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of the Treas. is authorized to issue at par Treas. notes in coupon or registered form as he may prescribe in denominations of $100, or any multiple thereof, bearing Int. at the rate of 3% per annum, payable quarterly, such Treas. notes to be payable not more than one year from the date of their issue in gold coin of the present standard value, and to be exempt as to principal and Int. from the payment of all taxes and duties of the U. S. except as provided by this Act, as well as from taxes in any form by or under State, municipal, or local authorities. And for the same purpose, the Secy. is authorized and empowered to issue U. S. gold bonds at par, bearing 3% Int. payable 30 years from date of issue, such bonds to be of the same general tenor and effect and to be issued under the same general terms and conditions as the U. S. 3% bonds without the circulation privilege now issued and outstanding.

Upon application of any Fed. Res. bank, approved by the Fed. Res. Board, the Secy. may issue at par such 3% bonds in exchange for the one-year gold notes herein provided for.

BANK RESERVES

SEC. 19. Demand deposits within the meaning of this Act shall comprise all deposits payable within 30 days, and time deposits shall comprise all deposits payable after 30 days, all savings accounts and C't'fs. of deposit which are subject to not less than 30 days' notice before payment, and all postal Sav. deposits.

Every bank, B'k'g. Asso., or Tr. Co. which is or which becomes a member of any Fed. Res. bank shall establish and maintain reserve balances with its Fed. Res. bank as follows:

(a) If not in a reserve or central reserve city, as now or hereafter defined, it shall hold and maintain with the Fed. Res. bank of its Dist. an actual net balance equal to not less than 7% of the aggregate amount of its demand deposits and 3% of its time deposits.

(b) If in a reserve city, as now or hereafter defined, it shall hold and maintain with the Fed. Res. bank of its Dist. an actual net balance equal to not less than 10% of the aggregate amount of its demand deposits and 3% of its time deposits.

(c) If in a central reserve city, as now or hereafter defined, it shall hold and maintain with the Fed. Res. bank of its Dist. an actual net balance equal to not less than 13% of the aggregate amount of its demand deposits and 3% of its time deposits.

No member bank shall keep on deposit with any State bank or Tr. Co. which is not a member bank a sum in excess of 10% of its own paid-up capital and surplus. No member bank shall act as the medium or agent of a nonmember bank in applying for or receiving discounts from a Fed. Res. bank under the provisions of this Act, except by permission of the Fed. Res. Board.

The required balance carried by a member bank with a Fed. Res. bank may, under the regulations and subject to such penalties as may be prescribed by the Fed. Res. Board, be checked against and withdrawn by such member bank for the purpose of meeting existing liabilities: Provided, however, That no bank shall at any time make new loans or shall pay any Divs. unless and until the total balance required by law is fully restored. In estimating the balances required by this Act, the net difference of amounts due to and from other banks shall be taken as the basis for ascertaining the deposits against which required balances with Fed. Res. banks shall be determined.

Nat. banks, or banks organized under local laws, located in Alaska or in a dependency or insular possession or any part of the U. S. outside the continental U. S. may remain nonmember banks, and shall in that event maintain reserves and comply with all the conditions now provided by law regulating them; or said banks may, with the consent of the Reserve

Board, become member banks of any one of the reserve Dists., and shall, in that event, take stock, maintain reserves, and be subject to all the other provisions of this Act.

SEC. 20. So much of Secs. 2 and 3 of the Act of June 20, 1874, entitled An Act fixing the amount of U. S. notes, providing for a redistribution of the Nat.-bank currency, and for other purposes," as provides that the fund deposited by any Nat. B'k'g. Asso. with the Treas. of the U. S. for the redemption of its notes shall be counted as a part of its lawful reserve as provided in the Act aforesaid, is hereby repealed. And from and after the passage of this Act such fund of 5% shall in no case be counted by any Nat. B'k'g, Asso. as a part of its lawful reserve.

BANK EXAMINATIONS

SEC. 21. Sec. 5240, U. S. Rev. Sts., is amended to read as follows: The Comptroller of the Currency, with the approval of the Secy. of the Treas., shall appoint examiners who shall examine every member bank at least twice in each calendar year and oftener if considered necessary: Provided, however, That the Fed. Res. Board may authorize examination by the State authorities to be accepted in the case of State banks and Tr. Cos. and may at any time direct the holding of a special examination of State banks or Tr. Cos. that are stockholders in any Fed. Res. bank. The examiner making the examination of any Nat. Bank, or of any other member bank, shall have power to make a thorough examination of all the affairs of the bank and in doing so he shall have power to administer oaths and to examine any of the officers and agents thereof under oath and shall make a full and detailed report of the condition of said bank to the Comptroller of the Currency.

The Fed. Res. Board, upon the recommendation of the Comptroller of the Currency, shall fix the salaries of all bank examiners and make report thereof to Congress. The expense of the examinations herein provided for shall be assessed by the Comptroller of the Currency upon the banks examined in proportion to assets or resources held by the banks upon the dates of examination of the various banks.

In addition to the examinations made and conducted by the Comptroller of the Currency, every Fed. Res. bank may, with the approval of the Fed. Res. agent or the Fed. Res. Board, provide for special examination of member banks within its Dist. The expense of such examinations shall be borne by the bank examined. Such examinations shall be so conducted as to inform the Fed. Res. bank of the condition of its member banks and of the lines of credit which are being extended by them. Every Fed. Res. bank shall at all times furnish to the Fed. Res. Board such information as may be demanded concerning the condition of any member bank within the Dist. of the said Fed. Res. bank.

No bank shall be subject to any visitatorial powers other than such as are authorized by law, or vested in the courts of justice or such as shall be or shall have been exercised or directed by Congress, or by either House thereof or by any committee of Congress or of either House duly authorized. The Fed. Res. Board shall, at least once each year, order an examination of each Fed. Res. bank, and upon joint application of 10 member banks the Fed. Res. Board shall order a special examination and report of the condition of any Fed. Res. bank.

SEC. 22. No member bank or any officer, director, or employee thereof shall hereafter make any loan or grant any gratuity to any bank examiner. Any bank officer, director, or employee violating this provision shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be imprisoned not exceeding one year or fined not more than $5,000, or both; and may be fined a further sum equal to the money so loaned or gratuity given. Any examiner accepting a loan or gratuity from any bank examined by him or from an officer, director, or employee thereof shall be deemed guilty of a misde

meanor and shall be imprisoned not exceeding one year or fined not more than $5,000, or both; and may be fined a further sum equal to the money so loaned or gratuity given; and shall forever thereafter be disqualified from holding office as a Nat.-bank examiner. No Nat.-bank examiner shall perform any other service for compensation while holding such office for any bank or officer, director, or employee thereof.

Öther than the usual salary or director's fee paid to any officer, director, employee, or Atty. of a member bank and other than a reasonable fee paid by said bank to such officer, director, employee, or Atty. for services rendered to such bank, no officer, director, employee, or Atty. of a member bank shall be a beneficiary of or receive, directly, or indirectly, any fee, commission gift, or other consideration for or in connection with any transaction or business of the bank: Provided, however, That nothing in this Act contained shall be construed to prohibit a director, officer, employee, or Atty. from receiving the same rate of Int. paid to other depositors for similar deposits made with such bank: And provided further, That notes, drafts, bills of exchange, or other evidences of debt executed or indorsed by directors or Attys. of a member bank may be discounted with such member bank on the same terms and conditions as other notes, drafts, bills of exchange, or evidences of debt upon the affirmative vote or written assent of at least a majority of the members of the board of directors of such member bank. No examiner, public or private, shall disclose the names of borrowers or the collateral for loans of a member bank to other than the proper officers of such bank without first having obtained the express permission in writing from the Comptroller of the Currency, or from the board of directors of such bank, except when ordered to do so by a court of competent jurisdiction, or by direction of the Congress of the U. S., or of either House thereof, or any committee of Congress or of either House duly authorized. Any person violating any provision of this Sec. shall be punished by a fine of not exceeding $5,000 or by imprisonment not exceeding one year, or both.

Except as provided in existing laws, this provision shall not take effect until 60 days after the passage of this Act.

SEC. 23. The stockholders of every Nat. B'k'g. Asso. shall be held individually responsible for all contracts, debts, and engagements of such Asso., each to the amount of his stock therein, at the par value thereof in addition to the amount invested in such stock. The stockholders in any Nat. B'k'g. Asso. who shall have transferred their shares or registered the transfer thereof within 60 days next before the date of the failure of such Asso. to meet its obligations, or with knowledge of such impending failure, shall be liable to the same extent as if they had made no such transfer, to the extent that the subsequent transferee fails to meet such liability; but this provision shall not be construed to affect in any way any recourse which such shareholders might otherwise have against those in whose names such shares are registered at the time of such failure.

LOANS ON FARM LANDS

SEC. 24. Any Nat. B'k'g. Asso. not situated in a central reserve city may make loans secured by improved and unencumbered farm land situated within its Fed. Res. Dist. or within a radius of 100 miles of the place in which such bank is located, irrespective of Dist. lines, and may also make loans secured by improved and unencumbered real estate located within 100 miles of the place in which such bank is located, irrespective of Dist. lines; but no loan made upon the security of such farm land shall be made for a longer time than 5 years, and no loan made upon the security of such real estate as distinguished from farm land shall be made for a longer time than one year nor shall the amount of any such loan, whether upon such farm land or upon such real estate, exceed 50% of the actual value of the property offered as security. Any such bank

may make such loans, whether secured by such farm land or such real estate, in an aggregate sum equal to 25% of its capital and surplus or to of its time deposits and such banks may continue hereafter as heretofore to receive time deposits and to pay Int. on the same.

The Fed. Res. Board shall have power from time to time to add to the list of cities in which Nat. banks shall not be permitted to make loans secured upon real estate in the manner described in this Sec.

That Sec. 25 be, and is hereby, amended to read as follows:

SEC. 25. Any Nat. B'k'g. Asso. possessing a capital and surplus of $1,000,000 or more may file application with the Fed. Res. Board for permission to exercise, upon such conditions and under such regulations as may be prescribed by the said board, either or both of the following powers: 1st. To establish branches in foreign countries or dependencies or insular possessions of the U. S. for the furtherance of the foreign commerce of the U. S., and to act if required to do so as fiscal agents of the U. S.

2d. To invest an amount not exceeding in the aggregate 10% of its paid-in capital stock and surplus in the stock of one or more banks or Corps. chartered or incorporated under the laws of the U. S. or of any State thereof, and principally engaged in international or foreign banking, or banking in a dependency or insular possession of the U. S. either directly or through the agency, ownership, or control of local institutions in foreign countries, or in such dependencies or insular possessions.

Such application shall specify the name and capital of the B'k'g. Asso. filing it, the powers applied for, and the place or places where the B'k'g. operations proposed are to be carried on. The Fed. Res. Board shall have power to approve or to reject such application in whole or in part if for any reason the granting of such application is deemed inexpedient, and shall also have power from time to time to increase or decrease the number of places where such banking operations may be carried on.

Every Nat. B'k'g. Asso. operating foreign branches shall be required to furnish information concerning the condition of such branches to the Comptroller of the Currency upon demand, and every member bank investing in the capital stock of banks or Corps. described under subparagraph 2 of the 1st paragraph of this Sec. shall be required to furnish information concerning the condition of such banks or Corps. to the Fed. Res. Board upon demand, and the Fed. Res. Board may order special examinations of the said branches, banks, or Corps. at such time or times as it may deem best.

Before any Nat. bank shall be permitted to purchase stock in any such Corp. the said Corp. shall enter into an agreement or undertaking with the Fed. Res. Board to restrict its operations or conduct its business in such manner or under such limitations and restrictions as the said board may prescribe for the place or places wherein such business is to be conducted. If at any time the Fed. Res. Board shall ascertain that the regulations prescribed by it are not being complied with, said board is hereby authorized and empowered to institute an investigation of the matter and to send for persons and papers, subpoena witnesses, and administer oaths in order to satisfy itself as to the actual nature of the transactions referred to. Should such investigation result in establishing the failure of the Corp. in question, or of the Nat. bank or banks which may be stockholders therein, to comply with the regulations laid down by the said Fed. Res. Board, such Nat. banks may be required to dispose of stock holdings in the said Corp. upon reasonable notice.

Every such Nat. B'k'g. Asso. shall conduct the accounts of each foreign branch independently of the accounts of other foreign branches established by it and of its home office, and shall at the end of each fiscal period transfer to its general ledger the profit or loss accrued at each branch as a separate item.

Any director or other officer, agent, or employee of any member bank may, with the approval of the Fed. Res. Board, be a director or other

officer, agent, or employee of any such bank or Corp. above mentioned in the capital stock of which such member bank shall have invested as hereinbefore provided, without being subject to the provisions of Sec. 8 of the Act approved October 15, 1914, entitled An Act to supplement existing laws against unlawful restraints and monopolies, and for other purposes.

SEC. 26. All provisions of law inconsistent with or superseded by any of the provisions of this Act are to that extent and to that extent only hereby repealed: Provided, Nothing in this Act contained shall be construed to repeal the parity provision or provisions contained in an Act approved March 14, 1900, entitled "An Act to define and fix the standard of value, to maintain the parity of all forms of money issued or coined by the U. S., to refund the public debt, and for other purposes," and the Secy. of the Treas. may for the purpose of maintaining such parity and to strengthen the gold reserve, borrow gold on the security of U. S. bonds authorized by Sec. 2 of the Act last referred to or for one-year gold notes bearing Int. at a rate of not to exceed 3% per annum, or sell the same if necessary to obtain gold. When the funds of the Treas. on hand justify, he may purchase and retire such outstanding bonds and notes.

SEC. 27. The provisions of the Act of May 30, 1908, authorizing Nat. currency Assos., the issue of additional Nat.-bank circulation, and creating a Nat. Monetary Commission, which expires by limitation under the terms of such Act on the 30th day of June, 1914, are hereby extended to June 30, 1915, and Secs. 5153, 5172, 5191, and 5214 of the Rev. Sts. of the U. S., which were amended by the Act of May 30, 1908, are hereby re-enacted to read as such Secs. read prior to May 30, 1908, subject to such amendments or modifications as are prescribed in this Act: Provided, however, That Sec. 9 of the Act first referred to in this Sec. is hereby amended so as to change the tax rates fixed in said Act by making the portion applicable thereto read as follows:

Nat. B'k'g. Assos. having circulating notes secured otherwise than by bonds of the U. S., shall pay for the first 3 months a tax at the rate of 3% per annum upon the average amount of such of their notes in circulation as are based upon the deposit of such securities, and afterwards an additional tax rate of 1% per annum for each month until a tax of 6% per annum is reached, and thereafter such tax of 6% per annum upon the average amount of such notes: Provided further, That whenever in his judgment he may deem it desirable, the Secy. of the Treas. shall have power to suspend the limitations imposed by Sec. 1 and Sec. 3 of the Act referred to in this Sec., which prescribe that such additional circulation secured otherwise than by bonds of the U. S. shall be issued only to Nat. banks having circulating notes outstanding secured by the deposit of bonds of the U. S. to an amount not less than 40% of the capital stocks of such banks, and to suspend also the conditions and limitations of Sec. 5 of said Act except that no bank shall be permitted to issue circulating notes in excess of 125% of its unimpaired capital and surplus. He shall require each bank and currency Asso. to maintain on deposit in the Treas. of the U. S. a sum in gold sufficient in his judgment for the redemption of such notes, but in no event less than 5%. He may permit Nat. banks, during the period for which such provisions are suspended, to issue additional circulation under the terms and conditions of the Act referred to as herein amended: Provided further, That the Secy. of the Treas., in his discretion, is further authorized to extend the benefits of this Act to all qualified State banks and Tr. Cos., which have joined the Fed. Res. system, or which may contract to join within 15 days after the passage of this Act.

SEC. 28. Sec. 5143 of the Rev. Sts. is hereby amended and re-enacted to read as follows: Any Asso. formed under this title may, by the vote of shareholders owning of its capital stock, reduce its capital to any sum not below the amount required by this title to authorize the formation of Assos.; but no such reduction shall be allowable which will reduce the capital of the Asso. below the amount required for its outstanding circula

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