The U.S. House voted 217-214 on Tuesday to pass a package of five fiscal year 2026 spending bills, legislation President Donald Trump signed into law later in the day, ending a temporary partial government shutdown.
The final spending package includes the fiscal 2026 Financial Services and General Government bill, which provides level funding of $28 million for the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund’s Native American CDFI Assistance Program. The amount is $7 million less than the $35 million included for the program in the House version of the bill passed in April 2025.
The legislation also maintains overall funding for the CDFI Fund at $324 million for fiscal 2026.
“While we shouldn’t dismiss the NACA Program receiving level funding given our uncertain policy environment and budget cuts being made elsewhere, it shows that Congress and the federal government still have a long way to go to adequately support the main Native-led financing entities supporting Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities,” said Pete Upton (Ponca Tribe of Nebraska), chief executive officer of the Native CDFI Network.
“It is now incumbent on Congress to compel the Administration to promptly deploy this FY 2026 funding as well as the withheld FY 2025 dollars for the NACA Program,” Upton said. “NCN will be intensifying its advocacy efforts to secure $50 million from Congress for the NACA Program for FY 2027, which is fully justified by the substantial and persistent unmet capital needs facing Native CDFIs, as well as the demonstrated return on investment we generate using NACA dollars, which produce measurable economic, community, and wealth-building benefits across Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities.”
The Native CDFI Network said it will continue to keep its members and partners informed about developments in the fiscal 2027 appropriations process and anticipates opportunities for coordinated advocacy efforts aimed at increasing federal resources for Native community development financial institutions.