[Federal Register: February 4, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 23)]
[Notices]
[Page 5731-5735]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr04fe03-137]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) Inviting Applications for the
Community Development Financial Institutions Program--Native American
CDFI Development Program
AGENCY: Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Department
of the Treasury.
ACTION: Notice of funds availability (``NOFA'') inviting applications
for the FY 2003 and FY 2004 funding rounds of the Native American CDFI
Development (``NACD'') Program.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This NOFA is issued in connection with the FY 2003 and FY 2004
funding rounds of the NACD Program. Through the NACD Program and
subject to appropriation of funding for the purposes enumerated in this
NOFA, the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (the
``Fund'') will provide technical assistance (``TA'') grants to
organizations that plan to create community development financial
institutions (CDFIs) to serve Native American, Alaska Native and/or
Native Hawaiian communities.
Interested parties should be aware that implementation of the FY
2003/04 NOFA for the NACD Program is contingent on the appropriation of
funds for the purposes enumerated in this NOFA; as of the date of this
NOFA, said appropriation is pending with Congress. The Fund will issue
a notice on its Web site, at http://www.cdfifund.gov, at such time that
the Fund has the authority to implement the FY 2003/04 NOFA for the
NACD Program. Applicants may submit applications pursuant to this NOFA
as set forth herein; however, the Fund will not review applications or
make awards unless and until funds are appropriated for the purposes
and uses set forth in this NOFA.
The Preamble to the Fund's NOFAs, published in this issue of the
Federal Register also specifies other program information, including
eligibility requirements, for each of the Fund's programs. The Fund
encourages applicants to review the revised interim rule and the
Preamble to the NOFAs.
The FY 2003 and FY 2004 Technical Assistance Component and the NACD
Program together replace the Native American CDFI Technical Assistance
(``NACTA'') Component that was made available in FY 2002.
Subject to funding availability, the Fund expects that it may award
approximately $3 million for FY 2003 awards, and approximately $1.5
million for FY 2004 awards, in appropriated funds under this NACD
Program NOFA. The Fund reserves the right to award in excess of said
funds under this NOFA provided that the appropriated funds are
available and the Fund deems it appropriate. The Fund intends to make
information available on its website about the level of dollars
remaining available on a regular basis.
Applicants should note that the Fund expects that the funding round
for this NOFA (and the NOFA for the Technical Assistance Component of
the CDFI Program, also published in the Federal Register on this date)
will extend over a two year funding round, subject to funding
availability and Fiscal Year 2004 appropriations.
Under this NOFA, the Fund anticipates making TA grants up to
$100,000 per awardee. The Fund, in its sole discretion, reserves the
right to award amounts in excess of the anticipated maximum award if
the Fund deems it appropriate. The Fund reserves
[[Page 5732]]
the right to fund, in whole or in part, any, all, or none of the
applications submitted in response to this NOFA.
DATES: Shortly following the publication of this NOFA, the Fund will
make available the FY 2003 funding application on its Web site at
http://www.cdfifund.gov. Applicants may download the application from
the Fund's Web site or request application packages by contacting the
Fund, as described below.
The Fund will accept and review applications under this NACD
Program NOFA as they are submitted and in the order in which they are
submitted. Applications may be submitted at any time, commencing with
the date of the publication of this NOFA. Applications must be received
in the specific Bureau of the Public Debt--Franchise Services (BPD)
office designated below not later than 5:00 p.m. ET on May 31, 2004.
Any applicant whose application is declined may submit a new
application before May 31, 2004. Applications received in the specific
BPD office designated below after that date and time will be rejected
and returned to the sender.
Applications sent by facsimile or e-mail will not be accepted;
however, an electronic application may be made available for this NOFA
at a later date and, if so, its availability and related guidance will
be announced on the Fund's Web site.
ADDRESSES: Applications must be sent to: CDFI Fund Awards Manager, NACD
Program, Bureau of Public Debt--Franchising, 200 Third Street, Room
211, Parkersburg, WV 26101. The telephone number to be used in
conjunction with overnight mailings to this address is (304) 480-5450.
Applications will not be accepted at the Fund's offices. Applications
received in the Fund's offices will be rejected and returned to the
sender.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have any questions about the
programmatic requirements for this program, contact the Fund's Program
Operations Manager. If you have questions regarding administrative
requirements, contact the Fund's Awards Manager. The Program Operations
Manager and the Awards Manager may be reached by e-mail at
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov, by telephone at (202) 622-6355, by facsimile
at (202) 622-7754, or by mail at CDFI Fund, 601 13th Street, NW., Suite
200 South, Washington, DC 20005. These are not toll free numbers.
Applications and other information regarding the Fund and its programs
may be downloaded and printed from the Fund's Web site at http://www.cdfifund.gov
or requested by contacting the Fund, as described
above. Allow at least one to two weeks from the date the Fund receives
the request for receipt of the application.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Eligibility
The NACD Program application specifies the eligibility requirements
that each applicant must meet in order to be eligible to apply for
assistance under this NOFA. The following sets forth some additional
detail and certain additional dates that relate to the submission of
applications under this NOFA:
(1) Eligible Applicants: Eligible applicants for the NACD Program
consist of:
(a) Category I, meaning Tribes, Tribal entities and nonprofit
organizations that primarily (at least 50 percent of activities
directed toward) serve Native American, Alaska Native and/or Native
Hawaiian populations including:
(i) Tribes, Tribal entities, Alaska Native Villages, Village
Corporations, Regional Corporations, Non-Profit Regional Corporations/
Associations, or Inter-Tribal or Inter-Village organizations; and
(ii) non-profit community organizations engaged in related
activities, including, but not limited to: Community development
corporations (CDCs), training or educational organizations, Tribally-
Controlled Community Colleges, Chambers of Commerce, or Urban Indian
Centers that serve primarily a Native American, Alaska Native or Native
Hawaiian Community (such entities were referred to as Category II
applicants under the FY 2002 NACTA Component); and
(b) Category II, meaning TA providers or other suitable providers,
including:
(i) TA providers such as firms that provide training or TA in
community development finance or that specialize in economic
development in Native American, Alaska Native and/or Native Hawaiian
communities, and
(ii) other suitable providers, as defined by the Fund, that
include, but are not limited to: CDCs, certified CDFIs, or
organizations with experience and expertise in banking and lending in
Native American, Alaska Native and/or Native Hawaiian communities)
(such entities were referred to as Category III applicants under the FY
2002 NACTA Component).
Any applicant, under Category II above, including CDFIs, that does
not serve primarily a Native American, Alaska Native and/or Native
Hawaiian community must identify a Native American Partner that serves
primarily a Native American, Alaska Native and/or Native Hawaiian
community and with which the applicant will work with to establish a
CDFI in the Native American Partner's community or service area that in
turn will serve primarily a Native American, Alaska Native and/or
Native Hawaiian community. The Native American Partner must be a party
to both the application for funding and the Assistance Agreement, if
the applicant is selected for funding. Category II applicants may
propose to serve more than one Native American, Alaska Native and/or
Native Hawaiian community. If more than one such communities are to be
served, then more than one Native American Partner may be a party to
the application and the Assistance Agreement, as long as such Native
American Partner(s) is representative of the predominance (plurality)
of the market to be served by the proposed CDFI. If not, the Fund may
require that the applicant obtain additional Native American
Partner(s).
(2) Certification: For purposes of this NACD Program NOFA, eligible
applicants must establish entities that will become Fund-certified
CDFIs by January 31, 2006 (for applications received by May 31, 2003)
or by January 31, 2007 (for applications received between June 1, 2003
and May 31, 2004). Applicants may obtain CDFI certification
applications through the Fund's Web site at http://www.cdfifund.gov.
(3) Designation of Targeted Population: For purposes of this NOFA,
the Fund will use the following definitions, set forth in the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) Notice, Revisions to the Standards for the
Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity (October 30,
1997):
(a) American Indian, Native American or Alaska Native: a person
having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South
America (including Central America) and who maintains tribal
affiliation or community attachment; and
(b) Native Hawaiian: a person having origins in any of the original
peoples of Hawaii.
(4) Previous Awardees: Applicants must be aware that success in a
previous round of the CDFI Program or the NACTA Program is not
indicative of success under this NOFA. Previous awardees are eligible
to apply under this NOFA, except as follows:
(a) the Fund is generally prohibited from obligating more than $5
million in assistance, in the aggregate, to any one CDFI and its
Subsidiaries and Affiliates during any three-year period (further
guidance on the calculation of the $5
[[Page 5733]]
million cap is available on the Fund's Web site at http://www.cdfifund.gov
);
(b) the Fund will not consider an application submitted by an
applicant that is a previous Fund awardee under any Fund program or
component of the CDFI Program if the applicant has failed to meet its
reporting requirements, set forth in the previously executed assistance
or award agreement(s), as of the date an application for funding under
this NOFA is received by the CDFI Fund; and
(c) the Fund will not consider an application submitted by an
applicant that is a previous Fund awardee under any Fund program or
component of the CDFI Program that has a balance of undisbursed funds
under said previous award, as of the date an application for funding
under this NOFA is received by the CDFI Fund. Accordingly, applicants
that are previous awardees are advised to:
(i) submit all required reports by the deadlines specified in the
assistance or award agreements governing said prior awards and to
comply with all requirements found therein, and
(ii) contact the appropriate Program Operations representative of
the Fund to ensure that actions are underway for the disbursement of
any outstanding balance of said prior award.
II. Types of Assistance
An applicant may only submit an application for a TA grant under
this NOFA. The Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
provide a TA grant for uses other than that which is requested by an
applicant.
Applicants for TA grants under this NOFA shall describe the type(s)
of TA requested, when the TA will be acquired, the provider(s) of the
TA, the cost of the TA, and a narrative description of how the TA will
enhance their community development impact by creating a CDFI. Eligible
types of TA grant uses include, but are not limited to, the following:
(1) Acquiring consulting services;
(2) Paying staff salary for the limited purposes of completing
tasks and/or fulfilling functions that are otherwise eligible TA grant
uses under this NOFA;
(3) Acquiring/enhancing technology items; and
(4) Acquiring training for staff or management (under Category I
only).
The Fund will generally not consider requests for TA grants under
this NOFA for expenses that, in the determination of the Fund, are
deemed to be ongoing operating expenses rather than non-recurring
expenses. The Fund will consider requests for the use of TA to pay for
staff salary only when the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction
of the Fund that:
(a) The staff salary relates directly to building the applicant's
capacity to serve its target market;
(b) The proposed staff time to be paid for by the TA grant will be
used for a non-recurring activity or the staff salary will build the
applicant's capacity to achieve its objectives as set forth in its
application;
(c) The proposed activity would otherwise be contracted to a
consultant or not be undertaken; and
(d) The staff person assigned to the proposed task has the
competence to successfully complete the activity. Further guidance on
the limited uses of TA grants for staff salary expenditures is
available on the Fund's Web site at http://www.cdfifund.gov.
III. Application Packet
Applicants under this NOFA must submit all materials described in
the applicable application. An application must include a valid and
current Employer Identification Number, issued by the Internal Revenue
Service, or the application will be rejected as incomplete and returned
to the sender.
IV. Evaluation
For purposes of this NACD Program NOFA, the Fund will evaluate
applications through a merit-based, qualitative application process, in
the order in which they are submitted, until such point as all
appropriated funds allocated for this NOFA are obligated or May 31,
2004, whichever occurs first. Applications submitted after that point
will not be considered for funding; said applications will be rejected
and returned to the sender.
All applications will be reviewed for eligibility and completeness.
If determined to be eligible and complete, the Fund will conduct the
substantive review of each application in accordance with the criteria
and procedures described in the interim regulations, this NOFA and the
application. In the first part of the substantive review, the Fund will
evaluate each application on a 100-point scale, comprising the four
criteria categories set forth below, and assign numeric scores.
Applicants whose applications are assigned 60 points or more will be
considered for TA awards.
(1) Market Need and CDFI Strategy: including a review of the
applicant's understanding of the market context, the prospective
customers, the extent of economic distress within the likely Investment
Area(s) or the extent of need within the likely Targeted Population(s),
the extent of need for the proposed CDFI, the level of support from the
Target Market, and the appropriateness of the proposed products and
services to meet the needs in the market of the proposed CDFI,
appropriateness of the proposed organizational structure. For any
entity that has already received an award from the Fund, the applicant
also will be evaluated on the extent to which it proposes to create
greater community development impact than to be achieved through the
prior award and its track record in meeting previous performance goals
and other Assistance Agreement requirements (maximum 25 points; minimum
of 12 points required to be considered for an award);
(2) Management: including a review of the applicant's current and
proposed management team, governing board, and key staff, its policies
and procedures for financial management, and its track record in
underwriting and portfolio management, if applicable, and its ability
to create the proposed CDFI and to successfully use the requested TA.
For any applicant that has received one or more prior awards through
the CDFI Program, the Fund will consider the extent to which the
applicant has submitted required reports in a timely manner and
otherwise complied with the Fund's requirements (maximum 25 points;
minimum of 12 points required to be considered for an award);
(3) Financial Health and Resources: including a review of the
applicant's financial strength, its liquidity, and the likelihood of
obtaining resources to initiate and sustain operations of the proposed
CDFI, and a clear indication that the proposed CDFI will not be
fiscally dependent on the Fund (maximum 10 points; minimum of 5 points
required to be considered for an award);
(4) Community Development Performance and Effective Use of TA:
including the projected level of activity within the Target Market of
the proposed CDFI; the extent to which the applicant needs the Fund's
assistance to achieve the objectives set forth in its application; and
the likelihood that the Fund's assistance will enhance the applicant's
ability to effectively serve its Target Market by creating a CDFI and
achieve community development impact (maximum 40 points; minimum of 20
points required to be considered for an award).
Fund reviewers will evaluate and score each application and make
recommendations for funding to the Fund's selecting official. As part
of the substantive review process, applicants may receive a telephone
interview or an on-site visit by Fund reviewers for the purpose of
obtaining, clarifying, or
[[Page 5734]]
confirming application information. During the review process, the
applicant may be required to submit additional information about its
application in order to assist the Fund in its final evaluation
process. Such requests must be responded to within the time parameters
set by the Fund.
In the case of an applicant that has previously received funding
from the Fund under the Bank Enterprise Award (BEA) Program, the CDFI
Program or the NACTA Component, the Fund will consider, as appropriate:
(a) The applicant's level of success and extent of compliance in
meeting its performance goals, financial soundness covenants (if
applicable) and other requirements set forth in the assistance or award
agreement(s) with the Fund;
(b) The benefits that will be created with new Fund assistance over
and above benefits created by previous Fund assistance; and
(c) The extent and effectiveness to which the applicant has used
previous assistance from the Fund.
The Fund's selecting official will make a final funding
determination based on the applicant's file, reviewer scores and
recommendations, and the amount of funds available. In the case of
regulated CDFIs, the selecting official will take into consideration
the views of the appropriate Federal banking agencies.
Each applicant will be informed of the Fund's award decision either
through a Notice of Award if selected for an award (see Notice of Award
section, below) or a declination letter, if not selected for an award,
which may be for reasons of application incompleteness, ineligibility
or substantive issues. Any applicant that is not selected for an award
due to application incompleteness or ineligibility, and that believes
that such decision was made in error, may appeal said decision by
notifying the Fund's Awards Manager in writing or by e-mail (at
cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov, Attention: Awards Manager); such appeals must
be received by the Fund within five business days of the date of the
declination letter. Such appeal requests will be reviewed by the Fund's
Deputy Director for Management and the Deputy Director for Policy and
Programs, as appropriate, whose decision will be final. All applicants
that are not selected for awards based on substantive issues, will be
given the opportunity to request feedback on the strengths and
weaknesses of their applications. This feedback will be provided in a
format and within a timeframe to be determined by the Fund.
The Fund reserves the right to change these evaluation procedures
if the Fund deems it appropriate; if said procedural changes materially
affect the Fund's award decisions, the Fund will provide information
regarding the procedural changes through the Fund's Web site.
V. Notice of Award
The Fund will signify its selection of an applicant as an awardee
by delivering a signed Notice of Award to the applicant. The Notice of
Award will contain the general terms and conditions underlying the
Fund's provision of assistance including, but not limited to, the
requirement that an awardee and the Fund enter into an Assistance
Agreement. The applicant shall execute the Notice of Award and return
it to the Fund. By executing a Notice of Award, the awardee agrees
that, if prior to entering into an Assistance Agreement with the Fund,
information comes to the attention of the Fund that either adversely
affects the awardee's eligibility for an award, or adversely affects
the Fund's evaluation of the awardee's application, or indicates fraud
or mismanagement on the part of the awardee, the Fund may, in its
discretion and without advance notice to the awardee, terminate the
Notice of Award or take such other actions as it deems appropriate.
Moreover, by executing a Notice of Award, an awardee agrees that, if
prior to entering into an Assistance Agreement with the Fund, the Fund
determines that the awardee is not in compliance with the terms of any
previous Assistance Agreement entered into with the Fund, the Fund may,
in its discretion and without advance notice to the awardee, either
terminate the Notice of Award or take such other actions as it deems
appropriate. The Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
rescind its award if the awardee fails to return the Notice of Award,
signed by the authorized representative of the awardee, along with any
other requested documentation, within the deadline set by the Fund.
VI. Assistance Agreement
Each applicant that is selected to receive an award under this NOFA
must enter into an Assistance Agreement with the Fund. The Assistance
Agreement will set forth certain required terms and conditions of the
award, which may include, but not be limited to:
(a) The amount of the award;
(b) The approved uses of the award;
(c) The approved Target Market to which the award must be targeted;
(d) Performance goals and measures; and
(e) Reporting requirements for all awardees.
Assistance Agreements under this NOFA will generally have three-
year performance periods. The Fund reserves the right, in its sole
discretion, to rescind its award if the awardee fails to return the
Assistance Agreement, signed by the authorized representative of the
awardee, along with any other requested documentation, within the
deadline set by the Fund.
VII. Reporting and Monitoring
The Fund will collect information, on at least an annual basis,
from NACD Program awardees, including:
(a) Annual reports related to, among other matters, awardee
compliance with the performance goals and measures set forth in the
Assistance Agreement; and
(b) Such other information as the Fund may require. The Fund will
use such information to monitor each awardee's compliance with the
requirements set forth in the Assistance Agreement. The Fund will also
use such information to assess the impact of the NACD Program. The 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 due
notice to the awardee.
The Fund reserves the right, in accordance with applicable Federal
law and if authorized, to charge award reservation and/or compliance
monitoring fees to all entities receiving NACD Program awards. Prior to
imposing any such fee, the Fund will publish additional information
concerning the nature and amount of the fee.
VIII. Information Sessions
In connection with the Fiscal Year 2003 funding rounds of its
programs, the Fund may conduct Information Sessions to disseminate
information to organizations contemplating applying to, and other
organizations interested in learning about, the Technical Assistance
and Financial Assistance Components of the CDFI Program, the NACD
Program, and the BEA Program. For further information on the Fund's
Information Sessions, dates and locations, or to register online to
attend an Information Session, please visit the Fund's Web site at
http://www.cdfifund.gov or call the Fund at (202) 622-8401.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: 21.020)
[[Page 5735]]
Authority: 12 U.S.C. 4703, 4703 note, 4704, 4706, 4707, 4717; 12
CFR part 1805.
Dated: January 27, 2003.
Tony T. Brown,
Director, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.
[FR Doc. 03-2338 Filed 2-3-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-70-P