Wyo. Code R. 021-0001-4
Banking Board
Effective Date: 02/07/1994 to 11/24/1999
Rule Type: Superceded Rules & Regulations
Reference Number: 021.0001.4.02071994
Section 1. General Procedure. As required by W.S. 13-2-209, all hearings which are held before the Board on Financial Institution charter applications will be conducted pursuant to the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, W.S. 16-3-101 through 16-3115, as amended.
(a) The Chairman of the Board shall schedule a time and place for a public hearing on each application for a financial institutions charter pursuant to W.S. 13-2-207.
(b) As provided in W.S. 13-2-207, it shall be the responsibility of the applicant to publish notice of the public hearing and to furnish proof of publication acceptable to the State Banking Commissioner not more than ten (10) days prior to the hearing.
(c) The notice of filing of the application and of the hearing, as required by W.S. 13-2-207, shall state the proposed location of the financial institution, the names of the proposed applicants for a charter, and the nature of the activities to be conducted by the proposed institution.
(d) The Board shall serve, or shall cause to be served, notice of the public hearing by mail upon each financial institution located in the applicant's county and in the State of Wyoming which has requested notice from the Board of public hearings on charter applications.
Section 3. Hearing Examiner. A hearing examiner shall be appointed by the Board to serve at each hearing held before the Board. The hearing examiner shall have the powers prescribed by W.S. 16-3-112.
Section 4. Subpoenas. The Board, through its chairman or its hearing examiner, shall, upon application of any party, issue a subpoena requiring the appearance of witnesses for the purpose of taking evidence or requiring the production of any books, papers or other documents relevant or material to the charter application.
Section 5. Discovery and Depositions. The taking of depositions and discovery by the parties shall be governed by W.S. 16-3-107.
Section 6. Rules of Evidence. The rules of evidence set out in W.S. 16-3-108 shall apply to all proceedings before the Board.
Section 7. Rules of Civil Procedure. Insofar as they are applicable, and to the extent they conflict with neither the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act nor these rules and regulations, the Wyoming Rules of Civil Procedure shall apply in all hearings before the Board.
(a) The hearing examiner may, on his own initiative, at the request of the Board, at the request of the State Banking Commissioner, or at the request of any party, direct all parties and their counsel to meet with him at a specified time and place prior to any hearing for any or all of the following reasons:
(i) To determine the necessity of desirability of amendments to an application;
(ii) To determine the names of witnesses whom the parties intend to call to testify at the hearing, together with a brief summary of the testimony intended to be elicited from each witness;
(iii) To determine the number, description, and purpose of exhibits intended to be used by the parties at the hearing, and to require the parties to make available these exhibits for inspection by opposing counsel and for marking;
(iv) To determine matters, if any, of which the Board will be requested to take judicial notice pursuant to W.S. 16-3-108(d);
(v) To discuss any stipulations concerning the application which the parties are able to make to simplify the issues or the proof; and,
(vi) To consider any other matters that will simplify the issues and further aid in expeditious conduct of the hearing.
(b) The hearing examiner may in his discretion require prehearing memoranda of the parties.
(c) A prehearing conference may be recorded at the advance request of any party. If no verbatim transcript is taken, the hearing examiner shall prepare a summarized report reciting the results of the conference. This report may be received into evidence by the Board during open hearing.
(d) Failure to comply with the hearing examiner's directions under this rule may cause the hearing examiner to continue the public hearings to another date, or to preclude the introduction of exhibits into evidence or the calling of witnesses to testify at the hearing.
Section 9. Economic Feasibility Studies. If a study on the economic feasibility of a proposed financial institution is to be offered either in support of or in opposition to a proposed financial institution, it must be filed in the Office of the State Banking Commissioner along with the application. Failure to comply with this rule may cause the Board to exclude the study and testimony based thereon from the hearing, or to continue the hearing to another date.
(a) If the Board determines that two or more applications for charters are closely related, and that matters of evidence and proof would be of a similar nature in hearings on the individual applications, the Board may order hearings on the applications consolidated into a single hearing.
(b) At a consolidated hearing, the party first perfecting its application pursuant to W.S. 13-2-207 shall present its case first, followed by the party that was second in perfecting its application. There- after, other parties in interest may present witnesses and other evidence. Opportunity for rebuttal shall be provided in the same order as the cases were presented.
Section 11. Competitive Applications. Whenever two or more applications for a charter for proposed financial institutions which may be located within three miles of one another are presented to the State Banking Commissioner, those applications shall be heard in the order that they are deemed perfected by the State Banking Commissioner pursuant to W.S. 13-2-207. However, nothing herein shall preclude the Board from conducting a consolidated hearing on the applications.
(a) Every party shall be accorded the right to appear before the Board at a public hearing pursuant to W.S. 16-3-107(j).
(b) Any party may represent himself before the Board. Any person who is a member in good standing of the Bar of the highest court of any state or of any federal court may represent a party before the Board by filing with the Board his written declaration that he is currently qualified under this subsection and is expressly authorized to represent the particular party on whose behalf he appears.
Section 13. Nature of Hearing. All hearings before the Board shall be open to the public. The Board may, at any time, retire into executive session to consult with its legal counsel or to consider or receive any records or information which are classified as confidential by statute or by these rules and regulations.
Section 14. Transcripts. The reporting of testimony and the transcription of proceedings before the Board are governed by W.S. 16-3-107(k), (n) and (o).
(a) In all hearings before the Board the applicant for a financial institutions charter shall present its case first. Other parties may thereupon present witnesses and other evidence in the order prescribed by the Board.
(b) The Board may in its discretion call for the production of further evidence upon any issue. The Board may also produce independent evidence through the State Banking Commissioner which the Board deems material to the issues or necessary to complete the record.
(c) The applicant shall be permitted three and one-half hours in which to present his case and to cross-examine adverse witnesses. The other party to the hearing shall also be allotted three and one-half hours for presentation of its case and cross-examination of adverse witnesses; provided, however, that there is more than one party opposing the application, those parties shall be allotted a total of three and one-half hours collectively and must apportion that time among themselves.
(d) The Board, for good cause shown, may upon motion enlarge or diminish the time limitations prescribed in subsection (c) above.
(a) The parties are entitled to submit briefs to the Board pursuant to W.S. 16-3-109.
(b) Oral argument, in the form of closing statements, may be allowed in the discretion of the Board.
Section 17. Reopening of Hearing. Upon reasonable notice to all parties, the Board may reopen any hearing at any time prior to public announcement of its findings, conclusions, and decision and order. Proceedings which have been reopened shall be conducted pursuant to the rules established in this chapter.
Section 18. Quorum. As provided in W.S. 13-2-205, a majority of the Board constitutes a quorum. No financial institution charter application shall be approved or disapproved unless a quorum of the Board has participated in the Board's final decision on the application. In the Board's discretion, any member of the Board who was absent from the hearing on an application may participate in the Board's final decision on the application after reading and considering a transcript of the hearing, together with all exhibits received at the hearing.
Section 19. Final Decision.
(a) The final decision of the Board, following hearing on a financial institution charter application will be by order issued pursuant to W.S. 16-3-101 and W.S. 13-2-212.
(b) The order shall specify the amount of time to be granted to the applicant for obtaining federal insurance as applicable. If federal insurance is denied, or if the applicant withdraws application for federal insurance, the application for state charter will be vacated.
(c) Final approval of the application will be considered granted by the Board when all conditions of the Order have been met by the applicants, and proof is provided that the capital and surplus accounts have been paid in. The State Banking Commissioner will file the Articles of Incorporation and deliver the charter bearing the seal of his office, which charter shall be deemed authority to commence business, by opening day of the financial institution.
Section 20. Judicial Review. Judicial review of any decision and order of the Board is available pursuant to W.S. 16-3-114.
Section 21. Unclaimed Exhibits.
(a) In the event that a decision and order of the Board is not appealed to a court of record, then within fifty (50) days after time for such appeal has lapsed, the Board may destroy or cause to be destroyed any exhibits introduced at a hearing unless a party has notified the Board of its intention to withdraw the exhibits.