CDFI data and analysis nonprofit CARS Inc. is launching a financial reporting system for CDFI loan funds. The nonprofit intends the ratings to simplify CDFI finances for investors, including banks looking for credit under the Community Reinvestment Act. CDFI loan funds are unregulated and investors often struggle to gain timely and accurate data, a major obstacle to attracting non-philanthropic capital. CARS currently has ratings and data available for institutions that manage 55% of all CDFI assets. Jeannine Jacokes, CEO of loan fund Partners for the Common Good (and CDBA Senior Policy Advisor) commented, "The more CDFIs that participate in the reporting system makes the whole system stronger."

Senate Banking Committee leaders may delay the April 29 vote on their mortgage finance reform bill as they struggle to secure additional votes. Chairman Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) are said to be trying to attract as many as four more votes. The situation has even sparked rumors about whether the original coalition of committee members from both political parties remains intact. Johnson and Crapo's bill would eliminate Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and create a new housing finance system. But the bill, which would preserve a government guarantee for the mortgage market in the event of catastrophic losses, needs more support from Democrats to have enough momentum to make it to the Senate floor this year ahead of the November elections.

Regulators' recent signals that they are planning changes to Community Reinvestment Act exams have reignited speculation about possible alterations. Comprehensive refor appears unlikely, but observers see potential for limited action. Changes may include crediting community-related activities done outside a bank's market and broadening the section of the exam focused on branch offerings. Regulators may also heighten the focus on products that specifically benefit low income borrowers and expand the list of community service activities eligible for CRA credit. Other reforms may include awarding credit for initiatives that improve healthcare in low income areas and adding more detailed data to exams about how products benefit low income customers.

Payday lenders say big banks are denying them service at the behest of federal regulators. The banks, they contend, are threatening to cut them off unless they stop offering payday loans. In one e-mail publicized by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.), a banker cited regulatory action in a decision to deny credit to a payday lender: “Based on your performance, there’s no way we shouldn’t be a credit provider. Our only issue is, and it has always been, the space in which you operate. It is the scrutiny that you, and now that we, are under.” Federal regulators deny compelling banks to sever ties with the lenders, although regulators have told banks that doing business with companies that inflict such harm could damage a bank’s reputation and leave it vulnerable to litigation.