MINNEAPOLIS, MN – March 17, 2017 – Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF) President and CEO Frank Altman released the following statement in response to President Trump’s proposed 2018 budget, which would all but eliminate the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, cutting $210 million in funding.

Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF) is disappointed to learn that the President’s Budget Blueprint recommends all but eliminating the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund. This innovative agency offers a unique and effective set of tools – the New Markets Tax Credit, Bond Guarantee, and Financial and Technical Assistance programs – that our industry uses to rebuild distressed inner-city neighborhoods and rural communities.

This decision works against the President’s agenda of bringing jobs, economic growth and opportunity to the communities and people he pledged to help in his campaign. In 2016 alone, CDFIs Fund awards supported the creation of tens of thousands of jobs, financed more than 11,000 businesses, and supported the creation of 33,000 affordable housing units.

Since 1988, CRF has delivered more than $2.2 billion in loans, investments and bonds, to finance small businesses, community facilities and affordable housing, to more than 900 communities across the country. This has meant more than 1.7 million lives improved, 2,600 small businesses helped, 19,000 affordable housing units preserved or created, and 79,000 jobs saved or created. Central to our success has been our ability to attract significant private sector capital by leveraging a small amount of CDFI fund resources. In fact, as an industry, CDFIs leverage twelve dollars in private sector capital for every dollar of federal support.

We will work with our CDFI partners and Congress to restore resources for this vital agency that empowers CRF, and other CDFIs, and allows us to attract and leverage private investor funds to finance borrowers lacking access to capital and restore hope in communities left out of the economic mainstream.

###

About Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF)
Founded in 1988, Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF) is a national non-profit organization with a mission to empower people to improve their lives and strengthen their communities through innovative financial solutions. A leading Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), CRF develops products and services aimed at increasing the flow of capital to historically underinvested communities across the country. CRF has injected more than $2.2 billion to help stimulate job creation and economic development, provide affordable housing, and support community facilities. For more information, visit www.crfusa.com.