(a) Scope of test. The service test evaluates a bank’s or savings association’s record of helping to meet the credit needs of its assessment area(s) by analyzing both the availability and effectiveness of a bank’s or savings association’s systems for delivering retail banking services and the extent and innovativeness of its community development services.

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(b) Area(s) benefitted. Community development services must benefit a bank’s or savings association’s assessment area(s) or a broader statewide or regional area that includes the bank’s or savings association’s assessment area(s).

(c) Affiliate service. At a bank’s or savings association’s option, the appropriate Federal banking agency will consider, in its assessment of a bank’s or savings association’s service performance, a community development service provided by an affiliate of the bank or savings association, if the community development service is not claimed by any other institution.

(d) Performance criteria—retail banking services. The appropriate Federal banking agency evaluates the availability and effectiveness of a bank’s or savings association’s systems for delivering retail banking services, pursuant to the following criteria:

(1) The current distribution of the bank’s or savings association’s branches among low-, moderate-, middle-, and upper-income geographies;

(2) In the context of its current distribution of the bank’s or savings association’s branches, the bank’s or savings association’s record of opening and closing branches, particularly branches located in low- or moderate-income geographies or primarily serving low- or moderate-income individuals;

(3) The availability and effectiveness of alternative systems for delivering retail banking services (e.g., ATMs, ATMs not owned or operated by or exclusively for the bank or savings association, banking by telephone or computer, loan production offices, and bank-at-work or bank-by-mail programs) in low- and moderate-income geographies and to low- and moderate-income individuals; and

(4) The range of services provided in low-, moderate-, middle-, and upper-income geographies and the degree to which the services are tailored to meet the needs of those geographies.

(e) Performance criteria—community development services. The appropriate Federal banking agency evaluates community development services pursuant to the following criteria:

(1) The extent to which the bank or savings association provides community development services; and

(2) The innovativeness and responsiveness of community development services.

(f) Service performance rating. The appropriate Federal banking agency rates a bank’s or savings association’s service performance as provided in appendix A of this part.