RLF

The City’s Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) is a flexible source of loan funds for commercial and industrial projects. The purpose is to encourage the creation of quality jobs and to increase the tax base.

The City of Lake Mills has capitalized the Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) with money from the federal/state Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. The RLF provides gap financing in the form of loans to businesses when private financial institutions won’t cover the entire amount needed for the project. Also, this program requires a commitment to create jobs within the city limits.

The City lends the funds to businesses for start-up, retention, and expansion projects through the grant funding. Funding levels depend on the number of jobs to be created or retained.

The former Department of Commerce (now Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation) launched an initiative in 2005 to assist communities with maximizing regional business development. The goal was to promote more effective economic growth and vitality and find creative and collaborative ways to work more efficiently through consolidating the individual Revolving Loan Funds (RLF) into Regional Non Profits (RNP). 

Jefferson County communities resisted the regional nonprofit concept and all RLF cities and the county were notified in November of 2012 to update their RLF policies to meet HUD requirements as interpreted by WEDC. WEDC notification stated that the CDBG program for RLFs would now require low to moderate income standards, loan balance availability and anti-pirating requirements.

The Finance Director and the Economic Development Committee have reviewed the policy and recommended the Council approve the new policy.