How Do Banks Fulfill Their Community Reinvestment Act Obligations? was published by National Disability Institute in July 2019.
This report examines and summarizes seven articles that discuss different community development activities that can earn banks Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) credit.
While each article addresses a different qualifying activity, there are some collective themes:
- No matter which type of community development activity a bank chooses, a critical way to ensure it qualifies for CRA consideration is to consider fit in terms of local context and if it fills a community need.
- Due to the combination of an individualized approach to bank evaluations and a lack of clear regulations, there is no one-size-fits-all way for banks to fulfill CRA obligations.
- In addition to nonprofits and communities benefitting from banks’ community development activities, banks themselves generally benefit from investments, a more positive public perception and increased ties to the community.
- There are a wide variety of different ways in which banks can earn CRA credit, and there are many resources available to help them reach these goals.
