CDFA is proud to announce the new CDFA.net website. A year in the making, this new site provides all of CDFA's vast resources with better style, navigation and resources. New additions to the website include state focus pages. Check out events, news, and resources available in Minnesota and all that we have to offer today.

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development awarded funding to 13 organizations. The program intends to help nonprofit groups develop financial management, governance, human resources, information technology, strategic planning, strategic alliances and accountability skills.

The Good Food Access Program is run by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and was created to provide assistance to increase access to affordable foods in areas of the state currently struggling with a lack of access to grocery stores and other outlets that sell nutritious food.

Throughout the next year, the campaign will highlight Minnesota's culture of innovation by sharing stories of businesses and entrepreneurs on the cutting edge. In addition #InnovateMN will highlight DEED resources for Minnesotans who are looking for financing or technical assistance.

An audit of one of Minnesota's biggest business tax breaks found serious problems with the incentive, saying it lacks a specified purpose in law and does not pay for itself in the long run. The audit also found that the state isn't collecting enough data on the decades-old research and development tax breaks.

The popular Angel Tax Credit Program – which has attracted over $377 million for hundreds of high-tech startups in Minnesota since 2010 – will continue to focus much of its efforts on helping businesses owned by women and members of minority groups and for businesses located in Greater Minnesota.

It turns out that it's only the financing tools that are hopelessly complex. The story here sure isn't. The one basic fact that hasn't changed is the need for more places to live for people at the lower end of the income scale. Advocacy groups, such as Haven, are calling for a bigger slice of bonding capacity for housing.

The growth in locally sourced food, a market that totaled $12 billion in sales in 2014 and could reach $20 billion by 2019, coincides with rising consumer demand for healthier fresh food that is often grown organically and with environmentally friendly practices and food hubs are capitalizing on this market.

This course will consider how incentives are being used in today's economic environment and outline steps that are being taken to reduce risk and achieve better outcomes. In particular, this course will address the characteristics of well-designed incentive programs and processes to ensure meaningful impact, value, and accountability.

CDFA Summer School is a week long series of courses presented by the CDFA Training Institute. These courses qualify for the CDFA Training Institute's Development Finance Certified Professional (DFCP) Program. Participants may register for one, two, or three courses during CDFA Summer School. Complete three courses, and you will have fulfilled half of the requirements for the DFCP Program.

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Delivering needed assistance to Minnesota's 74,000 farmers, Governor Mark Dayton today signed the bipartisan $35 million Rural Finance Authority Legislation (H.F. 14) into law. The new funding will allow the Authority to continue offering eligible Minnesota farmers affordable financing and terms and conditions not offered by other traditional lenders.

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