Throughout the CDFA EDA RLF Best Practices Program, several common characteristics emerged from high performing RLFs. The best practices outlined in this guide synthesize these exceptional traits and address the strategies employed by successful EDA RLFs of all sizes. Each recommendation includes a basic description and several resources for expanded learning. This RLF Best Practices Handbook serves as an overview of the best practices that EDA RLF recipients should consider to maximize their lending capacity, support local businesses, and enhance the economic development financing ecosystem in their community.

The Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) is pleased to announce the release of Development Finance Solutions for Building Back Better: Policy Priorities for the Biden-Harris Administration. Built in collaboration with development finance agencies across the country and several key advocacy partners, this paper provides a roadmap for the new administration to use development finance solutions to address the numerous interconnected challenges facing the U.S. economy.

Wells Fargo has selected Virginia Community Capital (VCC) to help underserved small businesses stay open and save jobs in Richmond. The $1.5 million in funding will aid the organization's short- and long-term COVID-19 recovery efforts, technical assistance, and lending programs for diverse small business owners.

The Arizona Community Foundation (ACF) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development have launched a public-private partnership to support rural Arizona. ACF will provide $5 million in a revolving line of below-market rate financing to help rural communities access approximately $40 million annually in USDA funding for infrastructure projects that will improve water systems, schools, affordable housing, firehouses, parks, and related needs.

Vice President Kamala Harris and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently discussed how the Biden administration's American Rescue Plan could help Black small business owners recover from the financial devastation they've endured since the pandemic began in March.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently awarded the Texas Water Development Board $72,632,000 to provide low-interest loans to fund clean water projects in Texas. EPA provides the grant under the Clean Water Act's Clean Water State Revolving Fund, a federal-state partnership that provides communities low-cost financing for a wide range of water quality infrastructure projects.

The Downtown Brookings Business District Committee has relaunched the Downtown Economic Development Incentive Fund (DEDIF). The purpose of the DEDIF Loan Program is to stimulate private investment in downtown Brookings by lending funds to downtown property owners for the purpose of exterior streetside real estate improvements, repairs, and historical preservation.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has not slowed down interest in investing in West Virginia. In fact, according to officials with the West Virginia Economic Development Authority, the state has seen an uptick in economic development activity over the past year.

CDFA Food Systems Finance Webinar Series: Financing Food-Centered Redevelopment
Tuesday, April 13, 2021 - 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM Eastern

CDFA-TEDC Webinar: Putting RLFs to Work: Focusing on Access to Capital for Small & Minority-Owned Businesses
Tuesday, April 27, 2021 - 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Central

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This tactical guide is designed to help city economic development leaders support minority- and women-owned (MWBE) and low-to-moderate income (LMI) small businesses in their communities by providing case-tested programs and strategies that can be pursued immediately. It outlines the challenges facing these small businesses, the importance of supporting their recovery, and some key principles to guide policies and programming. It includes 16 recommended actions, grouped into four categories. These recommendations are backed by practical case studies from across the US, step-by-step guides, resources to accelerate implementation, and metrics to measure long-term impact.

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