A team led by Elon Musk is recommending that the Treasury Department cancel hundreds of contracts funded through its Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, according to an alert by the CDFI Coalition. The American Bankers Association is a member of the coalition.
Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has been appointed by President Trump to identify and halt alleged wasteful spending. DOGE is not an official government body and some legal experts have questioned its authority to cancel congressionally approved spending. According to the alert, the Treasury is reviewing DOGE’s recommendations that the department cancel some of the CDFI Fund’s external contracts, including external reviewer contracts to evaluate applications for the New Markets Tax Credit Program and the Native American CDFI Assistance Program.
The CDFI Fund in January opened the fiscal year 2025 funding round, with plans to distribute approximately $348 million in awards, pending final congressional appropriations. Awards from the program support CDFIs that provide affordable financing and related services to low-income communities and populations that lack access to credit, capital and financial services.
(Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify what CDFI Fund contracts are under review.)
