CEFA Bond Financing Program

State Treasurer's Office · State of California

At a glance

CEFA Bond Financing Program is an open California state loan opportunity from the State Treasurer's Office (State of California). Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis. Individual awards are listed as up to $5B. Applicant types listed as eligible include nonprofit. It is listed on the California Grants Portal. Cost sharing is not required.

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

Opened: Jul 6, 2020
Close date: Ongoing
Award floor: Not specified
Award ceiling: $5,000,000,000
Est. total funding: Not specified
Expected awards: Not specified
Matching funds: Not required
Funding instrument: Loan

Program details (as published on the California Grants Portal)

Type: Loan
Funding source: Other — Revenue bond debt issuance
Matching funds: Not Required
Funding method: Advances & Reimbursement(s)
Estimated number of awards: Dependant on number of submissions received, application process, etc.
Award period: Ongoing
Expected award announcement: Ongoing
Letter of intent: Not required
Geography: None.
How to submit: By email: cefa@treasurer.ca.gov
Latest change note: changed contact info

Who can apply

Applicant categories as listed on the California Grants Portal. GrantsJunction maps them to detailed applicant types for search and matching.

Nonprofit

Additional information on eligibility (from the listing)

Be accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC); be a private, non-profit, post-secondary degree-granting institution located in or with accredited facilities in California; offer a broad range of secular subjects; have been operating and can provide audited financial for three years; and have sufficient revenue or collateral to cover debt service.

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Purpose and description as published on the California Grants Portal.

Purpose

This program will provide a borrower with access to low interest rate capital markets through the issuance of tax-exempt and taxable revenue bonds.

Description

Eligibility General Requirements -Be regionally accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges; -Be a private, non-profit, post-secondary degree granting educational institution that does not factor race or ethnicity into their admissions process, and is located in California or that has educational facilities in California that are regionally accredited; -Offer a broad curriculum in secular subjects, and the information and coursework used to teach secular subjects must be neutral with respect to religion; -Have been operating for a minimum of three years prior to submitting an application for financing and provide three years of audited financial statements; -Have revenue or collateral sufficient to cover debt service on the proposed financing. Use of Funds Funds may be used for: -Construction -Remodeling and renovation -Land acquisition -Purchase of or lease of equipment -Refinancing or refunding of prior debt -Costs of bond issuances and reimbursement of prior expenses Loan Terms -Market determined fixed or variable rate interest rate, depending on maturity -No loan maximum -Maximum loan maturity typically 40 years -Loan security provisions and bond covenants that correspond with bond rating Fees -$1,000 non-refundable application fee -Initial fee of 0.15% of the par amount up to $10 million, plus 0.05% of the par amount in excess of $10 million (up to a maximum fee of $75,000) -Annual administrative fee of 0.015% of the par amount outstanding (up to a maximum of $12,000) Required Documentation -Three most recent fiscal years of audited financial statements

Program page on the agency site ↗

How to apply

0 of 8 done · progress saved in this browser

Read the program guidelinesThe agency's solicitation or guidelines set eligibility details, scoring criteria and required documents. Open ↗
Confirm eligibility and fitCheck your organization type and location (see Geography above).
Find out how to submitBy email: cefa@treasurer.ca.gov
Request letters of support and partner commitmentsPartners need time to write and sign letters; ask early.
Finish a full draft of the application and budgetFollow the guidelines' format exactly; state programs often require specific forms and attachments.
Ask the program contact any questions earlyerica.rodriguez@treasurer.ca.gov Open ↗
Internal review and sign-offLeave time for leadership or board approval and a final proofread.
Submit while funds remainSubmit a few days early and keep your submission confirmation.

Past applications & awards

Historical data · not a prediction

Reported by the agency for this listing

Fiscal year 2026–271 application · 1 award
Fiscal year 2025–263 applications · 3 awards
Fiscal year 2024–255 applications · 5 awards
Fiscal year 2023–242 applications · 2 awards
Fiscal year 2022–232 applications · 2 awards
Fiscal year 2021–220 applications · 0 awards
Fiscal year 2020–210 applications · 0 awards

Counts as published on the California Grants Portal. Award counts can read zero until decisions are announced.

Awards published: 9
Total awarded: $2,485,015,000
Median award: $110,000,000 calculated
Smallest – largest: $41,790,000 – $1,042,230,000

Recipients by type: Nonprofit (7), Public Agency (2)

Areas served: Santa Clara County (3), San Joaquin County (2), Alameda County (1), Monterey County (1), San Mateo County (1), Los Angeles County (1), Orange County (1), Contra Costa County (1), Sacramento County (1), Marin County (1), San Bernardino County (1)

Largest awards to organizations

Stanford University (Stanford)CEFA Bond Financing Program$1,042,230,000 · FY 2022–23
University of Southern CaliforniaCEFA Bond Financing Program$600,000,000 · FY 2024–25
Stanford UniversityCEFA Bond Financing Program$319,000,000 · FY 2024–25
University of the Pacific (Pacific)CEFA Bond Financing Program$120,000,000 · FY 2024–25
Saint Mary's College of CaliforniaCEFA Bond Financing Program$110,000,000 · FY 2023–24
Chapman UniversityCEFA Bond Financing Program$100,000,000 · FY 2024–25
The President and Board of Trustees of Santa Clara College dba Santa Clara UniversityCEFA Bond Financing Program$90,000,000 · FY 2024–25
University of RedlandsCEFA Bond Financing Program$61,995,000 · FY 2022–23
University of the PacificCEFA Bond Financing Program$41,790,000 · FY 2023–24

Source: California Grants Portal grant award data. Awards to individuals are counted but not named. Past awards show who was funded; they do not predict future decisions.

Program contact (as published)

erica.rodriguez@treasurer.ca.gov
1-916-653-2872

Quick answers

Who is eligible to apply for “CEFA Bond Financing Program”?

The official listing names these applicant types as eligible: Nonprofit. It adds: “Be accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC); be a private, non-profit, post-secondary degree-granting institution located in or with accredited facilities in California; offer a broad range of secular subjects; have been operating and can provide audit…” Additional restrictions may apply; review the full guidelines.

How much funding is available through “CEFA Bond Financing Program”?

Per the notice, individual awards are listed as up to $5b.

How do I apply for “CEFA Bond Financing Program”?

Applications go directly to State Treasurer's Office, not through GrantsJunction. Submission: by email to cefa@treasurer.ca.gov. Read the program guidelines on the agency's site first; state programs set their own forms and registration requirements.

Other open California state opportunities, matched on agency, categories and wording.

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