In a letter dated June 25 to community bank CEOs, Martin Gruenberg, Chairman of the Board of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, stated that the FDIC will offer assistance to community bankers to help them understand the complicated new rules that have been proposed by the FDIC, the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) with respect to capital requirements. Gruenberg said, "We recognize…that the proposed rules …are extensive. Because of this, the FDIC is offering technical assistance to aid community banks in identifying and understanding the aspects of the proposals most likely to apply to them." To that end, the FDIC will conduct informational sessions with community bankers in each of the six FDIC geographic regions to provide an overview of the proposed regulations. "The sessions will be presented live and bankers will have the option to attend in person or listen to the presentation by phone.”

Dates for the sessions are:

• Dallas - July 20
• New York - July 23
• Atlanta - July 26
• Kansas City - July 26
• Chicago - July 31
• San Francisco - August 1

The letter also stated that the FDIC will post a webcast overview of the proposed regulations on the FDIC's website for those institutions that cannot participate in the regional sessions. "This webcast should be available by mid- to late-July."

The FDIC asked that any questions regarding this initiative be directed to Area Director Daniel Frye at 781-794-5678. It was not clear whether the other two banking agencies, the Federal Reserve and the OCC, would conduct similar sessions for their community bank regulatees, or whether the education effort would be conducted solely by the FDIC.

For more information, click here.