# § 355. Purchase and sale of obligations of National, State, and municipal governments; open market operations; purchases and sales from or to United States; maximum aggregate amount of obligations acquired directly from or loaned directly to United States
Every Federal Reserve bank shall have power:
**1** To buy and sell, at home or abroad, bonds and notes of the United States, bonds issued under the provisions of subsection (c) of section 1463 [^1] of this title and having maturities from date of purchase of not exceeding six months, and bills, notes, revenue bonds, and warrants with a maturity from date of purchase of not exceeding six months, issued in anticipation of the collection of taxes or in anticipation of the receipt of assured revenues by any State, county, district, political subdivision, or municipality in the continental United States, including irrigation, drainage and reclamation districts, and obligations of, or fully guaranteed as to principal and interest by, a foreign government or agency thereof, such purchases to be made in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, any bonds, notes, or other obligations which are direct obligations of the United States or which are fully guaranteed by the United States as to principal and interest may be bought and sold without regard to maturities but only in the open market.
See References in Text note below.
**(2)** To buy and sell in the open market, under the direction and regulations of the Federal Open Market Committee, any obligation which is a direct obligation of, or fully guaranteed as to principal and interest by, any agency of the United States.
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**Source Credit**: (Dec. 23, 1913, ch. 6, § 14(b), 38 Stat. 264; Jan. 31, 1934, ch. 7, § 16(b), 48 Stat. 348; Apr. 27, 1934, ch. 168, § 7(b), 48 Stat. 646; Aug. 23, 1935, ch. 614, title II, §§ 203(a), 206(a), 49 Stat. 704, 706; Mar. 27, 1942, ch. 199, title IV, § 401, 56 Stat. 180; Apr. 28, 1947, ch. 44, 61 Stat. 56; June 30, 1950, ch. 425, 64 Stat. 307; June 23, 1952, ch. 454, 66 Stat. 154; June 29, 1954, ch. 422, 68 Stat. 329; June 25, 1956, ch. 447, 70 Stat. 339; Pub. L. 85–476, June 30, 1958, 72 Stat. 261; Pub. L. 86–567, July 1, 1960, 74 Stat. 295; Pub. L. 87–353, § 3(d), Oct. 4, 1961, 75 Stat. 773; Pub. L. 87–506, June 28, 1962, 76 Stat. 112; Pub. L. 88–344, June 30, 1964, 78 Stat. 235; Pub. L. 89–484, June 30, 1966, 80 Stat. 235; Pub. L. 89–597, § 6, Sept. 21, 1966, 80 Stat. 825; Pub. L. 90–300, May 4, 1968, 82 Stat. 113; Pub. L. 91–360, July 31, 1970, 84 Stat. 668; Pub. L. 92–45, July 2, 1971, 85 Stat. 100; Pub. L. 93–93, Aug. 14, 1973, 87 Stat. 314; Pub. L. 93–495, title I, § 109, Oct. 28, 1974, 88 Stat. 1505; Pub. L. 94–125, Nov. 12, 1975, 89 Stat. 678; Pub. L. 95–22, title II, § 201, Apr. 19, 1977, 91 Stat. 49; Pub. L. 95–128, title II, § 209, Oct. 12, 1977, 91 Stat. 1131; Pub. L. 95–154, Nov. 7, 1977, 91 Stat. 1256; Pub. L. 95–534, Oct. 27, 1978, 92 Stat. 2032; Pub. L. 96–18, §§ 1, 3, June 8, 1979, 93 Stat. 35, 36; Pub. L. 96–221, title I, § 105(b)(2), Mar. 31, 1980, 94 Stat. 140.)
## Editorial Notes
### References in Text
, referred to in par. (1), was repealed by , , .
This chapter, referred to in par. (1), was in the original “this Act”, meaning , , known as the Federal Reserve Act. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see References in Text note set out under and Tables.
### Codification
Section is comprised of subsec. (b) of section 14 of act . For classification to this title of remainder of section 14, see Codification note set out under .
### Amendments
1980—Par. (1). inserted provisions relating to obligations of a foreign government or agency thereof.
1979—Par. (1). , struck out proviso under which Federal Reserve banks had been allowed, until , to buy and sell either in the open market or directly from or to the United States bonds, notes, or other obligations which were direct obligations of the United States or which were fully guaranteed by the United States and, after , had allowed such obligations to be purchased but only in the open market.
, inserted provision that notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, any bonds, notes, or other obligations which are direct obligations of the United States or which are fully guaranteed by the United States as to principal and interest may be bought and sold without regard to maturities but only in the open market.
Par. (2). , §§ 1(b), 3(a), temporarily substituted “the United States or any agency of the United States, and to lend, under the direction and regulations of the Federal Open Market Committee, any such obligation to the Secretary of the Treasury” for “any agency of the United States”. See Effective and Termination Dates of 1979 Amendment note set out below.
Pars. (3), (4). , §§ 1(c), 3(a), temporarily added pars. (3) and (4). See Effective and Termination Dates of 1979 Amendment note set out below.
1978—Par. (1). substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1977—Par. (1). substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1975—Par. (1). substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1974—Par. (1). substituted “ for “” and “” for “”.
1973—Par. (1). substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1971—Par. (1). substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1970—Par. (1). substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1968—Par. (1). substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1966— designated existing provisions as par. (1) and added par. (2).
substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1964— substituted “” for “”, and “” for “”.
1962— substituted “” for “” and “” for “.”
1961— struck out provision authorizing every Federal reserve bank to buy and sell, at home or abroad, bonds of the Federal Farm Mortgage Corporation having maturities from date of purchase of not exceeding six months.
1960— substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1958— substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1956—Act , substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1954—Act , substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1952—Act , substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1950—Act , substituted “” for “” and “” for “”.
1947—Act , substituted proviso which allows the Federal Reserve banks to buy and sell either in the open market or directly from or to the United States any bonds, notes, or other obligations which are direct obligations of the United States or are fully guaranteed by the United States but limits the aggregate amount to be held at any one time to $5,000,000,000, and after allows such obligation to be purchased, but only in the open market for former proviso.
1942—Act , amended proviso generally.
1935—Act , § 206(a), inserted proviso.
1934—Act , authorized purchase and sale of bonds issued under subsec. (c) of [former] .
Act , authorized purchase and sale of bonds of Federal Farm Mortgage Corporation.
## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
### Change of Name
Section 203(a) of act , changed name of Federal Reserve Board to Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
### Effective Date and Applicability of 1980 Amendment
Amendment by effective on first day of sixth month which begins after , see , set out as an Effective Date of 1980 Amendment note under .
, , , provided that the amendment made by is applicable to as such section is in effect on the first day of the sixth month which begins after , and as it will be in effect on .
### Effective and Termination Dates of 1979 Amendment
> “Except for the amendments made by subsection (a) of the first section of this Act [amending par. (1) of this section], and except for the amendment made by subsection (b) of this section [amending par. (1) of this section effective upon the expiration of the two-year period beginning on
>
> ], the amendments made by this Act [enacting
>
> and pars. (3) and (4) of this section and amending par. (2) of this section] shall be effective only during the two-year period which begins on the date of enactment of this Act [
>
> ]. Upon the expiration of such period, each provision of law amended by this Act [enacting
>
> and amending this section], except section 14(b)(1) of the Federal Reserve Act [par. (1) of this section], is amended to read as it did immediately prior to the enactment of this Act.”
, , , provided that:
, , , provided that the amendment made by that section is effective “Upon the expiration of the 2-year period which begins on the date of enactment of this Act []”.
### Expiration of 1942 Amendment
Amendment of the proviso of this section by act , remained in force only until the date fixed by section 645 of the former Appendix to Title 50, War and National Defense, after which provisions in force before the amendment again became effective. Before the 1942 amendment, the proviso of this section read: , That any bonds, notes, or other obligations which are direct obligations of the United States or which are fully guaranteed by the United States as to principal and interest may be bought and sold without regard to maturities but only in the open market.”