Source: https://moneycompliance.com/community-reinvestment-act/
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 15:52:20+00:00

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§228.11 Authority, purposes, and scope.
§228.21 Performance tests, standards, and ratings, in general.
§228.25 Community development test for wholesale or limited purpose banks.
§228.26 Small bank performance standards.
§228.29 Effect of CRA performance on applications.
§228.42 Data collection, reporting, and disclosure.
§228.43 Content and availability of public file.
§228.44 Public notice by banks.
§228.45 Publication of planned examination schedule.
Authority: 12 U.S.C. 321, 325, 1828(c), 1842, 1843, 1844, and 2901 through 2908.
Source: 43 FR 47148, Oct. 12, 1978, unless otherwise noted.
Source: Reg. BB, 60 FR 22190, May 4, 1995, unless otherwise noted.
(v) Formations of, acquisitions of savings associations by, conversions of, and mergers of, savings and loan holding companies (12 U.S.C. 1467a).
(2) Providing that the Board takes that record into account in considering certain applications.
(c) Scope—(1) General. This part applies to all banks except as provided in paragraph (c)(3) of this section.
(2) Foreign bank acquisitions. This part also applies to an uninsured State branch (other than a limited branch) of a foreign bank that results from an acquisition described in section 5(a)(8) of the International Banking Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. 3103(a)(8)). The terms “State branch” and “foreign bank” have the same meanings as in section 1(b) of the International Banking Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.); the term “uninsured State branch” means a State branch the deposits of which are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; the term “limited branch” means a State branch that accepts only deposits that are permissible for a corporation organized under section 25A of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 611 et seq.).
(3) Certain special purpose banks. This part does not apply to special purpose banks that do not perform commercial or retail banking services by granting credit to the public in the ordinary course of business, other than as incident to their specialized operations. These banks include banker’s banks, as defined in 12 U.S.C. 24 (Seventh), and banks that engage only in one or more of the following activities: providing cash management controlled disbursement services or serving as correspondent banks, trust companies, or clearing agents.
(a) Affiliate means any company that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with another company. The term “control” has the meaning given to that term in 12 U.S.C. 1841(a)(2), and a company is under common control with another company if both companies are directly or indirectly controlled by the same company.
(2) The statewide nonmetropolitan median family income, if a person or geography is located outside an MSA.
(c) Assessment area means a geographic area delineated in accordance with §228.41.
(d) Automated teller machine (ATM) means an automated, unstaffed banking facility owned or operated by, or operated exclusively for, the bank at which deposits are received, cash dispersed, or money lent.
(e) Bank means a State member bank as that term is defined in section 3(d)(2) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813(d)(2)), except as provided in §228.11(c)(3), and includes an uninsured State branch (other than a limited branch) of a foreign bank described in §228.11(c)(2).
(f) Branch means a staffed banking facility approved as a branch, whether shared or unshared, including, for example, a mini-branch in a grocery store or a branch operated in conjunction with any other local business or nonprofit organization.
(iii) Benefit low-, moderate-, and middle-income individuals and geographies in the bank’s assessment area(s) or areas outside the bank’s assessment area(s) provided the bank has adequately addressed the community development needs of its assessment area(s).
(ii) Benefits the bank’s assessment area(s) or a broader statewide or regional area that includes the bank’s assessment area(s).
(3) Has not been considered in the evaluation of the bank’s retail banking services under §228.24(d).
(5) Other unsecured consumer loan, which is an unsecured consumer loan that is not included in one of the other categories of consumer loans.
(k) Geography means a census tract delineated by the United States Bureau of the Census in the most recent decennial census.
(l) Home mortgage loan means a “home improvement loan,” “home purchase loan,” or a “refinancing” as defined in §203.2 of this title.
(1) Low-income, which means an individual income that is less than 50 percent of the area median income, or a median family income that is less than 50 percent, in the case of a geography.
(2) Moderate-income, which means an individual income that is at least 50 percent and less than 80 percent of the area median income, or a median family income that is at least 50 and less than 80 percent, in the case of a geography.
(3) Middle-income, which means an individual income that is at least 80 percent and less than 120 percent of the area median income, or a median family income that is at least 80 and less than 120 percent, in the case of a geography.
(4) Upper-income, which means an individual income that is 120 percent or more of the area median income, or a median family income that is 120 percent or more, in the case of a geography.
(n) Limited purpose bank means a bank that offers only a narrow product line (such as credit card or motor vehicle loans) to a regional or broader market and for which a designation as a limited purpose bank is in effect, in accordance with §228.25(b).
(3) A small business or small farm loan is located in the geography where the main business facility or farm is located or where the loan proceeds otherwise will be applied, as indicated by the borrower.
(p) Loan production office means a staffed facility, other than a branch, that is open to the public and that provides lending-related services, such as loan information and applications.
(q) Metropolitan division means a metropolitan division as defined by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
(r) MSA means a metropolitan statistical area as defined by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
(s) Nonmetropolitan area means any area that is not located in an MSA.
(t) Qualified investment means a lawful investment, deposit, membership share, or grant that has as its primary purpose community development.
(u) Small bank—(1) Definition. Small bank means a bank that, as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years, had assets of less than $1.221 billion. Intermediate small bank means a small bank with assets of at least $305 million as of December 31 of both of the prior two calendar years and less than $1.221 billion as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years.
(2) Adjustment. The dollar figures in paragraph (u)(1) of this section shall be adjusted annually and published by the Board, based on the year-to-year change in the average of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, not seasonally adjusted, for each twelve-month period ending in November, with rounding to the nearest million.
(v) Small business loan means a loan included in “loans to small businesses” as defined in the instructions for preparation of the Consolidated Report of Condition and Income.
Small farm loan means a loan included in “loans to small farms” as defined in the instructions for preparation of the Consolidated Report of Condition and Income.
(x) Wholesale bank means a bank that is not in the business of extending home mortgage, small business, small farm, or consumer loans to retail customers, and for which a designation as a wholesale bank is in effect, in accordance with §228.25(b).
Source: Reg. BB, 60 FR 22191, May 4, 1995, unless otherwise noted.
(1) Lending, investment, and service tests. The Board applies the lending, investment, and service tests, as provided in §§228.22 through 228.24, in evaluating the performance of a bank, except as provided in paragraphs (a)(2), (a)(3), and (a)(4) of this section.
(2) Community development test for wholesale or limited purpose banks. The Board applies the community development test for a wholesale or limited purpose bank, as provided in §228.25, except as provided in paragraph (a)(4) of this section.
(3) Small bank performance standards. The Board applies the small bank performance standards as provided in §228.26 in evaluating the performance of a small bank or a bank that was a small bank during the prior calendar year, unless the bank elects to be assessed as provided in paragraphs (a)(1), (a)(2), or (a)(4) of this section. The bank may elect to be assessed as provided in paragraph (a)(1) of this section only if it collects and reports the data required for other banks under §228.42.
(4) Strategic plan. The Board evaluates the performance of a bank under a strategic plan if the bank submits, and the Board approves, a strategic plan as provided in §228.27.
(7) Any other information deemed relevant by the Board.
(c) Assigned ratings. The Board assigns to a bank one of the following four ratings pursuant to §228.28 and appendix A of this part: “outstanding”; “satisfactory”; “needs to improve”; or “substantial noncompliance” as provided in 12 U.S.C. 2906(b)(2). The rating assigned by the Board reflects the bank’s record of helping to meet the credit needs of its entire community, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, consistent with the safe and sound operation of the bank.
(d) Safe and sound operations. This part and the CRA do not require a bank to make loans or investments or to provide services that are inconsistent with safe and sound operations. To the contrary, the Board anticipates banks can meet the standards of this part with safe and sound loans, investments, and services on which the banks expect to make a profit. Banks are permitted and encouraged to develop and apply flexible underwriting standards for loans that benefit low- or moderate-income geographies or individuals, only if consistent with safe and sound operations.
(e) Low-cost education loans provided to low-income borrowers. In assessing and taking into account the record of a bank under this part, the Board considers, as a factor, low-cost education loans originated by the bank to borrowers, particularly in its assessment area(s), who have an individual income that is less than 50 percent of the area median income. For purposes of this paragraph, “low-cost education loans” means any education loan, as defined in section 140(a)(7) of the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)(7)) (including a loan under a state or local education loan program), originated by the bank for a student at an “institution of higher education,” as that term is generally defined in sections 101 and 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 and 1002) and the implementing regulations published by the U.S. Department of Education, with interest rates and fees no greater than those of comparable education loans offered directly by the U.S. Department of Education. Such rates and fees are specified in section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e).
(f) Activities in cooperation with minority- or women-owned financial institutions and low-income credit unions. In assessing and taking into account the record of a nonminority-owned and nonwomen-owned bank under this part, the Board considers as a factor capital investment, loan participation, and other ventures undertaken by the bank in cooperation with minority- and women-owned financial institutions and low-income credit unions. Such activities must help meet the credit needs of local communities in which the minority- and women-owned financial institutions and low-income credit unions are chartered. To be considered, such activities need not also benefit the bank’s assessment area(s) or the broader statewide or regional area that includes the bank’s assessment area(s).
(a) Scope of test. (1) The lending test evaluates a bank’s record of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area(s) through its lending activities by considering a bank’s home mortgage, small business, small farm, and community development lending. If consumer lending constitutes a substantial majority of a bank’s business, the Board will evaluate the bank’s consumer lending in one or more of the following categories: motor vehicle, credit card, home equity, other secured, and other unsecured loans. In addition, at a bank’s option, the Board will evaluate one or more categories of consumer lending, if the bank has collected and maintained, as required in §228.42(c)(1), the data for each category that the bank elects to have the Board evaluate.
(2) The Board considers originations and purchases of loans. The Board will also consider any other loan data the bank may choose to provide, including data on loans outstanding, commitments and letters of credit.
(3) A bank may ask the Board to consider loans originated or purchased by consortia in which the bank participates or by third parties in which the bank has invested only if the loans meet the definition of community development loans and only in accordance with paragraph (d) of this section. The Board will not consider these loans under any criterion of the lending test except the community development lending criterion.
(5) Innovative or flexible lending practices. The bank’s use of innovative or flexible lending practices in a safe and sound manner to address the credit needs of low- or moderate-income individuals or geographies.
(c) Affiliate lending. (1) At a bank’s option, the Board will consider loans by an affiliate of the bank, if the bank provides data on the affiliate’s loans pursuant to §228.42.
(ii) If a bank elects to have the Board consider loans within a particular lending category made by one or more of the bank’s affiliates in a particular assessment area, the bank shall elect to have the Board consider, in accordance with paragraph (c)(1) of this section, all the loans within that lending category in that particular assessment area made by all of the bank’s affiliates.
(3) The Board does not consider affiliate lending in assessing a bank’s performance under paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section.
(ii) May claim loans accounting for more than its percentage share (based on the level of its participation or investment) of the total loans originated by the consortium or third party.
(e) Lending performance rating. The Board rates a bank’s lending performance as provided in appendix A of this part.
(a) Scope of test. The investment test evaluates a bank’s record of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area(s) through qualified investments that benefit its assessment area(s) or a broader statewide or regional area that includes the bank’s assessment area(s).
(b) Exclusion. Activities considered under the lending or service tests may not be considered under the investment test.
(c) Affiliate investment. At a bank’s option, the Board will consider, in its assessment of a bank’s investment performance, a qualified investment made by an affiliate of the bank, if the qualified investment is not claimed by any other institution.
(d) Disposition of branch premises. Donating, selling on favorable terms, or making available on a rent-free basis a branch of the bank that is located in a predominantly minority neighborhood to a minority depository institution or women’s depository institution (as these terms are defined in 12 U.S.C. 2907(b)) will be considered as a qualified investment.
(4) The degree to which the qualified investments are not routinely provided by private investors.
(f) Investment performance rating. The Board rates a bank’s investment performance as provided in appendix A of this part.
(a) Scope of test. The service test evaluates a bank’s record of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area(s) by analyzing both the availability and effectiveness of a bank’s systems for delivering retail banking services and the extent and innovativeness of its community development services.
(b) Area(s) benefitted. Community development services must benefit a bank’s assessment area(s) or a broader statewide or regional area that includes the bank’s assessment area(s).
(c) Affiliate service. At a bank’s option, the Board will consider, in its assessment of a bank’s service performance, a community development service provided by an affiliate of the bank, if the community development service is not claimed by any other institution.
(4) The range of services provided in low-, moderate-, middle-, and upper-income geographies and the degree to which the services are tailored to meet the needs of those geographies.
(2) The innovativeness and responsiveness of community development services.
(f) Service performance rating. The Board rates a bank’s service performance as provided in appendix A of this part.
(a) Scope of test. The Board assesses a wholesale or limited purpose bank’s record of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area(s) under the community development test through its community development lending, qualified investments, or community development services.
(b) Designation as a wholesale or limited purpose bank. In order to receive a designation as a wholesale or limited purpose bank, a bank shall file a request, in writing, with the Board, at least three months prior to the proposed effective date of the designation. If the Board approves the designation, it remains in effect until the bank requests revocation of the designation or until one year after the Board notifies the bank that the Board has revoked the designation on its own initiative.
(3) The bank’s responsiveness to credit and community development needs.
(2) Community development lending by affiliates, consortia and third parties, subject to the requirements and limitations in §228.22(c) and (d).
(e) Benefit to assessment area(s)—(1) Benefit inside assessment area(s). The Board considers all qualified investments, community development loans, and community development services that benefit areas within the bank’s assessment area(s) or a broader statewide or regional area that includes the bank’s assessment area(s).
(2) Benefit outside assessment area(s). The Board considers the qualified investments, community development loans, and community development services that benefit areas outside the bank’s assessment area(s), if the bank has adequately addressed the needs of its assessment area(s).
(f) Community development performance rating. The Board rates a bank’s community development performance as provided in appendix A of this part.
(a) Performance criteria—(1) Small banks that are not intermediate small banks. The Board evaluates the record of a small bank that is not, or that was not during the prior calendar year, an intermediate small bank, of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area(s) pursuant to the criteria set forth in paragraph (b) of this section.
(2) Intermediate small banks. The Board evaluates the record of a small bank that is, or that was during the prior calendar year, an intermediate small bank, of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area(s) pursuant to the criteria set forth in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.
(5) The bank’s record of taking action, if warranted, in response to written complaints about its performance in helping to meet credit needs in its assessment area(s).
(4) The bank’s responsiveness through such activities to community development lending, investment, and services needs.
(d) Small bank performance rating. The Board rates the performance of a bank evaluated under this section as provided in appendix A of this part.
(4) The bank has been operating under an approved plan for at least one year.
(b) Data reporting. The Board’s approval of a plan does not affect the bank’s obligation, if any, to report data as required by §228.42.
(c) Plans in general—(1) Term. A plan may have a term of no more than five years, and any multi-year plan must include annual interim measurable goals under which the Board will evaluate the bank’s performance.
(2) Multiple assessment areas. A bank with more than one assessment area may prepare a single plan for all of its assessment areas or one or more plans for one or more of its assessment areas.
(3) Treatment of affiliates. Affiliated institutions may prepare a joint plan if the plan provides measurable goals for each institution. Activities may be allocated among institutions at the institutions’ option, provided that the same activities are not considered for more than one institution.
(3) During the period of formal public comment, make copies of the plan available for review by the public at no cost at all offices of the bank in any assessment area covered by the plan and provide copies of the plan upon request for a reasonable fee to cover copying and mailing, if applicable.
(e) Submission of plan. The bank shall submit its plan to the Board at least three months prior to the proposed effective date of the plan. The bank shall also submit with its plan a description of its informal efforts to seek suggestions from members of the public, any written public comment received, and, if the plan was revised in light of the comment received, the initial plan as released for public comment.
(f) Plan content—(1) Measurable goals. (i) A bank shall specify in its plan measurable goals for helping to meet the credit needs of each assessment area covered by the plan, particularly the needs of low- and moderate-income geographies and low- and moderate-income individuals, through lending, investment, and services, as appropriate.
(ii) A bank shall address in its plan all three performance categories and, unless the bank has been designated as a wholesale or limited purpose bank, shall emphasize lending and lending-related activities. Nevertheless, a different emphasis, including a focus on one or more performance categories, may be appropriate if responsive to the characteristics and credit needs of its assessment area(s), considering public comment and the bank’s capacity and constraints, product offerings, and business strategy.
(2) Confidential information. A bank may submit additional information to the Board on a confidential basis, but the goals stated in the plan must be sufficiently specific to enable the public and the Board to judge the merits of the plan.
(3) Satisfactory and outstanding goals. A bank shall specify in its plan measurable goals that constitute “satisfactory” performance. A plan may specify measurable goals that constitute “outstanding” performance. If a bank submits, and the Board approves, both “satisfactory” and “outstanding” performance goals, the Board will consider the bank eligible for an “outstanding” performance rating.
(4) Election if satisfactory goals not substantially met. A bank may elect in its plan that, if the bank fails to meet substantially its plan goals for a satisfactory rating, the Board will evaluate the bank’s performance under the lending, investment, and service tests, the community development test, or the small bank performance standards, as appropriate.
(g) Plan approval—(1) Timing. The Board will act upon a plan within 60 calendar days after the Board receives the complete plan and other material required under paragraph (e) of this section. If the Board fails to act within this time period, the plan shall be deemed approved unless the Board extends the review period for good cause.
(2) Public participation. In evaluating the plan’s goals, the Board considers the public’s involvement in formulating the plan, written public comment on the plan, and any response by the bank to public comment on the plan.
(iii) The availability and effectiveness of the bank’s systems for delivering retail banking services and the extent and innovativeness of the bank’s community development services.
(h) Plan amendment. During the term of a plan, a bank may request the Board to approve an amendment to the plan on grounds that there has been a material change in circumstances. The bank shall develop an amendment to a previously approved plan in accordance with the public participation requirements of paragraph (d) of this section.
(i) Plan assessment. The Board approves the goals and assesses performance under a plan as provided for in appendix A of this part.
(a) Ratings in general. Subject to paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, the Board assigns to a bank a rating of “outstanding,” “satisfactory,” “needs to improve,” or “substantial noncompliance” based on the bank’s performance under the lending, investment and service tests, the community development test, the small bank performance standards, or an approved strategic plan, as applicable.
(3) No bank may receive an assigned rating of “satisfactory” or higher unless it receives a rating of at least “low satisfactory” on the lending test.
(v) Violations of the Truth in Lending Act provisions regarding a consumer’s right of rescission.
(2) In determining the effect of evidence of practices described in paragraph (c)(1) of this section on the bank’s assigned rating, the Board considers the nature, extent, and strength of the evidence of the practices; the policies and procedures that the bank (or affiliate, as applicable) has in place to prevent the practices; any corrective action that the bank (or affiliate, as applicable) has taken or has committed to take, including voluntary corrective action resulting from self-assessment; and any other relevant information.
(v) To acquire ownership or control of shares or all or substantially all of the assets of a savings association, to cause a savings association to become a subsidiary of a savings and loan holding company, or to merge or consolidate a savings and loan holding company with any other savings and loan holding company in a transaction that requires approval under section 10 of the Home Owners’ Loan Act (12 U.S.C. 1467a).
(b) Interested parties. In considering CRA performance in an application described in paragraph (a) of this section, the Board takes into account any views expressed by interested parties that are submitted in accordance with the Board’s Rules of Procedure set forth in part 262 of this chapter.
(c) Denial or conditional approval of application. A bank or savings association’s record of performance may be the basis for denying or conditioning approval of an application listed in paragraph (a) of this section.
(d) Definitions. For purposes of paragraphs (a)(2)(i), (ii), and (iii) of this section, “bank,” “bank holding company,” “subsidiary,” and “savings association” have the meanings given to those terms in section 2 of the Bank Holding Company Act (12 U.S.C. 1841). For purposes of paragraphs (a)(2)(iv) and (v) of this section, “savings and loan holding company” and “subsidiary” has the meaning given to that term in section 10 of the Home Owners’ Loan Act (12 U.S.C. 1467a).
Source: Reg. BB, 60 FR 22195, May 4, 1995, unless otherwise noted.
(a) In general. A bank shall delineate one or more assessment areas within which the Board evaluates the bank’s record of helping to meet the credit needs of its community. The Board does not evaluate the bank’s delineation of its assessment area(s) as a separate performance criterion, but the Board reviews the delineation for compliance with the requirements of this section.
(b) Geographic area(s) for wholesale or limited purpose banks. The assessment area(s) for a wholesale or limited purpose bank must consist generally of one or more MSAs or metropolitan divisions (using the MSA or metropolitan division boundaries that were in effect as of January 1 of the calendar year in which the delineation is made) or one or more contiguous political subdivisions, such as counties, cities, or towns, in which the bank has its main office, branches, and deposit-taking ATMs.
(2) Include the geographies in which the bank has its main office, its branches, and its deposit-taking ATMs, as well as the surrounding geographies in which the bank has originated or purchased a substantial portion of its loans (including home mortgage loans, small business and small farm loans, and any other loans the bank chooses, such as those consumer loans on which the bank elects to have its performance assessed).
(d) Adjustments to geographic area(s). A bank may adjust the boundaries of its assessment area(s) to include only the portion of a political subdivision that it reasonably can be expected to serve. An adjustment is particularly appropriate in the case of an assessment area that otherwise would be extremely large, of unusual configuration, or divided by significant geographic barriers.
(4) May not extend substantially beyond an MSA boundary or beyond a state boundary unless the assessment area is located in a multistate MSA. If a bank serves a geographic area that extends substantially beyond a state boundary, the bank shall delineate separate assessment areas for the areas in each state. If a bank serves a geographic area that extends substantially beyond an MSA boundary, the bank shall delineate separate assessment areas for the areas inside and outside the MSA.
(f) Banks serving military personnel. Notwithstanding the requirements of this section, a bank whose business predominantly consists of serving the needs of military personnel or their dependents who are not located within a defined geographic area may delineate its entire deposit customer base as its assessment area.
(g) Use of assessment area(s). The Board uses the assessment area(s) delineated by a bank in its evaluation of the bank’s CRA performance unless the Board determines that the assessment area(s) do not comply with the requirements of this section.
(4) An indicator whether the loan was to a business or farm with gross annual revenues of $1 million or less.
(3) Home mortgage loans. If the bank is subject to reporting under part 203 of this chapter, the location of each home mortgage loan application, origination, or purchase outside the MSAs in which the bank has a home or branch office (or outside any MSA) in accordance with the requirements of part 203 of this chapter.
(iv) The gross annual income of the borrower that the bank considered in making its credit decision.
(2) Other loan data. At its option, a bank may provide other information concerning its lending performance, including additional loan distribution data.
(d) Data on affiliate lending. A bank that elects to have the Board consider loans by an affiliate, for purposes of the lending or community development test or an approved strategic plan, shall collect, maintain, and report for those loans the data that the bank would have collected, maintained, and reported pursuant to paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this section had the loans been originated or purchased by the bank. For home mortgage loans, the bank shall also be prepared to identify the home mortgage loans reported under part 203 of this chapter by the affiliate.
(e) Data on lending by a consortium or a third party. A bank that elects to have the Board consider community development loans by a consortium or third party, for purposes of the lending or community development tests or an approved strategic plan, shall report for those loans the data that the bank would have reported under paragraph (b)(2) of this section had the loans been originated or purchased by the bank.
(f) Small banks electing evaluation under the lending, investment, and service tests. A bank that qualifies for evaluation under the small bank performance standards but elects evaluation under the lending, investment, and service tests shall collect, maintain, and report the data required for other banks pursuant to paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section.
(g) Assessment area data. A bank, except a small bank or a bank that was a small bank during the prior calendar year, shall collect and report to the Board by March 1 of each year a list for each assessment area showing the geographies within the area.
(4) The number and amount of community development loans reported as originated or purchased.
(i) Aggregate disclosure statements. The Board, in conjunction with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of Thrift Supervision, prepares annually, for each MSA or metropolitan division (including an MSA or metropolitan division that crosses a state boundary) and the nonmetropolitan portion of each state, an aggregate disclosure statement of small business and small farm lending by all institutions subject to reporting under this part or parts 25, 345, or 563e of this title. These disclosure statements indicate, for each geography, the number and amount of all small business and small farm loans originated or purchased by reporting institutions, except that the Board may adjust the form of the disclosure if necessary, because of special circumstances, to protect the privacy of a borrower or the competitive position of an institution.
(j) Central data depositories. The Board makes the aggregate disclosure statements, described in paragraph (i) of this section, and the individual bank CRA Disclosure Statements, described in paragraph (h) of this section, available to the public at central data depositories. The Board publishes a list of the depositories at which the statements are available.
(7) Any other information the bank chooses.
(ii) The bank’s CRA Disclosure Statement. The bank shall place the statement in the public file within three business days of its receipt from the Board.
(2) Banks required to report Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data. A bank required to report home mortgage loan data pursuant to part 203 of this chapter shall include in its public file a copy of the HMDA Disclosure Statement provided by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council pertaining to the bank for each of the prior two calendar years. In addition, a bank that elected to have the Board consider the mortgage lending of an affiliate for any of these years shall include in its public file the affiliate’s HMDA Disclosure Statement for those years. The bank shall place the statement(s) in the public file within three business days after its receipt.
(ii) The information required for other banks by paragraph (b)(1) of this section, if the bank has elected to be evaluated under the lending, investment, and service tests.
(4) Banks with strategic plans. A bank that has been approved to be assessed under a strategic plan shall include in its public file a copy of that plan. A bank need not include information submitted to the Board on a confidential basis in conjunction with the plan.
(5) Banks with less than satisfactory ratings. A bank that received a less than satisfactory rating during its most recent examination shall include in its public file a description of its current efforts to improve its performance in helping to meet the credit needs of its entire community. The bank shall update the description quarterly.
(ii) Within five calendar days of the request, all the information in the public file relating to the assessment area in which the branch is located.
(d) Copies. Upon request, a bank shall provide copies, either on paper or in another form acceptable to the person making the request, of the information in its public file. The bank may charge a reasonable fee not to exceed the cost of copying and mailing (if applicable).
(e) Updating. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a bank shall ensure that the information required by this section is current as of April 1 of each year.
A bank shall provide in the public lobby of its main office and each of its branches the appropriate public notice set forth in appendix B of this part. Only a branch of a bank having more than one assessment area shall include the bracketed material in the notice for branch offices. Only a bank that is an affiliate of a holding company shall include the next to the last sentence of the notices. A bank shall include the last sentence of the notices only if it is an affiliate of a holding company that is not prevented by statute from acquiring additional banks.
The Board publishes at least 30 days in advance of the beginning of each calendar quarter a list of banks scheduled for CRA examinations in that quarter.
(a) Ratings in general. (1) In assigning a rating, the Board evaluates a bank’s performance under the applicable performance criteria in this part, in accordance with §§228.21 and 228.28. This includes consideration of low-cost education loans provided to low-income borrowers and activities in cooperation with minority- or women-owned financial institutions and low-income credit unions, as well as adjustments on the basis of evidence of discriminatory or other illegal credit practices.
(2) A bank’s performance need not fit each aspect of a particular rating profile in order to receive that rating, and exceptionally strong performance with respect to some aspects may compensate for weak performance in others. The bank’s overall performance, however, must be consistent with safe and sound banking practices and generally with the appropriate rating profile as follows.
(b) Banks evaluated under the lending, investment, and service tests—(1) Lending performance rating. The Board assigns each bank’s lending performance one of the five following ratings.
(G) It is a leader in making community development loans.
(G) It has made a relatively high level of community development loans.
(G) It has made an adequate level of community development loans.
(G) It has made a low level of community development loans.
(G) It has made few, if any, community development loans.
(2) Investment performance rating. The Board assigns each bank’s investment performance one of the five following ratings.
(C) Excellent responsiveness to credit and community development needs.
(C) Good responsiveness to credit and community development needs.
(C) Adequate responsiveness to credit and community development needs.
(C) Poor responsiveness to credit and community development needs.
(C) Very poor responsiveness to credit and community development needs.
(3) Service performance rating. The Board assigns each bank’s service performance one of the five following ratings.
(D) It is a leader in providing community development services.
(D) It provides a relatively high level of community development services.
(D) It provides an adequate level of community development services.
(D) It provides a limited level of community development services.
(D) It provides few, if any, community development services.
(c) Wholesale or limited purpose banks. The Board assigns each wholesale or limited purpose bank’s community development performance one of the four following ratings.
(iii) Excellent responsiveness to credit and community development needs in its assessment area(s).
(iii) Adequate responsiveness to credit and community development needs in its assessment area(s).
(iii) Poor responsiveness to credit and community development needs in its assessment area(s).
(iii) Very poor responsiveness to credit and community development needs in its assessment area(s).
(E) A reasonable geographic distribution of loans given the bank’s assessment area(s).
(iii) Needs to improve or substantial noncompliance ratings. A small bank may also receive a lending test rating of “needs to improve” or “substantial noncompliance” depending on the degree to which its performance has failed to meet the standard for a “satisfactory” rating.
(2) Community development test ratings for intermediate small banks—(i) Eligibility for a satisfactory community development test rating. The Board rates an intermediate small bank’s community development performance “satisfactory” if the bank demonstrates adequate responsiveness to the community development needs of its assessment area(s) through community development loans, qualified investments, and community development services. The adequacy of the bank’s response will depend on its capacity for such community development activities, its assessment area’s need for such community development activities, and the availability of such opportunities for community development in the bank’s assessment area(s).
(ii) Eligibility for an outstanding community development test rating. The Board rates an intermediate small bank’s community development performance “outstanding” if the bank demonstrates excellent responsiveness to community development needs in its assessment area(s) through community development loans, qualified investments, and community development services, as appropriate, considering the bank’s capacity and the need and availability of such opportunities for community development in the bank’s assessment area(s).
(iii) Needs to improve or substantial noncompliance ratings. An intermediate small bank may also receive a community development test rating of “needs to improve” or “substantial noncompliance” depending on the degree to which its performance has failed to meet the standards for a “satisfactory” rating.
(3) Overall rating—(i) Eligibility for a satisfactory overall rating. No intermediate small bank may receive an assigned overall rating of “satisfactory” unless it receives a rating of at least “satisfactory” on both the lending test and the community development test.
(B) A small bank that is not an intermediate small bank that meets each of the standards for a “satisfactory” rating under the lending test and exceeds some or all of those standards may warrant consideration for an overall rating of “outstanding.” In assessing whether a bank’s performance is “outstanding,” the Board considers the extent to which the bank exceeds each of the performance standards for a “satisfactory” rating and its performance in making qualified investments and its performance in providing branches and other services and delivery systems that enhance credit availability in its assessment area(s).
(iii) Needs to improve or substantial noncompliance overall ratings. A small bank may also receive a rating of “needs to improve” or “substantial noncompliance” depending on the degree to which its performance has failed to meet the standards for a “satisfactory” rating.
(e) Strategic plan assessment and rating—(1) Satisfactory goals. The Board approves as “satisfactory” measurable goals that adequately help to meet the credit needs of the bank’s assessment area(s).
(iii) If the bank fails to meet substantially its plan goals for a satisfactory rating, the Board will rate the bank as either “needs to improve” or “substantial noncompliance,” depending on the extent to which it falls short of its plan goals, unless the bank elected in its plan to be rated otherwise, as provided in §228.27(f)(4).
(a) Notice for main offices and, if an interstate bank, one branch office in each state.
You are entitled to certain information about our operations and our performance under the CRA, including, for example, information about our branches, such as their location and services provided at them; the public section of our most recent CRA Performance Evaluation, prepared by the Federal Reserve Bank of ____ (Reserve Bank); and comments received from the public relating to our performance in helping to meet community credit needs, as well as our responses to those comments. You may review this information today.
At least 30 days before the beginning of each quarter, the Federal Reserve System publishes a list of the banks that are scheduled for CRA examination by the Reserve Bank in that quarter. This list is available from (title of responsible official), Federal Reserve Bank of ____ (address). You may send written comments about our performance in helping to meet community credit needs to (name and address of official at bank) and (title of responsible official), Federal Reserve Bank of ____ (address). Your letter, together with any response by us, will be considered by the Federal Reserve System in evaluating our CRA performance and may be made public.
You may ask to look at any comments received by the Reserve Bank. You may also request from the Reserve Bank an announcement of our applications covered by the CRA filed with the Reserve Bank. We are an affiliate of (name of holding company), a bank holding company. You may request from (title of responsible official), Federal Reserve Bank of ____ (address) an announcement of applications covered by the CRA filed by bank holding companies.
(b) Notice for branch offices.
You are entitled to certain information about our operations and our performance under the CRA. You may review today the public section of our most recent CRA evaluation, prepared by the Federal Reserve Bank of ____ (address), and a list of services provided at this branch. You may also have access to the following additional information, which we will make available to you at this branch within five calendar days after you make a request to us: (1) a map showing the assessment area containing this branch, which is the area in which the Board evaluates our CRA performance in this community; (2) information about our branches in this assessment area; (3) a list of services we provide at those locations; (4) data on our lending performance in this assessment area; and (5) copies of all written comments received by us that specifically relate to our CRA performance in this assessment area, and any responses we have made to those comments. If we are operating under an approved strategic plan, you may also have access to a copy of the plan.

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