Notice2024-30849
Community Reinvestment Act Regulations Asset-Size Thresholds
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
December 30, 2024
Effective
January 1, 2025
Issuing agencies
Federal Reserve SystemFederal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Abstract
Under their Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations, the Board and the FDIC (collectively, the Agencies) annually adjust the asset-size thresholds used to define "small bank" and "intermediate small bank." As required by the CRA regulations, the adjustment to the threshold amounts is based on the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI- W). Applying this annual inflation adjustment methodology, the Agencies are announcing that, from January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025, "small bank" will mean a bank that, as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years, had assets of less than $1.609 billion; and "intermediate small bank" will mean a small bank with assets of at least $402 million as of December 31 of both of the prior two calendar years and less than $1.609 billion as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 249 (Monday, December 30, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 249 (Monday, December 30, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 106480-106481]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30849]
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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION
Community Reinvestment Act Regulations Asset-Size Thresholds
AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board);
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
ACTION: Announcement of 2025 asset-size thresholds.
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SUMMARY: Under their Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations, the
Board and the FDIC (collectively, the Agencies) annually adjust the
asset-size thresholds used to define ``small bank'' and ``intermediate
small bank.'' As required by the CRA regulations, the adjustment to the
threshold amounts is based on the annual percentage change in the
Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-
W). Applying this annual inflation adjustment methodology, the Agencies
are announcing that, from January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025,
``small bank'' will mean a bank that, as of December 31 of either of
the prior two calendar years, had assets of less than $1.609 billion;
and ``intermediate small bank'' will mean a small bank with assets of
at least $402 million as of December 31 of both of the prior two
calendar years and less than $1.609 billion as of December 31 of either
of the prior two calendar years.
[[Page 106481]]
DATES: These asset-size thresholds are in effect from January 1, 2025,
through December 31, 2025.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Board: Amal S. Patel, Senior Counsel, Division of Consumer and
Community Affairs; or Sumeet Shroff, Counsel, or Cody Gaffney, Counsel,
Legal Division, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System at
(202) 452-2412. For the hearing impaired and users of
Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) and TTY-TRS, please call
711 from any telephone, anywhere in the United States.
FDIC: Patience R. Singleton, Senior Policy Analyst, Supervisory
Policy Branch, Division of Depositor and Consumer Protection, (202)
898-6859, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#8dfdfee4e3eae1e8f9e2e3cdebe9e4eea3eae2fb"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="dbaba8b2b5bcb7beafb4b59bbdbfb2b8f5bcb4ad">[email protected]</span></a>; Cassandra Duhaney, Counsel, (202) 898-
6804, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#7112150419101f140831171518125f161e07"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f69592839e9798938fb690929f95d8919980">[email protected]</span></a>; or Alys V. Brown, Senior Attorney, (202), 898-
3565, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#91f0fde8f3e3fee6ffd1f7f5f8f2bff6fee7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="ee8f82978c9c819980ae888a878dc0898198">[email protected]</span></a>, Legal Division, Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation, 550 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20429.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Community Reinvestment Act Asset-Size Thresholds
Under the current CRA regulations,\1\ ``small bank'' means a bank
that, as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years, had
assets of less than $1.564 billion; and ``intermediate small bank''
means a small bank with assets of at least $391 million as of December
31 of both of the prior two calendar years and less than $1.564 billion
as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years.\2\
Pursuant to the annual inflation adjustment methodology described
below, the Agencies are announcing that from January 1, 2025, through
December 31, 2025, ``small bank'' will mean a bank that, as of December
31 of either of the prior two calendar years, had assets of less than
$1.609 billion; and ``intermediate small bank'' will mean a small bank
with assets of at least $402 million as of December 31 of both of the
prior two calendar years and less than $1.609 billion as of December 31
of either of the prior two calendar years.\3\
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\1\ In October 2023, the Agencies and the Office of the
Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) jointly issued a final rule to
strengthen and modernize their Community Reinvestment Act
regulations. See 89 FR 6574 (Feb. 1, 2024). Although the final rule
was intended to take effect on April 1, 2024, the final rule has
been challenged in litigation, and the final rule is currently
enjoined. As such, the legacy CRA regulations (referred to in this
notice as the ``current CRA regulations'') remain in effect. The
text of the current CRA regulations may be found: (i) in the 2022,
2023, or 2024 bound versions of title 12 of the Code of Federal
Regulations; (ii) in the historical version of the Electronic Code
of Federal Regulations (eCFR) as of March 29, 2024; or (iii) in
appendix G of the final rule, as published in the eCFR on February
1, 2024.
\2\ See 12 CFR 228.12(u)(1) and 345.12(u)(1) of the current CRA
regulations.
\3\ Historically, the Agencies have announced these annual
inflation adjustments via rulemakings that amend the ``small bank''
and ``intermediate small bank'' definitions in their CRA
regulations. See, e.g., 88 FR 87895 (Dec. 20, 2023) (implementing
annual inflation adjustments for 2024). However, because the eCFR
has been updated to reflect the text of the October 2023 final rule,
and because the October 2023 final rule is currently enjoined, the
Agencies have determined that this document (rather than a
rulemaking) is the best vehicle for announcing the annual inflation
adjustments for 2025. Once the litigation is resolved, the Agencies
expect to resume their historical practice of announcing these
annual inflation adjustments via rulemakings. The OCC adjusts the
asset-size criteria for institutions that are subject to OCC-issued
CRA regulations, including national banks and Federal and State
savings associations, separately from the Agencies.
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Calculation Methodology
The Agencies' CRA regulations establish CRA performance standards
for small banks and intermediate small banks. The CRA regulations
define small and intermediate small banks by reference to asset-size
criteria expressed in dollar amounts, and they further require the
Agencies to publish annual adjustments to these dollar figures based on
the year-to-year change in the average of the CPI-W, not seasonally
adjusted, for each 12-month period ending in November, with rounding to
the nearest million.\4\ This adjustment formula was first adopted for
CRA purposes by the Agencies and the OCC in 2005.\5\
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\4\ See 12 CFR 228.12(u)(2) and 345.12(u)(2) of the current CRA
regulations.
\5\ See 70 FR 44256 (Aug. 2, 2005). Subsequently, the Office of
Thrift Supervision (OTS), the agency then responsible for regulating
savings associations, adopted an annual inflation adjustment
methodology consistent with that of the Agencies and the OCC for its
CRA regulations, previously set forth at 12 CFR part 563e. See 72 FR
13429 (Mar. 22, 2007). The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and
Consumer Protection Act transferred CRA rulemaking authority for
Federal and State savings associations from the OTC to the OCC. See
12 U.S.C. 5412.
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During the 12-month period ending November 2024, the CPI-W
increased by 2.91 percent. Because the year-to-year change in the CPI-W
was non-zero, the Agencies are making this annual adjustment. Beginning
January 1, 2025, banks that, as of December 31 of either of the prior
two calendar years, had assets of less than $1.609 billion are small
banks. Small banks with assets of at least $402 million as of December
31 of both of the prior two calendar years and less than $1.609 billion
as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years are
intermediate small banks.
The Agencies publish current and historical asset-size thresholds
on the website of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination
Council.\6\
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\6\ See <a href="https://www.ffiec.gov/cra/examinations.htm">https://www.ffiec.gov/cra/examinations.htm</a> (``Current
and Historical Asset-Size Thresholds and Examples'').
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By order of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System,
acting through the Secretary of the Board under delegated authority.
Ann E. Misback,
Secretary of the Board.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Dated at Washington, DC, on December 15, 2024.
James P. Sheesley,
Assistant Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2024-30849 Filed 12-27-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6210-01-P; 6714-01-P
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