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FDIC Federal Register Citations




WNC & ASSOCIATES, INC.

From: NAAHL
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2004 3:46 PM
To: Comments
Subject: RIN number 3064-AC50

September 8, 2004

Donald E. Powell
Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
550 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20429

Re: RIN Number 3064-AC50

Dear Mr. Powell:

As I indicated in my letter of August 6, 2004 (below), WNC & Associates believes that the FDIC's proposal to quadruple the asset threshold for the "streamlined" CRA exam to $1 billion will harm affordable housing and community and economic development in LMI communities, particularly in rural areas, and we urge you not to adopt it.

Sincerely,

Wilfred N. Copper, Sr.
Chairman of the Board


WNC & ASSOCIATES, INC.


August 13, 2004

Donald E. Powell
Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
550 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20429

John M. Reich
Vice Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
550 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20429

Thomas J. Curry
Director
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
550 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20429

John D. Hawke, Jr.
Comptroller of the Currency
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
250E Street, SW
Washington, DC 20219

Dear Sirs:

WNC is a national real estate company with over three decades of experience investing in affordable rental housing. The company is headquartered in California and has acquired a portfolio of affordable housing with a cost of over $2 billion representing more than 800 properties in 40 states and the District of Columbia. Since 1971, WNC and its affiliates have acquired and/or structured investments in more than 150 affordable rental properties in California.

We understand that the FDIC shortly will consider a proposed rule change by the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) to increase the asset threshold for the CRA small bank exam from $250 million to $1 billion. We believe this proposal could have negative consequences for hundreds of communities, including many in rural areas, and we urge you not to adopt it.

While we understand that the OTS ruling is intended to help reduce regulatory burden for small banks, no studies have been conducted on the potential benefits – or harm – of such a change.
There is considerable evidence to believe that proposal could have severe, unintended consequences for the flow of much-needed private capital and services to LMI communities.

If the FDIC adopts the OTS' proposal, 2,000 fewer insured institutions, with assets of nearly $1 trillion, would have far less impetus to provide investments and services in LMI communities – and an estimated $5 billion that would have been available, under the current rules, for affordable housing and community development over the next few years would be lost.

As an example, in California the impact will be even greater, because banks of this size make up a greater proportion of financial institutions here than in the nation as a whole. Also, because institutions with assets between $250 million and $1 billion comprise a substantial market share in rural and exurban areas, the proposed change also means that in some states and many communities there will no longer be any insured institutions with a CRA impetus to invest in affordable housing, tax credits, and even fmancial literacy training. This would have a disproportionate impact in the Central Coast, Northern California, and the fast-growing Central Valley and Sierra Foothills.

As federal resources for affordable housing and community development continue to dwindle, our nation's poorest communities can ill-afford to lose billions of dollars in private investment and services. We urge the FDIC not to move forward with OTS' proposal, and we urge all four bank regulatory agencies to continue to consider rule changes that update CRA for the communities the Act is intended to serve.

Sincerely,
Wilfred N. Cooper, Sr.
Chairman of the Board


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

Last Updated: August 4, 2024