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Inventory of the Dept. of Savings and Loan Records
F3739
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Table of contents
Title: Dept. of Savings and Loan Records
Dates: 1922-1971
Collection number: F3739
Creator:
California. Dept. of Savings and Loan
Extent: 23 cubic feet
Repository:
California State Archives
Sacramento, California
Abstract: The records of the Department of Savings and Loan consist of 23 cubic feet of textual records and are divided into two subgroups:
the records of the San Francisco Office and the records of the Los Angeles Office.
Physical location: California State Archives
Languages: Languages represented in the collection: English
While the majority of the records are open for research, any access restrictions are noted in the record series descriptions.
For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the California State Archives. Permission for reproduction or publication
is given on behalf of the California State Archives as the owner of the physical items. The researcher assumes all responsibility
for possible infringement which may arise from reproduction or publication of materials from the California State Archives
collections.
[Identification of item], Department of Savings and Loan Records, F3739:[folder number], California State Archives, Office
of the Secretary of State, Sacramento, California.
Acquisition and Custodial History
The California State Archives acquired the Dept. of Savings and Loan Records according to state law.
Origins of the Department of Savings and Loan can be traced to the creation of the Board of Commissioners of Building and
Loan Associations (Statutes of 1893, Chapter 188). The board became a bureau (Statutes of 1905, Chapter 504) and then a Division
of the Department of Investment in 1929, a federation of five independent divisions (Statutes of 1929, Chapter 277). In 1943,
building and loan associations were granted permission to use the designation savings and loan in their corporate name (Statutes
of 1943, Chapter 209). By 1953, savings and loan had become the official designation for the Division, the Commissioner, and
laws governing the savings and loan industry (Statutes of 1953, Chapter 641). The Division of Savings and Loan, along with
the Department of Investment, became a unit of the Business and Commerce Agency by executive order in 1961. According to legislation
passed in 1969, the Savings and Loan Division became a department; the Department of Investment ceased to exist; and divisions
once supervised by the Business and Commerce Agency were absorbed into the newly designated Business and Transportation Agency
(Statutes of 1969, Chapter 138). Nine business regulatory departments, including the Department of Savings and Loan, constituted
one of two functionally related groups in the Business and Transportation Agency; the second group was transportation-oriented
and contained three departments.
The Savings and Loan Commissioner was the chief officer of the Department of Savings and Loan and was appointed by the governor
with the consent of the Senate. He was charged with the responsibility of administering the Savings and Loan Department and
enforcing laws affecting the formation, organization, operation and liquidation of state-licensed associations. Under his
direction the department was responsible for compiling annual reports for the governor, conducting annual examinations, appraisals
and joint examinations in cooperation with the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. Additional responsibilities of the commissioner
and department included approving the sale of loans, maintaining a loan register, issuing Quarterly Statements of Conditions
and Operations and addressing grievances submitted by private citizens.
The Chief Deputy Savings and Loan Commissioner served as a confidential adviser to the Commissioner. Regional offices in San
Francisco and Los Angeles were supervised by two Assistant Savings and Loan Commissioners. An Executive Committee, consisting
of the Savings and Loan Commissioner, Chief Deputy and two Assistant Commissioners, consult on major policy and operating
problems. Office sections include an Administrative section, Legal Services, Special Services, Examination Section and Appraisal
Section.
The 1993-1994 Governor's Budget, eliminated the Department of Savings and Loan and transferred its functions to the Office
of Savings and Loan Administration within the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency. The principle objectives of the
Office of Savings and Loan were to protect the public's savings and investment funds held by State associations, to assure
compliance by associations with laws and regulations including those involving consumer protection and anti-discrimination,
and to assure the continued financial growth of these associations consistent with public need and convenience.
Reflective of the continued reduction in the number of state chartered savings and loan associations, the 1996-1997 Governor's
Budget transferred the functions of the Office of Savings and Loan to the State Banking Department in an effort to reduce
costs and streamline government, and to maintain the powers of state chartering in an industry that was subject to extensive
federal oversight. In accordance with this change, existing state chartered savings and loans required approval from the State
Banking Department before taking specified actions under the Savings Association Law. Chapter 1064 of the Statutes of 1996
established the Department of Financial Institutions, effective July 1, 1997. This new department consolidated the regulatory
responsibilities of the Office of Savings and Loan, the State Banking Department, and the Credit Union and Industrial Loan
Law regulatory programs previously under the Department of Corporations.
The records of the Department of Savings and Loan consist of 23 cubic feet of textual records and are divided into two subgroups:
the records of the San Francisco Office and the records of the Los Angeles Office. The bulk of the records are found within
the Los Angeles office because it served as the headquarters of the department at the time of the records creation. Correspondence
and records before 1958 refer mainly to the Department of Building and Loan, the Building and Loan Commissioner, etc. However,
for purposes of uniformity in this finding aid, all Building and Loan records will be described as Savings and Loan records.
Individual files were maintained for numerous associations and, for the most part, have been retained here in the chronological
order established by the department. Files contained herein are labeled according to the most recent name of an association
during a given time period. For example, even though San Joaquin First Federal Savings and Loan Association was named Mercantile
Building-Loan Association during the 1930s, all general records pertaining to the association are filed under its most recent
name. Attached tables contain alphabetical listings of associations and related information for each of the following series:
Hearing transcripts; Reports of Examination; Report of Joint Examination; Report of Examination-Holding Co.; and Report to
the Commissioner.
Further accruals are expected.
Related Material at the State Archives
Department of Investment Records
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
California. Dept. of Savings and Loan
Savings and loan associations