WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Herb Kohl announced that Forward Community Investments (FCI) will receive a Financial Assistance and Technical Assistance Award totaling $750,000 from the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund. The financial assistance will help local businesses and organizations support low-income community development. In March, Senator Kohl sent a letter to Donna Gambrell, Director of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, supporting this application.

"For the past 15 years, Forward Community Investments has helped organizations that serve communities throughout Wisconsin. During this time, FCI has made it possible to offer 1,000 children child care, create 520 units of affordable housing, and benefit the lives of 315,000 people served by the agencies that borrow and receive guidance from them. This funding will allow FCI to continue the hard work they have begun," Kohl said.

According to the US Department of the Treasury, through the CDFI Program, the CDFI Fund invests in and builds the capacity of private, for-profit and nonprofit certified community development financial institutions that serve low-income people and communities lacking adequate access to affordable financial products and services.  

The Department of Treasury also awarded five Wisconsin CDFIs in today's announcement.  These CDFIs will use their awards dollars to invest in small businesses and microenterprise throughout Wisconsin.  The organizations are:  Impact Seven, Inc., Brewery Credit Union, Milwaukee Economic Development Corporation, Ways to Work & Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corporation.    

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