Opportunity Finance Network’s policy agenda² focuses on capital strategies at the federal level for the opportunity finance industry. Our vision for policy is rooted in our strategic plan and we have both short- and long-term goals that encompass the next ten years. Because politics is a constantly moving and changing dynamic, we present this agenda, knowing that we will need to revisit it annually.³

We believe that the federal government should invest in opportunity finance by supporting programs, regulations, and practices that promote, encourage, and complement the work of CDFIs and other opportunity finance institutions. Our advocacy rests on a two-tiered approach:

1. Preserve and protect our primary, established sources of funding.
2. Develop select new opportunities to bring significant capital or leverage financing in support of our work to the opportunity finance industry.

To this end, we will actively engage in advocacy and champion the following programs, regulatory issues, and initiatives.

²Due to the uncertainty of the mid-term elections, our goals assume that we will continue with the current adverse policy environment or there is a very narrow majority of either party, and a significant number of incumbents are not re-elected. This means that we will have to do a tremendous amount of education of the new Members of Congress of both parties regarding opportunity finance.
³As our strategic plan states: “Opportunity Finance Network [NCCA] and its partners need to begin to redefine the policy debate around community development finance. Past policy and business success do not ensure future policy gains. Policies need to be re-framed or re-thought regularly to succeed in political environments.”