[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 108 (Wednesday, June 4, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31917-31918]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-12515]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY


Community Development Financial Institutions Fund

AGENCY: Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Department 
of the Treasury.

ACTION: Request for Public Comments, Bank Enterprise Award Program.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This document invites comments from the public on certain 
programmatic and administrative aspects of the Community Development 
Financial Institutions Fund's Bank Enterprise Award (BEA) Program, 
pursuant to the BEA Program regulations set forth at 12 CFR part 1806 
(the Interim Rule). All materials submitted will be available for 
public inspection and copying.

DATES: All comments and submissions must be received by July 7, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent by mail to: Depository Institutions 
Program Advisor, CDFI Fund, U.S. Department of the Treasury, 601 13th 
Street, NW., Suite 200 South, Washington, DC 20005; by e-mail to 
[email protected]; or by facsimile at (202) 622-7754. This is not 
a toll free number.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Information regarding the CDFI Fund 
and its programs may be downloaded from the CDFI Fund's Web site at 
http://www.cdfifund.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Through the BEA Program, the Community 
Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund or the Fund) 
encourages Insured Depository Institutions to increase their activities 
in the form of loans, investments, services, and technical assistance 
provided within Distressed Communities, as well as investments in 
Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) through grants, 
stock purchases, loans, deposits, and other forms of financial and 
technical assistance. The increase in these activities is measured from 
a Baseline Period to an Assessment Period. Each capitalized term used 
in this Request for Public Comments is more fully defined either in the 
Interim Rule or the Notice of Funds Availability for the FYs 2007 and 
2008 funding rounds of the BEA Program (72 FR 189) (the NOFA). Through 
this notice, the CDFI Fund is seeking comments from the public 
regarding certain programmatic and administrative aspects of the CDFI 
Fund's BEA Program. Commentators are encouraged to consider, at a 
minimum, the following issues:
    (1) Terms and Conditions of Award: Under the BEA Program, the 
Awardee enters into an Award Agreement with the CDFI Fund that sets 
forth the terms and conditions of the award. Currently, the Award 
Agreement does not require an Awardee to use the award for a specific 
purpose or activity. Furthermore, the Award Agreement does not require 
BEA Awardees to report to the Fund on the use of their awards.
    (a) Use of BEA Awards: The Fund is considering revisions to the BEA 
Program that would require Awardees to use their awards for Qualified 
Activities. The Fund makes BEA awards to selected Applicants that 
increase their Qualified Activities during a specified period. 
Qualified Activities are defined in the Interim Rule to include CDFI 
Related Activities, Distressed Community Financing Activities, and 
Service Activities (12 CFR 1806.103(mm)). CDFI Related Activities 
include Equity Investments, Equity-Like Loans, and CDFI Support 
Activities (12 CFR 1806.103(p)). Distressed Community Financing 
Activities include Affordable Housing Loans; Affordable Housing 
Development Loans and related Project Investments; Education Loans; 
Commercial Real Estate Loans and related Project Investments; Home 
Improvement Loans; and Small Business Loans and related Project 
Investments (12 CFR 1806.103(u)). Service Activities include Deposit 
Liabilities; Financial Services; Community Services; Targeted Financial 
Services; and Targeted Retail Savings/Investment Products (12 CFR 
1806.103(oo)).
    (i) What information should the CDFI Fund collect from Awardees in 
order to monitor the use of BEA awards for Qualified Activities?
    (ii) Are there additional types of Qualified Activities that should 
be included in the current list of Qualified Activities? If so, please 
describe. Should the CDFI Fund revise the current definitions of any 
Qualified Activities?
    (iii) Are there other categories of activities in which the CDFI 
Fund should require Awardees to deploy their BEA awards?
    (iv) What is a reasonable timeframe to require Awardees to deploy 
BEA award proceeds as Qualified Activities?
    (v) How should the CDFI Fund administer this deployment 
requirement? Please comment on any application modifications, Award 
Agreement modifications, and compliance and monitoring policies that 
should be modified or created to support a deployment requirement.
    (b) BEA Award Reporting Requirements:
    (i) CDFI Program awardees and New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program 
allocatees are required to report annual performance data through the 
CDFI Fund's Community Investment Impact System (CIIS). CDFIs that 
receive a Financial Assistance award through the CDFI Program are 
required to provide such data for three years; NMTC

[[Page 31918]]

Program allocatees are required to report their activities for the 
entire period of their tax credit allocation period (over approximately 
seven years). The BEA Program has no such performance data reporting 
requirement. Should the CDFI Fund require BEA Awardees to report their 
performance activities annually through CIIS? How many years should BEA 
Awardees be required to report such data?
    (ii) The BEA Application Report of Transactions spreadsheet 
includes a field for Applicants to report impacts for Distressed 
Community Financing Activities. Currently, this reporting request is 
optional for Applicants. Should the Fund require Applicants to report 
the estimated impact for each Qualifying Activity submitted for award 
consideration? Should the Fund revise the current definitions of the 
Distressed Community Financing Activity impacts? If so, please provide 
relevant impact definitions for the current Qualifying Activities.
    (2) Eligible CDFI Partners: Currently, the CDFI Fund requires 
eligible CDFI Partners to submit BEA Signature Pages and Distressed 
Community maps for each funding round in which they receive support 
through an Applicant's CDFI Related Activities. Should the CDFI Fund 
consider all certified CDFIs as eligible CDFI Partners, and eliminate 
all or any CDFI Partner submission requirements?
    (3) Calculating the Estimated Award Amount: The Interim Rule 
describes the process for selecting Applicants to receive BEA Program 
awards and determining award amounts. Currently there is no minimum 
amount for BEA awards. Should the CDFI Fund establish a minimum award 
threshold? If so, what should it be?

    Authority: 12 U.S.C. 1834a, 4703, 4703 note, 4713; 12 CFR part 
1806.

    Dated: May 29, 2008.
Donna J. Gambrell,
Director, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.
 [FR Doc. E8-12515 Filed 6-3-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-70-P