Community Reinvestment
The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) is a powerful law that requires banks to invest in the communities from which they take deposits.
CRA has brought billions in home and small business lending to low- and moderate- income (LMI) neighborhoods in Maryland. Economic Action Maryland works to harness this important legislation to bring more investment into our communities and to ensure the law is as strong as it can be.
Advocacy
Economic Action Maryland works to harness CRA to make a better Maryland. We have worked with neighborhoods to hold their financial institutions accountable to the communities they serve, pushed for stronger CRA obligations and grading criteria, and weighed in on national level banking regulations that make a difference in our state.
community reinvestment-1z
RESEARCH
Unfortunately, CRA has had minimal impact in Baltimore City. This has left the city bereft of the support it needs to disrupt the legacy of redlining that CRA was enacted to change. In our report, Paycheck Protection Lending in Baltimore City, we analyzed where the top ten Baltimore City banks distributed Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. While communities across the nation experienced the burdens of the COVID-19 crisis, the impacts have especially devastated low-income communities of color that have experienced disinvestment for decades.
Older adults banking needs may differ from younger generations. The hours, services, and tools they need to bank safely and securely are an important consideration for financial institutions. Economic Action Maryland surveyed older adults in Baltimore City and rated banks on their age friendly practices . Learn more in SOAR: A Community Impact Report on Banks Senior Services.
