Newsday from New York, New York • 53

-try Mil "'1 I i WJ liir 9 i I I I I I 37 1 0B Activists Slam Lending Rule Changes more objective and more integrated with the banks day-to-day policy decisions. The 11 proposals include creating a specific category of bank investments that would qualify for extra credit in an examination of CRA compliance, eliding a fnn-mul proccos for community groups to comment on a banks CRA performance before a rating is assigned, end expanding thw Bit of bank actions that would be approved ony if the bank had a good CRA rating. The state may also establish a minimum ratio of community lending to core deposits that banks would have to meet. Bankers contacted yesterday declined to comment. But officials at ACORN, the Association of Community Organisations for Reform Now, Mhl the proposals, especially one that would protect banks that had a superior CRA rating for at least three yean from any community protest when it applied for approval of a merger or a new branch.

The only tool community groups have, unfortunately, i to challenge a merger with a CRA protest, said John Kest.head organizer for ACORNs New York office. You take that away and all this other stuff becomes window dressing. Rest said he would pull out all the stops to fight the plan, noting that ACORN blocked federal regulators from adopting such a so-called safe harbor last year by stagingabig protest before a Congressional oonjmittee. S2 8 CO 5 1 1 1 1 I I 1 By JillDutt STATT WHITES New York Statee regulator yesterday proposed sweeping changes in how it measures bank awiplima with the Community Reinvestment Act. Although it was billed as a reform that would make policing bank practices easier, the proposal drew immediate fire from community activists, who said it would gut the little power they now have to fight racial discrimination in bank lending.

We believe that the reach of CRA has not kept pace with either the changing nature of the banking qrsfism or the evolving needs of local communities, said Derrick D. Cephas, hanlring superintendent. The 1977 Act that banW meet the credit needs of all the communities in which theydo business. It has primarily been used -to combat redlining in low-income neighborhoods and has become a sore spot for many banks since a 1990 banking law required that CRA ratings be made public. About 70 percent of New Yorks state-chartered banka have a satisfactory CRA rating; and only 12 percent are rated superior.

Cephas said the proposed changes were designed to make CRA ratings GM Card Offers Rebate Toward Auto Purchase GM CARD from Page 85 regular credit available fay using the card. At least one car industry analyst said the GM concept has promise. I think it is a very good idea, a clever approach, said Maryann Keller, who follows GM for Furman, Bds, a New York investment firm. The most risk of dealing with bad loans in a tough economy. The cards will be issued by Household Credit Services, a division of Household International, an Illinois financial services firm, which will take the credit risk.

Household and GM will share the profits. Just the GM card to build up credits. Applicable to purchase of a vehicle will be a 6 percent credit not limited to $500 when customers use the card to buy services fromMCI, Avis or Marriott. And customers will be able to build toward the $500 rebate by transferring balances from other cards. GM officials said no special discounts or rebates would be given for service charged at GM dealerships, beyond the Household executive Joseph Saunders said that the usual return on mailing of pra-approved credit cards applications was about 1J percent to 2 percent, but he expected a higher likely users would be people who own GM products, and it is much less expensive to hold on to your customer base than to get new customers.

GM abo gets the benefit of having its name on the card without the financial your underwriters together. This is an opportunity to get price increases now. The industry has estimated that the hurricane will result in claims totaling around $73 billion. BARK PROFITS SOAR. Profits at commercial banks oared to a new record this spring, the FDIC said.

The nations 11,685 banks earned $7.9 billion in the April-June quarter, breaking the previous record billion set in the first quarter, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said. The industry appears mi track to easily break the annual earnings record of $24.9 billion, set in 1988, the agency said. The FDIC attributed the improvement in the second quarter to a modest decrease in bad loans and the fifth consecutive quarterly increase in the difference between what banks pay on deposits and what they earn from loans and other investments. LACK OF C0HFIDEHCE.

After rising through the first half of the year, business confidence fell sharply over the summer, the UA Chamber of Com merce said. The chambers latest business confidence index. Slate Takes Over Jewel In Crown Of 42nd St. Plan THE STATE assumed control of the New Am-sterdam Theater yesterday, after the Organisation foil iwJiind on payments on the 42nd Street landmark, the Uroan Development Carp. said.

State officials said the 90-year-old theater is Times Squares tjewel in the crown, but it has been closed for nearly 10 years and is badly damaged. The departure of the Nederlander Organization indicates that the state is being forced to take an even greater role in redeveloping the theater district. Rebecca Robertson, president of the 42nd Street Development Project, acknowledged yesterday that the state is considering taking on the cost of buying the properties on the western side of the project. Private developers, which recently pulled out of a deal to erect four office towers in the district, paid the earlier condemnation costs. The UDC will assume responsibility for $25M)00 in outstanding payments due on the New Amsterdam and will spend about $500,000 to stop the building from deteriorating ftirther.

PAT CUT APPROVED. The -Daily News creditors committee ap proved a 10 percent pay cut for all the newspapers employees, a move the News will request in bankruptcy court tomorrow if the unions dont have an agreement with a buyer. Meanwhile, the nine trade creditors on the 13-member committee said they will actively oppose the offer from Mortimer Zuckerman, owner of UJ3. News A World Report, which creditors lawyer Howard Seife said provides 10 cents on the dollar, at beak The reorganisation plan before the bankruptcy court calls for Canadian publisher Conrad Black to IBMS HEW TROOPS. IBM Corp.

introduced an upgraded version of its PS1 family of personal computers, rolling out 21 advanced PCs that are designed to attract a broader rangg of buyers. The three line of PCs, ranging in price from $1,200 to $2J00, were released by the IBM Personal Computer a new autonomous subsidiary formed last week from the companys former PC division. Each line of six PCs is aimed at a different market segment the home, small business and advanced use. IBM also announced three versions of a new notebook computer, starting at about $200. The desktop PCs are powered ly Intel Corp.

computer chips, ranging from the 25-megahertx 386SX to the more advanced 33-MHx 486DX. IBM said the desktops are already being shipped and will be available for purchase within 30 days. The notebook computers will be shipped in October. The announcement marks the beginning of a new IBM offensive in the PC market, in which more than a year ofprice competition has slashed profit margins and driven manufacturers to change their strategy. STORM OVER IHSURAHCE.

Floridas insurance commisaioner froxe the premiums American International Group can charge in the state after the major business insurer's vice president called Hurricane Andrew an opportunity to raise rates. AIGs rates in Florida will be frozen for 60 days and the state will investigate to see if it should take legal action against the company or its officers. AIG executive vice president J.W. Greenberg wrote a memo to AIG member company executives on Aug. 24, the day the hurricane Mew ashore.

women, shows they turned markedly more mistic fay August after six months of The index, a bimonthly average of throe subindexes measuring the economic outlook, business sales and hiring prospects six months ahead, fell to 58 in August from 64.2 in June. (BOTTOM LINE A CRUSH OH SATURHS. Almost 1,700 Saturn cars that were recalled by the automaker will be crushed to keep the vehicles out of circulation. The cars, recalled after being filled with a faulty coolant that included a corrosive, will be destroyed over the next few days, Saturn said. Of the 1,836 can recalled, 1,696 trill be destroyed.

Most of the remainder will either be studied fay engineers, turned into cutaway can for dealers1 displays or donated to technical schools for teaching purposes. Betts declined to let photographers take pictures of the Saturas being crushed, saying; Thids not the image we want consumers to remember about the buy the News, but he has not reached an agreement with any union. Ifthe unions forge agreements with saying; The industry cannot absorb the loss and iYV ViZuckequan. crBditors fay to MddrUdeaLi OforiishTiit withoutincreaaing rates.egin calling 'FrptafftiwurTportL t'rZJL r. yf jVV'V- Vi -V-fl TTT VV WiV--.

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