In her first public appearance as a member of the Federal Reserve Board, Fed Governor Michelle Bowman today encouraged bankers to keep the lines of communication open with the regulatory agencies, emphasizing that “clear communication can help us all do our jobs better.” Speaking to attendees at ABA’s Conference for Community Bankers, she noted that as the agencies continue working on several important initiatives — including S. 2155 implementation and Community Reinvestment Act modernization — feedback from community bankers will be critical.
With respect to CRA reform, “there are many factors that need to be considered,” Bowman said. “We need to make sure… that we’re considering a financial institution’s business strategy, their capacity, their constraints and their size. We also have to balance that with the needs of the community.”
Bowman also pledged that in her role as the designated community banker on the Fed board, she will work to support the agency’s work “to balance effective regulation and supervision to ensure the safety and soundness of community banks while ensuring that undue burden does not constrain the capacity of these institutions to support the communities they serve.”
