ICBA Commends House Financial Services Committee for Advancing 1071 Relief for Community Banks

Washington, D.C. (April 21, 2026) - Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey issued the following statement on the House Financial Services Committee's passage of the Small LENDER Act (H.R. 941), ICBA-advocated legislation to exempt most community banks from small-business data collection and reporting requirements under Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act.

"ICBA and the nation's community banks applaud House Financial Services Committee members for voting to advance much-needed legislation exempting the vast majority of community banks from intrusive and overly burdensome data collection and reporting requirements for small-business loans.

"Committee Chairman French Hill's Small LENDER Act will help ensure these misguided requirements do not degrade the ability of community banks to meet the needs of small businesses, require financial institutions to burden their customers with invasive and personal questions, and permit the CFPB to publicly report this sensitive data.

"We strongly encourage the full House to take up and pass this critical legislation to ensure community banks can continue ensuring locally based economic growth in communities across the nation."

Section 1071 requires lenders to collect and report data on credit applicants, including the race, sex, and ethnicity of the principal owners as well as gross annual revenue. H.R. 941 would:

• Exempt community banks under $10 billion in total assets from 1071 reporting.

• Exempt banks that originated fewer than 2,500 small business loans in each of the previous two calendar years.

• Define a "small business" as one with gross annual revenues of $1 million or less in the most recently completed fiscal year.

In 2025, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed a new rule to implement Section 1071 that would exempt all banks that made fewer than 1,000 loans to businesses with less than $1 million in gross annual revenue in each of the previous two calendar years. While this exemption threshold would exempt most community banks, enacting an expanded exemption threshold in statute would create more durable regulatory relief.

ICBA looks forward to working with policymakers to continue advancing the Small LENDER Act through Congress.

About ICBA

The Independent Community Bankers of America® has one mission: to create and promote an environment where community banks flourish. We power the potential of the nation's community banks through effective advocacy, education, and innovation.

As local and trusted sources of credit, America's community banks leverage their relationship-based business model and innovative offerings to channel deposits into the neighborhoods they serve, creating jobs, fostering economic prosperity, and fueling their customers' financial goals and dreams. For more information, visit ICBA's website at icba.org.