The Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Board of Governors of
the Federal Reserve System, and the Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency
revised their Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations on July 19,
2005
(see 70 FR 44256 August 2, 2005). The revised CRA regulations took
effect on
September 1, 2005.
Among the revisions to
the regulations, "intermediate small banks" are defined under
§345.12 (u) as small banks with assets of at least $250
million as of December 31 of both of the prior two calendar years and
less
than $1 billion as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar
years.
These banks are evaluated under two tests: the small bank lending test,
and
a new community development test. The agencies adopted and released the
attached Interagency Intermediate Small Institution Examination
Procedures in August
2005. The CRA regulation continues, however, to allow small
institutions, including
intermediate small institutions, to opt for examination as a large bank
under
the lending, investment, and services tests, provided CRA loan data are
collected
and reported.
In addition, interagency
examination procedures were revised for small institutions,
large institutions, wholesale and limited purpose institutions, and
institutions
under a strategic plan specifically to address the CRA regulatory
changes mentioned
above and the technical rule changes made in March 2005 (see 70 FR 15570
March
28, 2005). The revised interagency examination procedures published
today were
changed to reflect these recent technical and substantive changes to the
CRA
rules. Specifically, the revised examination procedures:
-
Include conforming
language pertaining to changes in the definition
of community development;
-
Include references to the consideration of illegal credit practices
and affiliate
activity consideration; and
-
Update certain geographic area terminology to ensure consistency
with the regulation.
The FDIC plans to
incorporate these procedures in an updated Compliance
Examination Manual. Until the revised manual is issued,
examiners will use the attached
procedures, effective immediately.
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Sandra L.
Thompson
Acting Director
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection
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