The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) has made A Guide to CRA Data Collection and Reporting available on its Web site (www.ffiec.gov/cra). The FFIEC agencies developed the guide as a resource for financial institutions required to report Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) data. Annual CRA data reports are due March 1.

The CRA regulations generally require independent financial institutions with assets of $250 million or more to annually report data on small business, small farm, and community development lending. Financial institutions of any size are generally subject to the reporting requirements if they are owned by a holding company with total banking and thrift assets of $1 billion or more.

This guide can be used as a resource for information on CRA loan data collection, maintenance and reporting, which are important aspects of large institutions' CRA performance. The guide also provides other useful information about the CRA regulations.

For more information about the new guide, please call the CRA Assistance Line at 202-872-7584 or contact Gail Padgett in the FDIC's Division of Compliance and Consumer Affairs at 202-942-3093.

	Stephen M. Cross
	Director

Distribution: FDIC-Supervised Banks (Commercial and Savings)