Accelerating $8.5 Billion to Communities Hardest Hit by COVID-19

Through the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Congress created the Emergency Capital Investment Program (ECIP) to invest up to $9 billion in community-based lenders serving low-income and underserved communities hardest hit by the pandemic. Guidehouse supports the US Treasury Department’s (Treasury) work to design, implement, and operate ECIP.

Challenge

Guidehouse supported Treasury’s work to design and implement a program to invest $8.5 billion in community-based lenders serving disadvantaged communities disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

As the implementing agency for ECIP, Treasury faced numerous tasks:

• Confirming that approved lenders met statutory requirements
• Allocating funds among approved institutions
• Distributing almost $9 billion in funds to approved lenders without error
• Monitoring participating lenders’ compliance with program requirements

Solution

Building on our long history supporting Treasury and other government agencies addressing the global recession, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other unprecedented crises, Guidehouse supported Treasury’s work to design and implement ECIP, including:

• The design, documentation, and deployment of processes to review program applicants, distribute funding to program recipients, and monitor the compliance and performance of program participants
• The development of Salesforce requirements to facilitate the work of ECIP staff and contractors, collect compliance inputs and documentation from program participants, and report program progress and results to internal and external stakeholders
• Coordination of the work of ECIP staff and agents through project plans, regular status meetings to review progress, and collaboration with ECIP leadership

Impact

With support from Guidehouse, Treasury designed and implemented ECIP in a manner that is recognized by stakeholders for its impact and effectiveness. Among other results, ECIP:

• Distributed almost $8.5 billion to 175 recipient lenders with no errors
• Increased investments by program participants in disadvantaged communities
• Bolstered pandemic recovery and economic resiliency in disadvantaged communities

Through our ECIP support, Guidehouse continues its proud legacy of being a partner to government clients tackling some of the most challenging periods in recent history and delivering real, consequential impact to fellow Americans in need.