I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4857 

To amend title 23, United States Code, to modify the transportation finance 

infrastructure and innovation program with respect to community development financial institutions, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 25, 2023 

Mr. DESAULNIER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To amend title 23, United States Code, to modify the transportation finance infrastructure and innovation program 

with respect to community development financial institutions, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Equitable Transit Ori5 ented Development Support Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCE. 

7 (a) GENERALLY APPLICABLE PROVISIONS.—Section 

8 601(a) of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) by inserting ‘‘and section 611’’ after ‘‘609’’; 

2 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

3 (A) in subparagraph (C) by striking ‘‘; 

4 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 

5 (B) in subparagraph (D) by striking the 

6 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

7 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(E) capitalizing a CDFI TOD account.’’; 

9 (3) in paragraph (12)— 

10 (A) in subparagraph (E) by striking ‘‘; 

11 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 

12 (B) in subparagraph (H) by striking the 

13 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

14 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(I) the capitalization of a CDFI TOD ac16 count.’’; and 

17 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(23) CDFI.—The term ‘CDFI’ has the mean19 ing given the term ‘community development financial 

20 institution’ under section 103 of the Riegle Commu21 nity Development and Regulatory Improvement Act 

22 of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702). 

23 ‘‘(24) CDFI TOD ACCOUNT.—The term ‘CDFI 

24 TOD account’ means an account— 


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1 ‘‘(A) established within a CDFI under sec2 tion 611(c); 

3 ‘‘(B) capitalized with the proceeds of a se4 cured loan made to a CDFI in accordance with 

5 sections 602 and 603; 

6 ‘‘(C) for the purpose of making loans to 

7 sponsors of transit-oriented development 

8 projects in accordance with section 611.’’. 

9 (b) DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY AND PROJECT

10 SELECTION.—Section 602 of title 23, United States Code, 

11 is amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (2) by adding at the end 

14 the following: 

15 ‘‘(C) CDFI.—Notwithstanding subpara16 graphs (A) and (B), in a case in which the Fed17 eral credit instrument is provided to a CDFI, 

18 the Secretary may rely upon a credit assess19 ment of the CDFI by the Secretary of Treasury 

20 in lieu of investment grade ratings and credit 

21 opinions from rating agencies.’’; 

22 (B) in paragraph (4) by inserting ‘‘CDFI,’’ 

23 after ‘‘partnership,’’; 

24 (C) in paragraph (5)(B) by inserting at 

25 the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(v) CDFI TOD ACCOUNTS.—In the 

2 case of a project capitalizing a CDFI TOD 

3 account, eligible project costs shall not ex4 ceed $100,000,000.’’; 

5 (D) in paragraph (6)— 

6 (i) in subparagraph (C) by striking 

7 ‘‘or’’; 

8 (ii) in subparagraph (D) by striking 

9 the period and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

10 (iii) by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(E) in the case of a CDFI TOD account, 

13 the unconditional promissory obligation of a 

14 CDFI.’’; 

15 (E) in paragraph (7)— 

16 (i) by striking ‘‘State or local govern17 ment or’’ and inserting ‘‘State or local gov18 ernment,’’; and 

19 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or a CDFI,’’ before 

20 ‘‘the project’’; 

21 (F) in paragraph (9)— 

22 (i) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL—The Sec24 retary’’; 


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1 (ii) by redesignating subparagraphs 

2 (A), (B), and (C) as clauses (i), (ii), and 

3 (iii); and 

4 (iii) by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(B) CDFI TOD ACCOUNTS.—With respect 

7 to financial assistance provided to a CDFI 

8 under the TIFIA program, the Secretary shall 

9 deem that the project generates beneficial ef10 fects.’’; and 

11 (G) in paragraph (10)— 

12 (i) in subparagraph (A) by striking 

13 ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub14 paragraphs (B) and (C)’’; and 

15 (ii) by adding at the end the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(C) CDFI TOD ACCOUNT.—In the case of 

18 a project capitalizing a CDFI TOD account, 

19 the CDFI shall demonstrate to the Secretary, 

20 not later than two years after the date on which 

21 a secured loan is obligated for the project under 

22 the TIFIA program, that the CDFI has exe23 cuted a loan agreement with a project sponsor 

24 in accordance with section 611. After the dem25 onstration is made, the CDFI may draw upon 


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1 the secured loan. At the end of the 2-year pe2 riod, to the extent the CDFI has not used the 

3 loan commitment, the Secretary may extend the 

4 time period for using the loan commitment or 

5 withdraw the loan commitment.’’; and 

6 (2) in subsection (b)(3)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and in8 serting ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL—The Secretary’’; 

9 (B) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

10 and (B) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively; and 

11 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(B) CDFI TOD ACCOUNT.—Notwith13 standing subparagraph (A), in the case of an 

14 applicant that is a CDFI, in lieu of a prelimi15 nary rating opinion letter, the Secretary may 

16 rely upon a letter from the Secretary of the 

17 Treasury that verifies the applicant is a CDFI 

18 certified by the Community Development Fi19 nancial Institutions Fund of the Department of 

20 the Treasury.’’. 

21 (c) SECURED LOANS.—Section 603 of title 23, 

22 United States Code, is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a)(3) by striking ‘‘section 

24 602(b)(3)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

25 603(b)(3)(A)(ii) or, with respect to a CDFI, the letVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:39 Aug 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4857.IH H4857

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1 ter of the Secretary of Treasury under section 

2 602(b)(3)(B)’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (b)— 

4 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

5 (i) in subparagraph (A) by striking 

6 ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub7 paragraphs (B) and (C)’’; and 

8 (ii) by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(C) CDFI TOD ACCOUNT.—In the case of 

11 a project capitalizing a CDFI TOD account, 

12 the maximum amount of a secured loan made 

13 to a CDFI shall be determined in accordance 

14 with section 602(a)(5)(B)(v).’’; 

15 (B) in paragraph (3)(A)(i)— 

16 (i) in subclause (IV) by striking ‘‘; or’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘;’’; 

18 (ii) in subclause (V) by striking ‘‘; 

19 and’’ and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

20 (iii) by adding at the end the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(VI) in the case of a secured 

23 loan for a project capitalizing a CDFI 

24 TOD account, any other revenue 

25 sources available to a CDFI, including 


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1 repayments from loans made for 

2 projects in accordance with section 

3 611; and’’; 

4 (C) in paragraph (4)(B)— 

5 (i) in the header by inserting ‘‘and 

6 CDFI TOD accounts’’ after ‘‘infrastruc7 ture projects’’; 

8 (ii) in clause (i) by striking ‘‘or a 

9 rural projects fund’’ and inserting ‘‘, a 

10 rural projects fund, or a CDFI TOD ac11 count’’; and 

12 (iii) in clause (ii) by striking ‘‘and 

13 rural project funds’’ and inserting ‘‘, rural 

14 projects funds, and CDFI TOD accounts’’; 

15 (D) in paragraph (5)(B)— 

16 (i) in the header by inserting ‘‘and 

17 CDFI TOD account’’ after ‘‘Rural projects 

18 fund’’; and 

19 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or CDFI TOD ac20 count’’ after ‘‘rural projects fund’’; and 

21 (E) in paragraph (9) by adding at the end 

22 the following: 

23 ‘‘(C) CDFI TOD ACCOUNT.—A project cap24 italizing a CDFI TOD account shall satisfy 

25 subparagraph (A) through compliance with the 


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1 Federal share requirement described in section 

2 611(c)(3)(A).’’. 

3 (d) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.—Section 605 of 

4 title 23, United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (d) by inserting ‘‘, community 

6 development,’’ after ‘‘field of municipal’’; 

7 (2) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as 

8 subsections (g) and (h), respectively; 

9 (3) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(e) ASSISTANCE FROM THE SECRETARY OF TREAS12 URY.—The Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of 

13 the Treasury in assessing the creditworthiness of CDFI 

14 applicants and shall enter into a memorandum of under15 standing pursuant to section 611(b) of this chapter 

16 through which the Secretary of the Treasury provides as17 sistance in the credit underwriting, servicing, and moni18 toring of Federal credit instruments provided to CDFI 

19 TOD accounts. 

20 ‘‘(f) IMPLEMENTATION.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after enactment of Section 611, the Secretary shall imple22 ment this section by releasing program guidance and solic23 iting applications.’’; and 

24 (4) in subsection (h) (as so redesignated)— 


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1 (A) in the heading by inserting ‘‘and CDFI 

2 TOD accounts’’ after ‘‘small projects’’; and 

3 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘608(a)(5)’’ and insert5 ing ‘‘608(a)(6)’’; 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘$2,000,000’’ and in7 serting ‘‘$4,000,000’’; and 

8 (iii) by striking ‘‘$75,000,000’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘$100,000,000’’. 

10 (e) FUNDING.—Section 608(a) of title 23, United 

11 States Code, is amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) as 

13 paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively; 

14 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(4) CDFI SET ASIDE.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amount 

18 of funds made available to carry out the TIFIA 

19 program for each fiscal year, not more than 10 

20 percent shall be set aside for CDFI TOD ac21 counts. 

22 ‘‘(B) REOBLIGATION.—Any amounts set 

23 aside under subparagraph (A) that remain un24 obligated by June 1 of the fiscal year for which 

25 the amounts were set aside shall be available 


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1 for obligation by the Secretary on projects other 

2 than CDFI TOD accounts.’’; and 

3 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(7) REIMBURSEMENTS TO THE SECRETARY OF

5 THE TREASURY.—Of the amounts authorized for the 

6 administration of the TIFIA program under para7 graph (6), the Secretary may use not more than 10 

8 percent for each fiscal year to reimburse the Sec9 retary of the Treasury for assistance provided pur10 suant to a memorandum of understanding under 

11 section 611(b).’’. 

12 (f) COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL INSTITU13 TION TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 6 of title 23, United 

15 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘§ 611. Community development financial institution 

18 transit-oriented development 

19 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 ‘‘(1) CDFI TOD PROJECT.—The term ‘CDFI 

21 TOD project’ means a project located within one22 half mile in an urban area or three-fourths of a mile 

23 in a rural area of a fixed guideway transit facility, 

24 passenger rail station, intercity bus station or inter25 modal facility that supports— 


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1 ‘‘(A) commercial facilities or businesses 

2 that are located in low-income communities and 

3 are— 

4 ‘‘(i) owned by low-income persons; 

5 ‘‘(ii) principally serve low-income per6 sons or low-income community residents; 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(iii) principally employ low-income 

9 persons; 

10 ‘‘(B) community facilities that are located 

11 in low-income communities or principally serve 

12 low-income persons; or 

13 ‘‘(C) housing that is principally affordable 

14 to low-income persons. 

15 ‘‘(2) INVESTMENT AREA.—The term ‘Invest16 ment Area’ has the meaning given the term in sec17 tion 1805.201(b)(3)(B)(ii) of title 12, Code of Fed18 eral Regulations (as in effect on the date of enact19 ment of this section). 

20 ‘‘(3) LOAN.—The term ‘loan’ means any form 

21 of direct financial assistance that is required to be 

22 repaid over a period of time provided by a CDFI to 

23 a project sponsor for all or part of the costs of a 

24 CDFI TOD project. 


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1 ‘‘(4) LOW-INCOME COMMUNITY.—The term 

2 ‘low-income community’ means a community that is 

3 located in an Investment Area. 

4 ‘‘(5) LOW-INCOME PERSON.—The term ‘low-in5 come person’ means a person whose income does not 

6 exceed the level established for low-income (as such 

7 term is defined in section 1805.104 of title 12, Code 

8 of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of 

9 enactment of this section). 

10 ‘‘(6) PROJECT SPONSOR.—The term ‘project 

11 sponsor’ means a public or private entity approved 

12 by a CDFI and developing a CDFI TOD project in 

13 accordance with this section. 

14 ‘‘(b) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.—The Sec15 retary shall enter into a memorandum of understanding 

16 with the Secretary of Treasury to support consultation 

17 with the Community Development Financial Institutions 

18 Fund to provide the necessary credit underwriting, serv19 icing, and monitoring of CDFI applicants and participants 

20 in the TIFIA program. 

21 ‘‘(c) CDFI TOD ACCOUNTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require 

23 any CDFI participating in the program authorized 

24 in this section to establish a CDFI TOD account 

25 into which the proceeds of a secured loan made to 


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1 the CDFI in accordance with sections 602 and 603 

2 and any loan repayments from public or private enti3 ties receiving loans made to fund CDFI TOD 

4 projects will be deposited. 

5 ‘‘(2) AMOUNTS IN ACCOUNT.—Any principal 

6 loan repayments and any investment income derived 

7 from funds deposited to a CDFI TOD account shall 

8 be— 

9 ‘‘(A) credited to the account; 

10 ‘‘(B) available for providing loans to 

11 project sponsors; 

12 ‘‘(C) available for repaying the secured 

13 loan made to the CDFI in accordance with sec14 tions 602 and 603; and 

15 ‘‘(D) invested in such financing instru16 ments as the Secretary may approve to earn in17 terest to augment the lending capacity of the 

18 account. 

19 ‘‘(3) LOANS.—Any loan to a project sponsor 

20 funded from the account shall— 

21 ‘‘(A) be in an amount determined by the 

22 CDFI, but in any case not exceed 80 percent of 

23 eligible project costs; 

24 ‘‘(B) commence repayment not later than 

25 5 years after the project has been completed; 


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1 ‘‘(C) have a final maturity not later than 

2 30 years after the date of the first payment on 

3 the loan; 

4 ‘‘(D) be set at a rate not greater than the 

5 level needed to fully reimburse the CDFI’s ad6 ministrative, monitoring, servicing, and capital 

7 charges associated with the loan; and 

8 ‘‘(E) be secured and have a priority of pay9 ment as determined by the CDFI. 

10 ‘‘(4) REVOLVING LOAN STRUCTURE.—The 

11 CDFI may apply loan repayments to fund additional 

12 loans provided such relending does not impair the 

13 ability of the CDFI to repay its secured loan in full 

14 and timely fashion. 

15 ‘‘(5) DELEGATED LENDING MODEL.—The 

16 CDFI is authorized to provide loans for CDFI TOD 

17 projects under a delegated lending model. No provi18 sion of this section shall restrict the ability of the 

19 CDFI to establish the terms and conditions of loans 

20 to project sponsors under this section. 

21 ‘‘(d) DISCONTINUANCE OF FUNDING.—If the Sec22 retary determines that a CDFI is not implementing the 

23 CDFI TOD account in accordance with the application of 

24 such account, the Secretary may prohibit the CDFI from 


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1 drawing down any additional proceeds from a secured loan 

2 commitment. 

3 ‘‘(e) FORMS OF ASSISTANCE FROM A CDFI.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A CDFI may, using funds 

5 deposited into the CDFI TOD account, make loans 

6 to a public or private entity to carry out a CDFI 

7 TOD project. 

8 ‘‘(2) SUBORDINATION OF LOAN.—The amount 

9 of a loan or other form of credit assistance provided 

10 for a project described in subsection (c)(3) may be 

11 subordinated to any other debt financing for the 

12 project. 

13 ‘‘(f) ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SECRETARY.—Any 

14 CDFI participating in this program shall make an annual 

15 report to the Secretary not later than September 30 of 

16 each year and such other reports as the Secretary may 

17 require under guidelines issued to carry out this section. 

18 ‘‘(g) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL LAW.—The re19 quirements of this title and title 49 that would otherwise 

20 apply to funds made available under this chapter or such 

21 title and projects assisted with those funds shall apply to 

22 CDFI TOD projects assisted by the CDFI under this 

23 chapter, except to the extent the Secretary determines that 

24 any requirement of such title is not applicable or is not 

25 consistent with the objectives of this section. 


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1 ‘‘(h) UNITED STATES NOT OBLIGATED.—The de2 posit of Federal funds into a CDFI under this section 

3 shall not be construed as a commitment, guarantee, or ob4 ligation on the part of the United States to any third 

5 party, nor shall any third party have any right against 

6 the United States for payment solely by virtue of the con7 tribution. Any security or debt financing instrument 

8 issued by the CDFI shall expressly state that the security 

9 or instrument does not constitute a commitment, guar10 antee, or obligation of the United States. 

11 ‘‘(i) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.—For each fiscal 

12 year, a CDFI may not expend more than 2 percent of the 

13 Federal assistance received under this chapter to pay the 

14 reasonable costs of administering a CDFI TOD account 

15 pursuant to this section.’’. 

16 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for 

17 chapter 6 of title 23, United States Code, is amend18 ed by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘611. Community development financial institution transit-oriented development.’’. 

Æ 


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