SSBCI White Papers

March 2, 2022 – Today, the Native CDFI Network (NCN) released the white paper “Native CDFI Participation in Tribal State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Programs,” its first white paper of 2022. Written for NCN by Native attorney Pilar M. Thomas of Quarles & Brady LLP, the white paper provides a detailed overview of the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Act and the Program it created, and how Native community development financial institutions (CDFIs) can partner with tribal governments to ensure that Indian Country takes full advantage of the resources the Program provides and the benefits it can create.

“SSBCI is an important tool in growing a vibrant private sector economy across tribal communities by growing the number and size of Native-owned small businesses,” said Pete Upton, NCN Board Chair and Interim Executive Director. “Native CDFIs can and should play a critical role in implementing SSBCI across Indian Country, and this paper provides them clear roadmaps for how to do so.”

The white paper lays out four primary models through which Native CDFIs can partner with tribal governments to implement the SSBCI Program in and for the tribal communities they serve. With the Treasury Department’s deadline for tribal governments to submit their SSBCI capital applications fast approaching on May 11, 2022, time is of the essence for Native CDFIs and their potential tribal government partners to learn the different ways they can partner to maximize the Program’s ability to cultivate Native-owned small business ownership and growth in tribal communities.

NCN’s development of the white paper with Quarles & Brady LLP was made possible in part by support from the Oweesta Corporation, Sovereign Council of Hawaiian Homestead Associations, and Clearinghouse CDFI.

To read the NCN white paper on the SSBCI Program, please click here.