By
Matthew R.
Lee, Exclusive
SOUTH
BRONX, April
26 -- When
Royal Bank of
Scotland
proposed to
sell its 93
Chicago-area
branches to US
Bank, Inner
City Press
asked how many
and which
branches it
would close.
The comment
period to the
Office of the
Comptroller of
the Currency
was set to
expire on
February 20.
After Inner
City Press' request
is was
extended to
April 25.
US Bank
submitted a
list but cynically
asked for
"confidential
treatment" for
all of it --
that is, to
withhold it
from the
public. Inner
City Press submitted
a Freedom of
Information
Act request,
as it has done
to the Federal
Reserve Board
(and on other
topics, to the
US State
Department) -
and on April
25, the OCC
responded.
From the
document Inner
City Press has
obtained under
FOIA, and now
exclusively
puts online here,
along with the
OCC
FOIA letter
to Inner City
Press which
will be
appealed, US
Bank would
close at least
13 branches.
In the
until-now
confidential
filing with
the OCC, US
Bank says it
would close
RBS / Charter
One's 10200 S.
Ewing Street,
Chicago branch
in a low
income tracts
and send
customers to a
"receiving"
branches in a
non-low income
tract.
US Bank
would also
close its own
branch at 8905
S. Commercial
Avenue,
Chicago in a
low income
tract.
This
comes after
Fair Finance
Watch and
other
community
advocacy
organizations
in NCRC
commented to
the OCC about
lending
disparities.
FFW
commented,
back in
January, that
While
on this
disclosure of
branches which
would be
closed the OCC
should extend
the comment
period, for
now, to ensure
consideration,
US Bank NA
(Ohio)'s 2012
HMDA data
reflect that
in the Chicago
MSA for home
purchase loans
both
conventional
and
subsidized, US
Bank made a
smaller
portion of its
loans to
Latinos than
did even the
aggregate,
including
lenders not
subject to the
Community
Reinvestment
Act.
For
conventional
home purchase
loans in the
Chicago MSA in
2012, US Bank
made 1083 such
loans to
whites, 78 to
African
Americans and
only 77 to
Latinos. That
is, US Bank
made 14 such
loans to
whites for
each loan to a
Latino, a
bigger
disparity than
is the case
with the
aggregate.
For
the home
purchase loans
in Table 4-1
in the Chicago
MSA in 2012,
US Bank made
268 such loans
to whites, 68
to African
Americans and
only 60 to
Latinos. That
is, US Bank
made 4.47 such
loans to
whites for
each loan to a
Latino, a
significantly
bigger
disparity than
is the case
with the
aggregate.
US
Bank replied
that it
needn't
disclose which
branches it
would close.
Fair Finance
Watch
reiterated its
request in
Washington DC
in mid-March,
along with
NCRC, and in
supplemental
comments. And
on March 26,
the OCC
confirmed that
the comment
period is
extended to
April 25, and
portions of US
Bank's
response
released.
The
problem is
that large
portions of US
Bank's
response are
withheld, or
simply
redacted in
black Magic
Marker, first
Tweeted here
by @FinanceWatchOrg,
click
here to view.
Fair Finance
Watch and
Inner City
Press
immediately
filed with the
OCC a Freedom
of Information
Act request
"for
all withheld /
redacted
information
from US Bank's
March 21, 2014
submission in
connection
with its
application to
acquire
branches from
RBS Charter
One. ICP /
Fair Finance
Watch
commented on
the
application,
and earlier
today the OCC
provided a
redacted copy
of US Bank's
submission.
Nearly the
entire fair
lending
response is
redacted, as
is information
about US
Bank's claimed
support to
non-profits.
Since such
information is
presumptively
public, it
must be
unredacted and
released. We
are
challenging
each
redaction,
making this
FOIA request
for the
entire,
unredacted
submission in
this
application
process we
timely
challenged."
Now
whether these
withholdings
could stand up
had to be
ruled
upon.
Now they have
been.
In terms of
commenting of
what was
released, ICP
says "Now that
US Bank has
admitted to
the Federal
Reserve that
it would
eliminate
Charter One's
Credit Builder
and energy
efficiency
loan programs,
and make it
more difficult
for the
customers it
would acquire
to avoid fees,
the Fed should
schedule
public
hearings."
Now ICP / FFW
has said,
" As a
first comment
on the
wrongfully
withheld and
delayed
information,
US Bank says
it will close
13 of the
branches,
including in
low income
census tracts.
For example,
US Bank says
it would close
RBS / Charter
One's 10200 S.
Ewing Street,
Chicago branch
in a low
income tracts
and send
customers to a
"receiving"
branches in a
non-low income
tract.
US Bank
would also
close RBS /
Charter One's
branches at
8905 S.
Commercial
Avenue,
Chicago in a
low income
tract. This
militates for
the public
hearings ICP
has request
from its first
comment.
On the
current
record, US
Bank's
application
should be
denied."
Watch
this site.
, 
