Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, released this statement following the Biden Administration’s move to award over $1.73 billion in grants to 603 community development financial institutions (CDFIs), including several minority depository institutions (MDIs), across the country through the CDFI Fund’s Equitable Recovery Program.
“This latest round of grant funding comes from the unprecedented $12 billion in capital investments and grants I helped secure with Senator Mark Warner in December 2020 to help CDFIs and MDIs and the underserved communities they serve. I applaud the Biden Administration’s move to provide CDFIs and MDIs across the country with the funding they need to continue supporting low-income communities and communities of color who have been disproportionately hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Since the early days of the pandemic, it was clear that CDFIs and MDIs were critical in providing a lifeline to underserved communities, especially after we observed the big banks prioritize their wealthy concierge clients in deployed Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. After CDFIs and MDIs were given a chance to help deploy PPP loans — in part, through a $60 billion set aside in funding I helped secure with Representative Velazquez — small and diverse-owned businesses got the help they needed. In order to further promote equity and expand the capacity of CDFIs and MDIs to reach communities that traditional financial institutions often ignore, I then worked closely with Senator Warner, Representative McHenry and other colleagues to add key provisions from my bill – the ‘Promoting and Advancing Communities of Color Through Inclusive Lending Act' – to the December 2020 COVID-19 relief package that was signed into law.
“With this latest round of funds from that package being deployed, these CDFIs and MDIs will be able to continue their critical mission, while also boosting capital for small businesses, promoting affordable housing and ensuring economic growth for communities long underserved by mainstream financial institutions and harmed most by the effects of the pandemic.”
Background:
On December 20, 2020, Congresswoman Waters announced she had secured $12 billion in capital investments and grants in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, to be deployed through three programs to support CDFIs and minority depository institutions (MDIs).
On June 15, 2021, Congresswoman Waters joined Vice President Kamala Harris, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) to announce the initial release of funds to support CDFIs and MDIs.
On September 21, 2022, Congresswoman Waters joined Vice President Kamala Harris, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) to announce over $8 billion in capital investments to support MDIs and depository CDFIs.
