1559-0037 - Supporting Statement - CME Form 2025

Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Department of the Treasury

Supporting Statement – Part A

Office of Compliance Monitoring and Evaluation Material Event Form

OMB Control Number 1559-0037

Collection Renewal

A. Justification

1. Circumstances necessitating collection of information

Pursuant to 12 U.S.C 4701 et seq. the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (the CDFI Fund) implements the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Program. The CDFI Fund’s mission is to increase the capacity of financial institutions to provide capital, credit, and financial services in underserved markets. In order to qualify for a financial assistance, technical assistance, or tax credits award from the CDFI Fund an applicant must obtain and maintain certification status.

Certification of Material Events Forms are required per all Assistance, Award, Allocation, and Bond Loan Agreements when a recipient experiences a change in organizational condition that may lead to, or the actual, violation of any terms and conditions of their Agreement, regulation, or law. Additionally, certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and Community Development Entities (CDEs) must report any condition or event that may cause the entity to no longer meet one or more certification criteria.

The CDFI Fund received a total of thirty-one (31) comments from nine (9) organizations on the Certification of Material Events Forms. The recommendations encompassed typographical changes, clarification of existing items aimed at improving the quality and relevance of the data collection forms.

2. Method of collection and use of data

The Certification of Material Events Form will be submitted upon the occurrence of a “material event” as described in an applicable Assistance, Award, Allocation, or Bond Loan Agreement. The document will provide a series of questions to aid an organization in determining how a Material Event will impact the organization’s certification or compliance status.

3. Use of Information Technology

The Certification of Material Events Form is available to the public through the fillable file on the CDFI Fund’s web page. The Material Events Form is submitted through the CDFI Fund’s Awards Management Information System (AMIS).

4. Efforts to identify duplication

The CDFI Fund has ensured no similar data is gathered or maintained by the CDFI Fund or is available from other sources known to the CDFI Fund. All of the information requested is required in order to determine if a Recipient and/or Allocatee is in compliance with the terms and conditions of its Assistance, Award, Allocation, and Bond Loan Agreement.

5. Impact on small entities

Small business or other small entities may be involved in these efforts; however, this collection of information is not expected to have a significant impact on small.

6. Consequences of less frequent collection and obstacles to burden reduction

The CDFI Fund cannot assess the impact of “material events” on an organization without the submission of the Certification of Material Events Form. The information collected enables the CDFI Fund to better manage the Material Events review process and monitor the effects of Material Events on certification or compliance status.

7. Circumstances requiring special information collection

Any confidential business information submitted by applicants is safeguarded through the CDFI Fund’s records management procedures and information technology security protocols.

8. Consultation with Persons outside the Agency

Pursuant to the notice and request for comments published in the Federal Register on June 24, 2025, at 90 FR 26902, the CDFI Fund received comments on or before August 25, 2025, from nine (9) organizations responding to the solicitation for a total of thirty-one (31) comments. Please refer to the attached Public Comment Adjudication Table for a summary and disposition of comments received.

9. Provision of payment to respondents

No payments or gifts will be made to respondents.

10. Assurance of confidentiality

The CDFI Fund is subject to all Federal regulations with respect to confidentiality of information supplied in the annual compliance reports. Access to data submitted in response to this information collection will be limited to Recipients and/or Allocatees, and their designated representatives, CDFI Fund staff and, if applicable, designated contractors who are subject to all Federal regulations and have completed annual privacy and cybersecurity training.

The CDFI Fund has provided no other assurances of confidentiality to respondents. All information collected in the Material Events Form is submitted through AMIS. Access to AMIS to submit organization’s Certification of Material Events Form is restricted to Recipients, and their designated representatives, through an authenticated and secure organizational profile.

11. Justification of sensitive questions.

No questions of a sensitive nature will be asked through this Certification of Material Events Form. No personally identifiable information will be collected.

12. Estimate of the hour burden of information collection.

Estimated Annual Reporting Burden
Type of Collection	Number of Respondents	Annual Frequency per Response	Hours per Response	Total Hours
Material Events Form	325	2	.25	163

13. Estimate of total annual cost burden to respondents

There are no additional capital, start-up or ongoing operational, or maintenance costs associated with information collection.

14. Estimate of annualized cost to the Government

Annual costs to the Government consist of the staff time associated with implementing information collections, reviewing information, and reporting results. It is not possible to accurately estimate the annualized cost to the Government of staff time due to variations in staff size, grades, and level of effort over the course of a given year.

15. Any program changes or adjustments

This submission is request for the renewal of an existing collection instrument. Minor modifications were made to the Certification of Material Event Form to include changes resulting from the implementation of new programs, modifications to existing Agreements and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requirements.

16. Plans for information tabulation and publication

Although the Agency does not intend to publish its findings, the Agency may receive requests to release the information (e.g., congressional inquiry, Freedom of Information Act requests). The Agency will disseminate the findings when appropriate, strictly following the Agency's "Guidelines for Ensuring the Quality of Information Disseminated to the Public," and will include specific discussion of the limitations of the qualitative results discussed above.

17. Reasons for not displaying expiration date of OMB approval

Not applicable. The CDFI Fund intends to display the expiration date of the OMB approval on the Material Event Form.

18. Explanation of exceptions to certification statement

Not applicable.

B. Collections of Information Employing Statistical Methods

Not applicable.

Appendix 1: Material Event Form Response and Comment Summary

Table 1: Material Event Form Respondents

Date	Organization	Name
8/25/2025	American Bankers Association	Christopher Lewis
8/25/2025	American Financial Services Association	Philip Bohi
7/14/2025	Community Development Bankers Association	Jeannine Jacokes
8/25/2025	Conference of State Bank Supervisors and the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors	Brandon Milhorn Brian Knight
8/6/2025	CU Strategic Planning	Stacy Augustine
8/25/2025	Inclusiv	Cathleen Mahon
7/30/2025	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Julia Nelmark
8/22/2025	Primary Care Development Corporation	Louise Cohen
8/25/2025	The Low Income Investment Fund	Daniel A. Nissenbaum

Table 2: Material Event Form Comment Summary

Author Name	Organization	Comment	Recommendation
Christopher Lewis	American Bankers Association	CAMELS Ratings Disclosure (Item 41): We respectfully urge the CDFI Fund to preserve the status quo. CAMELS ratings should not be incorporated into the CDFI certification process. While these ratings may continue to affect eligibility for awards, they should not determine whether an institution can remain certified. Maintaining this distinction will ensure that the CDFI Fund’s certification framework continues to recognize the unique challenges CDFIs face, particularly in rural markets, while upholding the appropriate role of prudential regulators in supervising safety and soundness.	The CDFI Fund supports removing this provision from the Certification of Material Event Form and the underlying requirement found in the CDFI Certification Agreement.
Christopher Lewis	American Bankers Association	We respectfully note that the CDFI Fund’s statutory authority does not extend to regulating or supervising the safety and soundness of insured depository institutions. Under 12 USC § 4707, the Fund is specifically prohibited from assuming a supervisory role over financial institutions—a responsibility that remains with the appropriate federal banking agencies.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form and the CDFI/CDE Certification application.
Christopher Lewis	American Bankers Association	The proposed requirement to report any negative or adverse finding by a bank’s regulatory agency is overly broad and may create confusion regarding materiality. Regulatory findings vary widely in severity and are often based on examiner discretion. Some may address minor procedural issues that do not rise to the level of a safety or soundness concern. We suggest narrowing this requirement to only those regulatory findings that contribute to a CAMELS composite rating of 5. This would allow the Fund to be appropriately informed of significant developments while avoiding excessive or duplicative reporting obligations.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Christopher Lewis	American Bankers Association	Violations of Law (Item 43): The proposed requirement to submit a Notice of Material Event for all violations of law or regulation may inadvertently capture routine technical matters that are commonly identified and resolved during standard examinations. We recommend restricting this notification requirement to instances where legal or regulatory violations are associated with a CAMELS rating of 5. This would help focus attention on institutions where compliance issues may pose a more serious risk while minimizing the risk of unnecessary alerts in cases where issues are minor or already addressed	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Christopher Lewis	American Bankers Association	We are concerned that implementation of the proposed provisions could unintentionally discourage participation in the CDFI program by regulated financial institutions. The possibility of losing CDFI certification based on supervisory matters that are not indicative of mission failure and do not call into question the safety and soundness of a bank could jeopardize important sources of capital including Community Reinvestment Act motivated investments, public deposits, and participation in programs such as Emergency Capital Investment Program. Given the role that CDFI certified banks play in delivering responsible and inclusive financial services in underserved markets any change that may inhibit their participation warrants careful review.	The information collected in the Certification of Material Event Form in used in conjunction with other information to determine if a Material Event affects CDFI/CDE certification. Organizations are usually provided an opportunity to rectify the matter before the termination of its CDFI/CDE certification.
Philip Bohi	American Financial Services Association	The general eligibility conditions relating to CDFI funding are improper, as they seek to create an arbitrary federal usury limit of 36% using the Military Annual Percentage Rate (MAPR) standard to exclude law-abiding creditors from receiving CDFI funding. The CDFI eligibility criteria state that institutions offering credit at interest rates higher than 36% MAPR and including the following attributes are ineligible for program participation: • the loans have an annual default rate over five percent; • the loans in question include a leveraged payment mechanism; • any such loans of $1,000 or less have repayment timeframes that exceed 12 months; • for a period of 12 full months after the issuance of any such loan, the Applicant does not waive any upfront fees for any refinance or new loan issued to the same borrower; • of the loan or pro rata refundable in the event of early repayment (including through a refinance); or • all payments on any such installment loans are not substantially equal and do not amortize smoothly to a zero balance by the end of the loan term.	Comment is not relevant to the Certification of Material Event form and better suited to comments regarding the CDFI Certification Application.
Jeannine Jacokes	Community Development Bankers Association	The requirement to file a Certification of Material Event if an organization receives a “CAMELS Composite Rating of 3, 4, or 5” or "negative or adverse finding by the Appropriate Federal Banking Agency related to the Certified CDFI.” constitutes overreach of the CDFI Fund's authority, could introduce uncertainty and unfairness into the certification of depository CDFIs, and could result in the release of confidential non-public information.	The CDFI Fund supports removing this provision from the Certification of Material Event Form and the underlying requirement found in the CDFI Certification Agreement.
Brandon Milhorn Brian Knight	Conference of State Bank Supervisors and the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors	The new Material Events Form provisions allow the CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion, to terminate a CDFI’s certification if its composite CAMELS rating drops below a “2”, or if it receives any negative or adverse finding by the appropriate Federal Banking Agency. These provisions are unjustifiable on both legal and practical grounds. State and federal laws prohibit the disclosure of CSI [confidential supervisory information], including composite CAMELS ratings and exam findings, to non-prudential regulators. The CDFI Fund is not a prudential regulator, and nothing in the CDFI Fund’s authorizing statutes requires disclosure of CSI related to CDFI depositories.	The CDFI Fund supports removing this provision from the Certification of Material Event Form and the underlying requirement found in the CDFI Certification Agreement.
Stacy Augustine	CU Strategic Planning	Changing the CDFI Fund’s definition of a material event to exclude a change in board leadership, change in board membership or change in key staff while maintaining the firm requirement that any event that could lead to the violation of an Assistance Agreement, law, or regulation or conditions that might cause an entity to no longer meet one or more certification criteria, would minimize unnecessary regulatory burden on CDFIs and reduce the time needed to review these changes by CDFI Fund staff.	The CDFI Fund rejects this recommendation and supports the continued reporting of changes in the board and key personnel given the potential impact of such changes on CDFI Certification and the proper management of Awards.
Cathleen Mahon	Inclusiv	Remove CAMELS Ratings and Adverse Findings from Material Events for Certification (#41): We encourage the Fund to proceed with waiving this requirement for all depository institutions and remove item #41 from the Material Events Form. CAMELS ratings are not a component of the CDFI Certification Application and therefore should not be considered material for maintaining certification. CAMELS ratings and exam findings are also confidential.	The CDFI Fund supports removing this provision from the Certification of Material Event Form and the underlying requirement found in the CDFI Certification Agreement.
Cathleen Mahon	Inclusiv	Specify Adverse Findings Considered Material for CDFI Award Recipients (#16): #16 on the Form lists “any adverse finding by the Appropriate Federal Banking Agency” as a material event for recipients of CDFI awards. However, this request is vague and would likely result in excessive Material Events Form submissions because every examination will arguably produce items that could be considered adverse findings of varying materiality.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Cathleen Mahon	Inclusiv	In Part D of the Material Events Form, CDFIs are asked to, “Provide a narrative statement indicating how the organization intends to correct or address the Material Event.” The framing of this request assumes that every material event is an adverse event that needs to be remedied in some way, even though some material events are neutral, such as changes in name or executive leadership.	The CDFI Fund will revise the document to incorporate this recommendation.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q5 - Add "and electronically sign before submitting."	The CDFI Fund will revise the document to incorporate this recommendation.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q5 - Remove "s" from the word officials in the first line.	The CDFI Fund will revise the document to incorporate this recommendation.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q6 - Should this say "lines of" before the word "business"?	The CDFI Fund will revise the document to incorporate this recommendation.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q8 -Change violations to "convictions"	The CDFI Fund rejects this recommendation as the use of "convictions" may exclude noteworthy issues that might not have resulted in a criminal/civic conviction.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q11 - Insert the word "material" prior to the term "non-compliance"	The CDFI Fund rejects this recommendation as the inclusion of the word "material" could lead to the underreporting of relevant issues.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q14 - We would appreciate more clarity here. Is this just the CDFI awardee, and shouldn't it pertain to CDFI Fund award funds specifically, and during the performance period only?	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q22 - Add "during the performance period of an allocation" at the close of the sentence	The CDFI Fund will revise the document to incorporate this recommendation.
Julia Nelmark	Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation	Q44 - Perhaps add "that could reasonably be expected to be" prior to "deemed relevant ... "	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Louise Cohen	Primary Care Development Corporation	Clarify the deadlines for when to submit the Material Event Forms. According to the proposed Material Event Form, “A Material Event must be reported within 30 days of the occurrence or as specified in the agreement(s) for the specific CDFI Fund program.” While these instructions are clear, it is unclear when the CDFI Fund considers the “occurrence” that would cause the need for a CDFI to submit a Material Events Form to have begun.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Louise Cohen	Primary Care Development Corporation	Section 6 which outlines a “substantial change in the business of the Recipient/Borrower/Certified CDFI” as a material event. This is overly broad and a lack of a specific definition for the term.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Louise Cohen	Primary Care Development Corporation	Section 8 which outlines “violations of Federal criminal law involving fraud, bribery, or gratuity violations potentially affecting the Federal award or CDFI Certification status” as a material event. It isn’t clear whether a violation here means an informal accusation or finding, an indictment, or a conviction.	The CDFI Fund rejects this recommendation as the use of "convictions" may exclude noteworthy issues that might not have resulted in a criminal/civic conviction.
Louise Cohen	Primary Care Development Corporation	Section 11 which outlines “existence of any non-compliance with the terms and conditions of any loan or other credit agreement with a creditor other than the CDFI Fund” as a material event. This is overly broad and should include a more detailed definition of what an act of non-compliance would include.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Louise Cohen	Primary Care Development Corporation	Section 40 which outlines “any event or change that could result in a material change to the information in any Schedule to the CDFI Certification Agreement” as a material event. This is overly broad and should provide examples of what events or changes that the CDFI Fund believes could result in any schedule to a CDFI Certification Agreement.	The CDFI Fund will review the CDFI Certification Agreement in assessing the merits of this recommendation.
Louise Cohen	Primary Care Development Corporation	Section 43 which describes the CDFI Fund or another related entity “to be out of compliance with a Federal, State and/or local law or regulation” as a material event. This is overly broad and is missing an explanation or example of what noncompliance would meet the requirements of this section. In addition, PCDC urges the CDFI Fund to include examples of what federal, state, or local laws could be broken under this definition.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Louise Cohen	Primary Care Development Corporation	We urge the CDFI Fund to consider the ramifications the newly proposed material events form can have on a lender’s ability to remain certified. While we agree with the intent of the changes, it would be a disservice to the mission of CDFI Fund and the communities that all CDFIs serve if lenders in good standing were unnecessarily decertified.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form and the CDFI/CDE Certification application.
Daniel A. Nissenbaum	The Low Income Investment Fund	#5 – Replacement of Key Management Officials: We request further clarity regarding the designation of “key management officials.” While examples provided include the Executive Director, Chief Financial Officer, and Board Chairperson, our organization frequently assigns significant management responsibility to positions such as Market Director or Head of Community Facilities, which may not carry traditional “C-level” titles. It would be helpful if the Fund could explicitly define what constitutes a key management official for the purposes of material event reporting and clarify how changes to roles not traditionally considered “executive” should be handled. Additionally, more explicit language identifying which changes to NMTC Advisory Board members would warrant a material event is recommended.	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Daniel A. Nissenbaum	The Low Income Investment Fund	#12 – Findings of Noncompliance with Civil Rights Requirements. Further detail on the rational for the changes to this requirement would be helpful, particularly since prior language was generally consistent, for example, with provisions in the BGP loan agreement and CDFI certification agreement forms. We seek clarification regarding whether CDFI Fund agreement forms will be modified in tandem with the Material Event Form or if the changes are primarily driven by the recent implementation of requirements such as the Title VI compliance worksheet. Clear guidance on the interaction between updated civil rights reporting requirements and existing agreement terms will be beneficial for compliance.	The Certification of Material Event Form was modified with changes resulting from the implementation of new programs, modifications to existing Agreements and OMB requirements.
Daniel A. Nissenbaum	The Low Income Investment Fund	#13 – Changes to Banking Information in System for Award Management (SAM): Please clarify the process and expectations regarding banking information in the System for Award Management (SAM). Specifically: • If changes (including typographical corrections) to banking information occur, do all such changes constitute a material event requiring reporting, even when made to correct non-material errors? • As this information is managed outside our direct control, notification about changes may be delayed; how should entities handle inadvertent or delayed awareness of such changes?	The CDFI Fund will review the merits of this recommendation in revising supplemental guidance that supports the submission of the form.
Daniel A. Nissenbaum	The Low Income Investment Fund	We recommend that the Certification of Material Events Form explicitly include all material events specified in relevant program agreements…Including all material event instances specifically called out in relevant program agreements will ensure consistency and completeness in reporting expectations.	The CDFI Fund rejects this recommendation. Including all Material Events across all programs creates an unnecessarily lengthy document. The CDFI Fund will continue to use supplemental documents, such a Frequently Asked Questions document, to detail pertinent and program specific Material Events.