Fed Raises IORB to 3.90%; FCC, EPA, and FTC Actions Round Out Sept. 30 Federal Register

Federal Reserve raises IORB to 3.90 percent

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System has adopted a final amendment to Regulation D (12 CFR 204) establishing the interest rate on reserve balances (IORB) at 3.90 percent — a 0.25 percentage point increase from its prior level of 3.65 percent. The rule is effective September 30, 2026, though the Board notes that the rate change was announced on September 16, 2026, with an operative date of September 17, 2026, in the Federal Reserve Implementation Note that accompanied the Federal Open Market Committee's statement. That FOMC statement indicated the Committee decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate to 3¾ to 4 percent, and the Board voted unanimously to set IORB at 3.90 percent in conjunction with that decision.

The amendment revises 12 CFR 204.10(b)(1). The document explains that Regulation D implements section 19 of the Federal Reserve Act, which imposes reserve requirements on certain deposits and other liabilities of depository institutions and authorizes the Board to pay earnings on balances held at Reserve Banks at a rate not to exceed the general level of short-term interest rates. The Board states the amendment is intended to enhance the role of IORB in maintaining the federal funds rate within the FOMC's target range.

The Board determined that good cause exists to forgo notice-and-comment and a delayed effective date under the Administrative Procedure Act, finding that such procedures would be unnecessary, impracticable, or contrary to the public interest. The Board explains that notice and public comment would prevent the action from being effective as promptly as necessary and would create uncertainty about the finality and effectiveness of the rate change, undermining its effectiveness.

FCC finalizes Norwell channel swap; proposes Savannah UHF substitution

The Federal Communications Commission has issued two actions affecting local television allotments. In a final rule effective September 30, 2026, the Commission amended the Digital Television Table of Allotments (47 CFR 73.622) to substitute channel 10 for channel 36 at Norwell, Massachusetts, for station WWDP(TV), licensed to RNN Boston License Co., LLC. The Commission's staff engineering analysis found the proposal in compliance with principal community coverage and technical requirements, including interference protection requirements. RNN filed comments reaffirming its interest in the substitution and stated it will promptly file an application seeking continued operation on channel 10 at Norwell. The Commission adopted and released the underlying Report and Order on September 22, 2026; the proposed rule had been published on February 10, 2026.

In a separate proposed rule, also adopted and released September 22, 2026, the FCC is considering a channel substitution at Savannah, Georgia, responding to a petition filed by the Georgia Public Telecommunications Commission, licensee of noncommercial educational station WVAN-TV. The petitioner requests substitution of UHF channel *18 in place of its current VHF channel *8 in the Table. The petitioner asserts that moving to a UHF channel would serve the public interest by improving community access to WVAN-TV's locally produced programs. In support, the petitioner observes that the Commission has recognized VHF channels have propagation characteristics allowing undesired signals and noise to be receivable at relatively farther distances, and that the Commission has noted large variability in the performance of indoor antennas available to consumers, with most antennas receiving fairly well at UHF and a substantial majority performing not so well to very poor at high-VHF. An engineering statement provided by the petitioner confirms that the proposed channel *18 contour would provide full principal community coverage to Savannah and would not cause impermissible interference to any other licensed facilities. The petitioner also notes that when accounting for viewers' ability to obtain PBS programming from other nearby stations, the proposed substitution would not cause any loss of service.

EPA corrects docket number in North Dakota regional haze proceeding

The Environmental Protection Agency has issued a correction to its September 9, 2026 proposed rule concerning North Dakota's regional haze State Implementation Plan for the second implementation period. The original proposed rule — published at 91 FR 57302 — proposed to repeal a final rule published on December 2, 2024, that had partially approved and partially disapproved North Dakota's 2022 regional haze SIP submission, and simultaneously proposed to approve the portions of that SIP that were disapproved in the 2024 action. Following publication, the EPA discovered the ADDRESSES section contained an incorrect Docket ID Number. The correction changes the Docket ID No. from "EPA-R08-OAR-2024-0001" to "EPA-R08-OAR-2023-0495." The EPA states the correction does not result in any substantive changes to the proposed rule. The affected regulation is 40 CFR 52.

FTC seeks comment on automated-decision rulemaking petition

The Federal Trade Commission has published a petition for rulemaking submitted by Malik Tony Singleton and is inviting written public comments. According to the notice, the petition requests the issuance of rules concerning unfair or deceptive practices involving material consumer decisions, explanations, automated decision systems, record preservation, and meaningful review. The Commission states it will not consider the petition's merits until after the comment period closes, and that it may grant or deny the petition in whole or in part, or may deem the petition insufficient to warrant commencement of a rulemaking proceeding. The notice states that the purpose of publication is to facilitate public comment to aid the Commission in determining what, if any, action to take, and that publication does not affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition. The proceeding is subject to 16 CFR 1.

What to watch

• October 9, 2026 — Deadline for public comments on EPA's proposed repeal and reconsideration of North Dakota's regional haze SIP partial approval/partial disapproval (corrected docket: EPA-R08-OAR-2023-0495).
• October 30, 2026 — Deadline for comments on the FTC petition for rulemaking of Malik Tony Singleton; deadline also for comments on the FCC's proposed channel substitution for WVAN-TV in Savannah, Georgia.
• November 16, 2026 — Deadline for reply comments on the FCC's Savannah, Georgia channel substitution proposal.

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