COVID-19 Resource Center

Development finance has always been at the forefront of recovering from natural disasters and economic challenges. The CDFA COVID-19 Resource Center is a collection of financing programs and resources to address disaster relief and recovery.

As the situation surrounding COVID-19 evolves, small businesses and communities across the country will very quickly face liquidity challenges, job losses, and project stagnation. Credit will be tightening and small businesses will struggle to make payroll while communities will be forced to scale back or halt infrastructure development. Moreover, communities are facing difficulties financing critical infrastructure such as health facilities, broadband networks, and testing centers to address local COVID-19 demands.

Development finance agencies are uniquely positioned to solve these challenges through pragmatic solutions and adjustments to existing initiatives. CDFA developed this COVID-19 Resource Center to serve as a central hub of everything the development finance world is doing to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19.

Subscribe to CDFA's COVID-19 Recovery & Relief Update newsletter for regular updates on relief and recovery financing initiatives.

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-CDFA's COVID-19 Comprehensive Recovery Strategy

Based on the input of our 500+ members, CDFA has developed a set of policy proposals that would allow state and local governments, through development finance agencies, to be immediate problem solvers that can help alleviate the extreme economic challenges facing small businesses and communities to put America securely on the path to recovery.

Read the Comprehensive Recovery Strategy

Unlock Capital for Small Business Immediately

To support small businesses, Congress and the Administration should:

Reauthorize & Fund the State Small Business Credit Initiative
Temporarily Remove Match Requirements from Certain Federal Programs
Amend Existing Revolving Loan Funds

Pass Immediate Bond Financing Provisions

To support communities, Congress and the Administration should:

Pass the Modernizing Agricultural and Manufacturing Bonds Act (MAMBA)
Create a Permanent Category of Disaster Recovery Bonds

Allocate Federal Funding Accordingly

CDFI Fund - $1 billion to address critical community lending needs
EDA - $500 million to seed new, flexible revolving loan funds and to provide direct technical assistance to communities hit hard by the crisis
HUD - $2 billion to address urban disaster recovery due to small business losses
USDA - $2 billion to address rural development stagnation and the loss of small businesses

-Weekly Development Finance COVID-19 Briefings

CDFA hosted weekly briefings about development finance COVID-19 news and resources. These one-hour phone calls featured legislative updates, news from our members, state and local financing strategies, and lessons learned from previous development finance responses to disasters.

CDFA's Weekly Development Finance COVID-19 Briefings were held every Friday at 1:00 PM (Eastern) through May 15, 2020:

-State Response Map

Click a state to view COVID-19 financing programs and related headlines.

-COVID-19 Recovery & Relief Resources

-Federal Resources

Small Business Funding Portal - U.S. SBA
U.S. SBA | Jan. 19 | Access to Capital | Disaster Recovery & Relief | Federal

A resource of private funding options to help small businesses. Browse options available nationally, or input a zip code to explore location-specific funding.

Congress has passed a $2.3 trillion omnibus spending bill that includes approximately $1.4 trillion to fund the government through September 30, 2021, and approximately $900 billion in economic stimulus.

Many elements of the CDFA COVID-19 Comprehensive Recovery Strategy are in this bill, including increased funding for the CDFI Fund and the EDA, along with important extensions and corrections for several development finance tools.

Additional information and resources will be available in the coming weeks, including an all-new CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series, updates to the CDFA Federal Financing Clearinghouse, and news and resources captured in the COVID-19 Resource Center.

Summaries of the development finance priorities included in H.R. 133 are listed below.

>>> Read a Section-by-Section Summary of Relief Provisions
>>> Read a Section-by-Section Summary of Appropriations
>>> Read a Section-by-Section Summary of Authorizing Matters
>>> Read the Full Text

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) borrowers have been waiting for additional guidance since April on the deductibility of PPP-funded expenses. The IRS expanded upon this guidance by addressing the situation where a PPP loan has not yet been forgiven by the end of the tax year in which such expenses were incurred.

The Municipal Liquidity Facility: How It Works Members only

The Municipal Liquidity Facility is a Federal Reserve program created in April as a new financing source for state and local governments. This MLF factsheet was produced by the Pew Charitable Trusts in October 2020.

The Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department have agreed to extend the life of four emergency lending facilities to March 31. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin sent a letter to Fed Chair Jerome Powell approving the extension of the Fed's Commercial Paper Funding Facility, Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility, the Primary Dealer Credit Facility, and the Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility.

Update on the Federal Reserve's Lending Facilities - November 23, 2020 Members only

This report provides an update as of November 23, 2020 on all of the Federal Reserve's outstanding lending facilities. These include the Primary Dealer Credit Facility (PDCF), the Commercial Paper Funding Facility (CPFF), the Municipal Liquidity Facility (MLF), the Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility (PPPLF), the Main Street New Loan Facility (MSNLF), the Main Street Expanded Loan Facility (MSELF), among others.

As coronavirus cases surge across the country and new stay-at-home orders threaten further damage to an already fragile economic recovery, millions of Americans will lose crucial federal benefits if Congress can't come to an agreement on a new round of stimulus legislation.

Faced with a growing but modest uptake in program loans, the Federal Reserve recently adjusted the terms of the Main Street Lending Program to better target support to smaller businesses. Established in the wake of the CARES Act, the program is intended to help otherwise healthy small and medium-sized businesses and nonprofits weather the financial strains of the pandemic.

Because of the continuing COVID-19 crisis, the IRS has issued Revenue Procedure 2020-49 (the Revised Guidance), which extends the period during which remote telephonic hearings qualify as "public hearings" required for private activity bonds to Sept. 30, 2021. Originally, such telephonic hearings could not be held past Dec. 31, 2020.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced it has authorized $500 million for a fourth round of purchases for the USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program. USDA is issuing solicitations for the fourth round to existing Basic Ordering Agreement (BOA) holders and expects to award contracts by Oct. 30 for deliveries of food boxes from Nov. 1 through Dec. 31, 2020.

View more Federal Resources

-State and Local Resources

State Tax Revenue During the COVID-19 Pandemic Members only

Disaster Recovery & Relief | Economic Development | State Finance Program

This dataset, compiled by the Urban Institute, examines the economic factors driving state tax collections during the COVID-19 pandemic based on data from US federal agencies like the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Local Data for Equitable Recovery

Disaster Recovery & Relief | Economic Development | Social Finance

Local Data for Equitable Recovery is a resource hub curated by the Urban Institute and the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership (NNIP) that highlights how local communities can use data and information to respond equitably and effectively to long-standing disparities exacerbated by the COVID-19 health crisis.

Private Capital Public Good - Leveraging Impact Investing to Support a Just & Equitable Recovery

This policy paper from the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance outlines 12 specific policy recommendations and ideas with the potential to catalyze more impact investments to help address urgent social, economic, and environmental challenges.

Building Resilient Rural Places: Strategies from Local Leaders to Strengthen Rural Assets, Diversity, and Dynamism

As the COVID-19 pandemic tests the resilience of rural economies in real-time, this five-part research series argues that our attention should not be focused on an outdated, inaccurate image of rural America, but rather on understanding, sustaining, and investing in the hyperlocal strategies already working to bring growth and equity to increasingly diverse and dynamic rural areas.

Creating Lasting Change through Community Leadership Members only

This piece from the Urban Institute examines how the students, parents, community organizers, and local leaders in Camden, NJ, Perry County, KY, and Hayward, CA are using data to make their communities better for themselves, for their neighbors, and for future generations through the Promise Neighborhoods program.

Homeownership and Closing the Racial Wealth Gap

LISC CEO Maurice A. Jones joined President Bill Clinton, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms to talk solutions to the housing crisis in a post-pandemic landscape on a Clinton Foundation video-streamed panel, "Affordable Housing and (Re)building the American Dream."

Local Food Systems Response to COVID

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated public health and social distancing mandates caused unprecedented shifts and disruptions for Local and Regional Food Systems (LRFS). USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) along with the cooperating research team led by the University of Kentucky seek to enrich existing efforts within LRFS communities of practice who provide essential support to our nation’s local food producers.

Assessment of County Needs in Economic Recovery from COVID-19

Access to Capital | Community Development | Disaster Recovery & Relief | Economic Development | Resiliency

County leaders have witnessed firsthand the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on their neighbors and constituents and are well-informed on needs arising in their local communities. While county governments are uniquely positioned to support recovery efforts, counties, themselves, need support to meet those needs and secure the physical and economic well-being of their residents moving forward. This report outlines what county leaders have identified as primary concerns, priority actions and resources needed to create equitable long-term economic recovery.

Big Ideas for Small Business

This report provides a five-step roadmap towards a more inclusive, dynamic, and productive small-business sector. The report breaks down the five steps into ten major policy recommendations with detailed policy proposals. It was authored by the Drexel University Nowak Metro Finance Lab and Yale's Institution for Social and Policy Studies.

EIG Introduces the Distressed Communities Index

The Economic Innovation Group released the Distressed Communities Index (DCI), a timely research project that maps community well-being across the country down to the zip code scale. The report is accompanied by a digital mapping interactive that allows users to explore all of the data included in the DCI across zip codes, counties, and congressional districts.

View More Disaster Recovery & Relief Resources

-Additional Resources

-Headlines

It’s Time to Make U.S. Disaster Policy More Equitable and Effective
Next City | Jan. 13 | Disaster Recovery & Relief | Economic Development | COVID-19

View more Headlines

-Upcoming Events

CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series: Federal Programs for Affordable Housing Investment
Tuesday, May 11, 2021
2:00 PM Eastern

During this installment of the CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series, experts will cover how development finance agencies can leverage financing from the federal government to support housing projects in their communities.

CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series: Federal Financing for Energy and Water Systems
Tuesday, June 8, 2021
2:00 PM Eastern

During this installment of the CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series, experts from the EPA and DOE will highlight best practices, case studies, and mitigation tools that will help your community finance critical projects.

CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series: Investing in Critical Community Facilities
Tuesday, August 24, 2021
2:00 PM Eastern

During this installment of the CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series, several federal agencies will discuss their financing solutions for local community facilities and how to coordinate with partners.

CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series: The Federal Role in Financing Broadband
Tuesday, September 14, 2021
2:00 PM Eastern

During this installment of the CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series, experts will discuss how federal financing tools can be used to fund 5G broadband networks.

CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series: Preserving Local Food Systems with Federal Financing
Tuesday, December 14, 2021
2:00 PM Eastern

During this installment of the CDFA Federal Financing Webinar Series, hear from experts at the USDA about their various programs available for rural food systems and agricultural producers to recover from the pandemic.

View more Upcoming Events

-Webcasts

CDFA-PFM Capital Markets Webinar Series: An Advanced Discussion on Ratings Members only

Bond Finance | Disaster Recovery & Relief | Webcasts

During this installment of the CDFA-PFM Capital Markets Webinar Series, we gathered experts from the leading rating agencies for a timely discussion on ratings, long-term outlooks, and how municipal advisors determine the importance of rating deals.

CDFA // BNY Mellon Development Finance Webcast Series: Bond Financing for Disaster Response Members only

During this installment of the CDFA // BNY Mellon Development Finance Webcast Series, we looked at how bonds act as a resilient economic driver by financing the critical facilities and infrastructure that stabilize local economies during and after crises.

CDFA // BNY Mellon Development Finance Webcast Series: Understanding The Municipal Liquidity Facility Members only

Bond Finance | Disaster Recovery & Relief | Webcasts | Federal Reserve | U.S. Dept. of Treasury

During this installment of the CDFA // BNY Mellon Development Finance Webcast Series, finance experts discussed the Municipal Liquidity Facility's requirements, market trends since the MLF's launch, and what can be done to make the MLF an attractive option for issuers.

CDFA // BNY Mellon Development Finance Webcast Series: Financing Small Business Recovery After COVID-19 Members only

Access to Capital | Disaster Recovery & Relief | Revolving Loan Funds (RLFs) | Webcasts

During this installment of the CDFA // BNY Mellon Development Finance Webcast Series, we discussed the impacts of COVID-19 on access to capital and how finance tools have evolved to meet the growing needs of small businesses as the nation works towards economic recovery.

CDFA - PFM Capital Markets Webinar Series: What Worries Your Municipal Advisor Members only

Bond Finance | Disaster Recovery & Relief | Housing Finance | Infrastructure Finance | Webcasts

What should issuers, underwriters, and advisors know about working with their team of professionals to complete a bond deal during times of crisis? This interview-style discussion featured a round-robin of advisors divulging the capital markets trends they’re following and offered some best practices on how to deal with them.

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