Fewer banks and rising temps are a dangerous mix in Imperial County

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Access to banking is an important facet of a community's health and as KPBS, race, inequity reporter Christina Kim finds in Imperial county, a shortage of bank branches and rising temperatures can be a dangerous mix.
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Noon is still hours away on a Tuesday and early August, but the streets of El central California are so hot. It feels like the soles of your shoes could melt into the asphalt suffering in this heat. Our lines of people, many elderly outside of bank of America and Wells Fargo's branches, beads of sweat form on the faces of customers. As they wait patiently to use the ATM or talk to a teller
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Once they get here is an agricultural worker from Hopeville California. He waited an hour just to use the bank of America ATM during his break. He says, during the high heat season, the weight for an ATM is unbearable because there's no shade. Maria Lopez is retired and lives here in El Centro. She says she nearly fainted. Once when waiting at the bank on a hot day
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Russian doors, where it was cooler. But to this day, she can't be out in the heat for long, without getting sick.
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The local Wells Fargo branches in El Centro and Calexico have devised systems so that people have access to shade. And someone is always there directing the flow of people. So how did it come to this El Centro as an Imperial county situated on the edge of the Anza Borrego desert state park, but the region is at risk of becoming another type of desert, a banking desert. There are only 12 brick and mortar FDAC insured banks for Imperial counties over 180,000 predominantly Latino and low income residents down from 19 as recently as 2013,
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I think we have seen a fair amount of branch consolidation. Um, in the past several years,
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That's Beth mills spokesperson for the Western bankers association. She says consumer habits are driving the change, making branches less important.
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There's been a lot less people going into branches now with everyone doing mobile banking, not everyone, but a huge
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The majority, but Jason Mendoza, the director of the Imperial valley, small businesses development center says not everyone is online savvy and the lack of bank branches can be challenging for the small business owner. She works with
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The culture here is very different. Um, I can honestly say most business owners want to sit down and sit in front of a person and know who they're conducting business.
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Maria Lopez, who nearly fainted while waiting in line. That one time
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Tells me she doesn't know how to bank online and isn't interested.
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She wishes there were more banks in the area, so people wouldn't have to wait so long. One Lopez is spokesperson for Wells Fargo who grew up in Imperial county is no stranger to the lines. His own mom likes to go in and talk with the teller. I asked him if he thinks more branches would help alleviate the lines,
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Probably not the best person to answer them. But I would say, I would say very strongly.
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He does say however that when the branch has started to close in Calexico a few years ago, the lines got longer.
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So shutter and leave the community. The lines just get progressively worse because we're the only bank there in Calexico suspicious
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Less than a mile from the Mexico border and littered with cash checking places. Calexico only has the single Wells Fargo branch where lions can take up to three hours, California state Senator Ben waySo represents Imperial county. He told KPBS in a statement that banking access is a huge problem in the valley. waySo has coauthored two recent bills that have paved the way for public banking options, which he says are needed because quote, this issue is not going away for now though. People are still lining up at Imperial's few bank branches, no matter what the thermometer reads. Christina Kim KPBS news,
Speaker 1:
Joining me is KPBS race and equity reporter, Christina Kim, Chris, welcome to the program,
Speaker 8:
Maureen,
Speaker 1:
In your report, you say Imperial county only has one bank for approximately every 15,000 residents. Can you contrast those numbers with the kind of access to banks we have here in San Diego?
Speaker 8:
Sure. So it's hard to compare Imperial county with San Diego county in some respects, just because of the sheer size differences as well as different demographics, but looking purely at the numbers, San Diego county has a population of about 3.3 million people, people, and there's 527 FDI insured banks. So that breaks down to approximately one bank for a little over 6,000 people. It's obviously still like a big disparity when you hear it. But I think it's interesting that, and I want to look at more is where benches clustered. So breaking it down a little more granular they'll Centro, which is an Imperial county has eight brick and mortar branches for the population of over 4,000 people on a beach in north county. And Diego has a much smaller population of 13,000, but they also have eight banks.
Speaker 1:
Can you tell us more about how bank branches in El Centro and Calexico, how do they try to provide shade and shelter to people waiting on long lines?
Speaker 8:
Yeah, so most bank branches and Imperial, no that the first week of the month when disability checks social security and paychecks are coming in is going to be hectic. So when I was down there, what I saw was Wells Fargo had really pitched up tents in one instance. And then in El Centro, they had blocked off part of the shaded parking lot. So cars couldn't park park there in order for people to be able to line up. And what I really saw was like a lot of people creating a system to try and process people as quickly as possible. You know, there's somebody on a walkie talkie inside of the bank talking to someone outside. Who's just really trying to get people moving quickly and also giving priority to the elderly and those who really just are suffering in the heat or just can't stand in line for very long
Speaker 1:
On about how long are those weights,
Speaker 8:
Right? So these weights really depend on the day, of course, but we've heard cases in which the outlet, the weight can take up to three hours. And that's especially in Calexico where there's only one single brick and mortar brain.
Speaker 1:
Now in listening to your report, it occurred to me, would offering classes to people on how to access online banking. Would that help the situation?
Speaker 8:
That's an interesting question, Marine. So what I heard from a lot of the people that I spoke to in banks, including Jason Mendoza, who now runs the small business development center, but used to work at a bank is that banks really are the ones, bank branches are really the ones that are doing that kind of education. So much of it is, Hey, this is how you use an ATM, this is how you might use mobile banking. And we do know according to the Wells Fargo spokesperson, one Lopez that they have seen the use of mobile banking go up, but it's kind of like a chicken and an egg situation Marine, right? If these branches are the ones that are providing this kind of financial literacy, as well as access to online banking help, then there kind of needs to be more right in order for that education or that kind of help with access to be there. And I think in such situations it's important, not necessarily to put the onus on the clientele. So the question is less why can't people just do online banking and more, why are institutions not meeting people where they're at?
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And there's only one bank in Calexico now
Speaker 8:
That's right. And Calexico, there's only one single brick and mortar branch, which is Wells Fargo. And that's where I was saying the lens can get extra long as a result. That's where we're seeing those kinds of three hour wait times at times
Speaker 1:
Now Wells Fargo has come under a great deal of criticism for the amount of fees and charges. It's recently launched a program aimed at changing that, but it's not been known as a great bank for low income people. So I'm wondering, could check cashing stores be a workable option for some residents,
Speaker 8:
Right? So to your point, Wells Fargo has been scrutinized for fees and also just not being as present in low income communities where black and Latino people live in may of this year, Wells Fargo launched a ten-year plan or initiative to increase their presence and underserved communities, and really tackle the issue of financial exclusion and really reach out to those that aren't banked at all. So we're going to have to see where that program really goes, but to your question about check cashing options, the fact is that in Calexico and El Centro, I did see several check cashing places as well as payday loan centers and people, especially those that are un-banked or under-banked, which is when someone has a bank, but also uses alternative financial products like check cashing places. They're more prone to use it, but there are really risks and costs associated to check cashing places.
Speaker 8:
So check cashing places, give you immediate cash for your check, but it's at a price. They charge transaction speeds, which can be very high and over time can really add up. If that's the sole way a person is, you know, banking or doing any kind of financial tracking transactions, moreover funds, there are not insured. And there's a higher risk that clients using check cashing places will be offered a payday loan, which we know have extremely high interest rates and can further push people into a cycle of debt. So yes, it's workable, but I think a lot of folks wouldn't say it's, it's advisable.
Speaker 1:
Now you say state Senator Ben weso has introduced bills to create public banking options. Tell us what would they be
Speaker 8:
When I asked, uh, states that are been wasted, a comment on this issue, the first thing he told me is that it's very much a huge problem, right? Banking access is a huge problem in the valley. And then he also noted that he's heard two bills in the last few years that have paved the way for public banking, which I think is this his way of signaling that this is a possible solution. So the first was just signed into law this year, and it's going to create a physical feasibility study for the so-called Cal counts, which provide low-income families with zero interest and zero fee accounts with no minimums that will be regulated by the state that managed your financial institutions. And the goal of this was really, Hey, let's do a study to see how we can get those who are unbanked or underbanked, you know, to get banked so that they're not relying on predatory products.
Speaker 8:
And the second is the now 2019 law that created a legal framework and pathway for up to 10 public bank charters to be piloted so far, Los Angeles and San Francisco are the furthest ahead, but these would create new municipal owned banks, which again, they're not these bills and public banking are not specific to Imperial valley, but against, you know, his inclusion of public banking seems to be signaling that state Senator waySo thinks that in order to address banking issues in the valley, there's going to have to be some creative solutions down the line, perhaps such as public banking.
Speaker 1:
I've been speaking with KPBS race and equity reporter, Christina Kim, Christina. Thank you.