CEI Capital Management LLC

CEI Capital Management LLC (CCML) is a for-profit subsidiary of Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI) that furthers CEI's mission to help create economically and environmentally healthy communities in which all people, especially those with low incomes, can reach their full potential by working to help attract capital to low-income areas using the U.S. Treasury Department’s New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program.

Since the program’s inception in 2003, CEI and CCML have been awarded $778 million of investment capacity under the NMTC program. CCML has placed $694.6 million of this capacity in 76 projects nationwide,  triggering total private capital investment in low-income communities of over $1.98 billion that directly supports CEI’s triple bottom-line or “3E” measures for economic progress, social equity, and environmental sustainability. CCML has a national service area under the NMTC program with an emphasis on rural areas and a core market of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, upstate New York, and western Massachusetts.

CCML Underwriting Requirements

As a for-profit subsidiary of CEI, CEI Capital Management LLC brings a mission-oriented perspective to underwriting proposed NMTC transactions, in addition to considerations of financial viability.  CCML approaches each deal holistically, using a “triple bottom-line” or “three-E” underwriting approach. 

The three bottom lines—or three Es—include an evaluation of a project’s economic viability, its positive community social equity, and its integration with sustainable environmental principles.  We are practical in how we apply this mission underwriting perspective in that we do not expect every project to meet all of the criteria. 

Economics: Traditional financial and business underwriting of a project that evaluates its risks versus rewards.

• Does the proposed transaction make financial sense?
• Will it sustain itself financially, cover its anticipated expenses and debt service and, if relevant, turn a profit?
• Is the external market environment favorable to a project’s products or services and is market timing in sync with the project coming on line?
  

Equity for the Low-Income Community: A project’s impact on helping a community access a more equitable share of needed resources and services. 

• Does it create or sustain jobs in an economically challenged area?
• Does the project help sustain a traditional but challenged industry, and/or advance the cause of new economic activity and diversification in low-income areas?
• Does it create greater access to much needed community services, such as health care, child or elder day care, or access to retail goods and groceries?
  

Environmental: The  project’s sustainable environmental practices, using  emerging  industry best-practices and certifications as guides.

• Does the project have environmental features that enhance or promote conservation and sustainable use of natural resources? 
• Does the project integrate “green” features or is it working towards achieving U.S. Green Building Council’s LEEDS (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Standards) certification rating?
• Does the project promote greater public access to natural resources by creating new opportunities for environmentally compatible outdoor activity, such as education, recreation, sports, or eco-tourism?