(a) Authority. The authority for this part is 12 U.S.C. 1814-1817, 1819-1820, 1828, 1831u, 2901-2908, 3103-3104, and 3108(a).

(b) Purposes. This part implements the requirement in the Community Reinvestment Act (12 U.S.C. 2901 et seq.) (CRA) that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) assess a bank's record of helping to meet the credit needs of the local communities in which the bank is chartered, consistent with the safe and sound operation of the bank, and to take this record into account in the agency's evaluation of an application for a deposit facility by the bank. Accordingly, this part:

(1) Establishes the framework and criteria by which the FDIC assesses a bank's record of responding to the credit needs of its entire community, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, consistent with the safe and sound operation of the bank; and

(2) Provides that the FDIC takes that record into account in considering certain applications.

(c) Scope—(1) General. Except for certain special purpose banks described in paragraph (c)(3) of this section, this part applies to all insured State nonmember banks, including insured State branches as described in paragraph (c)(2) and any uninsured State branch that results from an acquisition described in section 5(a)(8) of the International Banking Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. 3103(a)(8)).

(2) Insured State branches. Insured State branches are branches of a foreign bank established and operating under the laws of any State, the deposits of which are insured in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act. In the case of insured State branches, references in this part to main office mean the principal branch within the United States and the term branch or branches refers to any insured State branch or branches located within the United States. The facility-based assessment areas and, as applicable, retail lending assessment areas and outside retail lending area of an insured State branch is the community or communities located within the United States served by the branch as described in § 345.16 and, as applicable, §§ 345.17 and 345.18.

(3) Certain special purpose banks. This part does not apply to special purpose banks that do not perform commercial or retail banking services by granting credit to the public in the ordinary course of business, other than as incident to their specialized operations. These banks include banker's banks, as defined in 12 U.S.C. 24(Seventh), and banks that engage only in one or more of the following activities: providing cash management controlled disbursement services or serving as correspondent banks, trust companies, or clearing agents.