J 
or 
b 
1 
FEDERAL RESERVE ACT 
(Approved Dec. 23, 1913.) 
An Act To Provide for the establishment of Federal reserve banks, to furnish an elastic 
currency, to afford means of rediscounting commercial paper, to establish a more effective 
supervision of banking in the United States, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America 
in Congress assembled, That the short title of this Act shall be the “Federal Reserve 
Act.” 
Wherever the word “bank” is used in this Act, the word shall be held to include 
State bank, banking association, and trust company, except where national banks or 
Federal reserve banks are specifically referred to. 
The terms “national bank” and “national banking association” used in this Act 
shall be held to be synonymous and interchangeable. The term “member bank” shall 
be held to mean any national bank, State bank, or bank or trust company which has 
become a member of one of the reserve banks created by this Act. The term “board” 
shall be held to mean Federal Reserve Board; the term “district” shall be held to mean 
fede reserve district; the term “reserve bank’ shall be held to mean Federal reserve 
ank, 
Federal Reserve Districts 
Sec. 2. As soon as practicable, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of 
Agriculture and the Comptroller of the Currency, acting as “The Reserve Bank Organi- 
zation Committee,” shall designate not less than eight nor more than twelve cities to 
be known as Federal reserve cities, and shall divide the continental United States, 
excluding Alaska, into districts, each district to contain only one of such Federal 
feserve cities. The determination of said organization committee shall not be subject 
to review except by the Federal Reserve Board when organized: Provided, That the 
districts shall be apportioned with due regard to the convenience and customary course 
of business and shall not necessarily be coterminous with any State or States. The 
districts thus created may be readjusted and new districts may from time to time be 
created by the Federal Reserve Board, not to exceed twelve in all. Such districts shall 
be known as Federal reserve districts and may be designated by number. A majority 
of the organization committee shall constitute a quorum with authority to act. 
Said organization committee shall be authorized to employ counsel and expert aid, 
to take testimony, to send for persons and papers, to administer oaths, and to make 
Such investigation as may be deemed necessary by the said committee in determining 
the reserve districts and in designating the cities within such districts where such 
Federg) reserve banks shall be severally located. The said committee shall supervise 
the Organization in each of the cities designated of a Federal reserve bank, which shall 
elude in js title the name of the city in which it is situated, as “Federal Reserve Bank 
of Chicago.” 
[95 ]