Notice2024-03152
Notice of Funds Availability
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
February 15, 2024
Issuing agencies
Treasury DepartmentCommunity Development Financial Institutions Fund
Abstract
The Capital Magnet Fund (CMF) is administered by the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund). Through the CMF, the CDFI Fund provides financial assistance grants to certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and to qualified Nonprofit Organizations that have the development or management of affordable housing as one of their principal purposes. All Awards provided through this Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) are subject to funding availability.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 32 (Thursday, February 15, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 32 (Thursday, February 15, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11924-11941]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-03152]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability
Funding Opportunities: Capital Magnet Fund; 2024 Funding Round.
Funding Opportunity Title: Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA)
inviting Applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2024 Funding Round of
the Capital Magnet Fund (CMF).
Announcement Type: Announcement of funding opportunity.
Funding Opportunity Number: CDFI-2024-CMF.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 21.011.
Dates:
[[Page 11925]]
Table 1-FY 2024 Capital Magnet Fund Funding Round Critical Deadlines for Applicants
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Description Deadline Time (Eastern Time--ET) Submission method
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last day to create an Awards March 14, 2024.............. 11:59 p.m. ET............... Electronically via
Management Information System Awards Management
(AMIS) Account (if Applicant Information
does not have one). System (AMIS).
Last day to enter or update the March 14, 2024.............. 11:59 p.m. ET............... Electronically via
Employer Identification Number AMIS.
(EIN) and Unique Entity
Identifier (UEI) numbers in
AMIS (all Applicants).
Last day to submit Title VI March 14, 2024.............. 11:59p.m. ET................ Electronically via
Compliance Worksheet in AMIS AMIS.
(all Applicants) *.
Last day to submit SF-424 March 14, 2024.............. 11:59 p.m. ET............... Electronically via
Mandatory Form (Application for <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>.
Federal Assistance).
For Applicants using a March 14, 2024.............. 11:59 p.m. ET............... Submit Service
Consortium Approach only: Request via AMIS
Applicants are asked to submit using ``Capital
a Service Request in AMIS Magnet Fund'' for
notifying the CMF Program of the program.
the organization's intent to
apply as a Consortium Member
using the Consortium Approach.
Last day to contact Capital April 12, 2024.............. 5:00 p.m. ET................ Submit Service
Magnet Fund Staff. Request via AMIS
using ``Capital
Magnet Fund'' for
the program; call
CDFI Fund
Helpdesk: 202-653-
0421; or email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#73101e15331017151a5d07011612005d141c05"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7c1f111a3c1f181a1552080e191d0f521b130a">[email protected]</span></a>.
Last day to contact CDFI Fund April 12, 2024.............. 5:00 p.m. ET................ Submit Service
with questions about Compliance. Request via AMIS
using
``Compliance and
Reporting'' for
the program; call
CCME Helpdesk:
202-653-0423; or
email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#b2d1d1dfd7f2d1d6d4db9cc6c0d7d3c19cd5ddc4"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4625252b23062522202f68323423273568212930">[email protected]</span></a>.
Last day to contact CDFI Fund April 12, 2024.............. 5:00 p.m. ET................ Submit Service
with questions about CDFI Request via AMIS
Certification. using
``Certification''
for the program;
call CCME
Helpdesk: 202-653-
0423; or email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9af5f9eafff9ffe8eedaf9fefcf3b4eee8fffbe9b4fdf5ec"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="305f5340555355424470535456591e44425551431e575f46">[email protected]</span></a>.
Last day to contact AMIS-IT Help April 16, 2024.............. 5:00 p.m. ET................ Submit Service
Desk (regarding AMIS technical Request via AMIS
problems only). using ``Technical
Issues'' for the
program; call
AMIS Helpdesk:
202-630-0422; or
email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#12535f5b41527176747b3c66607773613c757d64"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1f5e52564c5f7c7b7976316b6d7a7e6c31787069">[email protected]</span></a>.
Last day to submit CMF April 16, 2024.............. 11:59 p.m. ET............... Electronically via
Application and Required AMIS.
Attachments.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* For Depository Institution Holding Company Applicants, the Title VI Compliance Worksheet requirement also
applies to the Applicant's Subsidiary Depository Institution.
Executive Summary: The Capital Magnet Fund (CMF) is administered by
the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund).
Through the CMF, the CDFI Fund provides financial assistance grants to
certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and to
qualified Nonprofit Organizations that have the development or
management of affordable housing as one of their principal purposes.
All Awards provided through this Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA)
are subject to funding availability.
I. Program Description
A. Authorizing Statute and Regulation: The CMF was established
through the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA), which
added section 1339 to the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety
and Soundness Act of 1992. For a complete understanding of the program,
the CDFI Fund encourages Applicants to review the CMF Interim Rule (12
CFR part 1807) as amended February 8, 2016 (the CMF Interim Rule); this
NOFA; the CDFI Fund's environmental quality regulation (12 CFR part
1815); the CMF funding application (referred to hereafter as the
``Application,'' meaning the application submitted in response to this
NOFA); and the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles,
and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR part 1000), which is
the Department of the Treasury's codification of the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) government-wide framework for grants
management at 2 CFR part 200 (Uniform Administrative Requirements or
UAR). Each capitalized term used in this NOFA, but not defined herein,
shall have the respective meanings assigned to them in the CMF Interim
Rule, the Application, or the Uniform Administrative Requirements.
Details regarding Application content requirements are found in the
Application and related materials at <a href="http://www.cdfifund.gov/cmf">www.cdfifund.gov/cmf</a>.
B. 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. The CMF Program made its first Awards in FY
2010, with subsequent funding rounds annually from FY 2016 through FY
2021, and in FY 2023. To date, more than $1.39 billion has been awarded
under the CMF Program.
C. Programmatic Changes from the Prior Round NOFA:
1. Introduction of Title VI Worksheet: The CDFI Fund is requiring
all Applicants, as well as their prospective subrecipients that are not
direct beneficiaries of Federal financial assistance (i.e., Depository
Institutions Holding Company and their Subsidiary Depository
Institutions) to complete a Title VI Compliance Worksheet once each
calendar year to demonstrate how they are complying with Title VI of
the Civil Rights Act (Pub. L. 88-352).
2. Attestation in lieu of Management Letters: If no Management
Letter was issued for either of the Applicant's two most recent
historic fiscal years, the Applicant will complete an attestation in
the Application in lieu of attaching a separate statement.
D. Definitions:
1. Areas of Economic Distress: Areas of Economic Distress are
census tracts: (a) where at least 20% of households that are Very Low-
Income (50% of AMI or below) spend more than half of their income on
housing; or (b) that are Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Qualified Census
Tracts; or (c) where greater than 20% of households have incomes below
the poverty rate and the rental vacancy rate is at least 10%; or (d)
where greater than 20% of the households have incomes below the poverty
rate and the homeownership vacancy rate is at least 10%; or (e) are
Underserved Rural Areas as defined in the CMF Interim Rule. The CDFI
Fund will publish a dataset on its website indicating which census
tracts are designated as Areas of Economic Distress for the FY 2024 CMF
Funding Round.
[[Page 11926]]
2. Consortium: A Consortium is comprised of a group of at least
two, and no more than five, eligible, and unaffiliated CDFIs or
nonprofit affordable housing developers/managers, applying for a CMF
Award under this NOFA. The purpose of the Consortium must be to finance
and support Affordable Housing Activities and Economic Development
Activities, if applicable.
3. Consortium Approach: The Consortium Approach is the manner in
which members of a Consortium apply for a CMF Award under this NOFA,
wherein member Applications are evaluated both individually and as a
Consortium.
4. Entity Approach: The Entity Approach is the manner in which the
Applicant will be using the CMF Award. There are two types of Entity
Approaches: (a) financing entities and (b) affordable housing
developers/managers. Each Applicant will be required to specify which
type of Entity Approach it will be using prior to starting the
Application.
A financing entity is an entity whose predominant business activity
is the provision of arm's length transactions and services to
independent, unrelated parties, each acting in its own best interest.
Such transactions support and promote affordable housing and/or
community development through the provision of financial products that
serve low-income communities, individuals, or families in underserved
markets or communities.
An affordable housing developer/manager is a Nonprofit Organization
whose primary mission is the construction, development, redevelopment,
preservation, or management of affordable housing. The affordable
housing developer/manager may own the housing that it develops; may own
it in part, such as a limited partnership; may sell the Homeownership
or rental housing it develops once completed; or may sell but continue
to manage the housing in case of rental housing.
5. High Opportunity Areas (HOA):
(A) Standard HOA Criteria: Shall mean the definition of High
Opportunity Area (HOA) found in the Federal Housing Finance Agency's
Duty to Serve Rule (12 CFR 1282.1), effective as of the date of the
publication of this NOFA. This term is defined as: (a) An area
designated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as
a ``Difficult Development Area'' during any year covered by an
Enterprise's Underserved Markets Plan (Plan) or in the year prior to a
Plan's effective date, whose poverty rate falls below 10% (for
Metropolitan areas) or below 15% (for Non-Metropolitan areas); or (b)
an area designated by a State or local Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP)
as a high opportunity area whose poverty rate falls below 10% (for
Metropolitan areas) or 15% (for Non-Metropolitan areas). The CDFI Fund
will publish a dataset on its website indicating which census tracts
are designated as High Opportunity Areas for the FY 2024 CMF Funding
Round.
(B) Expanded CMF HOA Criteria: The CMF Program will accept an
expanded definition of High Opportunity Area for areas that do not meet
the Federal Housing Finance Agency definition, but instead meet a set
of Expanded CMF HOA Criteria demonstrating the designated area(s)
provide access to a combination of at least three of the following four
criteria: (1) high-quality youth (K-12) education opportunities; (2)
employment opportunities; (3) transportation opportunities; and/or (4)
financial service opportunities. For a Project to qualify as being in a
High Opportunity Area under the Expanded CMF HOA Criteria definition,
the location of the Project must meet at least three of the four
Expanded CMF HOA Criteria and cannot be located in a Food Desert as
identified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (<a href="https://www.ers.usda.gov/data/fooddesert">https://www.ers.usda.gov/data/fooddesert</a>) as of the publication date of this
NOFA in the Federal Register.
I. CMF HOA Criteria Definitions: To meet the Expanded CMF HOA
definition, the location must meet at least three of the following four
CMF HOA Criteria:
(1) Access to High-Quality Youth (K-12) Education: To meet the
high-quality youth (K-12) education criterion, the CMF-financed/
supported rental unit(s) must be: (i) located in an area served by a
school that, in any of the three years prior to the date of this NOFA,
has been either recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a
National Blue Ribbon School, or has received the highest rating
available from its State's education agency; and (ii) available to
Families living in CMF-financed/supported rental units.
(2) Access to Employment: To meet the access to employment
criterion, the CMF-financed/supported rental unit(s) must be located
within a one-mile radius of one of the 25 largest employers in the
applicable county. The largest employers in the county are measured by
number of employees at the location(s) in the applicable county.
(3) Access to Transportation: To meet the access to transportation
criterion, the CMF-financed/supported rental unit(s) must be within \1/
4\ mile of a multi-modal transit station (includes at least two forms
of public transit such as metro, light rail, bus, ferry, or trolley) if
located in a Metropolitan Area. The CMF-financed/supported rental
unit(s) must be within two miles of ``Fixed-route Public
Transportation'' if located in a rural (``Non-Metropolitan'') area.
``Fixed-route Public Transportation'' means year-round, regularly
scheduled public transportation that operates at least 5 days per week
and provides regular service throughout the day.
(4) Access to Financial Services: To meet the access to financial
services criterion, the CMF-financed/supported rental unit(s) must be
in a census tract with a bank or credit union branch presence that is
staffed to provide walk-in banking or credit union financial services
(i.e., not simply a standalone, unstaffed, automated teller machine
(ATM)).
E. Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit
Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR part 1000): The Uniform
Administrative Requirements codify financial, administrative,
procurement, and program management standards that Federal award-making
agencies must follow. Per the Uniform Administrative Requirements, when
evaluating award Applications, awarding agencies must evaluate each
Applicant's merits, eligibility, and any risks to the program posed by
each Applicant. These requirements are designed to ensure that
Applicants for Federal assistance receive a fair and consistent review
prior to an award decision. This review will assess items such as the
Applicant's financial stability, quality of management systems, history
of performance, and single audit findings. In addition, the Uniform
Administrative Requirements include guidance on audit requirements and
other award compliance requirements for award Recipients.
F. Priorities: The purpose of the CMF is to attract private capital
for and increase investment in the Development, Preservation,
Rehabilitation, or Purchase of Affordable Housing for primarily
Extremely Low-Income, Very Low-Income, and Low-Income Families, as well
as Economic Development Activities, which, In Conjunction With
Affordable Housing Activities, implement a Concerted Strategy to
stabilize or revitalize a Low-Income Area or Underserved Rural Area. To
pursue these objectives, the CDFI Fund has established the following
priorities for the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round: (i) Applications where at
least 20% of all rental Affordable Housing units that
[[Page 11927]]
will be financed and/or supported with FY 2024 CMF Awards are reserved
for Very Low-Income Families, and/or at least 20% of all Homeownership
Affordable Housing units are reserved for Low-Income Families; (ii)
Applications where rental Affordable Housing units located in either
Areas of Economic Distress (AED) and/or High Opportunity Areas (HOA)
are reserved for Eligible-Income Families; (iii) Applications where
Homeownership Affordable Housing units are for (a) Families with
incomes above 80% and no greater than 120% of AMI located in an AED,
(b) Low-Income Families (up to 80% of the AMI), or (c) a combination of
(a) and (b); and (iv) Applications proposing to use the CMF Award to
leverage private capital to finance and/or support Affordable Housing
Activities and Economic Development Activities. Additionally, the CDFI
Fund seeks to fund Applications serving geographically diverse Areas of
Economic Distress, including Metropolitan Areas and Underserved Rural
Areas. In particular, the priority for geographic diversity includes
funding highly qualified Applications that serve States and Territories
not included in the Service Areas of Recipients in the past two CMF
rounds FY 2021 and FY 2023: American Samoa, the Northern Mariana
Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Wyoming. G. 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.
II. Federal Award Information
A. Funding Availability: The CDFI Fund plans to award approximately
$246.5 million in grants for the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round under this
NOFA. Eligible organizations of all sizes are encouraged to apply,
including new and previous Applicants, past CMF Recipients, and
Applicants focused on Homeownership, rental housing, or both. HERA
prohibits the CDFI Fund from obligating more than 15% of the aggregate
available in CMF Awards to any Applicant, its Subsidiaries, and its
Affiliates in the same funding round. In past rounds, the CDFI Fund has
provided Awards smaller than the statutory cap. For example, in the
last three funding rounds, Awards ranged from $750,000 to $12,000,000,
with an average Award of $5.2 million. Given the administrative and
compliance responsibilities for Recipients, the CDFI Fund will not
accept Applications that request less than $500,000 and will not
provide Awards below $500,000 to any CMF Award Recipients.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
provide a CMF Award in an amount other than that which the Applicant
requests. However, the Award amount will not exceed the Applicant's
Award request as stated in its Application. An Applicant may receive
only one Award through the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round. Affiliates of
Applicants are not allowed to apply separately.
B. Types of Awards: The CDFI Fund will provide CMF Awards in the
form of grants. CMF Awards must be used to support the eligible
activities as set forth in 12 CFR 1807.301.
A CMF Award Recipient may not distribute the CMF Award to any
Affiliate, Subsidiary, or third-party entity in any manner that would
create a Subrecipient relationship (as defined in the Uniform
Administrative Requirements) without the CDFI Fund's prior written
consent. The Recipient of a CMF Award must retain all obligations
related to the Award. This restriction does not prevent a Recipient
from loaning or investing directly in an Affiliate (separate legal
entity) or in a specific Project being undertaken by an Affiliate. With
the exception of Depository Institution Holding Company Applicants, CMF
Awards may not be passed through, transferred, or co-awarded to, third-
party entities, whether Affiliates, Subsidiaries, or others, pursuant
to a merger or acquisition or similar transaction, and with the CDFI
Fund's prior written consent.
C. Limitations on using CMF Awards in conjunction with other CDFI
Fund Awards/allocations:
1. A CMF Award Recipient may not use its CMF Award for any Project
that also receives funding from other CDFI Fund program awards or
allocations the Recipient (or any of its Affiliates) has received,
except when the CMF Award dollars are used to finance/support a
different ``phase'' of development in the same Project than that
financed by other CDFI Fund awards or allocations. The separate phases
of development financing are: (i) Predevelopment; (ii) acquisition;
(iii) site work (preconstruction); (iv) construction/rehabilitation;
(v) permanent financing; or (vi) bridge financing between two or more
phases. This restriction does not apply to the Recipient's prior CMF
Awards. The Recipient may combine its multiple CMF Awards to provide
financing on any Project, including financing the same phase of any
Project.
However, the Recipient may not deem the same costs as Eligible
Project Costs under multiple CMF Awards and must prorate the unit
production performance across its multiple CMF Awards. Recipients using
a Consortium Approach (see Section III.E.1) with separate CMF Awards
from the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round must use their Awards to finance the
same Projects. For these Projects, Eligible Project Costs, unit
production, and Leveraged Costs are prorated.
If providing Homeownership assistance, a CMF Award may be used in
conjunction with awards/allocations from other CDFI Fund programs only
if the Project can be divided into such phases (e.g., construction of
for-sale housing) and the CMF Award is used in a different phase from
the other CDFI Fund program awards/allocations. However, in the case of
Homeownership purchase assistance, a CMF Award cannot be used for a
Homeownership property that is permanently financed (or supported) by
mortgages funded by both the Recipient's (or any of its Affiliates')
CMF Award, and an award/Allocation from another CDFI Fund program, or
that of another CMF Recipient.
2. As further set forth in the Assistance Agreement, CMF Recipients
shall not count or report as Leveraged Costs pursuant to this NOFA any
costs financed and/or supported by a Recipient's awards/allocations
from other CDFI Fund programs or awards/allocations from other CMF
Recipients, including awards from prior CMF rounds. While a Recipient
may combine its CMF Award pursuant to this NOFA with other CMF Awards
to finance/support the same Project, each CMF Award must separately
meet the program requirements as outlined in the applicable Assistance
Agreement and the CMF Interim Rule (12 CFR part 1807).
In all cases, the CMF Award remains subject to the following
restriction imposed by the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program: award funds
received under any CDFI Fund program cannot be used by any participant
of the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program, including Qualified Issuers,
Eligible CDFIs, and Secondary Borrowers, to pay principal, interest,
fees, administrative costs, or issuance costs (including Bond Issuance
Fees) related to the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program, or to fund the Risk
Share Pool for a Bond Issue (all capitalized terms used in this
sentence, other than ``CMF Award,'' shall have the meanings ascribed to
them in the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program regulations and applicable
guidance).
D. Anticipated Start Date and Period of Performance: The CDFI Fund
anticipates the period of performance for the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round
to
[[Page 11928]]
begin in 2024. The period of performance, which includes the five-year
investment period, for each CMF Award begins on the date the CDFI Fund
announces the Recipients of the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round Awards and
continues until the end of the ten-year period of affordability for all
Projects financed and/or supported with the CMF Award, as set forth at
12 CFR 1807.401(d) and 12 CFR 1807.402, and as further set forth in the
Assistance Agreement, during which time the Recipient must meet certain
Performance Goals.
E. Eligible Activities: A CMF Award must support or finance
activities that attract private capital for and increase investment in:
(i) the Development, Preservation, Rehabilitation, or Purchase of
Affordable Housing for primarily Low-, Very Low-, and Extremely Low-
Income Families; and (ii) Economic Development Activities. CMF Awards
may only be used as follows: (i) to provide Loan Loss Reserves; (ii) to
capitalize a Revolving Loan Fund; (iii) to capitalize an Affordable
Housing Fund; (iv) to capitalize a fund to support Economic Development
Activities; (v) for Risk-Sharing Loans; or (vi) to provide Loan
Guarantees. No more than 30% of a CMF Award may be used for Economic
Development Activities. The CDFI Fund allows all Recipients to use up
to 5% of their CMF Award for Direct Administrative Expenses. The amount
available for Direct Administrative Expenses may only be used for
direct costs (as defined by the Uniform Administrative Requirements)
incurred by the Recipient and related to the financing and/or support
of a Project. The CDFI Fund considers the tracking of impacts and
outcomes associated with Projects financed and/or supported by a CMF
Award to fall under Direct Administrative Expenses. Any portion of the
amount available for Direct Administrative Expenses may be used for
direct costs related to the effective tracking and evaluation of
program or evidence-based outcomes for Projects.
The CDFI Fund recognizes that some CMF Recipients, due to their
business model, may need to work with a third-party originator to
originate the CMF loans for mortgage financing. The CMF regulations in
12 CFR 1807.104 defines ``Purchase'' as ``to provide direct financing
to a Family for purposes of Homeownership.'' The CDFI Fund hereby
clarifies that under the definition of ``Purchase,'' a CMF Recipient
may use its CMF Award to purchase CMF eligible loans from a third-party
originator within 12 months of origination. The CDFI Fund deems the CMF
Recipient's purchase of the CMF eligible loans as ``direct'' financing
under the definition of ``Purchase.'' The CMF Recipient must work with
the third-party originator to identify income eligible borrowers and
ensure the loans and associated Affordable Housing meet all of the
requirements of 12 CFR part 1807.
III. Eligibility Information
A. Eligible Applicants: In order to be eligible to apply for a CMF
Award, an Applicant must either be a Certified CDFI or a Nonprofit
Organization, as defined in 12 CFR 1807.104. Table 2 indicates the
criteria that each category of Applicant must meet in order to be
eligible for a CMF Award pursuant to this NOFA. Note: A Certified CDFI
that is also a Nonprofit Organization only needs to meet the Certified
CDFI eligibility criteria described in Table 2, below, to be eligible
for a CMF Award. Applicants may be members applying under a Consortium
Approach comprised of eligible Applicants, but each Consortium member
must separately apply and be individually eligible to receive a CMF
Award.
Table 2--Applicant Eligibility Requirements
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category Eligibility requirements
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Certified CDFI............... <bullet> An Applicant must be duly
organized as a legal entity (within the
United States or its territories).
<bullet> Has been in existence as a
legally formed entity for at least three
(3) years prior to the AMIS Application
deadline under this NOFA;
<bullet> Has been determined by the CDFI
Fund to meet the CDFI certification
requirements set forth in 12 CFR
1805.201 and as verified in the CDFI's
AMIS account as of the publication date
of this NOFA in the Federal Register;
and
<bullet> Has not been notified in writing
by the CDFI Fund that its certification
has been terminated since the
publication date of this NOFA.
<bullet> If a Certified CDFI loses its
certification at any point prior to the
Award announcement, the Application will
be deemed ineligible and no longer be
considered by the CDFI Fund. Post-Award,
if a CMF Recipient loses its CDFI
Certification, its compliance status
with respect to the Assistance Agreement
will be reviewed by the Office of
Compliance Monitoring and Evaluation
(OCME) in accordance with the terms of
the Assistance Agreement.
<bullet> In cases where the CDFI Fund has
provided a Certified CDFI with written
notification that it no longer meets one
or more certification standards and it
has been given an opportunity to cure,
the CDFI Fund will continue to deem this
Applicant to be a Certified CDFI until
it has received a final determination
letter that its certification has been
terminated. A Certified CDFI is
considered eligible for an Award until a
final certification determination has
been made, and a final determination
letter has been provided to the
Applicant by the CDFI Fund.
<bullet> Has audited financial statements
encompassing its two most recent
historic fiscal years prior to the
publication date of this NOFA.\1\ A
Regulated Institution that files call
reports to its regulator is exempt from
this requirement and must attach call
reports for its two most recent historic
fiscal years in lieu of audited
financial statements.
Nonprofit Organization....... <bullet> An Applicant must be duly
organized as a legal entity (within the
United States or its territories).
<bullet> Has been in existence as a
legally formed entity for at least three
(3) years prior to the AMIS Application
deadline under this NOFA;
<bullet> Meets the definition of
Nonprofit Organization set forth in 12
CFR 1807.104;
<bullet> Demonstrates, through articles
of incorporation, by-laws, or other
board-approved documents, that the
development or management of affordable
housing are among its principal
purposes;
<bullet> Demonstrates by providing an
attestation in the Application that at
least 33.3% of its total assets are
dedicated to the development or
management of affordable housing; and
<bullet> Has audited financial statements
encompassing its two most recent
historic fiscal years prior to the
publication date of this NOFA.\1\ A
Regulated Institution that files call
reports to its regulator is exempt from
this requirement and must attach call
reports for its two most recent historic
fiscal years in lieu of audited
financial statements.
Debarment/Do Not Pay <bullet> The CDFI Fund will conduct a
Verification. debarment check and will not consider an
Application submitted by an Applicant if
the Applicant (or Affiliate of an
Applicant identified in AMIS) is
delinquent on any Federal debt.
<bullet> 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.
System for Award Management <bullet> Each Applicant must have its own
(SAM). active SAM registration in order to
submit the required Application
materials through <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>.
[[Page 11929]]
<bullet> SAM is a web-based, government-
wide application that collects,
validates, stores, and disseminates
business information about the Federal
Government's trading partners in support
of the contract awards, grants, and
electronic payment processes. See
<a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a> for more information.
<bullet> Applicants that have an active
SAM registration have been assigned a
UEI. Applicants must also have an EIN
number in order to register in <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>.
<bullet> Applicants must complete
registration in <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a> in order to be
able to complete the <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>
registration and submit an SF-424.
<bullet> The CDFI Fund reserves the right
to deem an Application ineligible if the
Applicant's SAM account expires during
the Application evaluation period, or is
set to expire before December 31, 2024,
and the Applicant does not re-activate
or renew (as applicable) the account
within the deadlines that the CDFI Fund
communicates to affected Applicants
during the Application evaluation
period.
Application type and <bullet> Each Applicant must submit the
submission method through required Application documents listed in
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and Awards Table 4.
Management Information <bullet> The CDFI Fund will only accept
System (AMIS). Applications that use the official
Application templates provided on the
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and AMIS websites.
Applications submitted with alternative
or altered templates will not be
considered.
<bullet> Applicants undergo a two-step
process that requires the submission of
Application documents by two separate
deadlines in two different locations:
(1) the SF-424 in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and (2) all
other Required Application Documents in
AMIS.
<bullet> <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and the SF-424
Mandatory form:
[cir] Applicants must submit the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)-
approved Standard Form (SF) 424
Mandatory (Application for Federal
Assistance) form in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>.
[cir] All Applicants must register in
the <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> system to successfully
submit an Application. The <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>
registration process can take 30 days
or more to complete. The CDFI Fund
strongly encourages Applicants to
register as early as possible to meet
the deadlines in Table 1 and Table 6.
[cir] The SF-424 must be submitted in
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> before the other
Application materials are submitted
in AMIS. Applicants are strongly
encouraged to submit their SF-424 as
early as possible via the <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>
portal.
[cir] Because the SF-424 is part of
the Application, if the SF-424 is not
accepted by <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> by the
applicable deadline, the Applicant
will not be able to submit the AMIS
Application.
[cir] The SF-424 must be submitted
under the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round
CMF Funding Opportunity Number.
[cir] The CDFI Fund will not extend
the SF-424 application deadline for
any Applicant that started the
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> registration process on,
before, or after the date of the
publication of this NOFA, but did not
complete it by the deadline, except
in the case of a Federal Government
administrative or technological error
that directly resulted in precluding
an Applicant from submitting the SF-
424 by the required deadline.
<bullet> AMIS:
[cir] Applicants must submit all other
required Application materials in
AMIS.
[cir] AMIS is the CDFI Fund's
enterprise-wide information
technology system that will be used
to submit and store organization and
Application information with the CDFI
Fund.
[cir] Applicants are only allowed one
Capital Magnet Fund Application
submission per funding round in AMIS.
[cir] Members of a Consortium must
submit every component of the
Application separately and
independently from other members of
the Consortium.
[cir] Each Application in AMIS must be
signed by an Authorized
Representative. The Authorized
Representative is an employee or
officer of the Applicant, authorized
to sign legal documents on behalf of
the organization. Consultants working
on behalf of the organization may not
be designated as Authorized
Representatives.
[cir] Only an Authorized
Representative or Application Point
of Contact included in the
Application may submit the
Application in AMIS.
[cir] All Required Application
Documents must be submitted in AMIS
on or before the deadline specified
in Table 1.
[cir] The CDFI Fund will not extend
the deadline for any Applicant except
in the case of a Federal Government
administrative or technological error
that directly resulted in precluding
an Applicant from submitting the
Application in AMIS by the required
deadline.
Employer Identification <bullet> Each Applicant must have a
Number (EIN). unique EIN assigned by the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS).
<bullet> The CDFI Fund will reject an
Application submitted with the EIN of a
parent or Affiliate of the Applicant.
<bullet> The EIN in the Applicant's AMIS
account must match the EIN on the SF-424
submitted through <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and the EIN
in the Applicant's System for Award
Management (SAM) account. The CDFI Fund
reserves the right to reject an
Application if the EIN in the
Applicant's AMIS account does not match
the EIN on the SF-424 and/or its SAM
account.
<bullet> The EIN of the Applicant must be
entered into the AMIS organization
profile by the applicable deadline in
Table 1.
Unique Entity Identifier <bullet> The CDFI Fund will reject an
(UEI). Application submitted with the UEI
number of a parent or Affiliate
organization of an Applicant.
<bullet> The UEI number in the
Applicant's AMIS account must match the
UEI number in the Applicant's <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>
and SAM accounts.
<bullet> The CDFI Fund will reject an
Application if the UEI number in the
Applicant's AMIS account does not match
the UEI number in its <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and SAM
accounts.
<bullet> Applicants must enter their UEI
number into their AMIS profile on or
before the deadline specified in Table
1.
AMIS Account................. <bullet> Each Applicant, including each
Consortium Member, must register as an
organization in AMIS and submit all
required Application materials through
the AMIS portal.
<bullet> If the Applicant does not fully
register its organization in AMIS by the
deadline set forth in Table 1, its
Application will be rejected without
further consideration.
<bullet> The Authorized Representative
and Application Point of Contact must be
included as ``users'' in the Applicant's
AMIS account.
<bullet> An Applicant that fails to
properly register and update its AMIS
account may miss important
communications from the CDFI Fund or not
be able to successfully submit an
Application.
<bullet> In cases where a Federal
Government administrative or
technological error directly resulted in
precluding an Applicant from creating an
AMIS account by the required deadline,
the Applicant must submit a written
request for approval to create its AMIS
account after the deadline, and include
documentation of the error, no later
than two business days after the AMIS
account creation deadline specified in
Tables 1 and 6. The CDFI Fund will not
respond to requests for creating an AMIS
account after that time. Applicants must
submit such request via an AMIS Service
Request to the CMF Program with a
subject line of ``AMIS Account Creation
Deadline Extension Request.''
501(c)(4) status............. <bullet> Pursuant to 2 U.S.C. 1611, any
501(c)(4) organization that engages in
lobbying activities is not eligible to
apply for or receive a CMF Award.
Compliance with <bullet> An Applicant * may not be
Nondiscrimination and Equal eligible to receive a CMF Award if
Opportunity Statutes, proceedings were instituted against it
Regulations, and Executive in, by, or before any court,
Orders. governmental agency, or administrative
body, and a final determination was made
within the time period beginning three
years prior to the publication of this
NOFA through the execution of the
Assistance Agreement, declaring that the
Applicant violated any Federal civil
rights laws or regulations, including,
but not limited to: Title VI of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (42
U.S.C. 2000d et seq.); Fair Housing Act
(42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.); Equal Credit
Opportunity Act (15 U.S.C. 1691 et
seq.); section 504 of the Rehabilitation
Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794); and the Age
Discrimination Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C.
6101-6107); and Title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.).
[[Page 11930]]
<bullet> Applicants * will be required to
submit the Title VI Compliance Worksheet
(Worksheet) once each calendar year to
assist the CDFI Fund in determining
whether Applicants are compliant with
the Treasury regulations implementing
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
(Title VI), set forth in 31 CFR part 22,
Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Race,
Color, or National Origin in Programs or
Activities Receiving Federal Financial
Assistance from the Department of the
Treasury.
<bullet> In addition, an Applicant * must
be compliant with Federal civil rights
requirements in order to be deemed
eligible to receive an award from the
CDFI Fund. The CDFI Fund will consider
an Application submitted by an Applicant
that may have pending Title VI
noncompliance issues; however, until the
CDFI Fund makes a final determination
that the Applicant is Title VI
compliant, it will not enter into an
Assistance Agreement.
<bullet> The Title VI Compliance
Worksheet and program award terms and
conditions do not impose
antidiscrimination requirements on
Tribal governments beyond what would
otherwise apply under Federal law.
Depository Institution <bullet> If a Depository Institution
Holding Company Applicant. Holding Company and its Certified CDFI
Subsidiary Insured Depository
Institution both apply for a CMF Program
grant, only the Depository Institution
Holding Company will receive an Award,
not both. In such instances, the
Subsidiary Insured Depository
Institution will be deemed ineligible.
<bullet> The Authorized Representative of
the Depository Institution Holding
Company Applicant must certify that the
information included in the Application
represents that of the Subsidiary CDFI
Insured Depository Institution, and that
the Award will be used to support the
Subsidiary CDFI Insured Depository
Institution for the eligible activities
outlined in the Application.
Regulated Institutions \2\... <bullet> To be eligible for an Award,
each Regulated Institution Applicant
must have a CAMELS/CAMEL composite
rating (rating for banks and credit
unions, respectively), by its Federal
regulator of at least ``3'' or State
regulator equivalent.
<bullet> Organizations with CAMELS/CAMEL
composite ratings of ``4'' or ``5'' will
not be eligible for Awards.
<bullet> Organizations with a Prompt
Corrective Action directive from its
regulator will not be eligible for
Awards.
<bullet> In the case of a Depository
Institution Holding Company Applicant
that intends to carry out the Award
through a Subsidiary Insured Depository
Institution, the CAMELS/CAMEL rating
eligibility requirements noted above
apply to both the Depository Institution
Holding Company Applicant, as well as
the Subsidiary Insured Depository
Institution.
<bullet> The CDFI Fund will also evaluate
material concerns identified by the
Appropriate Federal Banking Agency or
Appropriate State Agency in determining
eligibility of Regulated Institution
Applicants.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* For Depository Institution Holding Company Applicants, the Title VI
Compliance Worksheet requirement also applies to the Applicant's
Subsidiary Depository Institution.
Any Applicant that does not meet the criteria in Table 2 is
ineligible to apply for a CMF Award under this NOFA. Further, Section
III.B describes additional considerations applicable to prior
Recipients and/or allocatees under any CDFI Fund program.
B. Prior Award Recipients: Eligibility determinations in prior
funding rounds have no bearing on and do not guarantee eligibility in
this round. Prior CMF Award Recipients and prior award recipients of
other CDFI Fund programs will be eligible to apply under this NOFA if
they meet the eligibility criteria in Table 2, except as noted in Table
3.
Table 3--Eligibility Requirements for Applicants Which Are Prior Award/
Allocation Recipients
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Criteria Description
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pending resolution of default <bullet> If an Applicant (or Affiliate of
or noncompliance. an Applicant identified in AMIS) that is
a prior recipient or allocatee under any
CDFI Fund program: (i) has demonstrated
it has been in default or 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 noncompliance
with or 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 default or noncompliance.
Default or Noncompliance <bullet> The CDFI Fund will not consider
status. an Application submitted by an Applicant
that is a prior CDFI Fund Recipient or
allocatee under any CDFI Fund program
if, as of the AMIS Application deadline
of this NOFA, the Applicant (or
Affiliate of an Applicant identified in
AMIS) is noncompliant or found in
default with a previously executed award
agreement(s), assistance agreement(s),
allocation agreement(s), bond loan
agreement(s) or agreement(s) to
guarantee and the CDFI Fund has provided
written notification that the Applicant
is ineligible to apply for or receive
any future awards or allocations for a
time period specified by the CDFI Fund
in writing.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
C. Contacting the CDFI Fund: Applicants that are prior Recipients
and/or allocatees under any CDFI Fund program are advised to comply
with requirements specified in an Assistance Agreement, allocation
agreement, bond loan agreement, or agreement to guarantee, and to
ensure their Affiliates are in compliance with any agreements. All
outstanding reporting and compliance questions should be directed to
the Office of Compliance Monitoring and Evaluation help desk by AMIS
Service Requests (select ``Capital Magnet Fund'' for ``Program''). For
general questions, organizations with an AMIS account are strongly
encouraged to submit a Service Request in AMIS using ``Capital Magnet
Fund'' for the Service Request program. Members of the public that do
not have AMIS accounts can contact Capital Magnet Fund staff via email
at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#77141a11371413111e59030512160459101801"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="bfdcd2d9ffdcdbd9d691cbcddadecc91d8d0c9">[email protected]</span></a>. The CDFI Fund will not respond to Applicants'
reporting, compliance, or disbursement related telephone calls or email
inquiries that are received after 5:00 p.m. ET on April 12, 2024, until
after the Application deadline. The CDFI Fund will respond to technical
issues related to AMIS Accounts through 5:00 p.m. ET on April 16, 2024,
via AMIS Service Requests, or at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f5b4b8bca6b59691939cdb8187909486db929a83"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="8bcac6c2d8cbe8efede2a5fff9eeeaf8a5ece4fd">[email protected]</span></a>, or by telephone
at (202) 653-0422.
D. Cost sharing or matching funds requirements: Not applicable.
E. Other Eligibility Criteria:
1. Consortium Approach: To be eligible under a Consortium Approach,
individual members of a Consortium must submit individual Applications
and meet the eligibility criteria defined in Table 2 on a stand-alone
basis. If awarded, each Recipient will receive a separate Award, and be
required to meet the terms of its individual Assistance Agreement. The
CDFI Fund will require Recipients using the Consortium Approach to
enter into a CMF Recipient Consortium Member Agreement, which will
specify the binding commitments of each member.
All Consortium members must invest their individual Awards in the
same Projects as the other Consortium members. A Consortium is not
required
[[Page 11931]]
to be a legally formed entity; however, each Consortium member is asked
to submit a Service Request in AMIS notifying the CDFI Fund of the
organization's intent to apply under this NOFA as a Consortium member
by the required deadline specified in Table 1, and if awarded a CMF
Award, must enter into a Recipient Consortium Member Agreement.
If one or more members indicate an intent to apply under the
Consortium Approach but fail to meet the eligibility criteria in Table
2, or are otherwise not eligible for an Award, the CDFI Fund reserves
the right to review the other Applications on a stand-alone basis and
not as a Consortium.
2. Affiliates: As part of the Application review process, the CDFI
Fund considers whether Applicants are Affiliates, as defined in 12 CFR
1805.104. If an Applicant and its Affiliate(s) wish to submit an
Application, they must do so through one of the Affiliated entities, in
one Application; an Applicant and its Affiliates may not submit
separate Applications. If Affiliates submit multiple or separate
Applications, the CDFI Fund may, at its discretion, reject all such
Applications received or select only one of the submitted Applications
to be deemed eligible, assuming that Application meets all other
eligibility criteria in Section III of this NOFA.
3. Minimum Leverage Multiplier: An Applicant will not be eligible
to receive a CMF Award if the Applicant fails to demonstrate in the
Application that its CMF Award would result in Eligible Project Costs
(Leveraged Costs plus those costs funded by the CMF Award) that equal
at least 10 times the amount of the CMF Award. Note that no costs
attributable to Direct Administrative Expenses may be considered
Eligible Project Costs.
IV. Application and Submission Information
A. Address to Request Application Package: Application materials
can be found on <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and the CDFI Fund's website at
<a href="http://www.cdfifund.gov/cmf">www.cdfifund.gov/cmf</a>. If an Applicant is unable to access <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> or
the CDFI Fund's website, an Applicant may request a paper version of
any Application material by contacting the CDFI Fund Help Desk by email
at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#46252b20062522202f68323423273568212930"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1d7e707b5d7e797b7433696f787c6e337a726b">[email protected]</span></a>.
B. Content and Form of Application Submission: The CDFI Fund will
post to its website, at <a href="http://www.cdfifund.gov/cmf">www.cdfifund.gov/cmf</a>, instructions for
accessing and submitting an Application. Detailed Application content
requirements are found in the Application and related guidance
documents. All Applications must be prepared in English and
calculations must be made in U.S. dollars. Table 4 lists the required
funding Application documents. Applicants must submit all required
documents for the Application to be deemed complete. Please be aware
that an Applicant that fails to submit audited financial statements for
its two most recent historic fiscal years will be deemed as not having
a complete Application and will be considered ineligible. A Regulated
Institution that submits call reports for its two most recent historic
fiscal years is exempted from this requirement. 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. Information submitted by the Applicant that the CDFI Fund
has not specifically requested will not be reviewed or considered as
part of the Application. Information submitted must accurately reflect
the Applicant's activities and/or its Subsidiary Insured Depository
Institution, in the case where the Applicant is an Insured Depository
Institution Holding Company intending to carry out the activities of
the Award through its Subsidiary Insured Depository Institution.
Table 4--Funding Application Documents
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Application document Submission format Required?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Standard Form (SF) 424 Mandatory Form. Fillable PDF in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>. Required for all Applicants.
CMF Application....................... AMIS....................... Required for all Applicants.
Attachments to the Application:
Title VI Compliance Worksheet *... Fillable form in AMIS...... Required for all Applicants.
Audited financial statements for PDF in AMIS................ Required for all Applicants.
the two most recent historic
fiscal years. Regulated
Institutions may submit call
reports in lieu of audited
financial statements.
Any Management Letters, if PDF in AMIS................ Required for all Applicants.
applicable, related to the
audited financial statements for
the two most recent historic
fiscal years. The Management
Letter is prepared by the
Applicant's auditor and provides
communication on internal control
over financial reporting,
compliance, and other matters.\3\
If no Management Letter was
issued for either of the
Applicant's two most recent
historic fiscal years, the
Applicant will complete an
attestation in the Application in
lieu of attaching a separate
statement.
State Charter, Articles of PDF in AMIS................ Required only for Applicants that are not
Incorporation, authorizing Certified CDFIs.
statute, or other establishing
documents designating that the
Applicant is a nonprofit or not-
for-profit entity under the laws
of the organization's State of
formation.
A certification demonstrating tax PDF in AMIS................ Required only for Applicants that are not
exempt status from the IRS. Only Certified CDFIs.
Applicants that are governmental
instrumentalities and are unable
to provide such determination
from the IRS and meet all other
eligibility requirements, must
submit a legal opinion from
counsel, in form and substance
acceptable to the CDFI Fund,
opining that the Applicant is
exempt from Federal income tax.
Articles of incorporation, by- PDF in AMIS................ Required only for Applicants that are not
laws, authorizing statute, or Certified CDFIs.
other documents demonstrating
that the Applicant has a
principal purpose of managing or
developing affordable housing.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* For Depository Institution Holding Company Applicants, the Title VI Compliance Worksheet requirement also
applies to the Applicant's Subsidiary Depository Institution.
C. Application Submission: The CDFI Fund has a sequential, two-step
process that requires the submission of Application documents in
separate systems with two separate deadlines. The SF-424 must be
submitted through <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and all other Application documents
through the AMIS portal. The CDFI Fund will not accept Applications via
email, mail, facsimile, or other forms of communication, except in
extremely rare circumstances that have been pre-approved by the CDFI
Fund. The separate Application deadlines for the SF-424 and all other
Application materials are listed in Tables 1 and 6. Only the Authorized
Representative for the Organization or Application Point of Contact
designated in AMIS may submit the Application through AMIS. Applicants
are strongly encouraged to submit the SF-424 as early as possible
through <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> in order to provide sufficient time to
[[Page 11932]]
resolve any potential submission issues. Applicants should contact
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> directly with questions related to the registration or
submission process, as the CDFI Fund does not administer the <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>
system.
The CDFI Fund strongly encourages Applicants to start the
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> registration process as soon as possible, as it may take
several weeks to complete (refer to the following link: <a href="http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html">http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html</a>). An Applicant that has
previously registered with <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> must verify that its registration
is current and active. If an Applicant has not previously registered
with <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>, it must first successfully register in <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>, as
described in Section IV.D below.
D. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): The UEI, generated in the System
for Award Management (<a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>), has become the official identifier for
doing business with the Federal Government. This allows the Federal
Government to streamline the entity identification and validation
process, making it easier and less burdensome for entities to do
business with the Federal Government. If an entity is registered in
<a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a> today, its UEI has already been assigned and is viewable in
<a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>, including inactive registrations. New registrants will be
assigned a UEI as part of their SAM registration.
E. System for Award Management (SAM): Any entity applying for
Federal grants or other forms of Federal financial assistance through
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> must be registered in SAM before submitting its Application
materials through that platform. When accessing <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>, users will be
asked to create a <a href="http://Login.gov">Login.gov</a> user account (if they do not already have
one). Going forward, users will use their <a href="http://Login.gov">Login.gov</a> username and
password every time when logging into <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>. The SAM registration
process can take four weeks or longer to complete so Applicants are
strongly encouraged to begin the registration process upon publication
of this NOFA in order to avoid potential Application submission issues.
An original, signed notarized letter identifying the authorized entity
administrator for the entity associated with the UEI number is required
by SAM and must be mailed to the Federal Service Desk. This requirement
is applicable to new entities registering in SAM or on existing
registrations where there is no existing entity administrator. Existing
entities with registered entity administrators do not need to submit an
annual notarized letter. Applicants that have previously completed the
SAM registration process must verify that their SAM accounts are
current and active. Applicants are required to maintain a current and
active SAM account at all times during which it has an active Federal
award or an application under consideration for an award 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 the SF-424 in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> or the Application by the
applicable 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 <a href="https://www.sam.gov">https://www.sam.gov</a> or call 866-606-8220.
Table 5_Grants.gov Registration Timeline Summary
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Step Agency Estimated minimum time to complete
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Obtain an EIN Number.................. Internal Revenue Service (IRS)..... Two Weeks.*
Register in <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>................... System for Award Management (SAM). Four Weeks.*
This step will include obtaining a
UEI.
Register in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>................ <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>......................... One Week.**
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Applicants are advised that the stated duration are estimates only and represent minimum timeframes. Actual
timeframes may take longer. The CDFI Fund will not consider any Applicant that fails to properly register or
activate its SAM account, has not yet received a UEI number, and/or fails to properly register in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>.
** This estimate assumes an Applicant has a UEI number, an EIN number, and is already registered in <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>.
F. Submission Dates and Times:
1. Submission Deadlines: Table 6 lists the deadlines for submission
of the documents related to this CMF Funding Round:
Table 6--FY 2024 CMF Funding Round Deadlines for Applicants
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Document Deadline Time--Eastern Time (ET) Submission method
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SF-424 Mandatory form.......... March 14, 2024....... 11:59 p.m. ET............. Electronically via
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>.
Create AMIS Account (if the March 14, 2024....... 11:59 p.m. ET............. Electronically via AMIS.
Applicant does not already
have one).
Enter or update the EIN and UEI March 14, 2024....... 11:59 p.m. ET............. Electronically via AMIS.
numbers in AMIS.
Title VI Compliance Worksheet * March 14, 2024....... 11:59 p.m. ET............. Electronically via AMIS.
For Consortium Approach March 14, 2024....... 11:59 p.m. ET............. Electronically via AMIS.
Applicants only: Applicants
are asked to submit a Service
Request in AMIS notifying the
CMF Program of the
organization's intent to apply
as a Consortium Member using
the Consortium Approach.
CMF Application and Required April 16, 2024....... 11:59 p.m. ET............. Electronically via AMIS.
Attachments.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* For Depository Institution Holding Company Applicants, the Title VI Compliance Worksheet requirement also
applies to the Applicant's Subsidiary Depository Institution.
2. Confirmation of Application Submission in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and AMIS:
Applicants are required to submit the SF-424 Mandatory Form through the
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> system under the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round Capital Magnet
Fund Funding Opportunity Number (listed at the beginning of this NOFA).
All other required Application materials must be submitted through the
AMIS website. Application materials submitted through each system are
due by the applicable deadline listed in Tables 1 and 6. Applicants
must submit the SF-424 by an earlier deadline than that of the other
required Application materials in AMIS. If a valid SF-424 is not
submitted through <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> by the
[[Page 11933]]
corresponding deadline, the Applicant will not be able to submit the
additional Application materials in AMIS, and the Application will be
deemed ineligible. Thus, Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit
the SF-424 as early as possible in the <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> portal, given that
potential submission issues may impact the ability to submit a complete
Application. Applicants must also ensure that their AMIS account
contains the correct EIN and UEI numbers by the deadline listed in
Table 1 of this NOFA.
(a) <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> Submission Information: Each Applicant will receive
an initial email from <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> immediately after submitting the SF-
424, confirming that the submission has entered the <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> system.
This email will contain a tracking number for the submitted SF-424.
Within 48 hours, the Applicant will receive a second email which will
indicate if the submitted SF-424 was either successfully validated or
rejected with errors. However, Applicants should not rely on the email
notification from <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> to confirm that their SF-424 was
validated. Applicants are strongly encouraged to use the tracking
number provided in the first email to closely monitor the status of
their SF-424 by checking <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> directly. The Application materials
submitted in AMIS are not accepted by the CDFI Fund until <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>
has validated the SF-424. In the <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> Workspace function, please
note that the Application package has not been submitted if you have
not received a tracking number.
(b) AMIS Submission Information: AMIS is a web-based portal where
Applicants will directly enter their Application information and add
required attachments listed in Table 4. Each Applicant must register as
an organization in AMIS in order to submit the required Application
materials through this portal. AMIS will verify that the Applicant
provided the minimum information required to submit an Application.
Applicants are responsible for the quality and accuracy of the
information in the Application and in the attachments included in the
Application submitted in AMIS. The CDFI Fund strongly encourages the
Applicant to allow sufficient time to confirm the Application content,
review the material submitted, and remedy any issues prior to the
Application deadline. Applicants can only submit one Application in
AMIS. Upon submission, the Application will be locked and cannot be
resubmitted, edited, or modified in any way. The CDFI Fund will not
unlock or allow multiple AMIS Application submissions.
Prior to submission, each Application in AMIS must be signed by an
Authorized Representative. An Authorized Representative is an employee
or officer that has the authority to legally bind and make
representations on behalf of the Applicant; consultants working on
behalf of the Applicant cannot be designated as Authorized
Representatives. The Applicant may include consultants as Application
point(s) of contact, who will be included on any communication
regarding the Application and will be able to submit the Application
but cannot digitally sign the Application. The Authorized
Representative and/or Application point(s) of contact must be included
as ``Contacts'' in the Applicant's AMIS account. The Authorized
Representative must also be a ``user'' in AMIS. An Applicant that fails
to properly register and update its AMIS account may miss important
communications from the CDFI Fund or fail to submit an Application
successfully. Once the Application is signed by an Authorized
Representative, only an Authorized Representative for the organization
or an Application point of contact can submit the Application in AMIS.
After submitting its Application, the Applicant will not be permitted
to revise or modify its Application in any way.
(c) CMF Consortium Member Service Request: Applicants intending to
apply using a Consortium Approach are asked to submit a Service Request
in AMIS by March 14, 2024, to notify the CDFI Fund of their intent to
apply as part of a Consortium. As part of the Service Request,
potential Consortium members are asked to provide the names of the
Consortium member organizations, the UEIs of Consortium members, and
the amount of funding to be requested by each member. In the event all
Consortium members do not submit an Application or a member is
otherwise ineligible for an Award, the CDFI Fund reserves the right to
review the Applications of the other members on a stand-alone basis and
not as a Consortium.
3. Multiple Application Submissions: Each Applicant is only
permitted to submit one complete Application in AMIS. However, the CDFI
Fund does not administer <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>, which does allow for multiple
submissions of the SF-424. If an Applicant submits multiple SF-424
Applications in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>, the CDFI Fund will only review the SF-424
Application submitted in <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> that is attached to the AMIS
Application. Applicants using a Consortium Approach must each
separately submit an SF-424.
4. Late Submission: The CDFI Fund will not accept an Application if
a valid SF-424 is not submitted by <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> by the SF-424 deadline.
Additionally, the CDFI Fund will not accept an Application if it is not
signed by an Authorized Representative and submitted in AMIS by the
Application deadline. The CDFI Fund will not accept an Application from
an Applicant that failed to create an AMIS account or enter its EIN/UEI
numbers by the deadlines specified in Table 1 and Table 6, or failed to
submit the required Title VI Compliance Worksheet by the required
deadline. In such cases, the CDFI Fund will not review any material
submitted and the Application will be deemed ineligible, except in the
case of a Federal Government administrative or technological error that
directly resulted in precluding an Applicant from submitting by the
deadline. This exception includes any errors associated with
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a>, <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>, AMIS, or any other applicable government system.
(a) Creation of AMIS Account: In cases where a Federal Government
administrative or technological error directly precluded an Applicant
from creating an AMIS account by the required deadline, the Applicant
must submit a written request for approval to create its AMIS account
after the deadline, and include documentation of the error, no later
than two business days after the AMIS account creation deadline. The
CDFI Fund will not respond to requests for creating an AMIS account
after that time. Applicants must submit such request via an AMIS
Service Request with a subject line of ``CMF--AMIS Account Creation
Deadline Extension Request.''
(b) Title VI Compliance Worksheet Late Submission: In cases where a
Federal Government administrative or technological error directly
precluded an Applicant from submitting the Title VI Compliance
Worksheet by the required deadline, the Applicant must submit a written
request for approval to submit the Title VI Compliance Worksheet after
the deadline, and include documentation of the error, no later than two
business days after the Title VI Compliance Worksheet submission
deadline. The CDFI Fund will not respond to requests for submitting a
Title VI Compliance Worksheet after that time. Applicants must submit
such request via an AMIS Service Request with a subject line of ``CMF--
Title VI Compliance Worksheet Deadline Extension Request.''
[[Page 11934]]
(c) SF-424 Late Submission: In cases where a Federal Government
administrative or technological error directly resulted in precluding
an Applicant from submitting the SF-424 by the deadline, the Applicant
must submit a Service Request in AMIS for acceptance of the late SF-424
submission and include documentation of the error no later than two
business days after the SF-424 deadline. The CDFI Fund will not respond
to requests for acceptance of late SF-424 submissions after that time
period. Applicants must submit late SF-424 submission requests to the
CDFI Fund via an AMIS Service Request to the CMF Program with a subject
line of ``CMF Late SF-424 Submission Request.''
(d) Application Late Submission: In cases where a Federal
Government administrative or technological error directly resulted in
precluding an Applicant from submitting the Application by the
deadline, the Applicant must submit a Service Request in AMIS for
acceptance of the late Application submission and include documentation
of the error no later than two business days after the Application
deadline. The CDFI Fund will not respond to requests for acceptance of
late Application submissions after that time period. Applicants must
submit late Application submission requests to the CDFI Fund via an
AMIS Service Request to the CMF Program with a subject line of ``CMF
Late Application Submission Request.''
5. Intergovernmental Review: Not Applicable.
6. Funding Restrictions: CMF Awards are limited by the following:
(a) A Recipient shall use CMF Award funds only for the eligible
activities set forth in 12 CFR 1807.301 and as described in Section
II.C and Section II.E of this NOFA and its Assistance Agreement.
(b) A Recipient may not disburse CMF Award funds to an Affiliate,
Subsidiary, or any other entity in any manner that would create a
Subrecipient relationship (as defined in the Uniform Administrative
Requirements) without the CDFI Fund's prior written approval.
(c) CMF Award dollars shall only be paid to the Recipient.
(d) The CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion, may pay CMF Awards in
amounts, or under terms and conditions, which are different from those
requested by an Applicant. However, the CDFI Fund will not grant an
Award in excess of the amount requested by the Applicant.
(e) With the exception of Depository Institution Holding Company
Applicants, CMF Awards may not be passed through, transferred, or co-
awarded to, third-party entities, whether Affiliates, Subsidiaries, or
others, unless done pursuant to a merger or acquisition or similar
transaction, and with the CDFI Fund's prior written consent.
V. Application Review Information
A. Criteria: All complete and eligible Applications will be
reviewed in accordance with the criteria and procedures described in
the CMF Interim Rule, this NOFA, the Application guidance, and the
Uniform Administrative Requirements. As part of the review process, the
CDFI Fund reserves the right to contact the Applicant by telephone,
email, mail, or through an on-site visit for the sole purpose of
clarifying or confirming Application information at any point during
the review process. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to collect such
additional information from Applicants as it deems appropriate. If
contacted, the Applicant must respond within the time period
communicated by the CDFI Fund or its Application may be rejected. For
the sake of clarity, specific Application evaluation criteria are
described in the context of the overall Application review and
selection process described in Section V.B. below.
B. Review and Selection Process: The CDFI Fund will evaluate each
complete and eligible Application using the multi-phase review process
described in this Section. For the first part of the review process,
the External Review, the Applications will be grouped into two
categories depending on their Entity Approach: (1) financing entities
and (2) affordable housing developers/managers. All Applicants will be
able to select the Entity Approach under which they are applying.
However, all eligibility requirements described in Table 2, as either a
Certified CDFI or Nonprofit Organization, must be met. In most cases,
CDFIs will select the financing Entity Approach; however, a CDFI that
is applying with a strategy to act as an affordable housing developer/
manager, and has a track record as an affordable housing developer/
manager, may select the affordable housing developer/manager approach.
Separately, those Applicants applying using a Consortium Approach will
also indicate that they are applying using the Consortium Approach. The
Applications of the two Entity Approach classifications, and those
using a Consortium Approach, will be evaluated based on the criteria
listed in this section. Where appropriate, the CDFI Fund will use
different criteria in order to evaluate the financial health, capacity,
portfolio performance, and projected activities of the Applicant based
on these distinct approaches. These differences are noted in the
following sections and the Application Instructions.
1. External Review and Quantitative Assessment: All eligible
Applications will be evaluated through a Quantitative Assessment and
External Review. The Quantitative Assessment evaluates the
Application's quantitative factors and is performed automatically in
AMIS. In the External Review, Applications will be separately scored by
two or more external non-Federal reviewers who are selected based on
criteria that include a professional background in affordable housing
or in community and economic development finance with affordable
housing experience. These reviewers must complete the CDFI Fund's
conflict of interest process and be approved by the CDFI Fund.
Reviewers will be assigned a set number of Applications to review,
consisting of either Applicants with a financing Entity Approach, or
Applicants with an affordable housing developer/manager approach. The
reviewer will provide a score for each of the Applications assessed in
accordance with the scoring criteria outlined in Section V.B.2 of this
NOFA and the Application materials.
The external reviewer's evaluation, in combination with the
quantitative assessment factors, will result in the Application being
awarded up to 100 points for each review scorecard. The majority of the
score will be based on the external reviewer's evaluation. These points
will be distributed across three sections: Business and Leveraging
Strategy (40 possible points), Community Impact (35 possible points),
and Organizational Capacity (25 possible points). As each Application
is evaluated by two external reviewers, the maximum score each
Application can receive is 200 points (100 points x 2 Reviewers).
(a) Business and Leveraging Strategy (40 points): In the Business
and Leveraging Strategy section, an Applicant will address: (i) the
needs of communities and persons in the areas it proposes to serve with
a CMF Award and the extent to which the proposed strategy addresses
these needs; (ii) the affordable housing, economic development, and
financing gaps addressed by its business strategy; (iii) the projected
CMF activities and relevant track record; (iv) the role CMF will play
in its project financing strategy; (v) its strategy for leveraging
private capital with a CMF Award; and (vi) its strategy for leveraging
its CMF Award at the Enterprise-level, through
[[Page 11935]]
reinvestments, and/or at the Project-level (as applicable).
An Applicant will generally score more favorably in the criteria
evaluated by the External Review and by the quantitative assessment
factors to the extent that it: (i) clearly aligns its proposed CMF
Award activities with the affordable housing needs and financing gaps
it identifies; (ii) demonstrates that its CMF Award activities will
result in more favorable financing rates and terms for Projects; (iii)
demonstrates that its projected activities are achievable based on the
Applicant's strategy and track record; (iv) describes a process for
selecting projects that have a clear need for CMF financing; (v) has a
credible pipeline of projects or can demonstrate clear demand for its
proposed financial products from borrowers; (vi) has a clear strategy
for and track record of leveraging private capital resulting in a
higher multiplier of private leverage; (vii) has a clear strategy for
attracting capital and demonstrates a track record of leveraging funds
at the Enterprise-level, through reinvestments, and/or at the Project-
level (as applicable); and (viii) whether the Application is proposing
to serve American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, or Wyoming.
(b) Community Impact (35 points): In the Community Impact Section,
the Applicant will address: (i) the extent to which the Applicant's
strategy is likely to result in the selected Affordable Housing and/or
Economic Development Activities impacts and its plan to track relevant
outcome metrics; (ii) for rental housing, (a) its strategy for and
track record of financing and/or supporting rental housing units
located in Areas of Economic Distress or High Opportunity Areas; and
(b) its strategy for and track record of financing rental housing units
targeted to Very Low-Income (VLI) Families (50% of AMI or below); (iii)
for Homeownership housing, its strategy for and track record of
financing Homeownership units targeted to Low-Income (LI) Families (80%
of AMI or below) or units located in Areas of Economic Distress
targeted to Families with incomes above 80% and no greater than 120% of
AMI; (iv) if applicable, its strategy for and track record of financing
and/or supporting Economic Development Activities and how the projected
activities will align with a Concerted Strategy and will benefit the
residents of nearby Affordable Housing; and (v) commitment to and track
record of serving Rural Areas.
An Applicant will generally score more favorably in the criteria
evaluated by the external reviewer and by the quantitative assessment
factors to the extent that it: (i) demonstrates a clear strategy for
achieving the selected Affordable Housing and/or Economic Development
Activities impacts identified in the Application and it presents a
clear and effective plan to track metrics related to relevant outcomes;
(ii) if rental housing is proposed, demonstrates a compelling strategy
for and track record of financing and/or supporting rental housing
units located in Areas of Economic Distress and/or High Opportunity
Areas, with the maximum score available to Applicants that propose to
locate 85% of units in these areas; (iii) if rental housing is
proposed, demonstrates a compelling strategy for and track record of
financing and/or supporting rental housing units targeted to Very Low-
Income (VLI) Families (50% of AMI or below), with the maximum score
available to Applications that propose to target at least 45% of units
to Very Low-Income Families; (iv) if Homeownership is proposed,
demonstrates a compelling strategy for and track record of financing
and/or supporting Homeownership units either targeted to Low-Income
Families (80% of AMI or below) or Homeownership units targeted to
Eligible-Income Families (120% of AMI or below) located in Areas of
Economic Distress, with the maximum score available to Applicants that
propose to locate 100% of units in these categories; (v) if proposing
Economic Development Activities, demonstrates how its proposed Economic
Development Activities fit within a Concerted Strategy and will benefit
the residents of the nearby Affordable Housing; and (vi) makes a
commitment to invest at least 10% of the CMF Award in Rural Areas and
presents a corresponding track record of serving Rural Areas.
(c) Organizational Capacity (25 points): In the Organizational
Capacity section, the Applicant will discuss: (i) its management team
and key staff; (ii) the roles and responsibilities of those staff in
managing the proposed CMF Award; (iii) its past experience managing
Federal awards; (iv) its financial health; and (v) lending or property
portfolio (as applicable).
Applicant(s) will generally score more favorably in the criteria
evaluated by the external reviewer and by the quantitative assessment
factors to the extent that it demonstrates: (i) strong qualifications
of its key personnel with respect to their skills and experience in
identifying investments, underwriting or developing similar projects
(as applicable), and managing a portfolio of similar activities and
ensuring compliance with program requirements; (ii) a strong ability to
successfully manage Federal awards based on experience managing prior
Federal awards or administering State or local government awards,
foundation grants, or other programs with complex compliance
requirements; (iii) strong financial health, including but not limited
to strong capitalization, sound operating performance, and strong
liquidity; (iv) favorable audit results (e.g., opinion other than
unqualified/unmodified) with no negative findings, including lack of a
``going concern paragraph'', lack of repeat findings of reportable
conditions, lack of material weaknesses in internal controls, lack of
delinquencies on obligations to investors or lenders, and not having
filed for bankruptcy or defaulted on financial obligations; and (v)
solid portfolio performance (property portfolio or loan/investment
portfolio, as applicable). CMF Program encourages first-time
Applicants. Prior CMF Recipients will not receive a scoring advantage
solely for having received a prior CMF Award.
(d) Scoring anomaly: If, in the case of a particular Application,
the reviewers' total External Review scores vary significantly from
each other, the CDFI Fund may, in its sole discretion, obtain the
evaluation and numeric scoring of an additional reviewer to determine
whether the anomalous score should be replaced with the score of the
additional reviewer.
2. Internal Review: At the conclusion of the External Review phase,
the CMF Program Manager will determine the overall number of
Applications that will be initially forwarded for Internal Review. Each
group of Applications (financing Entity Approach and affordable housing
developer/manager approach) will be ranked separately based on their
External Review score. The CMF Program Manager may initially forward an
amount up to the highest scoring 50% of Applications from the External
Review to the Internal Review, as long as the forwarded Applications
reflect, within no more than 5% variance, the proportion of financing
Entity Approach Applications to affordable housing developer/manager
approach Applications in the overall Application Pool. Such
Applications will be forwarded for Internal Review in descending order
of External Review score. The forwarded Applications will be drawn from
the financing Entity Approach and affordable housing developer/manager
approach groups in proportion to each group's representation in the
overall Application pool. This approach will ensure that the percentage
of Applicants
[[Page 11936]]
with a financing Entity Approach and affordable housing developer/
manager approach initially forwarded to Internal Review reflects the
proportion of these entity strategies within the overall Application
pool, with no more than 5% variance.
Subsequent to this step to ensure proportionality among Entity
Approaches, additional Applications may be advanced to the Internal
Review stage in order to further CMF statutory objectives, such as
geographic diversity.
These forwarded Applications will constitute the highly qualified
pool. During the Internal Review, CDFI Fund staff will prioritize the
Applications in the highly qualified pool for an Award based on the
following criteria: (i) final External Review score; (ii) alignment
with CMF statutory and policy priorities; (iii) the overall quality of
the Applicant's strategy; and (iv) the Applicant's organizational
capacity and financial health. The CDFI Fund will not attempt to ensure
any specific balance of Applicants with a financing Entity Approach and
Applicants with an affordable housing developer/manager approach in the
final Award pool.
In assessing the Applicant's organizational capacity, CDFI Fund
staff will consider the following factors including, but not limited
to, the Applicant's overall organizational and financial capacity,
including: (i) its financial strength and ability, and its resources to
adapt to changing market conditions and risks; (ii) its organizational
strength as demonstrated by good management practices, risk management,
and internal controls; (iii) key personnel with relevant experience and
capacity; and (iv) relevant experience and capacity demonstrating
ability to meet Federal award management standards (including
performance with prior CDFI Fund awards). The CDFI Fund will also
review OMB-designated repositories of government-wide eligibility
qualification and financial integrity information, as part of the
assessment of organizational capacity. In the case of an Applicant that
has received awards from other Federal programs, the CDFI Fund reserves
the right to contact officials from the appropriate Federal agency or
agencies to determine whether the Recipient is in compliance with
current or prior award agreements, as well as to review the results of
any Federal Single Audit, and to take such information into
consideration before making a CMF Award.
In assessing the Application's alignment with CMF statutory and
policy priorities, CDFI Fund staff will consider the following factors
including, but not limited to: (i) the likelihood of the Applicant to
reach a minimum overall leverage multiplier of 10 times the Award
amount or more; (ii) the amount of private capital it will leverage
relative to the CMF Award; (iii) if rental housing is proposed, the
Applicant's approach, track record, and ability to successfully
finance/support at least 45% or more of its rental housing to serve
Very Low-Income Families; (iv) if rental housing is proposed, the
Applicant's approach, track record, and ability to successfully
finance/support at least 85% or more of its rental housing in Areas of
Economic Distress (AED) and/or High Opportunity Areas (HOA) as a
percentage of its CMF rental portfolio; (v) if Homeownership is
proposed, the Applicant's approach, track record, and ability to
successfully finance/support 100% of its Homeownership units for (a)
Families with incomes in excess of 80% but not greater than 120% of
Area Median Income (AMI) located in an Area of Economic Distress (AED);
or (b) Low-Income Families (80% AMI or below); or (c) a combination of
(a) and (b); and (vi) the number of Affordable Housing units expected
to be generated as a result of the Award.
In assessing the quality of the Applicant's strategy, the CDFI Fund
staff will consider the following factors, including, but not limited
to: (i) the effectiveness and cohesiveness of the Applicant's strategy;
(ii) how well the proposed financing activities will help close the
financing gaps in their market, including more favorable rates and
terms than are currently available in its Service Area; (iii) the
Applicant's ability to execute its strategy and support its
projections; (iv) how adaptable the Applicant's strategy is to changing
market conditions; (v) the alignment between the proposed activities
and strategy and the selected impacts and outcomes; and (vi) for
Applicants proposing Economic Development Activities (EDA), the extent
the activities are part of a Concerted Strategy, whether activities
will benefit Affordable Housing residents, and the track record and
capacity of the Applicant to carry out EDA.
In addition to the criteria outlined above, the Applicant's ability
to deploy the CMF Award in a timely manner will be a key determinant in
funding recommendation. Deployment considerations may include the
Applicant's track record of activities compared with projections, the
Applicant's progress in committing and/or deploying past CMF Awards,
and whether the Applicant received other recent CDFI Fund program
award(s) for a similar business strategy as the proposed use of the CMF
Award. The CDFI Fund may also consider the number of geographies served
when determining funding recommendations.
3. Scoring of Applicants Using a Consortium Approach: Applicants
using a Consortium Approach will be evaluated and scored in the
following manner: (a) Applicants will be evaluated as a Consortium and
receive the same score on: (i) strategy; (ii) the needs and financing
gaps addressed; (iii) track record; (iv) pipeline; (v) impact and
metrics; (vi) geographic targets (Areas of Economic Distress and/or
High Opportunity Areas); (vii) income targeting; (viii) key personnel;
(ix) adaptability and community partnerships; (x) alignment with
priorities; (xi) Project selection process; (xii) serving underserved
areas; (xiii) resources to adapt to changing market conditions and
risks; and (xiv) deployment capacity.
(b) Applicants will be evaluated on a prorated basis and receive an
individual score on: (i) Eligible Project Costs; (ii) unit production;
and (iii) Leveraged Costs.
(c) Applicants will be evaluated individually and receive an
individual score on: (i) previous Federal award management; (ii)
financial health; (iii) audit findings; (iv) portfolio performance; (v)
the likelihood of reaching the minimum leverage multiplier; (vi)
organizational strength; (vii) management practices; (viii) the ability
to execute the strategy and projected activities; and (ix) commitment
to serving Rural Areas. In the event that an Applicant(s) applying
using a Consortium Approach does not sufficiently score to reach the
highly qualified pool, the CDFI Fund will evaluate the remaining
members of the Consortium using the Consortium Approach, provided there
are at least two members remaining in the highly qualified pool. If
there is only one member of the Consortium remaining in the highly
qualified pool, the Applicant will be evaluated on an individual basis.
4. Selection: Once Applications have been internally evaluated and
preliminary Award determinations have been made, the Applications will
be forwarded to the selecting official(s) for a final Award
determination. After preliminary Award determinations are made, the
selecting official(s) will review the list of potential Recipients to
determine whether the Recipient pool meets the following statutory
objectives:
(a) The potential Recipients' proposed Service Areas collectively
represent
[[Page 11937]]
broad geographic coverage throughout the United States; and
(b) The potential Recipients' proposed activities equitably
represent both Metropolitan Areas and Rural Areas. For the purposes of
the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round, the term Rural Areas is defined per 12
CFR 1282.1 (Enterprise Duty To Serve Final Rule) as (i) A census tract
outside of a Metropolitan Statistical Area as designated by the Office
of Management and Budget; or (ii) A census tract in a Metropolitan
Statistical Area as designated by the Office of Management and Budget
that is outside of the Metropolitan Statistical Area's Urbanized Areas,
as designated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Rural-
Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) Code #1, and outside of tracts with a
housing density of over 64 housing units per square mile for USDA's
RUCA Code #2.
As Rural Areas data for the Enterprise Duty to Serve Rule is not
available for American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and
the U.S. Virgin Islands; all census tracts in these territories will be
deemed as Rural census tracts for Awards issued under this NOFA. The
CDFI Fund will publish a dataset indicating which census tracts are
designated as Rural Areas for the FY 2024 CMF Funding Round on its
website.
In the event the preliminary Recipient pool does not reflect the
geographic coverage or representation of Metropolitan and Rural Areas
present in the overall Applicant pool, the CDFI Fund reserves the right
to modify CMF Award amounts and/or the CMF Recipient pool if deemed
necessary to achieve either of these statutory objectives. For the
purposes of conducting this analysis, the CDFI Fund will classify
Applications as addressing Rural Areas if they propose to use 20% or
more of their Award in Rural Areas, and as addressing Metropolitan
Areas if they propose to use less than 20% of their Award in Rural
Areas.
In order to evaluate the geographic coverage of the potential CMF
Recipient pool, Applicants will be asked to designate one of the
following two Service Area types in their Applications: Statewide or
Multi-State. These Service Area types are further defined in the
Application. Applicants planning to serve communities below the State
level (cities, municipalities, counties, or regions) and within one
State should designate their Service Area as Statewide. Similarly, an
Applicant that is planning to serve communities below the State level,
but in more than one State, should designate their Service Area as
Multi-State. The smallest Service Area an Applicant can request is one
State or U.S. Territory; the largest Service Area an Applicant can
propose is a 15-state Multi-State Service Area. Applicants should
indicate in the narrative portions of their Application if they plan to
concentrate their CMF activities in a subset (e.g., a county or a
Metropolitan Area) of their broader Service Area. If necessary to
achieve proportional activity in Rural Areas and/or broader geographic
coverage, the CDFI Fund may award Applications not in the preliminary
Recipient pool, including Applications outside of the highly qualified
pool, in the order of their Internal Review scoring ranking. During the
selection process, the CDFI Fund also reserves the right to modify or
place restrictions on the Service Area requested in any Application in
order to further these statutory objectives. In the case of Applicants
using a Consortium Approach, the Service Area designated by each
Consortium member in its Application will be combined with the Service
Area of the other members as part of the review process. This ensures
all members are serving the same areas and that all members are able to
invest in all CMF financed/supported projects of the Consortium. In
cases where the selecting official's award determination varies
significantly from the initial CMF Award amount recommended by the CDFI
Fund staff review, the CMF Award recommendation will be forwarded to a
reviewing official for final determination. The CDFI Fund, in its sole
discretion, reserves the right to reject an Application and/or adjust
CMF Award amounts as appropriate, based on information obtained during
the review process.
5. Insured Depository Institution Applicants: In the case of
Applicants that are Insured Depository Institutions or Insured Credit
Unions, the CDFI Fund will consider safety and soundness information
from the Appropriate Federal Banking Agency or Appropriate State
Agency, as applicable. If the Applicant is a CDFI Depository
Institution Holding Company, the CDFI Fund will consider information
provided by the Appropriate Federal Banking Agency and Appropriate
State Agency about both the CDFI Depository Institution Holding Company
and the CDFI Insured Depository Institution that will expend and carry
out the Award. If the Appropriate Federal Banking Agency or Appropriate
State Agency identifies safety and soundness concerns, the CDFI Fund
will assess whether the concerns warrant that the Applicant is
incapable of undertaking the activities for which funding has been
requested.
6. Right of Rejection: The CDFI Fund reserves the right to reject
an Application if information (including administrative errors) comes
to the attention of the CDFI Fund that adversely affects an Applicant's
eligibility for an Award, adversely affects the CDFI Fund's evaluation
or scoring of an Application, or indicates fraud or mismanagement on
the Applicant's part, including mismanagement of another Federal award.
If the CDFI Fund determines that any portion of the Application is
incorrect in any material respect, the CDFI Fund reserves the right, in
its sole discretion, to reject the Application. The CDFI Fund reserves
the right to change its eligibility and evaluation criteria and
procedures, if the CDFI Fund deems it appropriate. If said changes
materially affect the CDFI Fund's Award decisions, the CDFI Fund will
provide information regarding the changes through the CDFI Fund's
website. In instances where an Applicant submits an Application which
references the track record or projections of an Affiliate, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right to review that Affiliate's principal business
purpose to determine if it is consistent with the mission of the CMF
Applicant, and reject the Application if it is found to be inconsistent
with the mission of the CMF Applicant, as determined by the CDFI Fund,
in its sole discretion. There is no right to appeal the CDFI Fund's
Award decisions. The CDFI Fund's Award decisions are final.
7. Anticipated Award Announcement: The CDFI Fund anticipates making
CMF Award announcements in calendar year 2024.
VI. Federal Award Administration Information
A. Award Notification: Each successful Applicant will receive
notification from the CDFI Fund stating that its Application has been
approved for an Award. Each Applicant not selected for an Award will
receive notification and be provided a debriefing document in its AMIS
account.
B. Administrative and Policy Requirements Prior to Entering into an
Assistance Agreement: The CDFI Fund may, in its discretion and without
advance notice to the Recipient, terminate the Award or take other
actions as it deems appropriate if, prior to entering into an
Assistance Agreement, information (including an administrative error)
comes to the CDFI Fund's attention that adversely affects the
following: the Recipient's eligibility
[[Page 11938]]
for an Award; the CDFI Fund's evaluation of the Application; the
Recipient's compliance with any requirement listed in the Uniform
Requirements; or indications of fraud or mismanagement on the
Recipient's part, including mismanagement of another Federal award.
If the Recipient's CDFI certification status changes prior to
entering into an Assistance Agreement, the CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to re-evaluate the CMF Award, or modify
the Assistance Agreement based on the Recipient's non-CDFI status.
By receiving notification of a CMF Award, the Recipient agrees
that, if the CDFI Fund becomes aware of any information (including an
administrative error) prior to the Effective Date of the Assistance
Agreement that either adversely affects the Recipient's eligibility for
an CMF Award, adversely affects the CDFI Fund's evaluation of the
Recipient's Application, or indicates fraud or mismanagement on the
part of the Recipient, the CDFI Fund may, in its discretion and without
advance notice to the Recipient, rescind the notice of award or take
other actions as it deems appropriate.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
rescind an Award if the Recipient fails to return the Assistance
Agreement, signed by an Authorized Representative of the 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 Assistance Agreement and the
Award made under this NOFA for any criteria described in Table 7:
Table 7--Requirements Prior To Executing an Assistance Agreement
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Requirement Criteria
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Failure to meet reporting <bullet> If an Applicant received a prior
requirements. award or allocation 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 guarantee, as of the date
of the notice of award, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to delay entering into an
Assistance Agreement and/or to delay
making a Payment of CMF Award, 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 guarantee.
<bullet> If such a 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 CMF Award made under this
NOFA.
<bullet> 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, nor that
it 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 CMF Award made
under this NOFA.
Failure to maintain CDFI <bullet> A Recipient must be a Certified
Certification (if CDFI or an eligible Nonprofit
applicable) or eligible Organization, as each is defined in the
Nonprofit Organization CMF Interim Rule and this NOFA, prior to
status (if applicable). entering into an Assistance Agreement.
<bullet> If the Applicant 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 delay entering into an
Assistance Agreement, to delay making a
Payment of CMF Award, and/or to
terminate and rescind the notice of
award and the CMF Award made under this
NOFA.
Pending resolution of default <bullet> The CDFI Fund will delay
or noncompliance. entering into an Assistance Agreement
with a Recipient that has pending
default or noncompliance issues with any
of its previously executed CDFI Fund
award(s), allocation(s), bond loan
agreement(s), or agreement(s) to
guarantee.
<bullet> If said prior Recipient or
allocatee is unable satisfactorily
resolve the compliance issues, the CDFI
Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to terminate and rescind the
notice of award and the CMF Award made
under this NOFA.
Default or Noncompliance <bullet> If, at any time prior to
status. entering into an Assistance Agreement,
the CDFI Fund determines that an
Applicant (or an Affiliate of the
Applicant identified in AMIS) that is a
prior CDFI Fund Recipient or allocatee
under any CDFI Fund program is
noncompliant or found in default with
any previously executed award
agreement(s), assistance agreement(s),
allocation agreement(s), bond loan
agreement(s), or agreement(s) to
guarantee) and the CDFI Fund has
provided written notification that the
Applicant is ineligible to apply for or
receive any future awards or allocations
for a time period specified by the CDFI
Fund in writing, the CDFI Fund may, in
its sole discretion, delay entering into
an Assistance Agreement with Applicant
until the Recipient has cured the
default or noncompliance by taking
actions the CDFI Fund has specified in
writing within such specified timeframe.
If the Recipient is unable to cure the
default or noncompliance within the
specified timeframe, the CDFI Fund may
modify or rescind all or a portion of
the CMF Award made under this NOFA.
Compliance with Federal civil If, within the period starting three
rights requirements. years prior to this NOFA and through the
date of the Assistance Agreement, the
Recipient received a final
determination, in any proceeding
instituted against the Recipient in, by,
or before any court, governmental, or
administrative body or agency, declaring
that the Recipient violated any Federal
civil rights laws or regulations,
including, but not limited to: Title VI
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as
amended (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.); the
Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et
seq.); the Equal Credit Opportunity Act
(15 U.S.C. 1691 et seq.); 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
Title IX of the Education Amendments of
1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), the CDFI
Fund may terminate and rescind the
Assistance Agreement and the Award made
under this NOFA. The CDFI Fund will
delay entering into an Assistance
Agreement with a Recipient that has
pending Title VI noncompliance issues,
if the CDFI Fund has not yet made a
final compliance determination.
<bullet> If the Recipient is unable to
satisfactorily resolve the Title VI
noncompliance issues, the CDFI Fund may
terminate and rescind the Assistance
Agreement and the award made under this
NOFA.
<bullet> The Title VI Compliance
Worksheet and program award terms and
conditions do not impose
antidiscrimination requirements on
Tribal governments beyond what would
otherwise apply under Federal law.
Debarment/Do Not Pay......... <bullet> 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.
<bullet> The CDFI Fund reserves the
right, in its sole discretion, to
rescind an Award if the Recipient (or
Affiliate of Recipient identified in
AMIS) is identified as being delinquent
on any Federal debt in the Do Not Pay
database.
Safety and soundness......... <bullet> If it is determined that the
Recipient is or will be incapable of
meeting its CMF Award obligations, the
CDFI Fund will deem the Recipient to be
ineligible or require it to improve
safety and soundness conditions prior to
entering into an Assistance Agreement.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[[Page 11939]]
C. Assistance Agreement: Each Applicant that is selected to receive
an Award under this NOFA must enter into an Assistance Agreement with
the CDFI Fund in order to become a Recipient and receive Payment. Each
CMF Award under this NOFA generally will have a period of performance
that begins with the announcement date of the Award and continues until
the end of the period of affordability, as set forth at 12 CFR
1807.401(d) and 12 CFR 1807.402, and as further set forth in the
Assistance Agreement.
1. The Assistance Agreement will set forth certain required terms
and conditions of the CMF Award, which will include, but not be limited
to:
(a) The amount of the Award;
(b) The approved uses of the Award;
(c) The approved Service Area in which the Award may be used.
Applicants selected for a CMF Award will be allowed to use up to 15% of
the Award amount outside of their approved Service Area at their
discretion. Moreover, they will be able to reinvest Program Income from
the CMF Award anywhere in the United States, including the U.S.
territories.
(d) Performance goals and measures;
(e) Reinvestment requirements for Program Income; and
(f) Reporting requirements for all Recipients.
2. Prior to executing the Assistance Agreement, the CDFI Fund may,
in its discretion, allow Recipients to request changes to the Service
Area of the Award and certain performance goals and measures. The CDFI
Fund, in its sole determination, may approve or reject these requested
changes or propose other modifications, including a reduction in the
Award amount. The CDFI Fund will only approve performance goals and
measures or Service Area changes if it determines that such requested
changes do not undermine the competitive process upon which the CMF
Award determination was made. The CDFI Fund may also, in its
discretion, provide Recipients the opportunity to add States to their
Service Area in order to serve States not already covered in the Award
pool and to further HERA's goal that the CMF serve geographically
diverse areas of every State. The CDFI Fund may also, in its
discretion, provide Recipients the opportunity to add States to its
approved Service Area in order to serve geographies for which: (i) the
President issued a ``major disaster declaration,'' and (ii) the major
disaster declaration makes such geographies eligible for both
``individual and public assistance.'' The major disaster declaration
must be made after the publication date of this NOFA and prior to the
execution of the Recipient's Assistance Agreement. In these cases, the
CDFI Fund may allow a Recipient to exceed the maximum 15 state Service
Area, if applicable. Any modifications agreed upon prior to the
execution of the Assistance Agreement will become a condition of the
Award. Recipients may utilize up to 15% of their Award to undertake
Activities outside of their Service Area at their discretion.
3. The Assistance Agreement shall provide that, prior to any
determination by the CDFI Fund that a Recipient has failed to comply
substantially with the Act, the CMF Interim Rule, or the environmental
quality regulations, the CDFI Fund shall provide the Recipient with
reasonable notice and opportunity to be heard. If the Recipient fails
to comply substantially with the Assistance Agreement, the CDFI Fund
may:
(a) Require changes in the performance goals set forth in the
Assistance Agreement;
(b) Reduce or terminate the CMF Award; or
(c) Require repayment of any CMF Award that has been distributed to
the Recipient.
4. The Assistance Agreement shall also provide that, if the CDFI
Fund determines noncompliance with the terms and conditions of the
Assistance Agreement on the part of the Recipient, the CDFI Fund may:
(a) Bar the Recipient from reapplying for any assistance from the
CDFI Fund; or
(b) Take such other actions as the CDFI Fund deems appropriate or
as set forth in the Assistance Agreement.
5. In addition to entering into an Assistance Agreement, each
Applicant, that is not a Regulated Institution, selected to receive a
CMF Award must furnish to the CDFI Fund a certificate of good standing
from the jurisdiction in which it was formed. The CDFI Fund may, in its
sole discretion or in lieu of a certificate of good standing, also
require the Applicant to furnish an opinion from its legal counsel, the
content of which may be further specified in the Assistance Agreement,
and which, among other matters, opines that:
(a) The Recipient is duly formed and in good standing in the
jurisdiction in which it was formed and the jurisdiction(s) in which it
transacts business;
(b) The Recipient has the authority to enter into the Assistance
Agreement and undertake the activities that are specified therein;
(c) The Recipient has no pending or threatened litigation that
would materially affect its ability to enter into and carry out the
activities specified in the Assistance Agreement;
(d) The Recipient is not in default of its articles of
incorporation or formation, bylaws or operating agreements, other
organizational or establishing documents, or any agreements with the
Federal Government;
(e) The CMF affordability restrictions that are required to be
imposed by deed restrictions, covenants running with the land, or other
CDFI Fund approved mechanisms are recordable and enforceable under the
laws of the State and locality where the Recipient will undertake its
CMF activities;
(f) If applicable, the Recipient is exempt from Federal income
taxation pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and
(g) If applicable, the Recipient is designated as a nonprofit or
not for profit entity under the laws of the organization's State of
formation.
As a condition of closing on the Assistance Agreement, the CDFI
Fund will require a CMF Recipient Consortium Member Agreement to
specify the binding commitments of each member awarded under a
Consortium Approach.
6. Closing and Payment of the Award: Pursuant to the Assistance
Agreement, there will be an initial closing at which point the
Assistance Agreement and related documents will be properly executed
and delivered, and a Payment of the CMF Award is made. Recipients of
CMF Awards will have the option to choose Payment of the Award in a
Lump Sum Payment \4\ or, in two Payments, an Initial Payment \5\ and
Subsequent Payment,\6\ each no more than one year apart, as set forth
in the Assistance Agreement. If the Applicant elects to receive the
Award in two Payments, they must specify an Initial Payment amount in
the Application. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to adjust the Initial
Payment amount based on the total Award amount so that no payment is
less than $500,000. For example, if awarded $950,000 and the Initial
Payment amount requested in the Application was $500,000, per the rule
above, the CDFI Fund would disburse a single $950,000 Lump Sum Payment
to the Recipient, pursuant to the Assistance Agreement.
The Payment option election will affect the required date of
Commitment of the Award but will not affect or change any other
performance goal(s) or requirement(s) set forth in the Assistance
Agreement, including the
[[Page 11940]]
requirement that all Projects must achieve Project Completion within
five years of the Effective Date of the Assistance Agreement. The Lump
Sum Payment or Initial Payment must be committed for use two years
after the Effective Date of the Assistance Agreement. The Subsequent
Payment must be committed three years after the Effective Date of the
Assistance Agreement.
Following the initial closing of the Assistance Agreement, for
those Recipients who opted for and qualify for two Payments, there will
be a subsequent closing involving the additional Award payment. In
addition to the Assistance Agreement, any documentation that is related
to the subsequent closing and payment shall be properly executed and
delivered in a timely manner by the Recipient to the CDFI Fund.
D. 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. If applicable, the CDFI Fund may inform Applicants that they do
not need to provide certain Application information otherwise required.
Pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Capital Magnet Fund
Application has been assigned the following control number: 1559-0036.
E. Reporting: The CDFI Fund will require each Recipient that
receives a CMF Award through this NOFA to account for and report to the
CDFI Fund on the use of the CMF Award. This will require Recipients to
establish administrative controls, subject to the UAR and other
applicable OMB guidance. The CDFI Fund will collect information from
each such Recipient on its use of the CMF Award annually, following
Payment, and more often if deemed appropriate by the CDFI Fund in its
sole discretion. The CDFI Fund will provide guidance to Recipients
outlining the format and content of the information required to be
provided to describe how the Award funds were used.
The CDFI Fund may collect information from each Recipient
including, but not limited to, an annual report with the components
listed in Table 8:
Table 8--Reporting Requirements *
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Criteria Description
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Single Audit (if applicable). A non-profit Recipient must complete an
annual Single Audit pursuant to the
Uniform Requirements (2 CFR 200.501) if
it expends $750,000 or more in Federal
awards in its fiscal year, or such other
dollar threshold established by OMB
pursuant to 2 CFR 200.501. If a Single
Audit is required, it must be submitted
electronically to the Federal Audit
Clearinghouse (FAC) (see 2 CFR Subpart F-
Audit Requirements in the Uniform
Requirements) and optionally through
AMIS.
Financial Statement Audit.... For-profit and nonprofit Recipients must
submit a Financial Statement Audit (FSA)
report in AMIS, along with the
Recipient's statement of financial
condition audited or reviewed by an
independent certified public accountant.
Federal Financial Report/OMB Recipient must submit the SF-425 Federal
Standard Form 425 (SF-425). Financial Report to disclose how much of
the Program Award funds were expended
during the Federal Government's fiscal
year of October 1 through September 30.
Performance Report........... The Recipient must submit a performance
report not less than annually, which is
a progress report on the Recipient's use
of the CMF Award towards meeting its
performance goals, Affordable Housing
outcomes, and the Recipient's overall
performance. The CMF Performance Report
covers the Announcement Date through the
Investment Period for the CMF Award and
the ten-year Affordability Period for
each Project. The Investment Period
shall mean the period beginning with the
Effective Date of the Assistance
Agreement and ending no earlier than the
five-year anniversary of the Effective
Date, or as otherwise established in the
Assistance Agreement. The Affordability
Period shall mean, for each Project, the
period beginning on the date when the
Project is placed into service and
consisting of the full ten consecutive
years thereafter, or as otherwise
established in the Assistance Agreement.
If the Recipient fails to meet a
performance goal or reporting
requirements, it must submit an
explanation of noncompliance via AMIS.
Environmental Review......... The Recipient shall submit the
Environmental Review Notification Report
each time the Recipient identifies a new
proposed CMF Project for which (i) a
categorical exclusion does not apply and/
or (ii) the Recipient determines that
the proposed Project does involve
actions that normally require an
Environmental Impact Statement, as
described in 12 CFR part 1815. The
Environmental Review Notification Report
must be submitted to the CDFI Fund no
later than one hundred eighty (180) days
prior to the date that the funds are
Committed to a Project.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is information, which if
lost, compromised, or disclosed without authorization, could result in
substantial harm, embarrassment, inconvenience, or unfairness to an
individual. Although Applicants are required to enter addresses of
homes and other properties in AMIS, Applicants should not include the
following PII for the individuals who received the financial products
or services in AMIS or in the supporting documentation (i.e., name of
the individual, Social Security Number, driver's license or State
identification number, passport number, Alien Registration Number,
etc.). This information should be redacted from all supporting
documentation (if applicable).
Each Recipient is responsible for the timely and complete
submission of the annual reporting documents. The CDFI Fund will use
such information to monitor each Recipient's compliance with the
requirements set forth in the Assistance Agreement and to assess the
impact of the CMF Award. The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to modify these reporting requirements if it determines it
to be appropriate and necessary; however, such reporting requirements
will be modified only after notice to Recipients.
F. Financial Management and Accounting: The CDFI Fund will require
Recipients to maintain financial management and accounting systems that
comply with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions
of the CMF 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 in
accordance with the Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and
conditions of the CMF Award.
The cost principles used by Recipients must be consistent with
Federal cost principles, must support the accumulation of costs as
required by the principles, and must provide for adequate documentation
to support costs charged to the CMF Award. In addition, the CDFI Fund
will require Recipients to: maintain effective internal controls;
comply with applicable statutes and regulations, the Assistance
Agreement, and related guidance; evaluate and monitor compliance; take
action when not in compliance; and safeguard Personally Identifiable
Information (PII).
VII. Agency Contacts
A. Availability: The CDFI Fund will respond to questions and
provide support concerning this NOFA and the Application between the
hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET, starting on the date of the
publication of this NOFA until the close of business on the second
business day preceding the Application
[[Page 11941]]
deadline. The CDFI Fund will not respond to questions or provide
support concerning the Application that are received after 5:00 p.m. ET
on said date, until after the Application deadline. CDFI Fund IT
support will be available until 5:00 p.m. ET on date of the Application
deadline. Application Instructions and other information regarding the
CDFI Fund and its programs may be obtained from the CDFI Fund's website
at <a href="http://www.cdfifund.gov/cmf">http://www.cdfifund.gov/cmf</a>. The CDFI Fund will post on its website
responses to questions of general applicability regarding the CMF.
B. The CDFI Fund's Contact Information is Listed in Table 9:
Table 9--Contact Information
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Telephone number
Type of question Preferred method (not toll free) Email addresses
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CMF Program and Application Questions. Submit a Service Request 202-653-0421 <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f2919f94b29196949bdc8680979381dc959d84"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="beddd3d8fedddad8d790caccdbdfcd90d9d1c8">[email protected]</span></a>.
in AMIS.
CDFI Certification.................... Submit a Service Request 202-653-0423 <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#b4dbd7c4d1d7d1c6c0f4d7d0d2dd9ac0c6d1d5c79ad3dbc2"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="bdd2decdd8ded8cfc9fdded9dbd493c9cfd8dcce93dad2cb">[email protected]</span></a>.
in AMIS.
Compliance Monitoring and Evaluation.. Submit a Service Request 202-653-0423 <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4c2f2f21290c2f282a2562383e292d3f622b233a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9cfffff1f9dcfff8faf5b2e8eef9fdefb2fbf3ea">[email protected]</span></a>.
in AMIS.
Information Technology Support........ Submit a Service Request 202-653-0422 <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a5e4e8ecf6e5c6c1c3cc8bd1d7c0c4d68bc2cad3"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6f2e22263c2f0c0b0906411b1d0a0e1c41080019">[email protected]</span></a>.
in AMIS.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The preferred method of contact is to submit a Service Request
within AMIS. For a CMF Application question, select ``Capital Magnet
Fund'' for the program. For a CDFI Certification question, select
``Certification.'' For a Compliance question, select ``Compliance &
Reporting.'' For Information Technology, select ``Technical Issues.''
Failure to select the appropriate program for the Service Request could
result in delays in responding to your question.
C. Communication with the CDFI Fund: The CDFI Fund will use AMIS to
communicate with Applicants and Recipients, using the contact
information maintained in their respective AMIS accounts. Therefore,
the Recipient and any Subsidiaries, signatories, and Affiliates must
maintain accurate contact information (including contact persons and
Authorized Representatives, email addresses, fax numbers, phone
numbers, and office addresses) in its AMIS account(s). For more
information about AMIS please see the Help documents posted at <a href="https://amis.cdfifund.gov/Training">https://amis.cdfifund.gov/Training</a>.
D. Civil Rights and Diversity: Any person who is eligible to
receive benefits or services from the CDFI Fund or Recipients under any
of its programs or activities is entitled to those benefits or services
without being subject to prohibited discrimination. The Department of
the Treasury's Office of Civil Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity
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 they have been
subjected to discrimination and/or reprisal because of race, color,
religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, familial status,
disability and/or reprisal, that person may file a complaint with:
Director, Office of Civil Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity, 1500
Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20220 or (202) 622-1160 (not a
toll-free number).
E. Statutory and National Policy Requirements: The CDFI Fund will
manage and administer the Federal award in a manner so as to ensure
that Federal funding is expended and associated programs are
implemented in full accordance with the U.S. Constitution, Federal Law,
and public policy requirements, including, but not limited to: those
protecting free speech, religious liberty, public welfare, and the
environment; and those prohibiting discrimination.
Authority: Public Law 110-289. 12 U.S.C. 4701, 12 CFR part 1805, 12
CFR part 1807, 12 CFR part 1815, 12 U.S.C. 4502.
Marcia Sigal,
Acting Director, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.
FY 2024 CMF Program NOFA Footnotes
\1\ (A) Applicants with a 6/30 fiscal year end date, or 9/30
fiscal year end date, and a completed FY 2023 audit will treat FY
2023 as their most recent historic fiscal year. (B) Applicants with
a 6/30 fiscal year end date, or a 9/30 fiscal year end date, but
without a completed FY 2023 audit will treat FY 2022 as their most
recent historic fiscal year. (C) Applicants with a 3/31 fiscal year
end date will treat FY 2023 as their most recent historic fiscal
year. (D) Applicants with a 12/31 fiscal year end date will treat FY
2022 as their most recent historic fiscal year.
\2\ Regulated Institutions include Insured Credit Unions,
Insured Depository Institutions, State-Insured Credit Unions, and
Depository Institution Holding Companies.
\3\ The Management Letter may include suggestions for improving
identified weaknesses and deficiencies and/or best practice
suggestions for items that may not be considered to be weaknesses or
deficiencies. The Management Letter may also include items that are
not required to be disclosed in the annual audited financial
statements. The Management Letter is distinct from the auditor's
Opinion Letter, which is required by Generally Accepted Accounting
Principles (GAAP). Management Letters are not required by GAAP and
are sometimes provided by the auditor as a separate letter from the
audit itself.
\4\``Lump Sum Payment'' shall mean one single payment which
comprises the entire CMF Award.
\5\ ``Initial Payment'' shall mean the first Payment from the
CDFI Fund to the Recipient at Closing.
\6\ ``Subsequent Payment'' shall mean a second Payment
representing the balance of the CMF Award in the case where a
Recipient exercises its option to receive the CMF Award in two
Payments.
[FR Doc. 2024-03152 Filed 2-14-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-05-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on February 15, 2024.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.