IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 943 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Federal banking regulators should, with respect to well-managed community-based 

depository institutions, permit appropriate capital forbearance, troubled 

debt restructuring accounting practices, and other time-tested measures 

that would allow such institutions to continue to provide for the financial 

vitality for our Nation’s small businesses and family farms. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 3, 2009 

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado (for himself, Mr. PERLMUTTER, and Mr. 

LUETKEMEYER) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 

the Committee on Financial Services 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

the Federal banking regulators should, with respect to 

well-managed community-based depository institutions, 

permit appropriate capital forbearance, troubled debt restructuring accounting practices, and other time-tested 

measures that would allow such institutions to continue 

to provide for the financial vitality for our Nation’s small 

businesses and family farms. 

Whereas a strong national economy and the financial wellbeing of millions of American citizens are dependent upon 

the continued financial vitality of our small businesses 

and family farms; 


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Whereas the economic viability of our small businesses and 

family farms is directly tied to the ability of the Nation’s 

community-based financial institutions to provide needed 

credit and to permit their borrowers to restructure existing debt in a responsible and reasonable manner; 

Whereas problems which now pervade our economy but are 

expected to be transitory in nature have placed severe financial pressure on a number of small businesses and 

family farms and have, in turn, resulted in escalating levels of loan defaults and depressed property values; 

Whereas these economic difficulties and increases in required 

capitalization levels by regulators have made it extremely 

difficult, and often impossible, for community lenders to 

maintain their capital at levels currently mandated by financial regulators without severely limiting the ability of 

many lenders to continue to make the same levels of 

credit available as prior to this period of economic distress; 

Whereas the foregoing have had and are continuing to have 

spiraling downward effects on the ability of many small 

businesses and family farms to remain viable employers 

and strong components of the nation’s economy; 

Whereas under difficult economic conditions which occurred 

in the 1980s, Federal and State agencies that regulate 

community based financial institutions developed appropriate capital forbearance, troubled debt restructuring accounting practices, and other policies to assist those institutions that were well-managed; and 

Whereas these measures were undertaken to ensure that 

these financial institutions remained viable sources of financial strength for their communities and to assist their 


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borrowers in reasonable and responsible allocation of 

credit so as to enable deserving borrowers to weather 

temporary economic pressures; maintain access to reliable 

sources of credit; and remain as important sources of employment and economic strength: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the United States 

2 House of Representatives that the Comptroller of the Cur3 rency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the 

4 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the 

5 Director of the Office of Thrift Supervision and all other 

6 agencies, State and Federal, which regulate the conduct 

7 and affairs of community-based depository institutions 

8 should develop appropriate policies, similar to those com9 mencing in the mid-to-late 1980s, that will— 

10 (1) permit well-managed community-based de11 pository institutions to temporarily maintain capital 

12 at levels less than that currently required, condi13 tioned upon the submission and regulatory approval 

14 of an appropriate plan to restore capital levels by a 

15 date certain, as determined by the appropriate agen16 cies; 

17 (2) permit well-managed community-based de18 pository institutions to temporarily account for trou19 bled debt restructuring in a manner which allows a 

20 loan to continue to be carried on the institution’s 

21 books without loss recognition if the loan is formally 


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1 restructured in a manner so that it is probable that 

2 the borrower can repay the loan under the new 

3 terms and that the total future cash payments at 

4 least equal the loan amount on the institution’s 

5 books; 

6 (3) ensure that field examiners are not inappro7 priately classifying loans based on judgements about, 

8 or relationship of various types of loans, to currently 

9 stressed sectors of the economy apart from the abil10 ity of the loans to show likelihood of repayment 

11 based on positive cash flows, ample amounts of col12 lateral and other mitigating factors; and 

13 (4) include such additional temporary accom14 modations for well-managed community-based depos15 itory institutions as the agencies determine are ap16 propriate, including regulatory forbearance similar 

17 to that provided in the 1980s, to assist those institu18 tions in remaining vital sources of financial strength 

19 for their communities, while maintaining needed 

20 standards to assure the continued financial integrity 

21 of those institutions and communities. 

Æ 


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