Look Ahead: What the 119th Congress Could Mean for CDFIs

As state, local, and national elections loom, OFN looks at how shifts in the political landscape could impact community development financial institutions (CDFIs) nationwide.   

Read time: 3 minutes

With a new Congress comes newly elected officials and opportunities to foster positive relationships for the CDFI industry. This election period, there are 74 seats open across the Senate and House of Representatives, many of which will be close races. New faces on the Hill mean that advocacy will be even more important as we welcome these policymakers and introduce them to the impactful work of CDFIs in their states and districts.

We expect to see a lot of turnovers in leadership positions this election cycle, including on key committees to the CDFI industry. Retiring senators serving on these committees include:

• Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), former Small Business Committee Chair and Finance Committee 
• Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV), Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee 
• Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-CA), Appropriations Committee 
• Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Finance Committee and Environment and Public Works Committee 

The entire House of Representatives is up for re-election every two years, meaning there will be a lot of reshuffling of committee assignments and leadership positions. Notably, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC-10), Chair of the Financial Services Committee, and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA-5), Chair of the Energy and Commerce Committee, are both retiring. 

The election outcome will determine priorities for each chamber and will affect the likelihood of what legislation will pass. Regardless of leadership, we know that the major bills expected to move forward in the 119^th Congress will be the Farm Bill and a tax package to deal with expiring provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The Farm Bill is a priority for CDFIs because of provisions for the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development programs that support housing and community facilities.

The tax package presents opportunities to pass key CDFI tax credit legislation like the New Markets Tax Credit Extension Act (S. 234/H.R. 2539), the Neighborhood Homes Investment Act (S. 657/H.R. 3940), and the Community Development Investment Tax Credit (S. 2963/H.R. 6650).  

As always, the annual appropriations bills that fund the government must be passed in the next Congress. The two parties and chambers will have different priorities in how they allocate the federal budget, so we won’t know whether to expect increased or decreased funding for the CDFI Fund until leadership positions are filled. The CDFI industry has the good fortune of bipartisan support, so it will be imperative to educate newly elected officials about the CDFI industry.  

OFN will continue to use the appropriations process to build relationships with Members of Congress and elevate the work of CDFIs.

This year alone, the public policy team has held dozens of meetings with key policymakers to advocate for increased appropriations to the CDFI Fund. These include meetings with more than half the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittees of the Appropriations Committees in both chambers. Our advocacy in support of the work of our members in communities across the nation proved successful, with the Senate Appropriations Committee passing a fiscal year 2025 spending bill with increased funding for CDFIs. 

We rely on the on-the-ground experience of our members to demonstrate the impact of the CDFI industry to policymakers. With a significant number of new faces and several key decisions to come through the 119^th Congress, we will call on our members to engage as CDFI advocates.

You can get started today by using our Policy Action Center. Stay tuned for OFN’s post-election webinar later this year and more opportunities to get involved. 

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Tags: Appropriations, Biden Administration, CDFI Fund, Public Policy