[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 64 (Tuesday, April 3, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20123-20124]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-7951]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Fiscal Service


Fee Change for Paying Agents Redeeming Definitive Savings Bonds 
and Savings Notes

AGENCY: Bureau of the Public Debt, Fiscal Service, Treasury.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Effective April 11, 2012, the Department of the Treasury will 
no longer pay fees to paying agents for redeeming definitive savings 
bonds and savings notes. The purpose of this change is to reduce 
Treasury's program costs.

DATES: Effective Date: April 11, 2012.

[[Page 20124]]


ADDRESSES: A copy of this Notice is available at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
D. Michael Linder, Director, Division of Program Administration, Office 
of Retail Securities, Bureau of the Public Debt, at (304) 480-6319 or 
<[email protected]>.
Ann Fowler, Attorney-Adviser, Brian Metz, Attorney-Adviser, Dean Adams, 
Assistant Chief Counsel, or Edward Gronseth, Deputy Chief Counsel, 
Office of the Chief Counsel, Bureau of the Public Debt, at (304) 480-
8692 or <[email protected]>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Beginning October 1, 1988, Treasury 
permitted paying agents to transmit and receive settlement for redeemed 
definitive savings bonds and savings notes through the EZ CLEAR system. 
The EZ CLEAR system required paying agents to manually sort and mail 
definitive savings bonds and savings notes to the appropriate Federal 
Reserve Bank or Branch. Treasury paid paying agents a 30-cent fee for 
each redeemed definitive savings bond or savings note presented through 
the EZ CLEAR system.
    Effective April 11, 2012, paying agents will begin to transition 
the submission of redeemed definitive savings bonds and savings notes 
from the EZ CLEAR process to an existing image-based process through 
the Federal Reserve. This simple and modern process allows paying 
agents to electronically transmit images of redeemed definitive savings 
bonds and savings notes to a Federal Reserve Processing Site for 
payment. Because the new process removes the manual sorting and mailing 
required by the former process, Treasury is eliminating the fee that it 
paid to paying agents for submitting redeemed definitive savings bonds 
and notes. The elimination of paying agent fees will result in 
significant program savings.
    This fee change is consistent with 31 CFR 321.23, which makes 
discretionary Treasury's payment of fees to paying agents for the 
processing of redeemed definitive savings bonds and savings notes. 
Therefore, notice is hereby given that, effective April 11, 2012, 
Treasury will no longer pay fees to paying agents for the redemption of 
definitive savings bonds and savings notes.

Richard L. Gregg,
Fiscal Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2012-7951 Filed 4-2-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-39-P