BACKGROUND & PURPOSE

• The Community Reinvestment Act is intended to encourage depository institutions to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which they operate, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, consistent with safe and sound banking operations. It was enacted by the Congress in 1977 (12 U.S.C. 2901) and is implemented by Regulations 12 CFR parts 25, 228, 345, and 563e. The Regulation was revised in May 1995 ( See Regulation).
  
  
• The CRA requires that each insured depository institution's record in helping meet the credit needs of its entire community be evaluated periodically. That record is taken into account in considering an institution's application for deposit facilities, including mergers and acquisitions. ( See CRA Ratings) CRA examinations (see Exam Schedules) are conducted by the federal agencies that are responsible for supervising depository institutions: the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS).
  
  
• The Consumer Compliance Task Force of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) promotes consistency in the implementation of the CRA Regulation by periodically publishing Interagency Questions and Answers, Interagency Interpretive Letters, Examination Procedures, and by facilitating uniform data reporting.