Title 31—Money and Finance: Treasury--Volume 1
PART 309—ISSUE AND SALE OF TREASURY BILLS
§ 309.1   Authority for issue and sale.
The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized by the Second Liberty Bond Act, as amended, to issue Treasury bills of the United States on an interest-bearing basis, on a discount basis, or on a combination interest-bearing and discount basis, at such price or prices and with interest computed in such manner and payable at such time or times as he may prescribe; and to fix the form, terms, and conditions thereof, and to offer them for sale on a competitive or other basis, under such regulations and upon such terms and conditions as he may prescribe. Pursuant to said authorization, the Secretary of the Treasury may, from time to time, by public notice, offer Treasury bills for sale, and invite tenders therefor, through the Federal Reserve Banks and branches and through the Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Fiscal Service. The Treasury bills so offered, and the tenders made, will be subject to the terms and conditions and to the general rules and regulations herein set forth, except as they may be modified in the public notices issued by the Secretary of the Treasury in connection with particular offerings. 1
1 Accordingly, these regulations do not constitute a specific offering of Treasury bills.
§ 309.2   Description of Treasury bills (General).
Treasury bills are bearer obligations of the United States promising to pay a specified amount on a specified date. They will be payable at maturity upon presentation to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Washington, DC 20226, or to any Federal Reserve Bank or branch. Treasury bills are issued only by Federal Reserve Banks and branches and the Bureau of the Fiscal Service pursuant to tenders accepted by the Secretary of the Treasury, and shall not be valid unless the issue date and the maturity date are entered thereon. Treasury bills bearing the same issue date and the same maturity date shall constitute a series.
§ 309.3   Denominations and exchange.
Treasury bills will be issued in denominations (maturity value) of $10,000, $15,000, $50,000, $100,000, $500,000, and $1,000,000. Exchanges from higher to lower and lower to higher denominations of the same series (bearing the same issue and maturity dates) will be permitted at Federal Reserve Banks and branches and at the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Washington, DC 20226. Insofar as applicable, the general regulations of the Treasury Department governing transactions in bonds and notes will govern transactions in Treasury bills.
§ 309.4   Taxation.
The income derived from Treasury bills, whether interest or gain from the sale or other disposition of the bills, shall not have any exemption, as such, and loss from the sale or other disposition of Treasury bills shall not have any special treatment, as such, under the Internal Revenue Code, or laws amendatory or supplementary thereto. The bills shall be subject to estate, inheritance, gift or other excise taxes, whether Federal or State, but shall be exempt from all taxation now or hereafter imposed on the principal or interest thereof by any State, or any of the possessions of the United States, or by any local taxing authority. For purposes of taxation the amount of discount at which Treasury bills are originally sold by the United States shall be considered to be interest.
§ 309.5   Acceptance of Treasury bills for various purposes.
(a) Acceptable as security for public deposits. Treasury bills will be acceptable at maturity value to secure deposits of public monies.
(b) Acceptable in payment of taxes. The Secretary of the Treasury, in his discretion, when inviting tenders for Treasury bills, may provide that Treasury bills of any series will be acceptable at maturity value, whether at or before maturity, under such rules and regulations as he shall prescribe or approve, in payment of income taxes payable under the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. Treasury bills which by the terms of their issue are acceptable in payment of income taxes may be surrendered to any Federal Reserve Bank or Branch, acting as fiscal agent of the United States, or to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Washington, DC 20226, 15 days or less before the date on which the taxes become due.
(1) In the case of payments of corporation income taxes (including payments of estimates) for taxable years ending on or after December 31, 1967, the bills shall be accompanied by a preinscribed Form 503, Federal Tax Deposit, Corporation Income Taxes, on which the face amount of the bills being surrendered should be entered in the space provided for the amount of the tax deposit. The office receiving the bills and Form 503 will acknowledge receipt of the bills to the owner corporation and effect the tax deposit on the date on which the taxes become due. Accordingly, in these cases, it will no longer be necessary to submit receipts for Treasury bills to the Internal Revenue Service with the corporation's declaration or tax return.
(2) In the case of payments of all other income taxes the office receiving the bills will issue receipts (in duplicate) to the owners. The original of the receipt shall be submitted, by the owner, in lieu of the bills, together with the tax return, to the District Director, Internal Revenue Service.
(c) Discounting by Federal Reserve Bank of notes secured by Treasury bills. Notes securied by Treasury bills are eligible for discount or rediscount at Federal Reserve Banks as provided under the provisions of section 13 of the Federal Reserve Act, as are notes securied by bonds and notes of the United States.
(d) Acceptable in connection with foreign obligations held by United States. Treasury bills will be acceptable at maturity, but not before, in payment of interest or of principal on account of obligations of foreign governments held by the United States.
§ 309.6   Public notice of offering.
When Treasury bills are to be offered, tenders therefor will be invited through public notice given by the Secretary of the Treasury. Such public notices may be issued by the Secretary of the Treasury in the name of “the Treasury Department” with the same force and effect as if issued in the name of the Secretary of the Treasury. In such notice there will be set forth the amount of Treasury bills for which tenders are then invited, the date of issue, the date or dates when such bills will become due and payable, the date and closing hour for the receipt of tenders at the Federal Reserve Banks and branches and at the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Washington, DC 20226, and the date on which payment for accepted tenders must be made or completed.
§ 309.7   Tenders; submission through Federal Reserve Banks and branches and to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service.
Tenders in response to any such public notice will be received at the Federal Reserve Banks, or Branches thereof and at the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Washington, DC 20226, and unless received before the time fixed for closing will be disregarded. Each tender must be for a minimum amount of $10,000. Tenders over $10,000 must be in multiples of $5,000 (maturity value). In the case of competitive tenders the price or prices offered by the bidder for the amount or amounts (at maturity value) applied for must be stated, and must be expressed on the basis of 100, with not more than three decimals, e.g., 99.925. Fractions may not be used.
§ 309.8   Tenders; when cash deposit is required.
Tenders should be submitted on the printed forms and forwarded in the special envelopes which will be supplied on application to any Federal Reserve Bank, or Branch or to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Washington, DC 20226. If a special envelope is not available, the inscription “Tender for Treasury Bills” should be placed on the envelope used. The instructions set forth in the public notice announcing the offering should be observed with respect to the submission of tenders. Banking institutions generally may submit tenders for account of customers provided the names of the customers are set forth in such tenders. Others than banking institutions, will not be permitted to submit tenders except for their own account. Tenders from incorporated banks and trust companies, and from responsible and recognized dealers in investment securities will be received without deposit. Tenders from all others must be accompanied by a payment of such percent of the face amount of the Treasury bills applied for as the Secretary of the Treasury may from time to time prescribe: Provided, however, That such deposit will not be required if the tender is accompanied by an express guaranty of payment in full by an incorporated bank or trust company. Forfeiture of the prescribed payment may be declared by the Secretary of the Treasury, if payment is not completed, in the case of accepted tenders, on the prescribed date.
§ 309.9   Tenders; acceptance by the Secretary of the Treasury.
At the time fixed for closing, as specified in the public notice, all tenders received by the Federal Reserve Banks and Branches and by the Bureau of the Fiscal Service will be opened. The Secretary of the Treasury will determine the acceptable prices offered and will make public announcement thereof those submitting tenders will be advised of the acceptance or rejection thereof, and payment on accepted tenders must be made or completed on the date specified in the public notice.
§ 309.10   Tenders; reservation of right to reject.
In considering the acceptance of tenders, the highest prices offered will be accepted in full down to the amount required, and if the same price appears in two or more tenders and it is necessary to accept only a part of the amount offered at such price, the amount accepted at such price will be prorated in accordance with the respective amounts applied for. However, the Secretary of the Treasury expressly reserves the right on any occasion to accept non-competitive tenders entered in accordance with specific offerings, to reject any or all tenders or parts of tenders, and to award less than the amount applied for; and any action he may take in any such respect or respects shall be final.
§ 309.11   Tenders; payment of accepted tenders.
Settlement for accepted tenders in accordance with the bids must be made or completed at the appropriate Federal Reserve Bank or branch or at the Bureau of the Fiscal Service in cash or other immediately available funds on or before the date specified, except that the Secretary of the Treasury, in his discretion, when inviting tenders for Treasury bills, may provide:
(a) That any qualified depositary may make such settlement by credit, on behalf of itself and its customers, up to any amount for which it shall be qualified in excess of existing deposits, when so notified by the Federal Reserve Bank of its District or
(b) That such settlement may be made in maturing Treasury bills accepted in exchange.
§ 309.12   Relief on account of loss, theft or destruction, etc.
(a) Relief on account of the loss, theft, destruction, mutilation or defacement of Treasury bills may be given only under the authority of, and subject to the conditions set forth in section 8 of the act of July 8, 1937 (50 Stat. 481), as amended (31 U.S.C. 738a) and the regulations pursuant thereto in (Treasury Department Circular No. 300 insofar as applicable.
(b) In case of the loss, theft, destruction, mutilation or defacement of Treasury bills, immediate advice, with a full description of the bill or bills involved, should be sent to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Division of Securities Operations, Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC 20226, either direct or though any Federal Reserve Bank or Branch, and, if relief under the statutes may be given, instructions and necessary blank forms will be furnished.
§ 309.13   Functions of Federal Reserve Banks.
Federal Reserve Banks and Branches, as fiscal agents of the United States, are authorized to perform all such acts as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this circular and of any public notice or notices issued in connection with any offering of Treasury bills.
§ 309.14   Reservation as to terms of circular.
The Secretary of the Treasury reserves the right further to amend, supplement, revise or withdraw all or any of the provisions of this circular at any time, or from time to time.