John Carr, secretary for Social Development and World Peace, raised his concerns about Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations in a letter to Robert Feldman, FDIC executive secretary.
«CRA has been an effective financial vehicle for rural and urban communities for decades,» the letter said.
«The proposed changes would substitute a less challenging criterion of community development for state-charted banks with assets between $250 million and $1 billion,» Carr said.
«This proposal would allow midsize banks to choose a loosely defined ‘community development activity’ rather than the current requirement of providing comprehensive community development activities needed by low- and moderate-income communities,» the episcopal conference aide said.
Carr warned that «the proposed community development criterion could result in fewer loans and a significant reduction in affordable rental housing investments.»
