12-02-2008, 09:47 PM
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#142 (permalink)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cynthetiq
as a registered republican, no I do not hate the CRA. I expected the CRA to do what it is intended which is ensure that the community the banks are in keep the money in the community and not funnel it out completely.
can you explain more what the bush admin did specifically?
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My mistake for tarring all republicans with a broad brush.
Here is an explanation from a democratic congressman on the actions by Bush, not by Executive Order, but through FDIC regulations:
Quote:
Regulatory changes proposed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and already in effect at the Office of Thrift Supervision will reduce the number of banks that must adhere to the successful Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The CRA was put into place as a result of decades of ‘red-lining’ practices by banks that cordoned off poor, minority and rural communities from bank loans, services, and investment. Since 1977, the CRA has resulted in billions of dollars being channeled to communities previously ignored by banks and other community lenders....
...The proposed regulations by the FDIC will exempt banks that have between $250 million and $1 billion in assets from the most stringent CRA tests, which focus on the lending practices, services, and investments. While the new regulations also include issues like predatory lending and remittances in CRA evaluations, they immediately exempt 96 percent of all banks from following these new guidelines.
These mid-sized banks, instead of being subject to stringent CRA evaluations, will face a watered-down “community development” test. Instead of a rigorous three-part CRA exam reviewing a bank's investments, services, and lending performance, the community development criterion would allow a mid-sized bank to choose just one of the three types of activities (lending, services, and investments). This change is likely to result in a significant drop-off of lending, investments and services for affordable housing development, Low Income Housing Tax Credits, and community service facilities, such as clinics and economic development projects, as well as branch locations.
http://serrano.house.gov/PressRelease.aspx?NewsID=1131
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"The perfect is the enemy of the good."
~ Voltaire
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