- Details
- By Brian Edwards
- Finance
Ten Native community development financial institutions will receive $1.95 million in technical assistance grants from the U.S. Treasury Department — about half of the $3.72 million awarded in the previous fiscal year through the Native American CDFI Assistance (NACA) program, according to Treasury.
The awards, announced Sept. 30, are part of nearly $8.8 million distributed to 56 CDFIs nationwide.
This year’s Native CDFI awardees include the Chehalis Tribal Loan Fund, First Nations Community Financial, Ho-Chunk Community Capital Inc., NDN Fund Inc., Nixyaawii Community Financial Services, Pakini Loan Fund, Taala Fund, Tatanka Ska Capital Corp., Westwater Financial Inc., and the Yurok Alliance for Northern California Housing. Nine organizations received $200,000 each, while Westwater received $150,000.
The Native CDFI Network, which represents about 65 federally certified Native CDFIs, said the announcement followed months of advocacy with the Treasury, the CDFI Fund, the Office of Management and Budget, and members of Congress. “NCN has been meeting with Treasury, CDFI Fund, and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) officials and Congressional leaders and will continue to engage these federal agencies and Congress to ensure the NACA FA and TA dollars are distributed to Native CDFI award recipients in a timely fashion,” the organization said in a statement.
Treasury said the awards “reflect Treasury’s commitment to ensuring taxpayer dollars are used effectively and advancing economic opportunity in communities that need it most.”
The announcement also eased concerns in Indian Country that most of the fiscal 2025 NACA funds might not be released. Earlier this year, tribal advocates warned that $24 million — or 86% of the $28 million appropriated for the program — was at risk of being withheld, raising fears that Native CDFIs would be left without critical operating and lending capital.
The CDFI Fund expects to make additional technical assistance and financial assistance awards later this winter, subject to funding availability, according to the Treasury's announcement.
The awards arrive amid shifting rules for the program. In a Sept. 25 Federal Register notice, the CDFI Fund said it amended the fiscal 2025 Notice of Funds Availability to align with recent court rulings on race-based preferences and the administration’s policy priorities.
The changes removed “climate-focused financing” from the list of eligible activities and narrowed the definition of “eligible market” to low-income individuals, Native Americans, Native Hawaiians, Alaska Natives, and persons with disabilities. Populations previously included—such as African Americans, Hispanics, Other Pacific Islanders, Filipinos, and Vietnamese—were eliminated.
The notice also updated the definition of “healthy foods” under the Healthy Foods Financing Initiative. Applicants that advanced to step four of the evaluation process have until Oct. 27 to update their applications.
In a notice to members, the Native CDFI Network said Treasury also confirmed that OMB has apportioned fiscal 2025 financial assistance funds, though no timeline has been set for disbursement.
