Department of the Treasury September 20, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Financial Management Service (FMS) is publishing additional guidance related to the cashing and accepting for deposit of U.S. Treasury checks for FEMA Disaster Assistance payments and Federal benefit payments (Treasury assistance and benefit checks), such as Social Security payments, to recipients who resided in areas affected by Hurricane Katrina. Depository institutions and retailers have experienced difficulty in confirming the identify of Hurricane Katrina evacuees seeking to cash Treasury checks. To encourage depository institutions and retailers to cash Treasury assistance and benefit checks for these individuals, FMS has established an interim policy to relieve depository institutions from liability in a reclamation action based on a forged or unauthorized indorsement. Under the interim policy, Treasury will relieve depository institutions from liability for cashing or subsequently accepting for deposit a Treasury assistance or benefit check bearing a forged or unauthorized indorsement, provided that the procedures set forth in the interim policy are followed.

In a notice of finding published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register, the Secretary of the Treasury, through his delegate, the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, found that reasonable grounds exist for concluding that Banco Delta Asia SARL (Banco Delta Asia) is a jurisdiction of primary money laundering concern pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 5318A. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network is issuing this notice of proposed rulemaking to impose a special measure against Banco Delta Asia.