[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 12, Volume 2]
[Revised as of January 1, 2006]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 12CFR202.8]

[Page 22-23]
 
                       TITLE 12--BANKS AND BANKING
 
                   CHAPTER II--FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
 
PART 202_EQUAL CREDIT OPPORTUNITY ACT (REGULATION B)--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 202.8  Special purpose credit programs.

    (a) Standards for programs. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 
(b) of this section, the Act and this regulation permit a creditor to 
extend special purpose credit to applicants who meet eligibility 
requirements under the following types of credit programs:
    (1) Any credit assistance program expressly authorized by federal or 
state law for the benefit of an economically disadvantaged class of 
persons;
    (2) Any credit assistance program offered by a not-for-profit 
organization, as defined under section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1954, as amended, for the benefit of its members or for the 
benefit of an economically disadvantaged class of persons; or
    (3) Any special purpose credit program offered by a for-profit 
organization, or in which such an organization participates to meet 
special social needs, if:
    (i) The program is established and administered pursuant to a 
written plan that identifies the class of persons that the program is 
designed to benefit and sets forth the procedures and standards for 
extending credit pursuant to the program; and
    (ii) The program is established and administered to extend credit to 
a class of persons who, under the organization's customary standards of 
creditworthiness, probably would not receive such credit or would 
receive it on less favorable terms than are ordinarily available to 
other applicants applying to the organization for a similar type and 
amount of credit.
    (b) Rules in other sections--(1) General applicability. All the 
provisions of this regulation apply to each of the special purpose 
credit programs described in paragraph (a) of this section except as 
modified by this section.
    (2) Common characteristics. A program described in paragraph (a)(2) 
or (a)(3) of this section qualifies as a special purpose credit program 
only if it was established and is administered so as not to discriminate 
against an applicant on any prohibited basis; however, all program 
participants may be required to share one or more common characteristics 
(for example, race, national origin, or sex) so long as the program was 
not established and is not administered with the purpose of evading the 
requirements of the Act or this regulation.
    (c) Special rule concerning requests and use of information. If 
participants in a special purpose credit program described in paragraph 
(a) of this section are required to possess one or more

[[Page 23]]

common characteristics (for example, race, national origin, or sex) and 
if the program otherwise satisfies the requirements of paragraph (a) of 
this section, a creditor may request and consider information regarding 
the common characteristic(s) in determining the applicant's eligibility 
for the program.
    (d) Special rule in the case of financial need. If financial need is 
one of the criteria under a special purpose credit program described in 
paragraph (a) of this section, the creditor may request and consider, in 
determining an applicant's eligibility for the program, information 
regarding the applicant's marital status; alimony, child support, and 
separate maintenance income; and the spouse's financial resources. In 
addition, a creditor may obtain the signature of an applicant's spouse 
or other person on an application or credit instrument relating to a 
special purpose credit program if the signature is required by federal 
or state law.