NEW YORK — One of the most immediate and tangible effects of a Barack Obama Administration may be an easing of the pressure on the U.S. Treasury Department's Community Development Financial Institution's fund.

During its tenure, the Bush administration kept the program under some degree of constant pressure, cutting its funding recommendations and, one year, trying to eliminate it altogether. Each time supporters, including many community development credit unions rallied to protect the fund and Congress restored the funding, often at the previous year's levels or even a little bit lower.

But there are signs that an Obama administration would bring a different set of priorities and support to the fund, according to Clifford Rosenthal, CEO of the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions

“First, Barack Obama has support for CDFIs as part of his platform,” Rosenthal said. “True, it's not a lengthy mention, but it's in there. We are all also very encouraged that Obama comes from the South Side of Chicago, the home of Shore Bank, one of the most prominent and successful CDFIs.”

A number of people from Shore Bank are likely to be parts of the Obama administration, Rosenthal said, and he anticipates that community development credit unions and CDFIs will have significantly more access to the new administration than they did with the old one.