The law bailing out the Savings Association Insurance Fund is stuffed with unrelated, yet important, provisions.
For example, folded into the measure signed into law Monday night is a provision privatizing the Student Loan Marketing Association.
Lawrence A. Hough, president and chief executive of Sallie Mae, said he expects to present a 12-year plan for winding down the government-sponsored enterprise next summer.
Nearly 10 years after they were imposed, the growth limits Congress applied to nonbanks were removed. That cap has been 7% a year since 1987.
Under the new law, 556 banks and 204 thrifts could see their examiners less often. Congress raised the size of Camel 2-rated institutions - from $175 million to $250 million in assets - that may be examined every 18 months rather than every year.
Congress also told the Federal Reserve Board to wait at least nine months before deciding if the consumer protections in Regulation E should be applied to stored-valued products. The law gives the Fed six months to study the effect of regulation on the development of stored-value and smart card systems.
Regulation E limits a customer's liability if a card is lost or stolen. In May, the Fed proposed applying the regulation to stored-value cards holding more than $100.
The Fed is also required to compare bank fees on interstate and intercity levels.
The law also allows the Treasury Department to designate banks as prime contractors for delivering welfare and other public assistance benefits electronically. This authority was questioned by an Aug. 13 court decision calling Treasury's plan to make banks the primary contractors "mistaken."
The Justice Department will return to the courts with this new law in hand, which will "clarify" Treasury's authority, an administration official said.
