Applications Due October 12: Green Grants for Green Loans

Your credit union has the opportunity to join others nationwide in pursuing large federal grants so you can offer affordable green loans to members. Your involvement in these efforts is vital in demonstrating credit unions’ commitment to environmental sustainability and expanding affordable lending options for members.

It’s also important to emphasize that credit unions can lend their voice of support through more than one avenue. The bullet points below are your steps for moving forward with the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) application submission process (with the help of Ecority), as well as submitting a non-binding letter of intent.

Ecority is just one of a handful of large grant applicants that credit unions can partner with in supporting this overall effort. Please know you can submit multiple applications through various grant-applicant partners. Your participation in several applications can help strengthen our industry’s position in securing grant funds for green lending.

Details and steps through Ecority:

• The deadline to submit your credit union’s application to receive these GGRF grant funds from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is October 12. Please email GGRF@ecority.org to either indicate your interest and/or begin the formal application process for your credit union to receive up to $10 million in grant funds.
• If you begin the application process with Ecority, please also support its initiative to expand green-grant lending efforts by submitting a non-binding letter of intent on behalf of your credit union to Ecority. Ecority will use these submissions to display credit unions’ healthy interest in green lending as it represents our movement’s intent to the EPA. Ecority is uniquely situated to represent credit unions in this process, and it would serve us well to support the organization’s efforts.

Remember that voicing your interest through the application and intent-letter process is non-binding and does not create any obligation with the EPA’s GGRF. However, we encourage you to consider this opportunity as broad interest signaled by many credit unions will indicate our industry can reach several communities across the nation.

The EPA will announce award recipients in spring of 2024, and your credit union will most likely be able to provide affordable lending to members under this program in the summer of 2024 — including green loans for electric vehicles, home improvement, and businesses. Visit Ecority’s question-and-answer site for more information.

For questions, email California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues Vice President of Impact and Development Amanda Merz.