SECTION 24. Assessment

The commissioner of banks shall make an assessment in each fiscal year against all electronic branches established and operated under this chapter or chapter 167C or 171. Said assessments shall be made at rates as shall be determined by the commissioner as sufficient to produce revenue to reimburse the commonwealth for all costs and expenses incurred by the division of banks for such fiscal year in meeting the requirements imposed under this chapter, including, but not limited to, costs and expenses incurred in examining entities and organizations in their operations and use of electronic branches, in hiring personnel, acquiring additional equipment and such other costs and expenses determined by the commissioner as reasonable and necessary to meet such requirements.

In determining the rates of assessments, the commissioner shall consider the amounts of the other assessments and fees paid by banks and credit unions to state and federal bank regulators for the supervision, regulation and examination of their banking operations. The rate of the assessment on such banks and credit unions shall not exceed 50 per cent of the amount assessed by the commissioner on non-bank ATM providers for a non-bank electronic branch.

The owner or lessor of each electronic branch shall pay the assessment in a manner determined by the commissioner.

The amount assessed annually under this section shall not be less than the average of the amount assessed in the last 3 fiscal years.

For the purposes of this section, the word ''bank'' shall include a bank, a federal bank, an out-of-state bank and an out-of-state federal bank as defined in section 1 of chapter 167. The term ''credit union'' shall mean a credit union, a federal credit union and a foreign credit union as defined in section 1 of chapter 171.