More than 100 Republican lawmakers are expected to sign on to a letter pushing back on the Trump administration’s move to eliminate a popular, bipartisan community development finance fund that helps small businesses and home buyers access capital in areas of the country underserved by big banks.
The congressional Republicans are pressing the Trump administration to reverse its decision to fire all employees at the Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, according to the draft letter. The letter is expected to be sent to the administration Thursday.
The bicameral letter, led by Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.), a member of the House Financial Services Committee, and Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), who chairs the Senate’s Community Development Finance Caucus, is addressed to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Office of Management Director Russ Vought. The letter “strongly urge[s] the Administration to continue carrying out the statutory obligations of the CDFI Fund that are essential to ensuring private investments reach our states and districts.”
The large wave of GOP lawmakers that signed the letter signals widespread support among congressional Republicans for a program that the Trump administration has attempted to eviscerate.
The list of signatories obtained by POLITICO includes 27 Senators and 74 House members. The letter was signed by key Republicans, including Sens. Tim Scott (R-S.C), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Reps. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.), Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) Mike Flood (R-Neb.), and Andrew Garbarino (R-N.Y.), among others.
The CDFI Fund awards federal dollars to CDFIs, which are community banks, credit unions and other financial institutions, that lend and provide other types of capital as part of a public-private partnership designed to increase the accessibility for communities traditionally underserved by the banking industry.
