Source: https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/rules/2000-3800.html
Timestamp: 2019-04-21 02:13:57+00:00

Document:
309.5 Procedures for requesting records.
309.6 Disclosure of exempt records.
AUTHORITY: 5 U.S.C. 552; 12 U.S.C. 1819 "Seventh" and "Tenth".
SOURCE: The provisions of this Part 309 appear at Fed. Reg. 61465, November 30, 1995, effective January 2, 1996 except as otherwise noted.
§ 309.1 Purpose and scope.
This part sets forth the basic policies of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation regarding information it maintains and the procedures for obtaining access to such information, including disclosure of information transferred to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation from the Office of Thrift Supervision pursuant to section 312 and 323 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, Public Law 111--203. Section 309.2 sets forth definitions applicable to this part 309. Section 309.3 describes the types of information and documents typically published in the Federal Register. Section 309.4 explains how to access public records maintained on the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's World Wide Web page and in the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's Public Information Center or "PIC,'' and describes the categories of records generally found there. Section 309.5 implements the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). Section 309.6 authorizes the discretionary disclosure of exempt records under certain limited circumstances. Section 309.7 outlines procedures for serving a subpoena or other legal process to obtain information maintained by the FDIC.
(a) The term depository institution, as used in § 309.6, includes depository institutions that have applied to the Corporation for federal deposit insurance, closed depository institutions, presently operating federally insured depository institutions, foreign banks, branches of foreign banks, and all affiliates of any of the foregoing.
(b) The terms Corporation or FDIC mean the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
(c) The words disclose or disclosure, as used in § 309.6, mean to give access to a record, whether by producing the written record or by oral discussion of its contents. Where the Corporation employee authorized to release Corporation documents makes a determination that furnishing copies of the documents is necessary, the words disclose or disclosure include the furnishing of copies of documents or records. In addition, disclose or disclosure as used in § 309.6 is synonymous with the term transfer as used in the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. 3401 et seq.).
(d) The term examination includes, but is not limited to, formal and informal investigations of irregularities involving suspected violations of federal or state civil or criminal laws, or unsafe and unsound practices as well as such other investigations as may be conducted pursuant to law.
(2) Any information described under paragraph (e)(1) of this section that is maintained for the FDIC by an entity under Government contract, for purposes of records management.
(f) The term report of examination includes, but is not limited to, examination reports resulting from examinations of depository institutions conducted jointly by Corporation examiners and state banking authority examiners or other federal financial institution examiners, as well as reports resulting from examinations conducted solely by Corporation examiners. The term also includes compliance examination reports.
(g) The term customer financial records, as used in § 309.6, means an original of, a copy of, or information known to have been derived from, any record held by a depository institution pertaining to a customer's relationship with the depository institution but does not include any record that contains information not identified with or identifiable as being derived from the financial records of a particular customer. The term customer as used in § 309.6 refers to individuals or partnerships of five or fewer persons.
(h) The term Director of the Division having primary authority includes Deputies to the Chairman and directors of FDIC Divisions and Offices that create, maintain custody, or otherwise have primary responsibility for the handling of FDIC records or information.
(f) General notices of proposed rulemaking.
§ 309.4 Publicly available records.
(a) Records available on the FDIC's World Wide Web page--(1) Discretionary release of documents. The FDIC encourages the public to explore the wealth of resources available on the FDIC's World Wide Web page, located at: http://www.fdic.gov. The FDIC has elected to publish a broad range of materials on its World Wide Web page, including consumer guides; financial and statistical information of interest to the banking industry; and information concerning the FDIC's responsibilities and structure.
(2) Documents required to be made available for inspection in an electronic format.
(E) A general index of the records referred to in paragraph (a)(2)(i)(D) of this section.
(ii) To the extent permitted by law, the FDIC may delete identifying details when it makes available or publishes a final opinion, final order, statement of policy, interpretation or staff manual or instruction. If redaction is necessary, the FDIC will, to the extent technically feasible, indicate the amount of material deleted at the place in the record where such deletion is made unless that indication in and of itself will jeopardize the purpose for the redaction.
(b) Public Information Center. The FDIC maintains a Public Information Center or "PIC" that contains Corporate records that the Freedom of Information Act requires be made available for regular inspection and copying, as well as any records or information the FDIC, in its discretion, has regularly made available, to the public. The PIC has extensive materials of interest to the public, including many Reports, Summaries and Manuals used or published by the Corporation that are made available, by appointment, for inspection and copying. The PIC is open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excepting Federal holidays. It is located at 3501 North Fairfax Drive, Room E-1005, Arlington, VA 22226. The PIC may be reached during business hours by calling 1--(877) 275--3342 or 1--(703) 562--2200.
(c) Applicable fees. (i) If applicable, fees for furnishing records under this section are as set forth in § 309.5(f) except that all categories of requesters shall be charged duplication costs.
(ii) Information on the FDIC's World Wide Web page is available to the public without charge. If, however, information available on the FDIC's World Wide Web page is provided pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act request processed under § 309.5, then fees apply and will be assessed pursuant to § 309.5(f).
§ 309.5 Procedures for requesting records.
(1) Commercial use request means a request from or on behalf of a requester who seeks records for a use or purpose that furthers the commercial, trade, or profit interests of the requester or the person on whose behalf the request is made. In determining whether a request falls within this category, the FDIC will determine the use to which a requester will put the records requested and seek additional information as it deems necessary.
(2) Direct costs means those expenditures the FDIC actually incurs in searching for, duplicating, and, in the case of commercial requesters, reviewing records in response to a request for records.
(3) Duplication means the process of making a copy of a record necessary to respond to a request for records or for inspection of original records that contain exempt material or that cannot otherwise be directly inspected. Such copies can take the form of paper copy, microfilm, audiovisual records, or machine readable records (e.g., magnetic tape or computer disk).
(4) Educational institution means a preschool, a public or private elementary or secondary school, an institution of undergraduate or graduate higher education, an institution of professional education, and an institution of vocational education, which operates a program or programs of scholarly research.
(5) Noncommercial scientific institution means an institution that is not operated on a commercial basis as that term is defined in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, and which is operated solely for the purpose of conducting scientific research, the results of which are not intended to promote any particular product or industry.
(6) Representative of the news media means any person or entity that gathers information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses its editorial skills to turn the raw materials into a distinct work, and distributes that work to an audience. The term news means information that is about current events or that would be of current interest to the public. Examples of news-media entities are television or radio stations broadcasting to the public at large and publishers of periodicals (but only if such entities qualify as disseminators of news) who make their products available for purchase by or subscription by or free distribution to the general public. These examples are not all-inclusive. Moreover, as methods of news delivery evolve (for example, the adoption of the electronic dissemination of newspapers through telecommunications services), such alternative media will be considered to be news-media entities. A freelance journalist will be regarded as working for a news-media entity if the journalist can demonstrate a solid basis for expecting publication through that entity, whether or not the journalist is actually employed by that entity. A publication contract would present a solid basis for such an expectation; the FDIC may also consider the past publication record of the requester in making this determination.
(7) Review means the process of examining records located in response to a request for records to determine whether any portion of any record is permitted to be withheld as exempt information. It includes processing any record for disclosure, e.g., doing all that is necessary to excise them or otherwise prepare them for release.
(8) Search includes all time spent looking for material that is responsive to a request, including page-by-page or line-by-line identification of material within records. Searches may be done manually and/or by computer using existing programming.
(b) Making a request for records. (1) The request shall be submitted in writing to the Freedom of Information Act/Privacy Act Group ("FOIA/PA Group"), Legal Division.
(iii) By sending a letter to: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Attn: FOIA/PA Group, 550 17th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20429.
(iv) The preferred form and format of any responsive information requested, if other than paper copies.
(3) A request for identifiable records shall reasonably describe the records in a way that enables the FDIC's staff to identify and produce the records with reasonable effort and without unduly burdening or significantly interfering with any of the FDIC's operations.
(c) Defective requests. The FDIC need not accept or process a request that does not reasonably describe the records requested or that does not otherwise comply with the requirements of this part. The FDIC may return a defective request, specifying the deficiency. The requester may submit a corrected request, which will be treated as a new request.
(d) Processing requests.--(1) Receipt of requests. Upon receipt of a request that satisfies paragraph (b) of this section, the FOIA/PA Group will acknowledge receipt of the request in writing to the requester and provide the requester with an individualized tracking number for the request. The date of receipt for such request, including one that is addressed incorrectly or that is referred by another agency, is the date the FOIA/PA Group actually receives the request.
(2) Multitrack processing. (i) The FDIC provides different levels of processing for categories of requests under this part. Requests for records that are readily identifiable by the FOIA/PA Group, and that have already been cleared for public release may qualify for fast-track processing. All other requests shall be handled under normal processing procedures, unless expedited processing has been granted pursuant to paragraph (d)(3) of this section.
(ii) The FDIC will make the determination whether a request qualifies for fast-track processing. A requester may contact the FOIA/PA Group to learn whether a particular request has been assigned to fast-track processing. If the request has not qualified for fast-track processing, the requester will be given an opportunity to refine the request in order to qualify for fast-track processing. Changes made to requests to obtain faster processing must be in writing.
(C) The requester's statement must be certified to be true and correct to the best of the person's knowledge and belief and explain in detail the basis for requesting expedited processing.
(ii) The formality of the certification required to obtain expedited treatment may be waived by the FDIC as a matter of administrative discretion.
(4) A requester seeking expedited processing will be notified whether expedited processing has been granted within ten (10) working days of the receipt of the request. If the request for expedited processing is denied, the requester may file an appeal pursuant to the procedures set forth in paragraph (i) of this section, and the FDIC shall respond to the appeal within ten (10) working days after receipt of the appeal.
(5) Priority of responses. Consistent with sound administrative process the FDIC processes requests in the order they are received in the separate processing tracks. However, in the agency's discretion, or upon a court order in a matter to which the FDIC is a party, a particular request may be processed out of turn.
(ii) By calling the FDIC's FOIA Service Center at (202) 898-7021, if the request was submitted by email, facsimile or regular mail.
(D) In unusual circumstances, as defined in 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(B) and further described in paragraph (d)(6)(iii) of this section.
(B) Such alternative time period as agreed to by the requester or as reasonably determined by the FDIC when the FDIC notifies the requester that the request cannot be processed in the specified time limit.
(C) There is a need to consult with another agency or among two or more components of the FDIC having a substantial interest in the determination.
(E) The right of the requester to seek dispute resolution services from the FDIC's FOIA Public Liaison and/or the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS).
(e) Providing responsive records. (1) Copies of requested records shall be sent to the requester by regular U.S. mail to the address indicated in the request, unless the requester elects to take delivery of the documents at the FDIC or makes other acceptable arrangements, or the FDIC deems it appropriate to send the documents by another means.
(2) The FDIC shall provide a copy of the record in any form or format requested if the record is readily reproducible by the FDIC in that form or format, but the FDIC need not provide more than one copy of any record to a requester.
(3) By arrangement with the requester, the FDIC may elect to send the responsive records electronically if a substantial portion of the request is in electronic format. If the information requested is made pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. 552a, it will not be sent by electronic means unless reasonable security measures can be provided.
(f) Fees--(1) General rules. (i) Persons requesting records of the FDIC shall be charged for the direct costs of search, duplication, and review as set forth in paragraphs (f)(2) and (f)(3) of this section, unless such costs are less than the FDIC's cost of processing the requester's remittance.
(ii) Requesters will be charged for search and review costs even if responsive records are not located or, if located, are determined to be exempt from disclosure.
(iii) Multiple requests seeking similar or related records from the same requester or group of requesters will be aggregated for the purposes of this section.
(iv) If the FDIC determines that the estimated costs of search, duplication, or review of requested records will exceed the dollar amount specified in the request, or if no dollar amount is specified, the FDIC will advise the requester of the estimated costs (if greater than the FDIC's cost of processing the requester's remittance). The requester must agree in writing to pay the costs of search, duplication, and review prior to the FDIC initiating any records search.
(v) If the FDIC estimates that its search, duplication, and review costs will exceed $250.00, the requester must pay an amount equal to 20 percent of the estimated costs prior to the FDIC initiating any records search.
(vi) The FDIC shall ordinarily collect all applicable fees under the final invoice before releasing copies of requested records to the requester.
(vii) The FDIC may require any requester who has previously failed to pay the charges under this section within 30 calendar days of mailing of the invoice to pay in advance the total estimated costs of search, duplication, and review. The FDIC may also require a requester who has any charges outstanding in excess of 30 calendar days following mailing of the invoice to pay the full amount due, or demonstrate that the fee has been paid in full, prior to the FDIC initiating any additional records search.
(viii) The FDIC may begin assessing interest charges on unpaid bills on the 31st day following the day on which the invoice was sent. Interest will be at the rate prescribed in section 3717 of title 31 of the United States Code and will accrue from the date of the invoice.
(ix) The time limit for the FDIC to respond to a request will not begin to run until the FDIC has received the requester's written agreement under paragraph (f)(1)(iv) of this section, and advance payment under paragraph (f)(1)(v) or (vii) of this section, or payment of outstanding charges under paragraph (f)(1)(vii) or (viii) of this section.
(x) As part of the initial request, a requester may ask that the FDIC waive or reduce fees if disclosure of the records is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the government and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester. Determinations as to a waiver or reduction of fees will be made by the FOIA/PA Group, Legal Division (or designee) and the requester will be notified in writing of his/her determination. A determination not to grant a request for a waiver or reduction of fees under this paragraph may be appealed to the FDIC's General Counsel (or designee) pursuant to the procedure set forth in paragraph (i) of this section.
(2) Chargeable fees by category of requester. (i) Commercial use requesters shall be charged search, duplication and review costs.
(ii) Educational institutions, non-commercial scientific institutions and news media representatives shall be charged duplication costs, except for the first 100 pages.
(iii) Requesters not described in paragraph (f)(2)(i) or (ii) of this section shall be charged the full reasonable direct cost of search and duplication, except for the first two hours of search time and first 100 pages of duplication.
(3) Fee schedule. The dollar amount of fees which the FDIC may charge to records requesters will be established by the Chief Financial Officer of the FDIC (or designee). The FDIC may charge fees that recoup the full allowable direct costs it incurs. Fees are subject to change as costs change.
(i) Manual searches for records. The FDIC will charge for manual searches for records at the basic rate of pay of the employee making the search plus 16 percent to cover employee benefit costs. Where a single class of personnel (e.g., all clerical, all professional, or all executive) is used exclusively, the FDIC, at its discretion, may establish and charge an average rate for the range of grades typically involved.
(ii) Computer searches for records. The fee for searches of computerized records is the actual direct cost of the search, including computer time, computer runs, and the operator's time apportioned to the search. The fee for a computer printout is the actual cost. The fees for computer supplies are the actual costs. The FDIC may, at its discretion, establish and charge a fee for computer searches based upon a reasonable FDIC-wide average rate for central processing unit operating costs and the operator's basic rate of pay plus 16 percent to cover employee benefit costs.
(iii) Duplication of records. (A) The per-page fee for paper copy reproduction of documents is the average FDIC-wide cost based upon the reasonable direct costs of making such copies.
(B) For other methods of reproduction or duplication, the FDIC will charge the actual direct costs of reproducing or duplicating the documents.
(iv) Review of records. The FDIC will charge commercial use requesters for the review of records at the time of processing the initial request to determine whether they are exempt from mandatory disclosure at the basic rate of pay of the employee making the search plus 16 percent to cover employee benefit costs. Where a single class of personnel (e.g., all clerical, all professional, or all executive) is used exclusively, the FDIC, at its discretion, may establish and charge an average rate for the range of grades typically involved. The FDIC will not charge at the administrative appeal level for review of an exemption already applied. When records or portions of records are withheld in full under an exemption which is subsequently determined not to apply, the FDIC may charge for a subsequent review to determine the applicability of other exemptions not previously considered.
(v) Other services. Complying with requests for special services, other than a readily produced electronic form or format, is at the FDIC's discretion. The FDIC may recover the full costs of providing such services to the requester.
(4) Publication of fee schedule and effective date of changes. (i) The fee schedule is made available on the FDIC's World Wide Web page, found at http://www.fdic.gov.
(ii) The fee schedule will be set forth in the "Notice of Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Records Fees" issued in December of each year or in such "Interim Notice of Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Records Fees" as may be issued. Copies of such notices may be obtained at no charge from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, FOIA/PA Group, 550 17th Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20429, and are available on the FDIC's World Wide Web page as noted in paragraph (f)(4)(i) of this section.
(iii) The fees implemented in the December or Interim Notice will be effective 30 days after issuance.
(5) Use of contractors. The FDIC may contract with independent contractors to locate, reproduce, and/or disseminate records; provided, however, that the FDIC has determined that the ultimate cost to the requester will be no greater than it would be if the FDIC performed these tasks itself. In no case will the FDIC contract out responsibilities which the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552) provides that the FDIC alone may discharge, such as determining the applicability of an exemption or whether to waive or reduce fees.
(h) Dispute resolution. A requester seeking to engage in dispute resolution may make a request to the FOIA Publilc Liaison and/or OGIS by following the procedures set forth online in the FDIC's FOIA Service Center at http://www.fdic.gov.
(i) Appeals. (1) Appeals should be addressed to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Attn: FOIA/PA Group, 550 17th Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20429.
(2) A person whose initial request for records under this section, or whose request for a waiver of fees under paragraph (f)(1)(x) of this section, has been denied, either in part or in whole, has the right to appeal the denial to the FDIC's General Counsel (or designee) within 90 calendar days after receipt of notification of the denial. Appeals of denials of initial requests or for a waiver of fees must be in writing and include any additional information relevant to consideration of the appeal.
(iv) The right to judicial review of the denial under the FOIA.
(4) If a requester is appealing for denial of expedited treatment, the FDIC will notify the appellant within 10 business days after receipt of the appeal of the FDIC's disposition.
(5) Complete payment of any outstanding fee invoice will be required before an appeal is processed.
(j) Records of another agency. If a requested record is the property of another federal agency or department, and that agency or department, either in writing or by regulation, expressly retains ownership of such record, upon receipt of a request for the record the FDIC will promptly inform the requester of this ownership and immediately shall forward the request to the proprietary agency or department either for processing in accordance with the latter's regulations or for guidance with respect to disposition.
§ 309.6 Disclosure of exempt records.
(a) Disclosure prohibited. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section or by 12 CFR part 310,2 no person shall disclose or permit the disclosure of any exempt records, or information contained therein, to any persons other than those officers, directors, employees, or agents of the Corporation who have a need for such records in the performance of their official duties. In any instance in which any person has possession, custody or control of FDIC exempt records or information contained therein, all copies of such records shall remain the property of the Corporation and under no circumstances shall any person, entity or agency disclose or make public in any manner the exempt records or information without written authorization from the Director of the Corporation's Division having primary authority over the records or information as provided in this section.
(1) Disclosure to depository institutions. The Director of the Corporation's Division having primary authority over the exempt records, or designee, may disclose to any director or authorized officer, employee or agent of any depository institution, information contained in, or copies of, exempt records pertaining to that depository institution.
(2) Disclosure to state banking agencies. The Director of the Corporation's Division having primary authority over the exempt records, or designee, may in his or her discretion and for good cause, disclose to any authorized officer or employee of any state banking or securities department or agency, copies of any exempt records to the extent the records pertain to a state-chartered depository institution supervised by the agency or authority, or where the exempt records are requested in writing for a legitimate depository institution supervisory or regulatory purpose.
(4) Disclosure to prosecuting or investigatory agencies or authorities. (i) Reports of Apparent Crime pertaining to suspected violations of law, which may contain customer financial records, may be disclosed to federal or state prosecuting or investigatory authorities without giving notice to the customer, as permitted in the relevant exceptions of the RFPA.
(C) Gives the reasons for the request.
(iv) Any federal financial institution supervisory agency which exercises general supervision over an institution serviced by the examined data center. The federal supervisory agency may disclose any such examination report received from the Corporation to an insured institution over which it exercises general supervision and which is serviced by the examined data center.
(B) Give the reasons for the request.
(ii) Either prior to or at the time of any disclosure, the Director or designee shall require such terms and conditions as he deems necessary to protect the confidential nature of the record, the financial integrity of any depository institution to which the record relates, and the legitimate privacy interests of any individual named in such records.
(7) Authorization for disclosure by depository institutions or other third parties. (i) The Director of the Corporation's Division having primary authority over the exempt records, or designee, may, in his or her discretion and for good cause, authorize any director, officer, employee, or agent of a depository institution to disclose copies of any exempt record in his custody to anyone who is not a director, officer or employee of the depository institution. Such authorization must be in response to a written request from the party seeking the record or from management of the depository institution to which the report or record pertains. Any such request shall specify, with reasonable particularity, the record sought, the party's interest therein, and the party's relationship to the depository institution to which the record relates.
(ii) The Director of the Corporation's Division having primary authority over the exempt records, or designee, may, in his or her discretion and for good cause, authorize any third party, including a federal or state agency, that has received a copy of a Corporation exempt record, to disclose such exempt record to another party or agency. Such authorization must be in response to a written request from the party that has custody of the copy of the exempt record. Any such request shall specify the record sought to be disclosed and the reasons why disclosure is necessary.
(4) The date the report was disclosed.
(iv) With respect to any disclosure that is authorized under this paragraph (b)(7), the Director of the Corporation's Division having primary authority over the exempt records, or designee, shall only permit disclosure of records upon determining that good cause exists. If the exempt record contains information derived from depository institution customer financial records, disclosure is to be authorized only upon the condition that the requesting party and the party releasing the records comply with any applicable provision of the RFPA. Before authorizing the disclosure, the Director (or designee) may require that both the party having custody of a copy of a Corporation exempt record and the party seeking access to the record agree to such limitations as the Director (or designee) deems necessary to protect the confidential nature of the record, the financial integrity of any depository institution to which the record relates and the legitimate privacy interests of any persons named in such record.
(8) Disclosure by General Counsel. (i) The Corporation's General Counsel, or designee, may disclose or authorize the disclosure of any exempt record in response to a valid judicial subpoena, court order, or other legal process, and authorize any current or former officer, director, employee, agent of the Corporation, or third party, to appear and testify regarding an exempt record or any information obtained in the performance of such person's official duties, at any administrative or judicial hearing or proceeding where such person has been served with a valid subpoena, court order, or other legal process requiring him or her to testify. The General Counsel shall consider the relevancy of such exempt records or testimony to the litigation, and the interests of justice, in determining whether to disclose such records or testimony. Third parties seeking disclosure of exempt records or testimony in litigation to which the FDIC is not a party shall submit a request for discretionary disclosure directly to the General Counsel.6 Such request shall specify the information sought with reasonable particularity and shall be accompanied by a statement with supporting documentation showing in detail the relevance of such exempt information to the litigation, justifying good cause for disclosure, and a commitment to be bound by a protective order. Failure to exhaust such administrative request prior to service of a subpoena or other legal process may, in the General Counsel's discretion, serve as a basis for objection to such subpoena or legal process. Customer financial records may not be disclosed to any federal agency that is not a federal financial supervisory agency pursuant to this paragraph unless notice to the customer and certification as required by the RFPA have been given except where disclosure is subject to the relevant exceptions set forth in the RFPA.
(ii) The General Counsel, or designee, may in his or her discretion and for good cause, disclose or authorize disclosure of any exempt record or testimony by a current or former officer, director, employee, agent of the Corporation, or third party, sought in connection with any civil or criminal hearing, proceeding or investigation without the service of a judicial subpoena, or other legal process requiring such disclosure or testimony, if he or she determines that the records or testimony are relevant to the hearing, proceeding or investigation and that disclosure is in the best interests of justice and not otherwise prohibited by Federal statute. Customer financial records shall not be disclosed to any federal agency pursuant to this paragraph that is not a federal financial supervisory agency, unless the records are sought under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (28 U.S.C. appendix) or the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (18 U.S.C. appendix) or comparable rules of other courts and in connection with litigation to which the receiving federal agency, employee, officer, director, or agent, and the customer are parties, or disclosure is otherwise subject to the relevant exceptions in the RFPA. Where the General Counsel or designee authorizes a current or former officer, director, employee or agent of the Corporation to testify or disclose exempt records pursuant to this paragraph (b)(8), he or she may, in his or her discretion, limit the authorization to so much of the record or testimony as is relevant to the issues at such hearing, proceeding or investigation, and he or she shall give authorization only upon fulfillment of such conditions as he or she deems necessary and practicable to protect the confidential nature of such records or testimony.
(9) Authorization for disclosure by the Chairman of the Corporation's Board of Directors. Except where expressly prohibited by law, the Chairman of the Corporation's Board of Directors may in his or her discretion, authorize the disclosure of any Corporation records. Except where disclosure is required by law, the Chairman may direct any current or former officer, director, employee or agent of the Corporation to refuse to disclose any record or to give testimony if the Chairman determines, in his or her discretion, that refusal to permit such disclosure is in the public interest.
(10) Limitations on disclosure. All steps practicable shall be taken to protect the confidentiality of exempt records and information. Any disclosure permitted by paragraph (b) of this section is discretionary and nothing in paragraph (b) of this section shall be construed as requiring the disclosure of information. Further, nothing in paragraph (b) of this section shall be construed as restricting, in any manner, the authority of the Board of Directors, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, the Director of the Corporation's Division having primary authority over the exempt records, the Corporation's General Counsel, or their designees, or any other Corporation Division or Office head, in their discretion and in light of the facts and circumstances attendant in any given case, to require conditions upon and to limit the form, manner, and extent of any disclosure permitted by this section. Wherever practicable, disclosure of exempt records shall be made pursuant to a protective order and redacted to exclude all irrelevant or non-responsive exempt information.
(a) Service. Any subpoena or other legal process to obtain information maintained by the FDIC shall be duly issued by a court having jurisdiction over the FDIC, and served upon either the Executive Secretary (or designee), FDIC, 550 17th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20429, or the Regional Director or Regional Manager of the FDIC region where the legal action from which the subpoena or process was issued is pending. A list of the FDIC's regional offices is available from the Office of Public Affairs, FDIC, 550 17th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20429 (telephone 202-898-6996). Where the FDIC is named as a party, service of process shall be made pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and upon the Executive Secretary (or designee), FDIC, 550 17th Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20429, or upon the agent designated to receive service of process in the state, territory, or jurisdiction in which any insured depository institution is located. Identification of the designated agent in the state, territory, or jurisdiction may be obtained from the Executive Secretary or from the Office of the General Counsel, FDIC, 550 17th Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20429. The Executive Secretary (or designee), Regional Director or designated agent shall immediately forward any subpoena, court order or legal process to the General Counsel. The Corporation may require the payment of fees, in accordance with the fee schedule referred to in § 309.5(c)(3), prior to the release of any records requested pursuant to any subpoena or other legal process.
(b) Notification by person served. If any current or former officer, director, employee or agent of the Corporation, or any other person who has custody of records belonging to the FDIC, is served with a subpoena, court order, or other process requiring that person's attendance as a witness concerning any matter related to official duties, or the production of any exempt record of the Corporation, such person shall promptly advise the General Counsel of such service, of the testimony and records described in the subpoena, and of all relevant facts which may be of assistance to the General Counsel in determining whether the individual in question should be authorized to testify or the records should be produced. Such person should also inform the court or tribunal which issued the process and the attorney for the party upon whose application the process was issued, if known, of the substance of this section.
(c) Appearance by person served. Absent the written authorization of the Corporation's General Counsel, or designee, to disclose the requested information, any current or former officer, director, employee, or agent of the Corporation, and any other person having custody of records of the Corporation, who is required to respond to a subpoena or other legal process, shall attend at the time and place therein specified and respectfully decline to produce any such record or give any testimony with respect thereto, basing such refusal on this section.

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