Thursday, April 19, 2012

Councilmember Richard Alarcón to Receive National Honor for His Landmark Responsible Banking Ordinance

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 19, 2012

CONTACT
David Graham-Caso
213.393.9196 (cell)

Councilmember Richard Alarcón to Receive National Honor for His Landmark Responsible Banking Ordinance
National Community Reinvestment Coalition Will Award Alarcón the Highest Honor Bestowed by Organization

(Los Angeles, CA) – Los Angeles City Councilmember Richard Alarcón will be in Washington, D.C. on Friday, April 20, 2012 to accept the “National Community Reinvestment Award,” the highest honor bestowed by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC). The award, which will be presented to Councilmember Alarcón during NCRC’s annual conference in Washington, D.C., is awarded annually to “the individual who through their work over the past year has best exemplified the ideals and values of the community reinvestment movement and economic justice.”

Once formally adopted, Councilmember Alarcón’s Responsible Banking Ordinance will create a public, transparent process for gathering information about banks’ history of service in communities in Los Angeles when considering which financial institutions to award future City contracts. The Ordinance would not preclude any financial institutions from doing business with the City of Los Angeles, but would rather require banks interested in doing business with the City to provide specific information about their work in Los Angeles.

Earlier this year, Councilmember Alarcón’s Responsible Banking Ordinance, which has served as a model for other responsible banking ordinances in cities across the country, was unanimously supported by the Los Angeles City Council when the Council voted to instruct the City Attorney to draft official language for the Ordinance. The Ordinance language will be voted on by the Council in the coming weeks.

The progress of Councilmember Alarcón’s Responsible Banking Ordinance in Los Angeles has added to growing national momentum toward increased social responsibility in how banks operate. Similar responsible banking ordinances have recently been approved or are being considered in cities including New York, Seattle, Berkeley, Boston, Portland, Kansas City and San Francisco.

More information about the Responsible Banking Ordinance, which was first introduced by Councilmember Alarcón in 2009, can be found at www.responsiblebankingLA.blogspot.com.

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