[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 61 (Monday, March 31, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 15300-15301]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-7586]


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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
12 CFR Part 216

[Regulation P; Docket No. R-0965]


Security Procedures

AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Board is proposing to remove Regulation P, which is no 
longer necessary since its provisions have been incorporated into 
Regulation H (Membership of State Banking Institutions in the Federal 
Reserve System), as proposed by the Board elsewhere in today's Federal 
Register. Regulation P requires each bank to adopt appropriate security 
procedures.

DATES: Comments must be received by May 30, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments, which should refer to Docket No. R-0965, may be 
mailed to Mr. William W. Wiles, Secretary, Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W., 
Washington, DC 20551. Comments addressed to Mr. Wiles also may be 
delivered to the Board's mail room between 8:45 a.m. and 5:15 p.m., and 
to the security control room outside of those hours. Both the mail room 
and the security control room are accessible from the courtyard 
entrance on 20th Street between Constitution Avenue and C Street, N.W. 
Comments may be inspected in Room MP-500 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 
p.m. weekdays, except as provided in Sec. 261.8 of the Board's Rules 
Regarding Availability of Information, 12 CFR 261.8.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jean Anderson, Staff Attorney, Legal 
Division (202/452-3707). For the hearing impaired only, 
Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD), Dorothea Thompson (202/
452-3544).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Section 303 of the Riegle Community Development and Regulatory 
Improvement Act of 1994 (CDRI Act)

    Section 303(a) of the CDRI Act (12 U.S.C. 4803(a)) requires the 
Board, as well as the other federal banking agencies, to review its 
regulations and written policies in order to streamline and modify 
these regulations and policies to improve efficiency, reduce 
unnecessary costs, and eliminate unwarranted constraints on credit 
availability. The Board has reviewed its Regulation P with this purpose 
in mind, and, is proposing to rescind Regulation P in order to meet the 
goals of section 303(a).
    Regulation P implements the requirements of the Bank Protection Act 
of 1968 (BPA). The BPA requires the federal financial institution 
supervisory agencies to establish minimum standards for bank security 
devices and procedures to discourage bank crime and to assist in the 
identification of persons who commit such crimes. 12 U.S.C. 1882. To 
implement this statute a uniform regulation (Regulation P) was adopted 
in 1969 by each of the supervisory agencies--Comptroller of the 
Currency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Home Loan Bank 
Board (now known as the Office of Thrift Supervision), and the Board. 
As originally proposed, Regulation P included a list of security 
devices that banks were required to adopt. On March 1, 1991 (55 FR 
13069)(1991 Amendments), the supervisory agencies amended their rules 
to incorporate amendments made to the BPA by the Financial Institutions 
Reform Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA) and to address the 
fact that many of the required security devices had been rendered 
obsolete by virtue of technological advances.

[[Page 15301]]

Discussion

    The Board's proposal to rescind Regulation P and incorporate its 
provisions into Regulation H (12 CFR Part 208--Membership of State 
Banking Institutions in the Federal Reserve System) as proposed by the 
Board elsewhere in today's Federal Register, would not substantively 
amend the terms of Regulation P. The Board's proposal to incorporate 
Regulation P into Regulation H is designed to simplify compliance for 
State member banks, to the extent possible, by consolidating the 
regulatory requirements applying to State member banks into one 
regulation.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Analysis

    Pursuant to section 605(b) of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (Pub. 
L. 95-354, 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), the Board of Governors of the Federal 
Reserve System certifies that adoption of this proposal will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
that would be subject to the regulation.
    This amendment will remove a regulation and an interpretation that 
the Board believes are no longer necessary. The amendment does not 
impose more burdensome requirements on bank holding companies than are 
currently applicable.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3506; 5 CFR 1320 Appendix A.1), the Board reviewed the rule under the 
authority delegated to the Board by the Office of Management and 
Budget. No collections of information pursuant to the Paperwork 
Reduction Act are contained in the final rule.

List of Subjects in 12 CFR Part 216

    Federal Reserve System, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, 
Security measures.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble and under the authority 
of 12 U.S.C. 1882, the Board proposes to amend 12 CFR chapter II, as 
set forth below:

PART 216--[REMOVED]

    1. Part 216 is removed.

    By order of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System, March 20, 1997.
William W. Wiles,
Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 97-7586 Filed 3-28-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6210-01-P