Hurricanes Rita and Wilma Financial Services Relief Act of 2005

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Hurricanes Rita and Wilma Financial Services Relief Act of 2005 - Expresses the sense of Congress that it is vital that insured depository institutions and insured credit unions continue to provide financial services to consumers displaced or otherwise affected by Hurricane Rita or Wilma, which includes the cashing of federal government assistance and benefit checks.

Urges the Secretary of the Treasury and federal financial regulators to seek to educate insured depository institutions and insured credit unions on the proper application of the published guidance on the cashing of such checks.

Urges the federal financial regulators to continue to work with such institutions and credit unions operating under extraordinary circumstances to facilitate the cashing of such checks.

Requires a federal reserve bank to waive or rebate any transaction fee for wire transfer services that otherwise would be imposed on any insured depository institution or insured credit union that, as of September 24, 2005, or October 22, 2005, was headquartered in a specified qualified disaster area.

Authorizes a federal financial regulator to forbear from taking any required action, on a case-by-case basis, with respect to any undercapitalized insured depository institution or credit union that is not significantly or critically undercapitalized, if the entity meets specified prerequisites, and the reduction in its capital or net worth category is directly attributable to the impact of Hurricane Rita or Hurricane Wilma.

Authorizes a federal financial regulator to permit an insured depository institution or credit union to subtract specified amounts from its total assets in calculating compliance with the applicable leverage limit if it meets specified prerequisites and has an acceptable plan for managing the increase in its total assets and deposits.

Identifies such an insured depository institution or credit union as one that: (1) derives more than 50% of its total deposits from persons who normally reside within, or whose principal place of business is normally within, a qualified disaster area; and (2) was adequately capitalized as of September 24, 2005, or October 22, 2005.

[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4146 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4146

To facilitate recovery from the effects of Hurricane Rita and Hurricane 
 Wilma by providing greater flexibility for, and temporary waivers of 
  certain requirements and fees imposed on, depository institutions, 
credit unions, and Federal regulatory agencies, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 26, 2005

   Mr. Baker (for himself and Ms. Wasserman Schultz) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To facilitate recovery from the effects of Hurricane Rita and Hurricane 
 Wilma by providing greater flexibility for, and temporary waivers of 
  certain requirements and fees imposed on, depository institutions, 
credit unions, and Federal regulatory agencies, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Hurricanes Rita and Wilma Financial 
Services Relief Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act, the following definitions shall apply:
            (1) Appropriate federal banking agency.--The term 
        ``appropriate Federal banking agency'' has the same meaning as 
        in section 3 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act.
            (2) Insured credit union.--The term ``insured credit 
        union'' has the same meaning as in section 101 of the Federal 
        Credit Union Act.
            (3) Insured depository institution.--The term ``insured 
        depository institution'' has the same meaning as in section 3 
        of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act.
            (4) Qualified disaster area.--The term ``qualified disaster 
        area'' means--
                    (A) any area within Louisiana or Texas in which the 
                President, pursuant to section 401 of the Robert T. 
                Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 
                has determined, on or after September 24, 2005, that a 
                major disaster exists due to Hurricane Rita; and
                    (B) any area within Florida in which the President, 
                pursuant to section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford 
                Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, has 
                determined, on or after October 22, 2005, that a major 
                disaster exists due to Hurricane Wilma.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS ON CASHING OF GOVERNMENT CHECKS.

    It is the sense of the Congress that--
            (1) it is vital that insured depository institutions and 
        insured credit unions continue to provide financial services to 
        consumers displaced or otherwise affected by Hurricane Rita or 
        Hurricane Wilma, which includes the cashing of Federal 
        government assistance and benefit checks;
            (2) the Secretary of the Treasury and the Federal financial 
        regulators should seek to educate insured depository 
        institutions and insured credit unions on the proper 
        application of the guidance issued by the Secretary on cashing 
        of Federal government assistance and benefit checks and 
        published in the Federal Register while such guidance is in 
        effect; and
            (3) the Federal financial regulators should continue to 
        work with the insured depository institutions and insured 
        credit unions operating under extraordinary circumstances to 
        facilitate the cashing of Federal government assistance and 
        benefit checks.

SEC. 4. WAIVER OF FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD FEES FOR CERTAIN SERVICES.

    Notwithstanding section 11A of the Federal Reserve Act or any other 
provision of law, during the effective period of this section, a 
Federal reserve bank shall waive or rebate any transaction fee for wire 
transfer services that otherwise would be imposed on any insured 
depository institution or insured credit union that--
            (1) as of September 24, 2005, was headquartered in a 
        qualified disaster area described in section 2(4)(A); or
            (2) as of October 22, 2005, was headquartered in a 
        qualified disaster area described in section 2(4)(B).

SEC. 5. FLEXIBILITY IN CAPITAL AND NET WORTH STANDARDS FOR AFFECTED 
              INSTITUTIONS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding section 38 of the Federal Deposit 
Insurance Act, section 216 of the Federal Credit Union Act, or any 
other provision of Federal law, during the 18-month period beginning on 
the date of enactment of this Act, the appropriate Federal banking 
agency and the National Credit Union Administration may forbear from 
taking any action required under any such section or provision, on a 
case-by-case basis, with respect to any undercapitalized insured 
depository institution or undercapitalized insured credit union that is 
not significantly or critically undercapitalized, if such agency or 
Administration determines that--
            (1) the insured depository institution or insured credit 
        union derives more than 50 percent of its total deposits from 
        persons who normally reside within, or whose principal place of 
        business is normally within, a qualified disaster area;
            (2) the insured depository institution or insured credit 
        union was at least adequately capitalized as of--
                    (A) September 24, 2005, if the qualified disaster 
                area referred to in paragraph (1) with respect to such 
                depository institution or credit union is the qualified 
                disaster area described in section 2(4)(A); or
                    (B) October 22, 2005, if the qualified disaster 
                area referred to in paragraph (1) with respect to such 
                depository institution or credit union is the qualified 
                disaster area described in section 2(4)(B).
            (3) the reduction in the capital or net worth category of 
        the insured depository institution or insured credit union is 
        directly attributable to the impact of Hurricane Rita or 
        Hurricane Wilma, as applicable; and
            (4) forbearance from any such action--
                    (A) would facilitate the recovery of the insured 
                depository institution or insured credit union from the 
                disaster in accordance with a recovery plan or a 
                capital or net worth restoration plan established by 
                such depository institution or credit union; and
                    (B) would be consistent with safe and sound 
                practices.
    (b) Capital and Net Worth Categories Defined.--For purposes of this 
section, the terms relating to capital categories for insured 
depository institutions have the same meaning as in section 38(b)(1) of 
the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the terms relating to net worth 
categories for insured credit unions have the same meaning as in 
section 216(c)(1) of the Federal Credit Union Act.

SEC. 6. DEPOSIT OF INSURANCE PROCEEDS.

    (a) In General.--The appropriate Federal banking agency and the 
National Credit Union Administration may, by order, permit an insured 
depository institution or insured credit union, during the 18-month 
period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, to subtract from 
such institution's or credit union's total assets in calculating 
compliance with the leverage limit, applicable under section 38 of the 
Federal Deposit Insurance Act or section 216(c)(2) of the Federal 
Credit Union Act with respect to such insured depository institution or 
insured credit union, an amount not exceeding the qualifying amount 
attributable to insurance proceeds, if the agency or Administration 
determines that--
            (1) such institution or credit union--
                    (A) derives more than 50 percent of its total 
                deposits from persons who normally reside within, or 
                whose principal place of business is normally within, a 
                qualified disaster area;
                    (B) was at least adequately capitalized as of--
                            (i) September 24, 2005, if the qualified 
                        disaster area referred to in subparagraph (A) 
                        with respect to such depository institution or 
                        credit union is the qualified disaster area 
                        described in section 2(4)(A);
                            (ii) October 22, 2005, if the qualified 
                        disaster area referred to in subparagraph (A) 
                        with respect to such depository institution or 
                        credit union is the qualified disaster area 
                        described in section 2(4)(B); and
                    (C) has an acceptable plan for managing the 
                increase in its total assets and total deposits; and
            (2) the subtraction is consistent with the purpose of 
        section 38 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, in the case of 
        an insured depository institution, and section 216 of the 
        Federal Credit Union Act, in the case of an insured credit 
        union.
    (b) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the following 
definitions shall apply:
            (1) Leverage limit.--The term ``leverage limit''--
                    (A) with respect to an insured depository 
                institution, has the same meaning as in section 38 of 
                the Federal Deposit Insurance Act; and
                    (B) with respect to an insured credit union, means 
                the net worth ratio that corresponds to the leverage 
                limit, as established in accordance with section 
                216(c)(2).
            (2) Qualifying amount attributable to insurance proceeds.--
        The term ``qualifying amount attributable to insurance 
        proceeds'' means the amount (if any) by which the institution's 
        or credit union's total assets exceed the institution's or 
        credit union's average total assets during the calendar quarter 
        ending before the date of the earliest Presidential 
        determination referred to in section 2(4), because of the 
        deposit of insurance payments or governmental assistance, 
        including government disaster relief payments, made with 
        respect to damage caused by, or other costs resulting from, the 
        major disaster within a qualified disaster area.

SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE PERIOD.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in sections 3(2), 5(a), and 
6(a) and subject to subsection (b), the provisions of this Act shall 
not apply after the end of the 180-day period beginning on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.
    (b) 30-Day Extension Authorized.--With respect to the provisions of 
section 4, the 180-day period referred to in subsection (a) may be 
extended for 1 additional 30-day period upon a determination by the 
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System that such extension is 
appropriate to achieve the purposes of this Act.
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