WASHINGTON–The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) announced that it will be conducting a “national listening tour to solicit public opinion regarding a new strategic framework for the CDFI Fund.”
Intended to foster discussion and engagement among local community development leaders and practitioners, the listening tour will be co-hosted by CDFI Fund Director Annie Donovan alongside the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City-Denver Branch, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, according to Treasury.
“I’m excited for the opportunity to hear from communities about what we’re doing well and what the CDFI Fund can do better to support economic growth and access to capital in areas that need it most,” said CDFI Fund Director Annie Donovan. “The CDFI Fund views this listening tour as a unique opportunity for constructive dialogue to support the growth and success of CDFIs and the communities that they serve.”
According to Treasury, the CDFI Fund is particularly interested in hearing input on the following:
- Program Effectiveness: Are the CDFI Fund’s programs working optimally for communities? What should be improved and how?
- Access: What more can the CDFI Fund do to reach communities that need CDFIs but are either not being served by them or have limited access to CDFI Fund support?
- Innovation and Scaling: How can the CDFI Fund best support CDFIs to continue to innovate? What will it take to scale solutions that are known to work?
- Customer Service: What works well at the CDFI Fund and what needs to be improved?
- Data: How can the CDFI Fund support the use of data to strengthen the industry and increase its impact?
- Blind Spots: What are the issues that should be on the CDFI Fund’s radar screen but are not?
The CDFI Fund will use input from the sessions to help develop strategic objectives that will guide the CDFI Fund over the course of the next several years. Participants at each session will include community development experts, thought leaders, and practitioners, including speakers from the Federal Reserve Banks and local CDFIs.
The listening tour schedule: July 7, San Francisco; July 8, Denver;
July 10, Chicago; July 17, New York; August 6, Atlanta.
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