Interpretations and Actions: February 2005

Vol. 18, No. 2

Interpretive Letters

Letter No.	Topic
1013	Letter concludes that Bank may buy and sell, for its own account, exchange-traded units of beneficial interest in gold. 01/07/2005
1014	Letter concludes that it is legally permissible for national banks to become members of the Government Securities Division of the Fixed Income Clearing Corporation and participate in its loss allocation system. 01/10/2005
1015	Letter concludes that part 34 and the OCC's past preemption opinions preempt section 24-4.5-3-402 of the Indiana Code when originating subordinate lien mortgages. 01/11/2005
1016	Letter concludes that neither 12 CFR 34.4 nor the National Bank Act preempts application of the state laws at issue here to loans simply because they were purchased and held by national banks acting as trustees in connection with issuance of mortgage-backed securities. 01/14/2005
1017	Letter concludes that interest-bearing negotiable order of withdrawal ("NOW") accounts may be established at national banks for the purpose of receiving and holding qualified trust funds deposited under the Pennsylvania Supreme Court's Interest on Trusts Account Program for the Minor Judiciary. 01/28/2005

Community Development Investment Letters

Letter No.	Topic
2004-2	Transitional Housing for Homeless – A national bank may invest, through its subsidiary community development corporation, in the acquisition and rehabilitation of a single-family dwelling to provide transitional housing for the homeless. The CDC will own and manage the property and residents of the facility will receive case management support from an established nonprofit social services provider. 04/26/2004
2004-3	2nd Trust Deed Permanent Loans – A national bank may invest, as a limited partner, in a community development entity formed under the federal New Markets Tax Credit program which acquires real estate loan made to qualified, active, low-income community businesses. The specific investment fund invests in 2nd trust deed permanent loans on retail, office, commercial, and industrial projects. 11/22/2004
2004-4	Bridge Loans for Infrastructure Construction – A national bank's subsidiary community development corporation may provide bridge loans to low- and moderate-individuals and individuals living in low- and moderate-income areas to finance in the installation of water and sewer infrastructure improvements. 12/27/2004

Approvals with Conditions Enforceable under 12 U.S.C. 1818

Letter No.	Topic
673	Application by Eagle National Bank, Doral, Florida, to establish a domestic branch in the vicinity of Northwest 116 Way and Northwest 102 Roads, Medley, Florida. (Control Number 2004 SO 05 0274) 01/26/2005

Charters with Standard Conditions

Letter No.	Topic
674	Application to establish a new national bank with the title of Legacy National Bank, Springdale, Arkansas. (Control Number 2004 SO 01 0020), 01/26/2005
675	Application to establish a new national bank with the title of Excel National Bank, Beverly Hills, California. (Control Number 2003 WE 01 0010), 01/27/2005

Final Enforcement Actions

Enclosed is a copy of the OCC's news release number 2005-16, announcing the availability of enforcement actions. Copies of the final actions are available by writing to the OCC, Public Information Room, Mail Stop 1-5, Washington, D.C. 20219. When ordering, specify the appropriate enforcement action number.

Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Performance Evaluations

Enclosed is a list of CRA performance evaluations that became public during the period of January 15, 2004 through February 14, 2005.

PLEASE NOTE: Interpretive Letters and No-Objection Letters reflect the views of the Comptroller's legal staff. Corporate Decisions, CRA Decisions and Conditional Approvals are from the office of Licensing. The Community Development Investment Letters are from the office of Community Affairs. The list of CRA Ratings is from the Communications Division. For copies of the CRA evaluations, you may either contact the bank directly, or you may write to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in any of three ways: by mail to the OCC, Attn: Public Information Room, Mail Stop 1-5, Washington, D.C. 20219; by fax to (202) 874-4448; or by email to FOIA-PA@occ.treas.gov. You may also write to the OCC for copies of enforcement actions and charters with standard conditions.

Members of the news media are encouraged to cite the letter number when reporting or summarizing documents from this package. This helps us to process single requests based upon your citation in a timelier manner.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency publishes INTERPRETATIONS AND ACTIONS monthly. Subscriptions are available at a rate of $175 per year by writing to the Comptroller of the Currency, ATTN: Accounts Receivable, Mail Stop 4-8, 250 E Street, S.W., Washington, DC 20219. Prepayment is requested. Suggestions, comments or questions may be sent to Jacqueline J. England, Comptroller of the Currency, Communications Division, Mail Stop 3-2, Washington, DC 20219.