Consumer Affairs Letters (offsite)
These letters address significant policy and procedural matters related to the Federal Reserve System's consumer compliance supervisory responsibilities.
Interagency Interpretive Letters (offsite)
While the agencies no longer issue these letters, they provide insight into particular aspects of the regulation, especially about whether certain activities qualify for consideration under the Investment Test.
The CRA requires that each 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.
Neither the CRA nor its implementing regulation gives specific criteria for rating the performance of depository institutions. Rather, the law indicates that the evaluation process should accommodate an institution's individual circumstances. Nor does the law require institutions to make high-risk loans that jeopardize their safety. To the contrary, the law makes it clear that an institution's CRA activities should be undertaken in a safe and sound manner.
CRA examinations are conducted by the federal agencies that are responsible for supervising depository institutions. Information on this page is related to depository institutions that are examined by the Federal Reserve, mainly state-chartered banks that are members of the Federal Reserve.
