Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

The Federal Reserve Board has approved amendments to Appendix A of Regulation CC that reflect the restructuring of the Federal Reserve's check processing operations in the Sixth and Eighth Districts, and provided notice relating to future changes to Appendix A.

Appendix A provides a routing symbol guide that helps depository institutions determine the maximum permissible hold periods for most deposited checks.  As of July 19, 2008, the Memphis branch office of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis no longer will process checks, and banks currently served by that office will be reassigned to the head office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.  To ensure that the information in Appendix A accurately describes the structure of check processing operations within the Federal Reserve System, the final rule deletes the reference in Appendix A to the Memphis branch office of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and reassigns the routing numbers listed thereunder to the head office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.  To coincide with the effective date of the underlying check processing changes, the amendments are effective July 19, 2008.  As a result of these changes, some checks deposited in the affected regions that currently are nonlocal checks will become local checks that are subject to shorter permissible hold periods.

The attachment also provides notice that, as they announced on March 31, 2008, the Federal Reserve Banks are accelerating their planned reductions in the number of locations at which they process checks.  Whereas they had previously announced that the transitions would take place by early 2011, the Reserve Banks now plan to cease check processing operations at all of their check processing offices except four--Philadelphia, Cleveland, Atlanta, and Dallas--by early 2010.  The Board intends to publish each related amendment to Appendix A approximately 60 days prior to the effective date of the amendment to give affected banks ample time to make necessary changes.

The Board's notice is attached.