OCC rolls back disparate impact oversight

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is rolling back disparate impact supervision for banks, it announced Monday.

As such, the federal agency’s supervisory process for fair lending compliance will no longer include the examination for cases in which neutral policies have an unequal effect on a protected class such as by race or gender.  

It is a direct response to an executive order President Trump issued April 23, 2025, which called for agencies to eliminate the use of disparate impact liability in all contexts.

The fair lending standard, long a source of division in the housing industry, held both bank and nonbank lenders accountable for discriminatory outcomes, even in the absence of intent.

References to disparate impact will be removed from the comptroller’s handbook,…