758; Supp. VII, title 39, sec. 758), is amended by striking out the first sentence thereof and inserting in lieu thereof the following: "Notwithstanding any other provision of law, (1) each deposit in a postal savings depository office shall be a savings deposit, and interest thereon shall be allowed and entered to the credit of the depositor once for each quarter beginning with the first day of the month following the date of such deposit, but no interest shall be allowed to any such depositor with respect to the whole or any part of the funds to his or her credit for any period of less than three months; (2) no interest shall be paid on any such deposit at a rate in excess of that which may lawfully be paid on savings deposits under regulations prescribed by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System pursuant to the Federal Reserve Act, as amended, for member banks of the Federal Reserve System located in or nearest to the place where such depository office is situated; and (3) postal savings depositories may deposit funds on time in member banks of the Federal Reserve System subject to the provisions of the Federal Reserve Act, as amended, and the regulations of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, with respect to the payment of time deposits and interest thereon."

SEC. 342. The last sentence of the third paragraph of subsection (k) of section 11 of the Federal Reserve Act, as amended (U. S. C., title 12, sec. 248 (k)), is amended to read as follows: "The State banking authorities may have access to reports of examination made by the Comptroller of the Currency insofar as such reports relate to the trust department of such bank, but nothing in this Act shall be construed as authorizing the State banking authorities to examine the books, records, and assets of such bank.'

SEC. 843. The first sentence after the third proviso of section 5240 of the Revised Statutes, as amended (U. S. C., Supp. VII, title 12, secs. 481 and 482), is amended by striking out the word "is" after the words "whose compensation" and inserting in lieu thereof a comma and the following: "including retirement annuities to be fixed by the Comptroller of the Currency, is and shall be "; and such section 5240 is further amended by striking out "The Federal Reserve Board, upon the recommendation of the Comptroller of the Currency," and inserting in lieu thereof "The Comptroller of the Currency

SEO. 344. (a) Section 1 of the National Housing Act is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new sentence: "The Administrator shall, in carrying out the provisions of this title and titles II and III, be authorized, in his official capacity, to sue and be sued in any court of competent jurisdiction, State or Federal."

(b) The first sentence of section 2 of the National Housing Act, as amended, is further amended by striking out the words "including the installation of equipment and machinery" and inserting in lieu thereof the words "and the purchase and installation of equipment and machinery on real property ".

(c) Subsection (a) of section 203 of the National Housing Act is amended by inserting the words "property and " before the word "projects" in clause (1) of such subsection.

(d) The last sentence of section 207 of the National Housing Act is amended by inserting the words "property or " before the word "project".

SEC. 345. If any part of the capital of a national bank, State member bank, or bank applying for membership in the Federal Reserve System consists of preferred stock, the determination of whether or not the capital of such bank is impaired and the amount of such impairment shall be based upon the par value of its stock even though the amount which the holders of such preferred stock shall be entitled to receive in the event of retirement or liquidation shall be in excess of the par value of such preferred stock. If any such bank or trust company shall have outstanding any capital notes or debentures of the type which the Reconstruction Finance Corporation is authorized to purchase pursuant to the provisions of section 304 of the Emergency Banking and Bank Conservation Act, approved March 9, 1933, as amended, the capital of such bank may be deemed to be unimpaired if the sound value of its assets is not less than its total liabilities, including capital stock, but excluding such capital notes or debentures and any obligations of the bank expressly subordinated thereto. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the holders of preferred stock issued by a national banking association pursuant to the provisions of the Emergency Banking and Bank Conservation Act, approved March 9, 1933, as amended, shall be entitled to receive such cumulative dividends at a rate not exceeding six per centum per annum on the purchase price received by the association for such stock and, in the event of the retirement of such stock, to receive such retirement price, not in excess of such purchase price plus all accumulated dividends, as may be provided in the articles of association with the approval of the Comptroller of the Currency. If the association is placed in voluntary liquidation, or if a conservator or a receiver is appointed therefor, no payment shall be made to the holders of common stock until the holders of preferred stock shall have been paid in full such amount as may be provided in the articles of association with the approval of the Comptroller of the Currency, not in excess of such purchase price of such preferred stock plus all accumulated dividends.

SEO. 346. If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstances, is held invalid, the remainder of the Act, and the application of such provision to other persons and circumstances, shall not be affected thereby.

Approved, August 23, 1935.

BANK HOLDING COMPANY

ACT OF 1955

MAY 20, 1955.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

Mr. SPENCE, from the Committee on Banking and Currency,
submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany H. R, 6227]

The Committee on Banking and Currency, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 6227) to provide for the control and regulation of bank holding companies, and for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

THE NEED FOR BANK HOLDING COMPANY LEGISLATION

INTRODUCTION

The need for immediate legislation which would at the same time control the future expansion of bank holding companies and force them to divest themselves of nonbanking business has been established to the complete satisfaction of your committee. It held exhaustive public hearings on H. R. 2674 (since superseded by H. R. 6227) from February 28 through March 9, 1955. Executive sessions extended from April 20 to May 13. The views of the Federal Reserve System were presented by the Honorable William McChesney Martin, Chairman of its Board of Governors, while those of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency were presented by the Honorable Ray M. Ĝidney. Other witnesses representing all shades of opinion in regard to bank holding companies appeared and were afforded every opportunity to set forth their views. All witnesses were subjected to unusually lengthy and searching interrogation by the membership of your committee. The printed hearings, including appropriate exhibits, cover 645 pages.

Evidence developed during the hearings has convinced your committee that bank holding companies are not in accord with the very