[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 29 (Thursday, February 12, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 6917-6919]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-3041]


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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

12 CFR Part 229

[Regulation CC; Docket No. R-1183]


Availability of Funds and Collection of Checks

AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

ACTION: Final rule; technical amendment.

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SUMMARY: The Board of Governors is amending appendix A of Regulation CC 
to delete the reference to the head office of the Federal Reserve Bank 
of Richmond and reassign the Federal Reserve routing symbols currently 
listed under that office to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond's 
Baltimore office and delete the reference to the Omaha check processing 
office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and reassign the 
Federal Reserve routing symbols currently listed under that office to 
the Des Moines office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. These 
amendments reflect the restructuring of check processing operations 
within the Federal Reserve System.

DATES: The amendment to Appendix A under the Fifth Federal Reserve 
District (Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond) is effective on April 17, 
2004. The amendments to Appendix A under the Seventh and Tenth Federal 
Reserve Districts (Federal Reserve Banks of Chicago and Kansas City) 
are effective on April 24, 2004.

[[Page 6918]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jack K. Walton II, Assistant Director 
(202/452-2660), or Joseph P. Baressi, Senior Financial Services Analyst 
(202/452-3959), Division of Reserve Bank Operations and Payment 
Systems; or Adrianne G. Threatt, Counsel (202/452-3554), Legal 
Division. For users of Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf (TDD) 
only, contact 202/263-4869.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulation CC establishes the maximum period 
a depositary bank may wait between receiving a deposit and making the 
deposited funds available for withdrawal.\1\ A depositary bank 
generally must provide faster availability for funds deposited by a 
``local check'' than by a ``nonlocal check.'' A check drawn on a bank 
is considered local if it is payable by or at a bank located in the 
same Federal Reserve check processing region as the depositary bank. A 
check drawn on a nonbank is considered local if it is payable through a 
bank located in the same Federal Reserve check processing region as the 
depositary bank. Checks that do not meet the requirements for ``local'' 
checks are considered ``nonlocal.''
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    \1\ For purposes of Regulation CC, the term ``bank'' refers to 
any depository institution, including commercial banks, savings 
institutions, and credit unions.
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    Appendix A to Regulation CC contains a routing number guide that 
assists banks in identifying local and nonlocal banks and thereby 
determining the maximum permissible hold periods for most deposited 
checks. The appendix includes a list of each Federal Reserve check 
processing office and the first four digits of the routing number, 
known as the Federal Reserve routing symbol, of each bank that is 
served by that office. Banks whose Federal Reserve routing symbols are 
grouped under the same office are in the same check processing region 
and thus are local to one another.
    As explained in detail in the Board's final rule published in the 
Federal Register on May 28, 2003, the Federal Reserve Banks decided in 
early 2003 to reduce the number of locations at which they process 
checks.\2\ As part of this restructuring process, the head office of 
the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond will cease processing checks on 
April 17, 2004, and banks with routing symbols currently assigned to 
that office for check processing purposes will be reassigned to the 
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond's Baltimore office. The Omaha office 
of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City will cease processing checks 
on April 24, 2004, and banks with routing symbols currently assigned to 
that office for check processing purposes will be reassigned to the Des 
Moines office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. As a result of 
these changes, some checks that are drawn on and deposited at banks 
located in the affected check processing regions and that currently are 
nonlocal checks will become local checks subject to faster availability 
schedules. Also, after April 24, 2004, the restructured Des Moines 
check processing region will cross Federal Reserve District lines. 
Banks located in that region therefore no longer will be able to 
determine that a check is nonlocal solely because the paying bank for 
that check is located in another Federal Reserve District.
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    \2\ See 68 FR 31592, May 28, 2003. In addition to the general 
advance notice of future amendments previously provided by the 
Board, as well as the Board's notices of final amendments, the 
Reserve Banks are striving to inform affected depository 
institutions of the exact date of each office transition at least 
120 days in advance. The Reserve Banks' communications to affected 
depository institutions are available at www.frbservices.org.
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    To assist banks in identifying local and nonlocal banks, the Board 
accordingly is amending the lists of routing symbols associated with 
the Federal Reserve Banks of Richmond, Kansas City, and Chicago to 
reflect the transfer of operations (1) from the Federal Reserve Bank of 
Richmond's head office to that Reserve Bank's Baltimore office and (2) 
from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's Omaha office to the 
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's Des Moines office. The amendments 
affecting the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond are effective April 17, 
2004, and the amendments affecting the Federal Reserve Banks of Kansas 
City and Chicago are effective April 24, 2004, to coincide with the 
effective date of the underlying check processing changes. The Board is 
providing advance notice of these amendments to give affected banks 
ample time to make any needed processing changes. The advance notice 
will also enable affected banks to amend their availability schedules 
and related disclosures, if necessary, and provide their customers with 
notice of these changes.\3\ The Federal Reserve routing symbols 
assigned to all other Federal Reserve branches and offices will remain 
the same at this time. The Board of Governors, however, intends to 
issue similar notices at least sixty days prior to the elimination of 
check operations at some other Reserve Bank offices, as described in 
the May 2003 Federal Register document.
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    \3\ Section 229.18(e) of Regulation CC requires that banks 
notify account holders who are consumers within 30 days after 
implementing a change that improves the availability of funds.
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Administrative Procedure Act

    The Board has not followed the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(b) 
relating to notice and public participation in connection with the 
adoption of this final rule. The revisions to the appendix are 
technical in nature, and the routing symbol revisions are required by 
the statutory and regulatory definitions of ``check-processing 
region.'' Because there is no substantive change on which to seek 
public input, the Board has determined that the section 553(b) notice 
and comment procedures are unnecessary.

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 has reviewed the final rule 
under authority delegated to the Board by the Office of Management and 
Budget. This technical amendment to appendix A of Regulation CC will 
(1) delete the reference to the head office of the Federal Reserve Bank 
of Richmond and reassign the routing symbols listed under that office 
to the Baltimore office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and (2) 
delete the reference to the Omaha office of the Federal Reserve Bank of 
Kansas City and reassign the routing symbols listed under that office 
to the Des Moines office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. The 
depository institutions that are located in the affected check 
processing regions and that include the routing numbers in their 
disclosure statements would be required to notify customers of the 
resulting change in availability under Sec. 229.18(e). However, because 
all paperwork collection procedures associated with Regulation CC 
already are in place, the Board anticipates that no additional burden 
will be imposed as a result of this rulemaking.

12 CFR Chapter II

List of Subjects in 12 CFR Part 229

    Banks, Banking, Federal Reserve System, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

Authority and Issuance

0
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Board is amending 12 CFR 
part 229 to read as follows:

[[Page 6919]]

PART 229--AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS AND COLLECTION OF CHECKS 
(REGULATION CC)

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1. The authority citation for part 229 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 12 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.

0
2. The Fifth, Seventh, and Tenth Federal Reserve District routing 
symbol lists in appendix A are revised to read as follows:

Appendix A to Part 229--Routing Number Guide to Next-Day Availability 
Checks and Local Checks

* * * * *

Fifth Federal Reserve District

[Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond]

Baltimore Branch

                   0510                                 2510
                   0514                                 2514
                   0520                                 2520
                   0521                                 2521
                   0522                                 2522
                   0540                                 2540
                   0550                                 2550
                   0560                                 2560
                   0570                                 2570
 

Charlotte Branch

                   0530                                 2530
                   0531                                 2531
 

Columbia Office

                   0532                                 2532
                   0539                                 2539
 

Charleston Office

                0515                                       2515
                0519                                       2519
 

* * * * *

Seventh Federal Reserve District

[Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago]

Head Office

                   0710                                 2710
                   0711                                 2711
                   0712                                 2712
                   0719                                 2719
 

Detroit Branch

                   0720                                 2720
                   0724                                 2724
 

Des Moines Office

                   0730                                 2730
                   0739                                 2739
                   1040                                 3040
                   1041                                 3041
                   1049                                 3049
 

Indianapolis Office

                   0740                                 2740
                   0749                                 2749
 

Milwaukee Office

                   0750                                 2750
                   0759                                 2759
 

* * * * *

Tenth Federal Reserve District

[Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City]

Head Office

                   1010                                 3010
                   1011                                 3011
                   1012                                 3012
                   1019                                 3019
 

Denver Branch

                   1020                                 3020
                   1021                                 3021
                   1022                                 3022
                   1023                                 3023
                   1070                                 3070
 

Oklahoma City Branch

                   1030                                 3030
                   1031                                 3031
                   1039                                 3039
 

* * * * *

    By order of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System, acting through the Secretary of the Board under delegated 
authority, February 6, 2004.
Jennifer J. Johnson,
Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 04-3041 Filed 2-11-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6210-01-P