Feds Float New CRA Proposal

Federal banking regulators are proposing a new Community Reinvestment Act test for intermediate-size banks with assets between $250 million and $1 billion, and it appears to have the support of some banking groups.However, the Office of Thrift Supervision may not go along with the compromise proposal, which has the support of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Federal Reserve Board. Under the compromise, intermediate banks would be subject to a streamlined CRA test for small banks and a new community development test that allows a bank to provide a mix of loans, services, or investments depending upon their resources and the credit needs of their communities. The American Bankers Association said the proposal will give banks more flexibility in meeting their CRA requirements. The National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders welcomed the joint proposal but urged the regulators to extend it to larger institutions. OTS Director James Gilleran said the other regulators are moving in the right direction but that the added complexity of the CD test "disturbs me." The OTS has already finalized a CRA rule that exempt thrifts with up to $1 billion in assets from the large-bank CRA lending, investment, and services test.