Source: http://ecfr.io/Title-12/pt12.10.1239
Timestamp: 2018-09-25 22:36:52
Document Index: 237176033

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1239', 'art 1239', 'art 1239', 'ART 1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1239', '§1263', '§1239', '§1239', '§1266', 'art 1292', '§1271', 'art 1265', 'art 1265', '§1239']

[12 CFR 1239] Title 12 Part 1239 : Code of Federal Regulations ';
Title 12 Part 1239
Title 12 → Chapter XII → Subchapter B → Part 1239
PART 1239—RESPONSIBILITIES OF BOARDS OF DIRECTORS, CORPORATE PRACTICES, AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
§1239.1 Purpose.
§1239.2 Definitions.
Subpart B—Corporate Practices and Procedures Applicable to All Regulated Entities
§1239.3 Law applicable to corporate governance and indemnification practices.
§1239.4 Duties and responsibilities of directors.
§1239.5 Board committees.
Subpart C—Other Requirements Applicable to All Regulated Entities
§1239.10 Code of conduct and ethics.
§1239.11 Risk management.
§1239.12 Compliance program.
§1239.13 Regulatory reports.
Subpart D—Enterprise Specific Requirements
§1239.20 Board of directors of the Enterprises.
§1239.21 Compensation of Enterprise board members.
Subpart E—Bank Specific Requirements
§1239.30 Bank member products policy.
§1239.31 Strategic business plan.
§1239.32 Audit committee.
§1239.33 Dividends.
Authority: 12 U.S.C. 1426, 1427, 1432(a), 1436(a), 1440, 4511(b), 4513(a), 4513(b), 4526, and 15 U.S.C. 78oo(b).
Source: 80 FR 72336, Nov. 19, 2015, unless otherwise noted.
FHFA is responsible for supervising and ensuring the safety and soundness of the regulated entities. In furtherance of those responsibilities, this part sets forth minimum standards with respect to responsibilities of boards of directors, corporate practices, and corporate governance matters of the regulated entities.
As used in this part, (unless otherwise noted):
Board member means a member of the board of directors of a regulated entity.
Board of directors means the board of directors of a regulated entity.
Business risk means the risk of an adverse impact on a regulated entity's profitability resulting from external factors as may occur in both the short and long run.
Community financial institution has the meaning set forth in §1263.1 of this chapter.
Compensation means any payment of money or the provision of any other thing of current or potential value in connection with employment or in connection with service as a director.
Credit risk is the potential that a borrower or counterparty will fail to meet its financial obligations in accordance with agreed terms.
Employee means an individual, other than an executive officer, who works part-time, full-time, or temporarily for a regulated entity.
Executive officer means the chief executive officer, chief financial officer, chief operating officer, president, any executive vice president, any senior vice president, and any individual with similar responsibilities, without regard to title, who is in charge of a principal business unit, division, or function, or who reports directly to the chairperson, vice chairperson, chief operating officer, or chief executive officer or president of a regulated entity.
Immediate family member means a parent, sibling, spouse, child, dependent, or any relative sharing the same residence.
Internal auditor means the individual responsible for the internal audit function at a regulated entity.
Liquidity risk means the risk that a regulated entity will be unable to meet its financial obligations as they come due or meet the credit needs of its members and associates in a timely and cost-efficient manner.
Market risk means the risk that the market value, or estimated fair value if market value is not available, of a regulated entity's portfolio will decline as a result of changes in interest rates, foreign exchange rates, or equity or commodity prices.
NYSE means the New York Stock Exchange.
Operational risk means the risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, people, or systems, or from external events (including legal risk but excluding strategic and reputational risk).
Risk appetite means the aggregate level and types of risk the board of directors and management are willing to assume to achieve the regulated entity's strategic objectives and business plan, consistent with applicable capital, liquidity, and other regulatory requirements.
Significant deficiency means a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control that is less severe than a material weakness, yet important enough to merit attention by those charged with governance.
(a) General. The corporate governance practices and procedures of each regulated entity, and practices and procedures relating to indemnification (including advancement of expenses), shall comply with and be subject to the applicable authorizing statutes and other Federal law, rules, and regulations, and shall be consistent with the safe and sound operations of the regulated entities.
(b) Election and designation of body of law. (1) To the extent not inconsistent with paragraph (a) of this section, each regulated entity shall elect to follow the corporate governance and indemnification practices and procedures set forth in one of the following:
(i) The law of the jurisdiction in which the principal office of the regulated entity is located;
(ii) The Delaware General Corporation Law (Del. Code Ann. Title 8); or
(iii) The Revised Model Business Corporation Act.
(2) Each regulated entity shall designate in its bylaws the body of law elected for its corporate governance and indemnification practices and procedures pursuant to this paragraph, and shall do so by no later than March 18, 2016.
(c) Indemnification. (1) Subject to paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, to the extent applicable, a regulated entity shall indemnify (and advance the expenses of) its directors, officers, and employees under such terms and conditions as are determined by its board of directors. The regulated entity is authorized to maintain insurance for its directors and any other officer or employee.
(2) Each regulated entity shall have in place policies and procedures consistent with this section for indemnification of its directors, officers, and employees. Such policies and procedures shall address how the board of directors is to approve or deny requests for indemnification from current and former directors, officers, and employees, and shall include standards relating to indemnification, investigations by the board of directors, and review by independent counsel.
(3) Nothing in this paragraph (c) shall affect any rights to indemnification (including the advancement of expenses) that a director or any other officer or employee had with respect to any actions, omissions, transactions, or facts occurring prior to the effective date of this paragraph.
(4) FHFA has the authority under the Safety and Soundness Act to review a regulated entity's indemnification policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that they are conducted in a safe and sound manner, and that they are consistent with the body of law adopted by the board of directors under paragraph (b) of this section.
(d) No rights created. Nothing in this part shall create or be deemed to create any rights in any third party, including in any member of a Bank, nor shall it cause or be deemed to cause any regulated entity to become subject to the jurisdiction of any state court with respect to the entity's corporate governance or indemnification practices or procedures.
(a) Management of a regulated entity. The management of each regulated entity shall be by or under the direction of its board of directors. While a board of directors may delegate the execution of operational functions to officers and employees of the regulated entity, the ultimate responsibility of each entity's board of directors for that entity's oversight is non-delegable. The board of directors of a regulated entity is responsible for directing the conduct and affairs of the entity in furtherance of the safe and sound operation of the entity and shall remain reasonably informed of the condition, activities, and operations of the entity.
(b) Duties of directors. Each director of a regulated entity shall have the duty to:
(1) Carry out his or her duties as director in good faith, in a manner such director believes to be in the best interests of the regulated entity, and with such care, including reasonable inquiry, as is required under the Revised Model Business Corporation Act or the other body of law that the entity's board of directors has chosen to follow for its corporate governance and indemnification practices and procedures in accordance with §1239.3(b);
(2) For Bank directors, administer the affairs of the regulated entity fairly and impartially and without discrimination in favor of or against any member institution;
(3) At the time of election, or within a reasonable time thereafter, have a working familiarity with basic finance and accounting practices, including the ability to read and understand the regulated entity's balance sheet and income statement and to ask substantive questions of management and the internal and external auditors;
(4) Direct the operations of the regulated entity in conformity with the requirements set forth in the authorizing statutes, the Safety and Soundness Act, and this chapter; and
(5) Adopt and maintain in effect at all times bylaws governing the manner in which the regulated entity administers its affairs. Such bylaws shall be consistent with applicable laws and regulations administered by FHFA, and with the body of law designated for the entity's corporate governance practices and procedures in accordance with §1239.3(b).
(c) Director responsibilities. The responsibilities of the board of directors include having in place adequate policies to assure its oversight of, among other matters, the following:
(1) The risk management and compensation programs of the regulated entity;
(2) The processes for providing accurate financial reporting and other disclosures, and communications with stockholders; and
(3) The responsiveness of executive officers in providing accurate and timely reports to FHFA and in addressing all supervisory concerns of FHFA in a timely and appropriate manner.
(d) Authority regarding staff and outside consultants. (1) In carrying out its duties and responsibilities under the authorizing statutes, the Safety and Soundness Act, and this chapter, each regulated entity's board of directors and all committees thereof shall have authority to retain staff and outside counsel, independent accountants, or other outside consultants at the expense of the regulated entity.
(2) The board of directors and its committees may require that staff of the regulated entity that provides services to the board or any committee under paragraph (d)(1) of this section report directly to the board or such committee, as appropriate.
(a) General. The board of directors may rely, in directing a regulated entity, on reports from committees of the board of directors, provided, however, that no committee of the board of directors shall have the authority of the board of directors to amend the bylaws and no committee shall operate to relieve the board of directors or any board member of a responsibility imposed by applicable law, rule, or regulation.
(b) Required committees. The board of directors of each regulated entity shall have committees, however styled, that address each of the following areas of responsibility: Risk management; audit; compensation; and corporate governance (in the case of the Banks, including the nomination of independent board of director candidates, and, in the case of the Enterprises, including the nomination of all board of director candidates). The risk management committee and the audit committee shall not be combined with any other committees. The board of directors may establish any other committees that it deems necessary or useful to carrying out its responsibilities, subject to the provisions of this section. In the case of the Enterprises, board committees shall comply with the charter, independence, composition, expertise, duties, responsibilities, and other requirements set forth under rules issued by the NYSE, and the audit committees shall also comply with the requirements set forth under section 301 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, Public Law 107-204.
(c) Charter. The board of directors shall adopt a formal written charter for each committee that specifies the scope of a committee's powers and responsibilities, as well as the committee's structure, processes, and membership requirements.
(d) Frequency of meetings. Each committee of the board of directors shall meet regularly and with sufficient frequency to carry out its obligations and duties under applicable laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines. Committees that are structured to meet only on an as-needed basis shall meet in the manner specified by their charter. All such committees shall also meet with sufficient timeliness as necessary in light of relevant conditions and circumstances to fulfill their obligations and duties.
(a) General. A regulated entity shall establish and administer a written code of conduct and ethics that is reasonably designed to assure that its directors, officers, and employees discharge their duties and responsibilities in an objective and impartial manner that promotes honest and ethical conduct, compliance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations, accountability for adherence to the code, and prompt internal reporting of violations of the code to appropriate persons identified in the code. The code also shall include provisions applicable to the regulated entity's principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions, that are reasonably designed to promote full, fair, accurate, and understandable disclosure in reports and other documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and in other public communications reporting on the entity's financial condition.
(b) Review. Not less often than once every three years, a regulated entity shall review the adequacy of its code of conduct and ethics for consistency with practices appropriate to the entity and make any appropriate revisions to such code.
(a) Risk management program—(1) Adoption. Each regulated entity's board of directors shall approve, have in effect at all times, and periodically review an enterprise-wide risk management program that establishes the regulated entity's risk appetite, aligns the risk appetite with the regulated entity's strategies and objectives, addresses the regulated entity's exposure to credit risk, market risk, liquidity risk, business risk and operational risk, and complies with the requirements of this part and with all applicable FHFA regulations and policies.
(2) Risk appetite. The board of directors shall ensure that the risk management program aligns with the regulated entity's risk appetite.
(3) Risk management program requirements. The risk management program shall include:
(i) Risk limitations appropriate to each business line of the regulated entity;
(ii) Appropriate policies and procedures relating to risk management governance, risk oversight infrastructure, and processes and systems for identifying and reporting risks, including emerging risks;
(iii) Provisions for monitoring compliance with the regulated entity's risk limit structure and policies relating to risk management governance, risk oversight, and effective and timely implementation of corrective actions; and
(iv) Provisions specifying management's authority and independence to carry out risk management responsibilities, and the integration of risk management with management's goals and compensation structure.
(b) Risk committee. The board of each regulated entity shall establish and maintain a risk committee of the board of directors that assists the board in carrying out its duties to oversee the enterprise-wide risk management program at the regulated entity.
(1) Committee structure. The risk committee shall:
(i) Be chaired by a director not serving in a management capacity of the regulated entity;
(ii) Have at least one member with risk management experience that is commensurate with the regulated entity's capital structure, risk appetite, complexity, activities, size, and other appropriate risk-related factors;
(iii) Have committee members that have, or that will acquire within a reasonable time after being elected to the committee, a practical understanding of risk management principles and practices relevant to the regulated entity;
(iv) Fully document and maintain records of its meetings, including its risk management decisions and recommendations; and
(v) Report directly to the board and not as part of, or combined with, another committee.
(2) Committee responsibilities. The risk committee shall:
(i) Periodically review and recommend for board approval an appropriate enterprise-wide risk management program that is commensurate with the regulated entity's capital structure, risk appetite, complexity, activities, size, and other appropriate risk-related factors;
(ii) Receive and review regular reports from the regulated entity's chief risk officer, as required under paragraph (c)(5) of this section ; and
(iii) Periodically review the capabilities for, and adequacy of resources allocated to, enterprise-wide risk management.
(c) Chief Risk Officer.—(1) Appointment of a chief risk officer (CRO). Each regulated entity shall appoint a CRO to implement and maintain appropriate enterprise-wide risk management practices for the regulated entity.
(2) Organizational structure of the risk management function. The CRO shall head an independent enterprise-wide risk management function, or unit, and shall report directly to the risk committee and to the chief executive officer.
(3) Responsibilities of the CRO. The CRO shall be responsible for the enterprise-wide risk management function, including:
(i) Allocating risk limits and monitoring compliance with such limits;
(ii) Establishing appropriate policies and procedures relating to risk management governance, practices, and risk controls, and developing appropriate processes and systems for identifying and reporting risks, including emerging risks;
(iii) Monitoring risk exposures, including testing risk controls and verifying risk measures; and
(iv) Communicating within the organization about any risk management issues and/or emerging risks, and ensuring that risk management issues are effectively resolved in a timely manner.
(4) The CRO should have risk management expertise that is commensurate with the regulated entity's capital structure, risk appetite, complexity, activities, size, and other appropriate risk related factors.
(5) The CRO shall report regularly to the risk committee and to the chief executive officer on significant risk exposures and related controls, changes to risk appetite, risk management strategies, results of risk management reviews, and emerging risks. The CRO shall also report regularly on the regulated entity's compliance with, and the adequacy of, its current risk management policies and procedures, and shall recommend any adjustments to such policies and procedures that he or she considers necessary or appropriate.
(6) The compensation of a regulated entity's CRO shall be appropriately structured to provide for an objective and independent assessment of the risks taken by the regulated entity.
A regulated entity shall establish and maintain a compliance program that is reasonably designed to assure that the regulated entity complies with applicable laws, rules, regulations, and internal controls. The compliance program shall be headed by a compliance officer, however styled, who reports directly to the chief executive officer. The compliance officer also shall report regularly to the board of directors, or an appropriate committee thereof, on the adequacy of the entity's compliance policies and procedures, including the entity's compliance with them, and shall recommend any revisions to such policies and procedures that he or she considers necessary or appropriate.
(a) Reports. Each regulated entity shall file Regulatory Reports with FHFA in accordance with the forms, instructions, and schedules issued by FHFA from time to time. If no regularly scheduled reporting dates are established, Regulatory Reports shall be filed as requested by FHFA.
(b) Definition. For purposes of this section, the term Regulatory Report means any report to FHFA of information or raw or summary data needed to evaluate the safe and sound condition or operations of a regulated entity, or to determine compliance with any:
(1) Provision in the Bank Act, Safety and Soundness Act, or other law, order, rule, or regulation;
(2) Condition imposed in writing by FHFA in connection with the granting of any application or other request by a regulated entity; or
(3) Written agreement entered into between FHFA and a regulated entity.
(a) Membership—(1) Limits on service of board members.—(i) General requirement. No board member of an Enterprise may serve on the board of directors for more than 10 years or past the age of 72, whichever comes first; provided, however, a board member may serve his or her full term if he or she has served less than 10 years or is 72 years on the date of his or her election or appointment to the board; and
(ii) Waiver. Upon written request of an Enterprise, the Director may waive, in his or her sole discretion and for good cause, the limits on the service of a board member under paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section.
(2) Independence of board members. A majority of seated members of the board of directors of an Enterprise shall be independent board members, as defined under rules set forth by the NYSE, as amended from time to time.
(3) Segregation of duties. The position of chairperson of the board of directors shall be filled by a person other than the chief executive officer, who shall also be a director of the Enterprise that is independent, as defined under the rules set forth by the NYSE, as amended from time to time.
(b) Meetings, quorum and proxies, information, and annual review—(1) Frequency of meetings. The board of directors of an Enterprise shall meet at least eight times a year and no less than once a calendar quarter to carry out its obligations and duties under applicable laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines.
(2) Non-management board member meetings. Non-management directors of an Enterprise shall meet at regularly scheduled executive sessions without management participation.
(3) Quorum of board of directors; proxies not permissible. For the transaction of business, a quorum of the board of directors of an Enterprise is at least a majority of the seated board of directors and a board member may not vote by proxy.
(4) Information. Management of an Enterprise shall provide a board member of the Enterprise with such adequate and appropriate information that a reasonable board member would find important to the fulfillment of his or her fiduciary duties and obligations.
(5) Annual review. At least annually, the board of directors of an Enterprise shall be informed of significant changes to the requirements of laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines that are applicable to its activities and duties.
Each Enterprise may pay its directors reasonable and appropriate compensation for the time required of them, and their necessary and reasonable expenses, in the performance of their duties.
(a) Adoption and review of member products policy—(1) Adoption. Each Bank's board of directors shall have in effect at all times a policy that addresses the Bank's management of products offered by the Bank to members and housing associates, including but not limited to advances, standby letters of credit, and acquired member assets, consistent with the requirements of the Bank Act, paragraph (b) of this section, and all applicable FHFA regulations and policies.
(2) Review and compliance. Each Bank's board of directors shall:
(i) Review the Bank's member products policy annually;
(ii) Amend the member products policy as appropriate; and
(iii) Re-adopt the member products policy, including interim amendments, not less often than every three years.
(b) Member products policy requirements. In addition to meeting any other requirements set forth in this chapter, each Bank's member products policy shall:
(1) Address credit underwriting criteria to be applied in evaluating applications for advances, standby letters of credit, and renewals;
(2) Address appropriate levels of collateralization, valuation of collateral and discounts applied to collateral values for advances and standby letters of credit;
(3) Address advances-related fees to be charged by each Bank, including any schedules or formulas pertaining to such fees;
(4) Address standards and criteria for pricing member products, including differential pricing of advances pursuant to §1266.5(b)(2) of this chapter, and criteria regarding the pricing of standby letters of credit, including any special pricing provisions for standby letters of credit that facilitate the financing of projects that are eligible for any of the Banks' CICA programs under part 1292 of this chapter;
(5) Provide that, for any draw made by a beneficiary under a standby letter of credit, the member will be charged a processing fee calculated in accordance with the requirements of §1271.6(b) of this chapter;
(6) Address the maintenance of appropriate systems, procedures, and internal controls; and
(7) Address the maintenance of appropriate operational and personnel capacity.
(a) Adoption of strategic business plan. Each Bank's board of directors shall have in effect at all times a strategic business plan that describes how the business activities of the Bank will achieve the mission of the Bank consistent with part 1265 of this chapter. Specifically, each Bank's strategic business plan shall:
(1) Enumerate operating goals and objectives for each major business activity and for all new business activities, which must include plans for maximizing activities that further the Bank's housing finance and community lending mission, consistent with part 1265 of this chapter;
(2) Discuss how the Bank will address credit needs and market opportunities identified through ongoing market research and consultations with members, associates, and public and private organizations;
(3) Establish quantitative performance goals for Bank products related to multi-family housing, small business, small farm and small agri-business lending;
(4) Describe any proposed new business activities or enhancements of existing activities; and
(5) Be supported by appropriate and timely research and analysis of relevant market developments and member and associate demand for Bank products and services.
(b) Review and monitoring. Each Bank's board of directors shall:
(1) Review the Bank's strategic business plan at least annually;
(2) Re-adopt the Bank's strategic business plan, including interim amendments, not less often than every three years; and
(3) Establish management reporting requirements and monitor implementation of the strategic business plan and the operating goals and objectives contained therein.
(c) Report to FHFA. Each Bank shall submit to FHFA annually a report analyzing and describing the Bank's performance in achieving the goals described in paragraph (a)(3) of this section.
(a) Establishment. The audit committee of each Bank established as required by §1239.5(b) shall be consistent with the requirements set forth in this section.
(b) Composition. (1) The audit committee shall comprise five or more persons drawn from the Bank's board of directors, each of whom shall meet the criteria of independence set forth in paragraph (c) of this section.
(2) The audit committee shall include, to the extent practicable, a balance of representatives of:
(i) Community financial institutions and other members; and
(ii) Independent directors and member directors of the Bank, both as defined in the Bank Act.
(3) The terms of audit committee members shall be appropriately staggered so as to provide for continuity of service.
(4) At least one member of the audit committee shall have extensive accounting or related financial management experience.
(c) Independence. Any member of the Bank's board of directors shall be considered to be sufficiently independent to serve as a member of the audit committee if that director does not have a disqualifying relationship with the Bank or its management that would interfere with the exercise of that director's independent judgment. Such disqualifying relationships include, but are not limited to:
(1) Being employed by the Bank in the current year or any of the past five years;
(2) Accepting any compensation from the Bank other than compensation for service as a board director;
(3) Serving or having served in any of the past five years as a consultant, advisor, promoter, underwriter, or legal counsel of or to the Bank; or
(4) Being an immediate family member of an individual who is, or has been in any of the past five years, employed by the Bank as an executive officer.
(d) Charter. (1) The audit committee of each Bank shall review and assess the adequacy of the Bank's audit committee charter on an annual basis, and shall recommend to the board of directors any amendments that it believes to be appropriate;
(2) The board of directors of each Bank shall review and assess the adequacy of the audit committee charter on an annual basis, shall amend the audit committee charter whenever it deems it appropriate to do so, and shall reapprove the audit committee charter not less often than every three years; and
(3) Each Bank's audit committee charter shall:
(i) Provide that the audit committee has the responsibility to select, evaluate and, where appropriate, replace the internal auditor and that the internal auditor may be removed only with the approval of the audit committee;
(ii) Provide that the internal auditor shall report directly to the audit committee on substantive matters and that the internal auditor is ultimately accountable to the audit committee and board of directors;
(iii) Provide that the audit committee shall be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation, retention, and oversight of the work of the external auditor;
(iv) Provide that the external auditor shall report directly to the audit committee;
(v) Provide that both the internal auditor and the external auditor shall have unrestricted access to the audit committee without the need for any prior management knowledge or approval; and
(vi) Provide that the Bank shall make available appropriate funding, as determined by the audit committee, for payment of compensation to the external auditor, to any independent advisors or counsel engaged by the audit committee, and ordinary administrative expenses that are necessary or appropriate for the audit committee to carry out its duties.
(e) Duties. Each Bank's audit committee shall have the duty to:
(1) Direct senior management to maintain the reliability and integrity of the accounting policies and financial reporting and disclosure practices of the Bank;
(2) Review the basis for the Bank's financial statements and the external auditor's opinion rendered with respect to such financial statements (including the nature and extent of any significant changes in accounting principles or the application thereof) and ensure that policies are in place that are reasonably designed to achieve disclosure and transparency regarding the Bank's true financial performance and governance practices;
(3) Oversee the internal audit function by:
(i) Reviewing the scope of audit services required, significant accounting policies, significant risks and exposures, audit activities, and audit findings;
(ii) Assessing the performance and determining the compensation of the internal auditor; and
(iii) Reviewing and approving the internal auditor's work plan.
(4) Oversee the external audit function by:
(i) Approving the external auditor's annual engagement letter; and
(ii) Reviewing the performance of the external auditor.
(5) Provide an independent, direct channel of communication between the Bank's board of directors and the internal and external auditors;
(6) Conduct or authorize investigations into any matters within the audit committee's scope of responsibilities;
(7) Ensure that senior management has established and is maintaining an adequate internal control system within the Bank by:
(i) Reviewing the Bank's internal control system and the resolution of identified material weaknesses and significant deficiencies in the internal control system, including the prevention or detection of management override or compromise of the internal control system; and
(ii) Reviewing the programs and policies of the Bank designed to ensure compliance with applicable laws, regulations and policies, and monitoring the results of these compliance efforts;
(8) Review the policies established by senior management to assess and monitor implementation of the Bank's strategic business plan and the operating goals and objectives contained therein;
(9) Report periodically its findings to the Bank's board of directors; and
(10) Establish procedures for the receipt, retention, and treatment of complaints received by the Bank regarding accounting, internal accounting controls, or auditing matters, and for the confidential, anonymous submission by employees of the Bank of concerns regarding questionable accounting or auditing matters.
(f) Meetings. The audit committee shall prepare written minutes of each audit committee meeting.
[80 FR 72336, Nov. 19, 2015, as amended at 81 FR 76295, Nov. 2, 2016]
A Bank's board of directors may not declare or pay a dividend based on projected or anticipated earnings and may not declare or pay a dividend if the par value of the Bank's stock is impaired or is projected to become impaired after paying such dividend.