§ 26–551.05. General powers and responsibilities of the Commissioner.

(a) The Commissioner shall:

(1) Administer the District of Columbia Banking Code;

(2) Promote and maintain a climate and regulatory framework that will encourage financial institutions to organize to do business in the District and contribute to the economic development of the District through the increased availability of capital and credit;

(3) Expand advantageous financial services to the public in a nondiscriminatory manner;

(4) Charter, regulate, supervise, and examine banks, savings institutions, credit unions, trust companies, and other financial institutions engaged, or seeking to engage, in the business of banking in the District;

(5) License, regulate, supervise, and examine non-depository financial institutions engaged in regulated activity in the District;

(6) Regulate the opening or closing of branches, agencies, offices, or other facilities by financial institutions under the authority and supervision of the Commissioner;

(7) Approve or disapprove mergers or acquisitions involving District financial institutions or financial institution holding companies;

(8) Monitor community development commitments of financial institutions chartered, organized, or doing business in the District;

(9) Approve or disapprove changes in control of financial institutions chartered or organized in the District;

(10) Approve or disapprove conversions of federally-chartered institutions into District-chartered financial institutions;

(11) Promulgate regulations, rules, policy statements, interpretations, and opinions necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of the District of Columbia Banking Code;

(12) Assure that all financial institutions engaged in regulated activity in the District, under the supervision or control of the Commissioner, or seeking to do business into the District of Columbia under the District of Columbia Banking Code provide financial services to the public in a manner that fosters the development and revitalization of housing and commercial corridors in underserved neighborhoods in the District, help meet the credit and deposit service needs of lower income and minority residents of the District, and expand financial and technical support for small, minority, and women-owned businesses;

(13) Investigate possible violations of the District of Columbia Banking Code and take any authorized action upon finding a violation;

(14) Examine or audit a financial institution, bank holding company, affiliate, or subsidiary to assure that the financial institution bank holding company, affiliate, or subsidiary is operating in compliance with the law and in a manner that preserves safety and soundness;

(15) Request or pursue a restraining order, the appointment of a receiver or conservator, the involuntary dissolution of a corporation, or the freezing or seizure of assets of a person associated with a violation or possible violation of the District of Columbia Banking Code;

(16) In all respects permitted by law, act as the District government’s regulatory authority for financial institutions operating in the District; and

(17) Recommend to the Mayor annually, or at any other time, any necessary changes to District laws dealing with banking or other areas within the jurisdiction of the Commissioner.

(b) The Commissioner shall be responsible for the performance of all duties, the exercise of all powers and jurisdiction, and the assumption and discharge of all responsibilities vested by law in the Department or the Commissioner. The Commissioner shall have all powers necessary or convenient for the administration and enforcement of the District of Columbia Banking Code.

(b-1)(1) To determine a financial institution’s eligibility to conduct a regulated activity under the District of Columbia Banking Code, the Commissioner may require each organizer, partner, director, officer, and owner with a controlling interest in the financial institution to submit to the Commissioner his or her fingerprints, contact information, and other identifying information, along with written consent to the performance of a criminal history record background check.

(2) The Commissioner may exchange the fingerprints and other information with, and receive criminal history record background information from, the Metropolitan Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the purposes of facilitating the Commissioner’s determination.

(3) The individual or financial institution associated with the regulated activity requiring the Commissioner’s determination shall bear the cost of the criminal history record background check and all costs of administering and processing the background check.

(c) The Commissioner may promulgate rules and regulations necessary or appropriate to the execution of the Commissioner’s powers, duties, and responsibilities.

(d) The Commissioner may enter into agreements that the Commissioner considers necessary or appropriate to the exercise of his or her powers, including agreements with agencies or instrumentalities of the District, states and territories of the United States of America, or the federal government, for the examination of banks, savings institutions, credit unions, trust companies, and other financial institutions.

(e) The Commissioner, in the performance of the duties and responsibilities of the Department, may enter into contracts with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Office of Thrift Supervision, the National Credit Union Administration, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, District agencies, other state or federal banking agencies, or any other entity, for those services necessary to carry out the duties and responsibilities of the Commissioner and the Department.

(f) The Commission may establish and modify fees to implement the District of Columbia Banking Code.