Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 

Program Summary by Budget Activity

Dollars in Thousands

FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2020 to 

FY 2021

Budget Activity Actual Estimate Estimate % Change

Supervise $939,193 $984,401 $984,401 0.00%

Regulate $93,323 $97,815 $97,815 0.00%

Charter $20,212 $21,185 $21,185 0.00%

Total Cost of Operations $1,052,728 $1,103,401 $1,103,401 0.00%

Full-time Equivalents (FTE) 3,687 3,589 3,589 0.00%

Summary

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) was created by Congress in 1863 to 

charter national banks; oversee a nationwide system of banking institutions; and ensure national 

banks are safe and sound, competitive and profitable, and capable of serving in the best possible 

manner the banking needs of their customers. 

As of September 30, 2019, the OCC supervised 840 national bank charters, 57 federal branches 

and agencies, and 303 federal savings associations. In total, the OCC supervises approximately 

$12.8 trillion in financial institution assets.

The OCC has established three goals to affirm its mission: 1) The OCC fosters a safe, sound, and 

fair federal banking system that is a source of economic strength and opportunity that meets the

evolving needs of consumers, businesses, and communities; 2) OCC employees are engaged, 

prepared, and empowered to meet its mission; 3) The OCC operates efficiently and effectively. 

To achieve its goals and objectives, the OCC organizes its programs under three activities: 1) 

Supervise, 2) Regulate, and 3) Charter. Effective supervision and a comprehensive regulatory 

framework are the key tools that the OCC uses to ensure that national banks and federal savings 

associations operate in a safe and sound manner and that they provide fair access to financial 

services and fair treatment of their customers. A robust chartering program allows new entrants 

into the financial services sector while ensuring that they have the necessary capital, managerial, 

and risk management processes to conduct activities in a safe and sound manner.

The OCC’s priorities focus on strengthening the resiliency of the institutions subject to its 

jurisdiction through its supervisory and regulatory programs and activities. A stronger and more 

resilient banking system directly supports four out of five Department of the Treasury’s 

FY 2018-2022 strategic goals: Boost U.S. Economic Growth; Promote Financial Stability; 

Enhance National Security; and Achieve Operational Excellence.

The OCC’s nationwide staff of bank examiners conducts on-site reviews of banks and provides 

sustained supervision of these institutions’ operations. Examiners analyze asset quality, capital 

adequacy, earnings, liquidity, and sensitivity to market risk for all banks, and assess compliance 

with federal consumer protection laws and regulations. Examiners also evaluate management’s 

ability to identify and control risk, and assess banks’ performance in meeting the credit needs of 

the communities in which they operate, pursuant to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA).
In supervising banks, the OCC has power to:

• Approve or deny applications for new charters, branches, capital, or other changes in 

corporate or banking structure;

• Take supervisory and enforcement actions against banks that do not comply with laws and 

regulations or that otherwise engage in unsafe or unsound practices;

• Remove and prohibit officers and directors, negotiate agreements—both formal (i.e., public) 

and informal (i.e., non-public)—to change banking practices, and issue cease-and-desist 

orders as well as Civil Money Penalties (CMP); and

• Issue rules and regulations, legal interpretations, supervisory guidance, and corporate 

decisions governing investments, lending, and other practices.

Operations are funded primarily (approximately 97 percent) from semiannual assessments levied 

on national banks and federal savings associations. Revenue from investments in Treasury 

securities and other income comprise the remaining three percent of the OCC’s funding. 

The OCC does not receive congressional appropriations to fund any portion of its operations.

Legislative Proposals

OCC has no legislative proposals.

Performance Highlights

FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021

Budget Activity Performance Measure Actual Actual Actual Target Target

Charter

Percentage of Licensing Applications and 

Notices Completed within Established 

Timeframes

96.0 97.0 99.0 95.0 95.0

Supervise

Rehabilitated National Banks And Federal 

Savings Associations As A Percentage Of 

Problem National Banks One Year Ago 

(CAMEL 3,4, or 5)

40.0 44.0 15.0 40.0 40.0

Supervise

Percentage of National Banks and Federal 

Savings Associations With Consumer 

Compliance Rating of 1 or 2

97.0 98.0 98.0 94.0 94.0

Supervise

Total OCC Costs Relative To Every $100,000 in 

Bank And Federal Savings Associations Assets 

Regulated ($)

9.49 9.12 8.07 8.10 8.10

Supervise

Percentage of National Banks and Federal 

Savings Associations That Are Categorized As 

Well Capitalized

97.0 95.0 98.0 95.0 95.0

Supervise

Percentage of National Banks and Federal 

Savings Associations with Composite CAMELS 

Rating 1 or 2

94.0 96.0 96.0 90.0 90.0

Description of Performance

The OCC charters, regulates and supervises all national banks and federal savings associations, 

as well as supervises federal branches and agencies of foreign banks. The primary goal of the 
OCC’s Supervise Program is to ensure that these institutions operate in a safe and sound manner 

and in compliance with laws requiring fair treatment of their customers and fair access to credit 

and financial products. The OCC also monitors risks and threats to the stability of the federal 

banking system through its regular examinations of the institutions it supervises and other 

monitoring. 

The overall objective of the OCC’s Supervise Program supports facilitating commerce through 

the goal of ensuring the safety and soundness of the federal banking system. Through its 

Supervise Program the OCC supports facilitating commerce through the goal of ensuring the 

safety and soundness of the federal banking system. The OCC has taken a number of steps to 

improve the cybersecurity of the nation’s financial sector critical infrastructure including 

organizing webinars for community bankers. The agency continues to update examiner 

handbooks, procedures, and training materials to ensure that, as threats evolve, all national banks 

and federal savings associations can identify cyber risks and strengthen their risk management 

and control systems. The OCC is an active member of the Financial Services Information 

Sharing and Analysis Center, which provides greater real-time insight into a broad range of 

potential threats to the industry and the ability to assist, when appropriate, in a coordinated 

response with other government agencies. Finally, the OCC supports protecting the integrity of 

the financial system through its examinations of compliance with Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money 

Laundering (BSA/AML), in accordance with Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council 

(FFIEC) procedures and through the initiation of enforcement actions for non-compliance with 

BSA/AML laws and regulations under OCC’s general bank supervisory authority and delegated 

authority from Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which has 

regulatory authority for BSA/AML.

The composite CAMELS (Capital adequacy, Asset quality, Management, Earnings, Liquidity, 

and Sensitivity to market risk) rating reflects the overall condition of a bank. Bank regulatory 

agencies use the Uniform Financial Institutions Rating System, CAMELS, to provide a general 

framework for evaluating all significant financial, operational, and compliance factors inherent 

in a bank. The rating scale is 1 through 5 of which 1 is the highest rating granted. CAMELS 

ratings are assigned at the completion of every supervisory cycle or when there is a significant 

event leading to a change in CAMELS. Through September 30, 2019, 98 percent of national 

banks and federal savings associations earned composite CAMELS rating of either 1 or 2.

To ensure fair access to financial services and fair treatment of bank customers, the OCC 

evaluates a bank’s compliance with consumer laws and regulations. Bank regulatory agencies 

use the Uniform Financial Institutions Rating System, Interagency Consumer Compliance 

Rating, to provide a general framework for assimilating and evaluating significant consumer 

compliance factors inherent in a bank. Each financial institution is assigned a consumer 

compliance rating based on an evaluation of its present compliance with consumer protection 

and civil rights statutes and regulations and the adequacy of its operating systems designed to 

ensure continuing compliance. Ratings are on a scale of 1 through 5 in increasing order of 

supervisory concern. National banks and federal savings associations continue to show strong 

compliance with consumer protection regulations with 68 percent earning a consumer 

compliance rating of either 1 or 2 through September 30, 2019.
The OCC’s timely and effective approval of corporate applications contributes to the nation’s 

economy by enabling national banks and federal savings associations to complete various 

corporate transactions and introduce new financial products and services. Delays in providing 

prompt decisions on applications and notices can deprive a bank of a competitive or business 

opportunity, create business uncertainties, or diminish financial results. Time frames have been 

established for completing each type of application and notice. The OCC completed 99 percent 

of applications and notices within the time standard through September 30, 2019.

The OCC’s early identification and intervention with problem financial institutions can lead to a 

successful rehabilitation. As of September 30, 2019, 15 percent of national banks and federal 

savings associations with composite CAMELS ratings of 3, 4, or 5 one year ago have improved 

their ratings to either 1 or 2 this year. The OCC continues to focus on the early identification and 

rehabilitation of problem institutions. The low percentage is an indicator of a shrinking 

population base of problem banks. Two years ago, there were about 80 problem banks, last year 

60 problem banks and currently less than 50 problem banks.

The OCC continuously takes steps through its Supervise and Regulate programs to make 

national banks and federal savings associations more resilient to financial stresses and to identify 

and obtain corrective action at an earlier stage, when problems can be addressed most 

successfully. These efforts include heightened capital and liquidity standards and increased 

emphasis on the need for stress testing, designed to provide financial institutions with stronger 

capital buffers to withstand unforeseen events. These are multi-year efforts that will continue in 

FY 2020 and beyond. 

The OCC monitors the efficient use of its resources by measuring Total OCC Costs Relative to 

Every $100,000 in Bank Assets Regulated. This measure reflects the efficiency of its operations 

while meeting the increasing supervisory demands of a growing and more complex financial 

system. This measure supports the OCC’s strategic goal of efficient use of agency resources. 

The OCC’s ability to control its costs while ensuring the safety and soundness of national banks 

and federal savings associations benefits all national bank and federal savings association 

customers. The OCC will continue its efforts to ensure that resources are used prudently and that 

programs are carried out in a cost-effective manner ensuring that the OCC operates as efficiently 

and effectively as possible.