RegBB.20081107.omb

Supporting Statement for the
Recordkeeping, Reporting, and Disclosure Requirements
in Connection with Regulation BB (Community Reinvestment Act)
(Reg BB; OMB No. 7100-0197)
Summary
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, under delegated authority
from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), proposes to extend, without
revision, the mandatory Recordkeeping, Reporting, and Disclosure Requirements In
connection with Regulation BB (Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)). The Board is
required to renew these requirements every three years pursuant to the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), which classifies regulations such as Regulation BB as
“required information collections.” 1
The recordkeeping, reporting, and disclosure requirements under Regulation BB
depend in part on a bank’s size. Large banks have had assets of more than $1.061 billion
for two consecutive year-ends; other banks are small. 2
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All state member banks (SMBs) must delineate an assessment area(s) and large banks
must report the census tracts within this area(s) to the Federal Reserve.
All SMBs must keep a public CRA file, though smaller banks may keep more
detailed files.
All SMBs must display a public notice in the lobby of the main office and each
branch informing consumers about the availability of certain CRA information.
Large banks must collect and report data on small business and small farm loans and,
in some cases, consumer loans. Small banks may collect and report the data at their
option. Reported data are disclosed by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination
Council (FFIEC) to the public annually in summary form.
Reporting of mortgage loan data is governed by the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act
(HMDA) Regulation C rather than Regulation BB, except that the regulation adds a
requirement that large banks report the property location for rural and not just urban
loans.
Three requirements are optional, even for large banks. First, any bank may collect,
maintain, and report data on lending by affiliates or a consortium/third party with
which it is involved. Second, a bank that wishes to be evaluated under its own
strategic plan must submit that plan to the Federal Reserve and must operate under it
for at least one year before being evaluated under it. Third, a bank that wishes to be
designated as a wholesale or limited purpose bank must make that request in writing.

1

44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.
Small bank means a bank that, as of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years, had assets of
less than $1.061 billion. Intermediate small bank means a small bank with assets of at least $265 million as
of December 31 of both of the prior two calendar years and less than $1.061 billion as of December 31 of
either of the prior two calendar years.

2

1

The Board administers Regulation BB as to the 874 SMBs under its supervision.
The estimated annual burden is 61,545 hours.
Background and Justification
In 1995, the four banking agencies 3 responsible for implementing CRA revised
their regulations to reduce unnecessary compliance burden, promote consistency in
assessments, and encourage improved performance. The new rules included data
collection and reporting requirements for institutions then deemed large, which at that
time, comprised of institutions with assets of more than $250 million, or assets of less
than $250 million that were affiliated with a bank holding company with assets of more
than $1 billion.
In July 2005, the Board, OCC, and FDIC adopted identical final rules raising the
large-bank threshold from $250 million to $1 billion and eliminating consideration of
holding company affiliation. 4 The 2005 rules therefore reduce data collection and
reporting burden for banks with assets between $250 million and $1 billion, called
intermediate small banks. The banking agencies left in place the data collection and
reporting requirements of banks with assets of more than $1 billion to ensure effective
evaluation of such banks under the quantitative performance criteria of the CRA
regulations.
In December 2006 the banking agencies amended their CRA regulations to
increase the asset-size threshold to be used to define small bank and intermediate small
bank. The regulation was amended to state the increase in the threshold shall be adjusted
annually and published by the Board, based on the year-to-year change in the average of
the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, not seasonally
adjusted, for each twelve-month period ending in November, with rounding to the nearest
million 5
In December 2007 the banking agencies 6 amended their CRA regulations to
adjust the asset-size thresholds used to define small bank or small savings association and
intermediate small bank or intermediate small savings association.7 As required by the
CRA regulations, the adjustment to the threshold amount was based on the annual
percentage change in the Consumer Price Index. The banking agencies also corrected a
paragraph heading that was inaccurate as a result of annual revisions to the small
institution threshold. Beginning January 1, 2008, banks and savings associations that, as
3

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), the Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency (OCC), Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
(FDIC).
4
70 FR 44256 (August 2, 2005).
5
71 FR 78335 (December 29, 2006).
6
Effective July 1, 2007, the Office of Thrift Supervision aligned its CRA rule with the rule adopted by the
banking agencies. 72 FR 13429 (March 22, 2007)
7
72 FR 72571 (December 21, 2007).

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of December 31 of either of the prior two calendar years, had assets of less than $1.061
billion are small banks or small savings associations. Small banks or small savings
associations with assets of at least $265 million as of December 31 of both of the prior
two calendar years, and less than $1.061 billion as of December 31 of either of the prior
two calendar years, are intermediate small banks or intermediate small savings
associations. The Federal Reserve has no other information collection that supplies these
data.
Description of Information Collection
The recordkeeping, reporting, and disclosure requirements associated with
Regulation BB are summarized in attachment 1 and described below. A SMB that
qualifies for evaluation under the small bank performance standards but elects evaluation
under the lending, investment, and service tests will collect, maintain, and report the data
required for large banks.
Assessment area delineation
Each SMB must delineate one or more assessment areas within which the Federal
Reserve evaluates the bank's record of helping to meet the credit needs of its community.
All SMBs must maintain a list of the census tracts in each assessment area. Large banks
must also report the list to the Federal Reserve by March 1 each year. The assessment
area(s) consists generally of one or more Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) or one or
more contiguous political subdivisions, such as counties, cities, or towns. The
assessment area(s) includes the tracts in which the bank has its main office, branches, and
deposit-taking automated teller machines (ATMs), as well as the surrounding tracts in
which the bank has originated or purchased a substantial portion of its loans. There are
rules designed to prevent redlining (arbitrary exclusion of lower-income or minority
neighborhoods) in the drawing of assessment areas.
Public file
All SMBs are required to maintain and make available to the public a file
containing comments received from the public for the current year and each of the prior
two calendar years, and any response to the comments from the bank. The file also must
contain a copy of the public section of the SMB's most recent CRA performance
evaluation prepared by the Federal Reserve, a list of the bank’s open branches with
addresses and geographies, a list of branches opened or closed during the current year
and each of the prior two calendar years, a list of the services generally offered by the
bank, and a map of each assessment area. The bank may include in the file any other
information it chooses.

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Large banks must also include in the public file the CRA Disclosure Statement
prepared by the Federal Reserve for each of the prior two calendar years and, if
applicable, information about consumer loan data. SMBs required to report HMDA data
must include in the public file a copy of the HMDA Disclosure Statement prepared by the
FFIEC for each of the prior two calendar years.
A small bank or intermediate small bank must include in the public file the bank's
loan-to-deposit ratio for each quarter of the prior calendar year and, if it elects to be
evaluated under the lending, service, and investment tests, the information required under
the disclosure rules applicable to large banks.
A SMB that has, in accordance with Regulation BB, submitted and been approved
by the Federal Reserve for assessment under a strategic plan (see Strategic Plan, below)
must include a copy of the plan in the public file. A SMB that received a rating worse
than “Satisfactory” at its most recent examination must include in the public file a
description of its efforts to improve its plan.
Public notice by banks
A SMB must provide in the public lobby of its main office and in each branch a
prescribed notice informing consumers of their rights to certain information about the
SMB’s operations and CRA performance as evaluated by the Federal Reserve.
Small business and small farm loan register
A large bank is required to collect and maintain in machine-readable form until
the completion of its next CRA examination the following data for each small business or
small farm loan originated or purchased:
•
•
•
•

a unique number or alpha-numeric symbol used to identify the relevant loan file;
the loan amount at origination;
the loan location; and
an indicator whether the loan was made to a business or farm with gross annual
revenues of $1 million or less.
Small business and small farm loan data

A large bank is required to report annually by March 1 to the Federal Reserve in
machine-readable form the following data for the preceding calendar year. For each
geography in which the SMB originated or purchased a small business or small farm
loan, it must report the aggregate number and amount of loans:
•
•

of $100,000 or less at origination;
of more than $100,000 at origination but less than or equal to $250,000 at
origination;

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•
•

of more than $250,000 at origination; and
to businesses and farms with gross annual revenues of $1 million or less (using
the revenues that the bank considered in making its credit decision).
Community development loan data

A large bank is required to report annually by March 1 to the Federal Reserve in
machine-readable form the aggregate number and aggregate amount of community
development loans originated or purchased in the preceding calendar year.
Home mortgage loan data
A large bank that is subject to reporting under Regulation C (12 CFR Part 203), is
required to report annually by March 1 to the Federal Reserve in machine-readable form
the property location for each home mortgage loan application, origination, or purchase
outside the MSAs in which the SMB has a home or branch office (or outside any MSA).
The Board of Governor’s amended Regulation C to conform this rule; the paperwork
burden for providing property location information for loans inside an MSA is associated
with the HMDA Loan/Application Register (FR HMDA-LAR; OMB No. 7100-0247).
Consumer loan data
A SMB has the option to collect and maintain, in machine-readable form, data for
consumer loans originated or purchased by the bank for consideration under the lending
test. A SMB may maintain data for one or more of the following categories of consumer
loans: motor vehicle, credit card, home-equity, other secured, and other unsecured. If the
SMB maintains data for loans in a certain category, it must maintain data for all loans
originated or purchased within that category. The SMB must maintain data separately for
each category and must include for each loan:
•
•
•
•

a unique number or alpha-numeric symbol used to identify the relevant loan file;
the loan amount at origination or purchase;
the loan location; and
the gross annual income of the borrower that the SMB considered in making its
credit decision.
Other loan data

At its option, a SMB may provide other information concerning its lending
performance, including additional loan-distribution data.
Affiliate lending data
A SMB that elects to have the Federal Reserve consider loans by an affiliate, for
purposes of the lending or community development test or an approved strategic plan,

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must collect, maintain, and report for those loans the data that the SMB would have
collected, maintained, and reported had the loans been originated or purchased by the
SMB. For home mortgage loans, the bank must also be prepared to identify the home
mortgage loans reported under Regulation C by the affiliate.
Data on lending by a consortium or a third party
A SMB may elect to have the Federal Reserve consider community development
loans made by a consortium or third party, for purposes of the lending or community
development tests or an approved strategic plan. If so, the SMB must report for those
loans the data that the bank would have reported had the loans been originated or
purchased by the SMB itself.
Strategic plan
A SMB may elect to be assessed under a strategic plan if the SMB has submitted
the plan to the Federal Reserve, the Federal Reserve has approved the plan, the plan is in
effect, and the SMB has been operating under an approved plan for at least one year. The
Federal Reserve’s approval of this plan does not affect the SMB’s obligation, if any, to
comply with the data collecting and reporting requirements (12 CFR 228.42). The plan
may have a term of no more than five years; multi-year plans must include annual interim
measurable goals. Before submitting a plan to the Federal Reserve, a SMB must seek
suggestions from members of the public in its assessment area(s), formally solicit public
comment for at least thirty days, and during the period of formal public comment make
copies of the plan available for public review at its offices at no cost, and by mail for a
reasonable cost.
A strategic plan must include measurable goals for helping meet the credit needs
of each assessment area covered by the plan, addressing the lending, investment and
service tests. A plan must specify goals that constitute satisfactory performance and also
may specify goals that constitute outstanding performance. If an institution fails to meet
its own goals for satisfactory performance, a SMB may elect in its plan to be evaluated
under the alternate test(s) specified in the regulation.
Request for designation as a wholesale or limited purpose bank
The Federal Reserve evaluates the performance of a wholesale or limited purpose
bank under the community development test specified in the regulation. A SMB wishing
to be designated as a wholesale or limited purpose bank must file a request, in writing,
with the Federal Reserve, at least three months prior to the proposed effective date of the
designation.

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Time Schedule for Information Collection and Publication
The recordkeeping, reporting, and disclosure requirements pursuant to Regulation
BB are mandatory, depending on bank size and other factors. SMBs that are required to
collect assessment area information, small business and small farm data, community
development data, and home mortgage loan data must collect and report the data to the
Federal Reserve in machine-readable form annually by March 1 for the prior calendar
year.
The Federal Reserve uses the data to examine and assess SMBs' CRA records; to
prepare the public sections of CRA performance evaluations; and to help evaluate
applications for acquisitions and other transactions. The Federal Reserve prepares
annually for each SMB a public disclosure statement that contains, on a state-by-state
basis, information on small farm, small business, and community development loans.
Together with the other agencies, the Federal Reserve prepares annually for each
MSA (including an MSA that crosses a state boundary) and for each non-MSA portion of
each state, an aggregate disclosure statement of small business and small farm lending by
all institutions subject to reporting requirements under each agency’s CRA regulation.
These disclosure statements indicate, for each geography, the number and amount of all
small business and small farm loans originated or purchased by reporting institutions,
except that the Federal Reserve may adjust the form of the disclosure if necessary to
protect the privacy of a borrower or the competitive position of an institution. The
Federal Reserve makes the aggregate disclosure statements and the individual SMB
statements available to the public at central data depositories and publishes a list of the
depositories at which statements are available. The FFIEC also makes both statements
available on the FFIEC CRA web site www.ffiec.gov/cra. The statements are usually
available at the SMBs, central data depositories, and on the FFIEC web site in mid-July
after the March 1 reporting date.
Any SMB electing to submit a strategic plan to the Federal Reserve must do so at
least three months prior to the proposed effective date of the plan. The Federal Reserve
will act upon the plan within 60 days. If the Federal Reserve fails to act within this time,
the plan shall be deemed approved unless the Federal Reserve extends the review period
for good cause. As indicated above, a SMB may not be evaluated under a strategic plan
unless it has been operating under an approved plan for at least one year.
Legal Status
The Board’s Legal Division has determined that the recordkeeping, reporting, and
disclosure requirements associated with Regulation BB are authorized by section 806 of
the CRA which permits the board to issue regulations to carry out the purpose of CRA
(12 U.S.C. § 2905), Section 11 of the Federal Reserve Act (FRA) which permits the
Board to require such statements as reports of SMBs as it deems necessary (12 U.S.C. §

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248(a)(1)), and section 9 of the FRA which permits the Board to examine SMBs (12
U.S.C. § 325); the requirements are mandatory, depending on bank size and other factors.
Generally, the data that are reported to the Federal Reserve are not considered
confidential.
Sensitive Questions
This collection of information contains no questions of a sensitive nature, as
defined by OMB guidelines.
Consultation Outside the Agency
On August 20, 2008, the Federal Reserve published a notice in the Federal
Register (73 FR 49205) requesting public comment for 60 days on the extension, without
revision, of this information collection. The comment period for this notice expired on
October 20, 2008. The Federal Reserve did not receive any comments. On October 28,
2008, the Federal Reserve published a final notice in the Federal Register (73 FR 63983).
Estimate of Respondent Burden
The Federal Reserve estimates that the paperwork burden for SMBs associated
with complying with CRA is approximately 61,545 hours, for recordkeeping, optional
recordkeeping, reporting, optional reporting, and disclosure requirements, as presented in
the following table. The Regulation BB paperwork burden represents 1.4 percent of the
total Federal Reserve System burden for all information collections.
The number of respondents for all non-optional recordkeeping requirements is
based on the current number of large SMBs regulated by the Federal Reserve, as defined
by Regulation BB. The optional recordkeeping burden estimates for consumer loan data
and other loan data include the assumption that approximately 34 percent and 5 percent,
respectively, of all SMBs will keep these data.
The burden estimates for non-optional reporting requirements related to loan
data, other than community development loan data, include time estimates for geocoding
easy- and hard-to-find loan geographies. The number of respondents for the non-optional
reporting requirements (loan data and assessment area delineation) is based on the
current number of large SMBs regulated by the Federal Reserve, as defined by
Regulation BB. The number of respondents for all optional reporting requirements is
based on 2007 data reported March 1, 2008.
The burden for the public file disclosure requirements includes estimates for both
the large and small bank requirements. The public file requirement also includes an
estimate of the time required for small banks, including intermediate small banks, to
delineate an assessment area.

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Burden Estimate
Recordkeeping Requirement
Small business and
small farm loan register
Optional Recordkeeping Requirements
Consumer loan data
Other loan data
Reporting Requirements
Assessment area delineation
Loan data:
- Small business and small farm
- Community development
- HMDA out of MSA
Optional Reporting Requirements
Data on lending by
a consortium or third party
Affiliate lending data
Strategic plan
Request for designation
as a wholesale or limited purpose bank
Disclosure Requirement
Public file

Estimated
annual
burden
hours

Number
of
respondents

Estimated
annual
frequency

Estimated
average
hours
per response

86

1

219

18,834

29
4

1
1

326
25

9,454
100

86

1

2

86
86
86

1
1
1

8
13
253

688
1,118
21,758

8
7
1

1
1
1

17
38
275

136
266
275

1

1

4

4

874

1

10

8,740

172

61,545

Total

The total cost to the public is estimated to be $3,794,249. 8
Estimate of Cost to the Federal Reserve System
Since no information is submitted to Federal Reserve Banks, their costs are
negligible. The Board staff processes data for the Federal Reserve, OCC, OTS, and
FDIC. The banking agencies’ 2008 annual cost was budgeted to be $931,955.

8

Total cost to the public was estimated using the following formula. Percent of staff time, multiplied by annual
burden hours, multiplied by hourly rate: 30% - Clerical @ $25, 45% - Managerial or Technical @ $55, 15% - Senior
Management @ $100, and 10% - Legal Counsel @ $144. Hourly rate estimates for each occupational group are
averages using data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wages, news release.

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Attachment I
Summary of annual
Recordkeeping, Reporting, and Disclosure Requirements
in Connection with Regulation BB
Requirements

Recordkeeping

Reporting

Disclosure

Assessment area (.42(g))
All Banks

delineate
assessment area

Large Banks 1

collect list of
geographies in
assessment area(s)

report this list

Public file: (.41(a); .43(a)(1); .43(a)(2); .43(a)(3); .43(a)(4); .43(a)(5); .43(a)(6); .43(a)(7);
.43(b)(1); .43(b)(2); .43(b)(3); .43(b)(4); .43(b)(5); .43(c); .43(d))

o comment letters and
responses

o public section of most
recent CRA performance
evaluation
o list of bank branches
o list of branch openings
and closings
o list of services offered
o map of each assessment
area
if applicable:
o strategic plan
o description of current
efforts to improve its
CRA performance
o CRA Disclosure Statements (prior two years)
if applicable:
o consumer loan data
(prior two years)
o HMDA Disclosure Statements (prior two years)
o loan-to-deposit ratio;
each quarter prior year
if applicable:
o information required
under disclosure rules for
large banks

All Banks

Large Banks

Small Banks and
Intermediate Small
Banks

Public notice by banks (.44)
prescribed notices
informing consumers of
their rights to certain
information

All Banks

1

For the purpose of this attachment large banks are defined as any bank other than a small bank or intermediate small
bank, as defined by Regulation BB, or any small bank or intermediate small bank electing not to employ the reporting
exemptions available to small lenders.

1

Attachment I
Summary of annual
Recordkeeping, Reporting, and Disclosure Requirements
in Connection with Regulation BB
Requirements

Recordkeeping

Reporting

Small business and small farm loan register (.42(a))

Large Banks

must collect and
maintain:
o unique symbol
o loan amount
o loan location
o indicator
whether loan was to
business or farm with
gross annual revenues
of $1 million or <

Small business and small farm loan data (.42(b)(1))

Large Banks

report aggregate number and amount of
loans:
o $100,000 or < at
origination
o > $100,000 but #
to $250,000 at
origination
o $250,000 at
origination
o to business or farm
with gross annual
revenue of $1
million or <

Community Development loan data (.42(b)(2))
Large Banks

aggregate number and
amount of loans
originated or purchased

Home mortgage loan data (.42(b)(3))

Large Banks

if applicable:
location of each loan
application, origination
or purchase outside
MSAs where bank has
offices (property
location)

2

Disclosure

Attachment I
Summary of annual
Recordkeeping, Reporting, and Disclosure Requirements
in Connection with Regulation BB
Requirements

Recordkeeping

Reporting

Disclosure

Consumer loan data (optional) (.42(c)(1))

All Banks

loans originated or
purchased:
o unique symbol to
identify loan file
o loan amount
o loan location
o borrower’s gross
income considered
in making credit
decision

Other loan data (optional) (.42(c)(2))
All Banks

other lending
performance
information

Affiliate lending data (optional) (.42(d))
All Banks

loan data the bank
would have collected
and maintained had the
loans been originated or
2
purchased by the bank

loan data the bank
would have reported
had the loans been
originated or purchased
by the bank

Data on lending by a consortium or a third party (optional) (.42(e))
All Banks

loan data the bank
would have reported
had the loans been
originated or purchased
by the bank

Strategic plan (optional) (.27(a)(c)(f)(1-4); .27(c)(f)(2); .27(d)(3); .27(h))
All Banks

submitted to and
approved by the Board

Request for designation as a wholesale or limited purpose bank (optional) (.25(d))
All Banks

request in writing filed
with the Board 3
months in advance of
proposed effective date
of designation

2

For home mortgage loans, the bank must be prepared to identify the home mortgage loans reported under Regulation C by the
affiliate.

3