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Justice Department Reaches Significant Milestone in Combating Redlining Initiative After Securing Over $107 Million in Relief for Communities of Color Nationwide
"As today's case makes clear, redlining is not just a relic of the past. That is why, two years ago this month, the Justice Department launched our Combating Redlining Initiative, and once today's settlement is approved, that Initiative will have secured more than $100 million for communities across the country that have been harmed by discriminatory lending practices."
-Attorney General Merrick B. Garland
"This work is just the beginning – the Justice Department currently has over two dozen active investigations into redlining, spanning neighborhoods across the country."
-Attorney General Merrick B. Garland
"Combating modern day redlining is one of the most important strategies for ensuring equal economic opportunity today. By taking on the discriminatory lending practices of banks and mortgage companies, we are helping to ensure that more Black, Hispanic, and other communities of color are able to buy a home, generate wealth, and fulfill the American Dream."
-Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Kristen Clarke
"This settlement marks a new pinnacle in our efforts to bring an end to redlining and provides tangible relief to communities that have been starved of access to credit for far too long."
-Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Kristen Clarke
"For far too long, redlining has negatively impacted communities of color across our country. Today's agreement with Ameris Bank represents the first redlining case brought by the Department of Justice in the state of Florida and signals a step forward for Black and Hispanic communities in Jacksonville that were previously denied access to economic resources for generations."
-U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg for the Middle District of Florida
"This settlement means that Ameris Bank will provide financial remedies to Jacksonville's underserved communities, and it demonstrates our commitment to guaranteeing equal access to housing and credit resources for all Americans."
-U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg for the Middle District of Florida
On October 19, 2023 The Justice Department announced that its Combating Redlining Initiative secured over $107 million in relief for communities of color nationwide that have experienced lending discrimination by banks or other mortgage lending businesses. As a part of the $107 million, the Department also announced a $9 million agreement with Ameris Bank to resolve allegations that Ameris engaged in a pattern or practice of redlining predominately Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in Jacksonville, Florida. Redlining is an illegal practice in which lenders avoid providing credit services to individuals living in or seeking to live in, communities of color because of the race, color, or national origin of the residents in those communities.
Updated January 20, 2025
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