Community development financial institutions (CDFIs) have missions to serve low- and moderate-income people and communities. CDFIs are increasingly involved in state and local policy and programs in addition to more traditional federal policy work. This brief discusses the types of state and local policy issues that CDFIs interact with and how well-designed policies can further CDFI impacts. The brief introduces the types of state and local policy that are important for CDFIs, provides some concrete examples, and discusses strategies and techniques for successful engagement.