A new federal law designed to speed up electronic processing of checks and reduce costs for banks has another feature some bank customers might not be as happy about.

No float.

As in, you write a check, and then count on three or four days before you have to have money in your account to cover the check. Those days will be gone on Oct. 28 as a result of the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, known to banking officials as Check 21.

The processing time under the new law could be 24 hours or less before money is deducted from the check-writer’s account.

“The rule of thumb has never changed. It’s probably a good idea to have the deposit made before you write the check,” said Jennifer Johnson, executive vice president of Sunflower Bank in Salina. “I anticipate that, as always, we will try to work with customers. It’s hard to anticipate what the impact is going to be.”

Two representatives of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City last week gave representatives of Salina-area banks a briefing about the Check 21 law.

The law’s main purpose is to lift restrictions on the exchange of electronic files between banks, paving the way for banks to scan paper checks, and maintaining the data electronically all the way through the payment system.

Banks that capture checks as electronic images for processing can reap significant cost savings by eliminating the costs of flying and trucking around enormous quantities of paper checks. The speed of electronic processing also is expected to help banks detect check fraud sooner.

“We believe that’s going to save everybody in the long run,” Johnson said.

The Federal Reserve estimates that between 41 billion and 45 billion paper checks are processed each year, and all but a third of those must be moved between institutions for payment. The law could save the banking industry $2 billion to $3 billion a year.

The new law doesn’t require banks to convert to electronic imaging for check capture and deposit.

“There still are banks out there who still do return canceled (checks to customers),” said Barbara Rankin, legal department director for the Kansas Bankers Assn. in Topeka.

The Check 21 law is in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Airplanes loaded with cargo containers containing millions of checks were grounded for four days by the federal government after the attacks.

The Federal Reserve developed the Check 21 law to prevent such disruptions, including weather and natural disasters.