CDFI Fund Implementing Civil Rights Act Compliance Reporting Requirements

Award applicants requested to complete a new Title VI Compliance Worksheet starting in 2022
 

Update-January 14, 2022: The Title VI Compliance Worksheet webinar scheduled for January 18, 2022 is cancelled. The webinar will be rescheduled for a later date. The CDFI Fund will provide updated scheduling information.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964, which ended segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin, also prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance through Title VI of the Act.

To that end, beginning in 2022, the CDFI Fund is requesting all award applicants complete a Title VI Compliance Worksheet once annually with their applications, as well as their prospective sub-recipients that are not direct beneficiaries of federal financial assistance (e.g., Depository Institutions Holding Company and their Subsidiary Depository Institutions). The CDFI Fund will utilize the Worksheet to determine whether award applicants to the CDFI Fund are compliant with federal civil rights requirements. 

Award applicants must be compliant with federal civil rights requirements in order to be eligible to receive federal financial assistance awards from the CDFI Fund. This requirement applies to award applicants, as well as their prospective sub-recipients that are not direct beneficiaries of federal financial assistance (e.g., Depository Institutions Holding Company and their Subsidiary Depository Institutions).

As a recipient or potential recipient of federal financial assistance, organizations are prohibited from discriminating against program participants because of their race, color, national origin, disability, and age. If the assistance provided by the CDFI Fund is to conduct an educational program, award recipients are also prohibited from discriminating against program participants because of their sex. 

The Worksheet is an online form submitted through the CDFI Fund’s Award Management Information System (AMIS). Completion of the Worksheet is requested for the Bank Enterprise Award Program, Capital Magnet Fund, CDFI Program, Native Initiatives, and the Small Dollar Loan Program. The Title VI Worksheet is not being requested for the New Markets Tax Credit Program or the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program. A User Guide for the Worksheet is available here.

Title VI Compliance Worksheet Webinar
The CDFI Fund is conducting a live webinar to provide organizations and potential program applicants with an overview of the Worksheet and a forum to ask questions.

Advance registration is not required to participate in the webinar. Please access the webinar, using the link provided below, at least five minutes prior to the beginning of the webinar. Requests for reasonable accommodations under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act should be directed to Jay Santiago at the CDFI Fund at 202-653-0300.

Viewing this webinar requires the use of WebEx. To download the WebEx Meetings Desktop Application, please see the instructions on the WebEx Downloads webpage.

• Date: Tuesday, January 18, 2022
• Time: 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time
• Access Details: Webinar has been cancelled and will be rescheduled. The CDFI Fund will provide updated schedule information at a later date. 

About the U.S. Treasury Department and Title VI
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the grounds of race, color, or national origin in programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance. The U.S. Treasury Department implements Title VI through regulations set forth in 31 C.F.R., Part 22 and conducts investigations of civil rights complaints filed against recipients of financial assistance under any of its programs, and conducts pre- and post-award compliance reviews. Treasury can defer action on an application for federal financial assistance, issue a cautionary letter, or deny funding for applicants who are not in compliance with Title VI and other relevant civil rights laws. 

More information about Title VI is available through Treasury Department’s Office of Civil Rights and Diversity. The Office of Civil Rights and Diversity also has a poster available to download for display in your offices.

About the CDFI Fund
To learn more about the CDFI Fund and its programs, visit the CDFI Fund’s website.