Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 27 / Tuesday, February 10, 2004 / Notices 6291

Synopsis 

The Joint Conference was convened in 

1999 as part of the Commission’s 

ongoing efforts to ensure that advanced 

services are deployed as rapidly as 

possible to all Americans. It serves as a 

forum for an ongoing dialogue between 

the Commission, state regulators, and 

local and regional entities regarding the 

deployment of advanced 

telecommunications capabilities, and is 

comprised of commissioners from state 

public utilities commissions and from 

the Federal Communications 

Commission. 

The Joint Conference is responsible 

for monitoring and collecting data 

regarding the practices of carriers as 

they deploy advanced services 

throughout the nation. It has also held 

a series of field hearings across the 

country and has conducted Broadband 

Summits to examine how best to 

accelerate the deployment of affordable 

advanced services to rural and other 

under-served telecommunications users. 

Through these and other activities, the 

Joint Conference has worked 

cooperatively to promote the 

widespread deployment of advanced 

services. 

To help the Joint Conference achieve 

its broad mandate, and pursuant to 

section 410(b) of the Communications 

Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. 410(b), the Order

appoints Commissioner Susan P. 

Kennedy of the California Public 

Utilities Commission, Thomas L. Welch, 

Chairman of the Maine Public Utilities 

Commission, and Deborah Tate, 

Chairman of the Tennessee Regulatory 

Authority, to serve on the Federal-State 

Joint Conference on Advanced 

Telecommunications Services. The 

Order also appoints Bob Rowe, 

Chairman of the Montana Public Service 

Commission, formerly a non-voting 

member, to serve as a full member of the 

Federal-State Joint Conference on 

Advanced Telecommunications 

Services. 

The number of members on the Joint 

Conference has been increased in order 

to augment diversity in Joint Conference 

membership and thereby widen the 

range of viewpoints and expertise. This 

is critical to informed decision-making 

as federal and state regulators join forces 

to encourage the deployment of 

advanced telecommunications services. 

Increasing the size of the Joint 

Conference is also consistent with the 

approach the Commission has taken 

with other joint boards, where the 

complexity and magnitude of the 

board’s charter warranted a relatively 

large membership in order to address 

the broad range of issues presented. 

The Order requires that a copy of all 

filings in CC Docket 99–294 be served 

on each of the following members of the 

Joint Conference at the following 

addresses: 

• The Honorable Michael K. Powell, 

FCC Chairman, Federal 

Communications Commission, 445 12th 

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554. 

• The Honorable Kevin J. Martin, 

Commissioner, Chair, Federal State Joint 

Conference on Advanced 

Telecommunications Services, Federal 

Communications Commission, 445 12th 

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554.

• The Honorable Kathleen Q. 

Abernathy, Commissioner, Federal 

Communications Commission, 445 12th 

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554. 

• The Honorable Michael J. Copps, 

Commissioner, Federal 

Communications Commission, 445 12th 

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554. 

• The Honorable Jonathan S. 

Adelstein, Commissioner, Federal 

Communications Commission, 445 12th 

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554. 

• The Honorable G. Nanette 

Thompson, Commissioner, Regulatory 

Commission of Alaska, 701 West Eight 

Avenue, Suite 300, Anchorage, Alaska 

99501–3469. 

• The Honorable Irma Muse Dixon, 

Commissioner, Louisiana Public Service 

Commission, Office of the 

Commissioner, District 3—New Orleans, 

1600 Canal Street, Suite 1400, New 

Orleans, Louisiana 70112. 

• The Honorable Jo Anne Sanford, 

Chair, North Carolina Utilities 

Commission, 430 North Salisbury 

Street, Dobbs Building, Raleigh, NC 

27603–5918. 

• The Honorable Bob Rowe, 

Chairman, Montana Public Service 

Commission, 1701 Prospect Avenue, PO 

Box 20261, Helena, MT 59620–2601. 

• The Honorable Susan P. Kennedy, 

Commissioner, California Public 

Utilities Commission, 505 Van Ness 

Ave., San Francisco, CA 94102. 

• The Honorable Thomas L. Welch, 

Chairman, Maine Public Utilities 

Commission, 242 State Street, 18 State 

House Station, Augusta, ME 04333–

0018. 

• The Honorable Deborah T. Tate, 

Chairman, Tennessee Regulatory 

Authority, 460 James Robertson 

Parkway, Nashville, Tennessee 37243. 

Ordering Clauses 

Pursuant to section 410(b) of the 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 410(b), the 

Honorable Susan P. Kennedy, 

Commissioner of the California Public 

Utilities Commission, the Honorable 

Thomas L. Welch, Chairman of the 

Maine Public Utilities Commission, and 

Deborah Tate, Chairman of the 

Tennessee Regulatory Authority, are 

appointed to the Federal-State Joint 

Conference on Advanced 

Telecommunications Services. 

Pursuant to section 410(b) of the 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 410(b), the 

Honorable Bob Rowe, Chairman of the 

Montana Public Service Commission, 

formerly a non-voting member, is 

appointed as a full member to the 

Federal-State Joint Conference on 

Advanced Telecommunications 

Services.

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene H. Dortch, 

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 04–2831 Filed 2–9–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

Formations of, Acquisitions by, and 

Mergers of Bank Holding Companies

The companies listed in this notice 

have applied to the Board for approval, 

pursuant to the Bank Holding Company 

Act of 1956 (12 U.S.C. 1841 et seq.) 

(BHC Act), Regulation Y (12 CFR Part 

225), and all other applicable statutes 

and regulations to become a bank 

holding company and/or to acquire the 

assets or the ownership of, control of, or 

the power to vote shares of a bank or 

bank holding company and all of the 

banks and nonbanking companies 

owned by the bank holding company, 

including the companies listed below.

The applications listed below, as well 

as other related filings required by the 

Board, are available for immediate 

inspection at the Federal Reserve Bank 

indicated. The application also will be 

available for inspection at the offices of 

the Board of Governors. Interested 

persons may express their views in 

writing on the standards enumerated in 

the BHC Act (12 U.S.C. 1842(c)). If the 

proposal also involves the acquisition of 

a nonbanking company, the review also 

includes whether the acquisition of the 

nonbanking company complies with the 

standards in section 4 of the BHC Act 

(12 U.S.C. 1843). Unless otherwise 

noted, nonbanking activities will be 

conducted throughout the United States. 

Additional information on all bank 

holding companies may be obtained 

from the National Information Center 

website at www.ffiec.gov/nic/.

Unless otherwise noted, comments 

regarding each of these applications 

must be received at the Reserve Bank 

6292 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 27 / Tuesday, February 10, 2004 / Notices 

1Copies of the Minutes of the Federal Open 

Market Committee meeting on December 9, 2003, 

which includes the domestic policy directive issued 

at the meeting, are available upon request to the 

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 

Washington, DC 20551. The minutes are published 

in the Federal Reserve Bulletin and in the Board’s 

annual report.

1Fedwire is a registered servicemark of the 

Federal Reserve Banks.

2The Reserve Banks have the ability to monitor 

an entity’s account for certain payment types in real 

time and reject those payments that would create, 

or increase, a daylight overdraft in the entity’s 

account. These payment types include Fedwire 

funds transfers, National Settlement Service 

transactions, and certain automated clearing house 

transactions.

indicated or the offices of the Board of 

Governors not later than March 5, 2004.

A. Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

(W. Arthur Tribble, Vice President) 2200 

North Pearl Street, Dallas, Texas 75201–

2272:

1. Tradition Bancshares, Inc., 

Houston, Texas; to acquire up to 100 

percent of the voting shares of Katy 

Bank, N.A., Katy, Texas.

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 

System, February 4, 2004.

Robert deV. Frierson,

Deputy Secretary of the Board.

[FR Doc. 04–2772 Filed 2–9–04; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6210–01–S

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

Federal Open Market Committee; 

Domestic Policy Directive of December 

9, 2003

In accordance with § 271.25 of its 

rules regarding availability of 

information (12 CFR part 271), there is 

set forth below the domestic policy 

directive issued by the Federal Open 

Market Committee at its meeting held 

on December 9, 2003.1

The Federal Open Market Committee 

seeks monetary and financial conditions 

that will foster price stability and 

promote sustainable growth in output. 

To further its long–run objectives, the 

Committee in the immediate future 

seeks conditions in reserve markets 

consistent with maintaining the federal 

funds rate at an average of around 1 

percent.

By order of the Federal Open Market 

Committee, February 3, 2004.

Vincent R. Reinhart,

Secretary, Federal Open Market Committee.

[FR Doc. E4–239 Field 2–9–04; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6210–01–S

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

[Docket No. OP–1182] 

Policy Statement on Payments System 

Risk

AGENCY: Board of Governors of the 

Federal Reserve System.

ACTION: Notice and request for comment.

SUMMARY: The Board is giving notice 

that it intends to adopt two changes to 

its Policy Statement on Payments 

System Risk (PSR policy). First, the 

Board intends to modify the daylight 

overdraft measurement rules (‘‘posting 

rules’’) for interest and redemption 

payments on securities issued by 

entities for which the Reserve Banks act 

as fiscal agents but whose securities are 

not obligations of, or guaranteed by, the 

United States—that is, securities issued 

by government-sponsored enterprises 

(GSEs) and certain international 

organizations. The planned 

modification would revise the Board’s 

PSR policy to specify that the Reserve 

Banks will release interest and 

redemption payments on the Fedwire-

eligible securities issued by a GSE or 

international organization only when 

the issuer’s Federal Reserve account 

contains funds equal to or in excess of 

the amount of the interest and 

redemption payments to be made.1 The 

Board requests comment on how best to 

implement this policy change in order 

to promote a smooth market adjustment.

Second, the Board intends to align the 

PSR policy’s treatment of the general 

corporate account activity (activity other 

than interest and redemption payments) 

of GSEs and certain international 

organizations with the treatment of 

account activity of other account 

holders that do not have regular access 

to the Federal Reserve’s discount 

window. Such treatment includes 

strongly discouraging daylight 

overdrafts and applying a penalty fee to 

daylight overdrafts that nonetheless 

result from these entities’ general 

corporate payment activity.

DATES: Comments must be received by 

April 16, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Comments should refer to 

Docket No. OP–1182 and may be mailed 

to Jennifer J. Johnson, Secretary, Board 

of Governors of the Federal Reserve 

System, 20th Street and Constitution 

Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20551. 

Please consider submitting your 

comments through the Board’s Web site 

at www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/

foia/ProposedRegs.cfm, by e-mail to 

regs.comments@federalreserve.gov, or 

by fax to the Office of the Secretary at 

202/452–3819 or 202/452–3102. Rules 

proposed by the Board and other federal 

agencies may also be viewed and 

commented on at www.regulations.gov. 

All public comments are available 

from the Board’s Web site at 

www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/

foia/ProposedRegs.cfm as submitted, 

except as necessary for technical 

reasons. Accordingly, your comments 

will not be edited to remove any 

identifying or contact information. 

Public comments may also be viewed 

electronically or in paper in Room MP–

500 of the Board’s Martin Building (20th 

and C Streets, NW.) between 9 a.m. and 

5 p.m. on weekdays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul 

Bettge, Associate Director (202/452–

3174), Stacy Coleman, Manager (202/

452–2934), or Connie Horsley, Senior 

Financial Services Analyst (202/452–

5239), Division of Reserve Bank 

Operations and Payment Systems; for 

the hearing impaired only: 

Telecommunications Device for the 

Deaf, Dorothea Thompson (202/452–

3544).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

A. Foundation of the PSR Policy 

In 1985, the Board adopted a policy 

to reduce the risks that payment systems 

present to the Federal Reserve Banks, to 

the banking system, and to other sectors 

of the economy (50 FR 21120, May 22, 

1985). An integral component of this 

PSR policy is managing the Federal 

Reserve’s direct credit risk by 

controlling institutions’ use of Federal 

Reserve intraday credit, commonly 

referred to as ‘‘daylight credit’’ or 

‘‘daylight overdrafts.’’ A daylight 

overdraft occurs when an account 

holder’s Federal Reserve account is in a 

negative position during the business 

day. The PSR policy requires all 

depository institutions incurring 

daylight overdrafts in their Federal 

Reserve accounts to establish a 

maximum limit, or net debit cap, on 

those overdrafts. In addition, a Reserve 

Bank may apply other risk controls to an 

account holder’s payment activity if the 

account holder incurs daylight 

overdrafts in violation of the PSR policy 

or if the Reserve Bank believes that the 

account holder poses credit risk in 

excess of what the Reserve Bank 

determines to be prudent. Under these 

circumstances, a Reserve Bank may 

place real-time controls on the account 

holder’s payment activity, so as to reject 

requested payments, or require the 

account holder to pledge collateral to 

cover its daylight overdrafts as a means 

of deterring further the use of Federal 

Reserve daylight credit.2

Under the PSR policy, an institution’s 

eligibility to access daylight credit is