§265 Insured banks as depositaries of public money; duties; security; discrimination between banks prohibited; repeal of inconsistent laws

Summary

The Secretary of the Treasury can pick insured banks to hold and handle United States public money. That includes government revenues, funds under U.S. control, and Postal Savings funds. The Secretary may put public money in those banks under rules he sets. Those banks must keep the money safe, pay it when needed, and can serve as financial agents for the government. The Secretary must get good security (like U.S. bonds or other protection) from the banks so the money is safe and the banks do their jobs. No extra security is needed for parts of the deposits that are insured. Each government officer who lawfully deposits money is treated as a separate depositor for insured-deposit limits. Federal agencies may not make rules or deals that favor or hurt one class of banks over another (national banks, state member banks, or insured nonmember banks). Any conflicting laws are repealed. The terms “insured bank” and “insured deposit” follow the definitions in section 1813.