July 23, 2012

Washington, DC – The U.S. Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Pub. L. No. 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). Currently, the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund), an office within the Department of the Treasury, is soliciting comments concerning the Community Development Entity Certification Application. The request for comment was published in the Federal Register on Friday, July 20, 2012.

The CDFI Fund administers the New Markets Tax Credit Program (NMTC Program), which provides an incentive to investors in the form of tax credits over seven years and stimulates the provision of private investment capital that, in turn, facilitates economic and community development in low-income communities. In order to qualify for an allocation of tax credits through the NMTC Program, an entity must be certified as a qualified Community Development Entity (CDE) and submit an allocation application to the CDFI Fund.

Non-profit entities and for-profit entities may be certified as CDEs by the CDFI Fund. In order to be certified as a CDE, an entity must be a domestic corporation or partnership that: (1) has a primary mission of serving or providing investment capital for low-income communities or low-income persons; and (2) maintains accountability to residents of low-income communities through their representation on any governing or advisory board of the entity.

Comments are invited on:

1. Whether the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility;
2. The accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the collection of information;
3. Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected;
4. Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of technology; and
5. Estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, maintenance and purchase of services required to provide information.

Please direct all comments to: Robert Mulderig, Manager for Certification, Compliance Monitoring and Evaluation, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, U.S. Department of the Treasury, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20220; by e-mail to ccme@cdfi.treas.gov; or by facsimile to (202) 622-7754. Please note that this is not a toll-free number.