Skip to main content
U.S. flag
An official website of the United States government
Dot gov
The .gov means it’s official. 
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.
Https
The site is secure. 
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.
Federal Register Publications

FDIC Federal Register Citations



Home > Regulation & Examinations > Laws & Regulations > FDIC Federal Register Citations




FDIC Federal Register Citations

FIRST BANK AND TRUST CO.

From: Shannon Contreras [mailto:SContreras@1stbanknet.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 14, 2004 9:26 AM
To: Comments
Subject: Community Reinvestment -- RIN 3064-AC50

I am writing in response to the notice of proposed rulemaking relating to the CRA that would change the definition of small bank by raising the asset size threshold to $1 billion; add a community development activity criterion to the evaluation method for small banks with assets between $250 million and up to $1 billion; and expand the definition of community development to include a broader range of activities in rural areas.

Our institution has $267 million in total assets as of December 31, 2003. We reached $250 million in total assets in September of 2001 therefore, under current definitions, we are now a CRA “large institution”. Our main office is in Duncan, Oklahoma and we have several other banking centers in Ardmore, Healdton, and Norman, Oklahoma as well.

I am pleased that FDIC is entertaining an increase of $1 billion rather than $500 million. In my comment letter earlier this year regarding the initial NPR I requested that you consider the $1 billion increase as we are surrounded by larger statewide banks all with over $1 billion in total assets in all of our markets. I am very much in support of this threshold increase and would welcome the decrease in the burden of data collection and reporting of our CRA loans. However, another aspect of the current large bank examination that includes credit for qualified investments and loans was a big concern for banks such as ourselves who fall between the $250 million and $1 billion asset size. I feel that the community development criterion being added to the now streamlined small bank examination will remain to put banks caught in this asset size on an uneven playing field when trying to compete with banks that have assets in excess of the $1 billion mark. Regulatory burden relief is one concern but uneven competition for community development credit is another concern that does not appear to be addressed in this NPR. I would encourage the FDIC to consider this more fully.

Expanding the definition of community development to encompass a broader range of activities in rural areas could be of benefit to our particular institution as we are in Southwestern Oklahoma and without having to submit small farm lending on a loan register, assuming that a $1 billion threshold increase is passed, we might gain some community development loan credit in this area. Which brings me to the point that although many community groups feel that this NPR is relaxing the CRA and will eventually cause many banks to fail the community in terms of meeting credit needs, this will actually allow our institution to funnel the same loans and investments that we are making anyway into an actual community development purpose rather than merely a line item on a loan register.

When weighing the concerns of community groups that feel that loosening the large bank CRA burden will cause banks to pull out of community projects you must look past that and on to the credit unions, financial centers, insurance companies, and even the housing developers (many of whom incorporate their own financing methods) that do not have to comply with the CRA. If there are going to be abusive lending situations it is going to be through these organizations who are aggressively seeking our traditional financial institution customers and when these consumers find that they do not have many of these federal banking regulations to protect them they will become vocal to the community groups. Therefore, if the community groups have issues trusting the banking industry then they need to be very suspicious of the credit unions, et al.

Our financial institution has received three previous “outstanding” CRA ratings under the current small bank exam method and we are preparing for our first large bank examination. We have always had a strong commitment to fulfill the requirements of the CRA and our asset size will not change that. Regardless of the result of this NPR, we will continue to provide services, loans, investments, and assistance throughout our assessment areas, provide innovative and flexible credit programs, and give back to all of our communities.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this NPR.

Sincerely,

Shannon Contreras
CRA Administrator
First Bank and Trust Co.
P.O. Box 580
Duncan, OK 73534

Last Updated 09/15/2004 regs@fdic.gov

Last Updated: August 4, 2024