| Have you heard about the Check Clearing
for the 21st Century Act, a.k.a. Check 21? If you have a checking
account, chances are your bank has sent you information about
Check 21. In relation to Check 21, your bank may have also asked
if you still want to receive your cleared checks. Or you may
have been asked if you want to receive copies of your cleared
checks.
Congress signed Check 21 into law in October 2004 to make
the payments system more efficient by reducing some of the
legal holdups associated with traditional check processing.
Now, checks can be processed electronically. And for banks
that still want to receive paper checks, substitute checks
will be provided. A substitute check is the legal equivalent
of the original check.
Check 21 regulations also affect how check manufacturers
produce checks. Now they must follow stricter guidelines for
lightening images featured on checks. Therefore, those who
repurchase checks with images printed on them may notice that
the images are lighter than they were previously. The new
lighter versions are in compliance with Check 21 to ensure
that the information on the check can clearly be viewed once
it has been electronically transferred to a bank. Lightening
is also important in order to create readable substitute checks.
Learn more about Check 21 by visiting the Federal Reserve
Board website: www.federalreserve.gov
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