ICBA called on federal banking regulators to ensure their latest regulatory review under the Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act provides substantive regulatory relief for community banks—which previous reviews have failed to do.
ICBA Recommendations: In a comment letter, ICBA urged the agencies to take three key steps as part of the new EGRPRA review:
Hire an independent outside consultant to quantify the current regulatory burden on community banks, including all federal banking and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regulations that apply to community banks.
Hold at least two outreach meetings in every region of the country and allow community bankers to address CFPB regulations in their comments to the agencies.
Conduct a thorough review of their past assessments of regulation under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Regulatory Flexibility Act, which have consistently understated the burden of new regulations on community banks.
Cumulative Burden: “Consolidation within the industry, acquisitions of community banks by credit unions, and a small number of de novo bank applications are symptoms of the underlying problem: that the cumulative impact of regulatory burden on community banks is overwhelming the industry, and causing long-term damage to the communities that depend on these vitally important local resources,” ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey wrote.
