of life and character that define a neighborhood. 1 because of these benefits, federal policy in recent years has focused on increasing the homeownership rate among segments of society, such as minorities and low - income individuals, where homeownership had previously been low. in the late 1970s, congress passed two laws that, together, changed market dynamics for home mortgage lenders and expanded access to home loans for minorities and lower - income individuals. these laws, the home mortgage disclosure act ( hmda ) and the community reinvestment act ( cra ) have increased access to homeownership by making the mortgage market more transparent. congress enacted hmda under two assumptions. one was that the mortgage market works more efficiently when more information about it is publicly available. indeed, the data have been used to identify credit demand in underserved areas with unmet credit needs that might otherwise have been overlooked. the analysis and conclusions drawn from the data have also encouraged the establishment of partnerships between lenders and community organizations to meet credit needs. the second, perhaps more familiar assumption upon which hmda is based is that regulators need data in order to improve compliance and enforcement of fair lending and consumer protection laws. accordingly, hmda data are the first reference points for fair lending examinations conducted by the federal reserve and other banking regulators. the data help identify potential fair lending issues in the institutions regulated by the federal reserve and other supervisory agencies. the recent amendments of regulation c, hmda ’ s implementing regulation, build on the theme that transparency breeds efficiency in markets. the amendments require public disclosure of price information in the form of spreads between the annual percentage rate on a loan and the rate on treasury securities of comparable maturity. this rule is designed to ensure that the data continues to provide a means for improving market efficiency, as well as for monitoring legal compliance with fair lending laws. the new data offer the public and the supervisory agencies charged with enforcing the fair lending laws a better screening tool than what was previously available. thus, examination resources can be deployed more strategically because the data will allow the agencies to determine, in advance, which lenders and loan products may require more scrutiny. but, more important, the new data will ensure that as the marketplace develops and changes, interested parties will have the information needed to ensure comprehensive fair lending reviews. in addition to statutes that require the collection of public data on mortgage lending, congress has seen fit to promote market efficiency by enacting a statute, the cra, that

lisa d cook : exploring careers in economics welcoming remarks by ms lisa d cook, member of the board of governors of the federal reserve system, at the " exploring careers in economics " conference, sponsored by the board of governors of the federal reserve system, washington dc, 4 april 2023. * * * good afternoon, and welcome to " exploring careers in economics. " i am disappointed i cannot be with you in person, but i am thrilled you will hear from boston fed president susan collins. she is an outstanding colleague and economist, a good friend. you are in for a fantastic discussion. this event has a fairly self - explanatory title - exploring careers in economics. but the broad range of opportunities is anything but straightforward. economics touches every aspect of daily life, and you can see its impact in the world outside your door - and inside as well. some of you are veterans of economic study, while some of you are just " econ - curious. " either way, i hope that when you sign off today, you will have a totally different view of what economics can offer you. i was raised by academics in a college town, but even that access and insight did not give me the full picture of what was out there. a career in economics can take you in directions you never thought possible. we live in a constantly changing world, which means there is always new research to undertake, questions to be posed, and ground to break. my own studies allowed me to investigate everything from the impact of patents on the nation's economic growth to the banking system in post - soviet russia. they also took me to the archives of the kremlin and to university in the united kingdom and senegal. and that was just during my education! my career has taken me all over the globe. economics can take you just about anywhere, figuratively and literally. so i do hope that we do a good job of showing you the world of possibilities in the field. because economics needs you. any field that studies the behavior of an entire population, as economics does, should reflect the population it studies. we all come to the table with different experiences and backgrounds, which give each of us unique perspectives. your generation has seen two once - in - a - century economic events within two decades. your economic experiences are different from anyone else's. that insight and understanding will be critical to policymakers. the economics profession needs your perspective. future fed staff, governors, and chairs may