396 - Change of location; change of designation of principal office; maintenance of branch office.

§ 396.  Change of location; change of designation of principal office;  maintenance of branch office. 1. Any savings and  loan  association  may  make a written application to the superintendent, such application to be  accompanied  by  an  investigation fee as prescribed pursuant to section  eighteen-a of this chapter, for leave to change its place or one of  its  places  of business to another place in the state or for leave to change  the designation of its principal office to a branch office and to change  the designation of one of its branch offices to  its  principal  office.  The  application  shall state the reasons for such proposed change. Such  change may be made upon the written approval of the  superintendent.  If  the  superintendent  shall  grant his or her certificate authorizing the  change of location, the association may, upon or after the day specified  in the certificate, remove its property  and  effects  to  the  location  designated therein.    2.  (a) A savings and loan association may open and occupy one or more  branch offices at any location in the state. In addition, a savings  and  loan  association  may open and occupy a branch office or branch offices  in one or more places located without the state of New York.    (b) Except for the city or village in which its  principal  office  is  located,  no branch office may hereafter be opened and occupied pursuant  to paragraph (a) of this subdivision in  any  city  or  village  with  a  population  of less than thirty thousand and in which is already located  the principal office of  a  bank,  trust  company  or  national  banking  association,  other  than  a  bank holding company, if such bank holding  company is a banking institution, or a  banking  subsidiary  of  a  bank  holding   company,  as  such  terms  "bank  holding  company",  "banking  institution" and "banking subsidiary" are defined in section one hundred  forty-one of this chapter except that the definition  of  "bank  holding  company"  is  modified  to  change  the  phrase  "a banking institution"  wherever it appears therein to "one or more  banking  institutions"  and  the  definition  of  "banking institution" is modified to add a national  banking association,  the  principal  office  of  which  institution  is  located in this state.    (c)  Before any branch office shall be opened and occupied pursuant to  this subdivision two, the superintendent shall have  given  his  written  approval.    (d)  The  term  "village" as used in this section shall mean either an  incorporated or an unincorporated village.    3. (a) A savings and loan association may,  if  the  merger  or  asset  acquisition   agreement  so  provides,  and  if  such  merger  or  asset  acquisition is permitted by law, maintain as a branch office  or  branch  offices  the  place  or  places  of  business  of  any  savings and loan  association, savings bank, federal savings  bank,  federal  savings  and  loan  association,  bank,  trust company, national bank, or out-of-state  bank (as such term is defined in section two hundred twenty-two of  this  chapter) which it has received into itself pursuant to the provisions of  this  chapter  which  were  in existence at the time the merger or asset  acquisition becomes  effective,  including  any  branch  office  of  the  savings  and  loan  association,  savings bank, or bank or trust company  with which it has merged or from which it has acquired assets, which has  been approved pursuant to paragraph  (c)  of  subdivision  two  of  this  section or subdivision three of section two hundred forty or subdivision  two  of  section  one  hundred five of this chapter, even if such branch  office is not in operation at the time the merger or  asset  acquisition  becomes  effective and may maintain, as its principal office rather than  as a branch office, the principal office of such institution with  which  it  has  merged  or  from  which  it has acquired assets (so long as the  principal office is located in this state), in which  event  the  formerprincipal  office  of  the receiving savings and loan association may be  maintained as a branch office.    (b)  Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in paragraph (a) of this  subdivision, any public accommodation  office  of  a  savings  and  loan  association,  savings  bank,  or  bank  or trust company, which has been  merged or had assets  acquired  in  an  asset  acquisition  transaction,  including  any  such  office which has been approved pursuant to section  one hundred ninety-one of this chapter but which is not in operation  at  the  time  said  merger  or  asset acquisition becomes effective, may be  maintained by the receiving savings and loan  association  as  a  public  accommodation office only.    3-a.  Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in subdivisions two and  three of this section,  a  savings  and  loan  association  may,  if  so  provided  in  an agreement made pursuant to section six hundred one-c of  this chapter, maintain as a branch office or offices the place or places  of business of any savings bank or savings and loan association which it  has acquired pursuant to such agreement.