1805.701—Evaluation of applications.

(a) Eligibility and completeness. An Applicant will not be eligible to receive assistance pursuant to this part if it fails to meet the eligibility requirements described in § 1805.200 or if it has not submitted complete application materials. For the purposes of this paragraph (a), the Fund reserves the right to request additional information from the Applicant, if the Fund deems it appropriate.

(b) Substantive review. In evaluating and selecting applications to receive assistance, the Fund will evaluate the Applicant's likelihood of success in meeting the goals of the Comprehensive Business Plan and achieving community development impact, by considering factors such as:

(1) Community development track record (e.g., in the case of an Applicant with a prior history of serving a Target Market, the extent of success in serving such Target Market);

(2) Operational capacity and risk mitigation strategies;

(3) Financial track record and strength;

(4) Capacity, skills and experience of the management team;

(5) Understanding of its market context, including its analysis of current and prospective customers, the extent of economic distress within the designated Investment Area(s) or the extent of need within the designated Targeted Population(s), as those factors are measured by objective criteria, the extent of need for Equity Investments, loans, Development Services, and Financial Services within the designated Target Market, and the extent of demand within the Target Market for the Applicant's products and services;

(6) Program design and implementation plan, including an assessment of its products and services, marketing and outreach efforts, delivery strategy, and coordination with other institutions and/or a Community Partner, or participation in a secondary market for purposes of increasing the Applicant's resources. In the case of an Applicant submitting an application with a Community Partner, the Fund will evaluate the extent to which the Community Partner will participate in carrying out the activities of the Community Partnership; the extent to which the Community Partner will enhance the likelihood of success of the Comprehensive Business Plan; and the extent to which service to the designated Target Market will be better performed by a Community Partnership than by the Applicant alone;

(7) Projections for financial performance, capitalization and raising needed external resources, including the amount of firm commitments and matching funds in hand to meet or exceed the matching funds requirements and, if applicable, the likely success of the plan for raising the balance of the matching funds in a timely manner, the extent to which the matching funds are, or will be, derived from private sources, and whether an Applicant is, or will become, an Insured CDFI or a State-Insured Credit Union;

(8) Projections for community development impact, including the extent to which an Applicant will concentrate its activities on serving its Target Market(s), the extent of support from the designated Target Market, the extent to which an Applicant is, or will be, Community-Owned or Community-Governed, and the extent to which the activities proposed in the Comprehensive Business Plan will expand economic opportunities or promote community development within the designated Target Market;

(9) The extent of need for the Fund's assistance, as demonstrated by the extent of economic distress in the Applicant's Target Market and the extent to which the Applicant needs the Fund's assistance to carry out its Comprehensive Business Plan;

(10) In the case of an Applicant that has previously received assistance under the CDFI Program, the Fund also will consider the Applicant's level of success in meeting its performance goals, financial soundness covenants (if applicable), and other requirements contained in the previously negotiated and executed Assistance Agreement(s) with the Fund, the undisbursed balance of assistance, and whether the Applicant will, with additional assistance from the Fund, expand its operations into a new Target Market, offer more products or services, and/or increase the volume of its activities; and

(11) The Fund may consider any other factors, as it deems appropriate, in reviewing an application as set forth in an applicable Notice of Funds Availability.

(c) Consultation with Appropriate Federal Banking Agencies. The Fund will consult with, and consider the views of, the Appropriate Federal Banking Agency prior to providing assistance to:

(1) An Insured CDFI;

(2) A CDFI that is examined by or subject to the reporting requirements of an Appropriate Federal Banking Agency; or

(3) A CDFI that has as its Community Partner an institution that is examined by, or subject to, the reporting requirements of an Appropriate Federal Banking Agency.

(d) Consultation with Appropriate State Agencies. Prior to providing assistance to a State-Insured Credit Union, the Fund may consult with, and consider the views of, the Appropriate State Agency.

(e) Awardee selection. The Fund will select Awardees based on the criteria described in paragraph (b) of this section and any other criteria set forth in this part or the applicable Notice of Funds Availability.

CFR

1805.701—Evaluation of applications.