From: Jeff Hollingsworth [mailto:jeffreyhollingsworth@fsbmail.net]
Sent: Tuesday, September 14, 2004 5:13 PM
To: Comments
Subject: RIN3064-AC50 (CRA)
Robert E. Feldman, Executive Secretary
Attn: Comments/Executive Secretary Section
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
500 17th Street NW
Washington, DC 20429
RE: Community Reinvestment Act Proposal
RIN 3064-AC50
Dear Mr. Feldman:
I appreciate being able to comment on your proposal to adjust the
threshold under the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). Please accept this
letter as support for your proposal.
I appreciate and support the intent of the Community Reinvestment Act
and realize it is of great importance to communities across the country.
I do not feel, as some of the other comment letters suggest, that these
proposed changes would undermine the intent of CRA. The Community
Reinvestment Act is not being repealed under these proposals. Financial
institutions would still have a responsibility under the regulation to
support our communities.
However, I also appreciate and support the intent of the proposal
which is to allow some relief for community banks trying to comply with
the requirements of many different regulations. This is a for-profit
industry and while we understand that the growth of our institution in
reliant on the growth of the community, our resources are limited. We
contribute to our communities in several ways, many of which do not
qualify for credit under CRA but we do them anyway. Passage of this
proposal allows for potential growth of these contributions as resources
currently allocated to compliance could be applied here.