American Banker, January 14, 2020: Regulators Aren’t Only Ones at Odds Over CRA Reform
As the effort to modernize the Community Reinvestment Act unfolds, a proposal championed by Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting is struggling to win supporters as lawmakers in Congress are divided over the process and community reinvestment advocates have largely assailed the plan.
Community reinvestment advocates, with some exception, have blasted the proposal, saying it would unduly ease banks’ obligations and dilute CRA resources in low-income communities that need them most. The hearing included five witnesses from advocacy groups, all but one of whom criticized the plan.
“The proposed changes are substantial, dilutive and would weaken the effectiveness of the law,” said Gerron Levi, policy director of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. “I can say, without equivocation, the winners would be the nation’s largest banks and the losers would be low- and moderate-income and underserved borrowers and communities.”
