Hi Friend, 

Banks have the capital to be a catalyst for change in your neighborhood and can be critical community partners. The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) requires banks to lend in the communities where they do business.

The federal regulators that oversee CRA announced late last year a much-needed overhaul of this important economic justice law. CRA is vital to the work that we all do, which is why we will be hosting four CRA-focused sessions at the 2024 Just Economy Conference.

The sessions are:

The New CRA 101 (ROUND 1)

This session covers the updated CRA, which encourages financial institutions to meet the credit needs of low- and moderate-income (LMI) neighborhoods and requires federal banking agencies to assess the record of meeting these standards and evaluate their efforts. We will explore how CRA can be used to increase affordable housing and small business reinvestment in your communities, including crucial updates to the rule announced in late 2023. 

The New CRA 101 (ROUND 2)

Addressing the Climate Crisis through CRA and federal funding

Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of storms, heat waves, fires and other weather-related disasters, with communities of color and low-income households the most affected. CRA’s definition of community development was recently updated to encourage banks to finance weather resiliency. This session will cover climate/weather resiliency projects and priorities, including how best to work with communities to prevent bluelining, a trend where financial institutions withdraw services or increase costs due to climate change. 

What's Next With The CRA Final Rule

This session will focus on what's coming next with CRA reform and upcoming opportunities to further shape the development of the new CRA rule. Speakers will be covering topics including: developing a statistical model that identifies markets where all banks are underperforming, best practices for reviewing the impact of community development on neighborhoods, and how the regulators can be proactive in preventing a decline in critical investments.

State CRA And Non-Banks

Community advocates, along with state and local elected officials, are increasingly pushing for state CRA laws that bring in more resources and fix gaps in the federal CRA rules, especially since more and more lending is done by institutions not covered by federal CRA. This session will explore how state CRA laws include a review of credit unions and mortgage companies' loans and investments in underserved people and neighborhoods, in addition to banks. 

Register now to make sure you don’t miss these important conversations!

We can’t wait to see you in April,

Team NCRC