marketplace for individuals who
are Eligible Residents with a total
principal value between $500 and
$5,000 and have a term of ninety (90)
days or more.
11. Reporting certain Financial
Services: The CDFI Fund will value the
administrative cost of providing certain
Financial Services using the following
per unit values:
a. $100.00 per account for Targeted
Financial Services including youth
savings accounts, Electronic Transfer
Accounts and Individual Development
Accounts;
b. $50.00 per account for checking
and savings accounts that do not meet
the definition of Targeted Financial
Services;
c. $5.00 per check cashing
transaction;
d. $25,000 per new ATM installed at
a location in a Distressed Community;
e. $2,500 per ATM operated at a
location in a Distressed Community;
f. $250,000 per new retail bank branch
office opened in a Distressed
Community, including school-based
bank branches approved by the
Applicant’s Federal bank regulator; and
g. In the case of Applicants engaging
in Financial Services activities not
described above, the CDFI Fund will
determine the unit value of such
services.
h. When reporting the opening of a
new retail bank branch office, the
Applicant must certify that it has not
operated a retail branch in the same
Distressed Community in which the
new retail branch office is being opened
in the past three years, and that such
new branch will remain in operation for
at least the next five years.
i. Financial Service Activities must be
provided by the Applicant to Low- and
Moderate-Income Residents. An
Applicant may determine the number of
Low- and Moderate-Income individuals
who are recipients of Financial Services
by either: (i) Collecting income data on
its Financial Services customers, or (ii)
certifying that the Applicant reasonably
believes that such customers are Lowand Moderate-Income individuals and
providing a brief analytical narrative
with information describing how the
Applicant made this determination.
Citations must be provided for external
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
sources. In addition, if external sources
are referenced in the narrative, the
Applicant must explain how it reached
the conclusion that the cited references
are directly related to the Low-and
Moderate-Income residents to whom it
is claiming to have provided the
Financial Services.
j. When reporting changes in the
dollar amount of deposit accounts, only
calculate the net change in the total
dollar amount of eligible Deposit
Liabilities between the Baseline Period
and the Assessment Period. Do not
report each individual deposit. If the net
change between the Baseline Period and
Assessment Period is a negative dollar
amount, then a negative dollar amount
may be recorded for Deposit Liabilities
only. Instructions for determining the
net change is available in the
Supplemental Guidance to the FY 2015
BEA Program Application.
12. Priority Factors: Priority Factors
are the numeric values assigned to
individual types of activity within: (i)
The Distressed Community Financing,
and (ii) Services categories of Qualified
Activities. For the purposes of this
NOFA, Priority Factors will be based on
the Applicant’s asset size as of the end
of the Assessment Period (December 31,
2014) as reported by the Applicant in
the Application. Asset size classes (i.e.,
small institutions, intermediate-small
institutions, and large institutions) will
correspond to the Community
Reinvestment Act (CRA) asset size
classes set by the three Federal bank
regulatory agencies and that were
effective as of the end of the Assessment
Period. The Priority Factor works by
multiplying the change in a Qualified
Activity by the assigned Priority Factor
to achieve a ‘‘weighted value.’’ This
weighted value of the change would be
multiplied by the applicable Award
percentage to yield the Award amount
for that particular activity. For purposes
of this NOFA, the CDFI Fund is
establishing Priority Factors based on
Applicant asset size to be applied to all
activity within the Distressed
Community Financing Activities and
Service Activities categories only, as
follows:
TABLE 5—CRA ASSET SIZE
CLASSIFICATION
Priority factor
Small institutions (assets of
less than $305 million as
of 12/31/2014) ...................
PO 00000
Frm 00117
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
5.0
TABLE 5—CRA ASSET SIZE
CLASSIFICATION—Continued
Priority factor
Intermediate—small institutions (assets of at least
$305 million but less than
$1.221 billion as of 12/31/
2014) .................................
Large institutions (assets of
$1.221 billion or greater as
of 12/31/2014) ...................
3.0
1.0
13. Certain Limitations on Qualified
Activities:
a. Low-Income Housing Tax Credits:
Financial assistance provided by an
Applicant for which the Applicant
receives benefits through Low-Income
Housing Tax Credits, authorized
pursuant to Section 42 of the Internal
Revenue Code, as amended (26 U.S.C.
42), shall not constitute an Equity
Investment, Project Investment, or other
Qualified Activity, for the purposes of
calculating or receiving a Bank
Enterprise Award.
b. New Markets Tax Credits: Financial
assistance provided by an Applicant for
which the Applicant receives benefits as
an investor in a Community
Development Entity that has received an
allocation of New Markets Tax Credits,
authorized pursuant to Section 45D of
the Internal Revenue Code, as amended
(26 U.S.C. 45D), shall not constitute an
Equity Investment, Project Investment,
or other Qualified Activity, for the
purposes of calculating or receiving a
Bank Enterprise Award. Leverage loans
used in New Markets Tax Credit
structured transactions that meet the
requirements outlined in this NOFA are
considered Distressed Community
Financing Activities.
c. Loan Renewals and Refinances:
Financial assistance provided by an
Applicant shall not constitute a
Qualified Activity, as defined in this
part, for the purposes of calculating or
receiving a Bank Enterprise Award if
such financial assistance consists of a
loan to a borrower that has matured and
is then renewed by the Applicant, or
consists of a loan to a borrower that is
retired or restructured using the
proceeds of a new commitment by the
Applicant. Payoff of a separate third
party obligation will only be considered
a Qualified Activity if the payoff of a
transaction is part of the sale of property
or business to an unaffiliated party to
the borrower. Applicants should
include a narrative statement to describe
any such transactions. Otherwise the
transaction will be disqualified.
d. Certain Business Types: Financial
assistance provided by an Applicant
shall not constitute a Qualified Activity,
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
as defined in this part, for the purposes
of financing the following business
types: Golf courses, race tracks,
gambling facilities, certain farming
businesses as described in 26 CFR part
1.45D–1(d)(5)(iii)(C), country clubs,
massage parlors, hot tub facilities,
suntan facilities, or stores where the
principal business is the sale of
alcoholic beverages for consumption off
premises.
e. Prior BEA Program Awards:
Qualified Activities funded with prior
funding round BEA Program Award
dollars or funded to satisfy requirements
of the BEA Program Award Agreement
shall not constitute a Qualified Activity
for the purposes of calculating or
receiving a BEA Program Award.
f. Prior CDFI Program Awards: No
CDFI Applicant may receive a BEA
Program Award for activities funded by
another CDFI Fund program or Federal
program.
14. Award Percentages, Award
Amounts, Application Review Process,
Selection Process, Programmatic and
Financial Risk, and Application
Rejection: The Interim Rule describes
the process for selecting Applicants to
receive a BEA Program Award and
determining Award amounts.
a. Award percentages: In the CDFI
Related Activities category (except for
an Equity Investment or Equity-Like
Loan), for CDFI Applicants, the
estimated Award amount will be equal
to 18 percent of the increase in
Qualified Activity for the category. If an
Applicant is not a CDFI Applicant, the
estimated Award amount will be equal
to 6 percent of the increase in Qualified
Activity for the category.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, for a
CDFI Applicant and for an Applicant
that is not a CDFI Applicant, the Award
percentage applicable to an Equity
Investment, Equity-Like Loan, or Grant
in a CDFI shall be 15 percent of the
increase in Qualified Activity for the
category.
In Distressed Community Financing
Activities and Service Activities
categories, for a CDFI Applicant, the
estimated Award amount will be equal
to 9 percent of the weighted value of the
increase in Qualified Activity for the
category. If an Applicant is not a CDFI
Applicant, the estimated Award amount
will be equal to 3 percent of the
weighted value of the increase in
Qualified Activity for the category.
b. Award Amounts: Applicants will
calculate and request an estimated
Award amount in accordance with a
multi-step procedure that is outlined in
the Interim Rule (at 12 CFR 1806.403).
As outlined in the Interim Rule at 12
CFR 1806.404, the CDFI Fund will
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
determine actual Award amounts based
on the availability of funds, increases in
Qualified Activities from the Baseline
Period to the Assessment Period, and
the priority ranking of each Applicant.
In calculating the increase in Qualified
Activities, the CDFI Fund will
determine the eligibility of each
transaction for which an Applicant has
applied for a Bank Enterprise Award. In
some cases, the actual Award amount
calculated by the CDFI Fund may not be
the same as the estimated Award
amount requested by the Applicant.
For purposes of calculating Award
disbursement amounts, the CDFI Fund
will treat Qualified Activities with a
total principal amount less than or equal
to $250,000 as fully disbursed. For all
other Qualified Activities, Award
Recipients will have 12 months from the
end of the Assessment Period to make
disbursements and 18 months from the
end of the Assessment Period to submit
to the CDFI Fund disbursement requests
for the corresponding portion of their
Awards, after which the CDFI Fund will
rescind and de-obligate any outstanding
Award balance and said outstanding
Award balance will no longer be
available to the Award Recipient.
B. Review and Selection Process:
1. Application Review Process: All
Applications will be initially evaluated
by external non-Federal reviewers.
Reviewers are selected based on their
experience in understanding various
financial transactions, reading and
interpreting financial documentation,
strong written communication skills,
and strong mathematical skills.
Reviewers must complete the CDFI
Fund’s conflict of interest process and
be approved by the CDFI Fund. The
CDFI Fund’s application reader conflict
of interest policy is located on the CDFI
Fund’s Web site.
2. Selection Process: If the amount of
funds available during the funding
round is insufficient for all estimated
Award amounts, Award Recipients will
be selected based on the process
described in the Interim Rule at 12 CFR
1806.404. This process gives funding
priority to Applicants that undertake
activities in the following order: (i) CDFI
Related Activities, (ii) Distressed
Community Financing Activities, and
(iii) Service Activities, as described in
the Interim Rule at 12 CFR 1806.404(c).
Within each category, CDFI
Applicants will be ranked first
according to the ratio of the actual
Award amount calculated by the CDFI
Fund for the category to the total assets
of the Applicant, followed by
Applicants that are not CDFI Applicants
according to the ratio of the actual
Award amount calculated by the CDFI
PO 00000
Frm 00118
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
25777
Fund for the category to the total assets
of the Applicant.
Selections within each priority
category will be based on the
Applicants’ relative rankings within
each such category, subject to the
availability of funds and any established
maximum dollar amount of total awards
that may be awarded for the Distressed
Community Financing Activities
category of Qualified Activities, as
determined by the CDFI Fund.
The CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion:
(i) May adjust the estimated Award
amount that an Applicant may receive,
(ii) may establish a maximum amount
that may be awarded to an Applicant,
and (iii) reserves the right to limit the
amount of an Award to any Applicant
if the CDFI Fund deems it appropriate.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to
contact the Applicant to confirm or
clarify information. If contacted, the
Applicant must respond within the
CDFI Fund’s time parameters or run the
risk of having its Application rejected.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to
change its eligibility and evaluation
criteria and procedures. If those 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.
3. Programmatic and Financial Risk:
The CDFI Fund will consider safety and
soundness information from the
appropriate Federal bank regulatory
agency as defined in Section 3 of the
Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12
U.S.C. 1813(q)). If the appropriate
Federal bank regulatory agency
identifies safety and soundness
concerns, the CDFI Fund will assess
whether the concerns cause or will
cause the Applicant to be incapable of
completing the activities for which
funding has been requested. The CDFI
Fund will not approve a BEA Program
Award under any circumstances for an
Applicant if the appropriate Federal
bank regulatory agency indicates that
the Applicant received a composite
rating of ‘‘5’’ on its most recent
examination, performed in accordance
with the Uniform Financial Institutions
Rating System.
Furthermore, the CDFI Fund will not
approve a BEA Program Award for the
following reasons if at the time of
application the Applicant received any
of the following:
a. A CRA assessment rating of below
‘‘Satisfactory’’ on its most recent
examination;
b. a going concern opinion on its most
recent audit;
c. a Prompt Corrective Action
directive from its regulator.
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
25778
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
Applicants and/or their appropriate
Federal bank regulator agency may be
contacted by the CDFI Fund to provide
additional information related to
Federal bank regulatory or CRA
information. The CDFI Fund will
consider this information and may
choose to disapprove a BEA Program
Award for an Applicant if the
information indicates that the Applicant
may be unable to responsibly manage,
re-invest, and/or report on a BEA
Program Award during the performance
period.
4. Application Rejection: The CDFI
Fund reserves the right to reject an
Application if information (including
administrative error) comes to the CDFI
Fund’s attention that either: 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 Applicant’s part.
If the CDFI Fund determines any
portion of the Application is incorrect
in a material respect, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole discretion,
to reject the Application.
There is no right to appeal the CDFI
Fund’s Award decisions. The CDFI
Fund’s Award decisions are final. The
CDFI Fund will not discuss the specifics
of an Applicant’s BEA Program
Application or provide reasons why an
Applicant did not receive a BEA
Program Award. The CDFI Fund will
only respond to general questions
regarding the FY 2015 Application and
Award decision process until 30 days
after the award announcement date.
C. Anticipated Announcement and
Federal Award Dates: The CDFI Fund
anticipates making its FY 2015 BEA
Program award announcement by
September 30, 2015.
VI. Federal Award Administration
Information
A. Federal Award Notices: The CDFI
Fund will notify an Applicant of its
selection as an Award Recipient by
delivering a Notice of Award and Award
Agreement. The Notice of Award and
Award Agreement will contain the
general terms and conditions governing
the CDFI Fund’s provision of an Award.
The Award Recipient will receive a
copy of the Notice of Award and Award
Agreement via myCDFIFund. The
Award Recipient is required to execute
the Award Agreement and return it to
the CDFI Fund. Each Award Recipient
must also ensure that complete and
accurate banking information is
reflected in its System for Award
Management (SAM) account on
www.sam.gov in order to receive its
award disbursement.
B. Administrative and National Policy
Requirements: If, prior to entering into
an Award Agreement, information
(including an administrative error)
comes to the CDFI Fund’s attention that
adversely affects: The Award
Recipient’s eligibility for an award; the
CDFI Fund’s evaluation of the
Application; the Award Recipient’s
compliance with any requirement listed
in the Uniform Requirements; or
indicates fraud or mismanagement on
the Award Recipient’s part, the CDFI
Fund may, in its discretion and without
advance notice to the Award Recipient,
terminate the award or take other
actions as it deems appropriate.
If the Award Recipient’s certification
status as a CDFI changes, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole discretion,
to re-calculate the Award, modify the
Notice of Award, and modify the Award
Agreement based on the Award
Recipient’s non-CDFI status.
By executing an Award Agreement,
the Award Recipient agrees that, if the
CDFI Fund becomes aware of any
information (including an
administrative error) prior to the
Effective Date of the Award Agreement
that either adversely affects the Award
Recipient’s eligibility for an Award, or
adversely affects the CDFI Fund’s
evaluation of the Award Recipient’s
Application, or indicates fraud or
mismanagement on the part of the
Award Recipient, the CDFI Fund may,
in its discretion and without advance
notice to the Award Recipient,
terminate the Award Agreement or take
other actions as it deems appropriate.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its
sole discretion, to rescind an award if
the Award Recipient fails to return the
Award Agreement, signed by the
authorized representative of the award
Recipient, and/or provide the CDFI
Fund with any other requested
documentation, within the CDFI Fund’s
deadlines. In addition, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole discretion,
to terminate and rescind the Award
Agreement and the award made under
this NOFA for any criteria described in
the following table:
TABLE 6—CRITERIA THAT MAY RESULT IN AWARD TERMINATION PRIOR TO THE EXECUTION OF AN AWARD AGREEMENT
Criteria
Failure to meet reporting requirements.
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Pending resolution of
noncompliance.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
Description
If an Applicant, is a prior CDFI Fund award Recipient or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund program and is not current
on the reporting requirements set forth in the previously executed assistance, award, allocation, bond loan agreement(s), or agreement to guaranty, as of the date of the Notice of Award, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its
sole discretion, to delay entering into an Award Agreement and/or to delay making a disbursement of Award proceeds, until said prior Recipient or Allocatee is current on the reporting requirements in the previously executed assistance, award, allocation, bond loan agreement(s), or agreement to guaranty. Please note that automated systems
employed by the CDFI Fund for receipt of reports submitted electronically typically acknowledge only a report’s receipt; such acknowledgment does not warrant that the report received was complete and therefore met reporting requirements. If said prior Recipient 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 Notice of Award
and the Award made under this NOFA.
If, at any time prior to entering into an Award Agreement under this NOFA, an Applicant that is a prior CDFI Fund
award Recipient or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund program: Has submitted reports to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate noncompliance with a previous assistance, award, or allocation agreement, but the CDFI Fund has yet to
make a final determination regarding whether or not the entity is in default of its previous assistance, award, allocation, bond loan agreement, or agreement to guaranty, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
delay entering into an Award Agreement and/or to delay making a disbursement of Award proceeds, pending full
resolution, in the sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of the noncompliance. If said prior Recipient or Allocatee is
unable to meet this requirement, in the sole determination of the CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in
its sole discretion, to terminate and rescind the Notice of Award and the Award made under this NOFA.
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
PO 00000
Frm 00119
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
25779
TABLE 6—CRITERIA THAT MAY RESULT IN AWARD TERMINATION PRIOR TO THE EXECUTION OF AN AWARD AGREEMENT—
Continued
Criteria
Description
Default status ................
If prior to entering into an Award Agreement under this NOFA: The CDFI Fund has made a final determination that an
Applicant that is a prior CDFI Fund Recipient or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund program whose award or allocation
terminated in default of such prior agreement; the CDFI Fund has provided written notification of such determination
to such organization; and the anticipated date for entering into the Award Agreement under this NOFA is within a
period of time specified in such notification throughout which any new award, allocation, assistance, bond loan
agreement(s), or agreement to guaranty is prohibited, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate and rescind the Award Agreement and the award made under this NOFA.
If prior to entering into an Award Agreement under this NOFA, the Recipient receives a final determination, made
within the last three years, in any proceeding instituted against the Recipient in, by, or before any court, governmental, or administrative body or agency, declaring that the Award Recipient has violated the following laws: Title VI
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2000d); Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. 794); the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, (42 U.S.C. 6101–6107), and Executive Order 13166, Improving
Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency, the CDFI Fund will terminate and rescind the Assistance Agreement and the award made under this NOFA.
The Do Not Pay Business Center was developed to support Federal agencies in their efforts to reduce the number of
improper payments made through programs funded by the Federal government. The CDFI Fund reserves the right,
in its sole discretion, to rescind an award if the award Recipient is identified as ineligible to be a recipient per the
Do Not Pay database.
If it is determined the award Recipient is or will be incapable of meeting its Award obligations, the CDFI Fund will
deem the award Recipient to be ineligible or require it to improve safety and soundness conditions prior to entering
into an Award Agreement.
Compliance with Federal civil rights requirements.
Do Not Pay ...................
Safety and soundness ..
Award Agreement: After the CDFI
Fund selects an Award Recipient,
unless an exception detailed in this
NOFA applies, the CDFI Fund and the
Award Recipient will enter into an
Award Agreement. The Award
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 type of the Award; (iii) the
approved uses of the Award; (iv) the
performance goals and measures; (v) the
performance periods; and (vi) the
reporting requirements. The Award
Agreement shall provide that an Award
Recipient shall: (i) Carry out its
Qualified Activities in accordance with
applicable law, the approved
Application, and all other applicable
requirements; (ii) not receive any
disbursement of award dollars until the
CDFI Fund has determined that the
Award Recipient has fulfilled all
applicable requirements; and (iii) use
the BEA Award amount for BEA
Qualified Activities.
C. Reporting: The CDFI Fund will
require each Award Recipient that
receives an Award of over $50,000
through this NOFA to account for and
report to the CDFI Fund on the use of
the Award. This will require Award
Recipients to establish administrative
controls, subject to applicable OMB
Circulars. The CDFI Fund will collect
information from each such Award
Recipient on its use of the Award at
least once following the Award and
more often if deemed appropriate by the
CDFI Fund in its sole discretion. The
CDFI Fund will provide guidance to
Award Recipients outlining the format
and content of the information required
to be provided to describe how the
funds were used.
The CDFI Fund may collect
information from each Recipient
including, but not limited to, an Annual
Report with the following components:
TABLE 7—REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
Criteria
Description
Single Audit Narrative
Report (or like report).
The Recipient must submit, via myCDFIFund, a Single Audit Narrative Report for each year of its period of performance notifying the CDFI Fund whether it is required to have a single audit pursuant to OMB Single Audit requirements.
A Recipient that is a non-profit entity that expends $750,000 or more in Federal awards during its fiscal year must
have a single audit conducted for that year. If a Recipient is required to complete a Single Audit Report, it should be
submitted to the Federal Audit Clearinghouse see 2 CFR Subpart F-Audit Requirements in the Uniform Federal
Award Requirements. For-profit award Recipients will be required to complete and submit a similar report directly to
the CDFI Fund.
If the award Recipient receives a BEA Program award of over $50,000, it must submit the Use of Award report to the
CDFI Fund via myCDFIFund.
If the award Recipient fails to meet a Performance Goal or reporting requirements, it must submit the Explanation of
Noncompliance via myCDFI Fund.
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Single Audit (if applicable) (or similar report).
Use of BEA Program
Award Report.
Explanation of Noncompliance (as applicable) or successor
report.
Each Award Recipient is responsible
for the timely and complete submission
of the Reporting requirements. The CDFI
Fund reserves the right to contact the
Award Recipient to request additional
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
information and documentation. The
CDFI Fund will use such information to
monitor each Award Recipient’s
compliance with the requirements in
the Award Agreement and to assess the
PO 00000
Frm 00120
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
impact of the BEA Program. 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,
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
25780
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 86 / Tuesday, May 5, 2015 / Notices
such reporting requirements will be
modified only after notice has been
provided to award Recipients.
D. Financial Management and
Accounting: The CDFI Fund will require
award Recipients to maintain financial
management and accounting systems
that comply with Federal statutes,
regulations, and the terms and
conditions of the Federal award. These
systems must be sufficient to permit the
preparation of reports required by
general and program specific terms and
conditions, including the tracing of
funds to a level of expenditures
adequate to establish that such funds
have been used according to the Federal
statutes, regulations, and the terms and
conditions of the Federal award.
Each of the Qualified Activities
categories will be ineligible for indirect
costs and an associated indirect cost
rate. The cost principles used by award
Recipients must be consistent with
Federal cost principles and support the
accumulation of costs as required by the
principles, and must provide for
adequate documentation to support
costs charged to the BEA Program
award. In addition, the CDFI Fund will
require award Recipients to: maintain
effective internal controls; comply with
applicable statutes, regulations, and the
Award Agreement; evaluate and
monitor compliance; take action when
not in compliance; and safeguard
personally identifiable information.
VII. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts
A. Questions Related to Application
and Prior Award Recipient Reporting,
Compliance and Disbursements: The
CDFI Fund will respond to questions
concerning this NOFA, the Application
and reporting, compliance, or
disbursements between the hours of
9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time,
starting on the date that this NOFA is
published through the date listed in
Table 1. The CDFI Fund will post
responses to frequently asked questions
in a separate document on its Web site.
Other information regarding the CDFI
Fund and its programs may be obtained
from the CDFI Fund’s Web site at https://
www.cdfifund.gov.
The following table lists CDFI Fund
contact information:
TABLE 8—CONTACT INFORMATION
Telephone
number
(not toll free)
BEA Program .................................................................................................................................
Certification, Compliance Monitoring, and Evaluation ...................................................................
myCDFIFund—IT Help Desk .........................................................................................................
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Type of question
202–653–0421
202–653–0423
202–653–0422
B. Information Technology Support:
People who have visual or mobility
impairments that prevent them from
using the CDFI Fund’s Web site should
call (202) 653–0422 for assistance (this
is not a toll free number).
C. Communication With the CDFI
Fund: The CDFI Fund will use its
myCDFIFund Internet interface to
communicate with Applicants and
Award Recipients under this NOFA.
Award Recipients must use
myCDFIFund to submit required
reports. The CDFI Fund will notify
Award Recipients by email using the
addresses maintained in each Award
Recipient’s myCDFIFund account.
Therefore, an Award Recipient and any
Subsidiaries, signatories, and Affiliates
must maintain accurate contact
information (including contact person
and authorized representative, email
addresses, fax numbers, phone numbers,
and office addresses) in their
myCDFIFund account(s).
D. Civil Rights and Diversity: Any
person who is eligible to receive
benefits or services from CDFI Fund or
award Recipients under any of its
programs is entitled to those benefits or
services without being subject to
prohibited discrimination. The
Department of the Treasury’s Office of
Civil Rights and Diversity enforces
various Federal statutes and regulations
that prohibit discrimination in
financially assisted and conducted
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:18 May 04, 2015
Jkt 235001
programs and activities of the CDFI
Fund. If a person believes that s/he has
been subjected to discrimination and/or
reprisal because of membership in a
protected group, s/he may file a
complaint with: Associate Chief Human
Capital Officer, Office of Civil Rights,
and Diversity, 1500 Pennsylvania Ave.
NW., Washington, DC 20220 or (202)
622–1160 (not a toll-free number).
VIII. Other Information
A. Reasonable Accommodations:
Requests for reasonable
accommodations under section 504 of
the Rehabilitation Act should be
directed to Mr. Michael Jones,
Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund, U.S. Department of
the Treasury at JonesM@cdfi.treas.gov
no later than 72 hours in advance of the
application deadline.
B. Paperwork Reduction Act: 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 BEA Program
funding Application has been assigned
the following control number: 1559–
0005.
C. Application Information Sessions:
The CDFI Fund may conduct webinars
or host information sessions for
PO 00000
Frm 00121
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Email addresses
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
ccme@cdfi.treas.gov.
IThelpdesk@cdfi.treas.gov.
organizations that are considering
applying to, or are interested in learning
about, the CDFI Fund’s programs. For
further information, please visit the
CDFI Fund’s Web site at https://
www.cdfifund.gov.
Authority: 12 U.S.C. 1834a, 4703, 4703
note, 4713; 12 CFR part 1806.
Dated: April 30, 2015.
Mary Ann Donovan,
Director, Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund.
[FR Doc. 2015–10432 Filed 5–4–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810–70–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of Foreign Assets Control
Unblocking of Specially Designated
Nationals and Blocked Persons
Pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics
Kingpin Designation Act
Office of Foreign Assets
Control, Treasury.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The Department of the
Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets
Control (OFAC) is publishing the names
of five individuals and one entity whose
property and interests in property have
been unblocked pursuant to the Foreign
Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act
(Kingpin Act) (21 U.S.C. 1901–1908, 8
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\05MYN1.SGM
05MYN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 86 (Tuesday, May 5, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25769-25780]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-10432]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) Inviting Applications for the
FY 2015 Funding Round of the Bank Enterprise Award Program (BEA
Program)
Announcement Type: Announcement of funding opportunity.
Funding Opportunity Number: CDFI-2015-BEA.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 21.021.
KEY DATES:
Table 1--FY 2015 BEA Program Funding Round Key Dates for Applicants
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Time (Eastern daylight
Description Deadline time--EDT) Submission method
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last day to contact BEA Program June 11, 2015............... 5:00 p.m. EDT............... CDFI Fund
staff. Helpdesk: 202-653-
0421 or
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
Last day to contact June 11, 2015............... 5:00 p.m. EDT............... CDFI Fund
Certification, Compliance Helpdesk: 202-653-
Monitoring and Evaluation staff. 0421 or
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
Application Part I: BEA Program June 15, 2015............... 11:59 p.m. EDT.............. Electronically via
Application Due Date (Forms Grants.gov.
include: SF-424 Mandatory,
Environmental Review Form,
Certifications and Excel
charts).
[[Page 25770]]
Last day to contact IT Help Desk June 17, 2015............... 5:00 p.m. EDT............... CDFI Fund
Helpdesk: 202-653-
0421 or
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
Application Part II: myCDFIFund June 17, 2015............... 5:00 p.m. EDT............... Electronically via
Due Date: (Includes: myCDFIFund myCDFIFund.
account registration, BEA
Signature Page and
Documentation of Qualified
Activities).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This NOFA is issued in connection with the fiscal year (FY)
2015 funding round of the Bank Enterprise Award Program (BEA Program).
The BEA Program is administered by the U.S. Department of the
Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI
Fund). Through the BEA Program, the CDFI Fund awards formula-based
grants to depository institutions that are insured by the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for increasing their levels of
loans, investments, service activities, and technical assistance within
Distressed Communities, and financial assistance to Community
Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) through equity investments,
equity-like loans, grants, stock purchases, loans, deposits, and other
forms of financial and technical assistance, during a specified period.
I. Program Description
A. History: The CDFI Fund was established by the Riegle Community
Development Banking and Financial Institutions Act of 1994 to promote
economic revitalization and community development through investment in
and assistance to CDFIs. Since its creation in 1994, the CDFI Fund has
awarded over $2 billion to CDFIs, community development organizations,
and financial institutions through the Community Development Financial
Institutions Program (CDFI Program), the Native American CDFI
Assistance Program (NACA Program), the BEA Program, the Capital Magnet
Fund, and the Financial Education and Counseling Pilot Program. In
addition, the CDFI Fund has allocated $40 billion in tax credit
allocation authority through the New Markets Tax Credit Program (NMTC
Program) and has obligated $525 million in bond guarantees through the
CDFI Bond Guarantee Program.
The BEA Program complements the community development activities of
banks and thrifts (collectively referred to as banks for purposes of
this Notice) by providing financial incentives to expand investments in
CDFIs and to increase lending, investment, and service activities
within Distressed Communities. Providing monetary awards to banks for
increasing their community development activities leverages the CDFI
Fund's dollars and puts more capital to work in Distressed Communities
throughout the nation.
B. Priorities: Through the BEA Program, the CDFI Fund specifies the
following priorities:
1. Estimated award amounts for Applicants that are CDFIs will be
equal to three times the award percentages for activities undertaken by
Applicants that are not CDFIs;
2. Priority Factors based on Applicant's asset size, as described
in Section V.D. of this NOFA (``Application Review Information:
Priority Factors''); and
3. Priority of awards: The CDFI Fund will rank Applicants in each
category of Qualified Activity according to the priorities described in
Section V.F.4 of this NOFA (``Application Review Information: Award
Percentages, Award Amounts, Application Review Process, Selection
Process, Programmatic Financial Risk, and Application Rejection:
Selection Process'').
C. Baseline Period and Assessment Period dates: A BEA Program Award
is based on an Applicant's increases in Qualified Activities from the
Baseline Period to the Assessment Period. For the FY 2015 funding
round, the Baseline Period is calendar year 2013 (January 1, 2013
through December 31, 2013), and the Assessment Period is calendar year
2014 (January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014). If Qualified
Activities in a specific category result in a decrease in activity from
the Baseline Period to the Assessment Period, there is no need to
report the activity.
D. Authorizing Statutes and Regulations: The BEA Program was
authorized by the Bank Enterprise Award Act of 1991, as amended. The
regulations governing the BEA Program can be found at 12 CFR part 1806
(Interim Rule). The Interim Rule provides guidance on evaluation
criteria and other requirements of the BEA Program. Detailed BEA
Program requirements are also found in the Application associated with
this NOFA. The CDFI Fund encourages interested parties and Applicants
to review the Interim Rule, this NOFA, the Application, and the Uniform
Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements
for Federal Awards (Uniform Requirements) for a complete understanding
of the program. Capitalized terms in this NOFA are defined in the
authorizing statute, the Interim Rule, this NOFA, the Application, and
the Uniform Requirements. Details regarding Application content
requirements are found in the Application and related materials.
Application materials can be found on Grants.gov and the CDFI Fund's
Web site at www.cdfifund.gov/bea.
E. Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit
Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR 200): In December 2014, the
Department of the Treasury published a final rule, Uniform
Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements
for Federal Awards (2 CFR part 1000) (Uniform Requirements), which
adopted the government-wide framework for grants management codified by
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) at 2 CFR part 200, combining
several OMB guidance circulars, reducing administrative burden for
award Recipients, and reducing the risk of waste, fraud and abuse of
Federal financial assistance. The Uniform Requirements establish
financial, administrative, procurement, and program management
standards that Federal award-making agencies, including the CDFI Fund,
and award Recipients must follow. When evaluating award applications,
awarding agencies must evaluate the risks to the program posed by each
applicant, and each applicant's merits and eligibility. These
requirements are designed to ensure that applicants for Federal
assistance receive a fair and consistent review prior to an award
decision. This
[[Page 25771]]
review will assess items such as the Applicant's financial stability,
quality of management systems, history of performance, and audit
findings. In addition, the Uniform Requirements include guidance on
audit requirements and other award requirements with which award
Recipients must comply.
F. Funding limitations: 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. The CDFI Fund also reserves the right to
reallocate funds from the amount that is anticipated to be available
through this NOFA to other CDFI Fund programs, or reallocate remaining
funds to a future BEA Program funding round, particularly if the CDFI
Fund determines that the number of awards made through this NOFA is
fewer than projected.
II. Federal Award Information
A. Funding Availability
1. FY 2015 Funding Round and Award Amounts: The CDFI Fund expects
to award approximately $18 million in FY 2015 BEA Program Awards in
appropriated funds under this NOFA. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to
award in excess of said funds under this NOFA, provided that the
appropriated funds are available. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to
impose a maximum Award amount; however, under no circumstances will an
Award be higher than $2 million for any Recipient. The CDFI Fund also
reserves the right to impose a minimum Award amount due to availability
of funds.
2. Anticipated Start Date and Period of Performance: The CDFI Fund
anticipates the period of performance for the FY 2015 Funding Round
will begin in the Fall of calendar year 2015. Specifically, the period
of performance begins with the date the CDFI Fund issues the notice of
award and will conclude one (1) full calendar year after the date of
the notice of award, during which the Recipient must meet the
performance goals set forth in the Award Agreement.
B. Types of Awards: BEA Program Awards are made in the form of
grants.
C. Eligible Activities: Eligible Activities for the BEA Program are
referred to as Qualified Activities and are defined in the Interim Rule
to include CDFI Related Activities, Distressed Community Financing
Activities, and Service Activities (12 CFR 1806.103). It is the
explicit policy of the CDFI Fund that BEA Program Awards may not be
used by Recipients to recover overhead or indirect costs. Each of the
Qualified Activities will be ineligible for indirect costs and an
associated indirect cost rate. CDFI Related Activities (12 CFR
1806.103(p)) include Equity Investments, Equity-Like Loans, and CDFI
Support Activities.
Distressed Community Financing Activities (12 CFR 1806.103(u))
include Affordable Housing Loans, Affordable Housing Development Loans
and related Project Investments; Education Loans; Commercial Real
Estate Loans and related Project Investments; Home Improvement Loans;
Small Business Loans and related Project Investments, and Small Dollar
Consumer Loans. Service Activities (12 CFR 1806.103(oo)) include
Deposit Liabilities, Financial Services, Community Services, Targeted
Financial Services, and Targeted Retail Savings/Investment Products.
When calculating BEA Program Award amounts, the CDFI Fund will only
consider the amount of a Qualified Activity that has been fully
disbursed or, in the case of a partially disbursed Qualified Activity,
will only consider the amount that an Applicant reasonably expects to
disburse for a Qualified Activity within 12 months from the end of the
Assessment Period. Subject to the requirements outlined in Section VII.
B.1. of this NOFA, in the case of Commercial Real Estate Loans and
related Project Investments, the total principal amount of the
transaction must be $10 million or less to be considered a Qualified
Activity. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the CDFI Fund, in its sole
discretion, may consider transactions with a total principal value of
over $10 million, subject to review. An activity funded with prior BEA
Program Award dollars, or funded to satisfy requirements of a BEA
Program Award Agreement from a prior Award, shall not constitute a
Qualified Activity for the purposes of calculating or receiving an
Award.
D. Designation of Distressed Community: Each CDFI Partner that is
the recipient of CDFI Support Activities from an Applicant must
designate a Distressed Community. CDFI Partners that receive Equity
Investments, Equity-Like Loans or Grants are not required to designate
a Distressed Community.
Applicants applying for a BEA Program Award for performing
Distressed Community Financing Activities or Service Activities must
verify that addresses of both Baseline and Assessment Period activities
are in Distressed Communities when completing their Application.
Please note that a Distressed Community as defined by the BEA
Program is not necessarily the same as an Investment Area as defined by
the CDFI Program or a Low-Income Community as defined by the NMTC
Program.
1. Definition of Distressed Community: A Distressed Community must
meet certain minimum geographic area and eligibility requirements,
which are defined in the Interim Rule at 12 CFR 1806.103(t) and more
fully described in 12 CFR 1806.401. Applicants should use the CDFI
Fund's Information Mapping System (CIMS3) to determine whether a
Baseline Period activity or Assessment Period activity is located in a
qualified Distressed Community.
2. Distressed Community Designation by a CDFI Partner: A CDFI
Partner (as appropriate) shall designate an area as a Distressed
Community by:
a. Selecting a census tract that meets the minimum area and
eligibility requirements; or by
b. selecting two or more contiguous census tracts that, in the
aggregate, meet minimum area and eligibility requirements set forth in
paragraph (1) of this section. A CDFI Partner designates a Distressed
Community by submitting a map of the Distressed Community as described
in the BEA Program Application. CDFI Partners must use CIMS3 to
designate a Distressed Community. CIMS3 is accessed through myCDFIFund
and contains step-by-step instructions on how to create and save the
aforementioned map of the Distressed Community. myCDFIFund is an
electronic interface that is accessed through the CDFI Fund's Web site
(www.cdfifund.gov). Instructions for registering with myCDFIFund are
available on the CDFI Fund's Web site. If you have any questions or
problems with registering, please contact the CDFI Fund IT HelpDesk by
telephone at (202) 653-0300, or by email to ITHelpDesk@cdfi.treas.gov.
3. Distressed Community Determination by a BEA Applicant: A BEA
Applicant shall determine an area is a Distressed Community by:
a. Selecting a census tract where the Qualified Activity occurred
that meets the minimum area and eligibility requirements; or
b. selecting the census tract where the Qualified Activity
occurred, plus one or more census tracts directly contiguous to where
the Qualified Activity occurred that when considered in the aggregate,
meet the minimum area and eligibility requirements set forth in
paragraph (1) of this section.
E. Award Agreement: Each Recipient under this NOFA must sign an
Award Agreement prior to disbursement by the CDFI Fund of the Award
proceeds. The Award Agreement contains the terms
[[Page 25772]]
and conditions of the Award. For further information, see Section VI of
this NOFA.
III. Eligibility Information
A. Eligible Applicants: For the purposes of this NOFA, the
following table sets forth the eligibility criteria to receive an award
from the CDFI Fund.
Table 2--Eligibility Requirements for Applicants
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Criteria Description
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eligible Applicants.................................... Eligible Applicants for the BEA Program must be Insured
Depository Institutions, as defined in Section 3 of
the Federal Deposit Insurance Act 12 U.S.C.
1813(c)(2). For the FY 2015 funding round, an
Applicant must be FDIC-insured as of December 31, 2014
to be eligible for consideration for a BEA Program
Award under this NOFA. The depository institution
holding company of an Insured Depository Institution
may not apply on behalf of an Insured Depository
Institution. Applications received from depository
institution holding companies will be disqualified.
CDFI Applicant......................................... For the FY 2015 funding round, an eligible certified-
CDFI Applicant is an Insured Depository Institution
that was certified as a CDFI as of December 31, 2014
and that maintains its status as a certified CDFI at
the time BEA Program Awards are announced under this
NOFA.
No CDFI Applicant may receive a FY 2015 BEA Program
Award if it has: (1) An application pending for
assistance under the FY 2015 round of the CDFI
Program; (2) been awarded assistance from the CDFI
Fund under the CDFI Program within the 12-month period
prior to the date of the FY 2015 notice of award
issued by the CDFI Program; or (3) ever received
assistance under the CDFI Program for the same
activities for which it is seeking a FY 2015 BEA
Program Award. Please note that Applicants may apply
for both a CDFI Program Award and a BEA Program Award
in FY 2015; however, receiving a FY 2015 CDFI Program
award removes an Applicant from eligibility for a FY
2015 BEA Program Award.
Debarment/Do Not Pay Verification...................... The CDFI Fund will conduct a debarment check and will
not consider an Application submitted by an Applicant
if the Applicant is delinquent on any Federal debt.
The Do Not Pay Business Center was developed to
support Federal agencies in their efforts to reduce
the number of improper payments made through programs
funded by the Federal government. The Do Not Pay
Business Center provides delinquency information to
the CDFI Fund to assist with the debarment check.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Prior Award Recipients: The previous success of an Applicant in any
of the CDFI Fund's programs will not be considered under this NOFA.
Prior BEA Program Award Recipients and prior Award Recipients of other
CDFI Fund programs are eligible to apply under this NOFA, except as
noted in the following table:
Table 3--Eligibility Requirements for Applicants Which are Prior Award Recipients
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Criteria Description
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pending resolution of noncompliance.................... If an Applicant that is a prior Award Recipient or
Allocatee under any CDFI Fund program: (i) Has
submitted reports to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate
noncompliance with a previous assistance agreement,
award agreement, allocation agreement, bond loan
agreement, or agreement to guarantee and (ii) the CDFI
Fund has yet to make a final determination as to
whether the entity is in default of its previous
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.
Default status......................................... The CDFI Fund will not consider an Application
submitted by an Applicant that is a prior CDFI Fund
Award Recipient or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund
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 agreement, award
agreement, allocation agreement, bond loan agreement,
or agreement to guarantee. Such entities will be
ineligible to apply for an Award pursuant to this NOFA
so long as the Applicant's prior award or allocation
remains in default status or such other time period as
specified by the CDFI Fund in writing.
Undisbursed funds...................................... For the purposes of this section, the term
``undisbursed funds'' is defined as: (i) In the case
of prior BEA Program Award(s), any balance of Award
funds equal to or greater than five percent of the
total prior BEA Program Award(s) that remains
undisbursed more than three years after the end of the
calendar year in which the CDFI Fund signed an Award
Agreement with the Award Recipient, or (ii) in the
case of prior CDFI Program or other CDFI Fund program
award(s), any balance of award funds equal to or
greater than five percent of the total prior award(s)
that remains undisbursed more than two years after the
end of the calendar year in which the CDFI Fund signed
the applicable assistance agreement with the Award
Recipient.
The term ``undisbursed funds'' does not include (i) tax
credit allocation authority allocated through the NMTC
Program; (ii) any award funds for which the CDFI Fund
received a full and complete disbursement request from
the Award Recipient as of the Application deadline of
this NOFA; (iii) an award that does not have a fully
executed award agreement; or (iv) any award funds for
an award that has been terminated, expired, rescinded,
or de-obligated by the CDFI Fund.
[[Page 25773]]
The CDFI Fund will not consider an Application
submitted by an Applicant that is a prior CDFI Fund
award Recipient under any CDFI Fund program if the
Applicant has a balance of undisbursed funds under
said prior award(s), as of the 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 CDFI Fund award Recipient
under any CDFI Fund program, and has a balance of
undisbursed funds under said prior Award(s), as of the
Application deadline of this NOFA. In the case where
an Affiliate of the Applicant is a prior CDFI Fund
award Recipient under any CDFI Fund program, and has a
balance of undisbursed funds under said prior
award(s), as of the Application deadline of this NOFA,
the CDFI Fund will include the combined awards of the
Applicant and such Affiliates when calculating the
amount of undisbursed funds.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contact the CDFI Fund: Accordingly, Applicants that are prior
Recipients and/or Allocatees under any CDFI Fund program are advised
to: (i) Comply with requirements specified in an assistance agreement,
award agreement, allocation agreement, bond loan agreement, or
agreement to guarantee and (ii) contact the CDFI Fund to ensure that
all necessary actions are underway for the disbursement of any
outstanding balance of a prior award(s). An Applicant that is unsure
about the disbursement status of any prior award should contact the
CDFI Fund by sending an email to cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov. All
outstanding reports and compliance questions should be directed to the
Certification, Compliance Monitoring, and Evaluation helpdesk by email
at ccme@cdfi.treas.gov or by telephone at (202) 653-0421. The CDFI Fund
will respond to Applicants' reporting, compliance, or disbursement
questions between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET, starting on
the date of the publication of this NOFA through June 11, 2015. The
CDFI Fund will not respond to Applicants' reporting, compliance, or
disbursement telephone calls or email inquiries that are received after
5:00 p.m. ET on June 11, 2015 until after the Application deadline. The
CDFI Fund will respond to technical issues related to myCDFIFund
Accounts through 5:00 p.m. ET on June 17, 2015 at
ithelpdesk@cdfi.treas.gov or by telephone at (202) 653-0422.
B. Cost sharing or matching fund requirements: Not applicable.
IV. Application and Submission Information
A. Address to Request an Application Package: Application materials
can be found on Grants.gov and the CDFI Fund's Web site at
www.cdfifund.gov/bea. Applicants may request a paper version of any
Application material by contacting the CDFI Fund Help Desk at
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
B. Content and Form of Application Submission: All Application
materials must be prepared using the English language and calculations
must be made in U.S. dollars. Detailed Application content requirements
are found in the Application associated with this NOFA. Applicants must
submit all materials described in and required by the Application by
the applicable deadlines. Additional information, including
instructions relating to the submission of the Application via
Grants.gov, and the submission of the FY 2015 BEA Signature Page and
supporting documentation via myCDFIFund, is set forth in further detail
in the Application.
C. Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number and
System for Award Management (SAM): 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 and a current Employer Identification Number
(EIN). Applicants should allow sufficient time for the IRS and/or Dun
and Bradstreet to respond to inquiries and/or requests for
identification numbers. Applicants without a DUNS number will not be
able to register and submit an Application in the Grants.gov system.
An active SAM account is required to submit Applications via
Grants.gov. Neither the SAM account, EIN, nor the DUNS number can be
that of the depository institution holding company of the Applicant.
Applicants are advised to allow ample time to complete the entire
registration and submission process prior to the application deadline.
The SAM registration process can take several weeks to complete.
Applicants that have previously completed the SAM registration process
must verify that their SAM accounts are current and active. Each
Applicant must continue to maintain an active SAM registration with
current information at all times during which it has an active Federal
award or an Application under consideration by a Federal awarding
agency. The CDFI Fund will not consider any Applicant that fails to
properly register or activate its SAM account and, as a result, is
unable to submit its Application by the Application deadline.
Applicants must contact SAM directly with questions related to
registration or SAM account changes as the CDFI Fund does not maintain
this system. For more information about SAM, please visit https://www.sam.gov.
An Application that does not include an EIN or DUNS number is
incomplete and cannot be transmitted to the CDFI Fund. The preceding
sentences do not limit the CDFI Fund's ability to contact an Applicant
for the purpose of confirming or clarifying information regarding a
DUNS number or EIN. Once an Application is submitted, the Applicant
will not be allowed to change any element of the Application.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to request and review other
pertinent or public information that has not been specifically
requested in this NOFA or the Application. As set forth in further
detail in the Application, any Qualified Activity missing the required
documentation will be disqualified. Applicants will not be allowed to
submit missing documentation for Qualified Activities after the
Application deadline. Information submitted by the Applicant that the
CDFI Fund has not specifically requested will not be reviewed or
considered as part of the Application. Applicants must submit
Applications under this NOFA via Grants.gov and with certain required
documentation via myCDFIFund according to the instructions in the
Application.
1. Grants.gov: In order to submit an Application via Grants.gov,
Applicants must complete a multi-step registration process. This
includes providing a DUNS and registration at www.sam.gov. The CDFI
Fund strongly encourages Applicants to start the Grants.gov
[[Page 25774]]
registration process as soon as possible (refer to the following link:
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html) as it may take several
weeks to complete. An Applicant that has previously registered with
Grants.gov must verify that its registration is current and active.
Applicants should contact Grants.gov directly with questions related to
the registration or submittal process as the CDFI Fund does not
maintain the Grants.gov system.
2. myCDFIFund: All Applicants and CDFI Partners must complete a FY
2015 BEA Signature Page in myCDFIFund, the CDFI Fund's Internet-based
interface. All Applicants and CDFI Partners must register User and
Organization accounts in myCDFIFund by the applicable Application
deadline. Failure to register and complete a FY 2015 BEA Signature Page
in myCDFIFund could result in the CDFI Fund being unable to accept the
Application. As myCDFIFund is the CDFI Fund's primary means of
communication with Applicants and Award Recipients, institutions must
make sure that they update their contact information in their
myCDFIFund accounts. In addition, the Applicant should ensure that the
Applicant name is the same institution's name on the Application
materials (SF-424 and other forms). EINs and DUNS numbers in the
Applicant's System for Award Management (SAM) account must match those
listed in myCDFIFund. For more information on myCDFIFund, please see
the ``Frequently Asked Questions'' link posted at https://www.cdfifund.gov/myCDFI/Help/Help.asp. Qualified Activity documentation
and other attachments as specified in the applicable BEA Program
Application must be submitted electronically via the BEA Signature Page
interface in myCDFIFund. Detailed instructions regarding submission of
Qualified Activity documentation is provided in the Application
instructions. Applications, attachments, and Qualified Activity
documentation delivered by hard copy to the CDFI Fund's Washington, DC
office address will be rejected, unless the Applicant previously
requested a paper version of the Application as described in Section
IV.A.
D. Submission Dates and Times: The following table provides the
critical deadlines for the FY 2015 Funding Round. Applications and
other required documents and other attachments received after the
deadline on the applicable date will be rejected. Please note that the
document submission deadlines in this NOFA and the Application are
strictly enforced. The CDFI Fund will not grant exceptions or waivers
for late submissions except where the submission delay was a direct
result of a Federal government administrative or technological error.
Table 4--FY 2015 BEA Program Funding Round Critical Deadlines for Applicants
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Time (eastern daylight time--
Description Deadline EDT) Submission method
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Application Part I: BEA Program June 15, 2015................... 11:59 p.m. EDT................. Electronically via Grants.gov.
Application Due Date.
(Application Part I Forms include:
SF-424 Mandatory, Environmental
Review Form, Certifications and
Excel charts).
Application Part II: myCDFIFund Due June 17, 2015................... 5:00 pm EDT.................... Electronically via myCDFIFund.
Date (This includes myCDFIFund
account registration, BEA Signature
Page and Documentation of Qualified
Activities).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Confirmation of Application Submission: Applicants may verify
their Application submission in Grants.gov and myCDFIFund.
a. Grants.gov: Each Applicant will receive an email from Grants.gov
immediately after Application submission confirming that the submission
has entered the Grants.gov system. This email will contain a tracking
number for the submitted Application package. Within 48 hours, the
Applicant will receive a second email which will indicate if the
submitted Application package was either successfully validated or
rejected with errors. However, Applicants should not rely on the second
email notification from Grants.gov to confirm that their Applications
were validated. Applicants are strongly encouraged to use the tracking
number provided in the first email to closely monitor the status of
their Application package by contacting the helpdesk at Grants.gov
directly. The Application package is not officially accepted by the
CDFI Fund until Grants.gov has validated the Application.
b. myCDFIFund.gov: Applicants will not receive an email
confirmation for the BEA Signature Page and related materials submitted
in myCDFIFund. Instead, Applicants should check their myCDFIFund
account to ensure that the BEA Signature Page is listed under
``Submitted Applications.'' Step-by-step instructions are provided in
the Application and supplemental guidance materials.
2. Multiple Application Submissions: If an Applicant submits
multiple versions of its Application, the CDFI Fund will only review
the last Application submitted in Grants.gov.
3. Late Submission: The CDFI Fund will not accept an Application
submitted after the Application deadline except where the submission
delay was a direct result of a Federal government administrative or
technological error. In such case, the Applicant must submit a request
for acceptance of late Application submission and include documentation
of the error no later than two business days after the applicable
Application deadline. The CDFI Fund will not respond to request for
acceptance of late Application submissions after that time period.
Applicants must submit late Application submission requests to the CDFI
Helpdesk at cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov with a subject line of ``Late
Application Submission Request.''
E. Funding Restrictions: BEA Program Awards are limited by the
following:
1. A Recipient shall use BEA Program funds only for the eligible
activities described in Section II. D. of this NOFA and its Award
Agreement.
2. A Recipient may not distribute BEA Program funds to an
Affiliate, Subsidiary, or any other entity, without the CDFI Fund's
prior written approval.
3. BEA Program funds shall only be disbursed to the Recipient.
4. The CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion, may disburse BEA Program
funds in amounts, or under terms and conditions, which are different
from those requested by an Applicant.
F. Other Submission Requirements: None.
V. Application Review Information
A. Criteria: If the Applicant submitted a complete and eligible
Application, the
[[Page 25775]]
CDFI Fund will conduct a substantive review in accordance with the
criteria and procedures described in the Regulations, this NOFA, the
Application guidance, and the Uniform Requirements. The CDFI Fund
reserves the right to contact the Applicant by telephone, email, or
mail for the sole purpose of clarifying or confirming Application
information. If contacted, the Applicant must respond within the time
period communicated by the CDFI Fund or run the risk that its
Application will be rejected.
1. CDFI Related Activities: CDFI Related Activities include Equity
Investments, Equity-Like Loans, and CDFI Support Activities provided to
eligible CDFI Partners.
2. Eligible CDFI Partner: CDFI Partner is defined as a CDFI that
has been provided assistance in the form of CDFI Related Activities by
an unaffiliated Applicant (12 CFR 1806.103(o)). For the purposes of
this NOFA, an eligible CDFI Partner is an entity that has been
certified as a CDFI as of the end of the applicable Assessment Period
and is Integrally Involved in a Distressed Community.
3. Integrally Involved: Integrally Involved is defined as having
provided: (i) At least 10 percent of financial transactions or dollars
transacted (e.g., loans or equity investments), or 10 percent of
Development Service Activities (as defined in 12 CFR 1805.104(s)), in
one or more Distressed Communities identified by the Applicant or the
CDFI Partner, as applicable, in each of the three calendar years
preceding the date of the applicable NOFA, (ii) having transacted at
least 25 percent of financial transactions (e.g., loans or equity
investments) in one or more Distressed Communities in at least one of
the three calendar years preceding the date of this NOFA, or (iii)
demonstrated that it has attained at least 10 percent of market share
for a particular product in one or more Distressed Communities (such as
home mortgages originated in one or more Distressed Communities) in at
least one of the three calendar years preceding the date of this NOFA.
4. Limitations on eligible Qualified Activities provided to certain
CDFI Partners: A CDFI Applicant cannot receive credit for any financial
assistance or Qualified Activities provided to a CDFI Partner that is
also an FDIC-insured depository institution or depository institution
holding company.
5. Certificates of Deposit: Section 1806.103(q) of the Interim Rule
states that any certificate of deposit (CD) placed by an Applicant or
its Subsidiary in a CDFI Partner that is a bank, thrift, or credit
union must be: (i) Uninsured and committed for at least three years; or
(ii) insured, committed for a term of at least three years, and
provided at an interest rate that is materially below market rates, in
the determination of the CDFI Fund.
a. For purposes of this NOFA, ``materially below market interest
rate'' is defined as an annual percentage rate that does not exceed 100
percent of yields on Treasury securities at constant maturity as
interpolated by Treasury from the daily yield curve and available on
the Treasury Web site at www.treas.gov/offices/domestic-finance/debt-management/interest-rate/yield.shtml. For example, for a three-year CD,
Applicants should use the three-year rate U.S. Government securities,
Treasury Yield Curve Rate posted for that business day. The Treasury
updates the Web site daily at approximately 5:30 p.m. ET. CDs placed
prior to that time may use the rate posted for the previous business
day. The annual percentage rate on a CD should be compounded daily,
quarterly, semi-annually, or annually. If a variable interest rate is
used, the CD must also have an interest rate that is materially below
the market interest rate over the life of the CD, in the determination
of the CDFI Fund.
b. For purposes of this NOFA, a deposit placed by an Applicant
directly with a CDFI Partner that participates in a deposit network or
service may be treated as eligible under this NOFA if it otherwise
meets the criteria for deposits in 1806.103(q) and the CDFI Partner
retains the full amount of the initial deposit or an amount equivalent
to the full amount of the initial deposit through a deposit network
exchange transaction.
6. Equity Investment: An Equity Investment means financial
assistance in the form of a grant, a stock purchase, a purchase of a
partnership interest, a purchase of a limited liability company
membership interest, or any other investment deemed to be an Equity
Investment by the CDFI Fund provided by an Applicant or its Subsidiary
to a CDFI Partner that meets the criteria set forth in the applicable
NOFA.
7. Equity-Like Loan: An Equity-Like Loan is a loan provided by an
Applicant or its Subsidiary to a CDFI Partner, and made on such terms
that it has characteristics of an Equity Investment, as such
characteristics may be specified by the CDFI Fund (12 CFR 1806.103(z)).
For purposes of this NOFA, an Equity-Like Loan must meet the following
characteristics:
a. At the end of the initial term, the loan must have a definite
rolling maturity date that is automatically extended on an annual basis
if the CDFI borrower continues to be financially sound and carry out a
community development mission;
b. Periodic payments of interest and/or principal may only be made
out of the CDFI borrower's available cash flow after satisfying all
other obligations;
c. Failure to pay principal or interest (except at maturity) will
not automatically result in a default of the loan agreement; and
d. The loan must be subordinated to all other debt except for other
Equity-Like Loans. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right to determine, in its sole discretion and on a case-
by-case basis, whether an instrument meets the above-stated
characteristics of an Equity-Like Loan.
8. CDFI Support Activity: A CDFI Support Activity is defined as
assistance provided by an Applicant or its Subsidiary to a CDFI
Partner, in the form of a loan, technical assistance, or deposits.
9. CDFI Program Matching Funds: Equity Investments, Equity-Like
Loans, and CDFI Support Activities (except technical assistance)
provided by a BEA Applicant to a CDFI and used by the CDFI for matching
funds under the CDFI Program are eligible as a Qualified Activity under
the CDFI Related Activity category.
10. Distressed Community Financing Activities and Service
Activities: Distressed Community Financing Activities comply with
consumer protection laws and include Affordable Housing Loans,
Affordable Housing Development Loans and related Project Investments,
Education Loans, Commercial Real Estate Loans and related Project
Investments, Home Improvement Loans, Small Business Loans and related
Project Investments (12 CFR 1806.103(ll)), and Small Dollar Consumer
Loans. In addition to the regulatory requirements, this NOFA provides
the following additional requirements:
a. Commercial Real Estate Loans and related Project Investments:
For purposes of this NOFA, eligible Commercial Real Estate Loans (12
CFR 1806.103(k)) and related Project Investments (12 CFR 1806.103(ll))
are generally limited to transactions with a total principal value of
$10 million or less. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the CDFI Fund, in
its sole discretion, may consider transactions with a total principal
value of over $10 million, subject to review. For such transactions,
Applicants must provide a separate
[[Page 25776]]
narrative, or other information, to demonstrate that the proposed
project offers, or significantly enhances the quality of, a facility or
service not currently provided to the Distressed Community.
b. Small Dollar Consumer Loan: For purposes of this NOFA, eligible
Small Dollar Consumer Loans are affordable loans that serve as
available alternatives to the marketplace for individuals who are
Eligible Residents with a total principal value between $500 and $5,000
and have a term of ninety (90) days or more.
11. Reporting certain Financial Services: The CDFI Fund will value
the administrative cost of providing certain Financial Services using
the following per unit values:
a. $100.00 per account for Targeted Financial Services including
youth savings accounts, Electronic Transfer Accounts and Individual
Development Accounts;
b. $50.00 per account for checking and savings accounts that do not
meet the definition of Targeted Financial Services;
c. $5.00 per check cashing transaction;
d. $25,000 per new ATM installed at a location in a Distressed
Community;
e. $2,500 per ATM operated at a location in a Distressed Community;
f. $250,000 per new retail bank branch office opened in a
Distressed Community, including school-based bank branches approved by
the Applicant's Federal bank regulator; and
g. In the case of Applicants engaging in Financial Services
activities not described above, the CDFI Fund will determine the unit
value of such services.
h. When reporting the opening of a new retail bank branch office,
the Applicant must certify that it has not operated a retail branch in
the same Distressed Community in which the new retail branch office is
being opened in the past three years, and that such new branch will
remain in operation for at least the next five years.
i. Financial Service Activities must be provided by the Applicant
to Low- and Moderate-Income Residents. An Applicant may determine the
number of Low- and Moderate-Income individuals who are recipients of
Financial Services by either: (i) Collecting income data on its
Financial Services customers, or (ii) certifying that the Applicant
reasonably believes that such customers are Low- and Moderate-Income
individuals and providing a brief analytical narrative with information
describing how the Applicant made this determination. Citations must be
provided for external sources. In addition, if external sources are
referenced in the narrative, the Applicant must explain how it reached
the conclusion that the cited references are directly related to the
Low-and Moderate-Income residents to whom it is claiming to have
provided the Financial Services.
j. When reporting changes in the dollar amount of deposit accounts,
only calculate the net change in the total dollar amount of eligible
Deposit Liabilities between the Baseline Period and the Assessment
Period. Do not report each individual deposit. If the net change
between the Baseline Period and Assessment Period is a negative dollar
amount, then a negative dollar amount may be recorded for Deposit
Liabilities only. Instructions for determining the net change is
available in the Supplemental Guidance to the FY 2015 BEA Program
Application.
12. Priority Factors: Priority Factors are the numeric values
assigned to individual types of activity within: (i) The Distressed
Community Financing, and (ii) Services categories of Qualified
Activities. For the purposes of this NOFA, Priority Factors will be
based on the Applicant's asset size as of the end of the Assessment
Period (December 31, 2014) as reported by the Applicant in the
Application. Asset size classes (i.e., small institutions,
intermediate-small institutions, and large institutions) will
correspond to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) asset size classes
set by the three Federal bank regulatory agencies and that were
effective as of the end of the Assessment Period. The Priority Factor
works by multiplying the change in a Qualified Activity by the assigned
Priority Factor to achieve a ``weighted value.'' This weighted value of
the change would be multiplied by the applicable Award percentage to
yield the Award amount for that particular activity. For purposes of
this NOFA, the CDFI Fund is establishing Priority Factors based on
Applicant asset size to be applied to all activity within the
Distressed Community Financing Activities and Service Activities
categories only, as follows:
Table 5--CRA Asset Size Classification
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Priority
factor
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Small institutions (assets of less than $305 million as 5.0
of 12/31/2014).........................................
Intermediate--small institutions (assets of at least 3.0
$305 million but less than $1.221 billion as of 12/31/
2014)..................................................
Large institutions (assets of $1.221 billion or greater 1.0
as of 12/31/2014)......................................
------------------------------------------------------------------------
13. Certain Limitations on Qualified Activities:
a. Low-Income Housing Tax Credits: Financial assistance provided by
an Applicant for which the Applicant receives benefits through Low-
Income Housing Tax Credits, authorized pursuant to Section 42 of the
Internal Revenue Code, as amended (26 U.S.C. 42), shall not constitute
an Equity Investment, Project Investment, or other Qualified Activity,
for the purposes of calculating or receiving a Bank Enterprise Award.
b. New Markets Tax Credits: Financial assistance provided by an
Applicant for which the Applicant receives benefits as an investor in a
Community Development Entity that has received an allocation of New
Markets Tax Credits, authorized pursuant to Section 45D of the Internal
Revenue Code, as amended (26 U.S.C. 45D), shall not constitute an
Equity Investment, Project Investment, or other Qualified Activity, for
the purposes of calculating or receiving a Bank Enterprise Award.
Leverage loans used in New Markets Tax Credit structured transactions
that meet the requirements outlined in this NOFA are considered
Distressed Community Financing Activities.
c. Loan Renewals and Refinances: Financial assistance provided by
an Applicant shall not constitute a Qualified Activity, as defined in
this part, for the purposes of calculating or receiving a Bank
Enterprise Award if such financial assistance consists of a loan to a
borrower that has matured and is then renewed by the Applicant, or
consists of a loan to a borrower that is retired or restructured using
the proceeds of a new commitment by the Applicant. Payoff of a separate
third party obligation will only be considered a Qualified Activity if
the payoff of a transaction is part of the sale of property or business
to an unaffiliated party to the borrower. Applicants should include a
narrative statement to describe any such transactions. Otherwise the
transaction will be disqualified.
d. Certain Business Types: Financial assistance provided by an
Applicant shall not constitute a Qualified Activity,
[[Page 25777]]
as defined in this part, for the purposes of financing the following
business types: Golf courses, race tracks, gambling facilities, certain
farming businesses as described in 26 CFR part 1.45D-1(d)(5)(iii)(C),
country clubs, massage parlors, hot tub facilities, suntan facilities,
or stores where the principal business is the sale of alcoholic
beverages for consumption off premises.
e. Prior BEA Program Awards: Qualified Activities funded with prior
funding round BEA Program Award dollars or funded to satisfy
requirements of the BEA Program Award Agreement shall not constitute a
Qualified Activity for the purposes of calculating or receiving a BEA
Program Award.
f. Prior CDFI Program Awards: No CDFI Applicant may receive a BEA
Program Award for activities funded by another CDFI Fund program or
Federal program.
14. Award Percentages, Award Amounts, Application Review Process,
Selection Process, Programmatic and Financial Risk, and Application
Rejection: The Interim Rule describes the process for selecting
Applicants to receive a BEA Program Award and determining Award
amounts.
a. Award percentages: In the CDFI Related Activities category
(except for an Equity Investment or Equity-Like Loan), for CDFI
Applicants, the estimated Award amount will be equal to 18 percent of
the increase in Qualified Activity for the category. If an Applicant is
not a CDFI Applicant, the estimated Award amount will be equal to 6
percent of the increase in Qualified Activity for the category.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, for a CDFI Applicant and for an
Applicant that is not a CDFI Applicant, the Award percentage applicable
to an Equity Investment, Equity-Like Loan, or Grant in a CDFI shall be
15 percent of the increase in Qualified Activity for the category.
In Distressed Community Financing Activities and Service Activities
categories, for a CDFI Applicant, the estimated Award amount will be
equal to 9 percent of the weighted value of the increase in Qualified
Activity for the category. If an Applicant is not a CDFI Applicant, the
estimated Award amount will be equal to 3 percent of the weighted value
of the increase in Qualified Activity for the category.
b. Award Amounts: Applicants will calculate and request an
estimated Award amount in accordance with a multi-step procedure that
is outlined in the Interim Rule (at 12 CFR 1806.403). As outlined in
the Interim Rule at 12 CFR 1806.404, the CDFI Fund will determine
actual Award amounts based on the availability of funds, increases in
Qualified Activities from the Baseline Period to the Assessment Period,
and the priority ranking of each Applicant. In calculating the increase
in Qualified Activities, the CDFI Fund will determine the eligibility
of each transaction for which an Applicant has applied for a Bank
Enterprise Award. In some cases, the actual Award amount calculated by
the CDFI Fund may not be the same as the estimated Award amount
requested by the Applicant.
For purposes of calculating Award disbursement amounts, the CDFI
Fund will treat Qualified Activities with a total principal amount less
than or equal to $250,000 as fully disbursed. For all other Qualified
Activities, Award Recipients will have 12 months from the end of the
Assessment Period to make disbursements and 18 months from the end of
the Assessment Period to submit to the CDFI Fund disbursement requests
for the corresponding portion of their Awards, after which the CDFI
Fund will rescind and de-obligate any outstanding Award balance and
said outstanding Award balance will no longer be available to the Award
Recipient.
B. Review and Selection Process:
1. Application Review Process: All Applications will be initially
evaluated by external non-Federal reviewers. Reviewers are selected
based on their experience in understanding various financial
transactions, reading and interpreting financial documentation, strong
written communication skills, and strong mathematical skills. Reviewers
must complete the CDFI Fund's conflict of interest process and be
approved by the CDFI Fund. The CDFI Fund's application reader conflict
of interest policy is located on the CDFI Fund's Web site.
2. Selection Process: If the amount of funds available during the
funding round is insufficient for all estimated Award amounts, Award
Recipients will be selected based on the process described in the
Interim Rule at 12 CFR 1806.404. This process gives funding priority to
Applicants that undertake activities in the following order: (i) CDFI
Related Activities, (ii) Distressed Community Financing Activities, and
(iii) Service Activities, as described in the Interim Rule at 12 CFR
1806.404(c).
Within each category, CDFI Applicants will be ranked first
according to the ratio of the actual Award amount calculated by the
CDFI Fund for the category to the total assets of the Applicant,
followed by Applicants that are not CDFI Applicants according to the
ratio of the actual Award amount calculated by the CDFI Fund for the
category to the total assets of the Applicant.
Selections within each priority category will be based on the
Applicants' relative rankings within each such category, subject to the
availability of funds and any established maximum dollar amount of
total awards that may be awarded for the Distressed Community Financing
Activities category of Qualified Activities, as determined by the CDFI
Fund.
The CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion: (i) May adjust the estimated
Award amount that an Applicant may receive, (ii) may establish a
maximum amount that may be awarded to an Applicant, and (iii) reserves
the right to limit the amount of an Award to any Applicant if the CDFI
Fund deems it appropriate.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to contact the Applicant to
confirm or clarify information. If contacted, the Applicant must
respond within the CDFI Fund's time parameters or run the risk of
having its Application rejected.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to change its eligibility and
evaluation criteria and procedures. If those 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.
3. Programmatic and Financial Risk: The CDFI Fund will consider
safety and soundness information from the appropriate Federal bank
regulatory agency as defined in Section 3 of the Federal Deposit
Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813(q)). If the appropriate Federal bank
regulatory agency identifies safety and soundness concerns, the CDFI
Fund will assess whether the concerns cause or will cause the Applicant
to be incapable of completing the activities for which funding has been
requested. The CDFI Fund will not approve a BEA Program Award under any
circumstances for an Applicant if the appropriate Federal bank
regulatory agency indicates that the Applicant received a composite
rating of ``5'' on its most recent examination, performed in accordance
with the Uniform Financial Institutions Rating System.
Furthermore, the CDFI Fund will not approve a BEA Program Award for
the following reasons if at the time of application the Applicant
received any of the following:
a. A CRA assessment rating of below ``Satisfactory'' on its most
recent examination;
b. a going concern opinion on its most recent audit;
c. a Prompt Corrective Action directive from its regulator.
[[Page 25778]]
Applicants and/or their appropriate Federal bank regulator agency
may be contacted by the CDFI Fund to provide additional information
related to Federal bank regulatory or CRA information. The CDFI Fund
will consider this information and may choose to disapprove a BEA
Program Award for an Applicant if the information indicates that the
Applicant may be unable to responsibly manage, re-invest, and/or report
on a BEA Program Award during the performance period.
4. Application Rejection: The CDFI Fund reserves the right to
reject an Application if information (including administrative error)
comes to the CDFI Fund's attention that either: 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 Applicant's part. If the CDFI Fund determines any
portion of the Application is incorrect in a material respect, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject the
Application.
There is no right to appeal the CDFI Fund's Award decisions. The
CDFI Fund's Award decisions are final. The CDFI Fund will not discuss
the specifics of an Applicant's BEA Program Application or provide
reasons why an Applicant did not receive a BEA Program Award. The CDFI
Fund will only respond to general questions regarding the FY 2015
Application and Award decision process until 30 days after the award
announcement date.
C. Anticipated Announcement and Federal Award Dates: The CDFI Fund
anticipates making its FY 2015 BEA Program award announcement by
September 30, 2015.
VI. Federal Award Administration Information
A. Federal Award Notices: The CDFI Fund will notify an Applicant of
its selection as an Award Recipient by delivering a Notice of Award and
Award Agreement. The Notice of Award and Award Agreement will contain
the general terms and conditions governing the CDFI Fund's provision of
an Award. The Award Recipient will receive a copy of the Notice of
Award and Award Agreement via myCDFIFund. The Award Recipient is
required to execute the Award Agreement and return it to the CDFI Fund.
Each Award Recipient must also ensure that complete and accurate
banking information is reflected in its System for Award Management
(SAM) account on www.sam.gov in order to receive its award
disbursement.
B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: If, prior to
entering into an Award Agreement, information (including an
administrative error) comes to the CDFI Fund's attention that adversely
affects: The Award Recipient's eligibility for an award; the CDFI
Fund's evaluation of the Application; the Award Recipient's compliance
with any requirement listed in the Uniform Requirements; or indicates
fraud or mismanagement on the Award Recipient's part, the CDFI Fund
may, in its discretion and without advance notice to the Award
Recipient, terminate the award or take other actions as it deems
appropriate.
If the Award Recipient's certification status as a CDFI changes,
the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to re-
calculate the Award, modify the Notice of Award, and modify the Award
Agreement based on the Award Recipient's non-CDFI status.
By executing an Award Agreement, the Award Recipient agrees that,
if the CDFI Fund becomes aware of any information (including an
administrative error) prior to the Effective Date of the Award
Agreement that either adversely affects the Award Recipient's
eligibility for an Award, or adversely affects the CDFI Fund's
evaluation of the Award Recipient's Application, or indicates fraud or
mismanagement on the part of the Award Recipient, the CDFI Fund may, in
its discretion and without advance notice to the Award Recipient,
terminate the Award Agreement or take other actions as it deems
appropriate. The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion,
to rescind an award if the Award Recipient fails to return the Award
Agreement, signed by the authorized representative of the award
Recipient, and/or provide the CDFI Fund with any other requested
documentation, within the CDFI Fund's deadlines. In addition, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate and
rescind the Award Agreement and the award made under this NOFA for any
criteria described in the following table:
Table 6--Criteria That May Result in Award Termination Prior to the Execution of an Award Agreement
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Criteria Description
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Failure to meet reporting requirements...... If an Applicant, is a prior CDFI Fund award Recipient or Allocatee
under any CDFI Fund program and is not current on the reporting
requirements set forth in the previously executed assistance,
award, allocation, bond loan agreement(s), or agreement to
guaranty, as of the date of the Notice of Award, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to delay entering
into an Award Agreement and/or to delay making a disbursement of
Award proceeds, until said prior Recipient or Allocatee is
current on the reporting requirements in the previously executed
assistance, award, allocation, bond loan agreement(s), or
agreement to guaranty. Please note that automated systems
employed by the CDFI Fund for receipt of reports submitted
electronically typically acknowledge only a report's receipt;
such acknowledgment does not warrant that the report received was
complete and therefore met reporting requirements. If said prior
Recipient 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
Notice of Award and the Award made under this NOFA.
Pending resolution of noncompliance......... If, at any time prior to entering into an Award Agreement under
this NOFA, an Applicant that is a prior CDFI Fund award Recipient
or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund program: Has submitted reports
to the CDFI Fund that demonstrate noncompliance with a previous
assistance, award, or allocation agreement, but the CDFI Fund has
yet to make a final determination regarding whether or not the
entity is in default of its previous assistance, award,
allocation, bond loan agreement, or agreement to guaranty, the
CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to delay
entering into an Award Agreement and/or to delay making a
disbursement of Award proceeds, pending full resolution, in the
sole determination of the CDFI Fund, of the noncompliance. If
said prior Recipient or Allocatee is unable to meet this
requirement, in the sole determination of the CDFI Fund, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate and
rescind the Notice of Award and the Award made under this NOFA.
[[Page 25779]]
Default status.............................. If prior to entering into an Award Agreement under this NOFA: The
CDFI Fund has made a final determination that an Applicant that
is a prior CDFI Fund Recipient or Allocatee under any CDFI Fund
program whose award or allocation terminated in default of such
prior agreement; the CDFI Fund has provided written notification
of such determination to such organization; and the anticipated
date for entering into the Award Agreement under this NOFA is
within a period of time specified in such notification throughout
which any new award, allocation, assistance, bond loan
agreement(s), or agreement to guaranty is prohibited, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate and
rescind the Award Agreement and the award made under this NOFA.
Compliance with Federal civil rights If prior to entering into an Award Agreement under this NOFA, the
requirements. Recipient receives a final determination, made within the last
three years, in any proceeding instituted against the Recipient
in, by, or before any court, governmental, or administrative body
or agency, declaring that the Award Recipient has violated the
following laws: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as
amended (42 U.S.C. 2000d); Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794); the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, (42
U.S.C. 6101-6107), and Executive Order 13166, Improving Access to
Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency, the CDFI
Fund will terminate and rescind the Assistance Agreement and the
award made under this NOFA.
Do Not Pay.................................. The Do Not Pay Business Center was developed to support Federal
agencies in their efforts to reduce the number of improper
payments made through programs funded by the Federal government.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
rescind an award if the award Recipient is identified as
ineligible to be a recipient per the Do Not Pay database.
Safety and soundness........................ If it is determined the award Recipient is or will be incapable of
meeting its Award obligations, the CDFI Fund will deem the award
Recipient to be ineligible or require it to improve safety and
soundness conditions prior to entering into an Award Agreement.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Award Agreement: After the CDFI Fund selects an Award Recipient,
unless an exception detailed in this NOFA applies, the CDFI Fund and
the Award Recipient will enter into an Award Agreement. The Award
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 type of the Award; (iii) the approved uses of the
Award; (iv) the performance goals and measures; (v) the performance
periods; and (vi) the reporting requirements. The Award Agreement shall
provide that an Award Recipient shall: (i) Carry out its Qualified
Activities in accordance with applicable law, the approved Application,
and all other applicable requirements; (ii) not receive any
disbursement of award dollars until the CDFI Fund has determined that
the Award Recipient has fulfilled all applicable requirements; and
(iii) use the BEA Award amount for BEA Qualified Activities.
C. Reporting: The CDFI Fund will require each Award Recipient that
receives an Award of over $50,000 through this NOFA to account for and
report to the CDFI Fund on the use of the Award. This will require
Award Recipients to establish administrative controls, subject to
applicable OMB Circulars. The CDFI Fund will collect information from
each such Award Recipient on its use of the Award at least once
following the Award and more often if deemed appropriate by the CDFI
Fund in its sole discretion. The CDFI Fund will provide guidance to
Award Recipients outlining the format and content of the information
required to be provided to describe how the funds were used.
The CDFI Fund may collect information from each Recipient
including, but not limited to, an Annual Report with the following
components:
Table 7--Reporting Requirements
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Criteria Description
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Single Audit Narrative Report (or like The Recipient must submit, via myCDFIFund, a Single Audit
report). Narrative Report for each year of its period of performance
notifying the CDFI Fund whether it is required to have a single
audit pursuant to OMB Single Audit requirements.
Single Audit (if applicable) (or similar A Recipient that is a non-profit entity that expends $750,000 or
report). more in Federal awards during its fiscal year must have a single
audit conducted for that year. If a Recipient is required to
complete a Single Audit Report, it should be submitted to the
Federal Audit Clearinghouse see 2 CFR Subpart F-Audit
Requirements in the Uniform Federal Award Requirements. For-
profit award Recipients will be required to complete and submit a
similar report directly to the CDFI Fund.
Use of BEA Program Award Report............. If the award Recipient receives a BEA Program award of over
$50,000, it must submit the Use of Award report to the CDFI Fund
via myCDFIFund.
Explanation of Noncompliance (as applicable) If the award Recipient fails to meet a Performance Goal or
or successor report. reporting requirements, it must submit the Explanation of
Noncompliance via myCDFI Fund.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Each Award Recipient is responsible for the timely and complete
submission of the Reporting requirements. The CDFI Fund reserves the
right to contact the Award Recipient to request additional information
and documentation. The CDFI Fund will use such information to monitor
each Award Recipient's compliance with the requirements in the Award
Agreement and to assess the impact of the BEA Program. 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,
[[Page 25780]]
such reporting requirements will be modified only after notice has been
provided to award Recipients.
D. Financial Management and Accounting: The CDFI Fund will require
award Recipients to maintain financial management and accounting
systems that comply with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms
and conditions of the Federal award. These systems must be sufficient
to permit the preparation of reports required by general and program
specific terms and conditions, including the tracing of funds to a
level of expenditures adequate to establish that such funds have been
used according to the Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and
conditions of the Federal award.
Each of the Qualified Activities categories will be ineligible for
indirect costs and an associated indirect cost rate. The cost
principles used by award Recipients must be consistent with Federal
cost principles and support the accumulation of costs as required by
the principles, and must provide for adequate documentation to support
costs charged to the BEA Program award. In addition, the CDFI Fund will
require award Recipients to: maintain effective internal controls;
comply with applicable statutes, regulations, and the Award Agreement;
evaluate and monitor compliance; take action when not in compliance;
and safeguard personally identifiable information.
VII. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts
A. Questions Related to Application and Prior Award Recipient
Reporting, Compliance and Disbursements: The CDFI Fund will respond to
questions concerning this NOFA, the Application and reporting,
compliance, or disbursements between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00
p.m. Eastern Time, starting on the date that this NOFA is published
through the date listed in Table 1. The CDFI Fund will post responses
to frequently asked questions in a separate document on its Web site.
Other information regarding the CDFI Fund and its programs may be
obtained from the CDFI Fund's Web site at https://www.cdfifund.gov.
The following table lists CDFI Fund contact information:
Table 8--Contact Information
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Telephone number (not toll
Type of question free) Email addresses
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BEA Program.......................... 202-653-0421............... cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.
Certification, Compliance Monitoring, 202-653-0423............... ccme@cdfi.treas.gov.
and Evaluation.
myCDFIFund--IT Help Desk............. 202-653-0422............... IThelpdesk@cdfi.treas.gov.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Information Technology Support: People who have visual or
mobility impairments that prevent them from using the CDFI Fund's Web
site should call (202) 653-0422 for assistance (this is not a toll free
number).
C. Communication With the CDFI Fund: The CDFI Fund will use its
myCDFIFund Internet interface to communicate with Applicants and Award
Recipients under this NOFA. Award Recipients must use myCDFIFund to
submit required reports. The CDFI Fund will notify Award Recipients by
email using the addresses maintained in each Award Recipient's
myCDFIFund account. Therefore, an Award Recipient and any Subsidiaries,
signatories, and Affiliates must maintain accurate contact information
(including contact person and authorized representative, email
addresses, fax numbers, phone numbers, and office addresses) in their
myCDFIFund account(s).
D. Civil Rights and Diversity: Any person who is eligible to
receive benefits or services from CDFI Fund or award Recipients under
any of its programs is entitled to those benefits or services without
being subject to prohibited discrimination. The Department of the
Treasury's Office of Civil Rights and Diversity enforces various
Federal statutes and regulations that prohibit discrimination in
financially assisted and conducted programs and activities of the CDFI
Fund. If a person believes that s/he has been subjected to
discrimination and/or reprisal because of membership in a protected
group, s/he may file a complaint with: Associate Chief Human Capital
Officer, Office of Civil Rights, and Diversity, 1500 Pennsylvania Ave.
NW., Washington, DC 20220 or (202) 622-1160 (not a toll-free number).
VIII. Other Information
A. Reasonable Accommodations: Requests for reasonable
accommodations under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act should be
directed to Mr. Michael Jones, Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund, U.S. Department of the Treasury at
JonesM@cdfi.treas.gov no later than 72 hours in advance of the
application deadline.
B. Paperwork Reduction Act: 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 BEA Program
funding Application has been assigned the following control number:
1559-0005.
C. Application Information Sessions: The CDFI Fund may conduct
webinars or host information sessions for organizations that are
considering applying to, or are interested in learning about, the CDFI
Fund's programs. For further information, please visit the CDFI Fund's
Web site at https://www.cdfifund.gov.
Authority: 12 U.S.C. 1834a, 4703, 4703 note, 4713; 12 CFR part
1806.
Dated: April 30, 2015.
Mary Ann Donovan,
Director, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.
[FR Doc. 2015-10432 Filed 5-4-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-70-P