National Bank Appeals Process
Comptroller of the Currency Eugene A. Ludwig established the National Bank
Appeals Process in June 1993. The effectiveness of the Office of the
Comptroller of the Currency's (OCC's) process contributed to a congressional
mandate that all federal banking agencies establish their own appeals
processes. In September 1994, President Clinton signed into law section 309(a)
of the Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994, which contains that requirement.
The OCC Bulletin 2002-9
, "National Bank Appeals Process" (Revised and reissued) February 25, 2002,
describes the OCC's policy regarding its appeal process.
HOW TO FILE AN APPEAL
The OCC established the National Bank Appeals Process for the express purpose
of providing an independent, alternate avenue for handling matters on which
reasonable people disagree. The availability of an appeals process to the
Office of the Ombudsman not only benefits the individual bank filing the
appeal, but also provides systemic benefits to all national banks and the OCC
by bringing issues to the attention of the agency.
If a national bank and the supervisory office cannot resolve a disagreement
arising out of the supervisory process through informal discussions, the OCC
encourages national banks to seek a further review of the OCC decision or
actions that are in dispute through the National Bank Appeals Process. The
ombudsman has authority, with the prior consent of the Comptroller, to stay any
appealable agency decision or action in the resolution of an appealable matter.
Except as otherwise provided below, a national bank may seek review of any
agency decision or action, including (1) examination ratings (2) adequacy of
loan loss reserve provisions and (3) classifications of loans that are
significant to an institution. A national bank may not appeal to the ombudsman
or its immediate OCC supervisory office:
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Appointment of receivers and conservators;
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Preliminary examination conclusions;
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Any formal enforcement-related actions or decisions, including decisions to (a)
seek issuance of a formal agreement or cease and desist order, or the
assessment of a civil money penalty; (b) take prompt corrective action; (c)
issue a safety and soundness order; and (d) commence formal investigations;
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Formal and informal rulemakings;
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Decisions or recommended decision following formal and informal adjudications;
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Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests;
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Decisions made to disapprove directors and senior executive officers pursuant
to Section 914 of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement
Act (FIRREA); and
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Any other agency decisions that are subject to judicial review.
A national bank may seek review of appealable matters by filing an appeal with either
the ombudsman or the bank's immediate supervisory office. The bank should
submit information in writing fully describing the matter(s) in dispute. In the
absence of any extenuating circumstances, the OCC official will issue a written
response to the appeal within 45 calendar days of accepting an appeal. If a
bank files the appeal with its immediate supervisory office and it disagrees
with the decision rendered, it may further appeal the matter to the ombudsman.
If you would like more information about the National Bank Appeals Process, please contact Larry L. Hattix, Ombudsman, at:
Office of the Ombudsman
250 E. Street, SW
MS 9-3
Washington, DC 20219
Telephone: (202) 874-1530
Fax: (202) 874-4950
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