Treasury Secretary Paulson & CDFI Fund Director Reed to Announce FY 2007 CDFI Program Awards on Friday

Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson, Jr. will travel to Chicago Friday to discuss the importance of trade and investment for U.S. job creation and economic growth. The Secretary also will announce $27.3 million in awards to organizations investing in rural and urban low-income communities in 30 states and the District of Columbia.

The Secretary will tour ATLAS Material Testing Technology, a local business that exports to several countries around the world including Korea, Colombia, Panama, and Peru. Secretary Paulson will note the importance of passing the four pending Free Trade Agreements with those countries for U.S. businesses like ATLAS.

Secretary Paulson will join Community Development Financial Institutions Fund Director Kimberly Reed to announce the national 2007 CDFI Fund Program Awards. The announcement will take place at the Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, a counseling agency that helps area homeowners avoid foreclosure. President Bush recently tasked Secretary Paulson and HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson to reach out to groups that offer foreclosure counseling and refinancing for homeowners with the goal of expanding mortgage financing options, identifying homeowners before they face hardships, helping them understand their financing options, and assisting them in finding a mortgage product that works for them.

The following events are open to media:

WHAT Community Development Financial Institutions Program Award Announcement

WHEN 10 a.m. CDT
WHERE Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago 1279 North Milwaukee, 5th Floor Chicago, Ill.

WHAT Tour and Remarks at ATLAS Material Testing Technology
WHEN 12:30 p.m. CDT
WHERE 4114 North Ravenswood Avenue Chicago, Ill.

By cdfifund.gov