[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 2 (Tuesday, January 4, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 342-344]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-33727]
[[Page 341]]
Part III
Department of the Treasury
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Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
_______________________________________________________________________
Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) Inviting Applications for the
Community Development Financial Institutions Program--Technical
Assistance (TA) Component; Notice
Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 2 / Tuesday, January 4, 2000 /
Notices
[[Page 342]]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) Inviting Applications for the
Community Development Financial Institutions Program--Technical
Assistance (TA) Component
AGENCY: Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Department
of the Treasury.
ACTION: Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) inviting applications.
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SUMMARY: The Community Development Banking and Financial Institutions
Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4701 et seq.) (the ``Act'') authorizes the
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (the ``Fund'') of the
U.S. Department of the Treasury to select and provide financial and
technical assistance to eligible applicants under the Community
Development Financial Institutions (``CDFI'') Program. The interim rule
(12 CFR part 1805), most recently revised and published in the Federal
Register on November 1, 1999, provides guidance on the contents of the
necessary application materials, evaluation criteria, and other program
requirements. More detailed application content requirements are found
in the application packet. While the Fund encourages applicants to
review the interim rule, all of the application content requirements
and the evaluation criteria contained in the interim rule are also
contained in the application packet. Subject to funding availability,
the Fund intends to award up to $4.5 million in appropriated funds
under this NOFA and expects to issue approximately 80 to 90 awards. The
Fund reserves the right to award in excess of $4.5 million in
appropriated funds under this NOFA provided that funds are available
and the Fund deems it appropriate. The Fund reserves the right to fund,
in whole or in part, any, all, or none of the applications submitted in
response to this NOFA.
This NOFA is issued in connection with the TA Component of the CDFI
Program. The TA Component provides direct assistance to CDFIs, and in
some circumstances, other entities that propose to become CDFIs, to
enhance their capacity to serve their Target Markets.
DATES: Applications may be submitted at any time following January 4,
2000. Applications will be received and reviewed on a rolling basis, as
described below. The final deadline for receipt of an application,
however, is 6 p.m. EDT on May 31, 2000. Applications received in the
offices of the Fund after that date and time will be rejected and
returned to the sender.
ADDRESSES: Applications shall be sent to: Awards Manager, Community
Development Financial Institutions Fund, U.S. Department of the
Treasury, 601 13th Street, NW, Suite 200 South, Washington, DC 20005.
Applications sent electronically or by facsimile will not be accepted.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have any questions about
programmatic requirements, contact the TA Program Manager. Should you
wish to request an application package or have questions regarding
application procedures, contact the Awards Manager. The TA Program
Manager and the Awards Manager may be reached by e-mail at
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov, by telephone at (202) 622-8662, by facsimile
at (202) 622-7754 (these are not toll free numbers), or by mail at CDFI
Fund, 601 13th Street, NW, Suite 200 South, Washington, DC 20005. Allow
at least one to two weeks from the date the Fund receives a request for
receipt of the application package. Applications and other information
regarding the Fund and its programs may be downloaded from the Fund's
web site at http://www.treas.gov/cdfi.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Credit and investment capital are essential ingredients for
developing affordable housing, starting or expanding businesses,
creating and retaining jobs from these businesses, revitalizing
neighborhoods, and empowering people. As a key urban and rural policy
initiative, the CDFI Program funds and supports a national network of
financial institutions that is specifically dedicated to funding and
supporting community development. This strategy builds strong
institutions that make loans and investments and provide services to
economically distressed investment areas and economically disadvantaged
targeted populations. The Act authorizes the Fund to select entities to
receive financial and technical assistance. This NOFA invites
applications from eligible organizations for technical assistance for
the purpose of promoting community development activities.
The program connected with this NOFA constitutes the TA Component
of the CDFI Program, involving direct technical assistance (TA) to
CDFIs that provide loans, investments and other activities to their
target markets. Under this TA Component NOFA, the Fund anticipates
making a maximum award amount of $50,000 to any one applicant. However,
the Fund, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to award amounts
in excess of the anticipated maximum amount if the Fund deems it
appropriate.
Previous awardees under the CDFI Program are eligible to apply
under this NOFA, but such applicants must be aware that success in a
previous round should not be considered indicative of success under
this NOFA. In addition, organizations will not be penalized for having
previously received awards from the Fund, except to the extent that:
(1) The Fund is generally prohibited from obligating more than $5
million in assistance, in the aggregate, to any one organization and
its subsidiaries and affiliates during any three year period; and
(2) The Fund will not make an award to a previous awardee that has
failed to meet its performance goals, financial soundness covenants (if
applicable), and/or other certain requirements contained in the
previously executed assistance agreement(s).
II. Eligibility
The Act and the interim rule specify the eligibility requirements
that each applicant must meet in order to be eligible to apply for
assistance under this TA Component NOFA. At the time an entity submits
its application, the entity must be a duly organized and validly
existing legal entity under the laws of the jurisdiction in which it is
incorporated or otherwise established. An entity must meet, or propose
to meet, CDFI eligibility requirements.
If the applicant does not meet the CDFI eligibility requirements,
the application shall include a realistic plan for the applicant to
meet the criteria by September 30, 2002 (the deadline may be extended
at the sole discretion of the Fund). In no event will the Fund disburse
technical assistance to the applicant until the applicant can be
certified as a CDFI, except in such circumstances when, in the judgment
of the Fund, the use of technical assistance will help the applicant
meet a certification requirement(s). Further details regarding
eligibility and other program requirements are found in the application
packet.
In general, a CDFI and its affiliates must collectively have a
primary mission of promoting community development. In addition, the
applicant organization must: provide loans or equity investments, serve
an investment area or a targeted population, provide development
services, maintain community accountability, and be a
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non-governmental entity. If an applicant is a depository institution
holding company or an affiliate of a depository institution holding
company, the applicant and its affiliates must collectively meet all of
the aforementioned requirements. If an applicant is a subsidiary of an
insured depository institution, the insured depository institution and
all of its subsidiaries must collectively meet all of the
aforementioned requirements.
III. Types of Assistance
An applicant under this NOFA may only submit one application for a
TA grant.
IV. Application Packet
An applicant under this NOFA must submit the materials described in
the application packet.
V. Evaluation
With the exception of applications received by the Fund during
January 2000, applications received under this NOFA will be reviewed
monthly on a rolling basis. All applications received by the Fund from
the date of this NOFA through 6 p.m. EST, February 29, 2000, will be
reviewed together; provided that funds are available, applications
received after 6 p.m. EST, February 29, 2000, through 6 p.m. EST, March
31, 2000 will be reviewed together; provided that funds are available,
applications received after 6 p.m. EST, March 31, 2000, through 6 p.m.
EDT, April 28, 2000, will be reviewed together; and, provided that
funds are available, applications received after 6 p.m. EDT, April 28,
2000, through 6 p.m. EDT, May 31, 2000, will be reviewed together.
Applications received in the offices of the Fund after 6 p.m. EDT, May
31, 2000, will be rejected and returned to the sender.
An entity may submit only one application under this NOFA. If a
subsequent application is received, the Fund will reject it and return
it to the sender. Potential applicants should note that, as the Fund
intends to review and select award applications on a rolling basis, it
is possible that funding decisions made early during the rolling review
period may obligate all of the funds made available under this NOFA.
The amount available for awards will decrease each month as the Fund
reviews applications and makes award selections. After each submission
date, applications received will first be reviewed for eligibility and
completeness. If determined to be eligible and complete, applications
will be evaluated by the Fund on a competitive basis in accordance with
the criteria described in this NOFA. In conducting its substantive
review, the Fund will evaluate applications according to the criteria
in, and use the procedure described in, this NOFA.
Phase One
In Phase One of the substantive review, each Fund reader will
evaluate applications using a 100-point scale, using the following
criteria and allocation of points:
(a) Comprehensive Business Plan, 60 points, with a minimum score of
30 points required to advance to Phase Two review. The score for the
Comprehensive Business Plan is based on a composite assessment of an
applicant's strength and weaknesses under six sub-criteria. Such
scoring reflects different weighting of the sub-criteria depending on
whether the applicant is a start-up organization or an established
organization. The Fund defines a start-up organization as an entity
that has been in operation two years or less, as of the date of this
NOFA (meaning, for purposes of this NOFA, having incurred initial
operating expenses on or after January 4, 1998).
The six sub-criteria are:
(1) Community development track record (established organizations
only): 10 point maximum;
(2) Financial and operational capacity: 10 point maximum
(established organizations); 4 point maximum (start-ups);
(3) Capacity, skills and experience of the management team: 14
point maximum (established organizations); and 30 point maximum (start-
ups);
(4) Market analysis, program design and implementation plan: 12
point maximum;
(5) Projected activities and community development impact: 10 point
maximum; and
(6) Funding sources: 4 point maximum.
In the case of an applicant that has previously received assistance
from the Fund under the CDFI Program, the Fund will consider whether
the applicant will expand its operations into a new target market,
offer more products or services, and/or increase the volume of its
activities. The Fund will consider the applicant's level of success in
meeting its performance goals, financial soundness covenants (if
applicable), and other requirements contained in the assistance
agreement(s) with the Fund, and the benefits that will be created with
new Fund assistance over and above benefits created by previous Fund
assistance.
(b) Technical Assistance Proposal (TAP), 40 point maximum, with a
20 point minimum to advance to Phase Two review. The TAP provides the
applicant with an opportunity to assess and address the organizational
improvements needed to achieve the objectives of its comprehensive
business plan. Such assessment is accompanied by a budget and a TA
award request. In the TAP, the applicant should describe how improving
its organization will translate to community development impact within
its Target Market. The budget and accompanying narrative will be
evaluated for the eligibility of proposed uses of the TA award.
Eligible types of TA award uses include, but are not limited to, the
following: (1) Consulting services; (2) technology items; and (3)
training for staff or management. The Fund will not consider requests
under this NOFA for expenses that, in the interpretation of the Fund,
are deemed to be ongoing operating expenses rather than non-recurring
expenses (for example, the cost of designing marketing materials for a
loan product through a consulting contract is a non-recurring expense,
but the cost of producing or distributing printed marketing materials
is an ongoing expense; salary expenses for staff are ongoing, but the
cost of a consulting contract for a discrete scope of services is a
non-recurring expense). Further, a TA award may not be used to assist
an awardee to prepare an application for funding to the Fund or to any
other source.
Phase Two
Once the initial evaluation is complete, the Fund will determine
which applications will receive further consideration for funding. The
Fund will make that determination based on application scores
(standardized if deemed appropriate), recommendations of individuals
performing initial reviews, and the amount of funds available.
Applicants that advance to Phase Two may receive a telephone
interview(s) conducted by a Fund reviewer for the purpose of obtaining
clarifying or confirming information. At this point in the process,
applicants may be required to submit additional information about their
application in order to assist the Fund with its final evaluation.
After conducting such telephone interview(s), the Fund reviewer will
evaluate applications in accordance with the criteria outlined above
and will prepare a recommendation memorandum regarding the uses and
amount of assistance that should be provided to the applicant.
A panel comprised of Fund staff will review the reviewer's
recommendation
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memorandum and make a final recommendation to the Fund's selecting
official, who will make the final funding decision. In making the
funding decision, the Fund's selecting official also may consider the
institutional diversity and geographic diversity of applicants (e.g.,
recommending a CDFI from a State in which the Fund has not previously
made an award over a CDFI in a State in which the Fund has already made
numerous awards).
The Fund's selecting official will make a final funding
determination based on the applicant's file, including, without
limitation, recommendations of the Phase One reader(s), the Phase Two
reviewer, and the panel, and the amount of funds available. In the case
of regulated CDFIs, the selecting official will also take into
consideration the views of the appropriate Federal banking agencies. In
the case of recommendations for TA awards over $50,000, the Fund will
seek to ensure that there is a likelihood of significant community
development impact resulting from such awards.
The Fund reserves the right to change these evaluation procedures
if the Fund deems it appropriate.
VI. Information Sessions
In connection with this NOFA, the Fund will conduct Information
Sessions to disseminate information to organizations contemplating
applying for, and other organizations interested in learning about, the
TA Component of the CDFI Program. Registration is required and
registration in advance is preferred. The Fund will conduct six in-
person Information Sessions, beginning January 26, 2000, as follows:
Albuquerque, NM, Monday, February 14, 2000;
Des Moines, IA, Monday, February 7, 2000;
Laramie, WY, Tuesday, February 1, 2000;
Nashville, TN, Wednesday, February 9, 2000;
Seattle, WA, Friday, February 11, 2000; and
Washington, DC, Wednesday, January 26, 2000.
In addition to the in-person sessions listed above, the Fund will
broadcast an Information Session using interactive video-
teleconferencing technology on Friday, February 4, 2000 from 1 p.m. to
4 p.m. EST. Registration is required and registration in advance is
preferred. This Information Session will be produced in Washington, DC,
and will be downlinked via satellite or pic-tel to the local Department
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offices located in the following
81 cities: Albany, NY; Albuquerque, NM; Anchorage, AK; Atlanta, GA;
Baltimore, MD; Bangor, ME; Birmingham, AL; Boise, ID; Boston, MA;
Buffalo, NY; Burlington, VT; Camden, NJ; Casper, WY; Charleston, WV;
Chicago, IL; Cincinnati, OH; Cleveland, OH; Columbia, SC; Columbus, OH;
Dallas, TX; Denver, CO; Des Moines, IA; Detroit, MI; Fargo, ND; Flint,
MI; Fort Worth, TX; Fresno, CA; Grand Rapids, MI; Greensboro, NC;
Hartford, CT; Helena, MT; Honolulu, HI; Houston, TX; Indianapolis, IN;
Jackson, MS; Jacksonville, FL; Kansas City, KS; Knoxville, TN; Las
Vegas, NV; Little Rock, AR; Los Angeles, CA; Louisville, KY; Lubbock,
TX; Manchester, NH; Memphis, TN; Miami, FL; Milwaukee, WI; Minneapolis/
St. Paul, MN; Nashville, TN; New Orleans, LA; New York, NY; Newark, NJ;
Oklahoma City, OK; Omaha, NE; Orlando, FL; Philadelphia, PA; Phoenix,
AZ; Pittsburgh, PA; Portland, OR; Providence, RI; Reno, NV; Richmond,
VA; Sacramento, CA; St. Louis, MO; Salt Lake City, UT; San Antonio, TX;
San Diego, CA; San Francisco, CA; San Juan, PR; Santa Ana, CA; Seattle,
WA; Shreveport, LA; Sioux Falls, SD; Spokane, WA; Springfield, IL;
Syracuse, NY; Tampa, FL; Tucson, AZ; Tulsa, OK; Washington, DC; and
Wilmington, DE.
For more information, or to register for an Information Session,
please contact the Fund at (202) 622-8662 or visit the Fund's web site
at www.treas.gov/cdfi.
Authority: 12 U.S.C. 4703, 4703 note, 4704, 4706, 4707, and
4717; 12 CFR part 1805.
Dated: December 22, 1999.
Maurice A. Jones,
Deputy Director for Policy and Programs, Community Development
Financial Institutions Fund.
[FR Doc. 99-33727 Filed 12-28-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-70-P
