Established in 1974, the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program provides annual grant funding to local and state governments to address a wide range of unique community development needs.

HUD determines the amount of each grant by using a formula comprised of several measures of community need, including the extent of poverty, population, housing density, age of housing, and population growth relative to other metropolitan areas.

The annual CDBG appropriation is allocated among states and local jurisdictions categorized as "entitlement" and "non-entitlement" communities respectively. Entitlement communities are comprised of the principal cities of Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs); metropolitan cities with populations of at least 50,000; and qualified urban counties with a population of 200,000 or more (excluding the populations of entitlement cities). Non-entitlement communities receive CDBG funding from their respective states in accordance with requirements that state.