Whether the National Bank Act preempts state laws that, like California Civil Code § 2954.8(a), attempt to set the terms on which federally chartered banks may offer mortgage escrow accounts authorized by federal law

QUESTION PRESENTED The National Bank Act grants federally chartered banks both express and incidental powers. Those powers include the express authority to engage in real estate lending and the incidental power to administer associated escrow accounts used to pay real estate taxes, insurance, and similar fees. The Ninth Circuit has held that state laws that require banks to pay interest on funds held in mortgage escrow accounts, like California Civil Code § 2954.8(a), do not significantly interfere with those federally endowed powers and are not preempted. The Second Circuit has reached the opposite conclusion. The question presented is as follows: Whether the National Bank Act preempts state laws that, like California Civil Code § 2954.8(a), attempt to set the terms on which federally chartered banks may offer mortgage escrow accounts authorized by federal law.