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OCC revises CRA small and intermediate bank asset-size threshold adjustments
On December 30, the OCC announced revisions to the asset-size thresholds used to define small and intermediate small banks and savings associations under the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). Effective January 1, a small bank or savings association will mean an institution that, as of December 31 of either of the past two years, had assets of less than $1.384 billion. An intermediate small bank or savings association will mean an institution with assets of at least $346 million as of December 31 of both of the prior two years, and less than $1.384 billion as of December 31 of either of the prior two years. The adjustments follow a final rule issued last month, which rescinded the OCC’s 2020 CRA rule and replaced it with a rule based largely on the prior rules adopted jointly by the federal banking agencies in 1995, as amended. (Covered by InfoBytes here.) Under the 2021 final rule, banks are evaluated under different CRA examination procedures based on their asset-size threshold amounts. As previously covered by InfoBytes, the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC also announced joint annual adjustments to the CRA asset-size thresholds used to define “small bank” and “intermediate small bank” in December.
Jelena McWilliams to resign as FDIC chairman
On December 31, Jelena McWilliams announced her resignation as FDIC Chairman effective February 4. McWilliams, who was appointed in 2018, noted in her resignation letter to President Biden that throughout her tenure at the agency the FDIC “has focused on its fundamental mission to maintain and instill confidence in our banking system while at the same time promoting innovation, strengthening financial inclusion, improving transparency, and supporting community banks and minority depository institutions, including through the creation of the Mission Driven Bank Fund.” She also credited FDIC staff for taking swift measures to maintain stability and provide flexibility for banks and consumers impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
McWilliams’ resignation follows a conflict among members of the FDIC Board of Directors related to a joint request for information (RFI) seeking public comment on revisions to the FDIC’s framework for vetting proposed bank mergers. Last month, FDIC Board member Martin J. Gruenberg and Rohit Chopra (who has an automatic board seat as Director of the CFPB) issued a joint statement announcing that the FDIC Board of Directors voted to launch a public comment period on updating the FDIC’s regulatory implementation of the Bank Merger Act. Gruenberg and Chopra indicated at the time that the Board members taking part in this action had approved the RFI. Shortly following the announcement, the FDIC released a statement disputing that any action had been approved. (Covered by InfoBytes here.) Chopra issued a follow-up statement challenging the view that only the FDIC Chairperson has the right to raise matters for discussion in Board meetings, and called for “immediate[]” resolution of the conflict, stating that “[a]bsent a return to legal reality and constructive engagement, board members will need to take further steps to exercise independence from management and to ensure sound governance of the [FDIC].” (Covered by InfoBytes here.)
FDIC announces Alabama disaster relief
On December 23, the FDIC issued FIL-82-2021 to provide regulatory relief to financial institutions and help facilitate recovery in areas of Alabama affected by severe storms and flooding. The FDIC acknowledged the unusual circumstances faced by institutions and their customers affected by the weather and suggested that institutions work with impacted borrowers to, among other things, (i) extend repayment terms; (ii) restructure existing loans; or (iii) ease terms for new loans to those affected by the severe weather, provided the measures are done “in a manner consistent with sound banking practices.” Additionally, the FDIC noted that institutions “may receive favorable Community Reinvestment Act consideration for community development loans, investments, and services in support of disaster recovery.” The FDIC will also consider regulatory relief from certain filing and publishing requirements.
DOJ solicits additional comments on bank mergers
On December 17, the DOJ announced that its Antitrust Division is soliciting additional public comments regarding the potential revision of the 1995 Bank Merger Competitive Review Guidelines (Banking Guidelines) as part of a continuing effort by the federal agencies responsible for banking regulation and supervision. According to the announcement, the division will utilize “additional comments to ensure that the Banking Guidelines reflect current economic realities and empirical learning, ensure Americans have choices among financial institutions, and guard against the accumulation of market power.” The division had previously announced in September 2020 that it was soliciting comments regarding the Banking Guidelines’ potential revision. The call for public comment contained specific questions, including whether: (i) any new guidance should be bank-specific; (ii) any new bank merger guidance should be jointly issued; (iii) the 1800/200 Herfindahl-Hirschman Index screen should be updated; and (iv) there should be a de minimis exception. The announcement also noted that “[b]uilding on the responses, the updated call for comment focuses on whether bank merger review is currently sufficient to prevent harmful mergers and whether it accounts for the full range of competitive factors appropriate under the laws.” The announcement further noted that the division will continue working with the Federal Reserve, OCC, and the FDIC, and will consider comments from the public.
Agencies release statement on the community bank leverage ratio framework
On December 21, the Federal Reserve Board, the OCC, and the FDIC released an interagency statement regarding the optional community bank leverage ratio (CBLR) framework. According to the announcement, temporary relief measures affecting the framework are set to expire on December 31, 2021, and the CBLR requirement will revert to greater than 9 percent, as established under the 2019 final rule, starting January 1, 2022. The announcement further noted that “[t]he community bank leverage ratio framework includes a two-quarter grace period that allows a qualifying community bank to continue reporting under the framework and be considered ‘well capitalized’ as long as its leverage ratio falls no more than 1 percentage point below the applicable community bank leverage ratio requirement.” Other highlights of the announcement include, among other things: (i) if a banking organization elects the CBLR framework when submitting its March 31, 2022 Call Report, it will be subject to the greater than 9 percent CBLR requirement and must utilize total consolidated assets as of the report date to determine eligibility; and (ii) starting January 1, 2022, “a banking organization in the CBLR framework must report a leverage ratio greater than 8 percent to use the two-quarter grace period.”
Agencies release 2020 CRA data
On December 21, the three federal banking agency members of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) with Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) responsibility—the Federal Reserve Board, the FDIC, and the OCC—announced the release of the 2020 small business, small farm, and community development CRA data. The analysis contains information from 687 lenders about originations and purchases of small loans (loans with original amounts of $1 million or less) in 2020, a 1.2 percent decrease from the 695 lenders that reported data in 2019. According to the analysis, the total number of originated loans decreased by approximately 1.7 percent from 2019, with the dollar amount of originations increasing by roughly 7.9 percent. The analysis further noted that 621 banks reported community development lending activity totaling nearly $169 billion in 2020, a 52 percent increase from 2019.
OCC updates OREO booklet
On December 20, the OCC issued Bulletin 2021-65 announcing the revision of the Other Real Estate Owned (OREO) booklet of the Comptroller’s Handbook, which applies to the OCC’s supervision of community banks. The updated booklet replaces the booklet of the same title issued in September 2020, and rescinded OCC Bulletin 2020-79, “Other Real Estate Owned: Updated Comptroller’s Handbook Booklet.” (Covered by InfoBytes here.) Among other clarifying changes, the updated booklet: (i) defines physical possession as it pertains to OREO properties; and (ii) updates ownership obligations and actions as they pertain to the Fair Housing Act.
OCC updates HMDA examination procedures
On December 17, the OCC released revised interagency HMDA examination procedures for HMDA compliance. The revised examination procedures address changes made to the effective dates for banks meeting or exceeding either the closed-end mortgage loans or the open-end lines of credit loan-volume threshold in each of the two preceding calendar years. Effective July 1, 2020, a bank that “originated at least 100 closed-end mortgage loans in each of the two preceding calendar years, or originated at least 500 open-end lines of credit in each of the two preceding calendar years meets or exceeds the loan-volume threshold.” Effective January 1, 2022, the temporary 500 open-end lines of credit provision expires, and a bank that “originated at least 100 closed-end mortgage loans in each of the two preceding calendar years, or originated at least 200 open-end lines of credit in each of the two preceding calendar years” will now meet or exceed the loan-volume threshold. The revised examination procedures also outline changes to partial exemptions for an application or covered loan. A partial exemption applies to: (i) applications for originations of, and purchases of closed-end mortgage loans when the bank originated fewer than 500 closed-end mortgage loans in each of the two preceding calendar years, and (ii) applications for originations of, and purchases of open-end lines of credit provided the bank originated fewer than 500 open-end lines of credit in each of the two preceding calendar years.
Bulletin 2021-63 rescinds OCC Bulletin 2010-8, “Compliance Policy: Revised Home Mortgage Disclosure Act Examination Procedures,” as well as OCC Bulletin 2019-19, “Home Mortgage Disclosure Act: Revised Interagency Examination Procedures.”
FDIC updates videos on the mortgage servicing rules
On December 17, the FDIC announced that it updated the technical assistance videos on the mortgage servicing rules. According to the announcement, the information in the five videos provides a high-level overview, which is intended to help FDIC-supervised institutions understand and comply with the mortgage servicing rules. The announcement also noted that the videos incorporate the 2016 Mortgage Servicing Rule and the 2016 Fair Debt Collection and Practices Act Interpretive Rule, and that the video series generally focus on the small servicer, as defined in Regulation Z. Highlights of each video include, among other things: (i) an overview of mortgage servicing and information for determining whether a servicer qualifies as a small servicer under Regulation Z (Video 1); (ii) key provisions for which small servicers do not have an exception (Video 2); (iii) an overview of some of the requirements that apply to large servicers and not small servicers (Video 3); (iv) information regarding successors in interest (Video 4); and (v) information and examples related to developing a compliance management system (Video 5).
OCC solicits feedback on recently released climate-related risk principles
On December 16, the OCC announced draft principles intended to support the identification and management of climate-related financial risks at OCC-regulated institutions with over $100 billion in total consolidated assets. (See also OCC Bulletin 2021-62.) The principles address, among other things: (i) governance; (ii) polices, procedures and limits; (iii) strategic planning; (iv) risk management; (v) data, risk measurement, and reporting; and (vi) scenario analysis. According to the OCC, the principles are meant to support banks’ efforts to focus on key aspects of climate-related financial risk management and to provide a high-level framework for climate-related financial risk management consistent with existing OCC rules and guidance. The OCC also noted that though all banks, regardless of size, could potentially experience material exposures to climate-related financial risks, the principles are targeted at the largest banks. According to the announcement, the OCC intends “to elaborate on these principles in subsequent guidance that would distinguish roles and responsibilities of boards and management, incorporate the feedback received on the principles, and consider lessons learned and best practices from the industry and other jurisdictions.” Comments are due by February 14, 2022.