How much money moves because of that friction? Here is one measurable piece. When banks merge, they must show the deal benefits the public — and their CRA record is the evidence. Community groups have used that moment of leverage to negotiate binding community benefits agreements: written commitments for mortgage lending, small business lending, community development investment, and philanthropy in underserved neighborhoods. Since 2016, agreements negotiated through the National Community Reinvestment Coalition alone with 22 bank groups total nearly $688 billion. One bank — Huntington — renewed its plan for another $80 billion just weeks before this proposal dropped.

None of that money was donated out of kindness. It was negotiated, and the negotiating table exists because the law keeps score. Think of the CRA as a meter on a pipe: it does not force money back into the neighborhood, but it measures whether any is flowing, and it makes the reading public. Almost everything the law accomplishes — including that $688 billion — it accomplishes through the meter.

“There is a reason banks nationwide maintain a percentage of branches in LMI areas at about 25%,” said Jesse Van Tol, CEO for the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. “The entire reason is the CRA.”

Sally Martin O’Toole, Cleveland’s director of building and housing, said she expects lenders to pay less attention to LMI areas absent of CRA policies holding them accountable.

“Proposed CRA rule changes threaten to undermine the fabric that preserves equity in lending and investment in low- and moderate-income census tracts,” she said. “This would mean the creation of fewer affordable housing units and less accountability for fair lending practices.”

Upward of 98% of examined banks pass their CRA exams. Yet, stakeholders tend to feel that there is an ongoing lack of investment in LMI communities across the country. That’s why housing advocates want to see the CRA optimized to be more effective and not modernized in a way that benefits lenders more than the communities they

How much money moves because of that friction? Here is one measurable piece. When banks merge, they must show the deal benefits the public — and their CRA record is the evidence. Community groups have used that moment of leverage to negotiate binding community benefits agreements: written commitments for mortgage lending, small business lending, community development investment, and philanthropy in underserved neighborhoods. Since 2016, agreements negotiated through the National Community Reinvestment Coalition alone with 22 bank groups total nearly $688 billion. One bank — Huntington — renewed its plan for another $80 billion just weeks before this proposal dropped.

The NY Post quotes an unnamed senior White House official who singled out the Washington-based National Community Reinvestment Coalition, calling it the “biggest shakedown artist-in-chief.” The story goes on to errantly imply that several recent high-profile community benefit agreements serve as contributions to the coalition itself.

The NY Post also quoted multiple prominent Republicans accusing groups like the National Community Reinvestment Coalition and its allies of weaponizing the Community Reinvestment Act in order to obtain funding from banks in exchange for agreeing not to oppose pending bank merger applications.

In a statement Friday, Jesse Van Tol, CEO of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, an advocacy group, said the proposal “dramatically weakens banks’ obligations to invest in working-class communities and threatens to undermine” affordable housing measures put into law just two weeks ago.

“Bank capital drives the creation of affordable housing in this country, and they do it because of CRA,” Van Tol said. “Now hundreds of banks won’t have the obligation to do so, and hundreds more will have a weaker requirement, which will further deepen our housing crisis.” 

The financial world is abuzz, and frankly, a bit on edge. U.S. lawmakers are locked in a heated debate right now, one that could profoundly reshape how we interact with our money and the companies that facilitate those interactions. At the heart of it all is a seemingly dry but incredibly impactful question: should non-bank fintech payment firms be subject to the same strict rules as traditional banks? It’s a discussion that the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) brought into sharp focus on July 27, 2026, and it’s a conversation that affects everyone, from the smallest startup to the largest financial institution, and crucially, you, the consumer.

The proposal drew immediate criticism from the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, which said the changes would substantially weaken banks’ obligations to support affordable housing, community development and economic opportunity.

Chase’s announcement also comes on the heels of a similar community investment initiative rolled out in late July by Huntington Bancshares, based in Columbus, Ohio. 

Following meetings with more than 350 organizations, including members of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, Huntington said it would introduce an $80 billion investment plan focused on neighborhoods with the greatest economic needs.

Working-class communities could lose billions of dollars in financing for affordable housing, small businesses and jobs under a new federal proposal that would weaken banks’ obligations to serve low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) warned in a press release Friday.

Jesse Van Tol, president and CEO of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), said the proposal “weakens banks’ obligations to invest in working-class communities and threatens to undermine the affordable housing gains in the 21st Century Road to Housing Act entirely.”

“Banks will face weaker exams, get credit for projects with little connection to low- and moderate-income communities and gain more control over where and how they are evaluated,” Van Tol said in a statement. “CRA is supposed to put a thumb on the scale for working-class people; now it lets hundreds of banks off the hook, and dramatically reduces the obligation for others.”

The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) said in a statement that the proposal would “drastically weaken banks’ obligation to meet the credit needs of low- and moderate-income communities.”

Jesse Van Tol, NCRC’s president and CEO, said that instead of helping working-class people, “now it lets hundreds of banks off the hook, and dramatically reduces the obligation for others.”
Van Tol said he was particularly concerned about the proposal to raise the large-bank threshold to $10 billion and to leave banks below $1 billion with no community investment obligation.
“Bank capital drives the creation of affordable housing in this country, and they do it because of CRA,” said Van Tol. “Now hundreds of banks won’t have the obligation to do so, and hundreds more will have a weaker requirement, which will further deepen our housing crisis.”

Rise Economy, the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, Main Street Alliance, and Iowa business owner ReShonda Young sued the Bureau and Acting Director Russell Vought in Washington federal court in July 2025, represented by Democracy Forward.

In a summary of the changes, the bank regulators said these changes would ensure community development grants “are not diverted to activist causes or consumed by excessive operating costs.” Banks would also need to collect more detailed information on who gets their community grants, including addresses, which would give more transparency to who is receiving grants from banks.

That change could negatively impact groups like the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, an umbrella group for community development groups that often receive money from banks under the CRA. The new rules discourage banks making grants to national organizations and instead focus their grants on local groups.

“This is going to result in a significant decrease in bank investment and lending in working class communities across the country, but especially in rural areas,” said Jesse Van Tol, National Community Reinvestment Coalition CEO and president. “Small banks will no longer have an investment test whatsoever, and those are the very banks that serve a lot of rural communities. So they specifically will no longer have an obligation under CRA to invest in things like affordable housing or make loans for economic development to specifically the businesses that are creating jobs for working class people.”

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (Nasdaq:?HBAN) today announced a new $80 billion Community Plan. The plan will help improve financial opportunities for consumers, businesses and communities with a focus on affordable housing, small business and community development investments.

Huntington shaped the plan by listening first. Company leaders met with more than 350 community organizations, including members of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), along with customers and colleagues, to identify the areas of greatest need.