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U.S. Code as of:
01/19/04
Section 3910. Audit authority of General Accounting Office
(a) Scope of audit
(1) Under regulations of the Comptroller General, the Comptroller
General shall audit the appropriate Federal banking agencies (as
defined in section 3902 of this title), but may carry out an onsite
examination of an open insured bank or bank holding company only if
the appropriate Federal banking agency has consented in writing.
(2) An audit under this subsection may include a review or
evaluation of the international regulation, supervision, and
examination activities of the appropriate Federal banking agency,
including the coordination of such activities with similar
activities of regulatory authorities of a foreign government or
international organization.
(3) Audits of the Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve banks
may not include -
(A) transactions for, or with, a foreign central bank,
government of a foreign country, or nonprivate international
financing organization;
(B) deliberations, decisions, or actions on monetary policy
matters, including discount window operations, reserves of member
banks, securities credit, interest on deposits, or open market
operations;
(C) transactions made under the direction of the Federal Open
Market Committee; or
(D) a part of a discussion or communication among or between
members of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
and officers and employees of the Federal Reserve System related
to subparagraphs (A) through (C) of this paragraph.
(b) Limits on disclosure
(1)(A) Except as provided in this subsection, an officer or
employee of the General Accounting Office may not disclose
information identifying an open bank, an open bank holding company,
or a customer of an open or closed bank or bank holding company.
(B) The Comptroller General may disclose information related to
the affairs of a closed bank or closed bank holding company
identifying a customer of the closed bank or closed bank holding
company only if the Comptroller General believes the customer had a
controlling influence in the management of the closed bank or
closed bank holding company or was related to or affiliated with a
person or group having a controlling influence.
(2) An officer or employee of the General Accounting Office may
discuss a customer, bank, or bank holding company with an official
of an appropriate Federal banking agency and may report an apparent
criminal violation to an appropriate law enforcement authority of
the United States Government or a State.
(3) This subsection does not authorize an officer or employee of
an appropriate Federal banking agency to withhold information from
a committee of the Congress authorized to have the information.
(c) Records, property, workpapers, correspondence, and documents;
accessibility
(1)(A) To carry out this section, all records and property of or
used by an appropriate Federal banking agency, including samples of
reports of examinations of a bank or bank holding company the
Comptroller General considers statistically meaningful and
workpapers and correspondence related to the reports shall be made
available to the Comptroller General, including such records and
property pertaining to the coordination of international
regulation, supervisor and examination activities of an appropriate
Federal banking agency.
(B) The Comptroller General shall give each appropriate Federal
banking agency a current list of officers and employees to whom,
with proper identification, records and property may be made
available, and who may make notes or copies necessary to carry out
an audit.
(C) Each appropriate Federal banking agency shall give the
Comptroller General suitable and lockable offices and furniture,
telephones, and access to copying facilities.
(2) Except for the temporary removal of workpapers of the
Comptroller General that do not identify a customer of an open or
closed bank or bank holding company, an open bank, or an open bank
holding company, all workpapers of the Comptroller General and
records and property of or used by an appropriate Federal banking
agency that the Comptroller General possesses during an audit,
shall remain in such agency. The Comptroller General shall prevent
unauthorized access to records or property.
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