The Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the California Department of Business Oversight recognize the serious impact of the California wildfires on the customers, members, and operations of many financial institutions and will provide appropriate regulatory assistance to affected institutions subject to their supervision. More... The agencies encourage institutions operating in the affected areas to meet the financial services needs of their communities. For more information, see the press release and related information on the Board’s public website: www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/bcreg20181115b.htm.

The Board is amending Regulation D (Reserve Requirements of Depository Institutions) to reflect the annual indexing of the reserve requirement exemption amount and the low reserve tranche for 2019. More... The Regulation D amendments set the amount of total reservable liabilities of each depository institution that is subject to a 0 percent reserve requirement in 2019 at $16.3 million (up from 16.0 million in 2018). This amount is known as the reserve requirement exemption amount. The Regulation D amendments also set the amount of net transaction accounts at each depository institution (over the reserve requirement exemption amount) that is subject to a 3 percent reserve requirement in 2019 at $124.2 million (up from $122.3 million in 2018). This amount is known as the low reserve tranche. The adjustments to both of these amounts are derived using statutory formulas specified in the Federal Reserve Act.

The Board is also announcing changes in two other amounts, the nonexempt deposit cutoff level and the reduced reporting limit, that are used to determine the frequency at which depository institutions must submit deposit reports. More... The final rule is effective November 29, 2018 (Regulation D, Docket R-1626) and was published in the Federal Register on October 30, 2018.

The Board, the Farm Credit Administration, the FDIC, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and the OCC are adopting amendments to their rules establishing minimum margin requirements for registered swap dealers, major swap participants, security-based swap dealers, and major security-based swap participants (swap margin rule). More... These amendments conform the swap margin rule to rules recently adopted by the Board, the FDIC, and the OCC that impose restrictions on certain qualified financial contracts, including certain non-cleared swaps subject to the swap margin rule (the QFC rules). Specifically, the final amendments to the swap margin rule conform the definition of “eligible master netting agreement” to the definition of “qualifying master netting agreement” in the QFC rules. The amendment to the swap margin rule ensures that netting agreements of firms subject to the swap margin rule are not excluded from the definition of “eligible master netting agreement” based solely on their compliance with the QFC rules. The amendment also ensures that margin amounts required for non-cleared swaps covered by agreements that otherwise constitute eligible master netting agreements can continue to be calculated on a net portfolio basis, notwithstanding changes to those agreements that will be made in some instances by firms revising their netting agreements to achieve compliance with the QFC rules. In addition, for any non-cleared swaps that were “entered into” before the compliance dates of the swap margin rules—and which are accordingly grandfathered from application of the rule’s margin requirements—the amendments state that any changes to netting agreements that are required to conform to the QFC rules will not render grandfathered swaps covered by that netting agreement as “new” swaps subject to the swap margin rule. The final rule is effective November 9, 2018 (Regulation KK, Docket R-1596) and was published in the Federal Register on October 10, 2018.

The Board, the FDIC, and the OCC (collectively, “the agencies”) issued on October 16, 2018, Frequently Asked Questions on the Appraisal Regulations and the Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines in response to questions raised regarding the agencies’ appraisal regulations and guidance. More... These frequently asked questions (FAQs) assemble previously communicated interpretations of the agencies’ appraisal regulations and guidelines as well as provide additional examples for a supervised institution’s appraisal program, including the preparation of evaluations. Institutions and examiners should consider these FAQs in the context of existing regulations and guidance as these FAQs do not introduce new policy (Guidance, Real Estate Appraisal at 3-1577.21).

As part of its overall mission, the Federal Reserve has a fundamental interest in ensuring there is a safe and robust U.S. payment system, including a settlement infrastructure on which the private sector can provide innovative faster payment services that serve the broad public interest. More... Accordingly, the Board is seeking input on potential actions that the Federal Reserve could take to promote ubiquitous, safe, and efficient faster payments in the United States by facilitating real-time interbank settlement of faster payments. While the Board is not committing to any specific actions, potential actions include the Federal Reserve Banks developing a service for 24x7x365 real-time interbank settlement of faster payments; and a liquidity management tool that would enable transfers between Federal Reserve accounts on a 24x7x365 basis to support services for real-time interbank settlement of faster payments, whether those services are provided by the private sector or the Federal Reserve Banks. The Board is seeking input on whether these actions, separately or in combination, or alternative approaches, would help achieve ubiquitous, nationwide access to safe and efficient faster payments. Comments on the potential actions must be received by December 14, 2018 (Docket OP-1625).

The Board is proposing to revise and expand its equal employment opportunity regulation to adopt recent changes the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission had made to its rules. More... The Board’s proposed rule is intended to provide Board employees, applicants for employment, and others with the same substantive and procedural rights generally guaranteed to others under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Pay Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, and the Rehabilitation Act and thus to comply with the spirit of those laws. The Board’s proposed rule also clarifies provisions related to Board employees’ right to bring a claim before the Merit System Protection Board and the Federal Labor Relations Board. Comments on this notice of proposed rulemaking must be received by December 17, 2018 (Docket R-1630).

The Board, the FDIC, and the OCC are inviting comment on a proposed rule that would implement section 205 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act by expanding the eligibility to file the agencies’ most streamlined report of condition, the FFIEC 051 Call Report, to include certain insured depository institutions with less than $5 billion in total consolidated assets that meet other criteria, and establishing reduced reporting on the FFIEC 051 Call Report for the first and third reports of condition for a year. More... The Board and the OCC also are proposing similar reduced reporting for certain uninsured institutions that they supervise with less than $5 billion in total consolidated assets that otherwise meet the same criteria. Comments on this notice of proposed rulemaking must be received by January 18, 2019 (Docket R-1618).