Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) are uniquely positioned to meet the lending needs of recovering communities. Disasters hit vulnerable communities the hardest, and many CDFIs have decades of experience providing economically disadvantaged individuals with the tools they need to become self-sufficient stakeholders in their own future.
CDFI Coalition Proposal: CDFI Disaster Recovery Fund (Oct. 2026)
Proposed Legislation: Emergency Support for CDFIs and Communities for Disaster Assistance
(a) APPROPRIATION.—There is appropriated, out of amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for fiscal 2027 for the Community Development Financial institutions fund program account, emergency support to carry out this section, $500,000,000, which shall remain available until expended for technical and financial assistance in any state or territory determined by the President to warrant individual or individual public aid from the Federal Government under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2026. Provided that the Fund shall provide grants to certified CDFIs for:
(1) modifications, deferral, and forgiveness of existing loans;
(2) financing for recovery and revitalization of housing, small business, and community facilities; and
(3) Other related and administrative costs.
Justification:
CDFIs are uniquely positioned to deliver swift and targeted financial relief to disaster-prone communities during times of crisis. With deep-rooted relationships in low-income and underinvested areas, CDFIs are ideal partners for distributing emergency funds to small businesses, homeowners, and families who have a tough time accessing complex federal disaster relief programs. In the wake of disasters, access to affordable capital is essential for recovery, rebuilding, and community well-being. CDFIs can ensure that this assistance reaches those who need it most, including remote rural communities. An emergency $500 million appropriation would empower CDFIs to respond quickly and effectively, helping stabilize local economies and expedite recovery efforts where the need is greatest.
The program’s administration would be similar to the CDFI Fund’s Rapid Response Program (RRP), signed into law by President Trump in 2020. The Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021 (PL 116-260) provided $1.25 billion for CDFIs to provide technical and financial services to communities and businesses hard hit by the economic disruptions related to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Based on CDFI performance using proceeds from RRP awards,[1] the CDFI Coalition projects that the CDFIs will use $500 million in supplemental appropriations to:
- Make over 165,000 loans and investments totaling $5.92 billion, including:
- $2.2 billion in flexible consumer loans;
- $1.24 billion in affordable home improvement and purchase loans;
- $840 million in small business and microenterprise loans;
- $520 million in residential real estate financing; and
- 4,600 units of affordable housing.
[1] CDFI Fund FY 2024 Agency Financial Report.
CDFIs Support Disaster Recovery
CDFIs have access to tools that are able to effectively rebuild disinvested communities and make loans to individuals with limited or poor credit histories -requiring more than simply providing access to conventional loans. The flexibility to adapt lending guidelines to the needs of borrowers is possible: allowing for acceptance of unconventional collateral for loans; to help small businesses navigate government red tape; and to provide education, training, and assistance to potential borrowers.
- Providing Financial Services, Loans & investments
- Offering Training & Technical Assistance
- Promoting Development, Enabling Individuals & Communities to Effectively Use Credit & Capital
In the wake of a natural disaster, Americans mobilize billions of dollars in relief through foundations, individuals, and the public sector. While those resources go toward the rebuilding of infrastructure, individual assistance, and the meeting of immediate needs, they also support more complicated medium and long-term efforts to rebuild and repair housing, replace damaged building stock, and jump-start economic activity.
FEMA can handle much of the short-term emergency assistance, but long after federal government is gone, mission-driven lenders – particularly those with long-standing ties to affected communities – will be on the ground working to restore housing stock, rebuild community facilities, and provide technical assistance and financial assistance to businesses and families.
CDFI Disaster Recovery Stories
Rebuilding Together
- Loveland,
- Colorado
- Impact Development Fund
- Disaster Recovery, Fires, Restoring Housing
A family's journey through the Marshall Fire
Sixth Avenue Baptist FCU Helps a Member Rebuild with Grace
- Birmingham,
- Alabama
- Inclusiv, Sixth Avenue Baptist FCU
- Affordable Housing, CDFI Credit Unions, Consumer Finance, Fires, Progress Report, Restoring Housing
A Birmingham Family Finds Hope and Housing Stability Through Faith-Rooted Financial Support
Niagra Lubricants Rebuilds After Fire
- Buffalo,
- New York
- Grow America Fund
- Fires, Loan Fund, Small Business, Small Business Recovery
In July of 2011, Niagara Lubricant’s former location burned in a devastating fire Video Link. In an effort to keep the business afloat, Chairman of Niagara Lubricant, Leon Smith III, moved the third generation family-owned business into a competitor’s space but found the location was inadequate.
Burbank Housing Development Corporation
- Burbank,
- California
- Rural Community Assistance Corporation
- Disaster Recovery, Fires, Loan Fund, Restoring Housing
In 2017, 22 fires destroyed an estimated 6,000 homes in Sonoma County. Historically, Sonoma’s housing development already lagged behind demand. Wildfire losses exacerbated the housing deficit; and after the fires, Sonoma’s housing supply was at an all-time low.
Brookside Rose Apartments: Housing after the Alameda Fire
- Phoenix,
- Oregon
- Network for Oregon Affordable Housing
- Fires, Restoring Housing, Rural
Brookside Rose Apartments LLC is a refinance of Brookside Village Apartments. The funds will allow for the refinance of the current permanent debt, utilizing OAHTC’s, on this existing USDA/Rural Development (“RD”) property. Some of the funds will also be used by the partnership for reconstruction of Rose Court Apartments, the adjacent property, which was a total loss in the Alameda Fire.
Elderly Woman Builds New Home After Fire (OFN Story)
- Loyall,
- Kentucky
- Mountain Association
- Disaster Recovery, Fires, Loan Fund, OFN Stories, Restoring Housing, Rural
When 65-year-old Violet Lewis woke up one night to find her house engulfed in flames, she knew she had no time to lose. She grabbed her pet birds and made it out safely with most of them, but lost everything else in the blaze, including the home she had owned in Loyall, Kentucky, for more than 20 years.
Calvert Foundation Gulf Coast Recovery Initiative
- Gulf Coast,
- Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi
- Enterprise Community Partners, Local Initiatives Support Corporation
- GO-ZONE (2005)
Just fifteen months after Katrina, the Calvert Foundation had already directed a total of $1.6 million in affordable loan capital to the Gulf Coast Region. These loans were based, in part, on investment funds raised since 2005 through its “Gulf Coast Recovery Initiative.”
GO Zone Story: Houston Food Bank
- Houston,
- Texas
- CRFUSA
- GO-ZONE (2005)
Learn how the NMTC Program has helped the Houston Food Bank improve its operations in serving 137,000 people every week.
The GO Zone Act of 2005 Expands the New Markets Tax Credit into Gulf Opportunity Zones
- Gulf Coast,
- Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas
- GO-ZONE (2005)
Hurricane Katrina devastated many New Orleans, Alabama, and Mississippi communities that were already reeling from decades of poverty, unemployment, and economic stagnation. In the wake of Katrina, Congress passed The Gulf Opportunity Zone (GO Zone) Act of 2005, P.L. 109-135, which provided tax relief to The GO Zone, comprised of those counties or parishes that were deemed eligible by FEMA for “individual assistance” or “individual and public” assistance in after the storm.
Odyssey House Louisiana
- New Orleans,
- Louisiana
- Enterprise Community Loan Fund
- GO-ZONE (2005), Healthcare
The Odyssey House Louisiana (OHL) project involves the rehabilitation and complete renovation of the historic Bohn Motor Co. building, a 42k sq. ft. dilapidated structure that has been dormant and exposed for over a decade. OHL is a substance abuse treatment facility and federally qualified health center. Over the past four decades, OHL has provided comprehensive services to Louisiana’s most vulnerable populations, including people with HIV/AIDS, homeless clients, and clients who possess physical, psychological, or emotional disorders. In the 11 years since Hurricane Katrina, OHL has grown from a small, 61-bed treatment program into the state’s largest substance abuse treatment program.
Gulf Coast Renaissance Corporation Created to Aid Mississippi
- Gulf Coast,
- Mississippi
- Renaissance Community Loan Fund
- GO-ZONE (2005), Restoring Housing
Hurricane Katrina hit South Mississippi in August 2005. In the devastating storm’s wake lay some of the greatest structural devastation from a natural disaster in the history of the United States. But amid the flooded ruins, hope found a way to float through the vision of several South Mississippi community and business leaders, organized as The Gulf Coast Business Council. In mid 2006, the council created Gulf Coast Renaissance Corporation, a CDFI, to help rebuild the Mississippi Gulf Coast by bridging the gap in the need for safe and affordable workforce housing.
Topsail Steamer
- Surf City,
- North Carolina
- Partner Community Capital, Thread Capital
- Groceries and Healthy Food, Hurricane Florence, Small Business, Small Business Recovery
Thread Capital financing helped Topsail Steamer recover from Hurricane Florence and build refrigeration, packaging, and shipping capacity to make the business more resilient. Partner Community Capital, then known as Natural Capital Investment Fund, later financed the purchase of the company’s Surf City building.
Community Service Foundation
- Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando Counties,
- Florida
- Florida Community Loan Fund
- Hurricane Helene, Loan Fund, Shelters and Community Food
With financing from Florida Community Loan Fund, CSF purchased properties scattered across Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando Counties, providing a total of 60 affordable rental homes for low-income and formerly homeless families. The neighborhoods will benefit from improved stability as formerly homeless individuals obtain permanent housing. CSF offers a variety of services for its residents, including financial and homebuyer education, crime prevention strategies and activities, mentoring and referrals to partner agencies. In 2020 FCLF also provided emergency working capital as part of its COVID-19 relief financing. FCLF provided additional financing for hurricane repairs in 2024.
Mother Earth Food
- Asheville,
- North Carolina
- Partner Community Capital
- Groceries and Healthy Food, Hurricane Helene, Rural Development, Small Business, Small Business Recovery
Partner Community Capital responded to Hurricane Helene by providing immediate forbearance, borrower outreach, grant assistance, and other recovery support to businesses across Western North Carolina. Asheville-based Mother Earth Food used that support while adapting its local-food operation to maintain cold storage and deliver meals during the recovery.
Smoky Mountain Cremations and Funeral Services
- Maggie Valley,
- North Carolina
- Carolina Small Business Development Fund
- Hurricane Helene, Rural Development, Small Business, Small Business Recovery
A $25,000 grant through the Western Women’s Business Center and Carolina Small Business Development Fund helped Smoky Mountain Cremations and Funeral Services recover after Hurricane Helene severely damaged its Clyde facility. The funding helped furnish its replacement location and purchase a used hearse, allowing the family-owned company to resume serving Western North Carolina families.
People Inc. provides disaster relief services to SW Virginia after Hurricane Helene
- Southwest Virginia,
- Virginia
- People Incorporated Financial Services
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Helene, Rural
People Incorporated’s dislocated worker program is dedicated to supporting those who have found themselves unemployed due to no fault of their own, including individuals who have lost employment as a direct result of Hurricane Helene. The program offers comprehensive job coaching and job search assistance to help individuals re-enter the workforce in our Southwest Virginia and New River Valley service areas. Financial assistance is also available for training and necessary materials.
PCAP Rallies for WNC: Loan Deferrals, Local Support, and Rapid Relief
- Western North Carolina,
- North Carolina
- Partner Community Capital
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Helene, Small Business Recovery
PCAP moved swiftly to offer an initial two-month loan payment deferral to impacted borrowers, easing financial pressure on local businesses that were forced to close. This is just a first step, designed to help businesses focus on immediate needs. PCAP’s lending team is working closely with individual clients to review their needs going forward.
Visage Salon Overcomes Natural Disaster
- Cherokee,
- North Carolina
- Sequoia Fund
- Hurricane Helene, Small Business
Julie Painter, a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and owner of Visage Salon, faced one of her biggest challenges yet when Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina.
Steven and Marjolaine Townsend Campus
- North Port,
- Florida
- Florida Community Loan Fund
- Community Facilities, Education, Hurricane Ian
Florida Community Loan Fund provided a $7 million NMTC allocation to rebuild and expand the Gene Matthews Boys & Girls Club after Hurricane Ian destroyed much of its North Port campus. The completed 23,000 sq. ft. facility can serve up to 350 youth and includes classrooms, technology space, a teaching kitchen, teen center, and career-preparation programs.
Boys & Girls Club Sarasota DeSoto
- North Port,
- Florida
- Florida Community Loan Fund
- Hurricane Ian, Loan Fund, Youth and Families
Construction of new 14,000 sq ft facility to replace a clubhouse devastated by Hurricane Ian in 2022.
$6.3 Million Helps Create Workforce Housing in the Aftermath of Hurricane Irma
- Big Pine Key,
- Florida
- Community Housing Capital
- Hurricane Irma, Restoring Housing, Rural
Hurricane Irma struck the Florida Keys on September 10, 2017, and left this chain of islands with 1,200 homes destroyed and an additional 3,000 homes significantly damaged. As part of the recovery effort, Rural Neighborhoods (RN) will create three new neighborhoods in Big Pine Key, Monroe County, Florida. Community Housing Capital (CHC) provided $6.3 million for construction and permanent loans to the three phases of the project, Seahorse Cottages at Big Pine Key, Seahorse Cottages II at Big Pine Key, and Avenues at Big Pine Key. Constructed to State required hurricane-resistant standards, the workforce housing will have 31 elevated single-story modular homes on podiums. The affordable rentals are reserved for tenants earning 80% area median income (AMI) and extremely low-income tenants earning up to 25% AMI.
Transition House
- Osceola, Lake, and Seminole Counties,
- Florida
- Florida Community Loan Fund
- Affordable Housing, Hurricane Irma, Loan Fund
With 39 loans from FCLF between 1998 and 2017, totaling $7.3 million, the Transition House has acquired and/or renovated several homes and facilities in Osceola, Lake, and Seminole Counties, and repaired damages caused by Hurricane Irma in 2017.
How Financial Co-ops Are Helping Puerto Rico Rebuild — and Why It Matters for New York
- San Juan,
- Puerto Rico
- Inclusiv
- CDFI Credit Unions, Co-Ops, Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Maria, Loan Fund
The banking industry in Puerto Rico, much like on the mainland, has always catered to wealthier consumers and businesses, rather than low-income people and communities. The financial cooperative system in Puerto Rico goes back at least 50 years and emerged for the same reasons as credit unions on the mainland, including lack of access to financial services. Large numbers of Puerto Ricans have long been disenfranchised from the financial system. The cooperative financial system in Puerto Rico is very strong. One in three Puerto Ricans — more than one million people — are members of these cooperativas. That network of 125 cooperativas has been part of the DNA of Puerto Rican communities, rural communities especially, for generations.
PathStone: Supporting Puerto Rico’s Recovery
- Puerto Rico
- Pathstone
- Hurricane Maria
The recent hurricane to come ashore on the Island, Maria, has done untold damage to housing, businesses, to community infrastructure and to people. Maria, as we know, followed soon after Hurricane Irma, totally devastating an Island already weakened by Irma.
Cooperativa Jesus Obrero: Leveraging Solar Power to Withstand Hurricanes
- Guaynabo,
- Puerto Rico
- Cooperativa de Ahorro y Credito Jesus Obrero
- CDFI Credit Unions, Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico Hurricanes (2017)
Even before Hurricane María devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, causing $90 billion in damage, frequent climate events motivated Cooperativa Jesús Obrero to build resilient infrastructure that can provide lower utility bills and alternative power to its members. Its President Aurelio Arroyo González describes that the cooperativa is part of the “critical infrastructure” helping the community to function on a day-to-day basis as well as prepare for and recover from natural disasters.
Cowerks, Ashbury Park
- Ashbury,
- New Jersey Community Loan Fund
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Sandy, Small Business Recovery
Cowerks was founded in 2010 as a flexible shared office space and networking hub for Asbury Park-area technology freelancers and startups. When Cowerks outgrew its office, it found a new space in Asbury Park’s downtown, but after Hurricane Sandy forced the company to close its doors for 10 days, it was compelled to redirect its moving funds to its operations. NJCC’s REBUILD New Jersey fund provided Cowerks the working capital it needed to reopen in its new location just months after the storm.
Sandy homebuyer program aims to boost home ownership in storm-damaged counties
- Jersey Shore,
- New Jersey
- New Jersey Community Loan Fund
- Disaster Recovery, Housing, Hurricane Sandy, Restoring Housing
Displaced Family in Long Beach
- Long Beach,
- New York
- Disability Opportunity Fund
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Sandy, Restoring Housing
Todd and Kim G. have four children, two of whom have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, live in a home located in Long Beach, New York. They were forced to evacuate the home during Superstorm Sandy and upon returning to the home the day after the storm, found that the first floor was gone since their home was hit by both the bay and the ocean.
St. John’s Bread & Life
- Brooklyn,
- New York
- Low Income Investment Fund
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Sandy, Loan Fund, Shelters and Community Food
Shortly after Sandy made landfall in New Jersey, the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) committed $1 million to relief for communities ravaged by the hybrid storm.
CHC & Calvert Announce Investment and Collaboration with NJCC to Support Acquisition and Rehab of Homes Affected by Superstorm Sandy
- Hudson, Essex, Bergen, Union, Monmouth, Middlesex, Ocean, Atlantic and Cape May Counties,
- New Jersey
- New Jersey Community Loan Fund
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Sandy, Loan Fund, Restoring Housing
$7 Million Loan to New Jersey Community Capital’s Community Asset Preservation Corporation to Rehabilitate Abandoned and Foreclosed Homes in New Jersey.
East End Disability Assistance
- Long Island,
- New York
- Disability Opportunity Fund
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Sandy
During Superstorm Sandy, the home being rented by EEDA to provide respite services was inadequate to handle the loss of power and was forced to close for a number of weeks.
Niagra Lubricants Rebuilds After Fire
- Buffalo,
- New York
- Grow America Fund
- Fires, Loan Fund, Small Business, Small Business Recovery
In July of 2011, Niagara Lubricant’s former location burned in a devastating fire Video Link. In an effort to keep the business afloat, Chairman of Niagara Lubricant, Leon Smith III, moved the third generation family-owned business into a competitor’s space but found the location was inadequate.
Gonzalez-Huerta Organics Relocates After Storms
- Chualar,
- California
- California FarmLink
- Groceries and Healthy Food, Small Business, Small Business Recovery, Technical Assistance, Tornadoes and Storms
California FarmLink provided Mauricio Gonzalez with operating financing for his diversified organic vegetable farm and another loan after storms and flooding forced him to relocate to Chualar. The financing covered rent, plants, supplies, and labor, while FarmLink’s Resilerador course helped strengthen business-management skills.
PCAP Rallies for WNC: Loan Deferrals, Local Support, and Rapid Relief
- Western North Carolina,
- North Carolina
- Partner Community Capital
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Helene, Small Business Recovery
PCAP moved swiftly to offer an initial two-month loan payment deferral to impacted borrowers, easing financial pressure on local businesses that were forced to close. This is just a first step, designed to help businesses focus on immediate needs. PCAP’s lending team is working closely with individual clients to review their needs going forward.
InSPIRE
- Asheville,
- North Carolina
- Carolina Community Impact
- Hurricane Helene, Small Business, Small Business Recovery, Technical Assistance
Carolina Community Impact’s InSPIRE program provides grants of up to $5,000 to Western North Carolina small businesses whose Hurricane Helene-related commercial insurance claims were denied or underfunded. The program pairs direct recovery grants with technical assistance and other resources while studying insurance gaps and potential ways to strengthen small-business resilience after disasters.
Amadou Ba: Taxi Driver
- Brooklyn,
- New York
- Business Outreach Center Capital
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Sandy, Small Business Recovery
CDFI helps cab driver get back on his feet after Sandy
PeopleFund CDFI Helps Kickboxing Center Kick Hurricane Harvey’s Devastation
- Rockport,
- Texas
- PeopleFund
- Disaster Recovery, Hurricane Harvey, Loan Fund, Small Business Recovery
Recovering from a disaster is a long, traumatic, and expensive process for survivors and the communities in which they live. In distressed and underserved areas, where insurance or private financial resources are often unaffordable or unavailable, recovery is an even more daunting effort.
Gonzalez-Huerta Organics Relocates After Storms
- Chualar,
- California
- California FarmLink
- Groceries and Healthy Food, Small Business, Small Business Recovery, Technical Assistance, Tornadoes and Storms
California FarmLink provided Mauricio Gonzalez with operating financing for his diversified organic vegetable farm and another loan after storms and flooding forced him to relocate to Chualar. The financing covered rent, plants, supplies, and labor, while FarmLink’s Resilerador course helped strengthen business-management skills.
RuralEdge Helps Vulnerable Communities Weather Multiple Crises
- Northern Vermont,
- Vermont
- NeighborWorks Capital
- Affordable Housing, Disaster Recovery, Homeownership, Tornadoes and Storms
Many areas are experiencing housing shortages right now, but few are as challenged as northeast Vermont, known as the Northeast Kingdom. A search for short-term or rental housing turns up nothing. No affordable housing, no market housing. Nothing.
Cannonball Run Recovers from Tornado
- Cayce,
- Kentucky
- Community Ventures
- Affordable Housing, Homeownership, Restoring Housing, Rural Development, Tornadoes and Storms
Community Ventures is developing seven new homes in Cayce as part of Western Kentucky’s long-term recovery from the December 2021 tornado. The project converts storm-damaged property into new housing while supporting rebuilding and community stability in rural Fulton County.
“Bouncing Forward” from Disasters on Hawaiʻi’s Big Island
- Big Island,
- Hawaii
- Hawaii Community Lending Inc
- Disaster Recovery, Volcanoes
Following the 2018 Kīlauea eruption, Hawaiʻi Community Lending developed an emergency lending program offering unsecured loans of up to $50,000 at 4% fixed interest.
Rebuilding in Hawai’i
- Big Island,
- Hawaii
- Oweesta Corporation
- Disaster Recovery, Loan Fund, Tribal Economic Development, Tribes and Indigenous People, Volcanoes
In May 2018 the Kīlauea Eruption on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi left devastation and destruction in its path: 2 dead, 24 injured, and at least $800 million in property damage. Volcanic gas and earthquakes forced the evacuation of populated areas and destroyed houses, roads, and utilities. While the eruption first happened May 3, it was active and expanding every day until it ended on September 4, 2018. It was after this four-month period of destruction and loss, that Hawaiʻi Community Lending (HCL) first met William and Barbara.