13 - Banking board. - New York Statutes

§ 13. Banking board. 1. There shall be in the banking department a banking board which shall consist of seventeen members. The superintendent shall be a member of the board and its chairman and executive head. The other sixteen members shall be appointed by the governor by and with the advice and consent of the senate. Each member, other than the superintendent and the first person appointed to fill a new membership on the board, shall serve for a term of three years from the first day of March in the year in which he was appointed and until his successor has been appointed and has qualified. Any member appointed pursuant to the provisions of this section may be removed from office by the governor whenever in his judgment the public interest may require. In case of such removal the governor shall file with the department of state a statement of the cause of such removal. 2. Of the sixteen members other than the superintendent, eight shall have had banking experience, and of these eight there shall be one member whose banking experience shall have been gained in group one, one in group two, one in group three, one in group four, one in group five, one in group six, one in group seven, and one in group eight of the following groups: Group one: banks, trust companies and private bankers located in the city of New York and having total assets of one billion dollars or more as shown by the last periodical reports of condition received by the superintendent. Group two: banks, trust companies and private bankers located outside the city of New York and having total assets of one hundred fifty million dollars or more as shown by the last periodical reports of condition received by the superintendent. Group three: banks, trust companies and private bankers other than those in group one and group two. Group four: savings banks located in the city of New York and the counties of Westchester, Rockland, Nassau and Suffolk. Group five: savings banks other than those in group four. Group six: savings and loan associations. Group seven: credit unions. Group eight: foreign banking corporations licensed pursuant to this article to maintain a branch or agency in this state. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this chapter or any other law of this state, the member whose banking experience shall have been gained in this group shall be a resident of this state but need not be a citizen of the United States. Provided, however, that if the superintendent determines, in his or her sole discretion, that following the rules regulating the method of selecting candidates described in subdivision three of this section, with respect to a vacancy in the office of the member required to have banking experience gained in group six shall not result in the selection of a candidate meeting the requirements of this subdivision, candidates for consideration by the governor to fill such vacancy shall be selected from among persons whose banking experience has been gained in any one or more of the groups two, three and five. A candidate appointed by the governor to fill such vacancy shall be deemed to have gained his or her experience in group six. 3. The board shall make rules to regulate the method of selecting candidates for consideration by the governor to fill a vacancy in the office of any of the eight members herein required to have banking experience. Such rules and any amendments thereto shall be subject to the approval of the governor. 4. The members other than the superintendent shall receive no salary but their expenses incurred in attending meetings shall be paid out ofthe state treasury, on certificate of the superintendent, upon the audit and warrant of the comptroller. The board shall make provision for the holding of regular meetings. The board shall meet at any time on call by the superintendent upon two days' notice. The superintendent shall call a meeting upon two days' notice upon the written request of any two members. The board may by resolution provide for a shorter notice of meeting. Any action which may be taken by the board at a meeting may be taken by instrument in writing signed by all members of the board without a meeting and any action so taken shall have the same force and effect for all purposes as if taken at a meeting. Any number of copies of any such instrument each bearing one or more signatures shall be deemed a single instrument. The board shall elect a secretary and such other officers as it deems necessary. The secretary and other officers so elected need not be members. The board shall cause a record of its proceedings to be kept. For the purpose of considering questions before it, the board shall have access to all books and papers in the department including all reports and communications, and the members shall treat such reports and communications as confidential.