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P BANKING & COMMUNITY FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS FOURTH QUARTER 1997 erspectives Sowing, Leveraging and Reaping Small business loan part of Bank Enterprise Award application Carlos and Minnie Silva (right), co-owners of CJ Machine, Inc., show Dora Segura of the Bank of America one of the machines refinanced by the bank’s SBA loan. Leverage—the use of cash or credit to enhance one’s financial capacity—is more than 20 craftsmen and occupies important in the business world. In fact, three buildings, comprising over 19,000 banks are constantly on the alert for ways square feet of workspace. CJ Machine to leverage the money they lend or invest had also qualified for government into even larger sums of money. And contracts. sometimes a relatively small amount of However, in spite of the company’s money can be leveraged in a wide range growth, the Silvas still had trouble qualify- of projects with far-reaching and long-last- ing for traditional bank financing. More- ing impacts. over, the Defense Department’s decision to This particular story of leverage began INSIDE ness had grown steadily; it now employs privatize nearby Kelly Air Force Base with a cold call from Dora Segura to Min- would likely have an unfavorable impact nie Silva in early 1996. Segura, vice presi- on the Silvas’ business. To meet their exist- dent and community development loan ing needs and help them prepare for officer with the Bank of America in San future growth, Segura developed a finan- Antonio, called to ask if the bank could cial package that helped the Silvas in a Mortgages with Authority provide financial services to CJ Machine, number of ways. “Actually,” says Segura, Ä Inc., owned jointly by Carlos and Minnie “Minnie made it easy. She was responsive Silva. As it happened, CJ Machine—which and did an excellent job of providing infor- Under the CRA Carlos, a master tool and die maker, and mation required by the bank to make a Ä Minnie had started in 1981 with two tool- credit decision. She was as knowledge- Developing a Strategic Plan CDFIs and the making machines in a 2,000-square-foot able about specific programs and their Future of Microlending building—could indeed make use of the requirements as most bankers.” Ä bank’s services. Over the years, the busi- Did You Know…? Continued on page 2 P ublic & Private Partnership Continued from page 1 tured, they were able to qualify for an unsecured line of credit. This reaffirms used the award in any way it chose, did Minnie Silva’s faith in the financial system. something quite untraditional. The bank “Too many small or minority-owned busi- worked with its Community Development nesses,” she explains, “fear the paper- Advisory Board, which identified the train- work or worry that neither the banks nor ing of new community development lead- the government are all that interested in ers as a critical need. “We’ve always them. That’s just not true; they wanted to thought of ourselves as leaders in commu- help us with financing and with informa- nity-reinvestment financing, and we tion. And a small business shouldn’t be wanted to do something meaningful that afraid to address the system.” would have a long-term effect on commu- CJ Machine is now on stable financial Bank of America Leadership Academy attendees Raymond Hatter (left) from Flint, Michigan, and Philip Dochow from San Francisco demonstrate their financial analysis and project design skills in a lighter moment at one of the academy’s intensive workshops conducted by DTI. The Bank of America, which could have nity development,” says Jim Richardson, footing, thanks to the Bank of America’s senior community development officer in ability to leverage the loan through the Texas for the Bank of America. “So we SBA. But our story doesn’t end here. thought that we would use a portion of the On the basis of their community devel- BEA grant to provide leadership training to opment activity in distressed communi- local community development executives ties, including the loan to CJ Machine, the throughout the country as a way of Bank of America applied for a Bank strengthening their organizations.” Enterprise Award (BEA). Administered by The key element in the package the the Community Development Financial Bank of America Leadership Academy Bank of America provided to CJ Machine Institutions (CDFI) Fund of the U.S. Trea- was a $300,000 loan for equipment refi- sury Department, the BEA program million of its award to various community The Bank of America allocated $1.5 nancing that was made in April 1996 encourages banks and thrifts to invest in development organizations around the under the U.S. Small Business Administra- CDFIs or to increase their provision for country. In addition, the bank made a $1.1 tion’s Defense Loan and Technical Assis- lending and services within distressed million grant from its award to establish the tance (DELTA) Loan Program. The communities—those in which the poverty Bank of America Leadership Academy. program was designed to assist small rate is at least 30 percent (based on 1990 Funding for the academy was also pro- businesses that are dependent on defense census figures) and the unemployment vided by the Local Initiatives Support Cor- contracts as prime contractors or subcon- rate is 1.5 times the national rate. As it poration (LISC), a national development tractors and are adversely affected by turns out, in the first six months of 1996 organization that assists community-based defense reductions. According to Segura, the bank had increased its loans in dis- development corporations with loans, being able to leverage the loan through tressed communities by nearly $27 million grants and technical assistance. In addi- the DELTA program, which guaranteed 75 over the six-month baseline period in tion, LISC helped the Development Train- percent of the amount, was a major factor 1995 that was used to establish lending ing Institute (DTI) develop the curriculum. and investment performance. Because of The academy’s classes and workshops this increased lending activity in are conducted in Baltimore by DTI. “DTI is in getting the loan for the Silvas. With CJ Machine’s equipment refinanced, the Silvas could face the future more confi- distressed areas, in October 1996 the a premier development trainer for nonprofit dently and plan for their next growth Bank of America received a $2.6 million housing developers and community-based phase. Further, with their finances restruc- Bank Enterprise Award. organizations,” says Richardson. “This FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS • PERSPECTIVES • FOURTH QUARTER 1997 3 Fast Facts The Power of Leverage The cycle of leverage is a constant in the business world. In this case, through the effective use of leverage, the Bank of America was able to use $26.9 million in loans it made within distressed communities—including a $300,000 Small Business Administration DELTA loan for equipment partnership gives us the chance to refinancing to CJ Machine, Inc.—to apply for a Bank Enterprise Award. The bank received a develop the leaders for a whole new $2.6 million Bank Enterprise Award, part of which was then used to establish the Bank of Amer- generation of community organizations.” ica Leadership Academy. The academy provides leadership training to senior executives of com- According to Jeff Nugent, DTI’s vice president, “The leadership academy will munity-based organizations, many of whom may one day turn to the Bank of America to secure funding for community development projects in distressed communities. create a national network and promote innovative approaches to community building.” Participants in the academy are executive directors or senior staff from community-based development organiza- Bank of America $26.9 million (Jan.–June ’96) Application for CDFI Bank Enterprise Award tions; to be eligible, an organization must be at least four years old and have completed a minimum of two projects. Begun in April 1997, the academy consists of four workshops, each seven to nine days long, Development and service activities in distressed communities $2.6 million with 35 participants in each ten-month program. The academy covers community building and revitalization, organizational Bank Enterprise Award $300,000 loan to CJ Machine, Inc. management, leadership development, Bank of America project development and finance. “The real accomplishment is capacity building,” says Nugent. The organizations Revitalized and stabilized communities $1.1 million represented by the graduates will have greater skills and more opportunities to be LISC $300,000 per year Affordable housing successful in achieving their organizations’ and communities’ goals, whether they are Job creation creating affordable housing or new jobs, or helping local businesses. Future bank business Bank of America Leadership Academy (administered by DTI) At that point, our story will have come almost full circle. Many of the graduates of the academy will be putting the lessons Community development professionals trained and skills they learned into practice in communities across the nation. And that’s where the real payoff will take place for the Bank of America, since the bank will have an opportunity to invest in or make loans Affordable housing Economic development Future bank business to future qualified projects developed by the community-based organizations whose leaders have attended the academy. And the leverage cycle will begin again.Ä For more information: Bank Enterprise Award (202) 622-8662 FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS • PERSPECTIVES • FOURTH QUARTER 1997 4 R ESOURCE Mortgages with Authority Partnership provides affordable house payments The New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority (MFA) is one of the sources of funds New Mexico lending institutions are using to provide affordable financing to low- and moderate-income families purchasing homes. Since its creation in 1975, the MFA and 90 of the state’s lending institutions, working as partners, have financed homes for more than 25,000 families—2,134 of those last year. The MFA offers two sources of funds to participating lenders that help them pro- Nancy Ormon (second from left), mortgage officer for Citizens Bank of Clovis, New Mexico, tapped MFA funds to make an affordable mortgage for Socorro and Magdelena Granillo (seated, center) and their four children. vide hard-working people—construction workers, food service professionals, clerks, gram, which was designed to provide How MFA Worked for One teachers, police officers, firefighters, and money for part of the down payment New Mexico Family industrial, service and agricultural work- and/or closing costs. HELP loans have a ers—with affordable mortgage payments. $4,000 ceiling and carry a 6 percent inter- The MFA’s Mortgage Saver program is est rate. They are repaid over 10 years. funded through mortgage-backed revenue Applicants who use this option are bonds that provide financing to participat- required to complete a home buyer edu- ing lenders for 30-year fixed-rate cation program, provided free of charge. mortgages. Generally the MFA mortgage Rex Robinson, communications director funds run approximately 1 percent below for the New Mexico MFA, credits the pro- the market rate. Although income and grams’ success in New Mexico to his price limits apply, the lower monthly pay- agency’s efforts to make the loans more ments are available to qualifying first-time accessible to lending institutions. “New home buyers and people who have not Mexico’s participating lenders are no owned a primary residence within the pre- longer required to commit to a set amount vious three years. The MFA funds can be of money, as they are in many other used to finance conventional, FHA, VA and states,” he explains. “Rather, participating Rural Housing Service (formerly Farmers lenders apply to the MFA to reserve funds Home Administration) mortgages. for a qualified buyer until the loan is Approximately one-third of the Mortgage Saver applicants also use MFA’s second source of funding—the HELP pro- approved. The funds are disbursed on a first-come, first-served basis.” The New Mexico MFA adopted the new Continued on page 8 FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS • PERSPECTIVES • FOURTH QUARTER 1997 Socorro and Magdelena Granillo moved to Clovis, New Mexico, in search of a better life for themselves and their four children, ages 7 to 18. When they applied to Citizens Bank for a home loan, the Granillos had saved for a down payment and their credit history, although limited, was good. “In many ways, they are typical of the people helped by the Mortgage Saver program,” says Nancy Ormon, assistant vice president and mortgage loan officer for Citizens Bank of Clovis. “They work very hard. Socorro is a farm laborer for a dairy, and Magdelena is a presser for a dry cleaner. Together, they support their family of six on $27,600 a year. “With the Mortgage Saver interest rate and their own down payment,” Ormon continues, “they qualified under FHA guidelines for a threebedroom, one-bath house. They were thrilled with their new home, and we are always happy when we can provide the financing that helps people make their dreams come true.” R Developing a Strategic Plan Under the CRA A bank requesting approval for a strategic plan will generally need to submit: EPORT 1. The name of each bank joining in the plan, a description of how they are affiliated and identification of each of the banks’ assessment area(s). 2. The proposed effective term of the plan, which can be for no more than five years, and the proposed effective date for the plan, which should be at least 90 days after the plan is submitted for supervisory agency approval. information provided in these areas varies from plan to plan. However, many of the plans share some common elements. The information in the performance 3. A description of the formal or informal public input received during development of the plan, including copies of all written comments received during the comment period. context section of the approved plans was The Community Reinvestment Act generally tailored to support the bank’s (CRA) regulation allows a bank the option lending, investment and service goals. In of developing a strategic plan detailing most cases, this section provided a brief how the institution proposes to meet its history of the bank. While the specifics in community’s credit needs. The plan must each case varied from bank to bank, infor- be developed with community input and mation that could be used to describe the approved by its supervisory agency. The bank’s performance context includes bank may do this as an alternative to demographic data on median income and being evaluated under the lending, invest- household income; housing costs; local ment and service test, or the small- economic conditions; the bank’s product institution performance standards. As of offerings and business strategy; the bank’s August 15, 1997, eleven strategic plans size, financial condition and past perfor- had been approved. Three were submitted mance; and other relevant information from by “small” banks (with total assets of less the bank’s public file. than $250 million and independent or an To establish a benchmark by which to affiliate of a holding company with total measure and evaluate the banks’ lending, assets of less than $1 billion). The other investment and service goals, most of the eight plans were submitted by “large” approved plans included the number and banks. Of the eight large banks submitting amount of loans from the previous one or strategic plans, three were affiliates of the two years, and identified the amount and same bank holding company. nature of previous years’ community devel- To assist banks in developing their strategic plans, bank supervisory agen- opment investments and services. In all cases, the lending goals in the cies have developed interagency Guide- approved plans were formulated to meet lines for Requesting Approval for a the banks’ specific objectives. For exam- Strategic Plan Under the Community Rein- ple, one bank established a range for the vestment Act. The guidelines specify the number and amount of loans it would types of information a bank will generally make for a satisfactory and outstanding need to submit to its supervisory agency rating; another bank set its lending goals when requesting to be evaluated on the by identifying a specific number and dollar basis of a strategic plan. amount for each loan category as well as 4. A copy of the required public notice and the name(s) of the newspaper(s) in which it was published. 5. A copy of the strategic plan released for public comment if it differs from the strategic plan submitted for agency approval. 6. In order to establish a performance context for each assessment area for each bank covered by the plan, copies of any information developed in the bank’s normal business planning that it wants the agency to consider regarding lending, investment and service opportunities in its assessment area, including a description of any legal constraints or limitations that affect the types of loans, investments or services the bank may make or offer. 7. For each assessment area of every bank covered by the plan, measurable annual lending, investment or service goals for helping to meet the credit needs of the assessment area, particularly the needs of low- and moderate-income geographies. The goals, if met, must constitute a “satisfactory” performance. (Generally, a bank will identify its plan regarding lending, investments and services, with an emphasis on lending and lending-related activities. However, the plan need not specify measurable goals in all three areas.) 8. An indication whether any bank covered by the plan elects to be evaluated under another assessment method (that is, “large” bank or “small” bank assessment method) if the bank fails to meet substantially the strategic plan goals for a satisfactory rating. The strategic plan option may not meet a specific dollar amount for its investments the needs of all banks. However, for banks that generally require the most information goal; and another bank established a that choose this option, there is an oppor- are (1) descriptions of the performance menu of activities, each with a weighted tunity to tailor their CRA objectives to the context and (2) lending, investment and point value, from which its measurable needs of their community and to their own service goals. In the approved plans, the goals were stated in point totals. capacity, business strategy and expertise.Ä The two sections of the strategic plan FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS • PERSPECTIVES • FOURTH QUARTER 1997 C ommentary Local markets demand local solutions The local market for Micro-Funds varies by many factors, among them urban versus rural environment, ethnic and racial composition, local economic conditions, CDFIs and the Future of Microlending and welfare practices. Thus, what I learned first-hand during my eight-year tenure with Southern Development Bancorporation is that what worked fabulously well in rural Bangladesh at the Grameen Bank did not work nearly as well for the George P. Surgeon Good Faith Fund (GFF) in rural Arkansas. In 1988, the Good Faith Fund was established as a nonprofit CDC affiliate of George P. Surgeon, CFO and executive Southern Development Bancorporation. vice president of Shorebank Corp. in The GFF’s mission was to deliver very Chicago, is directing Shorebank, its sub- small loans for business purposes to sidiaries and affiliates in implementing a entrepreneurs whose credit needs were for-profit community development strategy not being met by the traditional banking in the bank’s markets. In this article, Sur- system—in particular, low-income women geon offers excerpts from his presentation and bureaucrats, not to mention politicians and minority entrepreneurs. At the outset, at the Dallas Fed Symposium on in Washington. GFF tried to replicate the techniques and Microlending, held July 23, 1997, in San Antonio. The hype surrounding Micro-Funds has structure of the Grameen Bank as closely obscured some basic facts about them as possible. For example, no collateral or and confused the relevance of microlend- credit checks were required for GFF loans. ing for the American banking industry. My GFF did not provide any training or techni- first-hand experience as a banker joined at cal assistance for its borrowers. And GFF prise Loan Funds (Micro-Funds) have the hip to a Micro-Fund leads me to make relied on a strict peer group organizational become all the rage. Interest in Micro- the following observations. The first is that structure for credit decisions, loan servic- Over the past decade, Micro-EnterFunds has been largely inspired—and Micro-Funds are a highly variable lot. They ing and collections. To avoid being dis- heavily reported in the international come in many different types and sizes. tracted by its more conventional banking media—by the success of Dr. Muhammad They have different missions and focus on affiliates, GFF was headquartered in an Yunus at the Grameen Bank of different target markets, and—like the area of rural Arkansas far removed from Bangladesh. At the Grameen Bank, mil- banking industry—they are constantly the rest of Southern Development’s programs. lions of the poorest people on earth bor- evolving. Second, there is no one “right row incredibly small amounts of money at way” to organize a Micro-Fund. And finally, interest rates well in excess of the going Micro-Funds are in your future. Recent Throughout its three-year start-up rate for commercial loans and then repay trends in banking—specifically recent period, GFF suffered from very low loan like clockwork. Micro-Funds, one of the trends in small business finance—predi- volume, very high operating costs, high This model did not travel well few antipoverty programs that appeal to cate expanded partnerships between levels of delinquency and unsatisfactory the entire spectrum of political thought, banks and Micro-Funds to service the levels of loan losses. As we searched for have captured the imagination of bankers small business market. ways to improve GFF’s performance, we FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS • PERSPECTIVES • FOURTH QUARTER 1997 7 larger small businesses that did not bene- Micro-Funds . . . have captured the imagination of bankers and bureaucrats, not to mention politicians in Washington. discovered that, in addition to our own fail- fit from the peer group environment and a completely different environment from A somewhat dated monograph entitled needed slightly larger loans. GFF created The Business of Self-Sufficiency by Valjean a program that targeted welfare recipients McLenighan and Jean Pogge of the separately from its peer group loan pro- Woodstock Institute began by asking: gram and the new direct loan program. Would a commercial bank in Finally, GFF tightened its underwriting Chicago lend a single mother with standards, took collateral for its loans, did no collateral $1,000 for working credit checks on its borrowers and vigor- capital to expand her part-time, ously pursued defaulted loans through the home-based catering business to courts. a full-time operation? Would a ings in implementing GFF’s programs, a key problem was that the rural South was So what? As a banker, what do I care? rural lending officer approve $800 The redefined model really works By the end of 1994, GFF went from to help a farmer with bad credit purchase seeds and repair a rural Bangladesh. The credit needs of the assisting a handful of customers to having low-income residents of the two areas may 206 members, while still serving the low- not have been that much different, but the income, minority target population envi- cial banks cannot afford to originate these economies, the cultures and the social sioned by GFF’s founders. At the end of loans, much less service them or absorb structures of the two places were literally 1994, 67 percent of GFF’s borrowers were the associated losses. Take it from one worlds apart. The entrepreneurs GFF tar- women and 83 percent minority, while 31 who has tried. geted in Arkansas had to confront a com- percent had household incomes of less plicated regulatory, tax and legal than $13,956 per year (the poverty line for environment that inhibits micro-business a family of four) and 9 percent were on trend in the underwriting of small business formation and that does not exist in welfare. GFF’s loan portfolio had increased credit will eliminate any such temptation in Bangladesh. Low-income micro-entrepre- to $253,000. Nonperforming loans dropped the future. That trend is credit scoring. It’s neurs in America have a welfare safety net to 1.14 percent of loans outstanding, and here, it’s growing, and it’s not going away. to fall back on that, no matter how inade- loan losses fell to 2.4 percent. All bankers are aware of how credit scor- quate, does provide benefits at a level Since 1994, GFF has continued to tiller? The answer is obviously not. Commer- If a banker was ever tempted to make these loans in the past, a powerful recent ing revolutionized consumer lending and, only dreamt of in Bangladesh. There are evolve. It has integrated its programs into not too long ago, did the same thing for attractive employment alternatives for low- those of its parent Arkansas Enterprise home mortgage lending. Recently, it has income people in medium- and large- Group and tried to coordinate its activities reached small business lending. sized businesses in rural America that are with its for-profit affiliates at Southern absent in rural Bangladesh. Development Bancorporation. This has In 1992, GFF began a sweeping The implications of credit scoring on allowed GFF to realize greater operating process to redefine itself to better meet the efficiencies and achieve better market needs of its market and to adapt to its penetration. It has developed sectoral environment. To that end, GFF developed expertise in the child care industry and a high-quality training program (three health care. During the second quarter of hours per week for seven weeks) that was 1997, GFF’s loan portfolio exceeded $1.3 required for all peer group borrowers. The million, and it had originated more than a requirements for peer groups were relaxed half million dollars a year in new loans for to better reflect constraints on and needs two years in a row. Loan losses had of GFF’s members. GFF developed a increased slightly to 4.5 percent on a rolling direct loan program to serve the credit twelve-month basis, but nonperforming needs of more established and modestly loans were still at the 1 percent level. I predict that Micro-Funds . . . will take larger and larger roles in every bank’s small business lending function. Continued on page 8 FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS • PERSPECTIVES • FOURTH QUARTER 1997 8 Surgeon Continued from page 7 Micro-Funds and CDFIs have proven track records of not just targeting but Mortgages with Authority Continued from page 4 small business lending for the community delivering credit to very small women- policy to resolve two issues lending institu- banker are significant. Credit scoring owned and minority-owned businesses, tions had with the former policy: (1) In the should be great for most small businesses. especially those owned by low-income past, to participate in Mortgage Saver It should make small business lending individuals. These are credits that conven- funds, lenders were required to commit to decisions quicker and less bureaucratic. It tional commercial banks have historically a specific amount of money and then should increase the availability of small had a hard time making. The advent of match that amount to loans. That meant business credit. And it should lower pric- credit scoring will make these customers some lenders would have too few qualified ing, just as it has for consumer and home even more difficult to reach for the banking applicants, while other institutions would mortgage lending. industry. Once credit scoring has taken the have more requests than they had MFA margin out of small-business lending, funds available. Now, participating lenders negative consequences, similar to the banks will not be able to afford to take a submit applications whenever they have unanticipated consequences of blindly chance on lending to micro-businesses. qualified buyers. (2) Lenders are not But there will also be unanticipated driving home mortgage lending by credit But this is a market that banks need to affected if market mortgage interest rates scoring. Even though Fannie Mae and reach—not just for public relations, CRA fall below the rate set on MFA funds, Freddie Mac have strongly and and fair lending reasons, but in order for because they no longer commit to a spe- consistently encouraged lenders to care- banks to remain competitive. Out of this cific amount of money at a set interest rate. fully review the files of marginal borrowers, market will come the next generation of there is anecdotal evidence that some small and large businesses that are the MFA are helping more people to make mortgage lenders simply decline all appli- backbone of national and local their dreams of home ownership come true.Ä cations that do not have a Fair Isaacs economies. In the future, banks will reach score of 620 or higher. Regrettably, all most of this market directly, as they always things considered, some minority groups have. However, a growing share of this and low-income people appear to score market will be increasingly difficult and lower than other segments of the American unprofitable to tap. That is where Micro- population on most credit scoring programs. Funds and other CDFIs come in—not as One can only anticipate that, no matter competitors, but as allies through which how careful the banker and no matter how banks will exploit this market, make it their committed the banker to fair lending, in the own and make a profit.Ä not too distant future there will be income mentation of credit scoring. For information contact: New Mexico MFA at (505) 843-6880 Perspectives Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Community Affairs Office P.O. Box 655906, Dallas, Texas 75265-5906 214-922-5276 Gloria Vasquez Brown and racial disparities in small business lending stemming from the blind imple- Together, New Mexico lenders and the Did You Know...? One can further anticipate that those Vice President gloria.v.brown@dal.frb.org Nancy C. Vickrey Community Affairs Officer nancy.vickrey@dal.frb.org Ariel D. Cisneros disparities will not be tolerated by the The Federal Financial Institutions Examina- communities we serve, bank regulators tion Council (FFIEC) has made available monitoring CRA compliance, or the on the Internet a geocoding system Department of Justice enforcing fair lend- (www.ffiec.gov/geocode). The system ing laws. That is just one reason why I pre- allows the user to retrieve Metropolitan dict that Micro-Funds and other Statistical Area (MSA), State, County and Community Development Financial Institu- Census Tract/Block Numbering Area tions (CDFIs) will take larger and larger (BNA) codes as well as limited roles in every bank’s small business lend- demographic information for most U.S. ing function. street addresses. FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS • PERSPECTIVES • FOURTH QUARTER 1997 Community Affairs Specialist ariel.cisneros@dal.frb.org Jim V. Foster Community Affairs Specialist jim.foster@dal.frb.org Bobbie K. Salgado Houston Branch, Community Affairs Specialist bobbie.salgado@dal.frb.org Publications Director: Kay Champagne Writing: Lee Shenkman, Barbara Beverlin Design: Gene Autry The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas or the Federal Reserve System. Articles may be reprinted on the condition that the source is credited and a copy is provided to the Community Affairs Office. Internet website: www.dallasfed.org
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