Letter to the Hon. Mitch McConnell, Senate Majority Leader, and the Hon. Charles Schumer, Senate Minority Leader - Senators Shaheen & Hassan Call for More Funding to Support Small Businesses Through Community Development Financial Institutions

Letter

Dear Leader McConnell and Leader Schumer:

We write to request that you include $1 billion for the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) Fund as part of the next COVID-19 legislative package in order to help more small businesses stay afloat through the current public health emergency and enable them to rebound once it is over.

In normal times, CDFIs fill a critical need by taking appropriated funds and magnifying their impact in neglected rural, urban, and Tribal communities that are not sufficiently served by our nation's financial institutions. For example, in fiscal year 2019, CDFIs took $250 million in appropriated funds and amplified their impact by making loans or investments totaling nearly $21.5 billion, including over 23,000 loans to small businesses.

Indeed, CDFIs not only have a proven track record of making the most of federal resources, but they also have an existing infrastructure in place to deploy much needed financing quickly to small businesses throughout the country. While it is important to continue the newly established Paycheck Protection Program, we should also take greater advantage of these pre-existing CDFI channels so that more of our small businesses receive the necessary resources to save jobs and get their companies through to the other side of the pandemic.

In response to the coronavirus, the Senate has demonstrated its ability to come together and pass legislation to help our constituents because we have a common bipartisan interest in saving our economy, supporting our small businesses, protecting jobs, and saving lives.

It is in this spirit that we respectfully ask that you include $1 billion for the CDFI Fund, including the appropriate funding for the Native American CDFI Assistance (NACA) Program, in the next COVID-19 legislative package.

We thank you for your attention to this important matter and look forward to continuing to work with you to support our nation's small businesses.

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