Four weeks after the Trump Administration ordered a reduction in force (RIF) to eliminate all staff positions at the U.S. Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, officials have rescinded that decision that effectively shut down the organization relied on by hundreds of credit unions.
Officials with America’s Credit Unions praised the Trump Administration for its reversal of what has been described as a government shutdown-induced decision.
In a statement Monday evening, the organization’s President/CEO Scott Simpson said, “On behalf of the nearly 500 CDFI-certified credit unions and their members, America's Credit Unions thanks the administration for acknowledging the importance of the CDFI Fund and continuing its workforce. We are grateful to the congressional leaders who championed the fund and fought alongside us to protect it. Our unified advocacy made clear that communities across the country rely on CDFIs to spur business investment, innovation, affordable housing developments, and more. These credit unions are essential to the financial resiliency and vibrancy of our country, and we look forward to continuing to work with the administration to strengthen the effectiveness of the fund.”
Since the initial RIF decision by the administration, America’s Credit Unions, other credit union-servicing organizations, and many members of Congress have pressed the Treasury Department to consider the damaging ramifications of closing the CDFI Fund.
In an Oct. 13 letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the Defense Credit Union Council (DCUC) warned that eliminating the fund’s staff would have “immediate and severe consequences,” particularly for military families. “For more than 30 years, the CDFI Fund has helped mission-driven lenders expand access to affordable financial services in low-income, rural and military communities,” DCUC President/CEO Anthony Hernandez wrote.
He noted that in FY2024 alone, CDFI awardees financed over 109,000 small businesses, supported 45,000 affordable housing units and delivered more than $24 billion in loans and investments, leveraging $8 in private capital for every federal dollar.
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