U.S. Bank Regulators Propose Overhaul of Community Reinvestment Act

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) have announced a proposed rule that would substantially revise the 1977 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The plan would raise the asset threshold that exempts banks from certain CRA data‑collection and reporting requirements from $412 million to $1 billion and create an intermediate category for banks up to $10 billion. It would also limit the ability of banks to receive CRA credit for grants and operating support to community‑development groups, and require documentation that grant recipients keep overhead costs below 15 percent.

Critics, including the National Community Reinvestment Coalition and its president Jesse Van Tol, warn the changes could shift billions of dollars away from affordable‑housing projects, small‑business financing and job creation in low‑ and moderate‑income neighborhoods, deepening the housing crisis. The proposal is the first major CRA revision in three decades and has been framed by some officials as curbing a “CRA goldmine” for activist groups.