Section 345.240 Service Test

Section

345.240  Service Test

a)         Scope of test.  The service test evaluates a

bank's record of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area by

analyzing both the availability and effectiveness of a bank's systems for

delivering retail banking services and the extent and innovativeness of its

community development services.

b)         Area benefited.  Community development

services must benefit a bank's assessment area or a broader Statewide or

regional area that includes the bank's assessment area.

c)         Affiliate service.  At a bank's option, the Secretary

will consider, in its assessment of a bank's service performance, a community

development service provided by an affiliate of the bank, if the community

development service is not claimed by any other institution and in this regard

the bank shall monitor and keep records of whether such claims exist.

d)         Performance criteria − retail banking

services.  The Secretary evaluates the availability and effectiveness of a bank's

systems for delivering retail banking services, considering the assessment

factors in Section 345.200 and pursuant to the following criteria:

1)         The current distribution of the bank's

branches among low-, moderate-, middle-, and upper-income geographies;

2)         In the context of its current distribution of

the bank's branches, the bank's record of opening and closing branches,

particularly branches located in low- or moderate-income geographies or

primarily serving low- or moderate-income individuals;

3)         The availability and effectiveness of

alternative systems for delivering retail banking services (e.g

d upper-income geographies;

2)         In the context of its current distribution of

the bank's branches, the bank's record of opening and closing branches,

particularly branches located in low- or moderate-income geographies or

primarily serving low- or moderate-income individuals;

3)         The availability and effectiveness of

alternative systems for delivering retail banking services (e.g.

,

RSFs, surcharge-free

RSFs within its network, RSFs not owned or operated by or exclusively for the

bank, banking by telephone or computer, loan production offices, bank-at-work

or bank-by-mail programs) in low- and moderate-income geographies and to low-

and moderate-income individuals;

4)         The range of services provided in low-,

moderate-, middle-, and upper-income geographies and the degree to which the

services are tailored to meet the needs of those geographies; and

5)         The bank's record of effectively marketing its

retail banking services to unbanked or underbanked persons and offering retail

banking services targeted to meet the needs of unbanked and underbanked

persons. In determining whether a bank offers retail banking products and services

targeted to meet the needs of unbanked and underbanked persons, the Department

shall consider:

A)         whether the bank offers accounts

substantially and materially similar to BankOn certified accounts; or

B)          whether the bank offers

financial services and products to users of alternative financial products or

services, provided that, that the bank has affirmatively and reasonably

demonstrated that:

i)

the bank offers such accounts or such financial services and

products in conjunction with focused and sustained marketing efforts reasonably

designed to reach unbanked and underbanked persons;

ii)         unbanked and underbanked persons may

reasonably conveniently obtain or use such accounts or such financial services

and products; and

iii)        the bank offers such accounts or such

financial services and products at a cost to

financial services and

products in conjunction with focused and sustained marketing efforts reasonably

designed to reach unbanked and underbanked persons;

ii)         unbanked and underbanked persons may

reasonably conveniently obtain or use such accounts or such financial services

and products; and

iii)        the bank offers such accounts or such

financial services and products at a cost to the unbanked and underbanked

persons that is significantly lower than would otherwise be incurred by the

users of alternative financial products or services.

e)         Performance criteria − community

development services.  The Secretary evaluates community development services considering

the assessment factors in Section 345.200 and pursuant to the following

criteria:

1)         The extent to which the bank provides

community development services; and

2)         The innovativeness and responsiveness of

community development services.

f)         Service performance rating.  The Secretary

rates a bank's service performance as provided in Section 345.APPENDIX A.