SIERRA BANCORP (Form: 10-Q, Received: 08/09/2006 10:59:17)

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15 (d) OF THE SECURITIES

EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

FOR THE QUARTERLY PERIOD ENDED JUNE 30, 2006

Commission file number: 000-33063

SIERRA BANCORP

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)


California		33-0937517
(State of Incorporation)		(IRS Employer Identification No)


86 North Main Street, Porterville, California		93257
(Address of principal executive offices)		(Zip Code)

(559) 782-4900

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable

(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15 (d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports) and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

YES þ NO ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, or a non-accelerated filer.

Large accelerated filer ¨ Accelerated filer þ Non-accelerated filer ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

YES ¨ NO þ

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer’s classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date.

Common stock, no par value, 9,776,487 shares outstanding as of July 31, 2006

FORM 10-Q

Table of Contents


		Page
Part I - Financial Information		3
Item 1. Financial Statements (Unaudited)		3
Consolidated Balance Sheets		3
Consolidated Statements of Income & Comprehensive Income		4
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows		5
Notes to Unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements		6

Item 2. Management’s Discussion & Analysis of Financial Condition & Results of Operations		10
Forward-Looking Statements		10
Critical Accounting Policies		10
Overview of the Results of Operations and Financial Condition		11
Earnings Performance		13
Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin		13
Provision for Loan and Lease Losses		18
Non-interest Income/Expense		19
Provision for Income Taxes		21
Balance Sheet Analysis		22
Earning Assets		22
Investments		22
Loan Portfolio		23
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements		25
Nonperforming Assets		25
Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses		27
Other Assets		29
Deposits and Interest Bearing Liabilities		29
Deposits		29
Other Interest-Bearing Liabilities		30
Non-Interest Bearing Liabilities		31
Liquidity and Market Risk Management		31
Capital Resources		33

Item 3. Qualitative & Quantitative Disclosures about Market Risk		35

Item 4. Controls and Procedures		35

Part II - Other Information		36
Item 1. - Legal Proceedings		36
Item 1A. - Risk Factors		36
Item 2. - Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds		36
Item 3. - Defaults upon Senior Securities		37
Item 4. - Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders		37
Item 5. - Other Information		37
Item 6. - Exhibits		38

Signatures		40

PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1

SIERRA BANCORP

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	June 30, 2006			December 31, 2005
ASSETS
Cash and due from banks	$	49,444		$	50,147
Federal Funds Sold		300			—

Total Cash & Cash Equivalents		49,744			50,147
Securities available for sale		191,567			193,676
Loans and leases:
Gross loans and leases		835,244			741,360
Allowance for loan and lease losses		(10,526	)		(9,330	)
Deferred loan and lease fees, net		(3,077	)		(2,250	)

Net Loans and Leases		821,641			729,780
Restricted stock		8,505			5,299
Premises and equipment, net		18,440			18,055
Operating leases, net		3,028			2,113
Other real estate		—			533
Accrued interest receivable		6,245			5,100
Other assets		49,334			47,983

TOTAL ASSETS	$	1,148,504		$	1,052,686

LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY
LIABILITIES
Deposits:
Demand	$	272,455		$	282,451
Interest bearing demand		64,582			69,088
Savings		68,685			71,901
MMDA’s		133,922			107,045
TDOA’s, IRA’s & KEOGH’S		24,004			22,480
Time deposits < $100,000		89,614			90,639
Time deposits > $100,000		178,067			172,067

Total Deposits		831,329			815,671
Federal funds purchased and repurchase agreements		44,015			26,791
Short Term Borrowings		102,800			41,070
Long Term Borrowings		27,000			46,000
Accrued interest payable		1,765			1,459
Other liabilities		11,742			12,004
Junior subordinated debentures		46,392			30,928

TOTAL LIABILITIES		1,065,043			973,923

SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Common stock, no par value; 24,000,000 shares authorized; 9,756,287 and 9,723,320 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2006 and December 31, 2005, respectively		14,177			12,221
Retained earnings		72,906			68,382
Accumulated other comprehensive income		(3,622	)		(1,840	)

TOTAL SHAREHOLDER’S EQUITY		83,461			78,763

TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY	$	1,148,504		$	1,052,686

SIERRA BANCORP

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME & COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

(dollars in thousands, except per share data, unaudited)


	For the Three-Month Period Ended June 30,						For the Six-Month Period Ended June 30,
	2006			2005			2006			2005
INTEREST INCOME:
Federal funds sold and interest bearing deposits	$	10		$	48		$	17		$	74
US Treasury securities		4			4			8			8
US Gov’t agencies		197			114			384			174
State and political subdivisions		515			363			990			697
Mortgage-backed securities		1,388			1,547			2,812			3,104
Loans and leases, including fee income		17,750			13,151			33,672			25,829

Total interest income		19,864			15,227			37,883			29,886
INTEREST EXPENSE:
Interest on deposits		3,489			1,974			6,565			3,651
Interest on borrowed funds		2,255			1,104			3,719			2,258

Total interest expense		5,744			3,078			10,284			5,909
Net Interest Income		14,120			12,149			27,599			23,977
Provision for loan losses		1,049			900			2,099			1,900

Net Interest Income after Provision for Loan Losses		13,071			11,249			25,500			22,077
OTHER OPERATING INCOME:
Service charges on deposit accounts		1,519			1,307			2,994			2,566
Gains on sales of loans		—			(8	)		—			518
Other		1,327			1,023			2,421			1,705

Total other operating income		2,846			2,322			5,415			4,789
OTHER OPERATING EXPENSES:
Salaries and employee benefits		3,920			3,753			8,111			7,819
Occupancy expense		1,602			1,499			3,150			2,996
Other		2,688			2,962			5,298			5,943

Total other operating expenses		8,210			8,214			16,559			16,758

INCOME BEFORE PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES		7,707			5,357			14,356			10,108
Provision for income taxes		2,608			1,606			4,807			3,096

NET INCOME	$	5,099		$	3,751		$	9,549		$	7,012

Other comprehensive (loss), unrealized (loss) on securities available for sale, net of income taxes		(1,517	)		533			(1,782	)		(875	)
COMPREHENSIVE INCOME	$	3,582		$	4,284		$	7,767		$	6,137

PER SHARE DATA
Book value	$	8.55		$	7.80		$	8.55		$	7.80
Cash dividends	$	0.13		$	0.11		$	0.26		$	0.22
Earnings per share basic	$	0.52		$	0.38		$	0.98		$	0.72
Earnings per share diluted	$	0.50		$	0.36		$	0.93		$	0.67
Average shares outstanding, basic		9,765,599			9,813,400			9,759,300			9,768,676
Average shares outstanding, diluted		10,269,671			10,408,054			10,270,221			10,396,971

SIERRA BANCORP

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	Six Months Ended June 30,
	2006			2005
Cash Flows from Operating Activities
Net income	$	9,549		$	7,012
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Gain on sales of loans		—			(518	)
Loss (Gain) on sale of other real estate		18			(53	)
Writedown to OREO		133			266
Expense for options granted under 123(R)		187			—
Provision for loan losses		2,099			1,900
Depreciation and amortization		1,723			1,597
Net amortization on securities premiums and discounts		443			723
Decrease in unearned net loan fees		827			29
Increase in cash surrender value of life insurance policies		(436	)		(309	)
Proceeds from sales of loans held for sale		—			32,936
Originations of loans held for sale		—			(32,098	)
(Increase) Decrease in interest receivable and other assets		(3,238	)		3,028
Increase in other liabilities		44			676
Tax benefit from equity based compensation		(704	)		—

Net cash provided by operating activities		10,645			15,189

Cash Flows from Investing Activities
Maturities of securities available for sale		2,726			1,985
Proceeds from sales/calls of securities available for sale		110			1,007
Purchases of securities available for sale		(17,576	)		(32,877	)
Principal paydowns on securities available for sale		13,283			18,557
Increase in loans receivable, net		(94,787	)		(4,990	)
Purchases of premises and equipment, net		(3,023	)		(903	)
Proceeds from sales of other real estate		399			412

Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities		(98,868	)		(16,809	)

Cash Flows from Financing Activities
Increase in deposits		15,658			40,987
Increase in federal funds purchased		25,000			—
Increase (Decrease) in borrowed funds		42,730			(36,800	)
(Decrease) Increase in repurchase agreements		(7,776	)		2,896
Proceeds from issuance of subordinated debentures		15,464			—
Cash dividends paid		(2,539	)		(2,151	)
Stock repurchased		(2,585	)		(1,005	)
Stock options exercised		1,164			1,793
Tax benefit from equity based compensation		704			—

Net cash provided by financing activities		87,820			5,720

(Decrease) Increase in cash and due from banks		(403	)		4,100
Cash and Cash Equivalents
Beginning of period		50,147			36,735

End of period	$	49,744		$	40,835

SIERRA BANCORP

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

June 30, 2006

Note 1 – The Business of Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp (the “Company”) is a California corporation registered as a bank holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended, and is headquartered in Porterville, California. The Company was incorporated in November 2000 and acquired all of the outstanding shares of Bank of the Sierra (the “Bank”) in August 2001. The Company’s principal subsidiary is the Bank, and the Company exists primarily for the purpose of holding the stock of the Bank and of such other subsidiaries it may acquire or establish. The Company’s main source of income is dividends from the Bank, but the Company intends to explore supplemental sources of income in the future. The expenditures of the Company, including (but not limited to) the payment of dividends to shareholders, if and when declared by the Board of Directors, and the cost of servicing debt, will generally be paid from cash raised via capital trust pass-through securities and retained at the holding company level, and dividends paid to the Company by the Bank.

At the present time, the Company’s only other direct subsidiaries are Sierra Capital Trust I, Sierra Statutory Trust II, and Sierra Capital Trust III, which were formed in November 2001, March 2004, and June 2006, respectively, solely to facilitate the issuance of capital trust pass-through securities. Pursuant to FASB Interpretation No. 46, Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities (FIN 46), these trusts are not reflected on a consolidated basis in the financial statements of the Company. References herein to the “Company” include the Sierra Bancorp and its consolidated subsidiary, the Bank, unless the context indicates otherwise.

The Bank is a California state-chartered bank headquartered in Porterville, California. It was incorporated in September 1977, opened for business in January 1978, and has grown to be the largest independent bank headquartered in the South San Joaquin Valley. The Bank is a multi-community independent bank that offers a full range of retail and commercial banking services primarily in the central and southern sections of the San Joaquin Valley. We currently operate twenty full service branch offices throughout this geographic footprint. The Bank’s two newest branches opened in Reedley in December 2005 and Bakersfield in February 2006, and our next branch is expected to open in the city of Delano in the fourth quarter of 2006. In addition to these full-service branches, the Bank has an agricultural credit unit and an SBA lending unit with staff located at our corporate headquarters, and eight offsite ATMs. The Bank’s deposit accounts are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) up to maximum insurable amounts.

Note 2 – Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements have been prepared in a condensed format, and therefore do not include all of the information and footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements. The information furnished in these interim statements reflects all adjustments that are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair statement of the results for such period. Such adjustments are of a normal recurring nature, unless otherwise disclosed in this Form 10-Q. The results of operations in the interim statements are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for any other quarter, or for the full year. Certain amounts reported for 2005 have been reclassified to be consistent with the reporting for 2006. The interim financial information should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Note 3 – Current Accounting Developments

On December 16, 2004, the FASB published Statement No. 123 (Revised 2004), Share-Based Payment. Statement 123(R) covers a wide range of share-based compensation arrangements including share options, restricted share plans, performance-based awards, share appreciation rights, and employee share purchase plans. It revises FASB Statement No. 123, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation, and supersedes APB Opinion No. 25, Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees. This statement requires that stock-based compensation transactions be recognized as

compensation expense in the income statement based on their fair values at the date of grant. Companies transitioning to fair value based accounting for stock-based compensation are required to use the “modified prospective” method, whereby they must recognize equity compensation cost from the beginning of the period in which the recognition provisions are first applied as if the fair value method had been previously used to account for all equity compensation awards granted, modified, or settled in fiscal years beginning after December 31, 1994. As allowed by SEC release no. 33-8568, the Company began expensing unvested stock options commencing January 1, 2006. The impact was an increase of $100,000 in pre-tax compensation expense for the first quarter of 2006, and $87,000 in the second quarter of 2006. In prior periods, the Company disclosed the pro-forma impact of this accounting methodology pursuant to previously accepted accounting principles.

On June 15, 2006, the Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF) reached a tentative conclusion on the subject titled “Accounting for Deferred Compensation and Postretirement Benefit Aspects of Endorsement Split-Dollar Arrangements.” The tentative conclusion is that an employer should recognize a liability for the postretirement benefit associated with an endorsement split-dollar life insurance arrangement, since the postretirement benefit obligation is not effectively settled (i.e., the insurance proceeds are not received by the employer until the death of the insured). This proposed guidance is currently open for comments, but if ultimately adopted would be effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2006 (i.e., as of January 1, 2007 for the Company). It would require a cumulative effect adjustment to retained earnings for prior periods, where applicable, with the remainder of the liability to be accrued over the remaining expected life of the participant. Upon the participant’s death and the receipt of life insurance proceeds, the accrued liability would be reversed and taken back into income. If this position is ultimately adopted, the impact on the Company’s expense accruals could be significant since the aggregate split dollar insurance proceeds currently allocated to the Company’s split dollar plan participants totals $7.3 million.

Note 4 – Supplemental Disclosure of Cash Flow Information

During the six months ended June 30, 2006 and 2005, cash paid for interest due on interest-bearing liabilities was $10.0 million and $5.5 million, respectively. There was $3.9 million in cash paid for income taxes during the six months ended June 30, 2006, and $65,000 paid for income taxes during the six months ended June 30, 2005. There was no real estate acquired in the settlement of loans for the six months ended June 30, 2006, and $96,000 acquired for the six months ended June 30, 2005. There were no loans made to finance the sale of other real estate for the six months ended June 30, 2006, and $300,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2005.

Note 5 – Stock Based Compensation

The Company’s stock-based employee compensation plan, the 1998 Stock Option Plan, was assumed from Bank of the Sierra in August 2001 in conjunction with the Company’s acquisition of all of the outstanding shares of the Bank. Until the adoption of Statement 123(R) on January 1, 2006, the 1998 Stock Option Plan was accounted for under the recognition and measurement principles of APB Opinion No. 25, Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees , and related interpretations, and no stock-based employee compensation expense was reflected in net income since all options granted under this plan had an exercise price equal to or greater than the market value of the underlying common stock on the date of grant. However, pro-forma adjustments to the Company’s consolidated net earnings and earnings per share have been disclosed as if the Company had applied the fair value recognition provisions of FASB Statement No. 123, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation , to stock-based employee compensation.

The Company is currently using the Black-Scholes model to value stock options. The “multiple option” approach is used to allocate the resulting valuation to actual expense commencing in 2006, and to pro-forma expense for disclosure purposes for periods prior to that. Under the multiple option approach, an employee’s options for each vesting period are separately valued and amortized. This appears to be the FASB-preferred method for option grants with multiple vesting periods, which is the case for most options granted by the Company. The following table illustrates the pro-forma effect on net income and earnings per share for the second quarter and first half of 2005:


	For the 3-month period ended: June 30, 2005			For the 6-month period ended: June 30, 2005
Net income, as reported (in $000’s)	$	3,751		$	7,012
Deduct: Total stock-based employee compensation expense determined under the fair value based method for all awards, net of related tax effects (in $000’s)		46			92

Pro forma net income (in $000’s)	$	3,705		$	6,920

Basic earnings per share - as reported	$	0.38		$	0.72
Basic earnings per share - pro forma	$	0.38		$	0.71

Diluted earnings per share - as reported	$	0.36		$	0.67
Diluted earnings per share - pro forma	$	0.36		$	0.67
Weighted average fair value of options granted during period	$	6.66		$	6.43
Assumptions for determining fair values:
Dividend yield		1.8	%		1.9	%
Projected stock price volatility		30.1	%		30.1	%
Risk-free interest rate		4.04	%		3.92	%
Expected option term (from option date)		5.8 years			5.8 years

There were no stock options granted by the Company in the first quarter of 2006, and 13,000 shares granted in the second quarter of 2006. The options granted during the second quarter had a calculated fair value of $6.34 per share, using the following assumptions: Expected dividend yield of 2.0%; volatility of 25.7%; average risk-free interest rate of 5.09%; and expected option term of 4.8 years. Pursuant to the provisions of Statement 123(R), a charge of $87,000 was reflected in the Company’s income statement during the second quarter of 2006, and $187,000 was reflected during the first six months of 2006, as pre-tax compensation expense related to outstanding and unvested stock options. This pre-tax expense equates to a reduction of approximately $57,000 and $122,000 in net income after taxes for the second quarter and first half of 2006, respectively.

Note 6 – Earnings Per Share

Earnings per share for all periods presented in the Consolidated Statements of Income are computed based on the weighted average number of shares outstanding during each period retroactively restated for stock splits and dividends. There were 9,765,599 weighted average shares outstanding during the second quarter of 2006, and 9,813,400 during the second quarter of 2005. There were 9,759,300 weighted average shares outstanding during the first six months of 2006, and 9,768,676 during the first six months of 2005.

Diluted earnings per share include the effect of the potential issuance of common shares, which for the Company is limited to shares that would be issued on the exercise of outstanding stock options. The dilutive effect of all options outstanding was calculated using the treasury stock method, excluding anti-dilutive transactions and adjusting for unamortized expense and windfall tax benefits. For the second quarter and first six months of 2006, the dilutive effect of options outstanding calculated under the treasury stock method totaled 504,072 and 510,921 shares, respectively, which were added to basic weighted average shares outstanding for purposes of calculating diluted earnings per share. Likewise, for the second quarter and first six months of 2005, shares totaling 594,654 and 628,295, respectively, were added to basic weighted average shares outstanding in order to calculate diluted earnings per share.

Note 7 – Comprehensive Income

Comprehensive income includes net income and other comprehensive income. The Company’s only source of other comprehensive income is derived from unrealized gains and losses on investment securities available-for-sale. Reclassification adjustments, resulting from gains or losses on investment securities that were realized and included in net income of the current period that also had been included in other comprehensive income as unrealized holding gains or losses in the period in which they arose, are excluded from comprehensive income of the current period. The Company’s comprehensive income was as follows (dollars in thousands):


	For the 3-month period ended:					For the 6-month period ended:
	June 30, 2006			June 30, 2005		June 30, 2006			June 30, 2005
Net income	$	5,099		$	3,751	$	9,549		$	7,012
Other comprehensive income/(loss):
Unrealized holding gain/(loss)		(2,620	)		904		(3,122	)		(1,488	)
Less: reclassification adjustment		0			0		0			0

Pre-tax other comprehensive income/(loss)		(2,620	)		904		(3,122	)		(1,488	)
Less: tax impact of above		(1,103	)		371		(1,340	)		(613	)

Net other comprehensive income/(loss)		(1,517	)		533		(1,782	)		(875	)

Comprehensive income	$	3,582		$	4,284	$	7,767		$	6,137

Note 8 – Financial Instruments with Off-Balance-Sheet Risk

The Company is a party to financial instruments with off-balance-sheet risk in the normal course of business, in order to meet the financing needs of its customers. These financial instruments consist of commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit. They involve, to varying degrees, elements of credit and interest rate risk in excess of the amount recognized in the balance sheet.

The Company’s exposure to credit loss in the event of nonperformance by the other party for commitments to extend credit and letters of credit is represented by the contractual amount of those instruments. The Company uses the same credit policies in making commitments and letters of credit as it does for loans included on the balance sheet.

The following financial instruments represent off-balance-sheet credit risk (dollars in thousands):


	June 30, 2006		December 31, 2005
Commitments to extend credit	$	299,485	$	270,608
Standby letters of credit	$	17,302	$	16,630
Commercial letters of credit	$	11,917	$	0
Credit card commitments	$	47,170	$	45,906

Commitments to extend credit consist primarily of unfunded single-family residential construction loans and home equity lines of credit, and commercial real estate construction loans and commercial revolving lines of credit. Construction loans are established under standard underwriting guidelines and policies and are secured by deeds of trust, with disbursements made over the course of construction. Commercial revolving lines of credit have a high degree of industry diversification. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future cash requirements. Standby letters of credit are generally unsecured and are issued by the Bank to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party, while commercial letters of credit represent the Bank’s commitment to pay a third party on behalf of a customer upon fulfillment of contractually-specified requirements. The credit risk involved in issuing letters of credit is essentially the same as that involved in extending loans to customers. Credit card commitments represent available balances on credit cards and are unsecured.

PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION

ITEM 2

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND

ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION

AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Form 10-Q includes forward-looking statements that involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Words such as “expects”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “projects”, and “estimates” or variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed, forecast in, or implied by such forward-looking statements.

A variety of factors could have a material adverse impact on the Company’s financial condition or results of operations, and should be considered when evaluating the potential future financial performance of the Company. These include but are not limited to the possibility of deterioration in economic conditions in the Company’s service areas; risks associated with fluctuations in interest rates; liquidity risks; increases in nonperforming assets and net credit losses that could occur, particularly in times of weak economic conditions or rising interest rates; the loss in market value of available-for-sale securities that could result if interest rates change substantially or an issuer has real or perceived financial difficulties; and risks associated with the multitude of current and future laws and regulations to which the Company is and will be subject.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The Company’s financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The financial information and disclosures contained within those statements are significantly impacted by Management’s estimates and judgments, which are based on historical experience and various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under current circumstances. Actual results may differ from those estimates under different conditions.

Critical accounting policies are those that involve the most complex and subjective decisions and assessments, and have the greatest potential impact on the Company’s stated results of operations. In Management’s opinion, the Company’s critical accounting policies deal with the following areas: the establishment of the Company’s allowance for loan and lease losses, as explained in detail in the “Provision for Loan and Lease Losses” and “Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses” sections of this discussion and analysis; loan origination costs, which are estimated in the aggregate by loan type based on an annual evaluation of expenses (primarily salaries and benefits) associated with successful loan originations and are allocated to individual loans as they are booked, but can actually vary significantly for individual loans depending on the characteristics of such loans; income taxes, especially with regard to the ability of the Company to recover deferred tax assets, as discussed in the “Provision for Income Taxes” and “Other Assets” sections of this discussion and analysis; goodwill, which is evaluated annually for impairment based on changes in the market capitalization of the Company; and equity-based compensation, which is discussed in greater detail in Note 5 to the consolidated financial statements. Critical accounting areas are evaluated on an ongoing basis to ensure that the Company’s financial statements incorporate the most recent expectations with regard to these areas.

OVERVIEW OF THE RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

AND FINANCIAL CONDITION

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS SUMMARY

Second Quarter 2006 Compared to Second Quarter 2005

Net income for the quarter ended June 30, 2006 was $5.1 million compared with $3.8 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2005, an improvement of 36%. Basic and diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of 2006 were $0.52 and $0.50, compared to $0.38 and $0.36 for the second quarter of 2005. The Company’s annualized return on average equity was 24.74% and annualized return on average assets was 1.82% for the quarter ended June 30, 2006, compared to a return on equity of 20.17% and return on assets of 1.50% for the quarter ended June 30, 2005. The primary drivers behind the variance in net income are as follows:

•

Net interest income increased by $2.0 million, or 16%, primarily because average interest-earning assets were $107 million higher due to loan growth.

•

Also enhancing net interest income was a 24 basis point gain in the Company’s net interest margin. The net interest margin was higher in the second quarter of 2006 principally because of the Company’s asset-sensitive interest rate risk profile, which results in higher net interest income as interest rates rise. The second quarter 2006 interest margin would have been even higher, if not for the fact that more than half of the increase in average earning assets was funded by relatively high-cost short-term borrowings from the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB).

•

Service charges on deposits were up by $212,000, or 16%, due to higher returned item and overdraft charges and new service charges on higher-risk accounts.

•

Other non-interest income increased by $304,000, or 30%, due to a $143,000 increase in income from our investment in bank-owned life insurance (BOLI) as well as increases in various other components of core operating income.

•

Despite two additional branches, the expense for salaries and benefits increased by only $167,000, or 4%. Salaries and benefits were not as high as expected because of a $228,000 increase in deferred salaries related to loan origination activity, and a modest increase of $36,000, or 3%, in the cost of benefits.

•

Other operating expenses fell by a combined $274,000, or 9%, primarily because of a drop in advertising and marketing, telecommunications, and consulting costs.

•

Tax credits from low-income housing investments have been lower in 2006 than in 2005, and the Company’s tax accrual rate increased to 33.8% in the second quarter of 2006 from 30.0% in the second quarter of 2005.

First Half 2006 Compared to First Half 2005

Net income for the first six months of 2006 was $9.5 million, which is $2.5 million higher than net income for the first six months of 2005 and represents a 36% increase. Basic and diluted earnings per share were $0.98 and $0.93 for the first six months of 2006, compared to $0.72 and $0.67 for the first six months of the prior year. The Company realized an annualized return on average equity of 23.62% for the first half of 2006 and 19.27% for the first half of 2005, and achieved a return on assets for the same periods of 1.76% and 1.41%, respectively. The principal reasons for the net income variance for the first half include the following:

•

Net interest income increased by $3.6 million, or 15%, mainly because of an $82 million increase in average interest-earning assets resulting from strong loan growth.

•

The Company’s net interest margin was 33 basis points higher in the first half of 2006, which also contributed to higher net interest income. The increase is the result of the Company’s asset-sensitive position in a rising interest rate environment, combined with a relatively strong increase in year-to-date average demand deposit balances and a decline in non-performing assets. Again, these positive factors were partially offset by the fact that a large percentage of the growth in earning assets was funded by relatively high-cost wholesale money.

•

Service charges on deposits increased by $428,000, or 17%, for the same reasons noted in the quarterly summary.

•

There was no loan sale income in the first half of 2006 since no loans were sold, but $21 million in mortgage loans were sold in March 2005 and the first-half 2005 gain on sale of loans was $518,000.

•

Other non-interest income increased by $716,000, or 42%, due mainly to a $330,000 charge in the first quarter of 2005 to write down the Company’s investment in Diversified Holdings, a title insurance holding company. However, there were also relatively strong increases in BOLI income and other core operating income components.

•

Salaries and benefits were held to an increase of only $292,000, or 4%, because of a $405,000 increase in deferred loan origination salaries. Also contributing was a $91,000 decline in the cost of benefits, due mainly to a drop in workers compensation costs.

•

Occupancy expenses were also held in check for the half, showing only a $154,000, or 5%, increase. Relatively low maintenance and repair costs in the first quarter of 2006 were the main contributing factors.

•

Other non-interest expenses fell by $645,000, or 11%, due mainly to a $437,000 decline in marketing expenses, but also resulting from lower consulting, telecommunications, legal, and postage costs.

•

The tax accrual rate for the first half of 2006 was higher for the same reason outlined in the quarterly summary.

FINANCIAL CONDITION SUMMARY

June 30, 2006 compared to December 31, 2005

The Company’s total assets were $1.15 billion at June 30, 2006, an increase of $96 million, or 9%, over total assets of $1.05 billion at December 31, 2005. The most significant characteristics of and changes in the Company’s balance sheet during the first half of 2006 are outlined below:

•

Gross loan and lease balances increased by $94 million, or 13%, ending the half at $835 million. The increase was mostly due to organic growth resulting from strong commercial loan demand in our service areas.

•

Nonperforming assets remain at nominal levels, ending the half at 0.09% of gross loans plus other real estate owned (“OREO”), slightly lower than the 0.11% ratio at December 31, 2005.

•

The Company had net loan losses of $903,000 in the first half of 2006 compared to net recoveries of $41,000 in the first half of 2005. Much of the 2006 amount is due to a single non-performing loan that was charged off due to uncertainty surrounding the timing of any recovery of principal.

•

Total deposits increased by $16 million, or 2%, but would have declined if not for the addition of $31 million in brokered time deposits. While core demand deposit, NOW, and savings balances fell by a combined $18 million, money market deposit accounts were $27 million higher due to the Company’s new money market sweep product.

•

Long-term borrowings declined, as the remaining maturity on $19 million in term FHLB borrowings declined to less than one year and the borrowings were reclassified as short-term. Another $19 million block of term FHLB borrowings matured in April and was replaced by short-term and overnight FHLB borrowings, which were also used to fund much of the Company’s growth in assets and thus increased by a total of $62 million. Customer repurchase agreement money dropped $8 million, while overnight “fed funds” borrowed from correspondent banks increased $25 million.

•

In June 2006, the Company issued $15 million in junior subordinated debentures to support the issuance of trust preferred securities by a wholly-owned trust subsidiary. The proceeds from this issuance had the immediate effect of reducing short-term borrowings, but in the longer term will likely be used to retire $15 million in higher-cost trust preferred securities when those securities become callable in December 2006.

EARNINGS PERFORMANCE

The Company earns income from two primary sources. The first is net interest income, which is interest income generated by earning assets less interest expense on interest-bearing liabilities. The second is non-interest income, which primarily consists of customer service charges and fees but also comes from non-customer sources such as bank-owned life insurance. The majority of the Company’s non-interest expenses are operating costs that relate to providing a full range of banking services to our customers.

NET INTEREST INCOME AND NET INTEREST MARGIN

Net interest income for the second quarter of 2006 was $14.1 million compared to $12.1 million in the second quarter of 2005, an increase of $2.0 million, or 16%. For the first half, net interest income increased by $3.6 million, or 15%, to $27.6 million in 2006 from $24.0 million in 2005. The level of net interest income depends on several factors in combination, including growth in earning assets, yields on earning assets, the cost of interest-bearing liabilities, the relative volumes of earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities, and the mix of products which comprise the Company’s earning assets, deposits, and other interest-bearing liabilities.

The following Average Balances and Rates table shows, for the quarters noted, the average balance of each principal balance sheet category and the amount of interest income or interest expense associated with that category. This table also shows the calculated yields on each major component of the Company’s investment and loan portfolio, the average rates paid on each key segment of the Company’s interest bearing liabilities, and the net interest margin.

Average Balances and Rates

(dollars in thousands, except per share data)


	For the Quarter Ended June 30, 2006 (a) (b) (f)						For the Quarter Ended June 30, 2005 (a) (b) (f)
	Average Balance		Income/ Expense		Average Rate/Yield		Average Balance		Income/ Expense		Average Rate/Yield
Assets
Investments:
Federal funds sold/Due from time	$	900	$	10	4.46	%	$	6,634	$	48	2.90	%
Taxable	$	143,797	$	1,589	4.43	%	$	167,533	$	1,665	3.99	%
Non-taxable	$	51,597	$	515	6.16	%	$	35,807	$	363	6.16	%
Equity	$	9	$	—	0.00	%	$	7	$	—	0.00	%

Total Investments	$	196,303	$	2,114	4.89	%	$	209,981	$	2,076	4.32	%

Loans and Leases: ^(c)
Agricultural	$	10,412	$	229	8.82	%	$	11,916	$	218	7.34	%
Commercial	$	138,466	$	3,209	9.30	%	$	119,889	$	2,247	7.52	%
Real Estate	$	589,618	$	12,686	8.63	%	$	492,844	$	9,391	7.64	%
Consumer	$	52,826	$	1,247	9.47	%	$	50,530	$	1,003	7.96	%
Consumer Credit Cards	$	8,401	$	192	9.17	%	$	8,555	$	214	10.03	%
Direct Financing Leases	$	12,018	$	187	6.24	%	$	4,281	$	78	7.31	%
Other	$	455	$	—	0.00	%	$	3,641	$	—	0.00	%

Total Loans and Leases	$	812,196	$	17,750	8.77	%	$	691,656	$	13,151	7.63	%

Total Interest Earning Assets ^(e)	$	1,008,499	$	19,864	8.01	%	$	901,637	$	15,227	6.86	%

Other Earning Assets	$	8,035					$	6,259
Non-Earning Assets	$	104,611					$	95,674

Total Assets	$	1,121,145					$	1,003,570

Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity
Interest Bearing Deposits:
NOW	$	69,344	$	18	0.10	%	$	68,576	$	16	0.09	%
Savings Accounts	$	70,845	$	93	0.53	%	$	73,043	$	96	0.53	%
Money Market	$	126,789	$	669	2.12	%	$	112,089	$	183	0.65	%
TDOA’s, IRA & KEOGH’s	$	23,302	$	186	3.20	%	$	21,742	$	109	2.01	%
Certificates of Deposit<$100,000	$	89,223	$	763	3.43	%	$	85,236	$	484	2.28	%
Certificates of Deposit > $100,000	$	169,500	$	1,760	4.16	%	$	159,912	$	1,086	2.72	%

Total Interest Bearing Deposits	$	549,003	$	3,489	2.55	%	$	520,598	$	1,974	1.52	%
Borrowed Funds:
Federal Funds Purchased	$	15,079	$	186	4.95	%	$	45	$	—	0.00	%
Repurchase Agreements	$	23,880	$	38	0.64	%	$	28,029	$	25	0.36	%
Short Term Borrowings	$	96,493	$	1,095	4.55	%	$	16,316	$	121	2.97	%
Long Term Borrowings	$	30,967	$	227	2.94	%	$	67,088	$	441	2.64	%
TRUPS	$	33,647	$	709	8.45	%	$	30,928	$	517	6.70	%

Total Borrowed Funds	$	200,066	$	2,255	4.52	%	$	142,406	$	1,104	3.11	%

Total Interest Bearing Liabilities	$	749,069	$	5,744	3.08	%	$	663,004	$	3,078	1.86	%

Demand Deposits	$	275,055					$	255,532

Other Liabilities	$	14,353					$	10,458

Shareholders’ Equity	$	82,668					$	74,576
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity	$	1,121,145					$	1,003,570

Interest Income/Interest Earning Assets					8.01	%					6.86	%
Interest Expense/Interest Earning Assets					2.28	%					1.37	%

Net Interest Income and Margin ^(d)			$	14,120	5.73	%			$	12,149	5.49	%

(a)	Average balances are obtained from the best available daily or monthly data and are net of deferred fees and related direct costs.

(b)	Yields and net interest margin have been computed on a tax equivalent basis.

(c)	Loan fees have been included in the calculation of interest income. Loan fees were approximately $661 thousand and $470 thousand for the quarters ended June 30, 2006 and 2005. Loans are gross of the allowance for possible loan losses.

(d)	Represents net interest income as a percentage of average interest-earning assets.

(e)	Non-accrual loans have been included in total loans for purposes of total earning assets.

(f)	Annualized

Similar information, only for year-to-date periods, is presented in the Average Balances and Rates table which follows.

Average Balances and Rates

(dollars in thousands, except per share data)


	Six Months Ended June 30, 2006 (a) (b) (f)						Six Months Ended June 30, 2005 (a) (b) (f)
	Average Balance		Income/ Expense		Average Rate/Yield		Average Balance		Income/ Expense		Average Rate/Yield
Assets
Investments:
Federal funds sold/Due from time	$	847	$	17	4.05	%	$	5,397	$	74	2.76	%
Taxable	$	146,036	$	3,204	4.42	%	$	166,777	$	3,286	3.97	%
Non-taxable	$	49,809	$	990	6.17	%	$	34,471	$	697	6.18	%
Equity	$	10	$	—	0.00	%	$	8	$	—	0.00	%

Total Investments	$	196,702	$	4,211	4.86	%	$	206,653	$	4,057	4.31	%

Loans and Leases: ^(c)
Agricultural	$	9,617	$	419	8.79	%	$	11,745	$	416	7.14	%
Commercial	$	133,452	$	6,096	9.21	%	$	120,611	$	4,436	7.42	%
Real Estate	$	569,104	$	24,000	8.50	%	$	494,857	$	18,429	7.51	%
Consumer	$	52,430	$	2,412	9.28	%	$	49,967	$	1,981	7.99	%
Consumer Credit Cards	$	8,474	$	414	9.85	%	$	8,640	$	434	10.13	%
Direct Financing Leases	$	10,846	$	331	6.15	%	$	3,747	$	133	7.16	%
Other	$	385	$	—	0.00	%	$	2,649	$	—	0.00	%

Total Loans and Leases	$	784,308	$	33,672	8.66	%	$	692,216	$	25,829	7.52	%

Total Interest Earning Assets ^(e)	$	981,010	$	37,883	7.90	%	$	898,869	$	29,886	6.79	%

Other Earning Assets	$	6,798					$	6,651
Non-Earning Assets	$	103,545					$	95,724

Total Assets	$	1,091,353					$	1,001,244

Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity
Interest Bearing Deposits:
NOW	$	68,484	$	34	0.10	%	$	67,208	$	31	0.09	%
Savings Accounts	$	70,802	$	184	0.52	%	$	71,422	$	187	0.53	%
Money Market	$	119,178	$	1,056	1.79	%	$	121,790	$	396	0.66	%
TDOA’s, IRA & KEOGH’s	$	22,989	$	344	3.02	%	$	21,966	$	208	1.91	%
Certificates of Deposit<$100,000	$	89,675	$	1,494	3.36	%	$	84,649	$	886	2.11	%
Certificates of Deposit ³ $100,000	$	171,567	$	3,453	4.06	%	$	150,866	$	1,943	2.60	%

Total Interest Bearing Deposits	$	542,695	$	6,565	2.44	%	$	517,901	$	3,651	1.42	%
Borrowed Funds:
Federal Funds Purchased	$	14,638	$	353	4.86	%	$	368	$	5	2.74	%
Repurchase Agreements	$	24,853	$	75	0.61	%	$	27,793	$	48	0.35	%
Short Term Borrowings	$	66,555	$	1,386	4.20	%	$	21,275	$	281	2.66	%
Long Term Borrowings	$	38,442	$	557	2.92	%	$	71,022	$	907	2.58	%
TRUPS	$	32,295	$	1,348	8.42	%	$	30,928	$	1,017	6.63	%

Total Borrowed Funds	$	176,783	$	3,719	4.24	%	$	151,386	$	2,258	3.01	%

Total Interest Bearing Liabilities	$	719,478	$	10,284	2.88	%	$	669,287	$	5,909	1.78	%

Demand Deposits	$	276,144					$	247,744

Other Liabilities	$	14,217					$	10,830

Shareholders’ Equity	$	81,514					$	73,383
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity	$	1,091,353					$	1,001,244

Interest Income/Interest Earning Assets					7.90	%					6.79	%
Interest Expense/Interest Earning Assets					2.11	%					1.33	%

Net Interest Income and Margin ^(d)			$	27,599	5.79	%			$	23,977	5.46	%

(a)	Average balances are obtained from the best available daily or monthly data and are net of deferred fees and related direct costs.

(b)	Yields and net interest margin have been computed on a tax equivalent basis.

(c)	Loan fees have been included in the calculation of interest income. Loan fees were approximately $1.138 million and $936 thousand for the six months ended June 30, 2006 and 2005.

Loans are gross of the allowance for possible loan losses.

(d)	Represents net interest income as a percentage of average interest-earning assets.

(e)	Non-accrual loans have been included in total loans for purposes of total earning assets.

(f)	Annualized

The Volume and Rate Variances table below sets forth the dollar difference in interest earned and paid for each major category of interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities for the noted periods, and the amount of such change attributable to changes in average balances (volume) or changes in average interest rates. Volume variances are equal to the increase or decrease in average balance times prior period rates, and rate variances are equal to the increase or decrease in average rate times prior period average balances. Variances attributable to both rate and volume changes are calculated by multiplying the change in rate by the change in average balance.

Volume & Rate Variances

(dollars in thousands)


	Quarter Ended June 30, 2006 over 2005												Six Months Ended June 30, 2006 over 2005
	Increase(decrease) due to												Increase(decrease) due to
	Volume			Rate			Rate/Volume			Net			Volume			Rate			Rate/Volume			Net
Assets:
Investments:
Federal funds sold / Due from time	$	(42	)		26			(22	)	$	(38	)	$	(62	)		34			(29	)	$	(57	)
Taxable	$	(236	)		186			(26	)	$	(76	)	$	(409	)		373			(46	)	$	(82	)
Non-taxable ⁽¹⁾	$	160			(6	)		(2	)	$	152		$	310			(12	)		(5	)	$	293
Equity	$	—			—			—		$	—		$	—			—			—		$	—

Total Investments	$	(118	)	$	206		$	(50	)	$	38		$	(161	)	$	395		$	(80	)	$	154

Loans and Leases:
Agricultural	$	(28	)		44			(5	)	$	11		$	(75	)		95			(17	)	$	3
Commercial	$	348			532			82		$	962		$	472			1,074			114		$	1,660
Real Estate	$	1,844			1,213			238		$	3,295		$	2,765			2,440			366		$	5,571
Consumer	$	45			190			9		$	244		$	97			318			16		$	431
Consumer Credit Cards	$	(4	)		(18	)		—		$	(22	)	$	(8	)		(12	)		—		$	(20	)
Direct Financing Leases	$	141			(11	)		(21	)	$	109		$	252			(19	)		(35	)	$	198
Other	$	—			—			—		$	—		$	—			—			—		$	—

Total Loans and Leases	$	2,346		$	1,950		$	303		$	4,599		$	3,503		$	3,896		$	444		$	7,843

Total Interest Earning Assets	$	2,228		$	2,156		$	253		$	4,637		$	3,342		$	4,291		$	364		$	7,997

Liabilities
Interest Bearing Deposits:
NOW	$	—			2			—		$	2		$	1			2			—		$	3
Savings Accounts	$	(3	)		—			—		$	(3	)	$	(2	)		(1	)		—		$	(3	)
Money Market	$	24			408			54		$	486		$	(8	)		683			(15	)	$	660
TDOA’s & IRA’s	$	8			64			5		$	77		$	10			121			5		$	136
Certificates of Deposit < $100,000	$	23			245			11		$	279		$	53			524			31		$	608
Certificates of Deposit ³ $100,000	$	65			575			34		$	674		$	267			1,093			150		$	1,510

Total Interest Bearing Deposits	$	117		$	1,294		$	104		$	1,515		$	321		$	2,422		$	171		$	2,914

Borrowed Funds:
Federal Funds Purchased	$	—			1			185		$	186		$	194			4			150		$	348
Repurchase Agreements	$	(4	)		20			(3	)	$	13		$	(5	)		36			(4	)	$	27
Short Term Borrowings	$	595			64			315		$	974		$	598			162			345		$	1,105
Long Term Borrowings	$	(237	)		50			(27	)	$	(214	)	$	(416	)		122			(56	)	$	(350	)
TRUPS	$	45			135			12		$	192		$	45			274			12		$	331

Total Borrowed Funds	$	399		$	270		$	482		$	1,151		$	416		$	598		$	447		$	1,461

Total Interest Bearing Liabilities	$	516		$	1,564		$	586		$	2,666		$	737		$	3,020		$	618		$	4,375

Net Interest Margin/Income	$	1,712		$	592		$	(333	)	$	1,971		$	2,605		$	1,271		$	(254	)	$	3,622

(1)	Yields on tax exempt income have not been computed on a tax equivalent basis.

As shown above, pure volume variances contributed $1.7 million to net interest income in the second quarter of 2006 relative to the first quarter of 2005. The positive volume variance is mainly due to growth in average interest-earning assets, as shown in the Average Balances and Rates table for the quarter. Average interest-earning assets were $107 million higher in the second quarter of 2006 than in the second quarter of 2005, an increase of 12%. The increase was due to growth of $121 million, or 17%, in average loan balances, slightly offset by a decline of $14 million, or 7%, in average investment balances. Average non-interest assets were roughly the same percentage of average total assets in the second quarters of both 2006 and 2005, and there was no significant change in the ratio of average demand deposits, other liabilities, and shareholders’ equity to average assets. However, the volume variance was negatively impacted by a shift on the liability side from lower-cost deposits to higher-cost borrowed funds. The

average balance of borrowed funds was $58 million higher in the second quarter of 2006 than in the second quarter of 2005, an increase of 40%, while average interest-bearing deposits increased by only $28 million, or 5%, for the same time periods.

The addition of higher-cost short-term borrowings also impacted the rate variance for the quarter, as evidenced by the 141 basis point increase in the cost of borrowed funds relative to only a 103 basis point increase in the cost of interest-bearing deposits. The changing nature of our money market accounts, of which an increasing proportion are higher-cost sweep account balances, was also a factor. The average cost of money market accounts was 147 basis points higher in the second quarter of 2006 than in the second quarter of 2005. Overall, the weighted average cost of interest-bearing liabilities increased by 122 basis points, while the weighted average yield on earning assets increased by 115 basis points. However, despite the fact that the cost of interest-bearing funds increased more than the average yield on earning assets, the Company had a favorable rate variance of $592,000 for the quarter. This is because of the Company’s large net interest position, which is the difference between interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities. The Company’s net interest position was $239 million in the second quarter of 2005, the base period for the rate variance calculations, thus the rate increase for earning assets was applied to a substantially larger volume than the rate increase for interest-bearing liabilities and had a relatively larger impact.

The Company’s net interest margin, which is tax-equivalent net interest income expressed as a percentage of average interest-earning assets, is affected by many of the same factors discussed relative to rate and volume variances. Our net interest margin was 5.73% in the second quarter of 2006 as compared to 5.49% in the second quarter of 2005, an increase of 24 basis points. A substantial portion of the Company’s earning assets are variable-rate loans that re-price immediately when the Company’s prime lending rate is changed, versus a large base of core deposits that are generally slower to re-price. Although much of the new volume in loans has been of the fixed-rate variety, the Company is still slightly asset-sensitive. This means that all else being equal, the Company’s net interest margin will be lower during periods when short-term interest rates are falling and higher when rates are rising. This is the principal reason for the higher net interest margin in the second quarter of 2006 compared to the second quarter of 2005, but a $3 million drop in average non-performing loans also helped. These positive factors were somewhat offset by the fact that the relative level of high-cost borrowed funds was significantly higher in 2006 than in 2005. The Company’s ratio of average borrowed funds to earning assets in the second quarter of 2006 was 20%, versus only 16% in the second quarter of 2005.

For the first half of 2006 relative to the first half of 2005, the favorable volume variance in net interest income was $2.6 million and the favorable rate variance was $1.3 million, while the variance attributable to both rate and volume was a negative $255,000. As with the quarterly results, the volume variance was caused primarily by higher earning assets. Interest-earning assets were $82 million, or 9%, higher in the first half of 2006. This increase was the result of growth in average loan balances totaling $92 million, or 13%, which was partially offset by a decline of $10 million, or 5%, in average investment balances. The shift in liabilities to higher-cost borrowed funds is also evident in the year-to-date numbers. The average balance of borrowed funds increased $25 million, or 17%. Interest-bearing deposits also increased $25 million, but the percentage increase was only 5%. The favorable rate variance for the first half was due to the same factors outlined for the quarterly comparison.

The Company’s net interest margin for the first half of 2006 was 5.79%, an increase of 33 basis points relative to the net interest margin of 5.46% in the first half of 2005. An asset-sensitive interest rate risk position was again the main reason for the increase, with the other factors delineated in the quarterly comparison also playing a role in the year-to-date comparison.

During 2006, our net interest margin has been higher than in prior-year periods but has been trending downward in recent months despite rising short-term interest rates. The net interest margin compaction during the first half of 2006 is mainly the result of funding asset growth with FHLB borrowings. Because of the relatively high cost of FHLB borrowings, the net interest margin for earning assets added to the balance sheet in 2006 is much lower than for aggregate earning assets at the beginning of the year. While contributing to net interest margin compression, growth in earning assets has augmented net interest income and enhanced return on equity. Management anticipates that the Company’s net interest margin could experience further compression if short-term interest rates do not

continue to rise. Nevertheless, we feel that net interest income will continue to increase if loans and core deposits grow as planned. However, no assurance can be given that this will, in fact, occur.

PROVISION FOR LOAN AND LEASE LOSSES

Credit risk is inherent in the business of making loans. The Company sets aside an allowance for loan and lease losses through periodic charges to earnings, which are reflected in the income statement as the provision for loan and lease losses. These charges are in amounts sufficient to achieve an allowance for loan and lease losses that, in management’s judgment, is adequate to absorb losses inherent in the Company’s loan portfolio.

For the quarter ended June 30, 2006, the Company’s provision for loan and lease losses was $149,000 greater than the amount provided in the second quarter of 2005, an increase of 17%. For the half, the loan loss provision increased by $199,000, or 10%. Because of robust growth in loans, along with the provision of a full reserve for a $488,000 loan that was placed on non-accrual in the first half of 2006, the loan loss provision was higher in 2006 despite the prior-year’s allocation of a specific reserve for a large unsecured loan that was placed on non-accrual status and subsequently charged off prior to year-end. The procedures for monitoring the adequacy of the allowance, and detailed information on the allowance, are included below in “Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses”.

NON-INTEREST REVENUE AND OPERATING EXPENSE

The following table provides details on the Company’s non-interest income and operating expense for the second quarter and first half of 2006 relative to the second quarter and first half of 2005:

Non Interest Income/Expense

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	For the Quarter Ended June 30,										For the Six-Month Period Ended June 30,
	2006			% of Total		2005			% of Total		2006			% of Total		2005			% of Total
OTHER OPERATING INCOME:
Service charges on deposit accounts	$	1,519		53.37	%	$	1,307		56.29	%	$	2,994		55.29	%	$	2,566		53.58	%
Other service charges, commissions & fees	$	955		33.55	%	$	711		30.62	%	$	1,792		33.09	%	$	1,336		27.90	%
Gains on sales of loans	$	—		0.00	%	$	(8	)	-0.34	%	$	—		0.00	%	$	518		10.82	%
Loan servicing income	$	7		0.25	%	$	17		0.73	%	$	20		0.37	%	$	49		1.02	%
Bank owned life insurance	$	251		8.82	%	$	108		4.65	%	$	436		8.05	%	$	361		7.54	%
Other	$	114		4.01	%	$	187		8.05	%	$	173		3.20	%		(41	)	-0.86	%

Total non-interest income	$	2,846		100.00	%	$	2,322		100.00	%	$	5,415		100.00	%	$	4,789		100.00	%
As a percentage of average earning assets ⁽²⁾				1.12	%				1.04	%				1.11	%				1.07	%
OTHER OPERATING EXPENSES:
Salaries and employee benefits	$	3,920		47.75	%	$	3,753		45.69	%	$	8,111		48.98	%	$	7,819		46.66	%
Occupancy costs
Furniture & equipment	$	814		9.92	%	$	832		10.13	%	$	1,632		9.86	%	$	1,638		9.77	%
Premises	$	788		9.60	%	$	667		8.12	%	$	1,518		9.17	%	$	1,358		8.10	%
Advertising and marketing costs	$	294		3.58	%	$	458		5.58	%	$	517		3.12	%	$	954		5.69	%
Data processing costs	$	272		3.31	%	$	313		3.81	%	$	510		3.08	%	$	611		3.65	%
Deposit services costs	$	492		5.99	%	$	337		4.10	%	$	938		5.66	%	$	641		3.83	%
Loan services costs
Loan processing	$	117		1.43	%	$	89		1.08	%	$	178		1.08	%	$	177		1.06	%
ORE owned	$	4		0.05	%	$	10		0.12	%	$	151		0.91	%	$	231		1.38	%
Credit card	$	176		2.14	%	$	152		1.85	%	$	356		2.15	%	$	298		1.78	%
Other operating costs
Telephone & data communications	$	206		2.51	%	$	310		3.77	%	$	405		2.45	%	$	513		3.06	%
Postage & mail	$	53		0.65	%	$	129		1.57	%	$	164		0.99	%	$	257		1.53	%
Other	$	302		3.67	%	$	177		2.16	%	$	538		3.25	%	$	395		2.36	%
Professional services costs
Legal & accounting	$	280		3.41	%	$	506		6.16	%	$	541		3.27	%	$	857		5.11	%
Other professional service	$	313		3.81	%	$	280		3.41	%	$	600		3.62	%	$	608		3.63	%
Stationery & supply costs	$	156		1.90	%	$	182		2.22	%	$	335		2.02	%	$	327		1.95	%
Sundry & tellers	$	23		0.28	%	$	19		0.23	%	$	65		0.39	%	$	74		0.44	%

Total non-interest Expense	$	8,210		100.00	%	$	8,214		100.00	%	$	16,559		100.00	%	$	16,758		100.00	%

As a % of average earning assets				3.24	%				3.63	%				3.38	%				3.73	%
Efficiency Ratio ⁽¹⁾		47.24	%				56.14	%				48.99	%				56.77	%

⁽¹⁾	Tax Equivalent

⁽²⁾	Annualized

The Company’s results reflect an increase of $524,000, or 23%, in total other operating income for the quarter ended June 30, 2006 relative to the quarter ended June 30, 2005. Total other operating income increased to 1.12% of average earning assets in the second quarter of 2006, from 1.04% of average earning assets in the second quarter of 2005. For the first half, total other operating income was $5.4 million in 2006 and $4.8 million in 2005, representing an increase of $626,000, or 13%. Total operating income was 1.11% of average earning assets in the first half of 2006, relative to 1.07% in the first half of 2005.

For the second quarter, service charges on deposit accounts increased by $212,000, or 16%, primarily because of higher returned item and overdraft charges resulting from a larger number of transaction accounts and higher levels of activity. Fees instituted for certain high-risk deposit accounts in September 2005 also contributed to the increase. Despite a higher number of business accounts on analysis, total hard-dollar charges for those accounts did not change significantly because the earnings credit rate, which offsets hard-dollar charges, has increased. For the first six months of 2006, service charges on deposits increased by $428,000, or 17%, compared to 2005. As with the quarter, the increase for the half was due to higher returned item and overdraft charges and higher service charges on high-risk accounts, but the increase for the half was weighted more toward high-risk service charges.

Other service charges, commissions, and fees increased by $244,000, or 34%, in the second quarter of 2006 relative to the second quarter of 2005. The increase is the result of increased income in a variety of categories, including bill-pay income, operating lease rental income, check card interchange fees, and currency order charges. In the first half of 2006, other service charges, commissions, and fees were also 34% higher than in the first half of the previous year. The $456,000 increase for the half is the result of higher income in the same categories as for the quarter.

There were no gains or losses on the sale of loans in the second quarter or first half of 2006, since no loans were sold. The half, however, reflects a decline of $518,000 in loan sale income, due to a substantial gain on the bulk sale of $21 million in residential mortgage loans in the first quarter of the prior year. Loan servicing income was down for both the quarter and the half, since the number of loans being serviced for others continues to decline.

Bank-owned life insurance (BOLI) income increased by $143,000, or 132%, in the second quarter of 2006 relative to the second quarter of 2005. At June 30, 2006 the Company had $18.9 million invested in single-premium “general account” BOLI, with an interest credit rate that does not change frequently and is floored at no less than 3%. This balance includes $2 million of BOLI that was purchased in August 2005. Income from this BOLI is used to fund expenses associated with executive salary continuation plans and a directors’ retirement plan. In addition, however, as of the same date the Company had approximately $1.4 million invested in “separate account” BOLI used to hedge deferred compensation arrangements for certain directors and senior officers. These BOLI accounts have returns pegged to participant-directed investment allocations, and are thus subject to loss of principal depending on equity market movements. The increase in BOLI income for the quarter was due in part to the additional BOLI purchased in 2005, but was mainly the result of higher returns on separate account BOLI linked to deferred compensation balances. For the half, BOLI income shows an increase of only $75,000, or 21%. This is due to relatively low returns on separate account BOLI in the first quarter of 2006.

Other non-interest income includes gains and losses on investments, gains on the disposition of fixed assets and real properties, and rental income generated by the Company’s alliance with Investment Centers of America. There were no investment gains or losses recorded during the first six months of 2006 or 2005. Other non-interest income declined by $73,000 for the second quarter due to prior year activity, including a $66,000 gain from the liquidation of a small equity position in a mutual insurance company that converted to stock a few years ago and a small gain on OREO sales. Other non-interest income increased by $214,000 for the half, however, due to the $330,000 write-down of the Company’s $1 million investment in Diversified Holdings Corporation, a title insurance holding company, in the first quarter of 2005. That investment was subsequently written down by an additional $240,000 in the fourth quarter of 2005, to the level of expected proceeds from the sale of the primary operating subsidiaries of that company.

Total operating expense (non-interest expense) was $8.2 million for the three months ended June 30, 2006, a very slight decline from total operating expense for the same period in 2005. Because average earning assets increased significantly, non-interest expenses fell to 3.24% of average earning assets for the second quarter of 2006 from 3.63% in the second quarter of 2005. For the first half of 2006, total non-interest expense was $199,000 lower than in the first half of 2005, a decline of about 1%. Total non-interest expense fell to 3.38% of average earning assets in the first half of 2006, from 3.73% in the first half of 2005.

The largest component of non-interest expense, salaries and employee benefits, increased by $167,000, or 4%, for the second quarter of 2006 relative to the second quarter of 2005. The increase was relatively small because of an increase of $228,000, or 26%, in salaries that are directly related to successful loan originations and are thus deferred and amortized as an adjustment to loan yields pursuant to FAS 91. This credit against current salaries was higher because of substantially greater loan origination activity in the second quarter of 2006 relative to the second quarter of 2005. Adding back in deferred costs, salaries (excluding benefits) increased by $358,000, or 10%, due to the following: Regular annual increases; employee salaries for the new Reedley and Bakersfield Riverlakes branches; and selective staff additions in our back office operations to support branch growth. The cost of benefits increased by only $36,000, or 3%, in the second quarter of 2006 relative to the second quarter of 2005, due to small declines in workers compensation and group insurance premiums.

For the half, salaries and employee benefits increased by $292,000, or 4%. As with the quarter, the increase was lower than it otherwise would have been because of an increase of $405,000, or 25%, in salaries deferred pursuant to FAS 91. If no salaries had been deferred, total salaries for the half would have increased by $788,000, or 11%, for the same reasons as outlined in the quarterly analysis. Employee benefits actually declined in the first half of 2006 relative to the first half of the previous year, due mainly to lower workers compensation insurance costs.

In spite of the minimal increase in aggregate salaries and benefits for both the second quarter and first half, they rose to 47.8% of total non-interest expense for the second quarter of 2006 from 45.7% in the second quarter of 2005, and to 49.0% of total non-interest expense in the first half of 2006 from 46.7% in the first half of 2005, due to the overall decline in total non-interest expense. The Company had 354 full-time equivalent employees at June 30, 2006, and 344 full-time equivalents at June 30, 2005.

Occupancy expense increased by $103,000, or 7%, for the second quarter of 2006 relative to the second quarter of 2005, and by $154,000, or 5%, for the first half of 2006 relative to the first half of 2005. These increases were mostly due to normal annual rent increases plus additional rent and depreciation associated with new branches, along with an increase in the cost of utilities. The increase for the half was lower than for the second quarter, due to lower costs in the first quarter of 2006 related to maintenance and repairs. Occupancy expense was 19.52% and 19.03%, respectively, of total non-interest expense for the second quarter and first six months of 2006, up from 18.25% and 17.87%, respectively, for the second quarter and first six months of 2005. The increase was again caused by the overall decline in non-interest expense.

Advertising and marketing costs fell by $164,000, or 36%, for the quarter, and by $437,000, or 46%, for the half, in large part because of the discontinuation of a direct-mail marketing campaign run during 2005, but also due to lower newspaper and radio advertising expenses. With the Company’s current focus on attracting new deposits, it is expected that marketing expenses could increase to prior-year levels by the fourth quarter of 2006.

Other sizeable changes in non-interest expenses include data processing costs, deposit services costs, telecommunications expenses, postage and mail, other operating costs, and legal and accounting costs. The decrease in data processing costs is actually related to the increase in the cost of deposit services. Federal Reserve Bank processing charges are in deposit services costs in 2006, but are reflected in data processing costs for 2005. These charges have increased due to a higher fed funds rate. They were $127,000 and $236,000, respectively, for the second quarter and first half of 2006, up from $84,000 and $158,000, respectively, for the second quarter and first half of 2005. Telecommunications costs are down $104,000 for the quarter and $108,000 for the half, due to overlapping charges in the prior year related to the Company’s conversion to VOIP technology. Postage expenses declined by $76,000 for the quarter and $93,000 for the half, since they include postage expenses related to the 2005 direct mail marketing campaign described in the previous paragraph. The “other” category under “other operating costs” is up by $125,000, or 71%, for the second quarter of 2006 compared to the second quarter of 2005, and by $143,000, or 36% for the first half of 2006 relative to the first half of 2005. The increase is due to mainly to higher depreciation expense on operating leases and higher education and training costs. Lower consulting, legal, and auditing costs contributed to the reduction of $226,000, or 45%, in legal and accounting costs for the quarter, and $316,000, or 37%, for the half. Consulting costs fell because of an operating efficiency review undertaken in 2005, while legal costs were down primarily because of a lower expenses related to lending and collection activities. Audit costs declined due to lower accruals for internal control review costs associated with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Because net interest plus other income increased significantly and non-interest expense actually declined slightly, the Company’s tax-equivalent overhead efficiency ratio declined to 48.99% for the first half of 2006 relative to 56.77% for the first half of 2005. The overhead efficiency ratio represents total operating expense divided by the sum of fully tax-equivalent net interest and non-interest income, with the provision for loan losses, investment gains and losses, and other extraordinary income and expenses excluded from the equation.

PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES

The Company sets aside a provision for income taxes on a monthly basis. The amount of the tax provision is determined by applying the Company’s statutory income tax rates to pre-tax book income, adjusted for permanent

differences between pre-tax book income and actual taxable income. Such permanent differences include but are not limited to tax-exempt interest income, increases in the cash surrender value of bank-owned life insurance, California Enterprise Zone deductions, certain expenses that are not allowed as tax deductions, and tax credits.

The Company’s tax provision totaled $2.6 million for the second quarter of 2006 and $1.6 million for the second quarter of 2005, representing 34% and 30%, respectively, of pre-tax income for those periods. For the first half, the tax provision was $4.8 million in 2006 and $3.1 million in 2005, representing 33% and 31%, respectively, of pre-tax income. The accrual rate has been higher in 2006, since tax credits from low-income housing tax credit investments have been lower.

BALANCE SHEET ANALYSIS

EARNING ASSETS

INVESTMENTS

The major components of the Company’s earning asset base are its investments and loans, and the detailed composition and growth characteristics of both are significant determinants of the financial condition of the Company. The Company’s investments are analyzed in this section, while the loan and lease portfolio is discussed in a later section of this Form 10-Q.

The Company’s investments consist of debt and marketable equity securities (together, the “investment portfolio”), investments in the time deposits of other banks, and overnight fed funds sold. These serve several purposes: 1) they provide liquidity to even out cash flows from the loan and deposit activities of customers; 2) they provide a source of pledged assets for securing public deposits, bankruptcy deposits and certain borrowed funds which require collateral; 3) they constitute a large base of assets with maturity and interest rate characteristics that can be changed more readily than the loan portfolio, to better match changes in the deposit base and other funding sources of the Company; 4) they are an alternative interest-earning use of funds when loan demand is light; and 5) they can provide partially tax exempt income.

Although the Company currently has the intent and the ability to hold the securities in its investment portfolio to maturity, the securities are all marketable and are classified as “available for sale” to allow maximum flexibility with regard to interest rate risk and liquidity management. Pursuant to SFAS 115, the balance of available for sale securities is carried on the Company’s financial statements at its estimated fair market value, with monthly tax-effected “mark-to-market” adjustments made vis-à-vis the accumulated other comprehensive income account in shareholders’ equity. The following table sets forth the Company’s investment portfolio by investment type as of the dates noted:

Investment Portfolio

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	June 30, 2006				December 31, 2005
	Amortized Cost		Fair Market Value		Amortized Cost		Fair Market Value
Available for Sale
US Treasury securities	$	503	$	492	$	504	$	495
US Gov’t agencies		18,028		17,547		17,360		17,143
Mortgage-backed securities		127,728		122,044		134,455		131,050
State & political subdivisions		51,550		51,475		44,477		44,977
Other equity securities		6		9		6		11

Total Investment Securities	$	197,815	$	191,567	$	196,802	$	193,676

The carrying value of the investment portfolio declined by $2 million, or 1%, during the first half of 2006. Approximately $66 million of the portfolio total at June 30, 2006 represents remaining balances from the $100 million leverage strategy implemented in April 2004. The leverage balances are funded mostly by $46 million in fixed-rate FHLB borrowings obtained at the commencement of the leverage strategy, of which $27 million is currently classified as long term and $19 million is classified as short term. Short-term FHLB borrowings that are rolled over every 30 to 60 days make up the difference.

During the first half of 2006, mortgage-backed securities declined by $9 million due to prepayments, while the balance of municipal bonds increased as the Company has taken advantage of relative value in that sector. Securities that were pledged as collateral for FHLB borrowings, repurchase agreements, public deposits and for other purposes as required or permitted by law totaled $168 million at June 30, 2006, and $164 million at December 31, 2005. There were $300,000 in fed funds sold at June 30, 2006 and none at December 31, 2005, and the Company’s investment in the time deposits of other banks totaled $250,000 at June 30, 2006 and $345,000 at December 31, 2005. Aggregate investments were 17% of total assets at June 30, 2006 and 18% at December 31, 2005.

LOAN PORTFOLIO

The Company’s loans and leases, gross of the associated allowance for losses and deferred fees and origination costs, totaled $835 million at the end of June 2006. This represents an increase of $94 million, or 13%, since December 31, 2005. Net participations purchased account for $7 million of this increase, while the remainder consists of organic growth. We do not expect to sustain this relatively rapid rate of growth, but our current momentum could keep loan growth at $7 million to $10 million per month, which is still relatively high in comparison to historical growth rates. Because of the many variables that ultimately impact loan growth, however, no assurance can be given that anticipated increases in loans will materialize.

A comparative schedule of the distribution of the Company’s loans at June 30, 2006 and December 31, 2005, by outstanding balance as well as by percentage of total loans, is presented in the following Loan and Lease Distribution table. The balances shown for each loan type are before deferred or unamortized loan origination, extension, or commitment fees, and deferred origination costs for loans in that category.

Loan and Lease Distribution

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	June 30 2006			December 31 2005
Agricultural	$	11,142		$	9,898
Commercial and industrial	$	114,068		$	100,545
Real Estate:
Secured by commercial/professional office
Properties including construction and development	$	390,840		$	363,094
Secured by residential properties	$	167,812		$	128,735
Secured by farmland	$	48,004		$	45,353

Total Real Estate	$	606,656		$	537,182
Small Business Administration loans	$	27,254		$	24,190
Consumer loans	$	52,150		$	51,006
Consumer Credit Cards	$	8,051		$	8,401
Direct Financing Leases	$	15,923		$	10,138

Total Loans and Leases	$	835,244		$	741,360

Percentage of Total Loans and Leases
Agricultural		1.33	%		1.34	%
Commercial and industrial		13.66	%		13.56	%
Real Estate:
Secured by commercial/professional office
Properties including construction and development		46.79	%		48.98	%
Secured by residential properties		20.09	%		17.36	%
Secured by farmland		5.75	%		6.12	%

Total Real Estate		72.63	%		72.46	%
Small Business Administration loans		3.26	%		3.26	%
Consumer loans		6.24	%		6.88	%
Consumer Credit cards		0.97	%		1.13	%
Direct Financing Leases		1.91	%		1.37	%

Total		100.00	%		100.00	%

Agricultural production loans, which declined during the first quarter of 2006, now show an increase of $1.2 million, or 13%, for the first half of 2006. Ag production loans by their nature are subject to seasonal fluctuations, and we do not expect a net increase in this category for the year. During the first half of 2006, commercial and industrial loans reflect a relatively strong increase of $14 million, or 13%, which is fairly consistent with growth in the aggregate portfolio. Total real estate loans increased by $69 million, or 13%, and within that category loans secured by residential properties increased by $39 million, or 30%. About $18 million of the increase in loans secured by residential properties is from an increase in outstanding balances on home equity lines and equity loans, another $9 million is from growth in residential mortgage loans, and the remainder is in the form of commercial loans where residential real estate was taken as collateral. Loans secured by residential properties increased to 20.09% of total loans at June 30, 2006, from 17.36% at December 31, 2005. Other commercial real estate loans increased by $28 million, or 8%, declining slightly as a percentage of total loans since their growth rate was lower than that of the aggregate portfolio.

Direct finance leases experienced significant growth during the first quarter of 2006, increasing by $6 million, or 57%. Consumer loans and credit card loans were not actively promoted during the period and thus did not experience significant change. Small Business Administration (SBA) loans increased by $3 million, or 13%.

Although not reflected in the loan totals above, from time to time the Company originates and sells agricultural and residential mortgage loans to certain other investors, and we currently provide servicing for a small number of SBA

loans and a certain number of agricultural mortgage loans. The balance of loans serviced for others was $15 million as of June 30, 2006, compared to $17 million at December 31, 2005.

OFF-BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS

In the normal course of business, the Company makes commitments to extend credit as long as there are no violations of any conditions established in the outstanding contractual arrangement. Unused commitments to extend credit, including credit card lines, totaled $347 million at June 30, 2006 as compared to $317 million at December 31, 2005, although it is expected that not all of these commitments will ultimately be drawn down. Unused commitments represented approximately 42% of gross loans outstanding at June 30, 2006, and 43% as of December 31, 2005. In addition to unused loan commitments, the Company had letters of credit totaling $29 million at June 30, 2006 and $17 million at December 31, 2005. This represents 8% of total commitments as of June 30, 2006, and 5% at December 31 2005.

The effect on the Company’s revenues, expenses, cash flows and liquidity from the unused portion of the commitments to provide credit cannot be reasonably predicted because there is no guarantee that the lines of credit will ever be used. For more information regarding the Company’s off-balance sheet arrangements, see Note 8 to the financial statements located elsewhere herein.

NONPERFORMING ASSETS

Nonperforming assets are comprised of the following: loans for which the Company is no longer accruing interest; loans 90 days or more past due and still accruing interest (although loans are generally placed on non-accrual status when they become 90 days past due, whether or not interest is still being collected); loans restructured where the terms of repayment have been renegotiated resulting in a deferral of interest or principal; and other real estate owned (“OREO”). Management’s classification of a loan as non-accrual or restructured is an indication that there is reasonable doubt as to the Company’s ability to collect principal or interest on the loan. At that point, the Company stops accruing income from the interest on the loan, reverses any interest that has been accrued but is not yet collected, and recognizes interest income only as cash interest payments are received and as long as the collection of all outstanding principal is not in doubt. These loans may or may not be collateralized, but in all cases collection efforts are continuously pursued. The following table presents comparative data for the Company’s nonperforming assets:

Non-performing Assets

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	June 30 2006			December 31 2005			June 30 2005
NON-ACCRUAL LOANS:
Agricultural	$	—		$	—		$	—
Commercial and industrial	$	488		$	—		$	2,510
Real Estate
Secured by commercial/professional office properties including construction and development	$	—		$	—		$	—
Secured by residential properties	$	—		$	—		$	—
Secured by farmland	$	—		$	—		$	1,289
Held for sale	$	—		$	—		$	—

TOTAL REAL ESTATE	$	—		$	—		$	1,289
Small Business Administration loans	$	238		$	288		$	86
Consumer loans	$	9		$	21		$	50
Consumer Credit cards	$	2		$	—		$	3
Direct Financing Leases	$	—		$	—		$	—

SUBTOTAL	$	737		$	309		$	3,938

LOANS 90 DAYS OR MORE PAST DUE & STILL ACCRUING:
(as to principal OR interest)
Agricultural	$	—		$	—		$	—
Commercial and Industrial	$	—		$	—		$	—
Real Estate
Secured by commercial/professional office Properties including construction and development	$	—		$	—		$	—
Secured by residential properties	$	—		$	—		$	—
Secured by farmland	$	—		$	—		$	—
Held for sale	$	—		$	—		$	—

TOTAL REAL ESTATE	$	—		$	—		$	—
Small Business Administration loans	$	—		$	—		$	—
Consumer loans	$	—		$	—		$	1
Consumer Credit cards	$	—		$	—		$	—
Direct Financing Leases	$	—		$	—		$	—

SUBTOTAL	$	—		$	—		$	1

TOTAL NONPERFORMING LOANS	$	737		$	309		$	3,939
Other real estate	$	—		$	533		$	1,899

Total nonperforming assets	$	737		$	842		$	5,838

Restructured loans		N/A			N/A			N/A
Nonperforming loans as a % of total gross loans and leases		0.09	%		0.04	%		0.56	%
Nonperforming assets as a % of total gross loans and leases and other real estate		0.09	%		0.11	%		0.83	%

Total nonperforming assets were $737,000 at June 30, 2006 relative to $842,000 at December 31, 2005, a drop of $105,000 or 12%. The addition of a $488,000 non-accruing loan was more than offset by the sale of the Company’s last remaining OREO. A full reserve has been allocated to the aforementioned non-accruing loan due to uncertainties relating to the timing and amount of repayment. Management hopes to ultimately collect a large percentage of that loan’s principal, but no assurance can be made in that regard. Approximately $178,000 of the June 30, 2006 total nonperforming balance in the table above is guaranteed by the U.S. Government.

Over the past year, nonperforming assets have been reduced by over $5 million, or 87%, due principally to the charge-off of a $2.5 million unsecured commercial loan, the sale of a $1.3 million non-accruing real estate loan secured by farmland, and the elimination of OREO. Nonperforming assets were 0.09% of total gross loans and leases plus OREO at June 30, 2006 and 0.11% at December 31, 2005, down from 0.83% at June 30, 2005. While the current level of nonperforming assets is quite low relative to levels experienced in years past, we recognize that an increase in the dollar amount of non-accrual loans and leases is possible in the normal course of business as we expand our lending activities, and we also expect occasional foreclosures as a last resort in the resolution of some problem credits.

ALLOWANCE FOR LOAN AND LEASE LOSSES

The allowance for loan and lease losses is established through a provision for loan and lease losses based on management’s evaluation of known and inherent risks in the Company’s loan portfolio. At June 30, 2006 the allowance for loan and lease losses was $10.5 million, or 1.26% of gross loans, an increase of $1.2 million relative to the $9.3 million allowance at December 31, 2005, which was also 1.26% of gross loans. An allowance for potential losses inherent in unused commitments is included in other liabilities, and totaled $141,000 at June 30, 2006.

We employ a systematic methodology for determining the appropriate level of the allowance for loan and lease losses and adjusting it on at least a quarterly basis. Our process includes a periodic review of individual loans that have been specifically identified as problem loans or have characteristics that could lead to impairment, as well as detailed reviews of other loans either individually or in pools. While this methodology utilizes historical data and other objective information, the classification of loans and the establishment of the allowance for loan and lease losses are both to some extent based on management’s judgment and experience.

Our methodology incorporates a variety of risk considerations, both quantitative and qualitative, in establishing an allowance for loan and lease losses that management believes is appropriate at each reporting date. Quantitative factors include our historical loss experience, delinquency and charge-off trends, collateral values, changes in nonperforming loans, the rate of loan portfolio growth, and other factors. Quantitative factors also incorporate known information about individual loans, including a borrower’s sensitivity to interest rate movements or other quantifiable external factors such as commodity prices or acts of nature (freezes, earthquakes, fires, etc.).

Qualitative factors include the general economic environment in our markets and, in particular, the state of the agriculture industry and other key industries in the Central San Joaquin Valley. The way a particular loan might be structured, the extent and nature of waivers of existing loan policies, the results of bank regulatory examinations, and model imprecision are additional qualitative factors that are considered.

The table that follows summarizes the activity in the allowance for loan and lease losses for the periods indicated:

Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	For the Quarter Ended June 30,						For the Six-Month Period Ended June 30,						For the Year Ended December 31, 2005
	2006			2005			2006			2005			For the Year Ended December 31, 2005
Balances:
Average gross loans and leases outstanding during period	$	812,196		$	691,656		$	784,308		$	692,216		$	708,002

Gross loans and leases outstanding at end of period	$	835,244		$	700,987		$	835,244		$	700,987		$	741,360

Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses:
Balance at beginning of period	$	10,297		$	9,651		$	9,330		$	8,842		$	8,842
Provision charged to expense	$	1,049		$	900		$	2,099		$	1,900		$	3,150
Charge-offs
Agricultural	$	—		$	—		$	—		$	—		$	—
Commercial & industrial loans ⁽¹⁾	$	623		$	11		$	708		$	95		$	2,864
Real estate loans	$	—		$	—		$	—		$	—		$	—
Consumer loans	$	201		$	76		$	301		$	147		$	494
Direct Financing Leases	$	—		$	—		$	4		$	—		$	—
Credit card loans	$	136		$	176		$	217		$	242		$	400
Overdrafts	$	86		$	69		$	130		$	129		$	216

Total	$	1,046		$	332		$	1,360		$	613		$	3,974

Recoveries
Agricultural	$	—		$	215		$	2		$	219		$	747
Commercial & industrial loans ⁽¹⁾	$	69		$	271		$	196		$	298		$	325
Real estate loans	$	—		$	—		$	—		$	2		$	2
Consumer loans	$	119		$	30		$	193		$	45		$	95
Direct Financing Leases	$	—		$	34		$	—		$	57		$	—
Credit card loans	$	25		$	—		$	39		$	—		$	88
Overdrafts	$	13		$	14		$	27		$	33		$	55

Total	$	226		$	564		$	457		$	654		$	1,312

Net loan charge offs (recoveries)	$	820		$	(232	)	$	903		$	(41	)	$	2,662

Balance	$	10,526		$	10,783		$	10,526		$	10,783		$	9,330

RATIOS
Net Charge-offs to Average Loans and Leases (annualized)		0.40	%		-0.13	%		0.23	%		-0.01	%		0.38	%
Allowance for Loan Losses to Gross Loans and Leases at End of Period		1.26	%		1.54	%		1.26	%		1.54	%		1.26	%
Allowance for Loan Losses to Non-Performing Loans		1428.22	%		273.75	%		1428.22	%		273.75	%		3019.42	%
Net Loan Charge-offs to Allowance for Loan Losses at End of Period		7.79	%		2.15	%		8.58	%		0.38	%		28.53	%
Net Loan Charge-offs to Provision for Loan Losses		78.17	%		25.78	%		43.02	%		2.16	%		84.51	%

(1)	Includes Small Business Administration Loans

The allowance is increased by a provision for possible loan and lease losses charged against current earnings and by the recovery of previously charged-off balances, and it is reduced by loan charge-offs. Specifically identifiable and quantifiable losses are immediately charged off against the allowance; recoveries are generally recorded only when cash payments are received subsequent to the charge off. The Company’s provision for loan and lease losses was $149,000 higher in the second quarter of 2006 than in the second quarter of 2005, and $199,000 higher in the first half of 2006 than in the first half of 2005. The provision in the first half of 2006 was used chiefly to build a reserve for losses inherent in incremental loan growth, although a specific reserve was allocated to the $488,000 loan placed on non-accrual during the second quarter of 2006. In 2005, the provision was used to build a reserve for a $2.5 million loan that was ultimately charged off during the latter part of 2005, as well as for loan growth.

The Company had net charge-offs of $820,000 against the allowance in the second quarter of 2006 versus net recoveries of $232,000 in the second quarter of 2005, and net charge-offs of $903,000 for the first half of 2006 relative to net recoveries of $41,000 for the first half of 2005. Although not at alarming levels, charge-offs in the second quarter and first half of 2006 are higher than in 2005 largely because of the charge-off of a single $400,000 commercial loan. The loan was charged off because of the borrower’s inability to provide evidence of sufficient capacity to fully repay principal, although the borrower is cooperative and appears to be meeting a revised repayment schedule. The $2.7 million net charge-off shown for the year for 2005 includes the fourth-quarter charge-off of a $2.5 million unsecured commercial loan, as discussed in detail in our most recently filed Form 10-K.

The Company considers its allowance for loan and lease losses at June 30, 2006 to be adequate to cover specifically identified losses and other losses inherent in its loan portfolio. However, no assurance can be given that the Company will not experience substantial losses relative to the size of the allowance.

OTHER ASSETS

The balance of cash and due from banks was $49 million at June 30, 2006 relative to the $50 million balance at December 31, 2005. Since the actual balance of cash and due from banks depends on the timing of collection of outstanding cash items, it is subject to significant fluctuation in the normal course of business. While cash flows are normally predictable within limits, those limits are fairly broad and the Company manages its cash position through the utilization of overnight loans to and borrowings from correspondent banks, including the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco. Should a large “short” overnight position persist for any length of time, the Company typically raises money through focused retail deposit gathering efforts or by adding brokered time deposits. If a “long” position is prevalent, the Company will, to the extent possible, let brokered deposits roll off as they mature.

Because of frequent balance fluctuations, a more accurate gauge of cash management efficiency is the average balance for the period. The $38 million average of cash and due from banks for the first six months of 2006 was the same as average for all of 2005, despite two additional branches. Average cash balances have been well-controlled due to close monitoring and efficient management of branch cash levels. It is expected that as additional branches commence operations in the future, the Company’s balance of cash will increase to meet the needs of those branches.

Restricted stock is comprised primarily of FHLB stock that fluctuates in conjunction with our FHLB borrowings. This stock is not deemed to be marketable or liquid and is thus not grouped with the Company’s investments described above. Dividends received on FHLB stock are reflected in other non-interest income rather than interest income, and are not factored into our yield analysis. The balance of these non-marketable equity securities was $8.5 million at June 30, 2006 and $5.3 million at December 31, 2005, an increase of $3.2 million that was necessitated by our increased level of short-term FHLB borrowings.

Net premises and equipment increased negligibly during the first quarter of 2006, as did other assets. At June 30, 2006, the Company’s other assets included a $6.6 million net deferred tax asset. Most of the Company’s temporary differences between book and taxable income and expenses involve recognizing more expense in its financial statements than it has been allowed to deduct for taxes, therefore the Company’s deferred tax assets typically exceed its deferred tax liabilities. The net deferred tax asset is primarily due to temporary book/tax differences in the reported allowance for loan losses plus deferred compensation, net of deferred liabilities comprised mainly of fixed asset depreciation differences and deferred loan origination costs. Management has evaluated all deferred tax assets, and has no reason to believe that either the quality of the deferred tax assets or the Company’s future taxable income potential would preclude full realization of all amounts in future years.

Other noteworthy changes in assets include an increase of close to $1 million, or 43%, in operating leases, and an increase of over $1 million, or 22%, in accrued interest receivable. The increase in operating leases came about because of increased operating lease origination activity, and the increase in accrued interest receivable is the result of higher interest-earning asset balances and higher interest rates.

DEPOSITS AND INTEREST BEARING LIABILITIES

DEPOSITS

Another key balance sheet component impacting the Company’s net interest margin is our deposit base. The Company’s net interest margin is improved to the extent that growth in deposits can be concentrated in less volatile and typically less costly core deposits, which include demand deposit accounts, interest-bearing demand accounts (NOW accounts), savings accounts, money market demand accounts (MMDA’s), and time deposits under $100,000. Overall, deposits increased by $16 million, or 2%, to $831 million at June 30, 2006 from $816 million at December 31, 2005.

Among core deposit categories, non-interest demand deposits dropped by $10 million, or 4%, NOW accounts fell by $5 million, or 7%, savings account balances declined by $3 million, or 4%, and money market accounts increased by $27 million, or 25%. The decline in transaction and savings accounts during the first half of 2006 appears to be typical for many financial institutions around the country. This is likely the result of systemic migration of core deposit balances into higher-yielding alternatives, which has intensified competition for the remaining deposits. Our increase in money market accounts is the result of a new money market sweep account for businesses, which had a balance of over $50 million at June 30, 2006. The money market sweep account pays relatively aggressive rates, and much of this money was transferred from lower-cost deposits or customer repurchase agreement money already with the Company. Nevertheless, we view this new account as a defensive product that can help us retain deposits, as well as help us compete more effectively for new commercial deposits.

Other deposit changes are as follows: TDOA’s, IRA’s and KEOGH’s increased by a combined $1.5 million, or 7%, other time deposits of less than $100,000 declined by $1 million, or 1%, and jumbo time deposits (of $100,000 or greater) increased by $6 million, or 3%. Jumbo time deposits would have declined by $25 million if not for a $31 million increase in relatively high-cost brokered CD’s. The Company had a total of $66 million in brokered deposits on its books at June 30, 2006 and $35 million at year-end 2005. Maturities of these deposits are staggered over the next five months, and it is our intention to replace them with internally-generated branch deposits when possible.

Management plans to address the decline in lower-cost core deposit balances by supplementing the Company’s deposit products to include remote deposit capture capabilities, modifying retail deposit offerings to better align them with market demand, and intensifying marketing and cross-sell efforts. An officer incentive program specifically targeting deposits has also been implemented.

Information concerning average balances and rates paid on deposits by deposit type for the three months and six months ended June 30, 2006 and June 30, 2005 is contained in the “Average Rates and Balances” tables appearing above in the section titled “Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin.”

OTHER INTEREST-BEARING LIABILITIES

The Company’s other interest-bearing liabilities include overnight borrowings from other banks (“fed funds purchased”), borrowings from the Federal Home Loan Bank, securities sold under agreement to repurchase, and junior subordinated debentures issued in consideration for cash raised by a wholly-owned trust subsidiary via the sale of trust-preferred securities (see Capital Resources section for more detailed explanation of trust-preferred securities).

As of June 30, 2006, FHLB borrowings specifically linked to the leverage strategy discussed above in “Investments” comprised all of the Company’s $27 million in long-term borrowings. In addition, short-term borrowings include $19 million in fixed-rate FHLB borrowings which were obtained at the commencement of the leverage strategy but which mature next April, and were thus moved out of long-term borrowings during the second quarter of 2006. Another $19 million block of our term FHLB borrowings matured in April, so the net effect of leverage-related funding on our short-term borrowing position was minimal. The balance of our leverage-related funding is in the form of short-term FHLB borrowings that are renewed every 30 to 60 days.

Short-term borrowings increased by $62 million, or 150%, during the first half of 2006, since short-term and overnight FHLB advances were utilized to fund the majority of the Company’s loan growth. The Company also uses short-term FHLB advances and overnight fed funds purchased from correspondent banks to support liquidity needs created by seasonal deposit flows, to temporarily satisfy funding needs from increased loan demand, and for other short-term purposes. Uncommitted lines are available from several correspondent banks. The FHLB line is committed, but the amount of available credit is dependent on the level of pledged collateral. The $25 million in overnight fed funds purchased on the Company’s books as of June 30, 2006, also represents funding used to support loan growth. There were no fed funds purchased at December 31, 2005. Repurchase agreements, which represent “sweep accounts”, or non-deposit investment accounts secured by pledged investment securities, totaled approximately $19 million at June 30, 2006. This is $8 million lower than the $27 million balance at the end of

December 2005, due in large part to the migration of some of these “secured” balances to our new unsecured money market sweep product.

The Company’s junior subordinated debentures increased by $15 million in the first half of 2006, due to the private issuance of $15 million in trust preferred securities (“TRUPS”) through a newly-established subsidiary, Sierra Capital Trust III, as part of a pooled transaction with several other financial institutions. The securities mature on September 23, 2036, and are callable at par after five years. They bear interest at a quarterly adjustable rate of three-month LIBOR plus 1.4%. While these securities currently qualify as Tier 2 capital for regulatory purposes, no assurance can be given that this capital treatment will continue to apply in the future. The proceeds will likely be used to retire $15 million in TRUPS that bear interest at a rate of six-month LIBOR plus 3.75%, and which become callable in December 2006. The decision to replace the Company’s first issuance of TRUPS was driven by cost considerations, as was the decision to issue new TRUPS six months prior to the call date of the TRUPS being replaced. Rate spreads on trust preferred securities have declined dramatically over the past several years, but have recently started to increase and appear likely to climb further in coming months. Spreads above LIBOR for TRUPS issued in July 2006, for example, appear to be in the 1.6% to 1.7% range.

OTHER NON-INTEREST BEARING LIABILITIES

Other non-interest bearing liabilities are principally comprised of accrued interest payable, accrued income taxes, other expenses accrued but unpaid, and certain clearing amounts. Within this category, the largest change in the first half of 2006 was in accrued interest payable, which increased by $306,000 because of the increase in interest rates.

LIQUIDITY AND MARKET RISK MANAGEMENT

INTEREST RATE RISK MANAGEMENT

Market risk arises from changes in interest rates, exchange rates, commodity prices and equity prices. The Company does not engage in the trading of financial instruments, nor does the Company have exposure to currency exchange rates. The Company’s market risk exposure is primarily that of interest rate risk, and it has established policies and procedures to monitor and limit earnings and balance sheet exposure to changes in interest rates. The principal objective of interest rate risk management (often referred to as “asset/liability management”) is to manage the Company’s balance sheet in a manner that will optimize the risk/reward equation for earnings and capital in relation to changing interest rates. To identify areas of potential exposure to rate changes, the Company performs an earnings simulation analysis and a market value of portfolio equity calculation on a monthly basis.

The Company uses Sendero modeling software for asset/liability management in order to simulate the effects of potential interest rate changes on the Company’s net interest margin, and to calculate the estimated fair values of the Company’s financial instruments under different interest rate scenarios. The program imports current balances, interest rates, maturity dates and repricing information for individual financial instruments, and incorporates assumptions on the characteristics of embedded options along with pricing and duration for new volumes to project the effects of a given interest rate change on the Company’s interest income and interest expense. Rate scenarios consisting of key rate and yield curve projections are run against the Company’s investment, loan, deposit and borrowed funds portfolios. These rate projections can be shocked (an immediate and parallel change in all base rates, up or down), ramped (an incremental increase or decrease in rates over a specified time period), economic (based on current trends and econometric models) or stable (unchanged from current actual levels).

The Company uses seven standard interest rate scenarios in conducting its simulations, namely “stable”, upward shocks of 100, 200 and 300 basis points, and downward shocks of 100, 200, and 300 basis points. Our policy is to limit the projected change in net interest income relative to the stable rate scenario for the next 12 months to plus or minus 5% based on a 100 basis point (b.p.) shock, plus or minus 10% based on a 200 b.p. shock, and plus or minus 15% based on a 300 b.p. shock in interest rates. As of June 30, 2006, the Company had the following estimated net interest income sensitivity profile:

Immediate Change in Rate


	-300 b.p.			-200 b.p.			-100 b.p.			+100 b.p.			+200 b.p.			+300 b.p.
Change in Net Int. Inc. (in $000’s)	-$	3,103		-$	1,653		-$	506		$	354		$	538		$	680
% Change		-5.27	%		-2.81	%		-0.86	%		0.60	%		0.91	%		1.15	%

The above profile illustrates that if there were an immediate and sustained downward adjustment of 200 basis points in interest rates, net interest income over the next twelve months would likely be $1.7 million, or 2.8%, lower than net interest income under a stable rate scenario. By the same token, if there were an immediate increase of 200 basis points in interest rates, the Company’s net interest income would likely be $538,000, or 0.9%, higher than net interest income in a flat rate scenario. According to these simulations the Company is asset sensitive over a one-year time frame, meaning that assets will re-price more quickly than liabilities. This is supported by fact the Company has, in the past, seen erosion in its interest margin when rates have declined but has benefited from rising rates. Our asset sensitivity can be explained in part by fact that well over half of our loan portfolio consists of variable-rate and adjustable-rate loans. On the other side of the balance sheet, we have a relatively large level of interest-free demand deposits and other non-maturity deposits that are not extremely sensitive to interest rate changes.

The changes in net interest income under rising and declining rate scenarios are typically expected to bear more of a linear relationship. The exposure to declining rates is disproportionate in these simulations, however, because some of the Company’s variable deposit rates are still relatively close to a floor of zero. As rates on interest-bearing liabilities hit this floor the Company’s earning asset yields continue to fall, creating significant compression in the Company’s net interest margin. This effect is exacerbated by the fact that prepayments on fixed-rate loans tend to increase as rates decline. Our interest rate risk profile has changed somewhat over the course of the year as we have added more long-term fixed-rate loans, and our exposure to declining rates has been mitigated to some extent. This effect was partially offset by the disproportionate growth in liabilities that are more rate-sensitive, however.

The economic (or “fair”) value of financial instruments on the Company’s balance sheet will also vary under the interest rate scenarios previously discussed. Economic values for financial instruments are estimated by discounting projected cash flows (principal and interest) at current replacement rates for each account type, while the fair value of non-financial accounts is assumed to equal book value and does not vary with interest rate fluctuations. An economic value simulation is a static measure for balance sheet accounts at a given point in time, but this measurement can change substantially over time as the characteristics of the Company’s balance sheet evolve and as interest rate and yield curve assumptions are updated.

The amount of change in economic value under different interest rate scenarios is dependent upon the characteristics of each class of financial instrument, including the stated interest rate or spread relative to current market rates or spreads, the likelihood of prepayment, whether the rate is fixed or floating, and the maturity date of the instrument. As a general rule, fixed-rate financial assets become more valuable in declining rate scenarios and less valuable in rising rate scenarios, while fixed-rate financial liabilities gain value as interest rates rise and lose value as interest rates decline. The longer the maturity of the financial instrument, the greater the impact a given rate change will have on its value. In our economic value simulations, estimated prepayments are factored in for financial instruments with stated maturity dates, and decay rates for non-maturity deposits are also projected based on management’s best estimates. We have found that model results are highly sensitive to changes in the assumed decay rate for non-maturity deposits, in particular.

The economic value of equity (EVE) is calculated by subtracting the estimated fair value of liabilities from the estimated fair value of assets. The table below shows estimated changes in the Company’s EVE under different interest rate scenarios relative to a base case of current interest rates:

Immediate Change in Rate


	-300 b.p.			-200 b.p.			-100 b.p.			+100 b.p.			+200 b.p.			+300 b.p.
Change in EVE (in $000’s)	$	1,479		$	3,033		$	3,333		-$	6,489		-$	14,376		-$	22,098
% Change		0.74	%		1.52	%		1.67	%		-3.25	%		-7.21	%		-11.08	%

The drop in EVE as rates increase is the reverse of the positive slope apparent in the Company’s net interest income simulations, due primarily to the fact that $540 million in non-maturity deposits are assumed to run off at the rate of 10% per year. In contrast, our net interest income simulations incorporate growth rather than run-off for non-maturity deposits. If a higher deposit decay rate is used for EVE simulations the decline becomes more severe, while the slope conforms more closely to that of our net interest income simulations if non-maturity deposits do not run off. Under declining rates, a floor of zero (or slightly above zero) for the discount rate on variable rate deposits and other liabilities, and increased principal prepayments and calls on investment securities and fixed rate loans, more than offset the increase in the value of fixed-rate loans. During the first half of 2006, the addition of fixed-rate loans has caused the negative slope in rising rate scenarios to become steeper, and the negative slope in declining rate scenarios to slightly flatten.

LIQUIDITY

Liquidity refers to the Company’s ability to maintain cash flows that are adequate to fund operations and meet other obligations and commitments in a timely and cost-effective fashion. The Company also, on occasion, experiences short-term cash needs as the result of loan growth or deposit outflows, or other asset purchases or liability repayments. To meet short-term needs, the Company can borrow overnight funds from other financial institutions or solicit brokered deposits if deposits are not immediately obtainable from local sources. Further, funds can be obtained by drawing down the Company’s correspondent bank deposit accounts, or by liquidating investments or other assets. In addition, the Company can raise immediate cash for temporary needs by selling under agreement to repurchase those investments in its portfolio which are not pledged as collateral. As of June 30, 2006, non-pledged securities, plus pledged securities in excess of current pledging requirements, comprised $46 million of the Company’s investment portfolio balances.

Other forms of balance sheet liquidity include but are not necessarily limited to vault cash and balances due from banks, and immediately marketable loan balances in the amount of $21 million at June 30, 2006. In addition to the liquidity inherent in its balance sheet, the Company has off-balance-sheet liquidity in the form of lines of credit from correspondent banks, including the Federal Home Loan Bank. Availability on these lines totaled $141 million at June 30, 2006. An additional $68 million in credit is available from the Federal Home Loan Bank if the Company increases its pledged real-estate related collateral in a like amount and purchases the required amount of FHLB stock. The Company is also eligible to borrow up to $2.3 million at the Federal Reserve Discount Window if necessary, based on current pledged amounts. The Company manages its liquidity in such a fashion as to be able to meet any unexpected change in levels of assets or liabilities.

The Company’s liquidity ratio and average loans to assets ratio were 17.4% and 72%, respectively, at June 30, 2006, as compared to internal policy guidelines of greater than 10% and less than 78%. The liquidity ratio is calculated with marketable and otherwise liquid assets as the numerator and non-collateralized deposits as the denominator. While these ratios are merely indicators and are not measures of actual liquidity, they are monitored closely and we are focused on maintaining adequate liquidity resources to draw upon should the need arise. Other liquidity ratios reviewed by management and the Board on a regular basis include average loans to core deposits, net non-core funding dependence, and reliance on wholesale funding. While the average loans to core deposits and net non-core funding dependence ratios were slightly above policy guidelines as of June 30, 2006, we anticipate that our efforts to increase core deposits will bring the ratios below guideline levels by year-end and that no further corrective actions will be necessary, although no assurance can be provided that this will be the case.

CAPITAL RESOURCES

At June 30, 2006, the Company had total shareholders’ equity of $83.5 million, comprised of $14.2 million in common stock, $72.9 million in retained earnings, and a negative $3.6 million in accumulated other comprehensive income. Total shareholders’ equity at the end of 2005 was $78.8 million. The $4.7 million increase in shareholders’ equity during the first half of 2006 was due primarily to the addition of net earnings, less $2.5 million in dividends paid. However, it also includes a $2.1 million increase from the issuance of shares on exercised stock options, including the tax effect of such exercised options, a $2.6 million decrease due to the impact of shares repurchased

and retired by the Company, and a $1.8 million decline in the market value of investment securities (net of the tax impact) which reduced accumulated other comprehensive income by the same amount.

The Company uses a variety of measures to evaluate its capital adequacy, with risk-based capital ratios calculated separately for the Company and the Bank. Management reviews these capital measurements on a quarterly basis and takes appropriate action to ensure that they are within established internal and external guidelines. The Company’s current capital position exceeds minimum thresholds established by industry regulators, and by current regulatory definitions the Bank is well capitalized, the highest rating of the categories defined under Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act (FDICIA) of 1991. The FDIC has promulgated risk-based capital guidelines for all state non-member banks such as the Bank. These guidelines establish a risk-adjusted ratio relating capital to different categories of assets and off balance sheet exposures. There are two categories of capital under the guidelines: Tier 1 capital includes common stockholders’ equity, qualifying minority interests in consolidated subsidiaries, and qualifying trust-preferred securities (including notes payable to unconsolidated special purpose entities that issue trust-preferred securities), less goodwill and certain other deductions, notably the unrealized net gains or losses (after tax adjustments) on available for sale investment securities carried at fair market value; Tier 2 capital can include qualifying subordinated debt and redeemable preferred stock, qualifying cumulative perpetual preferred stock, and the allowance for loan and lease losses, subject to certain limitations.

As noted previously, the Company’s junior subordinated debentures represent borrowings from its unconsolidated subsidiaries. Our first $15 million in trust-preferred securities was issued in November 2001, and becomes callable in December 2006. As discussed in the Other Interest-Bearing Liabilities section above, we have “pre-funded” the replacement of these securities, which temporarily increases our total outstanding TRUPS balance to $45 million from $30 million. These debentures currently qualify for inclusion as Tier 1 capital for regulatory purposes to the extent that they do not exceed 25% of total Tier 1 capital, but are classified as long-term debt in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. On March 1, 2005, the Federal Reserve Board adopted a final rule that allows the continued inclusion of trust-preferred securities (and/or related subordinated debentures) in the Tier I capital of bank holding companies. However, under the final rule, after a five-year transition period goodwill must be deducted from Tier I capital prior to calculating the 25% limitation. Generally, the amount of junior subordinated debentures in excess of the 25% Tier 1 limitation is included in Tier 2 capital. Of the Company’s Tier 1 capital at June 30, 2006, $29 million consisted of junior subordinated debentures. Its Tier 2 capital includes junior subordinated debentures totaling $16 million.

The following table sets forth the Company’s and the Bank’s regulatory capital ratios as of the dates indicated:

Risk Based Ratios

(dollars in thousands, unaudited)


	June 30, 2006		December 31, 2005		Minimum Requirement for Well Capitalized Bank
Sierra Bancorp
Total Capital to Total Risk-weighted Assets	14.41	%	13.50	%	10.00	%
Tier 1 Capital to Total Risk-weighted Assets	11.61	%	12.01	%	6.00	%
Tier 1 Leverage Ratio	9.91	%	9.87	%	5.00	%
Bank of the Sierra
Total Capital to Total Risk-weighted Assets	12.07	%	12.46	%	10.00	%
Tier 1 Capital to Total Risk-weighted Assets	10.95	%	11.34	%	6.00	%
Tier 1 Leverage Ratio	9.33	%	9.31	%	5.00	%

At the current time, there are no commitments that would necessitate the use of material amounts of the Company’s capital.

PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 3

QUALITATIVE & QUANTITATIVE DISCLOSURES

ABOUT MARKET RISK

The information concerning quantitative and qualitative disclosures about market risk is included as part of Part I, Item 2 above. See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Liquidity and Market Risk Management”.

PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 4

CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The Company’s Chief Executive Officer and its Chief Financial Officer, after evaluating the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) as of the end of the period covered by this report (the “Evaluation Date”) have concluded that as of the Evaluation Date, the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were adequate and effective to ensure that material information relating to the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries would be made known to them by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this quarterly report was being prepared.

Disclosure controls and procedures are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Changes in Internal Controls

There were no significant changes in the Company’s internal controls over financial reporting that occurred in the second quarter of 2006 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

PART II - OTHER INFORMATION

ITEM 1: LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

In the normal course of business, the Company is involved in various legal proceedings. In the opinion of management, any liability resulting from such proceedings would not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition or results of operation.

ITEM 1A: RISK FACTORS

There were no material changes from the risk factors disclosed in the Company’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005.

ITEM 2: UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS

(a)	Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities

On June 15, 2006, the Company issued an aggregate of $15,464,000 in principal amount of its Floating Rate Junior Subordinated Debt Securities due 2036 (the “Subordinated Debt Securities”). The Subordinated Debt Securities mature on September 23, 2036, and are callable at par after five years. They bear interest at a quarterly adjustable rate of three-month LIBOR plus 1.40%. Interest payments on the Subordinated Debt Securities may be deferred at the option of the Company, but the Company has no intention of taking advantage of this option. If the Company were to do so, then during any period in which the Company had deferred payment of interest otherwise due and payable on the Subordinated Debt Securities, it would not be permitted to make any dividends or distributions with respect to its capital stock.

All of the Subordinated Debt Securities were issued to Sierra Capital Trust III, a Delaware statutory business trust and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (the “Trust”). The Subordinated Debt Securities were not registered under the Securities Act in reliance on the exemption set forth in Section 4 (2) thereof. The Subordinated Debt Securities were issued to the Trust in consideration for the receipt of the net proceeds raised by the Trust from the sale of $15,000,000 in principal amount of the Trust’s Floating Rate Capital Securities (the “Trust Preferred Securities”) plus $464,000 from the sale of common securities issued to the Company. ABN AMRO, INC. acted as the placement agent in connection with the offering of the Trust Preferred Securities.

The sale of the Trust Preferred Securities was part of a larger transaction arranged by the placement agent pursuant to which the Trust Preferred Securities were deposited into a special purpose vehicle along with similar securities issued by a number of other issuers and the special purpose vehicle then issued its securities to other investors pursuant to applicable securities law exemptions. The Trust Preferred Securities were not registered under the Securities Act in reliance on exemptions set forth in Rule 144A, Regulation D and Regulation S, as applicable. The proceeds received by the Company will be used to retire an earlier issue of $15 million in trust preferred securities and related subordinated debt securities that will become callable in December 2006. More generally, the Company uses the proceeds from its trust preferred transactions for general corporate purposes, including support for the growth and expansion of Bank of the Sierra.

(c)	Stock Repurchases

The following table provides information concerning the Company’s repurchases of its Common Stock during the second quarter of 2006:


	April	May		June
Total shares purchased	None		30,000	70,000
Average per share price	N/A	$	25.25	26.04
Number of shares purchased as part of publicly announced plan or program	None		30,000	70,000
Maximum number of shares remaining for purchase under a plan or program (1)	328,700		298,700	228,700

(1)

The current stock repurchase plan became effective July 1, 2003 and has no expiration date. The repurchase program initially provided that up to 250,000 shares of Sierra Bancorp’s common stock could be purchased by the Company in the open market from time to time, and that amount was supplemented by 250,000 shares on May 19, 2005 and another 250,000 shares on March 16, 2006.

ITEM 3 : DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES

Not applicable

ITEM 4 : SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS

The Company’s annual meeting of shareholders was held on May 24, 2006. Proxies were solicited by the Company’s management pursuant to Regulation 14 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. There was no solicitation in opposition to Management’s nominees for directorship as listed in the proxy statement, and all of such nominees were elected pursuant to the vote of shareholders. The directors noted below were elected to two-year terms. The votes tabulated were:


	Authority Given	Authority Withheld
Gregory A. Childress	6,237,462	328,326
Robert L. Fields	6,528,729	37,059
James C. Holly	6,259,719	306,069
Morris A. Tharp	6,534,229	31,559

There were no broker non-votes received with respect to this item.

The terms of the following directors continued after the shareholders’ meeting: Albert L. Berra, Vincent L. Jurkovich, Robert H. Tienken, and Gordon T. Woods.

ITEM 5 : OTHER INFORMATION

Not applicable

ITEM 6 : EXHIBITS


Exhibit No.		Description
2		Plan of Reorganization and Agreement of Merger dated December 14, 2000 by and among Bank of the Sierra, Sierra Bancorp and Sierra Merger Corporation (effective August 10, 2001) (1)

3.1		Articles of Incorporation of Sierra Bancorp (1)

3.2		Amendment to Articles of Incorporation of Sierra Bancorp (1)

3.3		By-laws of Sierra Bancorp (1)

10.1		1998 Stock Option Plan (1)

10.2		Indenture dated as of November 28, 2001 between Wilmington Trust Company, as Trustee, and Sierra Bancorp, as Issuer (2)

10.3		Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of Sierra Capital Trust I, dated as of November 28, 2001 (2)

10.4		Guarantee Agreement between Sierra Bancorp and Wilmington Trust Company dated as of November 28, 2001 (2)

10.5		Salary Continuation Agreement for Kenneth R. Taylor (3)

10.6		Salary Continuation Agreement for Kenneth E. Goodwin (3)

10.7		Salary Continuation Agreement for James C. Holly (3)

10.8		Salary Continuation Agreement for Charlie C. Glenn (3)

10.9		Salary Continuation Agreement and Split Dollar Agreement for James F. Gardunio (4)

10.10		Split Dollar Agreement for Kenneth R. Taylor (9)

10.11		Split Dollar Agreement for Kenneth E. Goodwin (9)

10.12		Split Dollar Agreement for James C. Holly (9)

10.13		Split Dollar Agreement for Charlie C. Glenn (9)

10.14		Director Retirement Agreement for Howard Smith (9)

10.15		Director Retirement Agreement for Robert Tienken (9)

10.16		Director Retirement Agreement and Split dollar Agreement for Vincent Jurkovich (9)

10.17		Director Retirement Agreement and Split dollar Agreement for Robert Fields (9)

10.18		Director Retirement Agreement and Split dollar Agreement for Gordon Woods (9)

10.19		Director Retirement Agreement and Split dollar Agreement for Morris Tharp (9)

10.20		Director Retirement Agreement and Split dollar Agreement for Albert Berra (9)

10.21		Director Retirement Agreement and Split dollar Agreement for Gregory Childress (9)

10.22		401 Plus Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation Plan (9)

10.23		Indenture dated as of March 17, 2004 between U.S. Bank National Association, as Trustee, and Sierra Bancorp, as Issuer (5)

10.24		Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of Sierra Statutory Trust II, dated as of March 17, 2004 (5)

10.25		Guarantee Agreement between Sierra Bancorp and U.S. Bank National Association dated as of March 17, 2004 (5)

10.26		Indenture dated as of June 15, 2006 between Wilmington Trust Company, as Trustee, and Sierra Bancorp, as Issuer

10.27		Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of Sierra Capital Trust III, dated as of June 15, 2006

10.28		Guarantee Agreement between Sierra Bancorp and Wilmington Trust Company dated as of June 15, 2006


11		Statement of Computation of Per Share Earnings (6)

14		Code of Ethics (7)

21		Subsidiaries of Sierra Bancorp (8)

31.1		Certification of Chief Executive Officer (Section 302 Certification)

31.2		Certification of Chief Financial Officer (Section 302 Certification)

32		Certification of Periodic Financial Report (Section 906 Certification)

(1)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Registration Statement of Sierra Bancorp on Form S-4 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) (Registration No. 333-53178) on January 4, 2001 and incorporated herein by reference.

(2)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Form 10-K filed with the SEC on April 1, 2002 and incorporated herein by reference.

(3)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 15, 2003 and incorporated herein by reference.

(4)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 11, 2005 and incorporated herein by reference.

(5)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 14, 2004 and incorporated herein by reference.

(6)	Computation of earnings per share is incorporated herein by reference to Note 6 of the Financial Statements included herein.

(7)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 14, 2005 and incorporated herein by reference.

(8)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 24, 2004 and incorporated herein by reference.

(9)	Filed as an Exhibit to the Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 15, 2006 and incorporated herein by reference.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Company has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized:



August 9, 2006				/s/ James C. Holly
Date				SIERRA BANCORP
				James C. Holly
				President & Chief Executive Officer

August 9, 2006				/s/ Kenneth R. Taylor
Date				SIERRA BANCORP
				Kenneth R. Taylor
				Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

EXHIBIT 10.26

SIERRA BANCORP

as Issuer

INDENTURE

Dated as of June 15, 2006

WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY

as Trustee

FLOATING RATE JUNIOR SUBORDINATED DEBT SECURITIES DUE 2036

TABLE OF CONTENTS


		Page
ARTICLE I	DEFINITIONS	1

Section 1.01. Definitions		1

ARTICLE II	DEBT SECURITIES	9

Section 2.01. Authentication and Dating		9

Section 2.02. Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication		9

Section 2.03. Form and Denomination of Debt Securities		9

Section 2.04. Execution of Debt Securities		10

Section 2.05. Exchange and Registration of Transfer of Debt Securities		10

Section 2.06. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Debt Securities		13

Section 2.07. Temporary Debt Securities		14

Section 2.08. Payment of Interest		14

Section 2.09. Cancellation of Debt Securities Paid, etc.		16

Section 2.10. Computation of Interest		16

Section 2.11. Extension of Interest Payment Period		18

Section 2.12. CUSIP Numbers		18

ARTICLE III	PARTICULAR COVENANTS OF THE COMPANY	19

Section 3.01. Payment of Principal, Premium and Interest; Agreed Treatment of the Debt Securities		19

Section 3.02. Offices for Notices and Payments, etc.		19

Section 3.03. Appointments to Fill Vacancies in Trustee’s Office		20

Section 3.04. Provision as to Paying Agent		20

Section 3.05. Certificate to Trustee		21

Section 3.06. Additional Interest		21

Section 3.07. Compliance with Consolidation Provisions		22

Section 3.08. Limitation on Dividends		22

Section 3.09. Covenants as to the Trust		22

ARTICLE IV	LISTS AND REPORTS BY THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE	23

Section 4.01. Securityholders’ Lists		23

Section 4.02. Preservation and Disclosure of Lists		23

Section 4.03. Financial and Other Information		24

ARTICLE V	REMEDIES OF THE TRUSTEE AND SECURITYHOLDERS UPON AN EVENT OF DEFAULT	25

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

(continued)


		Page
Section 5.01. Events of Default		25

Section 5.02. Payment of Debt Securities on Default; Suit Therefor		27

Section 5.03. Application of Moneys Collected by Trustee		28

Section 5.04. Proceedings by Securityholders		28

Section 5.05. Proceedings by Trustee		29

Section 5.06. Remedies Cumulative and Continuing		29

Section 5.07. Direction of Proceedings and Waiver of Defaults by Majority of Securityholders		29

Section 5.08. Notice of Defaults		30

Section 5.09. Undertaking to Pay Costs		30

ARTICLE VI	CONCERNING THE TRUSTEE	31

Section 6.01. Duties and Responsibilities of Trustee		31

Section 6.02. Reliance on Documents, Opinions, etc		32

Section 6.03. No Responsibility for Recitals, etc		33

Section 6.04.	Trustee, Authenticating Agent, Paying Agents, Transfer Agents or Registrar May Own Debt Securities	33

Section 6.05. Moneys to be Held in Trust		33

Section 6.06. Compensation and Expenses of Trustee		34

Section 6.07. Officers’ Certificate as Evidence		35

Section 6.08. Eligibility of Trustee		35

Section 6.09. Resignation or Removal of Trustee		35

Section 6.10. Acceptance by Successor Trustee		37

Section 6.11. Succession by Merger, etc		37

Section 6.12. Authenticating Agents		38

ARTICLE VII	CONCERNING THE SECURITYHOLDERS	39

Section 7.01. Action by Securityholders		39

Section 7.02. Proof of Execution by Securityholders		40

Section 7.03. Who Are Deemed Absolute Owners		40

Section 7.04. Debt Securities Owned by Company Deemed Not Outstanding		40

Section 7.05. Revocation of Consents; Future Holders Bound		41

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

(continued)


		Page
ARTICLE VIII	SECURITYHOLDERS’ MEETINGS	41

Section 8.01. Purposes of Meetings		41

Section 8.02. Call of Meetings by Trustee		42

Section 8.03. Call of Meetings by Company or Securityholders		42

Section 8.04. Qualifications for Voting		42

Section 8.05. Regulations		42

Section 8.06. Voting		43

Section 8.07. Quorum; Actions		43

ARTICLE IX	SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES	44

Section 9.01. Supplemental Indentures without Consent of Securityholders		44

Section 9.02. Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Securityholders		45

Section 9.03. Effect of Supplemental Indentures		46

Section 9.04. Notation on Debt Securities		47

Section 9.05. Evidence of Compliance of Supplemental Indenture to be Furnished to Trustee		47

ARTICLE X	REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES	47

Section 10.01. Optional Redemption		47

Section 10.02. Special Event Redemption		47

Section 10.03. Notice of Redemption; Selection of Debt Securities		47

Section 10.04. Payment of Debt Securities Called for Redemption		48

ARTICLE XI	CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, SALE, CONVEYANCE AND LEASE	49

Section 11.01. Company May Consolidate, etc., on Certain Terms		49

Section 11.02. Successor Entity to be Substituted		49

Section 11.03. Opinion of Counsel to be Given to Trustee		50

ARTICLE XII	SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE	50

Section 12.01. Discharge of Indenture		50

Section 12.02. Deposited Moneys to be Held in Trust by Trustee		51

Section 12.03. Paying Agent to Repay Moneys Held		51

Section 12.04. Return of Unclaimed Moneys		51

-iii-

TABLE OF CONTENTS

(continued)


		Page
ARTICLE XIII	IMMUNITY OF INCORPORATORS, STOCKHOLDERS, OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS	51

Section 13.01. Indenture and Debt Securities Solely Corporate Obligations		51

ARTICLE XIV	MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS	52

Section 14.01. Successors		52

Section 14.02. Official Acts by Successor Entity		52

Section 14.03. Surrender of Company Powers		52

Section 14.04. Addresses for Notices, etc		52

Section 14.05. Governing Law		53

Section 14.06. Evidence of Compliance with Conditions Precedent		53

Section 14.07. Business Day Convention		53

Section 14.08. Table of Contents, Headings, etc		53

Section 14.09. Execution in Counterparts		54

Section 14.10. Separability		54

Section 14.11. Assignment		54

Section 14.12. Acknowledgment of Rights		54

ARTICLE XV	SUBORDINATION OF DEBT SECURITIES	55

Section 15.01. Agreement to Subordinate		55

Section 15.02. Default on Senior Indebtedness		55

Section 15.03. Liquidation; Dissolution; Bankruptcy		55

Section 15.04. Subrogation		57

Section 15.05. Trustee to Effectuate Subordination		57

Section 15.06. Notice by the Company		58

Section 15.07. Rights of the Trustee; Holders of Senior Indebtedness		58

Section 15.08. Subordination May Not Be Impaired		59


EXHIBIT A	FORM OF FLOATING RATE JUNIOR SUBORDINATED DEBT SECURITY DUE 2036	A-1-1

EXHIBIT B	FORM OF CERTIFICATE OF OFFICER OF THE COMPANY	B-1-1

-iv-

THIS INDENTURE, dated as of June 15, 2006, between Sierra Bancorp, a bank holding company incorporated in California (hereinafter sometimes called the “Company”), and Wilmington Trust Company, a Delaware banking corporation, as trustee (hereinafter sometimes called the “Trustee”).

W I T N E S S E T H :

WHEREAS, for its lawful corporate purposes, the Company has duly authorized the issuance of its Floating Rate Junior Subordinated Debt Securities due 2036 (the “Debt Securities”) under this Indenture and to provide, among other things, for the execution and authentication, delivery and administration thereof, the Company has duly authorized the execution of this Indenture.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises, and the purchase of the Debt Securities by the holders thereof, the Company covenants and agrees with the Trustee for the equal and proportionate benefit of the respective holders from time to time of the Debt Securities as follows:

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS

Section 1.01. Definitions .

The terms defined in this Section 1.01 (except as herein otherwise expressly provided or unless the context otherwise requires) for all purposes of this Indenture and of any indenture supplemental hereto shall have the respective meanings specified in this Section 1.01. All accounting terms used herein and not expressly defined shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and the term “generally accepted accounting principles” means such accounting principles as are generally accepted in the United States at the time of any computation. The words “herein,” “hereof” and “hereunder” and other words of similar import refer to this Indenture as a whole and not to any particular Article, Section or other subdivision.

“Additional Interest” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 3.06.

“Additional Provisions” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 15.01.

“Authenticating Agent” means any agent or agents of the Trustee which at the time shall be appointed and acting pursuant to Section 6.12.

“Bankruptcy Law” means Title 11, U.S. Code, or any similar federal or state law for the relief of debtors.

“Board of Directors” means the board of directors or the executive committee or any other duly authorized designated officers of the Company.

“Board Resolution” means a copy of a resolution certified by the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company to have been duly adopted by the Board of Directors and to be in full force and effect on the date of such certification and delivered to the Trustee.

“Business Day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or any other day on which banking institutions in Wilmington, Delaware, New York City or Porterville, California are permitted or required by any applicable law or executive order to close.

“Calculation Agent” means the Person identified as “Trustee” in the first paragraph hereof with respect to the Debt Securities and the Institutional Trustee with respect to the Trust Securities.

“Capital Securities” means undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust which are designated as “Capital Securities” and rank pari passu with Common Securities issued by the Trust; provided , however , that if an Event of Default (as defined in the Declaration) has occurred and is continuing, the rights of holders of such Common Securities to payment in respect of distributions and payments upon liquidation, redemption and otherwise are subordinated to the rights of holders of such Capital Securities.

“Capital Securities Guarantee” means the guarantee agreement that the Company will enter into with Wilmington Trust Company or other Persons that operates directly or indirectly for the benefit of holders of Capital Securities of the Trust.

“Capital Treatment Event” means the receipt by the Company and the Trust of an Opinion of Counsel experienced in such matters to the effect that, as a result of any amendment to, or change in, the laws, rules or regulations of the United States or any political subdivision thereof or therein, or as the result of any official or administrative pronouncement or action or decision interpreting or applying such laws, rules or regulations, which amendment or change is effective or which pronouncement, action or decision is announced on or after the date of original issuance of the Debt Securities, there is more than an insubstantial risk that the Company will not, within 90 days of the date of such opinion, be entitled to treat an amount equal to the aggregate Liquidation Amount of the Capital Securities as “Tier 1 Capital” (or the then equivalent thereof) for purposes of the capital adequacy guidelines of the Federal Reserve (or any successor regulatory authority with jurisdiction over bank holding companies), as then in effect and applicable to the Company, provided , however , that the distribution of the Debt Securities in connection with the liquidation of the Trust by the Company shall not in and of itself constitute a Capital Treatment Event unless such liquidation shall have occurred in connection with a Tax Event or an Investment Company Event.

“Certificate” means a certificate signed by any one of the principal executive officer, the principal financial officer or the principal accounting officer of the Company.

“Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

“Common Securities” means undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust which are designated as “Common Securities” and rank pari passu with Capital Securities issued by the Trust; provided , however , that if an Event of Default (as defined in the Declaration) has occurred and is continuing, the rights of holders of such Common Securities to payment in respect of distributions and payments upon liquidation, redemption and otherwise are subordinated to the rights of holders of such Capital Securities.

“Company” means Sierra Bancorp, a bank holding company incorporated in California, and, subject to the provisions of Article XI, shall include its successors and assigns.

“Debt Security” or “Debt Securities” has the meaning stated in the first recital of this Indenture.

“Debt Security Register” has the meaning specified in Section 2.05.

“Declaration” means the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of the Trust dated as of June 15, 2006, as amended or supplemented from time to time.

“Default” means any event, act or condition that with notice or lapse of time, or both, would constitute an Event of Default.

“Defaulted Interest” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.08.

“Deferred Interest” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.11.

“Event of Default” means any event specified in Section 5.01, which has continued for the period of time, if any, and after the giving of the notice, if any, therein designated.

“Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

“Extension Period” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.11.

“Federal Reserve” means the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

“Indenture” means this instrument as originally executed or, if amended or supplemented as herein provided, as so amended or supplemented, or both.

“Institutional Trustee” has the meaning set forth in the Declaration.

“Interest Payment Date means March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 of each year, commencing on September 23, 2006, during the term of this Indenture.

“Interest Period” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.08.

“Interest Rate” means, with respect to any Interest Period, a per annum rate of interest equal to LIBOR, as determined on the LIBOR Determination Date for such Interest Period, plus 1.40%.

“Investment Company Event” means the receipt by the Company and the Trust of an Opinion of Counsel experienced in such matters to the effect that, as a result of a change in law or regulation or written change in interpretation or application of law or regulation by any legislative body, court, governmental agency or regulatory authority, there is more than an

insubstantial risk that the Trust is or, within 90 days of the date of such opinion will be, considered an “investment company” that is required to be registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, which change becomes effective on or after the date of the original issuance of the Debt Securities.

“LIBOR” means the London Interbank Offered Rate for three-month U.S. Dollar deposits in Europe as determined by the Calculation Agent according to Section 2.10(b).

“LIBOR Banking Day” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.10(b)(1).

“LIBOR Business Day” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.10(b)(1).

“LIBOR Determination Date” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.10(b).

“Liquidation Amount” means the stated amount of $1,000 per Trust Security.

“Maturity Date” means September 23, 2036.

“Officers’ Certificate” means a certificate signed by the Chairman of the Board, the Vice Chairman, the President or any Vice President, and by the Chief Financial Officer, the Treasurer, an Assistant Treasurer, the Comptroller, an Assistant Comptroller, the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company, and delivered to the Trustee. Each such certificate shall include the statements provided for in Section 14.06 if and to the extent required by the provisions of such Section.

“Opinion of Counsel” means an opinion in writing signed by legal counsel, who may be an employee of or counsel to the Company, or may be other counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee. Each such opinion shall include the statements provided for in Section 14.06 if and to the extent required by the provisions of such Section.

The term “outstanding,” when used with reference to Debt Securities, subject to the provisions of Section 7.04, means, as of any particular time, all Debt Securities authenticated and delivered by the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent under this Indenture, except

(a) Debt Securities theretofore canceled by the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation;

(b) Debt Securities, or portions thereof, for the payment or redemption of which moneys in the necessary amount shall have been deposited in trust with the Trustee or with any Paying Agent (other than the Company) or shall have been set aside and segregated in trust by the Company (if the Company shall act as its own Paying Agent); provided , that, if such Debt Securities, or portions thereof, are to be redeemed prior to maturity thereof, notice of such redemption shall have been given as provided in Articles X and XIV or provision satisfactory to the Trustee shall have been made for giving such notice; and

(c) Debt Securities paid pursuant to Section 2.06 or in lieu of or in substitution for which other Debt Securities shall have been authenticated and delivered

pursuant to the terms of Section 2.06 unless proof satisfactory to the Company and the Trustee is presented that any such Debt Securities are held by bona fide holders in due course.

“Paying Agent” means any paying agent for the Debt Securities appointed pursuant to Section 3.04.

“Person” means any individual, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture, association, joint-stock company, trust, unincorporated organization or government or any agency or political subdivision thereof.

“Placement Agreement” means the Placement Agreement dated June 15, 2006 among the Company, the Trust and ABN AMRO, INC.

“Predecessor Security” of any particular Debt Security means every previous Debt Security evidencing all or a portion of the same debt as that evidenced by such particular Debt Security; and, for the purposes of this definition, any Debt Security authenticated and delivered under Section 2.06 in lieu of a lost, destroyed or stolen Debt Security shall be deemed to evidence the same debt as the lost, destroyed or stolen Debt Security.

“Principal Office of the Trustee” means the office of the Trustee, at which at any particular time its corporate trust business shall be principally administered, which at all times shall be located within the United States and at the time of the execution of this Indenture shall be Rodney Square North, 1100 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19890-0001.

“Redemption Date” has the meaning set forth in Section 10.01.

“Redemption Price” means 100% of the principal amount of the Debt Securities being redeemed plus accrued and unpaid interest on such Debt Securities to the Redemption Date or, in the case of redemption at maturity, the Maturity Date, or, in the case of a redemption due to the occurrence of a Special Event, to the Special Redemption Date if such Special Redemption Date is on or after September 23, 2011.

“Responsible Officer” means, with respect to the Trustee, any officer within the Principal Office of the Trustee with direct responsibility for the administration of the Indenture, including any vice-president, any assistant vice-president, any secretary, any assistant secretary, the treasurer, any assistant treasurer, any trust officer or other officer of the Principal Office of the Trustee customarily performing functions similar to those performed by any of the above designated officers and also means, with respect to a particular corporate trust matter, any other officer to whom such matter is referred because of that officer’s knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject.

“Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

“Securityholder,” “holder of Debt Securities” or other similar terms, means any Person in whose name at the time a particular Debt Security is registered on the Debt Security Register.

“Senior Indebtedness” means, with respect to the Company, (i) the principal, premium, if any, and interest in respect of (A) indebtedness of the Company for money borrowed, similar obligations arising from off-balance sheet guarantees and direct credit substitutes and (B) indebtedness evidenced by securities, debentures, notes, bonds or other similar instruments issued by the Company; (ii) all capital lease obligations of the Company; (iii) all obligations of the Company issued or assumed as the deferred purchase price of property, all conditional sale obligations of the Company and all obligations of the Company under any title retention agreement (but excluding trade accounts payable arising in the ordinary course of business); (iv) all obligations of the Company for the reimbursement of any letter of credit, any banker’s acceptance, any security purchase facility, any repurchase agreement or similar arrangement, all obligations associated with derivative products such as interest rate and foreign exchange contracts and commodity contracts, any interest rate swap, any other hedging arrangement, any obligation under options or any similar credit or other transaction; (v) all obligations of the type referred to in clauses (i) through (iv) above of other Persons for the payment of which the Company is responsible or liable as obligor, guarantor or otherwise; and (vi) all obligations of the type referred to in clauses (i) through (v) above of other Persons secured by any lien on any property or asset of the Company (whether or not such obligation is assumed by the Company), whether incurred on or prior to the date of this Indenture or thereafter incurred, unless, with the prior approval of the Federal Reserve if not otherwise generally approved, it is provided in the instrument creating or evidencing the same or pursuant to which the same is outstanding, that such obligations are not superior or are pari passu in right of payment to the Debt Securities ; provided, however, that Senior Indebtedness shall not include (A) any debt securities issued to any trust other than the Trust (or a trustee of such trust) that is a financing vehicle of the Company (a “financing entity”), in connection with the issuance by such financing entity of equity or other securities in transactions substantially similar in structure to the transactions contemplated hereunder and in the Declaration or (B) any guarantees of the Company in respect of the equity or other securities of any financing entity referred to in clause (A) above.

“Special Event” means any of a Tax Event, an Investment Company Event or a Capital Treatment Event.

“Special Redemption Date” has the meaning set forth in Section 10.02.

“Special Redemption Price” means, with respect to the redemption of any Debt Security following a Special Event, an amount in cash equal to the percentage for the principal amount of the Debt Securities that is specified below for the Special Redemption Date plus unpaid interest accrued thereon to the Special Redemption Date:


Special Event Redemption During Period Beginning On		Percentage of Principal Amount
June 15, 2006		104.40
September 23, 2007		103.52
September 23, 2008		102.64
September 23, 2009		101.76
September 23, 2010		100.88
September 23, 2011		100.00

“Subsidiary” means, with respect to any Person, (i) any corporation, at least a majority of the outstanding voting stock of which is owned, directly or indirectly, by such Person or by one or more of its Subsidiaries, or by such Person and one or more of its Subsidiaries, (ii) any general partnership, joint venture or similar entity, at least a majority of the outstanding partnership or similar interests of which shall at the time be owned by such Person, or by one or more of its Subsidiaries, or by such Person and one or more of its Subsidiaries, and (iii) any limited partnership of which such Person or any of its Subsidiaries is a general partner. For the purposes of this definition, “voting stock” means shares, interests, participations or other equivalents in the equity interest (however designated) in such Person having ordinary voting power for the election of a majority of the directors (or the equivalent) of such Person, other than shares, interests, participations or other equivalents having such power only by reason of the occurrence of a contingency.

“Tax Event” means the receipt by the Company and the Trust of an Opinion of Counsel experienced in such matters to the effect that, as a result of any amendment to or change (including any announced prospective change) in the laws or any regulations thereunder of the United States or any political subdivision or taxing authority thereof or therein, or as a result of any official administrative pronouncement (including any private letter ruling, technical advice memorandum, regulatory procedure, notice or announcement (an “Administrative Action”)) or judicial decision interpreting or applying such laws or regulations, regardless of whether such Administrative Action or judicial decision is issued to or in connection with a proceeding involving the Company or the Trust and whether or not subject to review or appeal, which amendment, clarification, change, Administrative Action or decision is enacted, promulgated or announced, in each case on or after the date of original issuance of the Debt Securities, there is more than an insubstantial risk that: (i) the Trust is, or will be within 90 days of the date of such opinion, subject to United States federal income tax with respect to income received or accrued on the Debt Securities; (ii) interest payable by the Company on the Debt Securities is not, or within 90 days of the date of such opinion, will not be, deductible by the Company, in whole or in part, for United States federal income tax purposes; or (iii) the Trust is, or will be within 90 days of the date of such opinion, subject to or otherwise required to pay, or required to withhold from distributions to holders of Trust Securities, more than a de minimis amount of other taxes (including withholding taxes), duties, assessments or other governmental charges.

“Trust” means Sierra Capital Trust III, a Delaware statutory trust, or any other similar trust created for the purpose of issuing Capital Securities in connection with the issuance of Debt Securities under this Indenture, of which the Company is the sponsor.

“Trust Indenture Act” means the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended from time-to-time, or any successor legislation.

“Trust Securities” means Common Securities and Capital Securities of the Trust.

“Trustee” means the Person identified as “Trustee” in the first paragraph hereof, and, subject to the provisions of Article VI hereof, shall also include its successors and assigns as Trustee hereunder.

“United States” means the United States of America and the District of Columbia.

“U.S. Person” has the meaning given to United States Person as set forth in Section 7701(a)(30) of the Code.

ARTICLE II

DEBT SECURITIES

Section 2.01. Authentication and Dating .

Upon the execution and delivery of this Indenture, or from time to time thereafter, Debt Securities in an aggregate principal amount not in excess of $15,464,000 may be executed and delivered by the Company to the Trustee for authentication, and the Trustee shall thereupon authenticate and make available for delivery said Debt Securities to or upon the written order of the Company, signed by its Chairman of the Board of Directors, Vice Chairman, President or Chief Financial Officer or one of its Vice Presidents, without any further action by the Company hereunder. In authenticating such Debt Securities, and accepting the additional responsibilities under this Indenture in relation to such Debt Securities, the Trustee shall be entitled to receive, and (subject to Section 6.01) shall be fully protected in relying upon a copy of any Board Resolution or Board Resolutions relating thereto and, if applicable, an appropriate record of any action taken pursuant to such resolution, in each case certified by the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary or other officer with appropriate delegated authority of the Company as the case may be.

The Trustee shall have the right to decline to authenticate and deliver any Debt Securities under this Section if the Trustee, being advised by counsel, determines that such action may not lawfully be taken or if a Responsible Officer of the Trustee in good faith shall determine that such action would expose the Trustee to personal liability to existing securityholders.

The definitive Debt Securities shall be typed, printed, lithographed or engraved on steel engraved borders or may be produced in any other manner, all as determined by the officers executing such Debt Securities, as evidenced by their execution of such Debt Securities.

Section 2.02. Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication .

The Trustee’s certificate of authentication on all Debt Securities shall be in substantially the following form:

This certificate represents Debt Securities referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.

WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY, not in its individual capacity but solely as trustee


		By
				Authorized Officer

Section 2.03. Form and Denomination of Debt Securities .

The Debt Securities shall be substantially in the form of Exhibit A hereto. The Debt Securities shall be in registered, certificated form without coupons and in minimum denominations of $100,000 and any multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof. The Debt Securities

shall be numbered, lettered, or otherwise distinguished in such manner or in accordance with such plans as the officers executing the same may determine with the approval of the Trustee as evidenced by the execution and authentication thereof.

Section 2.04. Execution of Debt Securities .

The Debt Securities shall be signed in the name and on behalf of the Company by the manual or facsimile signature of its Chairman of the Board of Directors, Vice Chairman, President or Chief Financial Officer or one of its Executive Vice Presidents, Senior Vice Presidents, Vice Presidents or any other officer authorized by the Board of Directors to sign documents in the name and on behalf of the Company, under its corporate seal (if then legally required) which may be affixed thereto or printed, engraved or otherwise reproduced thereon, by facsimile or otherwise, and which need not be attested. Only such Debt Securities as shall bear thereon a certificate of authentication substantially in the form herein before recited, executed by the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent by the manual signature of an authorized officer, shall be entitled to the benefits of this Indenture or be valid or obligatory for any purpose. Such certificate by the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent upon any Debt Security executed by the Company shall be conclusive evidence that the Debt Security so authenticated has been duly authenticated and delivered hereunder and that the holder is entitled to the benefits of this Indenture.

In case any officer of the Company who shall have signed any of the Debt Securities shall cease to be such officer before the Debt Securities so signed shall have been authenticated and delivered by the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent, or disposed of by the Company, such Debt Securities nevertheless may be authenticated and delivered or disposed of as though the Person who signed such Debt Securities had not ceased to be such officer of the Company; and any Debt Security may be signed on behalf of the Company by such Persons as, at the actual date of the execution of such Debt Security, shall be the proper officers of the Company, although at the date of the execution of this Indenture any such person was not such an officer.

Every Debt Security shall be dated the date of its authentication.

Section 2.05. Exchange and Registration of Transfer of Debt Securities .

The Company shall cause to be kept, at the office or agency maintained for the purpose of registration of transfer and for exchange as provided in Section 3.02, a register (the “Debt Security Register”) for the Debt Securities issued hereunder in which, subject to such reasonable regulations as it may prescribe, the Company shall provide for the registration and transfer of all Debt Securities as provided in this Article II. Such register shall be in written form or in any other form capable of being converted into written form within a reasonable time.

Debt Securities to be exchanged may be surrendered at the Principal Office of the Trustee or at any office or agency to be maintained by the Company for such purpose as provided in Section 3.02, and the Company shall execute, the Company or the Trustee shall register and the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange therefor the Debt Security or Debt Securities which the Securityholder

making the exchange shall be entitled to receive. Upon due presentment for registration of transfer of any Debt Security at the Principal Office of the Trustee or at any office or agency of the Company maintained for such purpose as provided in Section 3.02, the Company shall execute, the Company or the Trustee shall register and the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent shall authenticate and make available for delivery in the name of the transferee or transferees a new Debt Security for a like aggregate principal amount. Registration or registration of transfer of any Debt Security by the Trustee or by any agent of the Company appointed pursuant to Section 3.02, and delivery of such Debt Security, shall be deemed to complete the registration or registration of transfer of such Debt Security.

All Debt Securities presented for registration of transfer or for exchange or payment shall (if so required by the Company or the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent) be duly endorsed by, or be accompanied by, a written instrument or instruments of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and either the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent duly executed by, the holder or such holder’s attorney duly authorized in writing.

No service charge shall be made for any exchange or registration of transfer of Debt Securities, but the Company or the Trustee may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax, fee or other governmental charge that may be imposed in connection therewith.

The Company or the Trustee shall not be required to exchange or register a transfer of any Debt Security for a period of 15 days immediately preceding the date of selection of Debt Securities for redemption.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, Debt Securities may not be transferred except in compliance with the restricted securities legend set forth below, unless otherwise determined by the Company in accordance with applicable law, which legend shall be placed on each Debt Security:

THE SECURITY FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT, OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR,” FOR INVESTMENT PURPOSES AND NOT WITH A VIEW TO, OR FOR OFFER OR SALE IN CONNECTION WITH, ANY DISTRIBUTION IN VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES ACT, OR (D) PURSUANT TO ANOTHER AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT, SUBJECT TO THE COMPANY’S RIGHT PRIOR TO ANY SUCH OFFER, SALE OR TRANSFER PURSUANT TO CLAUSES (C) OR (D) TO REQUIRE THE DELIVERY OF AN OPINION OF COUNSEL, CERTIFICATION AND/OR OTHER INFORMATION SATISFACTORY TO IT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE INDENTURE, A COPY OF WHICH MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE COMPANY. THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES THAT IT WILL COMPLY WITH THE FOREGOING RESTRICTIONS.

THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES, REPRESENTS AND WARRANTS THAT IT WILL NOT ENGAGE IN HEDGING TRANSACTIONS INVOLVING THIS SECURITY UNLESS SUCH TRANSACTIONS ARE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE SECURITIES ACT.

THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF ALSO AGREES, REPRESENTS AND WARRANTS THAT IT IS NOT AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT, INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNT OR OTHER PLAN OR ARRANGEMENT SUBJECT TO TITLE I OF THE EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974, AS AMENDED (“ERISA”), OR SECTION 4975 OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986, AS AMENDED (THE “CODE”), (EACH A “PLAN”), OR AN ENTITY WHOSE UNDERLYING ASSETS INCLUDE “PLAN ASSETS” BY REASON OF ANY PLAN’S INVESTMENT IN THE ENTITY AND NO PERSON INVESTING “PLAN ASSETS” OF ANY PLAN MAY ACQUIRE OR HOLD THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN, UNLESS SUCH PURCHASER OR HOLDER IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE EXEMPTIVE RELIEF AVAILABLE UNDER U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR PROHIBITED TRANSACTION CLASS EXEMPTION 96-23, 95-60, 91-38, 90-1 OR 84-14 OR ANOTHER APPLICABLE EXEMPTION OR ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING OF THIS SECURITY IS NOT PROHIBITED BY SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE WITH RESPECT TO SUCH PURCHASE OR HOLDING. ANY PURCHASER OR HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN WILL BE DEEMED TO HAVE REPRESENTED BY ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING THEREOF THAT EITHER (i) IT IS NOT AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN WITHIN THE MEANING OF SECTION 3(3) OF ERISA, OR A PLAN TO WHICH SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE IS APPLICABLE, A TRUSTEE OR OTHER PERSON ACTING ON BEHALF OF AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY USING THE ASSETS OF ANY EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN TO FINANCE SUCH PURCHASE, OR (ii) SUCH PURCHASE WILL NOT RESULT IN A PROHIBITED TRANSACTION UNDER SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE FOR WHICH THERE IS NO APPLICABLE STATUTORY OR ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTION.

IN CONNECTION WITH ANY TRANSFER, THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY WILL DELIVER TO THE REGISTRAR AND TRANSFER AGENT SUCH CERTIFICATES AND OTHER INFORMATION AS MAY BE REQUIRED BY THE INDENTURE TO CONFIRM THAT THE TRANSFER COMPLIES WITH THE FOREGOING RESTRICTIONS.

THIS SECURITY WILL BE ISSUED AND MAY BE TRANSFERRED ONLY IN BLOCKS HAVING A PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF NOT LESS THAN $100,000 AND MULTIPLES OF $1,000 IN EXCESS THEREOF. ANY ATTEMPTED TRANSFER OF THIS SECURITY IN A BLOCK HAVING A PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF LESS THAN $100,000 SHALL BE DEEMED TO BE VOID AND OF NO LEGAL EFFECT WHATSOEVER. ANY SUCH PURPORTED TRANSFEREE SHALL BE DEEMED NOT TO BE THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY FOR ANY PURPOSE, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE RECEIPT OF DISTRIBUTIONS ON THIS SECURITY, AND SUCH PURPORTED TRANSFEREE SHALL BE DEEMED TO HAVE NO INTEREST WHATSOEVER IN THIS SECURITY.

THIS OBLIGATION IS NOT A DEPOSIT AND IS NOT INSURED BY THE UNITED STATES OR ANY AGENCY OR FUND OF THE UNITED STATES, INCLUDING THE FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION. THIS OBLIGATION IS SUBORDINATED TO THE CLAIMS OF DEPOSITORS AND THE CLAIMS OF GENERAL AND SECURED CREDITORS OF THE COMPANY, IS INELIGIBLE AS COLLATERAL FOR A LOAN BY THE COMPANY OR ANY OF ITS SUBSIDIARIES AND IS NOT SECURED.

Section 2.06. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Debt Securities .

In case any Debt Security shall become mutilated or be destroyed, lost or stolen, the Company shall execute, and upon its written request the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver, a new Debt Security bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding, in exchange and substitution for the mutilated Debt Security, or in lieu of and in substitution for the Debt Security so destroyed, lost or stolen. In every case the applicant for a substituted Debt Security shall furnish to the Company and the Trustee such security or indemnity as may be required by them to save each of them harmless, and, in every case of destruction, loss or theft, the applicant shall also furnish to the Company and the Trustee evidence to their satisfaction of the destruction, loss or theft of such Debt Security and of the ownership thereof.

The Trustee may authenticate any such substituted Debt Security and deliver the same upon the written request or authorization of any officer of the Company. Upon the issuance of any substituted Debt Security, the Company may require the payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in relation thereto and any other expenses connected therewith. In case any Debt Security which has matured or is about to mature or has been called for redemption in full shall become mutilated or be destroyed, lost or stolen, the Company may, instead of issuing a substitute Debt Security, pay or authorize the payment of the same (without surrender thereof except in the case of a mutilated Debt Security) if the applicant for such payment shall furnish to the Company and the Trustee such security or indemnity as may be required by them to save each of them harmless and, in case of destruction, loss or theft, evidence satisfactory to the Company and to the Trustee of the destruction, loss or theft of such Security and of the ownership thereof.

Every substituted Debt Security issued pursuant to the provisions of this Section 2.06 by virtue of the fact that any such Debt Security is destroyed, lost or stolen shall constitute an additional contractual obligation of the Company, whether or not the destroyed, lost or stolen Debt Security shall be found at any time, and shall be entitled to all the benefits of this Indenture equally and proportionately with any and all other Debt Securities duly issued hereunder. All Debt Securities shall be held and owned upon the express condition that, to the extent permitted by applicable law, the foregoing provisions are exclusive with respect to the replacement or payment of mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Debt Securities and shall preclude any and all other rights or remedies notwithstanding any law or statute existing or hereafter enacted to the contrary with respect to the replacement or payment of negotiable instruments or other securities without their surrender.

Section 2.07. Temporary Debt Securities .

Pending the preparation of definitive Debt Securities, the Company may execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery temporary Debt Securities that are typed, printed or lithographed. Temporary Debt Securities shall be issuable in any authorized denomination, and substantially in the form of the definitive Debt Securities but with such omissions, insertions and variations as may be appropriate for temporary Debt Securities, all as may be determined by the Company. Every such temporary Debt Security shall be executed by the Company and be authenticated by the Trustee upon the same conditions and in substantially the same manner, and with the same effect, as the definitive Debt Securities. Without unreasonable delay, the Company will execute and deliver to the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent definitive Debt Securities and thereupon any or all temporary Debt Securities may be surrendered in exchange therefor, at the Principal Office of the Trustee or at any office or agency maintained by the Company for such purpose as provided in Section 3.02, and the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange for such temporary Debt Securities a like aggregate principal amount of such definitive Debt Securities. Such exchange shall be made by the Company at its own expense and without any charge therefor except that in case of any such exchange involving a registration of transfer the Company may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax, fee or other governmental charge that may be imposed in relation thereto. Until so exchanged, the temporary Debt Securities shall in all respects be entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture as definitive Debt Securities authenticated and delivered hereunder.

Section 2.08. Payment of Interest .

Each Debt Security will bear interest at the then applicable Interest Rate from and including each Interest Payment Date or, in the case of the first interest period, the original date of issuance of such Debt Security to, but excluding, the next succeeding Interest Payment Date or, in the case of the last interest period, the Redemption Date, Special Redemption Date or Maturity Date, as applicable (each such period, an “Interest Period”), on the principal thereof, on any overdue principal and (to the extent that payment of such interest is enforceable under applicable law) on Deferred Interest and on any overdue installment of interest (including Defaulted Interest), payable (subject to the provisions of Article XII) on each Interest Payment Date commencing on September 23, 2006, and on the Redemption Date, the Special Redemption Date or the Maturity Date, as the case may be. Interest and any Deferred Interest on any Debt

Security that is payable, and is punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date shall be paid to the Person in whose name such Debt Security (or one or more Predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on the regular record date for such interest installment, except that interest and any Deferred Interest payable on the Maturity Date, the Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date, as the case may be, shall be paid to the Person to whom principal is paid. In the event that any Debt Security or portion thereof is called for redemption and the redemption date is subsequent to a regular record date with respect to any Interest Payment Date and prior to such Interest Payment Date, interest on such Debt Security will be paid upon presentation and surrender of such Debt Security.

Any interest on any Debt Security, other than Deferred Interest, that is payable, but is not punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date (herein called “Defaulted Interest”) shall forthwith cease to be payable to the registered holder on the relevant regular record date by virtue of having been such holder, and such Defaulted Interest shall be paid by the Company to the Persons in whose names such Debt Securities (or their respective Predecessor Securities) are registered at the close of business on a special record date for the payment of such Defaulted Interest, which shall be fixed in the following manner: the Company shall notify the Trustee in writing of the amount of Defaulted Interest proposed to be paid on each such Debt Security and the date of the proposed payment, and at the same time the Company shall deposit with the Trustee an amount of money equal to the aggregate amount proposed to be paid in respect of such Defaulted Interest or shall make arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for such deposit prior to the date of the proposed payment, such money when deposited to be held in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled to such Defaulted Interest as in this clause provided. Thereupon the Trustee shall fix a special record date for the payment of such Defaulted Interest which shall not be more than fifteen nor less than ten days prior to the date of the proposed payment and not less than ten days after the receipt by the Trustee of the notice of the proposed payment. The Trustee shall promptly notify the Company of such special record date and, in the name and at the expense of the Company, shall cause notice of the proposed payment of such Defaulted Interest and the special record date therefor to be mailed, first class postage prepaid, to each Securityholder at his or her address as it appears in the Debt Security Register, not less than ten days prior to such special record date. Notice of the proposed payment of such Defaulted Interest and the special record date therefor having been mailed as aforesaid, such Defaulted Interest shall be paid to the Persons in whose names such Debt Securities (or their respective Predecessor Securities) are registered on such special record date and thereafter the Company shall have no further payment obligation in respect of the Defaulted Interest.

Any interest scheduled to become payable on an Interest Payment Date occurring during an Extension Period shall not be Defaulted Interest and shall be payable on such other date as may be specified in the terms of such Debt Securities.

The term “regular record date” as used in this Section shall mean the fifteenth day prior to the applicable Interest Payment Date whether or not such date is a Business Day.

Subject to the foregoing provisions of this Section, each Debt Security delivered under this Indenture upon registration of transfer of or in exchange for or in lieu of any other Debt Security shall carry the rights to interest accrued and unpaid, and to accrue, that were carried by such other Debt Security.

Section 2.09. Cancellation of Debt Securities Paid, etc.

All Debt Securities surrendered for the purpose of payment, redemption, exchange or registration of transfer, shall, if surrendered to the Company or any Paying Agent, be surrendered to the Trustee and promptly canceled by it, or, if surrendered to the Trustee or any Authenticating Agent, shall be promptly canceled by it, and no Debt Securities shall be issued in lieu thereof except as expressly permitted by any of the provisions of this Indenture. All Debt Securities canceled by any Authenticating Agent shall be delivered to the Trustee. The Trustee shall destroy all canceled Debt Securities unless the Company otherwise directs the Trustee in writing, in which case the Trustee shall dispose of such Debt Securities as directed by the Company. If the Company shall acquire any of the Debt Securities, however, such acquisition shall not operate as a redemption or satisfaction of the indebtedness represented by such Debt Securities unless and until the same are surrendered to the Trustee for cancellation.

Section 2.10. Computation of Interest .

(a) The amount of interest payable for any Interest Period will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year and the actual number of days elapsed in such Interest Period; provided , however , that upon the occurrence of a Special Event redemption pursuant to Section 10.02 the amounts payable pursuant to this Indenture shall be calculated as set forth in the definition of Special Redemption Price.

(b) LIBOR shall be determined by the Calculation Agent for each Interest Period in accordance with the following provisions:

(1) On the second LIBOR Business Day ( provided , that on such day commercial banks are open for business (including dealings in foreign currency deposits) in London (a “LIBOR Banking Day”), and otherwise the next preceding LIBOR Business Day that is also a LIBOR Banking Day) prior to March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23, as the case may be, immediately preceding the commencement of such Interest Period (or, in the case of the first Interest Period, prior to June 15, 2006), (each such day, a “LIBOR Determination Date”), LIBOR shall equal the rate, as obtained by the Calculation Agent for three-month U.S. Dollar deposits in Europe, which appears on Telerate (as defined in the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. 2000 Interest Rate and Currency Exchange Definitions) Page 3750 or such other page as may replace such Telerate Page 3750, as of 11:00 a.m. (London time) on such LIBOR Determination Date, as reported by Bloomberg Financial Markets Commodities News (or any successor service). “LIBOR Business Day” means any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions in New York, New York or Wilmington, Delaware are authorized or obligated by law or executive order to be closed. If such rate is superseded on Telerate Page 3750 by a corrected rate before 12:00 noon (London time) on the same LIBOR Determination Date, the corrected rate as so substituted will be the applicable LIBOR for that LIBOR Determination Date.

(2) If, on any LIBOR Determination Date, such rate does not appear on Telerate Page 3750 as reported by Bloomberg Financial Markets Commodities News or such other page as may replace such Telerate Page 3750, the Calculation Agent shall determine the arithmetic mean of the offered quotations of the Reference Banks (as defined below) to leading banks in the London interbank market for three-month U.S. Dollar deposits in Europe (in an amount determined by the Calculation Agent) by reference to requests for quotations as of approximately 11:00 a.m. (London time) on the LIBOR Determination Date made by the Calculation Agent to the Reference Banks. If, on any LIBOR Determination Date, at least two of the Reference Banks provide such quotations, LIBOR shall equal the arithmetic mean of such quotations. If, on any LIBOR Determination Date, only one or none of the Reference Banks provide such a quotation, LIBOR shall be deemed to be the arithmetic mean of the offered quotations that at least two leading banks in the City of New York (as selected by the Calculation Agent) are quoting on the relevant LIBOR Determination Date for three-month U.S. Dollar deposits in Europe at approximately 11:00 a.m. (London time) (in an amount determined by the Calculation Agent). As used herein, “Reference Banks” means four major banks in the London interbank market selected by the Calculation Agent.

(3) If the Calculation Agent is required but is unable to determine a rate in accordance with at least one of the procedures provided above, LIBOR shall be LIBOR in effect on the previous LIBOR Determination Date (whether or not LIBOR for such period was in fact determined on such LIBOR Determination Date).

(c) All percentages resulting from any calculations on the Debt Securities will be rounded, if necessary, to the nearest one hundred-thousandth of a percentage point, with five one-millionths of a percentage point rounded upward (e.g., 9.876545% (or .09876545) being rounded to 9.87655% (or .0987655)), and all dollar amounts used in or resulting from such calculation will be rounded to the nearest cent (with one-half cent being rounded upward).

(d) On each LIBOR Determination Date, the Calculation Agent shall notify, in writing, the Company and the Paying Agent of the applicable Interest Rate in effect for the related Interest Period. The Calculation Agent shall, upon the request of the holder of any Debt Securities, provide the Interest Rate then in effect. All calculations made by the Calculation Agent in the absence of manifest error shall be conclusive for all purposes and binding on the Company and the holders of the Debt Securities. The Paying Agent shall be entitled to rely on information received from the Calculation Agent or the Company as to the Interest Rate. The Company shall, from time to time, provide any necessary information to the Paying Agent relating to any original issue discount and interest on the Debt Securities that is included in any payment and reportable for taxable income calculation purposes.

Section 2.11. Extension of Interest Payment Period .

So long as no Event of Default pursuant to Sections 5.01(b), (e) or (f) of this Indenture has occurred and is continuing, the Company shall have the right, from time to time and without causing an Event of Default, to defer payments of interest on the Debt Securities by extending the interest payment period on the Debt Securities at any time and from time to time during the term of the Debt Securities, for up to twenty consecutive quarterly periods (each such extended interest payment period, an “Extension Period”). No Extension Period may end on a date other than an Interest Payment Date. During any Extension Period, interest will continue to accrue on the Debt Securities, and interest on such accrued interest (such accrued interest and interest thereon referred to herein as “Deferred Interest”) will accrue, at the Interest Rate, compounded quarterly from the date such Deferred Interest would have been payable were it not for the Extension Period, both to the extent permitted by law. No interest or Deferred Interest (except any Additional Interest that may be due and payable) shall be due and payable during an Extension Period, except at the end thereof. At the end of any such Extension Period the Company shall pay all Deferred Interest then accrued and unpaid on the Debt Securities; provided , however , that no Extension Period may extend beyond the Maturity Date, Redemption Date or Special Redemption Date; and provided further , however , that during any such Extension Period, the Company shall be subject to the restrictions set forth in Section 3.08 of this Indenture. Prior to the termination of any Extension Period, the Company may further extend such period, provided , that such period together with all such previous and further consecutive extensions thereof shall not exceed twenty consecutive quarterly periods. Upon the termination of any Extension Period and upon the payment of all Deferred Interest, the Company may commence a new Extension Period, subject to the foregoing requirements. The Company must give the Trustee notice of its election to begin such Extension Period at least one Business Day prior to the date such interest is payable, but in any event not later than the related regular record date. The Trustee shall give notice of the Company’s election to begin a new Extension Period to the Securityholders.

Section 2.12. CUSIP Numbers .

The Company in issuing the Debt Securities may use “CUSIP” numbers (if then generally in use), and, if so, the Trustee shall use “CUSIP” numbers in notices of redemption as a convenience to Securityholders; provided , that any such notice may state that no representation is made as to the correctness of such numbers either as printed on the Debt Securities or as contained in any notice of a redemption and that reliance may be placed only on the other identification numbers printed on the Debt Securities, and any such redemption shall not be affected by any defect in or omission of such numbers. The Company will promptly notify the Trustee in writing of any change in the CUSIP numbers.

ARTICLE III

PARTICULAR COVENANTS OF THE COMPANY

Section 3.01. Payment of Principal, Premium and Interest; Agreed Treatment of the Debt Securities .

(a) The Company covenants and agrees that it will duly and punctually pay or cause to be paid all payments due on the Debt Securities at the place, at the respective times and in the manner provided in this Indenture and the Debt Securities. At the option of the Company, each installment of interest on the Debt Securities may be paid (i) by mailing checks for such interest payable to the order of the holders of Debt Securities entitled thereto as they appear on the Debt Security Register or (ii) by wire transfer to any account with a banking institution located in the United States designated by such Person to the Paying Agent no later than the related record date.

(b) The Company will treat the Debt Securities as indebtedness, and the interest payable in respect of such Debt Securities as interest, for all U.S. federal income tax purposes. All payments in respect of such Debt Securities will be made free and clear of U.S. withholding tax to any beneficial owner thereof that has provided an Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN (or any substitute or successor form) establishing its non-U.S. status for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

(c) As of the date of this Indenture, the Company has no intention to exercise its right under Section 2.11 to defer payments of interest on the Debt Securities by commencing an Extension Period.

(d) As of the date of this Indenture, the Company represents that the likelihood that it would exercise its right under Section 2.11 to defer payments of interest on the Debt Securities by commencing an Extension Period at any time during which the Debt Securities are outstanding is remote because of the restrictions that would be imposed on the Company’s ability to declare or pay dividends or distributions on, or to redeem, purchase or make a liquidation payment with respect to, any of its outstanding equity and on the Company’s ability to make any payments of principal of or premium, if any, or interest on, or repurchase or redeem, any of its debt securities that rank pari passu in all respects with (or junior in interest to) the Debt Securities.

Section 3.02. Offices for Notices and Payments, etc.

So long as any of the Debt Securities remain outstanding, the Company will maintain in Wilmington, Delaware or in Porterville, California an office or agency where the Debt Securities may be presented for payment, an office or agency where the Debt Securities may be presented for registration of transfer and for exchange as provided in this Indenture and an office or agency where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Debt Securities or of this Indenture may be served. The Company will give to the Trustee written notice of the location of any such office or agency and of any change of location thereof. Until otherwise designated from time to time by the Company in a notice to the Trustee, or specified as

contemplated by Section 2.05, such office or agency for all of the above purposes shall be the Principal Office of the Trustee. In case the Company shall fail to maintain any such office or agency in Wilmington, Delaware or in Porterville, California or shall fail to give such notice of the location or of any change in the location thereof, presentations and demands may be made and notices may be served at the Principal Office of the Trustee.

In addition to any such office or agency, the Company may from time to time designate one or more offices or agencies outside Wilmington, Delaware or Porterville, California where the Debt Securities may be presented for registration of transfer and for exchange in the manner provided in this Indenture, and the Company may from time to time rescind such designation, as the Company may deem desirable or expedient; provided , however , that no such designation or rescission shall in any manner relieve the Company of its obligation to maintain any such office or agency in Wilmington, Delaware or in Porterville, California for the purposes above mentioned. The Company will give to the Trustee prompt written notice of any such designation or rescission thereof.

Section 3.03. Appointments to Fill Vacancies in Trustee’s Office .

The Company, whenever necessary to avoid or fill a vacancy in the office of Trustee, will appoint, in the manner provided in Section 6.09, a Trustee, so that there shall at all times be a Trustee hereunder.

Section 3.04. Provision as to Paying Agent .

(a) If the Company shall appoint a Paying Agent other than the Trustee, it will cause such Paying Agent to execute and deliver to the Trustee an instrument in which such agent shall agree with the Trustee, subject to the provision of this Section 3.04,

(1) that it will hold all sums held by it as such agent for the payment of all payments due on the Debt Securities (whether such sums have been paid to it by the Company or by any other obligor on the Debt Securities) in trust for the benefit of the holders of the Debt Securities;

(2) that it will give the Trustee prompt written notice of any failure by the Company (or by any other obligor on the Debt Securities) to make any payment on the Debt Securities when the same shall be due and payable; and

(3) that it will, at any time during the continuance of any Event of Default, upon the written request of the Trustee, forthwith pay to the Trustee all sums so held in trust by such Paying Agent.

(b) If the Company shall act as its own Paying Agent, it will, on or before each due date of the payments due on the Debt Securities, set aside, segregate and hold in trust for the benefit of the holders of the Debt Securities a sum sufficient to pay such principal, premium or interest so becoming due and will notify the Trustee in writing of any failure to take such action and of any failure by the Company (or by any other obligor under the Debt Securities) to make any payment on the Debt Securities when the same shall become due and payable.

Whenever the Company shall have one or more Paying Agents for the Debt Securities, it will, on or prior to each due date of the payments on the Debt Securities, deposit with a Paying Agent a sum sufficient to pay all payments so becoming due, such sum to be held in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled thereto and (unless such Paying Agent is the Trustee) the Company shall promptly notify the Trustee in writing of its action or failure to act.

(c) Anything in this Section 3.04 to the contrary notwithstanding, the Company may, at any time, for the purpose of obtaining a satisfaction and discharge with respect to the Debt Securities, or for any other reason, pay, or direct any Paying Agent to pay to the Trustee all sums held in trust by the Company or any such Paying Agent, such sums to be held by the Trustee upon the same terms and conditions herein contained.

(d) Anything in this Section 3.04 to the contrary notwithstanding, the agreement to hold sums in trust as provided in this Section 3.04 is subject to Sections 12.03 and 12.04.

(e) The Company hereby initially appoints the Trustee to act as Paying Agent.

Section 3.05. Certificate to Trustee .

The Company will deliver to the Trustee on or before 120 days after the end of each fiscal year, so long as Debt Securities are outstanding hereunder, a Certificate, substantially in the form of Exhibit B attached hereto, stating that in the course of the performance by the signers of their duties as officers of the Company they would normally have knowledge of any default by the Company in the performance of any covenants contained herein, stating whether or not they have knowledge of any such default and, if so, specifying each such default of which the signers have knowledge and the nature thereof.

Section 3.06. Additional Interest .

If and for so long as the Trust is the holder of all Debt Securities and is subject to, or otherwise required to pay, or is required to withhold from distributions to holders of Trust Securities, any additional taxes (including withholding taxes), duties, assessments or other governmental charges as a result of a Tax Event, the Company will pay such additional amounts (the “Additional Interest”) on the Debt Securities as shall be required so that the net amounts received and retained by the Trust after paying taxes, duties, assessments or other governmental charges will be equal to the amounts the Trust would have received if no such taxes, duties, assessments or other governmental charges had been imposed. Whenever in this Indenture or the Debt Securities there is a reference in any context to the payment of principal of or premium, if any, or interest on the Debt Securities, such mention shall be deemed to include mention of payments of the Additional Interest provided for in this paragraph to the extent that, in such context, Additional Interest is, was or would be payable in respect thereof pursuant to the provisions of this paragraph and express mention of the payment of Additional Interest (if applicable) in any provisions hereof shall not be construed as excluding Additional Interest in those provisions hereof where such express mention is not made, provided , however , that the deferral of the payment of interest during an Extension Period pursuant to Section 2.11 shall not defer the payment of any Additional Interest that may be due and payable.

Section 3.07. Compliance with Consolidation Provisions .

The Company will not, while any of the Debt Securities remain outstanding, consolidate with, or merge into any other Person, or merge into itself, or sell or convey all or substantially all of its property to any other Person unless the provisions of Article XI hereof are complied with.

Section 3.08. Limitation on Dividends .

If (i) there shall have occurred and be continuing a Default or an Event of Default, (ii) the Company shall be in default with respect to its payment of any obligations under the Capital Securities Guarantee or (iii) the Company shall have given notice of its election to defer payments of interest on the Debt Securities by extending the interest payment period as provided herein and such period, or any extension thereof, shall have commenced and be continuing, then the Company may not (A) declare or pay any dividends or distributions on, or redeem, purchase, acquire, or make a liquidation payment with respect to, any of the Company’s capital stock, (B) make any payment of principal of or interest or premium, if any, on or repay, repurchase or redeem any debt securities of the Company that rank pari passu in all respects with or junior in interest to the Debt Securities or (C) make any payment under any guarantees of the Company that rank pari passu in all respects with or junior in interest to the Capital Securities Guarantee (other than (a) repurchases, redemptions or other acquisitions of shares of capital stock of the Company (I) in connection with any employment contract, benefit plan or other similar arrangement with or for the benefit of one or more employees, officers, directors or consultants, (II) in connection with a dividend reinvestment or stockholder stock purchase plan or (III) in connection with the issuance of capital stock of the Company (or securities convertible into or exercisable for such capital stock) as consideration in an acquisition transaction entered into prior to the occurrence of (i), (ii) or (iii) above, (b) as a result of any exchange or conversion of any class or series of the Company’s capital stock (or any capital stock of a subsidiary of the Company) for any class or series of the Company’s capital stock or of any class or series of the Company’s indebtedness for any class or series of the Company’s capital stock, (c) the purchase of fractional interests in shares of the Company’s capital stock pursuant to the conversion or exchange provisions of such capital stock or the security being converted or exchanged, (d) any declaration of a dividend in connection with any stockholder’s rights plan, or the issuance of rights, stock or other property under any stockholder’s rights plan, or the redemption or repurchase of rights pursuant thereto or (e) any dividend in the form of stock, warrants, options or other rights where the dividend stock or the stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants, options or other rights is the same stock as that on which the dividend is being paid or ranks pari passu with or junior in interest to such stock).

Section 3.09. Covenants as to the Trust .

For so long as such Trust Securities remain outstanding, the Company shall maintain 100% ownership of the Common Securities; provided , however , that any permitted successor of the Company under this Indenture that is a U.S. Person may succeed to the Company’s ownership of such Common Securities. The Company, as owner of the Common Securities, shall use commercially reasonable efforts to cause the Trust (a) to remain a statutory trust, except in connection with a distribution of Debt Securities to the holders of Trust Securities

in liquidation of the Trust, the redemption of all of the Trust Securities or certain mergers, consolidations or amalgamations, each as permitted by the Declaration, (b) to otherwise continue to be classified as a grantor trust for United States federal income tax purposes and (c) to cause each holder of Trust Securities to be treated as owning an undivided beneficial interest in the Debt Securities.

ARTICLE IV

LISTS AND REPORTS BY THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE

Section 4.01. Securityholders’ Lists .

The Company covenants and agrees that it will furnish or cause to be furnished to the Trustee:

(a) on each regular record date for an Interest Payment Date, a list, in such form as the Trustee may reasonably require, of the names and addresses of the Securityholders of the Debt Securities as of such record date; and

(b) at such other times as the Trustee may request in writing, within 30 days after the receipt by the Company of any such request, a list of similar form and content as of a date not more than 15 days prior to the time such list is furnished;

except that no such lists need be furnished under this Section 4.01 so long as the Trustee is in possession thereof by reason of its acting as Debt Security registrar.

Section 4.02. Preservation and Disclosure of Lists .

(a) The Trustee shall preserve, in as current a form as is reasonably practicable, all information as to the names and addresses of the holders of Debt Securities (1) contained in the most recent list furnished to it as provided in Section 4.01 or (2) received by it in the capacity of Debt Securities registrar (if so acting) hereunder. The Trustee may destroy any list furnished to it as provided in Section 4.01 upon receipt of a new list so furnished.

(b) In case three or more holders of Debt Securities (hereinafter referred to as “applicants”) apply in writing to the Trustee and furnish to the Trustee reasonable proof that each such applicant has owned a Debt Security for a period of at least six months preceding the date of such application, and such application states that the applicants desire to communicate with other holders of Debt Securities with respect to their rights under this Indenture or under such Debt Securities and is accompanied by a copy of the form of proxy or other communication which such applicants propose to transmit, then the Trustee shall within five Business Days after the receipt of such application, at its election, either:

(1) afford such applicants access to the information preserved at the time by the Trustee in accordance with the provisions of subsection (a) of this Section 4.02, or

(2) inform such applicants as to the approximate number of holders of Debt Securities whose names and addresses appear in the information preserved at the time by the Trustee in accordance with the provisions of subsection (a) of this Section 4.02, and as to the approximate cost of mailing to such Securityholders the form of proxy or other communication, if any, specified in such application.

If the Trustee shall elect not to afford such applicants access to such information, the Trustee shall, upon the written request of such applicants, mail to each Securityholder of Debt Securities whose name and address appear in the information preserved at the time by the Trustee in accordance with the provisions of subsection (a) of this Section 4.02 a copy of the form of proxy or other communication which is specified in such request with reasonable promptness after a tender to the Trustee of the material to be mailed and of payment, or provision for the payment, of the reasonable expenses of mailing, unless within five days after such tender, the Trustee shall mail to such applicants and file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, if permitted or required by applicable law, together with a copy of the material to be mailed, a written statement to the effect that, in the opinion of the Trustee, such mailing would be contrary to the best interests of the holders of all Debt Securities, as the case may be, or would be in violation of applicable law. Such written statement shall specify the basis of such opinion. If said Commission, as permitted or required by applicable law, after opportunity for a hearing upon the objections specified in the written statement so filed, shall enter an order refusing to sustain any of such objections or if, after the entry of an order sustaining one or more of such objections, said Commission shall find, after notice and opportunity for hearing, that all the objections so sustained have been met and shall enter an order so declaring, the Trustee shall mail copies of such material to all such Securityholders with reasonable promptness after the entry of such order and the renewal of such tender; otherwise the Trustee shall be relieved of any obligation or duty to such applicants respecting their application.

(c) Each and every holder of Debt Securities, by receiving and holding the same, agrees with the Company and the Trustee that neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any Paying Agent shall be held accountable by reason of the disclosure of any such information as to the names and addresses of the holders of Debt Securities in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of this Section 4.02, regardless of the source from which such information was derived, and that the Trustee shall not be held accountable by reason of mailing any material pursuant to a request made under said subsection (b).

Section 4.03. Financial and Other Information .

(a) The Company shall deliver to each holder of the Debt Securities and the Capital Securities (1) if the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is not then (x) subject to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act or (y) exempt from reporting pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) thereunder, the information required by Rule 144A(d)(4) under the Securities Act, (2) if the Company is not then required to file Form FR Y-9C, the audited annual financial statements (or, if no audited financial statements are prepared, the unaudited financial statements) of the Company and any Subsidiaries within 90 days after the end of the fiscal year, and (3) within 30 days after the end of the fiscal year of the Company, Form 1099 or such other annual U.S. federal income tax information statement required by the Code, containing such information with regard to the Debt Securities held by such holder as is required by the Code and the income tax regulations of the U.S. Treasury thereunder.

(b) If and so long as the holder of the Capital Securities is an entity that holds a pool of trust preferred securities, debt securities and/or similar securities or a trustee thereof, the Company will cause copies of its reports on FR Y-9C to be delivered to the holder promptly following their filing with the Federal Reserve.

ARTICLE V

REMEDIES OF THE TRUSTEE AND SECURITYHOLDERS UPON AN EVENT OF DEFAULT

Section 5.01. Events of Default .

The following events shall be “Events of Default” with respect to Debt Securities:

(a) the Company defaults in the payment of any interest upon any Debt Security when it becomes due and payable, and continuance of such default for a period of 30 days; for the avoidance of doubt, an extension of any interest payment period by the Company in accordance with Section 2.11 of this Indenture shall not constitute a default under this clause 5.01(a); or

(b) the Company defaults in the payment of any interest upon any Debt Security, including any Additional Interest in respect thereof, following the nonpayment of any such interest for twenty (20) or more consecutive quarterly interest payment periods; or

(c) the Company defaults in the payment of all or any part of the principal of (or premium, if any, on) any Debt Securities as and when the same shall become due and payable either at maturity, upon redemption, by declaration of acceleration or otherwise; or

(d) the Company defaults in the performance of, or breaches, any of its covenants or agreements in Sections 3.06, 3.07, 3.08 or 3.09 of this Indenture (other than a covenant or agreement a default in whose performance or whose breach is elsewhere in this Section specifically dealt with), and continuance of such default or breach for a period of 90 days after there has been given, by registered or certified mail, to the Company by the Trustee or to the Company and the Trustee by the holders of not less than 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Debt Securities, a written notice specifying such default or breach and requiring it to be remedied and stating that such notice is a “Notice of Default” hereunder; or

(e) a court having jurisdiction in the premises shall enter a decree or order for relief in respect of the Company in an involuntary case under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, or appoints a receiver, liquidator, assignee, custodian, trustee, sequestrator (or other similar official) of the Company or for any substantial part of its property, or orders the winding-up or liquidation of its affairs and such decree or order shall remain unstayed and in effect for a period of 90 consecutive days; or

(f) the Company shall commence a voluntary case under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, shall consent to the entry of an order for relief in an involuntary case under any such law, or shall consent to the appointment of or taking possession by a receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, custodian, sequestrator (or other similar official) of the Company or of any substantial part of its property, or shall make any general assignment for the benefit of creditors, or shall fail generally to pay its debts as they become due; or

(g) the Trust shall have voluntarily or involuntarily liquidated, dissolved, wound-up its business or otherwise terminated its existence except in connection with (1) the distribution of the Debt Securities to holders of the Trust Securities in liquidation of their interests in the Trust, (2) the redemption of all of the outstanding Trust Securities or (3) certain mergers, consolidations or amalgamations, each as permitted by the Declaration.

If an Event of Default specified under clause (b) of this Section 5.01 occurs and is continuing with respect to the Debt Securities, then, in each and every such case, either the Trustee or the holders of not less than 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities then outstanding hereunder, by notice in writing to the Company (and to the Trustee if given by Securityholders), may declare the entire principal of the Debt Securities and any premium and interest accrued, but unpaid, thereon to be due and payable immediately, and upon any such declaration the same shall become immediately due and payable. If an Event of Default specified under clause (e) or (f) of this Section 5.01 occurs, then, in each and every such case, the entire principal amount of the Debt Securities and any premium and interest accrued, but unpaid, thereon shall ipso facto become immediately due and payable without further action.

The foregoing provisions, however, are subject to the condition that if, at any time after the principal of the Debt Securities shall have become due by acceleration, and before any judgment or decree for the payment of the moneys due shall have been obtained or entered as hereinafter provided, (i) the Company shall pay or shall deposit with the Trustee a sum sufficient to pay all matured installments of interest upon all the Debt Securities and all payments on the Debt Securities which shall have become due otherwise than by acceleration (with interest upon all such payments and Deferred Interest, to the extent permitted by law) and such amount as shall be sufficient to cover reasonable compensation to the Trustee and each predecessor Trustee, their respective agents, attorneys and counsel, and all other amounts due to the Trustee pursuant to Section 6.06, if any, and (ii) all Events of Default under this Indenture, other than the non-payment of the payments on Debt Securities which shall have become due by acceleration, shall have been cured, waived or otherwise remedied as provided herein, then and in every such case the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities then outstanding, by written notice to the Company and to the Trustee, may waive all defaults and rescind and annul such acceleration and its consequences, but no such waiver or rescission and annulment shall extend to or shall affect any subsequent default or shall impair any right consequent thereon.

In case the Trustee shall have proceeded to enforce any right under this Indenture and such proceedings shall have been discontinued or abandoned because of such rescission or annulment or for any other reason or shall have been determined adversely to the Trustee, then and in every such case the Company, the Trustee and the holders of the Debt Securities shall be

restored respectively to their several positions and rights hereunder, and all rights, remedies and powers of the Company, the Trustee and the holders of the Debt Securities shall continue as though no such proceeding had been taken.

Section 5.02. Payment of Debt Securities on Default; Suit Therefor .

The Company covenants that upon the occurrence of an Event of Default pursuant to clause (b) of Section 5.01 and upon demand of the Trustee, the Company will pay to the Trustee, for the benefit of the holders of the Debt Securities, the whole amount that then shall have become due and payable on all Debt Securities, including Deferred Interest accrued on the Debt Securities; and, in addition thereto, such further amount as shall be sufficient to cover the costs and expenses of collection, including a reasonable compensation to the Trustee, its agents, attorneys and counsel, and any other amounts due to the Trustee under Section 6.06. In case the Company shall fail forthwith to pay such amounts upon such demand, the Trustee, in its own name and as trustee of an express trust, shall be entitled and empowered to institute any actions or proceedings at law or in equity for the collection of the sums so due and unpaid, and may prosecute any such action or proceeding to judgment or final decree, and may enforce any such judgment or final decree against the Company or any other obligor on such Debt Securities and collect in the manner provided by law out of the property of the Company or any other obligor on such Debt Securities wherever situated the moneys adjudged or decreed to be payable.

In case there shall be pending proceedings for the bankruptcy or for the reorganization of the Company or any other obligor on the Debt Securities under Bankruptcy Law, or in case a receiver or trustee shall have been appointed for the property of the Company or such other obligor, or in the case of any other similar judicial proceedings relative to the Company or other obligor upon the Debt Securities, or to the creditors or property of the Company or such other obligor, the Trustee, irrespective of whether the principal of the Debt Securities shall then be due and payable as therein expressed or by acceleration or otherwise and irrespective of whether the Trustee shall have made any demand pursuant to the provisions of this Section 5.02, shall be entitled and empowered, by intervention in such proceedings or otherwise, to file and prove a claim or claims for the whole amount of principal and interest owing and unpaid in respect of the Debt Securities and, in case of any judicial proceedings, to file such proofs of claim and other papers or documents as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Trustee (including any claim for reasonable compensation to the Trustee and each predecessor Trustee, and their respective agents, attorneys and counsel, and for reimbursement of all other amounts due to the Trustee under Section 6.06) and of the Securityholders allowed in such judicial proceedings relative to the Company or any other obligor on the Debt Securities, or to the creditors or property of the Company or such other obligor, unless prohibited by applicable law and regulations, to vote on behalf of the holders of the Debt Securities in any election of a trustee or a standby trustee in arrangement, reorganization, liquidation or other bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings or Person performing similar functions in comparable proceedings, and to collect and receive any moneys or other property payable or deliverable on any such claims, and to distribute the same after the deduction of its charges and expenses; and any receiver, assignee or trustee in bankruptcy or reorganization is hereby authorized by each of the Securityholders to make such payments to the Trustee, and, in the event that the Trustee shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the Securityholders, to pay to the Trustee such amounts as shall be sufficient to cover reasonable compensation to the Trustee, each predecessor Trustee and their respective agents, attorneys and counsel, and all other amounts due to the Trustee under Section 6.06.

Nothing herein contained shall be construed to authorize the Trustee to authorize or consent to or accept or adopt on behalf of any Securityholder any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Debt Securities or the rights of any holder thereof or to authorize the Trustee to vote in respect of the claim of any Securityholder in any such proceeding.

All rights of action and of asserting claims under this Indenture, or under any of the Debt Securities, may be enforced by the Trustee without the possession of any of the Debt Securities, or the production thereof at any trial or other proceeding relative thereto, and any such suit or proceeding instituted by the Trustee shall be brought in its own name as trustee of an express trust, and any recovery of judgment shall be for the ratable benefit of the holders of the Debt Securities.

In any proceedings brought by the Trustee (and also any proceedings involving the interpretation of any provision of this Indenture to which the Trustee shall be a party) the Trustee shall be held to represent all the holders of the Debt Securities, and it shall not be necessary to make any holders of the Debt Securities parties to any such proceedings.

Section 5.03. Application of Moneys Collected by Trustee .

Any moneys collected by the Trustee shall be applied in the following order, at the date or dates fixed by the Trustee for the distribution of such moneys, upon presentation of the several Debt Securities in respect of which moneys have been collected, and stamping thereon the payment, if only partially paid, and upon surrender thereof if fully paid:

First: To the payment of costs and expenses incurred by, and reasonable fees of, the Trustee, its agents, attorneys and counsel, and of all other amounts due to the Trustee under Section 6.06;

Second: To the payment of all Senior Indebtedness of the Company if and to the extent required by Article XV;

Third: To the payment of the amounts then due and unpaid upon Debt Securities, in respect of which or for the benefit of which money has been collected, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the amounts due on such Debt Securities; and

Fourth: The balance, if any, to the Company.

Section 5.04. Proceedings by Securityholders .

No holder of any Debt Security shall have any right to institute any suit, action or proceeding for any remedy hereunder, unless such holder previously shall have given to the Trustee written notice of an Event of Default with respect to the Debt Securities and unless the holders of not less than 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities then outstanding shall have given the Trustee a written request to institute such action, suit or

proceeding and shall have offered to the Trustee such reasonable indemnity as it may require against the costs, expenses and liabilities to be incurred thereby, and the Trustee for 60 days after its receipt of such notice, request and offer of indemnity shall have failed to institute any such action, suit or proceeding; provided , that no holder of Debt Securities shall have any right to prejudice the rights of any other holder of Debt Securities, obtain priority or preference over any other such holder or enforce any right under this Indenture except in the manner herein provided and for the equal, ratable and common benefit of all holders of Debt Securities.

Notwithstanding any other provisions in this Indenture, however, the right of any holder of any Debt Security to receive payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on such Debt Security when due, or to institute suit for the enforcement of any such payment, shall not be impaired or affected without the consent of such holder. For the protection and enforcement of the provisions of this Section, each and every Securityholder and the Trustee shall be entitled to such relief as can be given either at law or in equity.

Section 5.05. Proceedings by Trustee .

In case of an Event of Default hereunder the Trustee may in its discretion proceed to protect and enforce the rights vested in it by this Indenture by such appropriate judicial proceedings as the Trustee shall deem most effectual to protect and enforce any of such rights, either by suit in equity or by action at law or by proceeding in bankruptcy or otherwise, whether for the specific enforcement of any covenant or agreement contained in this Indenture or in aid of the exercise of any power granted in this Indenture, or to enforce any other legal or equitable right vested in the Trustee by this Indenture or by law.

Section 5.06. Remedies Cumulative and Continuing .

Except as otherwise provided in Section 2.06, all powers and remedies given by this Article V to the Trustee or to the Securityholders shall, to the extent permitted by law, be deemed cumulative and not exclusive of any other powers and remedies available to the Trustee or the holders of the Debt Securities, by judicial proceedings or otherwise, to enforce the performance or observance of the covenants and agreements contained in this Indenture or otherwise established with respect to the Debt Securities, and no delay or omission of the Trustee or of any holder of any of the Debt Securities to exercise any right or power accruing upon any Event of Default occurring and continuing as aforesaid shall impair any such right or power, or shall be construed to be a waiver of any such default or an acquiescence therein; and, subject to the provisions of Section 5.04, every power and remedy given by this Article V or by law to the Trustee or to the Securityholders may be exercised from time to time, and as often as shall be deemed expedient, by the Trustee or by the Securityholders.

Section 5.07. Direction of Proceedings and Waiver of Defaults by Majority of Securityholders .

The holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities affected (voting as one class) at the time outstanding shall have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred on the Trustee with respect to such Debt Securities;

provided , however , that (subject to the provisions of Section 6.01) the Trustee shall have the right to decline to follow any such direction if the Trustee shall determine that the action so directed would be unjustly prejudicial to the holders not taking part in such direction or if the Trustee being advised by counsel determines that the action or proceeding so directed may not lawfully be taken or if a Responsible Officer of the Trustee shall determine that the action or proceedings so directed would involve the Trustee in personal liability. Prior to any declaration of acceleration, or ipso facto acceleration, of the maturity of the Debt Securities, the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities at the time outstanding may on behalf of the holders of all of the Debt Securities waive (or modify any previously granted waiver of) any past Default or Event of Default and its consequences, except a default (a) in the payment of principal of, premium, if any, or interest on any of the Debt Securities, (b) in respect of covenants or provisions hereof which cannot be modified or amended without the consent of the holder of each Debt Security affected, or (c) in respect of the covenants contained in Section 3.09; provided , however , that if the Debt Securities are held by the Trust or a trustee of the Trust, such waiver or modification to such waiver shall not be effective until the holders of a majority in liquidation preference of the Trust Securities of the Trust shall have consented to such waiver or modification to such waiver; provided , further , that if the consent of the holder of each outstanding Debt Security is required, such waiver shall not be effective until each holder of the Trust Securities of the Trust shall have consented to such waiver. Upon any such waiver, the Default or Event of Default covered thereby shall be deemed to be cured for all purposes of this Indenture and the Company, the Trustee and the holders of the Debt Securities shall be restored to their former positions and rights hereunder, respectively; but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other Default or Event of Default or impair any right consequent thereon. Whenever any Default or Event of Default hereunder shall have been waived as permitted by this Section 5.07, said Default or Event of Default shall for all purposes of the Debt Securities and this Indenture be deemed to have been cured and to be not continuing.

Section 5.08. Notice of Defaults .

The Trustee shall, within 90 days after a Responsible Officer of the Trustee shall have actual knowledge or received written notice of the occurrence of a default with respect to the Debt Securities, mail to all Securityholders, as the names and addresses of such holders appear upon the Debt Security Register, notice of all defaults with respect to the Debt Securities known to the Trustee, unless such defaults shall have been cured before the giving of such notice (the term “defaults” for the purpose of this Section 5.08 being hereby defined to be any event specified in Section 5.01, not including periods of grace, if any, provided for therein); provided , that, except in the case of default in the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, or interest on any of the Debt Securities, the Trustee shall be protected in withholding such notice if and so long as a Responsible Officer of the Trustee in good faith determines that the withholding of such notice is in the interests of the Securityholders.

Section 5.09. Undertaking to Pay Costs .

All parties to this Indenture agree, and each holder of any Debt Security by such holder’s acceptance thereof shall be deemed to have agreed, that any court may in its discretion require, in any suit for the enforcement of any right or remedy under this Indenture, or in any suit against the Trustee for any action taken or omitted by it as Trustee, the filing by any party

litigant in such suit of an undertaking to pay the costs of such suit, and that such court may in its discretion assess reasonable costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses, against any party litigant in such suit, having due regard to the merits and good faith of the claims or defenses made by such party litigant; but the provisions of this Section 5.09 shall not apply to any suit instituted by the Trustee, to any suit instituted by any Securityholder, or group of Securityholders, holding in the aggregate more than 10% in principal amount of the Debt Securities outstanding, or to any suit instituted by any Securityholder for the enforcement of the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest on any Debt Security against the Company on or after the same shall have become due and payable.

ARTICLE VI

CONCERNING THE TRUSTEE

Section 6.01. Duties and Responsibilities of Trustee .

With respect to the holders of Debt Securities issued hereunder, the Trustee, prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default with respect to the Debt Securities and after the curing or waiving of all Events of Default which may have occurred, with respect to the Debt Securities, undertakes to perform such duties and only such duties as are specifically set forth in this Indenture. In case an Event of Default with respect to the Debt Securities has occurred (which has not been cured or waived) the Trustee shall exercise such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture, and use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent person would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of such person’s own affairs.

No provision of this Indenture shall be construed to relieve the Trustee from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act or its own willful misconduct, except that:

(a) prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default with respect to the Debt Securities and after the curing or waiving of all Events of Default which may have occurred

(1) the duties and obligations of the Trustee with respect to the Debt Securities shall be determined solely by the express provisions of this Indenture, and the Trustee shall not be liable except for the performance of such duties and obligations with respect to the Debt Securities as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee; and

(2) in the absence of bad faith on the part of the Trustee, the Trustee may conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon any certificates or opinions furnished to the Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Indenture; but, in the case of any such certificates or opinions which by any provision hereof are specifically required to be furnished to the Trustee, the Trustee shall be under a duty to examine the same to determine whether or not they conform on their face to the requirements of this Indenture;

(b) the Trustee shall not be liable for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Responsible Officer or Officers of the Trustee, unless it shall be proved that the Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts;

(c) the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith, in accordance with the direction of the Securityholders pursuant to Section 5.07, relating to the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Trustee, under this Indenture; and

(d) the Trustee shall not be charged with knowledge of any Default or Event of Default with respect to the Debt Securities unless either (1) a Responsible Officer shall have actual knowledge of such Default or Event of Default or (2) written notice of such Default or Event of Default shall have been given to the Trustee by the Company or any other obligor on the Debt Securities or by any holder of the Debt Securities, except with respect to an Event of Default pursuant to Sections 5.01(a), 5.01(b) or 5.01(c) hereof (other than an Event of Default resulting from the default in the payment of Additional Interest or premium, if any, if the Trustee does not have actual knowledge or written notice that such payment is due and payable), of which the Trustee shall be deemed to have knowledge.

None of the provisions contained in this Indenture shall require the Trustee to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise incur personal financial liability in the performance of any of its duties or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers.

Section 6.02. Reliance on Documents, Opinions, etc .

Except as otherwise provided in Section 6.01:

(a) the Trustee may conclusively rely and shall be fully protected in acting or refraining from acting upon any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, consent, order, bond, note, debenture or other paper or document believed by it in good faith to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper party or parties;

(b) any request, direction, order or demand of the Company mentioned herein shall be sufficiently evidenced by an Officers’ Certificate (unless other evidence in respect thereof be herein specifically prescribed); and any Board Resolution may be evidenced to the Trustee by a copy thereof certified by the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company;

(c) the Trustee may consult with counsel of its selection and any advice or Opinion of Counsel shall be full and complete authorization and protection in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted by it hereunder in good faith and in accordance with such advice or Opinion of Counsel;

(d) the Trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Indenture at the request, order or direction of any of the Securityholders, pursuant to the provisions of this Indenture, unless such Securityholders shall have offered to the Trustee reasonable security or indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities which may be incurred therein or thereby;

(e) the Trustee shall not be liable for any action taken or omitted by it in good faith and believed by it to be authorized or within the discretion or rights or powers conferred upon it by this Indenture; nothing contained herein shall, however, relieve the Trustee of the obligation, upon the occurrence of an Event of Default with respect to the Debt Securities (that has not been cured or waived) to exercise with respect to the Debt Securities such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture, and to use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent person would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of such person’s own affairs;

(f) the Trustee shall not be bound to make any investigation into the facts or matters stated in any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, consent, order, approval, bond, debenture, coupon or other paper or document, unless requested in writing to do so by the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the outstanding Debt Securities affected thereby; provided , however , that if the payment within a reasonable time to the Trustee of the costs, expenses or liabilities likely to be incurred by it in the making of such investigation is, in the opinion of the Trustee, not reasonably assured to the Trustee by the security afforded to it by the terms of this Indenture, the Trustee may require reasonable indemnity against such expense or liability as a condition to so proceeding; and

(g) the Trustee may execute any of the trusts or powers hereunder or perform any duties hereunder either directly or by or through agents (including any Authenticating Agent) or attorneys, and the Trustee shall not be responsible for any misconduct or negligence on the part of any such agent or attorney appointed by it with due care.

Section 6.03. No Responsibility for Recitals, etc .

The recitals contained herein and in the Debt Securities (except in the certificate of authentication of the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent) shall be taken as the statements of the Company and the Trustee and the Authenticating Agent assume no responsibility for the correctness of the same. The Trustee and the Authenticating Agent make no representations as to the validity or sufficiency of this Indenture or of the Debt Securities. The Trustee and the Authenticating Agent shall not be accountable for the use or application by the Company of any Debt Securities or the proceeds of any Debt Securities authenticated and delivered by the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent in conformity with the provisions of this Indenture.

Section 6.04. Trustee, Authenticating Agent, Paying Agents, Transfer Agents or Registrar May Own Debt Securities .

The Trustee or any Authenticating Agent or any Paying Agent or any transfer agent or any Debt Security registrar, in its individual or any other capacity, may become the owner or pledgee of Debt Securities with the same rights it would have if it were not Trustee, Authenticating Agent, Paying Agent, transfer agent or Debt Security registrar.

Section 6.05. Moneys to be Held in Trust .

Subject to the provisions of Section 12.04, all moneys received by the Trustee or any paying agent shall, until used or applied as herein provided, be held in trust for the purpose for which they were received, but need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent

required by law. The Trustee and any Paying Agent shall be under no liability for interest on any money received by it hereunder except as otherwise agreed in writing with the Company. So long as no Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing, all interest allowed on any such moneys, if any, shall be paid from time to time to the Company upon the written order of the Company, signed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors, the President, the Chief Operating Officer, a Vice President, the Treasurer or an Assistant Treasurer of the Company.

Section 6.06. Compensation and Expenses of Trustee .

The Company covenants and agrees to pay to the Trustee from time to time, and the Trustee shall be entitled to, such compensation as shall be agreed to in writing between the Company and the Trustee (which shall not be limited by any provision of law in regard to the compensation of a trustee of an express trust), and the Company will pay or reimburse the Trustee upon its written request for all documented reasonable expenses, disbursements and advances incurred or made by the Trustee in accordance with any of the provisions of this Indenture (including the reasonable compensation and the reasonable expenses and disbursements of its counsel and of all Persons not regularly in its employ) except any such expense, disbursement or advance that arises from its negligence or bad faith. The Company also covenants to indemnify each of the Trustee (including in its individual capacity) and any predecessor Trustee (and its officers, agents, directors and employees) for, and to hold it harmless against, any and all loss, damage, claim, liability or expense including taxes (other than taxes based on the income of the Trustee), except to the extent such loss, damage, claim, liability or expense results from the negligence or bad faith of such indemnitee, arising out of or in connection with the acceptance or administration of this trust, including the costs and expenses of defending itself against any claim or liability in the premises. The obligations of the Company under this Section 6.06 to compensate and indemnify the Trustee and to pay or reimburse the Trustee for documented expenses, disbursements and advances shall constitute additional indebtedness hereunder. Such additional indebtedness shall be secured by a lien prior to that of the Debt Securities upon all property and funds held or collected by the Trustee as such, except funds held in trust for the benefit of the holders of particular Debt Securities.

Without prejudice to any other rights available to the Trustee under applicable law, when the Trustee incurs expenses or renders services in connection with an Event of Default specified in subsections (e), (f) or (g) of Section 5.01, the expenses (including the reasonable charges and expenses of its counsel) and the compensation for the services are intended to constitute expenses of administration under any applicable federal or state bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law.

The provisions of this Section shall survive the resignation or removal of the Trustee and the defeasance or other termination of this Indenture.

Notwithstanding anything in this Indenture or any Debt Security to the contrary, the Trustee shall have no obligation whatsoever to advance funds to pay any principal of or interest on or other amounts with respect to the Debt Securities or otherwise advance funds to or on behalf of the Company.

Section 6.07. Officers’ Certificate as Evidence .

Except as otherwise provided in Sections 6.01 and 6.02, whenever in the administration of the provisions of this Indenture the Trustee shall deem it necessary or desirable that a matter be proved or established prior to taking or omitting any action hereunder, such matter (unless other evidence in respect thereof be herein specifically prescribed) may, in the absence of negligence or bad faith on the part of the Trustee, be deemed to be conclusively proved and established by an Officers’ Certificate delivered to the Trustee, and such certificate, in the absence of negligence or bad faith on the part of the Trustee, shall be full warrant to the Trustee for any action taken or omitted by it under the provisions of this Indenture upon the faith thereof.

Section 6.08. Eligibility of Trustee .

The Trustee hereunder shall at all times be a U.S. Person that is a banking corporation or national association organized and doing business under the laws of the United States of America or any state thereof or of the District of Columbia and authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers, having a combined capital and surplus of at least fifty million U.S. dollars ($50,000,000) and subject to supervision or examination by federal, state, or District of Columbia authority. If such corporation or national association publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law or to the requirements of the aforesaid supervising or examining authority, then for the purposes of this Section 6.08 the combined capital and surplus of such corporation or national association shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent records of condition so published.

The Company may not, nor may any Person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the Company, serve as Trustee, notwithstanding that such corporation or national association shall be otherwise eligible and qualified under this Article.

In case at any time the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section 6.08, the Trustee shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect specified in Section 6.09.

If the Trustee has or shall acquire any “conflicting interest” within the meaning of § 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act, the Trustee shall either eliminate such interest or resign, to the extent and in the manner provided by, and subject to this Indenture.

Section 6.09. Resignation or Removal of Trustee .

(a) The Trustee, or any trustee or trustees hereafter appointed, may at any time resign by giving written notice of such resignation to the Company and by mailing notice thereof, at the Company’s expense, to the holders of the Debt Securities at their addresses as they shall appear on the Debt Security Register. Upon receiving such notice of resignation, the Company shall promptly appoint a successor trustee or trustees by written instrument, in duplicate, executed by order of its Board of Directors, one copy of which instrument shall be delivered to the resigning Trustee and one copy to the successor Trustee. If no successor Trustee shall have been so appointed and have accepted appointment within 30 days after the mailing of such notice of resignation to the affected Securityholders, the resigning Trustee may petition any

court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor Trustee, or any Securityholder who has been a bona fide holder of a Debt Security or Debt Securities for at least six months may, subject to the provisions of Section 5.09, on behalf of himself or herself and all others similarly situated, petition any such court for the appointment of a successor Trustee. Such court may thereupon, after such notice, if any, as it may deem proper and prescribe, appoint a successor Trustee.

(b) In case at any time any of the following shall occur —

(1) the Trustee shall fail to comply with the provisions of the last paragraph of Section 6.08 after written request therefor by the Company or by any Securityholder who has been a bona fide holder of a Debt Security or Debt Securities for at least six months,

(2) the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of Section 6.08 and shall fail to resign after written request therefor by the Company or by any such Securityholder, or

(3) the Trustee shall become incapable of acting, or shall be adjudged bankrupt or insolvent, or a receiver of the Trustee or of its property shall be appointed, or any public officer shall take charge or control of the Trustee or of its property or affairs for the purpose of rehabilitation, conservation or liquidation,

then, in any such case, the Company may remove the Trustee and appoint a successor Trustee by written instrument, in duplicate, executed by order of the Board of Directors, one copy of which instrument shall be delivered to the Trustee so removed and one copy to the successor Trustee, or, subject to the provisions of Section 5.09, if no successor Trustee shall have been so appointed and have accepted appointment within 30 days of the occurrence of any of (1),(2) or (3) above, any Securityholder who has been a bona fide holder of a Debt Security or Debt Securities for at least six months may, on behalf of himself or herself and all others similarly situated, petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the removal of the Trustee and the appointment of a successor Trustee. Such court may thereupon, after such notice, if any, as it may deem proper and prescribe, remove the Trustee and appoint a successor Trustee.

(c) Upon prior written notice to the Company and the Trustee, the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities at the time outstanding may at any time remove the Trustee and nominate a successor Trustee, which shall be deemed appointed as successor Trustee unless within ten Business Days after such nomination the Company objects thereto, in which case or in the case of a failure by such holders to nominate a successor Trustee, the Trustee so removed or any Securityholder, upon the terms and conditions and otherwise as in subsection (a) of this Section 6.09 provided, may petition any court of competent jurisdiction for an appointment of a successor.

(d) Any resignation or removal of the Trustee and appointment of a successor Trustee pursuant to any of the provisions of this Section 6.09 shall become effective upon acceptance of appointment by the successor Trustee as provided in Section 6.10.

Section 6.10. Acceptance by Successor Trustee .

Any successor Trustee appointed as provided in Section 6.09 shall execute, acknowledge and deliver to the Company and to its predecessor Trustee an instrument accepting such appointment hereunder, and thereupon the resignation or removal of the retiring Trustee shall become effective and such successor Trustee, without any further act, deed or conveyance, shall become vested with all the rights, powers, duties and obligations with respect to the Debt Securities of its predecessor hereunder, with like effect as if originally named as Trustee herein; but, nevertheless, on the written request of the Company or of the successor Trustee, the Trustee ceasing to act shall, upon payment of the amounts then due it pursuant to the provisions of Section 6.06, execute and deliver an instrument transferring to such successor Trustee all the rights and powers of the Trustee so ceasing to act and shall duly assign, transfer and deliver to such successor Trustee all property and money held by such retiring Trustee hereunder. Upon request of any such successor Trustee, the Company shall execute any and all instruments in writing for more fully and certainly vesting in and confirming to such successor Trustee all such rights and powers. Any Trustee ceasing to act shall, nevertheless, retain a lien upon all property or funds held or collected by such Trustee to secure any amounts then due it pursuant to the provisions of Section 6.06.

If a successor Trustee is appointed, the Company, the retiring Trustee and the successor Trustee shall execute and deliver an indenture supplemental hereto which shall contain such provisions as shall be deemed necessary or desirable to confirm that all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the retiring Trustee with respect to the Debt Securities as to which the predecessor Trustee is not retiring shall continue to be vested in the predecessor Trustee, and shall add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the Trust hereunder by more than one Trustee, it being understood that nothing herein or in such supplemental indenture shall constitute such Trustees co-trustees of the same trust and that each such Trustee shall be Trustee of a trust or trusts hereunder separate and apart from any trust or trusts hereunder administered by any other such Trustee.

No successor Trustee shall accept appointment as provided in this Section 6.10 unless at the time of such acceptance such successor Trustee shall be eligible under the provisions of Section 6.08.

In no event shall a retiring Trustee be liable for the acts or omissions of any successor Trustee hereunder.

Upon acceptance of appointment by a successor Trustee as provided in this Section 6.10, the Company shall mail notice of the succession of such Trustee hereunder to the holders of Debt Securities at their addresses as they shall appear on the Debt Security Register. If the Company fails to mail such notice within ten Business Days after the acceptance of appointment by the successor Trustee, the successor Trustee shall cause such notice to be mailed at the expense of the Company.

Section 6.11. Succession by Merger, etc .

Any corporation into which the Trustee may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, conversion or

consolidation to which the Trustee shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to all or substantially all of the corporate trust business of the Trustee, shall be the successor of the Trustee hereunder without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of any of the parties hereto; provided , that such corporation shall be otherwise eligible and qualified under this Article.

In case at the time such successor to the Trustee shall succeed to the trusts created by this Indenture any of the Debt Securities shall have been authenticated but not delivered, any such successor to the Trustee may adopt the certificate of authentication of any predecessor Trustee, and deliver such Debt Securities so authenticated; and in case at that time any of the Debt Securities shall not have been authenticated, any successor to the Trustee may authenticate such Debt Securities either in the name of any predecessor hereunder or in the name of the successor Trustee; and in all such cases such certificates shall have the full force which it is anywhere in the Debt Securities or in this Indenture provided that the certificate of the Trustee shall have; provided , however , that the right to adopt the certificate of authentication of any predecessor Trustee or authenticate Debt Securities in the name of any predecessor Trustee shall apply only to its successor or successors by merger, conversion or consolidation.

Section 6.12. Authenticating Agents .

There may be one or more Authenticating Agents appointed by the Trustee upon the request of the Company with power to act on its behalf and subject to its direction in the authentication and delivery of Debt Securities issued upon exchange or registration of transfer thereof as fully to all intents and purposes as though any such Authenticating Agent had been expressly authorized to authenticate and deliver Debt Securities; provided , that the Trustee shall have no liability to the Company for any acts or omissions of the Authenticating Agent with respect to the authentication and delivery of Debt Securities. Any such Authenticating Agent shall at all times be a banking corporation or national association organized and doing business under the laws of the United States or of any state or territory thereof or of the District of Columbia authorized under such laws to act as Authenticating Agent, having a combined capital and surplus of at least $50,000,000 and being subject to supervision or examination by federal, state, territorial or District of Columbia authority. If such banking corporation or national association publishes reports of condition at least annually pursuant to law or the requirements of such authority, then for the purposes of this Section 6.12 the combined capital and surplus of such corporation shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published. If at any time an Authenticating Agent shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, it shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect herein specified in this Section.

Any corporation into which any Authenticating Agent may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, consolidation or conversion to which any Authenticating Agent shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to all or substantially all of the corporate trust business of any Authenticating Agent, shall be the successor of such Authenticating Agent hereunder, if such successor corporation is otherwise eligible under this Section 6.12 without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of the parties hereto or such Authenticating Agent.

Any Authenticating Agent may at any time resign by giving written notice of resignation to the Trustee and to the Company. The Trustee may at any time terminate the agency of any Authenticating Agent with respect to the Debt Securities by giving written notice of termination to such Authenticating Agent and to the Company. Upon receiving such a notice of resignation or upon such a termination, or in case at any time any Authenticating Agent shall cease to be eligible under this Section 6.12, the Trustee may, and upon the request of the Company shall, promptly appoint a successor Authenticating Agent eligible under this Section 6.12, shall give written notice of such appointment to the Company and shall mail notice of such appointment to all holders of Debt Securities as the names and addresses of such holders appear on the Debt Security Register. Any successor Authenticating Agent upon acceptance of its appointment hereunder shall become vested with all rights, powers, duties and responsibilities with respect to the Debt Securities of its predecessor hereunder, with like effect as if originally named as Authenticating Agent herein.

The Company agrees to pay to any Authenticating Agent from time to time reasonable compensation for its services. Any Authenticating Agent shall have no responsibility or liability for any action taken by it as such in accordance with the directions of the Trustee.

ARTICLE VII

CONCERNING THE SECURITYHOLDERS

Section 7.01. Action by Securityholders .

Whenever in this Indenture it is provided that the holders of a specified percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities may take any action (including the making of any demand or request, the giving of any notice, consent or waiver or the taking of any other action), the fact that at the time of taking any such action the holders of such specified percentage have joined therein may be evidenced (a) by any instrument or any number of instruments of similar tenor executed by such Securityholders in person or by agent or proxy appointed in writing, or (b) by the record of such holders of Debt Securities voting in favor thereof at any meeting of such Securityholders duly called and held in accordance with the provisions of Article VIII, or (c) by a combination of such instrument or instruments and any such record of such a meeting of such Securityholders or (d) by any other method the Trustee deems satisfactory.

If the Company shall solicit from the Securityholders any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other action or revocation of the same, the Company may, at its option, as evidenced by an Officers’ Certificate, fix in advance a record date for such Debt Securities for the determination of Securityholders entitled to give such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other action or revocation of the same, but the Company shall have no obligation to do so. If such a record date is fixed, such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other action or revocation of the same may be given before or after the record date, but only the Securityholders of record at the close of business on the record date shall be deemed to be Securityholders for the purposes of determining whether Securityholders of the requisite proportion of outstanding Debt Securities have authorized or agreed or consented to such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice,

consent, waiver or other action or revocation of the same, and for that purpose the outstanding Debt Securities shall be computed as of the record date; provided , however , that no such authorization, agreement or consent by such Securityholders on the record date shall be deemed effective unless it shall become effective pursuant to the provisions of this Indenture not later than six months after the record date.

Section 7.02. Proof of Execution by Securityholders .

Subject to the provisions of Sections 6.01, 6.02 and 8.05, proof of the execution of any instrument by a Securityholder or such Securityholder’s agent or proxy shall be sufficient if made in accordance with such reasonable rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Trustee or in such manner as shall be satisfactory to the Trustee. The ownership of Debt Securities shall be proved by the Debt Security Register or by a certificate of the Debt Security registrar. The Trustee may require such additional proof of any matter referred to in this Section as it shall deem necessary.

The record of any Securityholders’ meeting shall be proved in the manner provided in Section 8.06.

Section 7.03. Who Are Deemed Absolute Owners .

Prior to due presentment for registration of transfer of any Debt Security, the Company, the Trustee, any Authenticating Agent, any Paying Agent, any transfer agent and any Debt Security registrar may deem the Person in whose name such Debt Security shall be registered upon the Debt Security Register to be, and may treat such Person as, the absolute owner of such Debt Security (whether or not such Debt Security shall be overdue) for the purpose of receiving payment of or on account of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on such Debt Security and for all other purposes; and neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any Authenticating Agent nor any Paying Agent nor any transfer agent nor any Debt Security registrar shall be affected by any notice to the contrary. All such payments so made to any holder for the time being or upon such holder’s order shall be valid, and, to the extent of the sum or sums so paid, effectual to satisfy and discharge the liability for moneys payable upon any such Debt Security.

Section 7.04. Debt Securities Owned by Company Deemed Not Outstanding .

In determining whether the holders of the requisite aggregate principal amount of Debt Securities have concurred in any direction, consent or waiver under this Indenture, Debt Securities which are owned by the Company or any other obligor on the Debt Securities or by any Person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with the Company (other than the Trust) or any other obligor on the Debt Securities shall be disregarded and deemed not to be outstanding for the purpose of any such determination; provided , that for the purposes of determining whether the Trustee shall be protected in relying on any such direction, consent or waiver, only Debt Securities which a Responsible Officer of the Trustee actually knows are so owned shall be so disregarded. Debt Securities so owned which have been pledged in good faith may be regarded as outstanding for the purposes of this Section 7.04 if the pledgee shall establish to the satisfaction of the Trustee the pledgee’s right to

vote such Debt Securities and that the pledgee is not the Company or any such other obligor or Person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with the Company or any such other obligor. In the case of a dispute as to such right, any decision by the Trustee taken upon the advice of counsel shall be full protection to the Trustee.

Section 7.05. Revocation of Consents; Future Holders Bound .

At any time prior to (but not after) the evidencing to the Trustee, as provided in Section 7.01, of the taking of any action by the holders of the percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities specified in this Indenture in connection with such action, any holder (in cases where no record date has been set pursuant to Section 7.01) or any holder as of an applicable record date (in cases where a record date has been set pursuant to Section 7.01) of a Debt Security (or any Debt Security issued in whole or in part in exchange or substitution therefor) the serial number of which is shown by the evidence to be included in the Debt Securities the holders of which have consented to such action may, by filing written notice with the Trustee at the Principal Office of the Trustee and upon proof of holding as provided in Section 7.02, revoke such action so far as concerns such Debt Security (or so far as concerns the principal amount represented by any exchanged or substituted Debt Security). Except as aforesaid any such action taken by the holder of any Debt Security shall be conclusive and binding upon such holder and upon all future holders and owners of such Debt Security, and of any Debt Security issued in exchange or substitution therefor or on registration of transfer thereof, irrespective of whether or not any notation in regard thereto is made upon such Debt Security or any Debt Security issued in exchange or substitution therefor.

ARTICLE VIII

SECURITYHOLDERS’ MEETINGS

Section 8.01. Purposes of Meetings .

A meeting of Securityholders may be called at any time and from time to time pursuant to the provisions of this Article VIII for any of the following purposes:

(a) to give any notice to the Company or to the Trustee, or to give any directions to the Trustee, or to consent to the waiving of any default hereunder and its consequences, or to take any other action authorized to be taken by Securityholders pursuant to any of the provisions of Article V;

(b) to remove the Trustee and nominate a successor trustee pursuant to the provisions of Article VI;

(c) to consent to the execution of an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto pursuant to the provisions of Section 9.02; or

(d) to take any other action authorized to be taken by or on behalf of the holders of any specified aggregate principal amount of such Debt Securities under any other provision of this Indenture or under applicable law.

Section 8.02. Call of Meetings by Trustee .

The Trustee may at any time call a meeting of Securityholders to take any action specified in Section 8.01, to be held at such time and at such place in New York or Wilmington, Delaware, as the Trustee shall determine. Notice of every meeting of the Securityholders, setting forth the time and the place of such meeting and in general terms the action proposed to be taken at such meeting, shall be mailed to holders of Debt Securities affected at their addresses as they shall appear on the Debt Securities Register. Such notice shall be mailed not less than 20 nor more than 180 days prior to the date fixed for the meeting.

Section 8.03. Call of Meetings by Company or Securityholders .

In case at any time the Company pursuant to a Board Resolution, or the holders of at least 10% in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities, as the case may be, then outstanding, shall have requested the Trustee to call a meeting of Securityholders, by written request setting forth in reasonable detail the action proposed to be taken at the meeting, and the Trustee shall not have mailed the notice of such meeting within 20 days after receipt of such request, then the Company or such Securityholders may determine the time and the place in Porterville, California for such meeting and may call such meeting to take any action authorized in Section 8.01, by mailing notice thereof as provided in Section 8.02.

Section 8.04. Qualifications for Voting .

To be entitled to vote at any meeting of Securityholders a Person shall be (a) a holder of one or more Debt Securities with respect to which the meeting is being held or (b) a Person appointed by an instrument in writing as proxy by a holder of one or more such Debt Securities. The only Persons who shall be entitled to be present or to speak at any meeting of Securityholders shall be the Persons entitled to vote at such meeting and their counsel and any representatives of the Trustee and its counsel and any representatives of the Company and its counsel.

Section 8.05. Regulations .

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Indenture, the Trustee may make such reasonable regulations as it may deem advisable for any meeting of Securityholders, in regard to proof of the holding of Debt Securities and of the appointment of proxies, and in regard to the appointment and duties of inspectors of votes, the submission and examination of proxies, certificates and other evidence of the right to vote, and such other matters concerning the conduct of the meeting as it shall deem appropriate.

The Trustee shall, by an instrument in writing, appoint a temporary chairman of the meeting, unless the meeting shall have been called by the Company or by Securityholders as provided in Section 8.03, in which case the Company or the Securityholders calling the meeting, as the case may be, shall in like manner appoint a temporary chairman. A permanent chairman and a permanent secretary of the meeting shall be elected by majority vote at the meeting.

Subject to the provisions of Section 7.04, at any meeting each holder of Debt Securities with respect to which such meeting is being held or proxy therefor shall be entitled to

one vote for each $1,000 principal amount of Debt Securities held or represented by such holder; provided , however , that no vote shall be cast or counted at any meeting in respect of any Debt Security challenged as not outstanding and ruled by the chairman of the meeting to be not outstanding. The chairman of the meeting shall have no right to vote other than by virtue of Debt Securities held by such chairman or instruments in writing as aforesaid duly designating such chairman as the Person to vote on behalf of other Securityholders. Any meeting of Securityholders duly called pursuant to the provisions of Section 8.02 or 8.03 may be adjourned from time to time by a majority of those present, whether or not constituting a quorum, and the meeting may be held as so adjourned without further notice.

Section 8.06. Voting .

The vote upon any resolution submitted to any meeting of holders of Debt Securities with respect to which such meeting is being held shall be by written ballots on which shall be subscribed the signatures of such holders or of their representatives by proxy and the serial number or numbers of the Debt Securities held or represented by them. The permanent chairman of the meeting shall appoint two inspectors of votes who shall count all votes cast at the meeting for or against any resolution and who shall make and file with the secretary of the meeting their verified written reports in triplicate of all votes cast at the meeting. A record in duplicate of the proceedings of each meeting of Securityholders shall be prepared by the secretary of the meeting and there shall be attached to said record the original reports of the inspectors of votes on any vote by ballot taken thereat and affidavits by one or more Persons having knowledge of the facts setting forth a copy of the notice of the meeting and showing that said notice was mailed as provided in Section 8.02. The record shall show the serial numbers of the Debt Securities voting in favor of or against any resolution. The record shall be signed and verified by the affidavits of the permanent chairman and secretary of the meeting and one of the duplicates shall be delivered to the Company and the other to the Trustee to be preserved by the Trustee, the latter to have attached thereto the ballots voted at the meeting.

Any record so signed and verified shall be conclusive evidence of the matters therein stated.

Section 8.07. Quorum; Actions .

The Persons entitled to vote a majority in outstanding principal amount of the Debt Securities shall constitute a quorum for a meeting of Securityholders; provided , however , that if any action is to be taken at such meeting with respect to a consent, waiver, request, demand, notice, authorization, direction or other action which may be given by the holders of not less than a specified percentage in outstanding principal amount of the Debt Securities, the Persons holding or representing such specified percentage in outstanding principal amount of the Debt Securities will constitute a quorum. In the absence of a quorum within 30 minutes of the time appointed for any such meeting, the meeting shall, if convened at the request of Securityholders, be dissolved. In any other case the meeting may be adjourned for a period of not less than 10 days as determined by the permanent chairman of the meeting prior to the adjournment of such meeting. In the absence of a quorum at any such adjourned meeting, such adjourned meeting may be further adjourned for a period of not less than 10 days as determined by the permanent chairman of the meeting prior to the adjournment of such adjourned meeting.

Notice of the reconvening of any adjourned meeting shall be given as provided in Section 8.02, except that such notice need be given only once not less than five days prior to the date on which the meeting is scheduled to be reconvened. Notice of the reconvening of an adjourned meeting shall state expressly the percentage, as provided above, of the outstanding principal amount of the Debt Securities which shall constitute a quorum.

Except as limited by the proviso in the first paragraph of Section 9.02, any resolution presented to a meeting or adjourned meeting duly reconvened at which a quorum is present as aforesaid may be adopted by the affirmative vote of the holders of not less than a majority in outstanding principal amount of the Debt Securities; provided , however , that, except as limited by the proviso in the first paragraph of Section 9.02, any resolution with respect to any consent, waiver, request, demand, notice, authorization, direction or other action that this Indenture expressly provides may be given by the holders of not less than a specified percentage in outstanding principal amount of the Debt Securities may be adopted at a meeting or an adjourned meeting duly reconvened and at which a quorum is present as aforesaid only by the affirmative vote of the holders of not less than such specified percentage in outstanding principal amount of the Debt Securities.

Any resolution passed or decision taken at any meeting of holders of Debt Securities duly held in accordance with this Section shall be binding on all the Securityholders, whether or not present or represented at the meeting.

ARTICLE IX

SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES

Section 9.01. Supplemental Indentures without Consent of Securityholders .

The Company, when authorized by a Board Resolution, and the Trustee may from time to time and at any time enter into an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto, without the consent of the Securityholders, for one or more of the following purposes:

(a) to evidence the succession of another corporation to the Company, or successive successions, and the assumption by the successor corporation of the covenants, agreements and obligations of the Company, pursuant to Article XI hereof;

(b) to add to the covenants of the Company such further covenants, restrictions or conditions for the protection of the holders of Debt Securities as the Board of Directors shall consider to be for the protection of the holders of such Debt Securities, and to make the occurrence, or the occurrence and continuance, of a Default in any of such additional covenants, restrictions or conditions a Default or an Event of Default permitting the enforcement of all or any of the several remedies provided in this Indenture as herein set forth; provided , however , that in respect of any such additional covenant, restriction or condition such supplemental indenture may provide for a particular period of grace after Default (which period may be shorter or longer than that allowed in the case of other Defaults) or may provide for an immediate enforcement upon such Default or may limit the remedies available to the Trustee upon such default;

(c) to cure any ambiguity or to correct or supplement any provision contained herein or in any supplemental indenture which may be defective or inconsistent with any other provision contained herein or in any supplemental indenture, or to make such other provisions in regard to matters or questions arising under this Indenture; provided , that any such action shall not adversely affect the interests of the holders of the Debt Securities;

(d) to add to, delete from, or revise the terms of Debt Securities, including, without limitation, any terms relating to the issuance, exchange, registration or transfer of Debt Securities, including to provide for transfer procedures and restrictions substantially similar to those applicable to the Capital Securities, as required by Section 2.05 (for purposes of assuring that no registration of Debt Securities is required under the Securities Act; provided , that any such action shall not adversely affect the interests of the holders of the Debt Securities then outstanding (it being understood, for purposes of this proviso, that transfer restrictions on Debt Securities substantially similar to those applicable to Capital Securities shall not be deemed to adversely affect the holders of the Debt Securities);

(e) to evidence and provide for the acceptance of appointment hereunder by a successor Trustee with respect to the Debt Securities and to add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one Trustee, pursuant to the requirements of Section 6.10;

(f) to make any change (other than as elsewhere provided in this paragraph) that does not adversely affect the rights of any Securityholder in any material respect; or

(g) to provide for the issuance of and establish the form and terms and conditions of the Debt Securities, to establish the form of any certifications required to be furnished pursuant to the terms of this Indenture or the Debt Securities, or to add to the rights of the holders of Debt Securities.

The Trustee is hereby authorized to join with the Company in the execution of any such supplemental indenture, to make any further appropriate agreements and stipulations which may be therein contained and to accept the conveyance, transfer and assignment of any property thereunder, but the Trustee shall not be obligated to, but may in its discretion, enter into any such supplemental indenture which affects the Trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise.

Any supplemental indenture authorized by the provisions of this Section 9.01 may be executed by the Company and the Trustee without the consent of the holders of any of the Debt Securities at the time outstanding, notwithstanding any of the provisions of Section 9.02.

Section 9.02. Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Securityholders .

With the consent (evidenced as provided in Section 7.01) of the holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities at the time outstanding affected by such supplemental indenture (voting as a class), the Company, when authorized by a Board Resolution, and the Trustee may from time to time and at any time enter into an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto (which shall conform to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act, then in effect, applicable to indentures qualified thereunder) for the purpose of adding any

provisions to or changing in any manner or eliminating any of the provisions of this Indenture or of any supplemental indenture or of modifying in any manner the rights of the holders of the Debt Securities; provided , however , that no such supplemental indenture shall without such consent of the holders of each Debt Security then outstanding and affected thereby (i) extend the fixed maturity of any Debt Security, or reduce the principal amount thereof or any premium thereon, or reduce the rate or extend the time of payment of interest thereon, or reduce any amount payable on redemption thereof or make the principal thereof or any interest or premium thereon payable in any coin or currency other than that provided in the Debt Securities, or impair or affect the right of any Securityholder to institute suit for payment thereof or impair the right of repayment, if any, at the option of the holder, or (ii) reduce the aforesaid percentage of Debt Securities the holders of which are required to consent to any such supplemental indenture; and provided , further , that if the Debt Securities are held by the Trust or a trustee of such trust, such supplemental indenture shall not be effective until the holders of a majority in liquidation preference of the Trust Securities shall have consented to such supplemental indenture; provided , further , that if the consent of the Securityholder of each outstanding Debt Security is required, such supplemental indenture shall not be effective until each holder of the Trust Securities shall have consented to such supplemental indenture.

Upon the request of the Company accompanied by a Board Resolution authorizing the execution of any such supplemental indenture, and upon the filing with the Trustee of evidence of the consent of Securityholders as aforesaid, the Trustee shall join with the Company in the execution of such supplemental indenture unless such supplemental indenture affects the Trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise, in which case the Trustee may in its discretion, but shall not be obligated to, enter into such supplemental indenture.

Promptly after the execution by the Company and the Trustee of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Section, the Trustee shall transmit by mail, first class postage prepaid, a notice, prepared by the Company, setting forth in general terms the substance of such supplemental indenture, to the Securityholders as their names and addresses appear upon the Debt Security Register. Any failure of the Trustee to mail such notice, or any defect therein, shall not, however, in any way impair or affect the validity of any such supplemental indenture.

It shall not be necessary for the consent of the Securityholders under this Section 9.02 to approve the particular form of any proposed supplemental indenture, but it shall be sufficient if such consent shall approve the substance thereof.

Section 9.03. Effect of Supplemental Indentures .

Upon the execution of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article IX, this Indenture shall be and be deemed to be modified and amended in accordance therewith and the respective rights, limitations of rights, obligations, duties and immunities under this Indenture of the Trustee, the Company and the holders of Debt Securities shall thereafter be determined, exercised and enforced hereunder subject in all respects to such modifications and amendments and all the terms and conditions of any such supplemental indenture shall be and be deemed to be part of the terms and conditions of this Indenture for any and all purposes.

Section 9.04. Notation on Debt Securities .

Debt Securities authenticated and delivered after the execution of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article IX may bear a notation as to any matter provided for in such supplemental indenture. If the Company or the Trustee shall so determine, new Debt Securities so modified as to conform, in the opinion of the Board of Directors of the Company, to any modification of this Indenture contained in any such supplemental indenture may be prepared and executed by the Company, authenticated by the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent and delivered in exchange for the Debt Securities then outstanding.

Section 9.05. Evidence of Compliance of Supplemental Indenture to be Furnished to Trustee .

The Trustee, subject to the provisions of Sections 6.01 and 6.02, shall, in addition to the documents required by Section 14.06, receive an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel as conclusive evidence that any supplemental indenture executed pursuant hereto complies with the requirements of this Article IX. The Trustee shall receive an Opinion of Counsel as conclusive evidence that any supplemental indenture executed pursuant to this Article IX is authorized or permitted by, and conforms to, the terms of this Article IX and that it is proper for the Trustee under the provisions of this Article IX to join in the execution thereof.

ARTICLE X

REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES

Section 10.01. Optional Redemption .

At any time the Company shall have the right, subject to the receipt by the Company of prior approval from the Federal Reserve, if then required under applicable capital guidelines or policies of the Federal Reserve, to redeem the Debt Securities, in whole or in part, on any March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 on or after September 23, 2011 (the “Redemption Date”), at the Redemption Price.

Section 10.02. Special Event Redemption .

If a Special Event shall occur and be continuing, the Company shall have the right, subject to the receipt by the Company of prior approval from the Federal Reserve if then required under applicable capital guidelines or policies of the Federal Reserve, to redeem the Debt Securities, in whole but not in part, at any time within 90 days following the occurrence of such Special Event (the “Special Redemption Date”), at the Special Redemption Price.

Section 10.03. Notice of Redemption; Selection of Debt Securities .

In case the Company shall desire to exercise the right to redeem all, or, as the case may be, any part of the Debt Securities, it shall fix a date for redemption and shall mail a notice of such redemption at least 30 and not more than 60 days prior to the date fixed for redemption to the holders of Debt Securities so to be redeemed as a whole or in part at their last addresses as

the same appear on the Debt Security Register. Such mailing shall be by first class mail. The notice if mailed in the manner herein provided shall be conclusively presumed to have been duly given, whether or not the holder receives such notice. In any case, failure to give such notice by mail or any defect in the notice to the holder of any Debt Security designated for redemption as a whole or in part shall not affect the validity of the proceedings for the redemption of any other Debt Security.

Each such notice of redemption shall specify the CUSIP number, if any, of the Debt Securities to be redeemed, the date fixed for redemption, the redemption price at which Debt Securities are to be redeemed, the place or places of payment, that payment will be made upon presentation and surrender of such Debt Securities, that interest accrued to the date fixed for redemption will be paid as specified in said notice, and that on and after said date interest thereon or on the portions thereof to be redeemed will cease to accrue. If less than all the Debt Securities are to be redeemed the notice of redemption shall specify the numbers of the Debt Securities to be redeemed. In case the Debt Securities are to be redeemed in part only, the notice of redemption shall state the portion of the principal amount thereof to be redeemed and shall state that on and after the date fixed for redemption, upon surrender of such Debt Security, a new Debt Security or Debt Securities in principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion thereof will be issued.

Prior to 10:00 a.m. New York City time on the Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date specified in the notice of redemption given as provided in this Section, the Company will deposit with the Trustee or with one or more Paying Agents an amount of money sufficient to redeem on the redemption date all the Debt Securities so called for redemption at the appropriate redemption price, together with accrued interest to the date fixed for redemption.

The Company will give the Trustee notice not less than 45 nor more than 60 days prior to the redemption date as to the redemption price at which the Debt Securities are to be redeemed and the aggregate principal amount of Debt Securities to be redeemed and the Trustee shall select, in such manner as in its sole discretion it shall deem appropriate and fair, the Debt Securities or portions thereof (in integral multiples of $1,000) to be redeemed.

Section 10.04. Payment of Debt Securities Called for Redemption .

If notice of redemption has been given as provided in Section 10.03, the Debt Securities or portions of Debt Securities with respect to which such notice has been given shall become due and payable on the Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date (as the case may be) and at the place or places stated in such notice at the applicable redemption price, together with interest accrued to the date fixed for redemption, and on and after said Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date (unless the Company shall default in the payment of such Debt Securities at the redemption price, together with interest accrued to said date) interest on the Debt Securities or portions of Debt Securities so called for redemption shall cease to accrue. On presentation and surrender of such Debt Securities at a place of payment specified in said notice, such Debt Securities or the specified portions thereof shall be paid and redeemed by the Company at the applicable redemption price, together with interest accrued thereon to the Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date (as the case may be).

Upon presentation of any Debt Security redeemed in part only, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery to the holder thereof, at the expense of the Company, a new Debt Security or Debt Securities of authorized denominations in principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion of the Debt Security so presented.

ARTICLE XI

CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, SALE, CONVEYANCE AND LEASE

Section 11.01. Company May Consolidate, etc., on Certain Terms .

Nothing contained in this Indenture or in the Debt Securities shall prevent any consolidation or merger of the Company with or into any other corporation or corporations (whether or not affiliated with the Company) or successive consolidations or mergers in which the Company or its successor or successors shall be a party or parties, or shall prevent any sale, conveyance, transfer or other disposition of the property or capital stock of the Company or its successor or successors as an entirety, or substantially as an entirety, to any other corporation (whether or not affiliated with the Company, or its successor or successors) authorized to acquire and operate the same; provided , however , that the Company hereby covenants and agrees that, upon any such consolidation, merger (where the Company is not the surviving corporation), sale, conveyance, transfer or other disposition, the due and punctual payment of all payments due on all of the Debt Securities in accordance with their terms, according to their tenor, and the due and punctual performance and observance of all the covenants and conditions of this Indenture to be kept or performed by the Company, shall be expressly assumed by supplemental indenture reasonably satisfactory in form to the Trustee executed and delivered to the Trustee by the entity formed by such consolidation, or into which the Company shall have been merged, or by the entity which shall have acquired such property or capital stock.

Section 11.02. Successor Entity to be Substituted .

In case of any such consolidation, merger, sale, conveyance, transfer or other disposition contemplated in Section 11.01 and upon the assumption by the successor entity, by supplemental indenture, executed and delivered to the Trustee and reasonably satisfactory in form to the Trustee, of the due and punctual payment of the principal of and premium, if any, and interest on all of the Debt Securities and the due and punctual performance and observance of all of the covenants and conditions of this Indenture to be performed or observed by the Company, such successor entity shall succeed to and be substituted for the Company, with the same effect as if it had been named herein as the Company, and thereupon the predecessor entity shall be relieved of any further liability or obligation hereunder or upon the Debt Securities. Such successor entity thereupon may cause to be signed, and may issue either in its own name or in the name of the Company, any or all of the Debt Securities issuable hereunder which theretofore shall not have been signed by the Company and delivered to the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent; and, upon the order of such successor entity instead of the Company and subject to all the terms, conditions and limitations in this Indenture prescribed, the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent shall authenticate and deliver any Debt Securities which previously shall have been signed and delivered by the officers of the Company, to the Trustee or the

Authenticating Agent for authentication, and any Debt Securities which such successor entity thereafter shall cause to be signed and delivered to the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent for that purpose. All the Debt Securities so issued shall in all respects have the same legal rank and benefit under this Indenture as the Debt Securities theretofore or thereafter issued in accordance with the terms of this Indenture as though all of such Debt Securities had been issued at the date of the execution hereof.

Section 11.03. Opinion of Counsel to be Given to Trustee .

The Trustee, subject to the provisions of Sections 6.01 and 6.02, shall receive, in addition to the Opinion of Counsel required by Section 9.05, an Opinion of Counsel as conclusive evidence that any consolidation, merger, sale, conveyance, transfer or other disposition, and any assumption, permitted or required by the terms of this Article XI complies with the provisions of this Article XI.

ARTICLE XII

SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE

Section 12.01. Discharge of Indenture .

When (a) the Company shall deliver to the Trustee for cancellation all Debt Securities theretofore authenticated (other than any Debt Securities which shall have been destroyed, lost or stolen and which shall have been replaced or paid as provided in Section 2.06) and not theretofore canceled, or (b) all the Debt Securities not theretofore canceled or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation shall have become due and payable, or are by their terms to become due and payable within one year or are to be called for redemption within one year under arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for the giving of notice of redemption, and the Company shall deposit with the Trustee, in trust, funds, which shall be immediately due and payable, sufficient to pay at maturity or upon redemption all of the Debt Securities (other than any Debt Securities which shall have been destroyed, lost or stolen and which shall have been replaced or paid as provided in Section 2.06) not theretofore canceled or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation, including principal and premium, if any, and interest due or to become due to such date of maturity or redemption date, as the case may be, but excluding, however, the amount of any moneys for the payment of principal of, and premium, if any, or interest on the Debt Securities (1) theretofore repaid to the Company in accordance with the provisions of Section 12.04, or (2) paid to any state or to the District of Columbia pursuant to its unclaimed property or similar laws, and if in the case of either clause (a) or clause (b) the Company shall also pay or cause to be paid all other sums payable hereunder by the Company, then this Indenture shall cease to be of further effect except for the provisions of Sections 2.05, 2.06, 3.01, 3.02, 3.04, 6.06, 6.09 and 12.04 hereof, which shall survive until such Debt Securities shall mature or are redeemed, as the case may be, and are paid. Thereafter, Sections 6.06, 6.09 and 12.04 shall survive, and the Trustee, on demand of the Company accompanied by an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent herein provided for relating to the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture have been complied with, and at the cost and expense of the Company, shall execute proper instruments acknowledging satisfaction of and discharging this Indenture, the Company, however, hereby agreeing to reimburse the Trustee for any costs or expenses thereafter reasonably and properly incurred by the Trustee in connection with this Indenture or the Debt Securities.

Section 12.02. Deposited Moneys to be Held in Trust by Trustee .

Subject to the provisions of Section 12.04, all moneys deposited with the Trustee pursuant to Section 12.01 shall be held in trust and applied by it to the payment, either directly or through any Paying Agent (including the Company if acting as its own Paying Agent), to the holders of the particular Debt Securities for the payment of which such moneys have been deposited with the Trustee, of all sums due and to become due thereon for principal, and premium, if any, and interest.

Section 12.03. Paying Agent to Repay Moneys Held .

Upon the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture, all moneys then held by any Paying Agent of the Debt Securities (other than the Trustee) shall, upon demand of the Company, be repaid to the Company or paid to the Trustee, and thereupon such Paying Agent shall be released from all further liability with respect to such moneys.

Section 12.04. Return of Unclaimed Moneys .

Any moneys deposited with or paid to the Trustee or any Paying Agent for payment of the principal of, and premium, if any, or interest on Debt Securities and not applied but remaining unclaimed by the holders of Debt Securities for two years after the date upon which the principal of, and premium, if any, or interest on such Debt Securities, as the case may be, shall have become due and payable, shall be repaid to the Company by the Trustee or such Paying Agent on written demand; and the holder of any of the Debt Securities shall thereafter look only to the Company for any payment which such holder may be entitled to collect and all liability of the Trustee or such Paying Agent with respect to such moneys shall thereupon cease.

ARTICLE XIII

IMMUNITY OF INCORPORATORS, STOCKHOLDERS, OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS

Section 13.01. Indenture and Debt Securities Solely Corporate Obligations .

No recourse for the payment of the principal of or premium, if any, or interest on any Debt Security, or for any claim based thereon or otherwise in respect thereof, and no recourse under or upon any obligation, covenant or agreement of the Company in this Indenture or in any supplemental indenture, or in any such Debt Security, or because of the creation of any indebtedness represented thereby, shall be had against any incorporator, stockholder, officer, director, employee or agent, as such, past, present or future, of the Company or of any predecessor or successor corporation of the Company, either directly or through the Company or any successor corporation of the Company, whether by virtue of any constitution, statute or rule of law, or by the enforcement of any assessment or penalty or otherwise; it being expressly understood that all such liability is hereby expressly waived and released as a condition of, and as a consideration for, the execution of this Indenture and the issue of the Debt Securities.

ARTICLE XIV

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Section 14.01. Successors .

All the covenants, stipulations, promises and agreements of the Company contained in this Indenture shall bind its successors and assigns whether so expressed or not.

Section 14.02. Official Acts by Successor Entity .

Any act or proceeding by any provision of this Indenture authorized or required to be done or performed by any board, committee or officer of the Company shall and may be done and performed with like force and effect by the like board, committee, officer or other authorized Person of any entity that shall at the time be the lawful successor of the Company.

Section 14.03. Surrender of Company Powers .

The Company by instrument in writing executed by authority of 2/3 (two-thirds) of its Board of Directors and delivered to the Trustee may surrender any of the powers reserved to the Company and thereupon such power so surrendered shall terminate both as to the Company and as to any permitted successor.

Section 14.04. Addresses for Notices, etc .

Any notice or demand which by any provision of this Indenture is required or permitted to be given or served by the Trustee or by the Securityholders on the Company may be given or served in writing by being deposited postage prepaid by registered or certified mail in a post office letter box addressed (until another address is filed by the Company with the Trustee for such purpose) to the Company at:

86 North Main Street

Porterville, California 93257

Attention: Thomas Y. Yamaguchi, Senior Vice President and Treasurer

Any notice, direction, request or demand by any Securityholder or the Company to or upon the Trustee shall be deemed to have been sufficiently given or made, for all purposes, if given or made in writing at the office of Wilmington Trust Company at:

Rodney Square North

1100 North Market Street

Wilmington, Delaware 19890

Attention: Corporate Capital Markets

Section 14.05. Governing Law .

This Indenture and each Debt Security shall be deemed to be a contract made under the law of the State of New York, and for all purposes shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of said State, without regard to conflict of laws principles thereof.

Section 14.06. Evidence of Compliance with Conditions Precedent .

Upon any application or demand by the Company to the Trustee to take any action under any of the provisions of this Indenture, the Company shall furnish to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate stating that in the opinion of the signers all conditions precedent, if any, provided for in this Indenture relating to the proposed action have been complied with and an Opinion of Counsel stating that, in the opinion of such counsel, all such conditions precedent have been complied with (except that no such Opinion of Counsel is required to be furnished to the Trustee in connection with the authentication and issuance of Debt Securities issued on the date of this Indenture).

Each certificate or opinion provided for in this Indenture and delivered to the Trustee with respect to compliance with a condition or covenant provided for in this Indenture (except certificates delivered pursuant to Section 3.05) shall include (a) a statement that the person making such certificate or opinion has read such covenant or condition; (b) a brief statement as to the nature and scope of the examination or investigation upon which the statements or opinions contained in such certificate or opinion are based; (c) a statement that, in the opinion of such person, he or she has made such examination or investigation as is necessary to enable him or her to express an informed opinion as to whether or not such covenant or condition has been complied with; and (d) a statement as to whether or not, in the opinion of such person, such condition or covenant has been complied with.

Section 14.07. Business Day Convention .

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, if any Interest Payment Date, other than the Maturity Date, any Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date, falls on a day that is not a Business Day, then any interest payable will be paid on, and such Interest Payment Date will be moved to, the next succeeding Business Day, and additional interest will accrue for each day that such payment is delayed as a result thereof. If the Maturity Date, any Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date falls on a day that is not a Business Day, then the principal, premium, if any, and/or interest payable on such date will be paid on the next succeeding Business Day, and no additional interest will accrue in respect of such payment made on such next succeeding Business Day.

Section 14.08. Table of Contents, Headings, etc .

The table of contents and the titles and headings of the articles and sections of this Indenture have been inserted for convenience of reference only, are not to be considered a part hereof, and shall in no way modify or restrict any of the terms or provisions hereof.

Section 14.09. Execution in Counterparts .

This Indenture may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be an original, but such counterparts shall together constitute but one and the same instrument.

Section 14.10. Separability .

In case any one or more of the provisions contained in this Indenture or in the Debt Securities shall for any reason be held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any respect, such invalidity, illegality or unenforceability shall not affect any other provisions of this Indenture or of such Debt Securities, but this Indenture and such Debt Securities shall be construed as if such invalid or illegal or unenforceable provision had never been contained herein or therein.

Section 14.11. Assignment .

Subject to Article XI, the Company will have the right at all times to assign any of its rights or obligations under this Indenture to a direct or indirect wholly owned Subsidiary of the Company, provided , that, in the event of any such assignment, the Company will remain liable for all such obligations. Subject to the foregoing, this Indenture is binding upon and inures to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns. This Indenture may not otherwise be assigned by the parties thereto.

Section 14.12. Acknowledgment of Rights .

The Company acknowledges that, with respect to any Debt Securities held by the Trust or the Institutional Trustee of the Trust, if the Institutional Trustee of the Trust fails to enforce its rights under this Indenture as the holder of Debt Securities held as the assets of the Trust after the holders of a majority in Liquidation Amount of the Capital Securities of the Trust have so directed in writing such Institutional Trustee, a holder of record of such Capital Securities may to the fullest extent permitted by law institute legal proceedings directly against the Company to enforce such Institutional Trustee’s rights under this Indenture without first instituting any legal proceedings against such Institutional Trustee or any other Person. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing and such event is attributable to the failure of the Company to pay interest (or premium, if any) or principal on the Debt Securities on the date such interest (or premium, if any) or principal is otherwise due and payable (or in the case of redemption, on the redemption date), the Company acknowledges that a holder of record of Capital Securities of the Trust may directly institute a proceeding against the Company for enforcement of payment to such holder directly of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest on the Debt Securities having an aggregate principal amount equal to the aggregate Liquidation Amount of the Capital Securities of such holder on or after the respective due date specified in the Debt Securities.

ARTICLE XV

SUBORDINATION OF DEBT SECURITIES

Section 15.01. Agreement to Subordinate .

The Company covenants and agrees, and each holder of Debt Securities issued hereunder and under any supplemental indenture (the “Additional Provisions”) by such Securityholder’s acceptance thereof likewise covenants and agrees, that all Debt Securities shall be issued subject to the provisions of this Article XV; and each holder of a Debt Security, whether upon original issue or upon transfer or assignment thereof, accepts and agrees to be bound by such provisions.

The payment by the Company of the payments due on all Debt Securities issued hereunder and under any Additional Provisions shall, to the extent and in the manner hereinafter set forth, be subordinated and junior in right of payment to the prior payment in full of all Senior Indebtedness of the Company, whether outstanding at the date of this Indenture or thereafter incurred.

No provision of this Article XV shall prevent the occurrence of any default or Event of Default hereunder.

Section 15.02. Default on Senior Indebtedness .

In the event and during the continuation of any default by the Company in the payment of principal, premium, interest or any other payment due on any Senior Indebtedness of the Company following any applicable grace period, or in the event that the maturity of any Senior Indebtedness of the Company has been accelerated because of a default, and such acceleration has not been rescinded or canceled and such Senior Indebtedness has not been paid in full then, in either case, no payment shall be made by the Company with respect to the payments due on the Debt Securities.

In the event that, notwithstanding the foregoing, any payment shall be received by the Trustee when such payment is prohibited by the preceding paragraph of this Section 15.02, such payment shall, subject to Section 15.06, be held in trust for the benefit of, and shall be paid over or delivered to, the holders of Senior Indebtedness or their respective representatives, or to the trustee or trustees under any indenture pursuant to which any of such Senior Indebtedness may have been issued, as their respective interests may appear, but only to the extent that the holders of the Senior Indebtedness (or their representative or representatives or a trustee) notify the Trustee in writing within 90 days of such payment of the amounts then due and owing on the Senior Indebtedness and only the amounts specified in such notice to the Trustee shall be paid to the holders of Senior Indebtedness.

Section 15.03. Liquidation; Dissolution; Bankruptcy .

Upon any payment by the Company or distribution of assets of the Company of any kind or character, whether in cash, property or securities, to creditors upon any dissolution or winding-up or liquidation or reorganization of the Company, whether voluntary or involuntary or in bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or other proceedings, all amounts due upon all Senior Indebtedness of the Company shall first be paid in full, or payment thereof provided for in money in accordance with its terms, before any payment is made by the Company on the Debt Securities; and upon any such dissolution or winding-up or liquidation or reorganization, any payment by the Company, or distribution of assets of the Company of any kind or character,

whether in cash, property or securities, to which the Securityholders or the Trustee would be entitled to receive from the Company, except for the provisions of this Article XV, shall be paid by the Company, or by any receiver, trustee in bankruptcy, liquidating trustee, agent or other Person making such payment or distribution, or by the Securityholders or by the Trustee under this Indenture if received by them or it, directly to the holders of Senior Indebtedness of the Company (pro rata to such holders on the basis of the respective amounts of Senior Indebtedness held by such holders, as calculated by the Company) or their representative or representatives, or to the trustee or trustees under any indenture pursuant to which any instruments evidencing such Senior Indebtedness may have been issued, as their respective interests may appear, to the extent necessary to pay such Senior Indebtedness in full, in money or money’s worth, after giving effect to any concurrent payment or distribution to or for the holders of such Senior Indebtedness, before any payment or distribution is made to the Securityholders or to the Trustee.

In the event that, notwithstanding the foregoing, any payment or distribution of assets of the Company of any kind or character, whether in cash, property or securities, prohibited by the foregoing, shall be received by the Trustee or any Securityholder before all Senior Indebtedness of the Company is paid in full, or provision is made for such payment in money in accordance with its terms, such payment or distribution shall be held in trust for the benefit of and shall be paid over or delivered to the holders of such Senior Indebtedness or their representative or representatives, or to the trustee or trustees under any indenture pursuant to which any instruments evidencing such Senior Indebtedness may have been issued, as their respective interests may appear, as calculated by the Company, for application to the payment of all Senior Indebtedness of the Company remaining unpaid to the extent necessary to pay such Senior Indebtedness in full in money in accordance with its terms, after giving effect to any concurrent payment or distribution to or for the benefit of the holders of such Senior Indebtedness.

For purposes of this Article XV, the words “cash, property or securities” shall not be deemed to include shares of stock of the Company as reorganized or readjusted, or securities of the Company or any other corporation provided for by a plan of reorganization or readjustment, the payment of which is subordinated at least to the extent provided in this Article XV with respect to the Debt Securities to the payment of all Senior Indebtedness of the Company, that may at the time be outstanding, provided , that (a) such Senior Indebtedness is assumed by the new corporation, if any, resulting from any such reorganization or readjustment, and (b) the rights of the holders of such Senior Indebtedness are not, without the consent of such holders, altered by such reorganization or readjustment. The consolidation of the Company with, or the merger of the Company into, another corporation or the liquidation or dissolution of the Company following the conveyance or transfer of its property as an entirety, or substantially as an entirety, to another corporation upon the terms and conditions provided for in Article XI of this Indenture shall not be deemed a dissolution, winding-up, liquidation or reorganization for the purposes of this Section 15.03 if such other corporation shall, as a part of such consolidation, merger, conveyance or transfer, comply with the conditions stated in Article XI of this Indenture. Nothing in Section 15.02 or in this Section 15.03 shall apply to claims of, or payments to, the Trustee under or pursuant to Section 6.06 of this Indenture.

Section 15.04. Subrogation .

Subject to the payment in full of all Senior Indebtedness of the Company, the Securityholders shall be subrogated to the rights of the holders of such Senior Indebtedness to receive payments or distributions of cash, property or securities of the Company applicable to such Senior Indebtedness until all payments due on the Debt Securities shall be paid in full; and, for the purposes of such subrogation, no payments or distributions to the holders of such Senior Indebtedness of any cash, property or securities to which the Securityholders or the Trustee would be entitled except for the provisions of this Article XV, and no payment over pursuant to the provisions of this Article XV to or for the benefit of the holders of such Senior Indebtedness by Securityholders or the Trustee, shall, as between the Company, its creditors other than holders of Senior Indebtedness of the Company, and the holders of the Debt Securities be deemed to be a payment or distribution by the Company to or on account of such Senior Indebtedness. It is understood that the provisions of this Article XV are and are intended solely for the purposes of defining the relative rights of the holders of the Debt Securities, on the one hand, and the holders of such Senior Indebtedness, on the other hand.

Nothing contained in this Article XV or elsewhere in this Indenture, any Additional Provisions or in the Debt Securities is intended to or shall impair, as between the Company, its creditors other than the holders of Senior Indebtedness of the Company, and the holders of the Debt Securities, the obligation of the Company, which is absolute and unconditional, to pay to the holders of the Debt Securities all payments on the Debt Securities as and when the same shall become due and payable in accordance with their terms, or is intended to or shall affect the relative rights of the holders of the Debt Securities and creditors of the Company, other than the holders of Senior Indebtedness of the Company, nor shall anything herein or therein prevent the Trustee or the holder of any Debt Security from exercising all remedies otherwise permitted by applicable law upon default under this Indenture, subject to the rights, if any, under this Article XV of the holders of such Senior Indebtedness in respect of cash, property or securities of the Company received upon the exercise of any such remedy.

Upon any payment or distribution of assets of the Company referred to in this Article XV, the Trustee, subject to the provisions of Article VI of this Indenture, and the Securityholders shall be entitled to conclusively rely upon any order or decree made by any court of competent jurisdiction in which such dissolution, winding-up, liquidation or reorganization proceedings are pending, or a certificate of the receiver, trustee in bankruptcy, liquidation trustee, agent or other Person making such payment or distribution, delivered to the Trustee or to the Securityholders, for the purposes of ascertaining the Persons entitled to participate in such distribution, the holders of Senior Indebtedness and other indebtedness of the Company, the amount thereof or payable thereon, the amount or amounts paid or distributed thereon and all other facts pertinent thereto or to this Article XV.

Section 15.05. Trustee to Effectuate Subordination .

Each Securityholder by such Securityholder’s acceptance thereof authorizes and directs the Trustee on such Securityholder’s behalf to take such action as may be necessary or appropriate to effectuate the subordination provided in this Article XV and appoints the Trustee such Securityholder’s attorney-in-fact for any and all such purposes.

Section 15.06. Notice by the Company .

The Company shall give prompt written notice to a Responsible Officer of the Trustee at the Principal Office of the Trustee of any fact known to the Company that would prohibit the making of any payment of moneys to or by the Trustee in respect of the Debt Securities pursuant to the provisions of this Article XV. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Article XV or any other provision of this Indenture or any Additional Provisions, the Trustee shall not be charged with knowledge of the existence of any facts that would prohibit the making of any payment of moneys to or by the Trustee in respect of the Debt Securities pursuant to the provisions of this Article XV, unless and until a Responsible Officer of the Trustee at the Principal Office of the Trustee shall have received written notice thereof from the Company or a holder or holders of Senior Indebtedness or from any trustee therefor; and before the receipt of any such written notice, the Trustee, subject to the provisions of Article VI of this Indenture, shall be entitled in all respects to assume that no such facts exist; provided , however , that if the Trustee shall not have received the notice provided for in this Section 15.06 at least two Business Days prior to the date upon which by the terms hereof any money may become payable for any purpose (including, without limitation, the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest on any Debt Security), then, anything herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding, the Trustee shall have full power and authority to receive such money and to apply the same to the purposes for which they were received, and shall not be affected by any notice to the contrary that may be received by it within two Business Days prior to such date.

The Trustee, subject to the provisions of Article VI of this Indenture, shall be entitled to conclusively rely on the delivery to it of a written notice by a Person representing himself or herself to be a holder of Senior Indebtedness of the Company (or a trustee or representative on behalf of such holder) to establish that such notice has been given by a holder of such Senior Indebtedness or a trustee or representative on behalf of any such holder or holders. In the event that the Trustee determines in good faith that further evidence is required with respect to the right of any Person as a holder of such Senior Indebtedness to participate in any payment or distribution pursuant to this Article XV, the Trustee may request such Person to furnish evidence to the reasonable satisfaction of the Trustee as to the amount of such Senior Indebtedness held by such Person, the extent to which such Person is entitled to participate in such payment or distribution and any other facts pertinent to the rights of such Person under this Article XV, and, if such evidence is not furnished, the Trustee may defer any payment to such Person pending judicial determination as to the right of such Person to receive such payment.

Section 15.07. Rights of the Trustee; Holders of Senior Indebtedness.

The Trustee in its individual capacity shall be entitled to all the rights set forth in this Article XV in respect of any Senior Indebtedness at any time held by it, to the same extent as any other holder of Senior Indebtedness, and nothing in this Indenture or any Additional Provisions shall deprive the Trustee of any of its rights as such holder.

With respect to the holders of Senior Indebtedness of the Company, the Trustee undertakes to perform or to observe only such of its covenants and obligations as are specifically set forth in this Article XV, and no implied covenants or obligations with respect to the holders of such Senior Indebtedness shall be read into this Indenture or any Additional Provisions against the Trustee. The Trustee shall not owe or be deemed to owe any fiduciary duty to the holders of such Senior Indebtedness and, subject to the provisions of Article VI of this Indenture, the

Trustee shall not be liable to any holder of such Senior Indebtedness if it shall pay over or deliver to Securityholders, the Company or any other Person money or assets to which any holder of such Senior Indebtedness shall be entitled by virtue of this Article XV or otherwise.

Nothing in this Article XV shall apply to claims of, or payments to, the Trustee under or pursuant to Section 6.06.

Section 15.08. Subordination May Not Be Impaired .

No right of any present or future holder of any Senior Indebtedness of the Company to enforce subordination as herein provided shall at any time in any way be prejudiced or impaired by any act or failure to act on the part of the Company, or by any act or failure to act, in good faith, by any such holder, or by any noncompliance by the Company, with the terms, provisions and covenants of this Indenture, regardless of any knowledge thereof that any such holder may have or otherwise be charged with.

Without in any way limiting the generality of the foregoing paragraph, the holders of Senior Indebtedness of the Company may, at any time and from time to time, without the consent of or notice to the Trustee or the Securityholders, without incurring responsibility to the Securityholders and without impairing or releasing the subordination provided in this Article XV or the obligations hereunder of the holders of the Debt Securities to the holders of such Senior Indebtedness, do any one or more of the following: (a) change the manner, place or terms of payment or extend the time of payment of, or renew or alter, such Senior Indebtedness, or otherwise amend or supplement in any manner such Senior Indebtedness or any instrument evidencing the same or any agreement under which such Senior Indebtedness is outstanding; (b) sell, exchange, release or otherwise deal with any property pledged, mortgaged or otherwise securing such Senior Indebtedness; (c) release any Person liable in any manner for the collection of such Senior Indebtedness; and (d) exercise or refrain from exercising any rights against the Company, and any other Person.

Wilmington Trust Company, in its capacity as Trustee, hereby accepts the trusts in this Indenture declared and provided, upon the terms and conditions herein above set forth.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Indenture to be duly executed by their respective officers thereunto duly authorized, as of the day and year first above written.


SIERRA BANCORP

By		/s/ Kenneth R. Taylor
Name:		Kenneth R. Taylor
Title:		Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY, as Trustee

By		/s/ Geoffrey J. Lewis
Name:		Geoffrey J. Lewis
Title:		Financial Services Officer

EXHIBIT A

FORM OF FLOATING RATE JUNIOR SUBORDINATED DEBT SECURITY DUE 2036

[FORM OF FACE OF SECURITY]

THIS SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), OR ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS OR ANY OTHER APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS. NEITHER THIS SECURITY NOR ANY INTEREST OR PARTICIPATION HEREIN MAY BE REOFFERED, SOLD, ASSIGNED, TRANSFERRED, PLEDGED, ENCUMBERED OR OTHERWISE DISPOSED OF IN THE ABSENCE OF SUCH REGISTRATION OR UNLESS SUCH TRANSACTION IS EXEMPT FROM, OR NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT. THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES TO OFFER, SELL OR OTHERWISE TRANSFER SUCH SECURITY ONLY (A) TO THE COMPANY, (B) PURSUANT TO RULE 144A UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT (“RULE 144A”), TO A PERSON THE HOLDER REASONABLY BELIEVES IS A “QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER” AS DEFINED IN RULE 144A THAT PURCHASES FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF A QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER TO WHOM NOTICE IS GIVEN THAT THE TRANSFER IS BEING MADE IN RELIANCE ON RULE 144A, (C) PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT TO AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR” WITHIN THE MEANING OF SUBPARAGRAPH (a) (1), (2), (3) OR (7) OF RULE 501 UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT THAT IS ACQUIRING THE SECURITY FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT, OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR,” FOR INVESTMENT PURPOSES AND NOT WITH A VIEW TO, OR FOR OFFER OR SALE IN CONNECTION WITH, ANY DISTRIBUTION IN VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES ACT, OR (D) PURSUANT TO ANOTHER AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT, SUBJECT TO THE COMPANY’S RIGHT PRIOR TO ANY SUCH OFFER, SALE OR TRANSFER PURSUANT TO CLAUSES (C) OR (D) TO REQUIRE THE DELIVERY OF AN OPINION OF COUNSEL, CERTIFICATION AND/OR OTHER INFORMATION SATISFACTORY TO IT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE INDENTURE, A COPY OF WHICH MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE COMPANY. THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES THAT IT WILL COMPLY WITH THE FOREGOING RESTRICTIONS.

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1974, AS AMENDED (“ERISA”), OR SECTION 4975 OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986, AS AMENDED (THE “CODE”), (EACH A “PLAN”), OR AN ENTITY WHOSE UNDERLYING ASSETS INCLUDE “PLAN ASSETS” BY REASON OF ANY PLAN’S INVESTMENT IN THE ENTITY AND NO PERSON INVESTING “PLAN ASSETS” OF ANY PLAN MAY ACQUIRE OR HOLD THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN, UNLESS SUCH PURCHASER OR HOLDER IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE EXEMPTIVE RELIEF AVAILABLE UNDER U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR PROHIBITED TRANSACTION CLASS EXEMPTION 96-23, 95-60, 91-38, 90-1 OR 84-14 OR ANOTHER APPLICABLE EXEMPTION OR ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING OF THIS SECURITY IS NOT PROHIBITED BY SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE WITH RESPECT TO SUCH PURCHASE OR HOLDING. ANY PURCHASER OR HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN WILL BE DEEMED TO HAVE REPRESENTED BY ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING THEREOF THAT EITHER (i) IT IS NOT AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN WITHIN THE MEANING OF SECTION 3(3) OF ERISA, OR A PLAN TO WHICH SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE IS APPLICABLE, A TRUSTEE OR OTHER PERSON ACTING ON BEHALF OF AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY USING THE ASSETS OF ANY EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN TO FINANCE SUCH PURCHASE, OR (ii) SUCH PURCHASE WILL NOT RESULT IN A PROHIBITED TRANSACTION UNDER SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE FOR WHICH THERE IS NO APPLICABLE STATUTORY OR ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTION.

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Floating Rate Junior Subordinated Debt Security due 2036

SIERRA BANCORP

Sierra Bancorp, a bank holding company incorporated in California (the “Company”), for value received promises to pay to Wilmington Trust Company, not in its individual capacity but solely as Institutional Trustee for Sierra Capital Trust III, a Delaware statutory trust (the “Holder”), or registered assigns, the principal sum of FIFTEEN MILLION FOUR HUNDRED SIXTY-FOUR THOUSAND DOLLARS ($15,464,000) on September 23, 2036 and to pay interest on said principal sum from June 15, 2006, or from the most recent interest payment date (each such date, an “Interest Payment Date”) to which interest has been paid or duly provided for, quarterly (subject to deferral as set forth herein) in arrears on March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 of each year commencing September 23, 2006, at a variable per annum rate equal to LIBOR (as defined in the Indenture) plus 1.40% (the “Interest Rate”) until the principal hereof shall have become due and payable, and on any overdue principal and (without duplication and to the extent that payment of such interest is enforceable under applicable law) on any overdue installment of interest at an annual rate equal to the Interest Rate in effect for each such Extension Period compounded quarterly. The amount of interest payable on any Interest Payment Date shall be computed on the basis of a 360-day year and the actual number of days elapsed in the relevant interest period. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, if any Interest Payment Date, other than the Maturity Date, any Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date, falls on a day that is not a Business Day, then any interest payable will be paid on, and such Interest Payment Date will be moved to, the next succeeding Business Day, and additional interest will accrue for each day that such payment is delayed as a result thereof. If the Maturity Date, any Redemption Date or the Special Redemption Date falls on a day that is not a Business Day, then the principal, premium, if any, and/or interest payable on such date will be paid on the next succeeding Business Day, and no additional interest will accrue in respect of such payment made on such next succeeding Business Day. The interest installment so payable, and punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date will, as provided in the Indenture, be paid to the Person in whose name this Debt Security (or one or more Predecessor Securities, as defined in said Indenture) is registered at the close of business on the regular record date for such interest installment, except that interest and any Deferred Interest payable on the Maturity Date shall be paid to the Person to whom principal is paid. Any such interest installment not punctually paid or duly provided for shall forthwith cease to be payable to the registered holders on such regular record date and may be paid to the Person in whose name this Debt Security (or one or more Predecessor Debt Securities) is registered at the close of business on a special record date to be fixed by the Trustee for the payment of such defaulted interest, notice whereof shall be given to the registered holders of the Debt Securities not less than 10 days prior to such special record date, all as more fully provided in the Indenture. The principal of and interest on this Debt Security shall be payable at the office or agency of the Trustee (or other paying agent appointed by the Company) maintained for that purpose in any coin or currency of the United States of America that at the time of payment is legal tender for payment of public and private debts; provided , however , that payment of interest may be made at the option of the Company by check mailed to the registered holder at such address as shall appear in the Debt Security Register or by wire transfer to an

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account appropriately designated by the holder hereof. Notwithstanding the foregoing, so long as the holder of this Debt Security is the Institutional Trustee, the payment of the principal of and interest on this Debt Security will be made in immediately available funds at such place and to such account as may be designated by the Trustee.

So long as no Event of Default pursuant to Sections 5.01(b), (e) or (f) of the Indenture has occurred and is continuing, the Company shall have the right, from time to time and without causing an Event of Default, to defer payments of interest on the Debt Securities by extending the interest payment period on the Debt Securities at any time and from time to time during the term of the Debt Securities, for up to 20 consecutive quarterly periods (each such extended interest payment period, an “Extension Period”), during which Extension Period no interest shall be due and payable (except any Additional Interest that may be due and payable). During any Extension Period, interest will continue to accrue on the Debt Securities, and interest on such accrued interest (such accrued interest and interest thereon referred to herein as “Deferred Interest”) will accrue, at the Interest Rate, compounded quarterly from the date such Deferred Interest would have been payable were it not for the Extension Period, both to the extent permitted by law. No Extension Period may end on a date other than an Interest Payment Date. At the end of any such Extension Period the Company shall pay all Deferred Interest then accrued and unpaid on the Debt Securities; provided , however , that no Extension Period may extend beyond the Maturity Date, Redemption Date or Special Redemption Date and provided , further , however, during any such Extension Period, the Company may not (A) declare or pay any dividends or distributions on, or redeem, purchase, acquire, or make a liquidation payment with respect to, any of the Company’s capital stock, (B) make any payment on or repay, repurchase or redeem any debt securities of the Company that rank pari passu in all respects with or junior in interest to the Debt Securities or (C) make any payment under any guarantees of the Company that rank pari passu in all respects with or junior in interest to the Capital Securities Guarantee (other than (a) repurchases, redemptions or other acquisitions of shares of capital stock of the Company (I) in connection with any employment contract, benefit plan or other similar arrangement with or for the benefit of one or more employees, officers, directors or consultants, (II) in connection with a dividend reinvestment or stockholder stock purchase plan or (III) in connection with the issuance of capital stock of the Company (or securities convertible into or exercisable for such capital stock) as consideration in an acquisition transaction entered into prior to the occurrence of (I), (II) or (III) above, (b) as a result of any exchange or conversion of any class or series of the Company’s capital stock (or any capital stock of a subsidiary of the Company) for any class or series of the Company’s capital stock or of any class or series of the Company’s indebtedness for any class or series of the Company’s capital stock, (c) the purchase of fractional interests in shares of the Company’s capital stock pursuant to the conversion or exchange provisions of such capital stock or the security being converted or exchanged, (d) any declaration of a dividend in connection with any stockholder’s rights plan, or the issuance of rights, stock or other property under any stockholder’s rights plan, or the redemption or repurchase of rights pursuant thereto or (e) any dividend in the form of stock, warrants, options or other rights where the dividend stock or the stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants, options or other rights is the same stock as that on which the dividend is being paid or ranks pari passu with or junior in interest to such stock). Prior to the termination of any Extension Period, the Company may further extend such period, provided , that such period together with all such previous and further consecutive extensions thereof shall not exceed 20 consecutive quarterly periods, or extend beyond the Maturity Date. Upon the termination of any

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Extension Period and upon the payment of all Deferred Interest, the Company may commence a new Extension Period, subject to the foregoing requirements. No interest or Deferred Interest shall be due and payable during an Extension Period, except at the end thereof, but interest shall accrue upon each installment of interest that would otherwise have been due and payable during such Extension Period until such installment is paid. The Company must give the Trustee notice of its election to begin such Extension Period at least one Business Day prior to the date such interest is payable, but in any event not later than the related regular record date.

The indebtedness evidenced by this Debt Security is, to the extent provided in the Indenture, subordinate and junior in right of payment to the prior payment in full of all Senior Indebtedness, and this Debt Security is issued subject to the provisions of the Indenture with respect thereto. Each holder of this Debt Security, by accepting the same, (a) agrees to and shall be bound by such provisions, (b) authorizes and directs the Trustee on such holder’s behalf to take such action as may be necessary or appropriate to acknowledge or effectuate the subordination so provided and (c) appoints the Trustee such holder’s attorney-in-fact for any and all such purposes. Each holder hereof, by such holder’s acceptance hereof, hereby waives all notice of the acceptance of the subordination provisions contained herein and in the Indenture by each holder of Senior Indebtedness, whether now outstanding or hereafter incurred, and waives reliance by each such holder upon said provisions.

The Company waives demand, presentment for payment, notice of nonpayment, notice of protest, and all other notices.

This Debt Security shall not be entitled to any benefit under the Indenture hereinafter referred to and shall not be valid or become obligatory for any purpose until the certificate of authentication hereon shall have been signed by or on behalf of the Trustee.

The provisions of this Debt Security are continued on the reverse side hereof and such continued provisions shall for all purposes have the same effect as though fully set forth at this place.

This Debt Security may contain more than one counterpart of the signature page and this Debt Security may be executed and authenticated by the affixing of the signature of a proper officer of the Company, and the signature of the Trustee providing authentication, to any of such counterpart signature pages. All of such counterpart signature pages shall be read as though one, and they shall have the same force and effect as though the Company had executed, and the Trustee had authenticated, a single signature page.

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has duly executed this certificate.


SIERRA BANCORP

By:
Name:		Kenneth R. Taylor
Title:		Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Dated: ,

CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICATION

This certificate represents Debt Securities referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.


WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY, not in its individual capacity but solely as the Trustee

By:
		Authorized Officer

Dated: ,

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[FORM OF REVERSE OF SECURITY]

This Debt Security is one of a duly authorized series of Debt Securities of the Company, all issued or to be issued pursuant to an Indenture (the “Indenture”), dated as of June 15, 2006, duly executed and delivered between the Company and Wilmington Trust Company, as Trustee (the “Trustee”), to which Indenture and all indentures supplemental thereto reference is hereby made for a description of the rights, limitations of rights, obligations, duties and immunities thereunder of the Trustee, the Company and the holders of the Debt Securities (referred to herein as the “Debt Securities”) of which this Debt Security is a part. The summary of the terms of this Debt Security contained herein does not purport to be complete and is qualified by reference to the Indenture.

Upon the occurrence and continuation of a Tax Event, an Investment Company Event or a Capital Treatment Event, this Debt Security may become due and payable, in whole but not in part, at any time, within 90 days following the occurrence of such Tax Event, Investment Company Event or Capital Treatment Event (the “Special Redemption Date”), as the case may be, at the Special Redemption Price. The Company shall also have the right to redeem this Debt Security at the option of the Company, in whole or in part, on any March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 on or after September 23, 2011 (a “Redemption Date”), at the Redemption Price.

Any redemption pursuant to the preceding paragraph will be made, subject to the receipt by the Company of prior approval from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve”) if then required under applicable capital guidelines or policies of the Federal Reserve, upon not less than 30 days’ nor more than 60 days’ notice. If the Debt Securities are only partially redeemed by the Company, the Debt Securities will be redeemed pro rata or by lot or by any other method utilized by the Trustee.

“Redemption Price” means 100% of the principal amount of the Debt Securities being redeemed plus accrued and unpaid interest on such Debt Securities to the Redemption Date or, in the case of a redemption due to the occurrence of a Special Event, to the Special Redemption Date if such Special Redemption Date is on or after September 23, 2011.


Special Event Redemption During Period Beginning On		Percentage of Principal Amount
June 15, 2006		104.40
September 23, 2007		103.52
September 23, 2008		102.64
September 23, 2009		101.76
September 23, 2010		100.88
September 23, 2011		100.00

A-1-7

In the event of redemption of this Debt Security in part only, a new Debt Security or Debt Securities for the unredeemed portion hereof will be issued in the name of the holder hereof upon the cancellation hereof.

In case an Event of Default, as defined in the Indenture, shall have occurred and be continuing, the principal of all of the Debt Securities may be declared due and payable, and upon such declaration of acceleration shall become due and payable, in the manner, with the effect and subject to the conditions provided in the Indenture.

The Indenture contains provisions permitting the Company and the Trustee, with the consent of the holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities at the time outstanding affected thereby, as specified in the Indenture, to execute supplemental indentures for the purpose of adding any provisions to or changing in any manner or eliminating any of the provisions of the Indenture or of any supplemental indenture or of modifying in any manner the rights of the holders of the Debt Securities; provided , however , that no such supplemental indenture shall, among other things, without the consent of the holders of each Debt Security then outstanding and affected thereby (i) extend the fixed maturity of the Debt Securities, or reduce the principal amount thereof or any redemption premium thereon, or reduce the rate or extend the time of payment of interest thereon, or make payments due on the Debt Securities payable in any coin or currency other than that provided in the Debt Securities, or impair or affect the right of any holder of Debt Securities to institute suit for the payment thereof, or (ii) reduce the aforesaid percentage of Debt Securities, the holders of which are required to consent to any such supplemental indenture. The Indenture also contains provisions permitting the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Debt Securities at the time outstanding, on behalf of all of the holders of the Debt Securities, to waive any past default in the performance of any of the covenants contained in the Indenture, or established pursuant to the Indenture, and its consequences, except a default in payments due on any of the Debt Securities. Any such consent or waiver by the registered holder of this Debt Security (unless revoked as provided in the Indenture) shall be conclusive and binding upon such holder and upon all future holders and owners of this Debt Security and of any Debt Security issued in exchange herefor or in place hereof (whether by registration of transfer or otherwise), irrespective of whether or not any notation of such consent or waiver is made upon this Debt Security.

No reference herein to the Indenture and no provision of this Debt Security or of the Indenture shall alter or impair the obligation of the Company, which is absolute and unconditional, to pay all payments due on this Debt Security at the time and place and at the rate and in the money herein prescribed.

As provided in the Indenture and subject to certain limitations herein and therein set forth, this Debt Security is transferable by the registered holder hereof on the Debt Security Register of the Company, upon surrender of this Debt Security for registration of transfer at the office or agency of the Trustee in Wilmington, Delaware accompanied by a written instrument or instruments of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company or the Trustee duly executed by the registered holder hereof or such holder’s attorney duly authorized in writing, and thereupon one or more new Debt Securities of authorized denominations and for the same aggregate principal

A-1-8

amount will be issued to the designated transferee or transferees. No service charge will be made for any such registration of transfer, but the Company may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge payable in relation thereto.

Prior to due presentment for registration of transfer of this Debt Security, the Company, the Trustee, any Authenticating Agent, any Paying Agent, any transfer agent and the Debt Security registrar may deem and treat the registered holder hereof as the absolute owner hereof (whether or not this Debt Security shall be overdue and notwithstanding any notice of ownership or writing hereon) for the purpose of receiving payment of or on account of the principal hereof, premium, if any, and interest due hereon and for all other purposes, and neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any Authenticating Agent nor any Paying Agent nor any transfer agent nor any Debt Security registrar shall be affected by any notice to the contrary.

No recourse shall be had for the payment of the principal of or premium, if any, or the interest on this Debt Security, or for any claim based hereon, or otherwise in respect hereof, or based on or in respect of the Indenture, against any incorporator, stockholder, officer or director, past, present or future, as such, of the Company or of any predecessor or successor corporation, whether by virtue of any constitution, statute or rule of law, or by the enforcement of any assessment or penalty or otherwise, all such liability being, by the acceptance hereof and as part of the consideration for the issuance hereof, expressly waived and released.

The Debt Securities are issuable only in registered certificated form without coupons. As provided in the Indenture and subject to certain limitations herein and therein set forth, Debt Securities are exchangeable for a like aggregate principal amount of Debt Securities of a different authorized denomination, as requested by the holder surrendering the same.

All terms used in this Debt Security that are defined in the Indenture shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Indenture.

THE LAW OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK SHALL GOVERN THE INDENTURE AND THE DEBT SECURITIES, WITHOUT REGARD TO CONFLICT OF LAWS PRINCIPLES THEREOF.

A-1-9

EXHIBIT B

FORM OF CERTIFICATE

OF OFFICER

SIERRA BANCORP

Pursuant to Section 3.05 of the Indenture between Sierra Bancorp, as issuer (the “Company”), and Wilmington Trust Company, as trustee, dated as of June 15, 2006 (as amended or supplemented from time to time, the “Indenture”), the undersigned certifies that he/she is a principal executive officer, principal financial officer or principal accounting officer of the Company and in the course of the performance by the undersigned of his/her duties as an officer of the Company, the undersigned would normally have knowledge of any default by the Company in the performance of any covenants contained in the Indenture, and the undersigned hereby further certifies that he/she has no knowledge of any such default for the year 20 [,except as follows: specify each such default and the nature thereof ].

Capitalized terms used herein, and not otherwise defined herein, have the respective meanings ascribed thereto in the Indenture.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this Certificate as of , 20 .




Name:

Title:

B-1-1

EXHIBIT 10.27

AMENDED AND RESTATED DECLARATION

OF TRUST

SIERRA CAPITAL TRUST III

Dated as of June 15, 2006

TABLE OF CONTENTS


		Page
ARTICLE I INTERPRETATION AND DEFINITIONS		1

Section 1.1.	Definitions	1

ARTICLE II ORGANIZATION		8

Section 2.1.	Name	8

Section 2.2.	Office	9

Section 2.3.	Purpose	9

Section 2.4.	Authority	9

Section 2.5.	Title to Property of the Trust	9

Section 2.6.	Powers and Duties of the Trustees and the Administrators	9

Section 2.7.	Prohibition of Actions by the Trust and the Trustees	14

Section 2.8.	Powers and Duties of the Institutional Trustee	15

Section 2.9.	Certain Duties and Responsibilities of the Trustees and the Administrators	17

Section 2.10.	Certain Rights of Institutional Trustee	18

Section 2.11.	Delaware Trustee	21

Section 2.12.	Execution of Documents	21

Section 2.13.	Not Responsible for Recitals or Issuance of Securities	21

Section 2.14.	Duration of Trust	21

Section 2.15.	Mergers	21

ARTICLE III SPONSOR		23

Section 3.1.	Sponsor’s Purchase of Common Securities	23

Section 3.2.	Responsibilities of the Sponsor	23

ARTICLE IV TRUSTEES AND ADMINISTRATORS		24

Section 4.1.	Number of Trustees	24

Section 4.2.	Delaware Trustee	24

Section 4.3.	Institutional Trustee; Eligibility	24

Section 4.4.	Certain Qualifications of the Delaware Trustee Generally	25

Section 4.5.	Administrators	25

Section 4.6.	Initial Delaware Trustee	25

Section 4.7.	Appointment, Removal and Resignation of the Trustees and the Administrators	25

-i-

TABLE OF CONTENTS

(continued)


		Page
Section 4.8.	Vacancies Among Trustees	27

Section 4.9.	Effect of Vacancies	27

Section 4.10.	Meetings of the Trustees and the Administrators	27

Section 4.11.	Delegation of Power	28

Section 4.12.	Merger, Conversion, Consolidation or Succession to Business	28

ARTICLE V DISTRIBUTIONS		28

Section 5.1.	Distributions	28

ARTICLE VI ISSUANCE OF SECURITIES		29

Section 6.1.	General Provisions Regarding Securities	29

Section 6.2.	Paying Agent, Transfer Agent, Calculation Agent and Registrar	30

Section 6.3.	Form and Dating	30

Section 6.4.	Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Certificates	31

Section 6.5.	Temporary Certificates	31

Section 6.6.	Cancellation	32

Section 6.7.	Rights of Holders; Waivers of Past Defaults	32

ARTICLE VII DISSOLUTION AND TERMINATION OF TRUST		34

Section 7.1.	Dissolution and Termination of Trust	34

ARTICLE VIII TRANSFER OF INTERESTS		35

Section 8.1.	General	35

Section 8.2.	Transfer Procedures and Restrictions	36

Section 8.3.	Deemed Security Holders	39

Section 8.4.	Transfer of Initial Securities	39

ARTICLE IX LIMITATION OF LIABILITY OF HOLDERS OF SECURITIES, TRUSTEES OR OTHERS		39

Section 9.1.	Liability	39

Section 9.2.	Exculpation	40

Section 9.3.	Fiduciary Duty	40

Section 9.4.	Indemnification	41

Section 9.5.	Outside Businesses	44

Section 9.6.	Compensation; Fee	44

-ii-

TABLE OF CONTENTS

(continued)


		Page
ARTICLE X ACCOUNTING		45

Section 10.1.	Fiscal Year	45

Section 10.2.	Certain Accounting Matters	45

Section 10.3.	Banking	46

Section 10.4.	Withholding	46

ARTICLE XI AMENDMENTS AND MEETINGS		46

Section 11.1.	Amendments	46

Section 11.2.	Meetings of the Holders of the Securities; Action by Written Consent	48

ARTICLE XII REPRESENTATIONS OF INSTITUTIONAL TRUSTEE AND DELAWARE TRUSTEE		50

Section 12.1.	Representations and Warranties of Institutional Trustee	50

Section 12.2.	Representations and Warranties of Delaware Trustee	50

ARTICLE XIII MISCELLANEOUS		51

Section 13.1.	Notices	51

Section 13.2.	Governing Law	53

Section 13.3.	Submission to Jurisdiction	53

Section 13.4.	Intention of the Parties	53

Section 13.5.	Headings	53

Section 13.6.	Successors and Assigns	53

Section 13.7.	Partial Enforceability	54

Section 13.8.	Counterparts	54

ANNEXES AND EXHIBITS


ANNEX I	TERMS OF FLOATING RATE CAPITAL SECURITIES AND FLOATING RATE COMMON SECURITIES	A-I-1

EXHIBIT A-1	FORM OF CAPITAL SECURITY CERTIFICATE	A-1-1

EXHIBIT A-2	FORM OF COMMON SECURITY CERTIFICATE	A-2-1

EXHIBIT B	FORM OF TRANSFEREE CERTIFICATE TO BE EXECUTED BY TRANSFEREES OTHER THAN QIBs	B-1

EXHIBIT C	FORM OF TRANSFEROR CERTIFICATE TO BE EXECUTED FOR QIBs	C-1

EXHIBIT D	FORM OF ADMINISTRATOR’S CERTIFICATE OF THE TRUST	D-1

-iii-

AMENDED AND RESTATED DECLARATION OF TRUST

SIERRA CAPITAL TRUST III

June 15, 2006

AMENDED AND RESTATED DECLARATION OF TRUST (this “Declaration”), dated and effective as of June 15, 2006, by the Trustees (as defined herein), the Administrators (as defined herein), the Sponsor (as defined herein) and the holders from time to time of undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust (as defined herein) to be issued pursuant to this Declaration.

WHEREAS, certain of the Trustees and the Sponsor established Sierra Capital Trust III (the “Trust”), a statutory trust under the Statutory Trust Act (as defined herein), pursuant to a Declaration of Trust, dated as of [DATE OF INITIAL DECLARATION OF TRUST] (the “Original Declaration”), and a Certificate of Trust filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on [DATE CERTIFICATE OF TRUST FILED], for the sole purpose of issuing and selling certain securities representing undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust investing the proceeds thereof in certain debentures of the Debenture Issuer (as defined herein) and engaging in those activities necessary, advisable or incidental thereto;

WHEREAS, as of the date hereof, no interests in the assets of the Trust have been issued; and

WHEREAS, all of the Trustees, the Administrators and the Sponsor, by this Declaration, amend and restate each and every term and provision of the Original Declaration.

NOW, THEREFORE, it being the intention of the parties hereto to continue the Trust as a statutory trust under the Statutory Trust Act and that this Declaration constitutes the governing instrument of such statutory trust and that all assets contributed to the Trust will be held in trust for the benefit of the holders, from time to time, of the securities representing undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust issued hereunder, subject to the provisions of this Declaration, and, in consideration of the mutual covenants contained herein and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, the parties, intending to be legally bound hereby, amend and restate in its entirety the Original Declaration and agree as follows:

ARTICLE I

INTERPRETATION AND DEFINITIONS

Section 1.1. Definitions . Unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) capitalized terms used in this Declaration but not defined in the preamble above or elsewhere herein have the respective meanings assigned to them in this Section 1.1 or, if not defined in this Section 1.1 or elsewhere herein, in the Indenture;

(b) a term defined anywhere in this Declaration has the same meaning throughout;

(c) all references to “the Declaration” or “this Declaration” are to this Declaration as modified, supplemented or amended from time to time;

(d) all references in this Declaration to Articles and Sections and Annexes and Exhibits are to Articles and Sections of and Annexes and Exhibits to this Declaration unless otherwise specified;

(e) a term defined in the Trust Indenture Act (as defined herein) has the same meaning when used in this Declaration unless otherwise defined in this Declaration or unless the context otherwise requires; and

(f) a reference to the singular includes the plural and vice versa.

“Additional Interest” has the meaning set forth in Section 3.06 of the Indenture.

“Administrative Action” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 4(a) of Annex I.

“Administrators” means each of Kenneth R. Taylor and James C. Holly, solely in such Person’s capacity as Administrator of the Trust continued hereunder and not in such Person’s individual capacity, or such Administrator’s successor in interest in such capacity, or any successor appointed as herein provided.

“Affiliate” has the same meaning as given to that term in Rule 405 of the Securities Act or any successor rule thereunder.

“Authorized Officer” of a Person means any Person that is authorized to bind such Person.

“Bankruptcy Event” means, with respect to any Person:

(a) a court having jurisdiction in the premises enters a decree or order for relief in respect of such Person in an involuntary case under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, or appoints a receiver, liquidator, assignee, custodian, trustee, sequestrator or similar official of such Person or for any substantial part of its property, or orders the winding-up or liquidation of its affairs, and such decree, appointment or order remains unstayed and in effect for a period of 90 consecutive days; or

(b) such Person commences a voluntary case under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, consents to the entry of an order for relief in an involuntary case under any such law, or consents to the appointment of or taking possession by a receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, custodian, sequestrator or other similar official of such Person or of any substantial part of its property, or makes any general assignment for the benefit of creditors, or fails generally to pay its debts as they become due.

“Business Day” means any day other than Saturday, Sunday or any other day on which banking institutions in Wilmington, Delaware, New York City or Porterville, California are permitted or required by any applicable law or executive order to close.

“Calculation Agent” has the meaning set forth in Section 1.01 of the Indenture.

“Capital Securities” has the meaning set forth in Section 6.1(a).

“Capital Security Certificate” means a definitive Certificate registered in the name of the Holder representing a Capital Security substantially in the form of Exhibit A-1.

“Capital Treatment Event” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 4(a) of Annex I.

“Certificate” means any certificate evidencing Securities.

“Certificate of Trust” means the certificate of trust filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware with respect to the Trust, as amended and restated from time to time.

“Closing Date” has the meaning set forth in the Placement Agreement.

“Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, or any successor legislation.

“Commission” means the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“Common Securities” has the meaning set forth in Section 6.1(a).

“Common Security Certificate” means a definitive Certificate registered in the name of the Holder representing a Common Security substantially in the form of Exhibit A-2.

“Company Indemnified Person” means (a) any Administrator; (b) any Affiliate of any Administrator; (c) any officers, directors, shareholders, members, partners, employees, representatives or agents of any Administrator; or (d) any officer, employee or agent of the Trust or its Affiliates.

“Corporate Trust Office” means the office of the Institutional Trustee at which the corporate trust business of the Institutional Trustee shall, at any particular time, be principally administered, which office shall at all times be located in the United States and at the date of execution of this Declaration is located at Rodney Square North, 1100 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19890-0001, Attention: Corporate Capital Markets.

“Coupon Rate” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 2(a) of Annex I.

“Covered Person” means: (a) any Administrator, officer, director, shareholder, partner, member, representative, employee or agent of (i) the Trust or (ii) any of the Trust’s Affiliates; and (b) any Holder of Securities.

“Debenture Issuer” means Sierra Bancorp, a bank holding company incorporated in California, in its capacity as issuer of the Debentures under the Indenture.

“Debenture Trustee” means Wilmington Trust Company, a Delaware banking corporation, not in its individual capacity but solely as trustee under the Indenture until a successor is appointed thereunder, and thereafter means such successor trustee.

“Debentures” means the Floating Rate Junior Subordinated Debt Securities due 2036 to be issued by the Debenture Issuer under the Indenture.

“Default” means any event, act or condition that with notice or lapse of time, or both, would constitute an Event of Default.

“Deferred Interest” means any interest on the Debentures that would have been overdue and unpaid for more than one Distribution Payment Date but for the imposition of an Extension Period, and the interest that shall accrue (to the extent that the payment of such interest is legally enforceable) on such interest at the Coupon Rate in effect for each such Extension Period, compounded quarterly from the date on which such Deferred Interest would otherwise have been due and payable until paid or made available for payment.

“Definitive Capital Securities” means any Capital Securities in definitive form issued by the Trust.

“Delaware Trustee” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.2.

“Direct Action” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.8(e).

“Distribution” means a distribution payable to Holders of Securities in accordance with Section 5.1.

“Distribution Payment Date” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 2(e) of Annex I.

“Distribution Period” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 2(a) of Annex I.

“Event of Default” means the occurrence of an Indenture Event of Default.

“Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended from time to time, or any successor legislation.

“Extension Period” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 2(e) of Annex I.

“Federal Reserve” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 3 of Annex I.

“Fiduciary Indemnified Person” shall mean each of the Institutional Trustee (including in its individual capacity), the Delaware Trustee (including in its individual capacity), any Affiliate of the Institutional Trustee or the Delaware Trustee, and any officers, directors, shareholders, members, partners, employees, representatives, custodians, nominees or agents of the Institutional Trustee or the Delaware Trustee.

“Fiscal Year” has the meaning set forth in Section 10.1.

“Guarantee” means the Guarantee Agreement, dated as of the Closing Date, of the Sponsor in respect of the Capital Securities.

“Holder” means a Person in whose name a Certificate representing a Security is registered on the register maintained by or on behalf of the Registrar, such Person being a beneficial owner within the meaning of the Statutory Trust Act.

“Indemnified Person” means a Company Indemnified Person or a Fiduciary Indemnified Person.

“Indenture” means the Indenture, dated as of the Closing Date, among the Debenture Issuer and the Debenture Trustee, and any indenture supplemental thereto pursuant to which the Debentures are to be issued.

“Indenture Event of Default” means an “Event of Default” as defined in the Indenture.

“Institutional Trustee” means the Trustee meeting the eligibility requirements set forth in Section 4.3.

“Interest” means any interest due on the Debentures, including any Deferred Interest and Defaulted Interest (as each such term is defined in the Indenture).

“Investment Company” means an investment company as defined in the Investment Company Act.

“Investment Company Act” means the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended from time to time, or any successor legislation.

“Investment Company Event” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 4(a) of Annex I.

“Legal Action” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.8(e).

“LIBOR” means the London Interbank Offered Rate for three-month U.S. Dollar deposits in Europe as determined by the Calculation Agent according to paragraph 2(b) of Annex I.

“LIBOR Banking Day” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 2(b)(1) of Annex I.

“LIBOR Business Day” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 2(b)(1) of Annex I.

“LIBOR Determination Date” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 2(b)(1) of Annex I.

“Liquidation” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 3 of Annex I.

“Liquidation Distribution” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 3 of Annex I.

“Majority in liquidation amount of the Securities” means Holders of outstanding Securities voting together as a single class or, as the context may require, Holders of outstanding Capital Securities or Holders of outstanding Common Securities voting separately as a class, who are the record owners of more than 50% of the aggregate liquidation amount (including the stated amount that would be paid on redemption, liquidation or otherwise, plus accrued and unpaid Distributions to the date upon which the voting percentages are determined) of all outstanding Securities of the relevant class.

“Officers’ Certificate” means, with respect to any Person, a certificate signed by two Authorized Officers of such Person. Any Officers’ Certificate delivered with respect to compliance with a condition or covenant provided for in this Declaration shall include:

(a) a statement that each officer signing the Officers’ Certificate has read the covenant or condition and the definitions relating thereto;

(b) a brief statement of the nature and scope of the examination or investigation undertaken by each officer in rendering the Officers’ Certificate;

(c) a statement that each such officer has made such examination or investigation as, in such officer’s opinion, is necessary to enable such officer to express an informed opinion as to whether or not such covenant or condition has been complied with; and

(d) a statement as to whether, in the opinion of each such officer, such condition or covenant has been complied with.

“Paying Agent” has the meaning set forth in Section 6.2.

“Payment Amount” has the meaning set forth in Section 5.1.

“Person” means a legal person, including any individual, corporation, estate, partnership, joint venture, association, joint stock company, limited liability company, trust, unincorporated association, or government or any agency or political subdivision thereof, or any other entity of whatever nature.

“Placement Agreement” means the Placement Agreement relating to the offering and sale of Capital Securities.

“PORTAL” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.6(a)(i).

“Property Account” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.8(c).

“Pro Rata” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 8 of Annex I.

“QIB” means a “qualified institutional buyer” as defined under Rule 144A.

“Quorum” means a majority of the Administrators or, if there are only two Administrators, both of them.

“Redemption/Distribution Notice” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 4(e) of Annex I.

“Redemption Price” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 4(a) of Annex I.

“Registrar” has the meaning set forth in Section 6.2.

“Relevant Trustee” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.7(a).

“Responsible Officer” means, with respect to the Institutional Trustee, any officer within the Corporate Trust Office of the Institutional Trustee with direct responsibility for the administration of this Declaration, including any vice-president, any assistant vice-president, any secretary, any assistant secretary, the treasurer, any assistant treasurer, any trust officer or other officer of the Corporate Trust Office of the Institutional Trustee customarily performing functions similar to those performed by any of the above designated officers and also means, with respect to a particular corporate trust matter, any other officer to whom such matter is referred because of that officer’s knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject.

“Restricted Securities Legend” has the meaning set forth in Section 8.2(c).

“Rule 144A” means Rule 144A under the Securities Act.

“Rule 3a-5” means Rule 3a-5 under the Investment Company Act.

“Rule 3a-7” means Rule 3a-7 under the Investment Company Act.

“Securities” means the Common Securities and the Capital Securities.

“Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended from time-to-time, or any successor legislation.

“Sponsor” means Sierra Bancorp, a bank holding company that is a U.S. Person incorporated in California, or any successor entity in a merger, consolidation or amalgamation that is a U.S. Person, in its capacity as sponsor of the Trust.

“Statutory Trust Act” means Chapter 38 of Title 12 of the Delaware Code, 12 Del. Code § 3801 et seq., as it may be amended from time to time, or any successor legislation.

“Successor Delaware Trustee” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.7(e).

“Successor Entity” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.15(b).

“Successor Institutional Trustee” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.7(b).

“Successor Securities” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.15(b).

“Super Majority” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 5(b) of Annex I.

“Tax Event” has the meaning set forth in paragraph 4(a) of Annex I.

“10% in liquidation amount of the Securities” means Holders of outstanding Securities voting together as a single class or, as the context may require, Holders of outstanding Capital Securities or Holders of outstanding Common Securities voting separately as a class, who are the record owners of 10% or more of the aggregate liquidation amount (including the stated amount that would be paid on redemption, liquidation or otherwise, plus accrued and unpaid Distributions to the date upon which the voting percentages are determined) of all outstanding Securities of the relevant class.

“Transfer Agent” has the meaning set forth in Section 6.2.

“Treasury Regulations” means the income tax regulations, including temporary and proposed regulations, promulgated under the Code by the United States Treasury, as such regulations may be amended from time to time (including corresponding provisions of succeeding regulations).

“Trust Indenture Act” means the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended from time-to-time, or any successor legislation.

“Trust Property” means (a) the Debentures, (b) any cash on deposit in, or owing to, the Property Account and (c) all proceeds and rights in respect of the foregoing and any other property and assets for the time being held or deemed to be held by the Institutional Trustee pursuant to the trusts of this Declaration.

“Trustee” or “Trustees” means each Person who has signed this Declaration as a trustee, so long as such Person shall continue in office in accordance with the terms hereof, and all other Persons who may from time to time be duly appointed, qualified and serving as Trustees in accordance with the provisions hereof, and references herein to a Trustee or the Trustees shall refer to such Person or Persons solely in their capacity as trustees hereunder.

“U.S. Person” means a United States Person as defined in Section 7701(a)(30) of the Code.

ARTICLE II

ORGANIZATION

Section 2.1. Name . The Trust is named “Sierra Capital Trust III,” as such name may be modified from time to time by the Administrators following written notice to the Institutional Trustee and the Holders of the Securities. The Trust’s activities may be conducted under the name of the Trust or any other name deemed advisable by the Administrators.

Section 2.2. Office . The address of the principal office of the Trust, which shall be in a State of the United States or the District of Columbia, is 86 North Main Street, Porterville, California 93257. On ten Business Days’ written notice to the Institutional Trustee and the Holders of the Securities, the Administrators may designate another principal office, which shall be in a State of the United States or the District of Columbia.

Section 2.3. Purpose . The exclusive purposes and functions of the Trust are (a) to issue and sell the Securities representing undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust, (b) to invest the gross proceeds from such sale in the Debentures and (c) except as otherwise limited herein, to engage in only those other activities incidental thereto that are deemed necessary or advisable by the Institutional Trustee, including, without limitation, those activities specified in this Declaration. The Trust shall not borrow money, issue debt or reinvest proceeds derived from investments, pledge any of its assets, or otherwise undertake (or permit to be undertaken) any activity that would cause the Trust not to be classified for United States federal income tax purposes as a grantor trust.

Section 2.4. Authority . Except as specifically provided in this Declaration, the Institutional Trustee shall have exclusive and complete authority to carry out the purposes of the Trust. An action taken by a Trustee on behalf of the Trust and in accordance with such Trustee’s powers shall constitute the act of and serve to bind the Trust. In dealing with the Trustees acting on behalf of the Trust, no Person shall be required to inquire into the authority of the Trustees to bind the Trust. Persons dealing with the Trust are entitled to rely conclusively on the power and authority of the Trustees as set forth in this Declaration. The Administrators shall have only those ministerial duties set forth herein with respect to accomplishing the purposes of the Trust and are not intended to be trustees or fiduciaries with respect to the Trust or the Holders. The Institutional Trustee shall have the right, but shall not be obligated except as provided in Section 2.6, to perform those duties assigned to the Administrators.

Section 2.5. Title to Property of the Trust . Except as provided in Section 2.8 with respect to the Debentures and the Property Account or as otherwise provided in this Declaration, legal title to all assets of the Trust shall be vested in the Trust. The Holders shall not have legal title to any part of the assets of the Trust, but shall have an undivided beneficial interest in the assets of the Trust.

Section 2.6. Powers and Duties of the Trustees and the Administrators .

(a) The Trustees and the Administrators shall conduct the affairs of the Trust in accordance with the terms of this Declaration. Subject to the limitations set forth in paragraph (b) of this Section, and in accordance with the following provisions (i) and (ii), the Administrators and, at the direction of the Administrators, the Trustees, shall have the authority to enter into all transactions and agreements determined by the Administrators to be appropriate in exercising the authority, express or implied, otherwise granted to the Trustees or the Administrators, as the case may be, under this Declaration, and to perform all acts in furtherance thereof, including without limitation, the following:

(i) Each Administrator shall have the power, duty and authority, and is hereby authorized, to act on behalf of the Trust with respect to the following matters:

(A) the issuance and sale of the Securities;

(B) to cause the Trust to enter into, and to execute, deliver and perform on behalf of the Trust, such agreements as may be necessary or desirable in connection with the purposes and function of the Trust, including agreements with the Paying Agent, the Placement Agreement, a Debenture subscription agreement between the Trust and the Sponsor and a Common Securities subscription agreement between the Trust and the Sponsor;

(D) if and at such time determined solely by the Sponsor at the request of the Holders, assisting in the designation of the Capital Securities for trading in the Private Offering, Resales and Trading through the Automatic Linkages (“PORTAL”) system if available;

(E) the sending of notices (other than notices of default) and other information regarding the Securities and the Debentures to the Holders in accordance with this Declaration, including notice of any notice received from the Debenture Issuer of its election to defer payments of interest on the Debentures by extending the interest payment period under the Indenture;

(F) the appointment of a Paying Agent, Transfer Agent and Registrar in accordance with this Declaration;

(G) execution and delivery of the Securities in accordance with this Declaration;

(H) execution and delivery of closing certificates pursuant to the Placement Agreement and the application for a taxpayer identification number;

(I) unless otherwise determined by the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Securities or as otherwise required by the Statutory Trust Act, to execute on behalf of the Trust (either acting alone or together with any or all of the Administrators) any documents that the Administrators have the power to execute pursuant to this Declaration;

(J) the taking of any action incidental to the foregoing as the Sponsor or an Administrator may from time to time determine is necessary

or advisable to give effect to the terms of this Declaration for the benefit of the Holders (without consideration of the effect of any such action on any particular Holder);

(K) to establish a record date with respect to all actions to be taken hereunder that require a record date be established, including Distributions, voting rights, redemptions and exchanges, and to issue relevant notices to the Holders of Capital Securities and Holders of Common Securities as to such actions and applicable record dates;

(L) to duly prepare and file on behalf of the Trust all applicable tax returns and tax information reports that are required to be filed with respect to the Trust;

(M) to negotiate the terms of, and the execution and delivery of, the Placement Agreement providing for the sale of the Capital Securities;

(N) to employ or otherwise engage employees, agents (who may be designated as officers with titles), managers, contractors, advisors, attorneys and consultants and pay reasonable compensation for such services;

(O) to incur expenses that are necessary or incidental to carry out any of the purposes of the Trust;

(P) to give the certificate, substantially in the form of Exhibit D attached hereto, required by § 314(a)(4) of the Trust Indenture Act to the Institutional Trustee, which certificate may be executed by an Administrator; and

(Q) to take all action that may be necessary or appropriate for the preservation and the continuation of the Trust’s valid existence, rights, franchises and privileges as a statutory trust under the laws of each jurisdiction (other than the State of Delaware) in which such existence is necessary to protect the limited liability of the Holders of the Capital Securities or to enable the Trust to effect the purposes for which the Trust was created.

(ii) As among the Trustees and the Administrators, the Institutional Trustee shall have the power, duty and authority, and is hereby authorized, to act on behalf of the Trust with respect to the following matters:

(A) the establishment of the Property Account;

(B) the receipt of the Debentures;

(C) the collection of interest, principal and any other payments made in respect of the Debentures in the Property Account;

(D) the distribution through the Paying Agent of amounts owed to the Holders in respect of the Securities;

(E) the exercise of all of the rights, powers and privileges of a holder of the Debentures;

(F) the sending of notices of default and other information regarding the Securities and the Debentures to the Holders in accordance with this Declaration;

(G) the distribution of the Trust Property in accordance with the terms of this Declaration;

(H) to the extent provided in this Declaration, the winding up of the affairs of and liquidation of the Trust and the preparation, execution and filing of the certificate of cancellation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware;

(I) after any Event of Default (of which the Institutional Trustee has knowledge (as provided in Section 2.10(m) hereof)) ( provided , that such Event of Default is not by or with respect to the Institutional Trustee), the taking of any action incidental to the foregoing as the Institutional Trustee may from time to time determine is necessary or advisable to give effect to the terms of this Declaration and protect and conserve the Trust Property for the benefit of the Holders (without consideration of the effect of any such action on any particular Holder);

(J) to take all action that may be necessary or appropriate for the preservation and the continuation of the Trust’s valid existence, rights, franchises and privileges as a statutory trust under the laws of the State of Delaware to protect the limited liability of the Holders of the Capital Securities or to enable the Trust to effect the purposes for which the Trust was created; and

(K) to undertake any actions set forth in § 317(a) of the Trust Indenture Act.

(iii) The Institutional Trustee shall have the power and authority, and is hereby authorized, to act on behalf of the Trust with respect to any of the duties, liabilities, powers or the authority of the Administrators set forth in Section 2.6(a)(i)(E) and (F) herein but shall not have a duty to do any such act unless specifically requested to do so in writing by the Sponsor, and shall then be fully protected in acting pursuant to such written request; and in the event of a conflict between the action of the Administrators and the action of the Institutional Trustee, the action of the Institutional Trustee shall prevail.

(b) So long as this Declaration remains in effect, the Trust (or the Trustees or Administrators acting on behalf of the Trust) shall not undertake any business, activities or transaction except as expressly provided herein or contemplated hereby. In particular, neither the Trustees nor the Administrators may cause the Trust to (i) acquire any investments or engage in any activities not authorized by this Declaration, (ii) sell, assign, transfer, exchange, mortgage, pledge, set-off or otherwise dispose of any of the Trust Property or interests therein, including to Holders, except as expressly provided herein, (iii) take any action that would cause (or in the case of the Institutional Trustee, to the actual knowledge of a Responsible Officer would cause) the Trust to fail or cease to qualify as a “grantor trust” for United States federal income tax purposes, (iv) incur any indebtedness for borrowed money or issue any other debt or (v) take or consent to any action that would result in the placement of a lien on any of the Trust Property. The Institutional Trustee shall, at the sole cost and expense of the Trust subject to reimbursement under Section 9.6(a), defend all claims and demands of all Persons at any time claiming any lien on any of the Trust Property adverse to the interest of the Trust or the Holders in their capacity as Holders.

(c) In connection with the issuance and sale of the Capital Securities, the Sponsor shall have the right and responsibility to assist the Trust with respect to, or effect on behalf of the Trust, the following (and any actions taken by the Sponsor in furtherance of the following prior to the date of this Declaration are hereby ratified and confirmed in all respects):

(i) the taking of any action necessary to obtain an exemption from the Securities Act;

(ii) the determination of the States in which to take appropriate action to qualify or register for sale all or part of the Capital Securities and the determination of any and all such acts, other than actions which must be taken by or on behalf of the Trust, and the advisement of and direction to the Trustees of actions they must take on behalf of the Trust, and the preparation for execution and filing of any documents to be executed and filed by the Trust or on behalf of the Trust, as the Sponsor deems necessary or advisable in order to comply with the applicable laws of any such States in connection with the sale of the Capital Securities; and

(iii) the taking of any other actions necessary or desirable to carry out any of the foregoing activities.

(d) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Administrators, the Institutional Trustee and the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities are authorized and directed to conduct the affairs of the Trust and to operate the Trust so that (i) the Trust will not be deemed to be an “investment company” required to be registered under the Investment Company Act (in the case of the Institutional Trustee, to the actual knowledge of a Responsible Officer); (ii) the Trust will not fail to be classified as a grantor trust for United States federal income tax purposes (in the case of the Institutional Trustee, to the

actual knowledge of a Responsible Officer); and (iii) the Trust will not take any action inconsistent with the treatment of the Debentures as indebtedness of the Debenture Issuer for United States federal income tax purposes (in the case of the Institutional Trustee, to the actual knowledge of a Responsible Officer). In this connection, the Institutional Trustee, the Administrators and the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities are authorized to take any action, not inconsistent with applicable laws or this Declaration, as amended from time to time, that each of the Institutional Trustee, the Administrators and such Holders determine in their discretion to be necessary or desirable for such purposes, even if such action adversely affects the interests of the Holders of the Capital Securities.

(e) All expenses incurred by the Administrators or the Trustees pursuant to this Section 2.6 shall be reimbursed by the Sponsor, and the Trustees shall have no obligations with respect to such expenses.

(f) The assets of the Trust shall consist of the Trust Property.

(g) Legal title to all Trust Property shall be vested at all times in the Institutional Trustee (in its capacity as such) and shall be held and administered by the Institutional Trustee for the benefit of the Trust in accordance with this Declaration.

(h) If the Institutional Trustee or any Holder has instituted any proceeding to enforce any right or remedy under this Declaration and such proceeding has been discontinued or abandoned for any reason, or has been determined adversely to the Institutional Trustee or to such Holder, then and in every such case the Sponsor, the Institutional Trustee and the Holders shall, subject to any determination in such proceeding, be restored severally and respectively to their former positions hereunder, and thereafter all rights and remedies of the Institutional Trustee and the Holders shall continue as though no such proceeding had been instituted.

Section 2.7. Prohibition of Actions by the Trust and the Trustees .

The Trust shall not, and the Institutional Trustee and the Administrators shall not, and the Administrators shall cause the Trust not to, engage in any activity other than as required or authorized by this Declaration. In particular, the Trust shall not, and the Institutional Trustee and the Administrators shall not cause the Trust to:

(a) invest any proceeds received by the Trust from holding the Debentures, but shall distribute all such proceeds to Holders of the Securities pursuant to the terms of this Declaration and of the Securities;

(b) acquire any assets other than as expressly provided herein;

(d) make any loans or incur any indebtedness other than loans represented by the Debentures;

(e) possess any power or otherwise act in such a way as to vary the Trust Property or the terms of the Securities;

(f) issue any securities or other evidences of beneficial ownership of, or beneficial interest in, the Trust other than the Securities; or

(g) other than as provided in this Declaration (including Annex I), (i) direct the time, method and place of exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Debenture Trustee with respect to the Debentures, (ii) waive any past default that is waivable under the Indenture, (iii) exercise any right to rescind or annul any declaration that the principal of all the Debentures shall be due and payable, or (iv) consent to any amendment, modification or termination of the Indenture or the Debentures where such consent shall be required unless the Trust shall have received a written opinion of counsel experienced in such matters to the effect that such amendment, modification or termination will not cause the Trust to cease to be classified as a grantor trust for United States federal income tax purposes.

Section 2.8. Powers and Duties of the Institutional Trustee .

(a) The legal title to the Debentures shall be owned by and held of record in the name of the Institutional Trustee in trust for the benefit of the Trust. The right, title and interest of the Institutional Trustee to the Debentures shall vest automatically in each Person who may hereafter be appointed as Institutional Trustee in accordance with Section 4.7. Such vesting and cessation of title shall be effective whether or not conveyancing documents with regard to the Debentures have been executed and delivered.

(b) The Institutional Trustee shall not transfer its right, title and interest in the Debentures to the Administrators or to the Delaware Trustee.

(i) establish and maintain a segregated non-interest bearing trust account (the “Property Account”) in the United States (as defined in Treasury Regulations section 301.7701-7), in the name of and under the exclusive control of the Institutional Trustee, and maintained in the Institutional Trustee’s trust department, on behalf of the Holders of the Securities and, upon the receipt of payments of funds made in respect of the Debentures held by the Institutional Trustee, deposit such funds into the Property Account and make payments to the Holders of the Capital Securities and Holders of the Common Securities from the Property Account in accordance with Section 5.1. Funds in the Property Account shall be held uninvested until disbursed in accordance with this Declaration;

(ii) engage in such ministerial activities as shall be necessary or appropriate to effect the redemption of the Capital Securities and the Common Securities to the extent the Debentures are redeemed or mature; and

(iii) upon written notice of distribution issued by the Administrators in accordance with the terms of the Securities, engage in such ministerial activities as shall be necessary or appropriate to effect the distribution of the Debentures to Holders of Securities upon the occurrence of certain circumstances pursuant to the terms of the Securities.

(d) The Institutional Trustee shall take all actions and perform such duties as may be specifically required of the Institutional Trustee pursuant to the terms of the Securities.

(e) The Institutional Trustee may bring or defend, pay, collect, compromise, arbitrate, resort to legal action with respect to, or otherwise adjust claims or demands of or against, the Trust (a “Legal Action”) which arise out of or in connection with an Event of Default of which a Responsible Officer of the Institutional Trustee has actual knowledge or the Institutional Trustee’s duties and obligations under this Declaration or the Trust Indenture Act; provided , however , that if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing and such event is attributable to the failure of the Debenture Issuer to pay interest or premium, if any, or principal on the Debentures on the date such interest or premium, if any, or principal is otherwise payable (or in the case of redemption, on the redemption date), then a Holder of the Capital Securities may directly institute a proceeding for enforcement of payment to such Holder of the principal of or premium, if any, or interest on the Debentures having a principal amount equal to the aggregate liquidation amount of the Capital Securities of such Holder (a “Direct Action”) on or after the respective due date specified in the Debentures. In connection with such Direct Action, the rights of the Holders of the Common Securities will be subrogated to the rights of such Holder of the Capital Securities to the extent of any payment made by the Debenture Issuer to such Holder of the Capital Securities in such Direct Action; provided , however , that a Holder of the Common Securities may exercise such right of subrogation only if no Event of Default with respect to the Capital Securities has occurred and is continuing.

(f) The Institutional Trustee shall continue to serve as a Trustee until either:

(i) the Trust has been completely liquidated and the proceeds of the liquidation distributed to the Holders of the Securities pursuant to the terms of the Securities and this Declaration (including Annex I); or

(ii) a Successor Institutional Trustee has been appointed and has accepted that appointment in accordance with Section 4.7.

(g) The Institutional Trustee shall have the legal power to exercise all of the rights, powers and privileges of a holder of the Debentures under the Indenture and, if an Event of Default occurs and is continuing, the Institutional Trustee may, for the benefit of Holders of the Securities, enforce its rights as holder of the Debentures subject to the rights of the Holders pursuant to this Declaration (including Annex I) and the terms of the Securities.

(h) The Institutional Trustee must exercise the powers set forth in this Section 2.8 in a manner that is consistent with the purposes and functions of the Trust set out in Section 2.3, and the Institutional Trustee shall not take any action that is inconsistent with the purposes and functions of the Trust set out in Section 2.3.

Section 2.9. Certain Duties and Responsibilities of the Trustees and the Administrators .

(a) The Institutional Trustee, before the occurrence of any Event of Default (of which the Institutional Trustee has knowledge (as provided in Section 2.10(m) hereof)) and after the curing of all Events of Default that may have occurred, shall undertake to perform only such duties as are specifically set forth in this Declaration and no implied covenants shall be read into this Declaration against the Institutional Trustee. In case an Event of Default (of which the Institutional Trustee has knowledge (as provided in Section 2.10(m) hereof)), has occurred (that has not been cured or waived pursuant to Section 6.7), the Institutional Trustee shall exercise such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Declaration, and use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent person would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of his or her own affairs.

(b) The duties and responsibilities of the Trustees and the Administrators shall be as provided by this Declaration and, in the case of the Institutional Trustee, by the Trust Indenture Act. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no provision of this Declaration shall require any Trustee or Administrator to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise incur any financial liability in the performance of any of its duties hereunder, or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers, if it shall have reasonable grounds for believing that repayment of such funds or adequate indemnity satisfactory to it against such risk or liability is not reasonably assured to it. Whether or not therein expressly so provided, every provision of this Declaration relating to the conduct or affecting the liability of or affording protection to the Trustees or the Administrators shall be subject to the provisions of this Article. Nothing in this Declaration shall be construed to release a Trustee from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct. Nothing in this Declaration shall be construed to release an Administrator from liability for its own gross negligent action, its own gross negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct. To the extent that, at law or in equity, a Trustee or an Administrator has duties and liabilities relating to the Trust or to the Holders, such Trustee or Administrator shall not be liable to the Trust or to any Holder for such Trustee’s or Administrator’s good faith reliance on the provisions of this Declaration. The provisions of this Declaration, to the extent that they restrict the duties and liabilities of the Administrators or the Trustees otherwise existing at law or in equity, are agreed by the Sponsor and the Holders to replace such other duties and liabilities of the Administrators or the Trustees.

(c) All payments made by the Institutional Trustee or a Paying Agent in respect of the Securities shall be made only from the revenue and proceeds from the Trust Property and only to the extent that there shall be sufficient revenue or proceeds from the Trust Property to enable the Institutional Trustee or a Paying Agent to make payments in accordance with the terms hereof. Each Holder, by its acceptance of a Security, agrees that it will look solely to the revenue and proceeds from the Trust Property to the extent legally available for distribution to it as herein provided and that the Trustees and the Administrators are not personally liable to it for any amount distributable in respect of any Security or for any other liability in respect of any Security. This Section 2.9(c) does not limit the liability of the Trustees expressly set forth elsewhere in this Declaration or, in the case of the Institutional Trustee, in the Trust Indenture Act.

(d) No provision of this Declaration shall be construed to relieve the Institutional Trustee from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct with respect to matters that are within the authority of the Institutional Trustee under this Declaration, except that:

(i) the Institutional Trustee shall not be liable for any error or judgment made in good faith by an Authorized Officer of the Institutional Trustee, unless it shall be proved that the Institutional Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts;

(ii) the Institutional Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith in accordance with the direction of the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities or the Common Securities, as applicable, relating to the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Institutional Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Institutional Trustee under this Declaration;

(iii) the Institutional Trustee’s sole duty with respect to the custody, safe keeping and physical preservation of the Debentures and the Property Account shall be to deal with such property in a similar manner as the Institutional Trustee deals with similar property for its own account, subject to the protections and limitations on liability afforded to the Institutional Trustee under this Declaration and the Trust Indenture Act;

(iv) the Institutional Trustee shall not be liable for any interest on any money received by it except as it may otherwise agree in writing with the Sponsor; and money held by the Institutional Trustee need not be segregated from other funds held by it except in relation to the Property Account maintained by the Institutional Trustee pursuant to Section 2.8(c)(i) and except to the extent otherwise required by law; and

(v) the Institutional Trustee shall not be responsible for monitoring the compliance by the Administrators or the Sponsor with their respective duties under this Declaration, nor shall the Institutional Trustee be liable for any default or misconduct of the Administrators or the Sponsor.

Section 2.10. Certain Rights of Institutional Trustee . Subject to the provisions of Section 2.9:

(a) the Institutional Trustee may conclusively rely and shall fully be protected in acting or refraining from acting in good faith upon any resolution, written opinion of counsel, certificate, written representation of a Holder or transferee, certificate of auditors or any other certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, direction, consent, order, appraisal, bond, debenture, note, other evidence of indebtedness or other paper or document believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed, sent or presented by the proper party or parties;

(b) if (i) in performing its duties under this Declaration, the Institutional Trustee is required to decide between alternative courses of action, (ii) in construing any of the provisions of this Declaration, the Institutional Trustee finds the same ambiguous or inconsistent with any other provisions contained herein, or (iii) the Institutional Trustee is unsure of the application of any provision of this Declaration, then, except as to any matter as to which the Holders of Capital Securities are entitled to vote under the terms of this Declaration, the Institutional Trustee may deliver a notice to the Sponsor requesting the Sponsor’s opinion as to the course of action to be taken and the Institutional Trustee shall take such action, or refrain from taking such action, as the Institutional Trustee in its sole discretion shall deem advisable and in the best interests of the Holders, in which event the Institutional Trustee shall have no liability except for its own negligence or willful misconduct;

(c) any direction or act of the Sponsor or the Administrators contemplated by this Declaration shall be sufficiently evidenced by an Officers’ Certificate;

(d) whenever in the administration of this Declaration, the Institutional Trustee shall deem it desirable that a matter be proved or established before undertaking, suffering or omitting any action hereunder, the Institutional Trustee (unless other evidence is herein specifically prescribed) may, in the absence of bad faith on its part, request and conclusively rely upon an Officers’ Certificate which, upon receipt of such request, shall be promptly delivered by the Sponsor or the Administrators;

(e) the Institutional Trustee shall have no duty to see to any recording, filing or registration of any instrument (including any financing or continuation statement or any filing under tax or securities laws) or any rerecording, refiling or reregistration thereof;

(f) the Institutional Trustee may consult with counsel of its selection (which counsel may be counsel to the Sponsor or any of its Affiliates) and the advice of such counsel shall be full and complete authorization and protection in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted by it hereunder in good faith and in reliance thereon and in accordance with such advice; the Institutional Trustee shall have the right at any time to seek instructions concerning the administration of this Declaration from any court of competent jurisdiction;

(g) the Institutional Trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Declaration at the request or direction of any of the Holders pursuant to this Declaration, unless such Holders shall have offered to the Institutional Trustee security or indemnity reasonably satisfactory to it against the costs, expenses and liabilities which might be incurred by it in compliance with such request or direction; provided , that nothing contained in this Section 2.10(g) shall be taken to relieve the Institutional Trustee, upon the occurrence of an Event of Default (of which the Institutional Trustee has knowledge (as provided in Section 2.10(m) hereof)) that has not been cured or waived, of its obligation to exercise the rights and powers vested in it by this Declaration;

(h) the Institutional Trustee shall not be bound to make any investigation into the facts or matters stated in any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, consent, order, approval, bond, debenture, note or other evidence of indebtedness or other paper or document, unless requested in writing to do so by one or more Holders, but the Institutional Trustee may make such further inquiry or investigation into such facts or matters as it may see fit;

(i) the Institutional Trustee may execute any of the trusts or powers hereunder or perform any duties hereunder either directly or by or through its agents or attorneys and the Institutional Trustee shall not be responsible for any misconduct or negligence on the part of, or for the supervision of, any such agent or attorney appointed with due care by it hereunder;

(j) whenever in the administration of this Declaration the Institutional Trustee shall deem it desirable to receive instructions with respect to enforcing any remedy or right or taking any other action hereunder, the Institutional Trustee (i) may request instructions from the Holders of the Common Securities and the Capital Securities, which instructions may be given only by the Holders of the same proportion in liquidation amount of the Common Securities and the Capital Securities as would be entitled to direct the Institutional Trustee under the terms of the Common Securities and the Capital Securities in respect of such remedy, right or action, (ii) may refrain from enforcing such remedy or right or taking such other action until such instructions are received, and (iii) shall be fully protected in acting in accordance with such instructions;

(k) except as otherwise expressly provided in this Declaration, the Institutional Trustee shall not be under any obligation to take any action that is discretionary under the provisions of this Declaration;

(l) when the Institutional Trustee incurs expenses or renders services in connection with a Bankruptcy Event, such expenses (including the fees and expenses of its counsel) and the compensation for such services are intended to constitute expenses of administration under any bankruptcy law or law relating to creditors rights generally;

(m) the Institutional Trustee shall not be charged with knowledge of an Event of Default unless a Responsible Officer of the Institutional Trustee has actual knowledge of such event or the Institutional Trustee receives written notice of such event from any Holder, except with respect to an Event of Default pursuant to Sections 5.01(a), 5.01(b) or 5.01(c) of the Indenture (other than an Event of Default resulting from the default in the payment of Additional Interest or premium, if any, if the Institutional Trustee does not have actual knowledge or written notice that such payment is due and payable), of which the Institutional Trustee shall be deemed to have knowledge;

(n) any action taken by the Institutional Trustee or its agents hereunder shall bind the Trust and the Holders of the Securities, and the signature of the Institutional Trustee or its agents alone shall be sufficient and effective to perform any such action and no third party shall be required to inquire as to the authority of the Institutional Trustee to so act or as to its compliance with any of the terms and provisions of this Declaration, both of which shall be conclusively evidenced by the Institutional Trustee’s or its agent’s taking such action; and

(o) no provision of this Declaration shall be deemed to impose any duty or obligation on the Institutional Trustee to perform any act or acts or exercise any right, power, duty or obligation conferred or imposed on it, in any jurisdiction in which it shall be illegal, or in

which the Institutional Trustee shall be unqualified or incompetent in accordance with applicable law, to perform any such act or acts, or to exercise any such right, power, duty or obligation. No permissive power or authority available to the Institutional Trustee shall be construed to be a duty.

Section 2.11. Delaware Trustee . Notwithstanding any other provision of this Declaration other than Section 4.2, the Delaware Trustee shall not be entitled to exercise any powers, nor shall the Delaware Trustee have any of the duties and responsibilities of any of the Trustees or the Administrators described in this Declaration (except as may be required under the Statutory Trust Act). Except as set forth in Section 4.2, the Delaware Trustee shall be a Trustee for the sole and limited purpose of fulfilling the requirements of § 3807 of the Statutory Trust Act.

Section 2.12. Execution of Documents . Unless otherwise determined in writing by the Institutional Trustee, and except as otherwise required by the Statutory Trust Act, the Institutional Trustee, or any one or more of the Administrators, as the case may be, is authorized to execute and deliver on behalf of the Trust any documents, agreements, instruments or certificates that the Trustees or the Administrators, as the case may be, have the power and authority to execute pursuant to Section 2.6.

Section 2.13. Not Responsible for Recitals or Issuance of Securities . The recitals contained in this Declaration and the Securities shall be taken as the statements of the Sponsor, and the Trustees do not assume any responsibility for their correctness. The Trustees make no representations as to the value or condition of the property of the Trust or any part thereof. The Trustees make no representations as to the validity or sufficiency of this Declaration, the Debentures or the Securities.

Section 2.14. Duration of Trust . The Trust, unless dissolved pursuant to the provisions of Article VII hereof, shall have existence for five (5) years from the Maturity Date.

Section 2.15. Mergers (a) The Trust may not consolidate, amalgamate, merge with or into, or be replaced by, or convey, transfer or lease its properties and assets substantially as an entirety to any corporation or other Person, except as described in this Section 2.15 and except with respect to the distribution of Debentures to Holders of Securities pursuant to Section 7.1(a)(iv) of the Declaration or Section 4 of Annex I.

(b) The Trust may, with the consent of the Administrators (which consent will not be unreasonably withheld) and without the consent of the Institutional Trustee, the Delaware Trustee or the Holders of the Capital Securities, consolidate, amalgamate, merge with or into, or be replaced by, or convey, transfer or lease its properties and assets as an entirety or substantially as an entirety to a trust organized as such under the laws of any State; provided , that:

(i) if the Trust is not the survivor, such successor entity (the “Successor Entity”) either:

(A) expressly assumes all of the obligations of the Trust under the Securities; or

(B) substitutes for the Securities other securities having substantially the same terms as the Securities (the “Successor Securities”) so that the Successor Securities rank the same as the Securities rank with respect to Distributions and payments upon Liquidation, redemption and otherwise;

(ii) the Sponsor expressly appoints, as the holder of the Debentures, a trustee of the Successor Entity that possesses the same powers and duties as the Institutional Trustee;

(iii) the Capital Securities or any Successor Securities (excluding any securities substituted for the Common Securities) are listed or quoted, or any Successor Securities will be listed or quoted upon notification of issuance, on any national securities exchange or with another organization on which the Capital Securities are then listed or quoted, if any;

(iv) such merger, consolidation, amalgamation, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease does not cause the rating on the Capital Securities (including any Successor Securities) to be downgraded or withdrawn by any nationally recognized statistical rating organization, if the Capital Securities are then rated;

(v) such merger, consolidation, amalgamation, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease does not adversely affect the rights, preferences and privileges of the Holders of the Securities (including any Successor Securities) in any material respect (other than with respect to any dilution of such Holders’ interests in the Successor Entity as a result of such merger, consolidation, amalgamation or replacement);

(vi) such Successor Entity has a purpose substantially identical to that of the Trust;

(vii) prior to such merger, consolidation, amalgamation, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease, the Trust has received a written opinion of a nationally recognized independent counsel to the Trust experienced in such matters to the effect that:

(A) such merger, consolidation, amalgamation, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease does not adversely affect the rights, preferences and privileges of the Holders of the Securities (including any Successor Securities) in any material respect (other than with respect to any dilution of the Holders’ interests in the Successor Entity);

(B) following such merger, consolidation, amalgamation, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease, neither the Trust nor the Successor Entity will be required to register as an Investment Company; and

(C) following such merger, consolidation, amalgamation, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease, the Trust (or the Successor Entity) will continue to be classified as a grantor trust for United States federal income tax purposes;

(viii) the Sponsor guarantees the obligations of such Successor Entity under the Successor Securities to the same extent provided by the Indenture, the Guarantee, the Debentures and this Declaration; and

(ix) prior to such merger, consolidation, amalgamation, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease, the Institutional Trustee shall have received an Officers’ Certificate of the Administrators and an opinion of counsel, each to the effect that all conditions precedent of this paragraph (b) to such transaction have been satisfied.

(c) Notwithstanding Section 2.15(b), the Trust shall not, except with the consent of Holders of 100% in liquidation amount of the Securities, consolidate, amalgamate, merge with or into, or be replaced by, or convey, transfer or lease its properties and assets as an entirety or substantially as an entirety to, any other Person or permit any other Person to consolidate, amalgamate, merge with or into, or replace it if such consolidation, amalgamation, merger, replacement, conveyance, transfer or lease would cause the Trust or Successor Entity to be classified as other than a grantor trust for United States federal income tax purposes.

ARTICLE III

SPONSOR

Section 3.1. Sponsor’s Purchase of Common Securities . On the Closing Date, the Sponsor will purchase all of the Common Securities issued by the Trust, in an amount at least equal to 3% of the capital of the Trust, at the same time as the Capital Securities are sold.

Section 3.2. Responsibilities of the Sponsor . In connection with the issue and sale of the Capital Securities, the Sponsor shall have the exclusive right and responsibility to engage in, or direct the Administrators to engage in, the following activities:

(a) to determine the States in which to take appropriate action to qualify or register for sale all or part of the Capital Securities and to do any and all such acts, other than actions which must be taken by the Trust, and advise the Trust of actions it must take, and prepare for execution and filing any documents to be executed and filed by the Trust, as the Sponsor deems necessary or advisable in order to comply with the applicable laws of any such States;

(b) to prepare for filing and request the Administrators to cause the filing by the Trust, as may be appropriate, of an application to the PORTAL system, for listing or quotation upon notice of issuance of any Capital Securities, as requested by the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities; and

(c) to negotiate the terms of and/or execute and deliver on behalf of the Trust, the Placement Agreement and other related agreements providing for the sale of the Capital Securities.

ARTICLE IV

TRUSTEES AND ADMINISTRATORS

Section 4.1. Number of Trustees . The number of Trustees initially shall be two, and:

(a) at any time before the issuance of any Securities, the Sponsor may, by written instrument, increase or decrease the number of Trustees; and

(b) after the issuance of any Securities, the number of Trustees may be increased or decreased by vote of the Holder of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities voting as a class at a meeting of the Holder of the Common Securities; provided , however , that there shall be a Delaware Trustee if required by Section 4.2; and there shall always be one Trustee who shall be the Institutional Trustee, and such Trustee may also serve as Delaware Trustee if it meets the applicable requirements, in which case Section 2.11 shall have no application to such entity in its capacity as Institutional Trustee.

Section 4.2. Delaware Trustee . If required by the Statutory Trust Act, one Trustee (the “Delaware Trustee”) shall be:

(a) a natural person who is a resident of the State of Delaware; or

(b) if not a natural person, an entity which is organized under the laws of the United States or any State thereof or the District of Columbia, has its principal place of business in the State of Delaware, and otherwise meets the requirements of applicable law, including §3807 of the Statutory Trust Act.

Section 4.3. Institutional Trustee; Eligibility . (a) There shall at all times be one Trustee which shall act as Institutional Trustee which shall:

(i) not be an Affiliate of the Sponsor;

(ii) not offer or provide credit or credit enhancement to the Trust; and

(iii) be a banking corporation or national association organized and doing business under the laws of the United States of America or any State thereof or of the District of Columbia and authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers, having a combined capital and surplus of at least fifty million U.S. dollars ($50,000,000), and subject to supervision or examination by federal, State or District of Columbia authority. If such corporation or national association publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law or to the requirements of the supervising or examining authority referred to above, then

for the purposes of this Section 4.3(a)(iii), the combined capital and surplus of such corporation or national association shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published.

(b) If at any time the Institutional Trustee shall cease to be eligible to so act under Section 4.3(a), the Institutional Trustee shall immediately resign in the manner and with the effect set forth in Section 4.7.

(c) If the Institutional Trustee has or shall acquire any “conflicting interest” within the meaning of § 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act, the Institutional Trustee shall either eliminate such interest or resign, to the extent and in the manner provided by, and subject to this Declaration.

(d) The initial Institutional Trustee shall be Wilmington Trust Company.

Section 4.4. Certain Qualifications of the Delaware Trustee Generally . The Delaware Trustee shall be a U.S. Person and either a natural person who is at least 21 years of age or a legal entity that shall act through one or more Authorized Officers.

Section 4.5. Administrators . Each Administrator shall be a U.S. Person. There shall at all times be at least one Administrator. Except where a requirement for action by a specific number of Administrators is expressly set forth in this Declaration and except with respect to any action the taking of which is the subject of a meeting of the Administrators, any action required or permitted to be taken by the Administrators may be taken by, and any power of the Administrators may be exercised by, or with the consent of, any one such Administrator acting alone.

Section 4.6. Initial Delaware Trustee . The initial Delaware Trustee shall be Wilmington Trust Company.

Section 4.7. Appointment, Removal and Resignation of the Trustees and the Administrators .

(a) No resignation or removal of any Trustee (the “Relevant Trustee”) and no appointment of a successor Trustee pursuant to this Article shall become effective until the acceptance of appointment by the successor Trustee in accordance with the applicable requirements of this Section 4.7.

(b) Subject to Section 4.7(a), a Relevant Trustee may resign at any time by giving written notice thereof to the Holders of the Securities and by appointing a successor Relevant Trustee. Upon the resignation of the Institutional Trustee, the Institutional Trustee shall appoint a successor by requesting from at least three Persons meeting the eligibility requirements their expenses and charges to serve as the successor Institutional Trustee on a form provided by the Administrators, and selecting the Person who agrees to the lowest expense and charges (the “Successor Institutional Trustee”). If the instrument of acceptance by the successor Relevant Trustee required by this Section 4.7 shall not have been delivered to the Relevant Trustee within 60 days after the giving of such notice of resignation or delivery of the instrument

of removal, the Relevant Trustee may petition, at the expense of the Trust, any federal, State or District of Columbia court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor Relevant Trustee. Such court may thereupon, after prescribing such notice, if any, as it may deem proper, appoint a Relevant Trustee. The Institutional Trustee shall have no liability for the selection of such successor pursuant to this Section 4.7.

(c) Unless an Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing, any Trustee may be removed at any time by an act of the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities. If any Trustee shall be so removed, the Holders of the Common Securities, by act of the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities delivered to the Relevant Trustee, shall promptly appoint a successor Relevant Trustee, and such successor Trustee shall comply with the applicable requirements of this Section 4.7. If an Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing, the Institutional Trustee or the Delaware Trustee, or both of them, may be removed by the act of the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities, delivered to the Relevant Trustee (in its individual capacity and on behalf of the Trust). If any Trustee shall be so removed, the Holders of Capital Securities, by act of the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities then outstanding delivered to the Relevant Trustee, shall promptly appoint a successor Relevant Trustee or Trustees, and such successor Trustee shall comply with the applicable requirements of this Section 4.7. If no successor Relevant Trustee shall have been so appointed by the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities and accepted appointment in the manner required by this Section 4.7 within 30 days after delivery of an instrument of removal, the Relevant Trustee or any Holder who has been a Holder of the Securities for at least six months may, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, petition any federal, State or District of Columbia court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor Relevant Trustee. Such court may thereupon, after prescribing such notice, if any, as it may deem proper, appoint a successor Relevant Trustee or Trustees.

(d) The Institutional Trustee shall give notice of each resignation and each removal of a Trustee and each appointment of a successor Trustee to all Holders and to the Sponsor. Each notice shall include the name of the successor Relevant Trustee and the address of its Corporate Trust Office if it is the Institutional Trustee.

(e) Notwithstanding the foregoing or any other provision of this Declaration, in the event a Delaware Trustee who is a natural person dies or is adjudged by a court to have become incompetent or incapacitated, the vacancy created by such death, incompetence or incapacity may be filled by the Institutional Trustee following the procedures in this Section 4.7 (with the successor being a Person who satisfies the eligibility requirement for a Delaware Trustee set forth in this Declaration) (the “Successor Delaware Trustee”).

(f) In case of the appointment hereunder of a successor Relevant Trustee, the retiring Relevant Trustee and each successor Relevant Trustee with respect to the Securities shall execute and deliver an amendment hereto wherein each successor Relevant Trustee shall accept such appointment and which (i) shall contain such provisions as shall be necessary or desirable to transfer and confirm to, and to vest in, each successor Relevant Trustee all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the retiring Relevant Trustee with respect to the Securities and the Trust and

(ii) shall add to or change any of the provisions of this Declaration as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the Trust by more than one Relevant Trustee, it being understood that nothing herein or in such amendment shall constitute such Relevant Trustees co-trustees and upon the execution and delivery of such amendment the resignation or removal of the retiring Relevant Trustee shall become effective to the extent provided therein and each such successor Relevant Trustee, without any further act, deed or conveyance, shall become vested with all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the retiring Relevant Trustee; but, on request of the Trust or any successor Relevant Trustee, such retiring Relevant Trustee shall duly assign, transfer and deliver to such successor Relevant Trustee all Trust Property, all proceeds thereof and money held by such retiring Relevant Trustee hereunder with respect to the Securities and the Trust subject to the payment of all unpaid fees, expenses and indemnities of such retiring Relevant Trustee.

(g) No Institutional Trustee or Delaware Trustee shall be liable for the acts or omissions to act of any Successor Institutional Trustee or Successor Delaware Trustee, as the case may be.

(h) The Holders of the Capital Securities will have no right to vote to appoint, remove or replace the Administrators, which voting rights are vested exclusively in the Holders of the Common Securities.

(i) Any successor Delaware Trustee shall file an amendment to the Certificate of Trust with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware identifying the name and principal place of business of such Delaware Trustee in the State of Delaware.

Section 4.8. Vacancies Among Trustees . If a Trustee ceases to hold office for any reason and the number of Trustees is not reduced pursuant to Section 4.1, or if the number of Trustees is increased pursuant to Section 4.1, a vacancy shall occur. A resolution certifying the existence of such vacancy by the Trustees or, if there are more than two, a majority of the Trustees shall be conclusive evidence of the existence of such vacancy. The vacancy shall be filled with a Trustee appointed in accordance with Section 4.7.

Section 4.9. Effect of Vacancies . The death, resignation, retirement, removal, bankruptcy, dissolution, liquidation, incompetence or incapacity to perform the duties of a Trustee shall not operate to dissolve, terminate or annul the Trust or terminate this Declaration. Whenever a vacancy in the number of Trustees shall occur, until such vacancy is filled by the appointment of a Trustee in accordance with Section 4.7, the Institutional Trustee shall have all the powers granted to the Trustees and shall discharge all the duties imposed upon the Trustees by this Declaration.

Section 4.10. Meetings of the Trustees and the Administrators . Meetings of the Trustees or the Administrators shall be held from time to time upon the call of any Trustee or Administrator, as applicable. Regular meetings of the Trustees and the Administrators, respectively, may be in person in the United States or by telephone, at a place (if applicable) and time fixed by resolution of the Trustees or the Administrators, as applicable. Notice of any in-person meetings of the Trustees or the Administrators shall be hand delivered or otherwise delivered in writing (including by facsimile, with a hard copy by overnight courier) not less than

48 hours before such meeting. Notice of any telephonic meetings of the Trustees or the Administrators or any committee thereof shall be hand delivered or otherwise delivered in writing (including by facsimile, with a hard copy by overnight courier) not less than 24 hours before a meeting. Notices shall contain a brief statement of the time, place and anticipated purposes of the meeting. The presence (whether in person or by telephone) of a Trustee or an Administrator, as the case may be, at a meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting except where a Trustee or an Administrator, as the case may be, attends a meeting for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of any activity on the ground that the meeting has not been lawfully called or convened. Unless provided otherwise in this Declaration, any action of the Trustees or the Administrators, as the case may be, may be taken at a meeting by vote of a majority of the Trustees or the Administrators present (whether in person or by telephone) and eligible to vote with respect to such matter; provided , that, in the case of the Administrators, a Quorum is present, or without a meeting by the unanimous written consent of the Trustees or the Administrators, as the case may be. Meetings of the Trustees and the Administrators together shall be held from time to time upon the call of any Trustee or Administrator.

Section 4.11. Delegation of Power . (a) Any Trustee or any Administrator, as the case may be, may, by power of attorney consistent with applicable law, delegate to any other natural person over the age of 21 that is a U.S. Person his or her power for the purpose of executing any documents, instruments or other writings contemplated in Section 2.6.

(b) The Trustees shall have power to delegate from time to time to such of their number or to any officer of the Trust that is a U.S. Person, the doing of such things and the execution of such instruments or other writings either in the name of the Trust or the names of the Trustees or otherwise as the Trustees may deem expedient, to the extent such delegation is not prohibited by applicable law or contrary to the provisions of the Trust, as set forth herein.

Section 4.12. Merger, Conversion, Consolidation or Succession to Business . Any Person into which the Institutional Trustee or the Delaware Trustee, as the case may be, may be merged or converted or with which either may be consolidated, or any Person resulting from any merger, conversion or consolidation to which the Institutional Trustee or the Delaware Trustee, as the case may be, shall be a party, or any Person succeeding to all or substantially all the corporate trust business of the Institutional Trustee or the Delaware Trustee, as the case may be, shall be the successor of the Institutional Trustee or the Delaware Trustee, as the case may be, hereunder, without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of any of the parties hereto, provided such Person shall be otherwise qualified and eligible under this Article and, provided , further , that such Person shall file an amendment to the Certificate of Trust with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware as contemplated in Section 4.7(i).

ARTICLE V

DISTRIBUTIONS

Section 5.1. Distributions . Holders shall receive Distributions in accordance with the applicable terms of the relevant Holder’s Securities. Distributions shall be made on the

Capital Securities and the Common Securities in accordance with the preferences set forth in their respective terms. If and to the extent that the Debenture Issuer makes a payment of interest (including any Additional Interest or Deferred Interest) or premium, if any, on and/or principal on the Debentures held by the Institutional Trustee (the amount of any such payment being a “Payment Amount”), the Institutional Trustee shall and is directed, to the extent funds are available in the Property Account for that purpose, to make a distribution (a “Distribution”) of the Payment Amount to Holders. For the avoidance of doubt, funds in the Property Account shall not be distributed to Holders to the extent of any taxes payable by the Trust, in the case of withholding taxes, as determined by the Institutional Trustee or any Paying Agent and, in the case of taxes other than withholding taxes, as determined by the Administrators in a written notice to the Institutional Trustee.

ARTICLE VI

ISSUANCE OF SECURITIES

Section 6.1. General Provisions Regarding Securities .

(a) The Administrators shall on behalf of the Trust issue one series of capital securities, evidenced by a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit A-1, representing undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust and having such terms as are set forth in Annex I (the “Capital Securities”), and one series of common securities, evidenced by a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit A-2, representing undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust and having such terms as are set forth in Annex I (the “Common Securities”). The Trust shall issue no securities or other interests in the assets of the Trust other than the Capital Securities and the Common Securities. The Capital Securities rank pari passu and payment thereon shall be made Pro Rata with the Common Securities except that, where an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the rights of Holders of the Common Securities to payment in respect of Distributions and payments upon liquidation, redemption and otherwise are subordinated to the rights to payment of the Holders of the Capital Securities.

(b) The Certificates shall be signed on behalf of the Trust by one or more Administrators. Such signature shall be the facsimile or manual signature of any Administrator. In case any Administrator of the Trust who shall have signed any of the Securities shall cease to be such Administrator before the Certificates so signed shall be delivered by the Trust, such Certificates nevertheless may be delivered as though the person who signed such Certificates had not ceased to be such Administrator. Any Certificate may be signed on behalf of the Trust by such person who, at the actual date of execution of such Certificate, shall be an Administrator of the Trust, although at the date of the execution and delivery of the Declaration any such person was not such an Administrator. A Capital Security shall not be valid until the Certificate evidencing it is authenticated by the manual or facsimile signature of an Authorized Officer of the Institutional Trustee. Such signature shall be conclusive evidence that the Certificate evidencing such Capital Security has been authenticated under this Declaration. Upon written order of the Trust signed by one Administrator, the Institutional Trustee shall authenticate one or more Certificates evidencing the Capital Securities for original issue. The Institutional Trustee may appoint an authenticating agent that is a U.S. Person acceptable to the Trust to authenticate Certificates evidencing the Capital Securities. A Common Security need not be so authenticated and shall be valid upon execution by one or more Administrators.

(c) The consideration received by the Trust for the issuance of the Securities shall constitute a contribution to the capital of the Trust and shall not constitute a loan to the Trust.

(d) Upon issuance of the Securities as provided in this Declaration, the Securities so issued shall be deemed to be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, and each Holder thereof shall be entitled to the benefits provided by this Declaration.

(e) Every Person, by virtue of having become a Holder in accordance with the terms of this Declaration, shall be deemed to have expressly assented and agreed to the terms of, and shall be bound by, this Declaration and the Guarantee.

Section 6.2. Paying Agent, Transfer Agent, Calculation Agent and Registrar .

(a) The Trust shall maintain in Wilmington, Delaware, an office or agency where the Securities may be presented for payment (the “Paying Agent”), and an office or agency where Securities may be presented for registration of transfer or exchange (the “Transfer Agent”). The Trust shall keep or cause to be kept at such office or agency a register (the “Securities Register”) for the purpose of registering Securities and transfers and exchanges of Securities, such Securities Register to be held by a registrar (the “Registrar”). The Administrators may appoint the Paying Agent, the Registrar and the Transfer Agent, and may appoint one or more additional Paying Agents, one or more co-Registrars, or one or more co-Transfer Agents in such other locations as it shall determine. The term “Paying Agent” includes any additional Paying Agent, the term “Registrar” includes any additional Registrar or co-Registrar and the term “Transfer Agent” includes any additional Transfer Agent or co-Transfer Agent. The Administrators may change any Paying Agent, Transfer Agent or Registrar at any time without prior notice to any Holder. The Administrators shall notify the Institutional Trustee of the name and address of any Paying Agent, Transfer Agent and Registrar not a party to this Declaration. The Administrators hereby initially appoint the Institutional Trustee to act as Paying Agent, Transfer Agent and Registrar for the Capital Securities and the Common Securities at its Corporate Trust Office. The Institutional Trustee or any of its Affiliates in the United States may act as Paying Agent, Transfer Agent or Registrar.

(b) The Trust shall also appoint a Calculation Agent, which shall determine the Coupon Rate in accordance with the terms of the Securities. The Trust initially appoints the Institutional Trustee as Calculation Agent.

Section 6.3. Form and Dating .

(a) The Capital Securities shall be evidenced by one or more Certificates and the Institutional Trustee’s certificate of authentication thereon shall be substantially in the form of Exhibit A-1, and the Common Securities shall be evidenced by one or more Certificates substantially in the form of Exhibit A-2, each of which is hereby incorporated in and expressly made a part of this Declaration. Certificates may be typed, printed, lithographed or engraved or

may be produced in any other manner as is reasonably acceptable to the Administrators, as conclusively evidenced by their execution thereof. Certificates evidencing Securities may have letters, numbers, notations or other marks of identification or designation and such legends or endorsements required by law, stock exchange rule, agreements to which the Trust is subject, if any, or usage ( provided , that any such notation, legend or endorsement is in a form acceptable to the Sponsor). The Trust at the direction of the Sponsor shall furnish any such legend not contained in Exhibit A-1 to the Institutional Trustee in writing. Each Capital Security Certificate shall be dated the date of its authentication. The terms and provisions of the Securities set forth in Annex I and the forms of Certificates set forth in Exhibits A-1 and A-2 are part of the terms of this Declaration and to the extent applicable, the Institutional Trustee, the Delaware Trustee, the Administrators and the Sponsor, by their execution and delivery of this Declaration, expressly agree to such terms and provisions and to be bound thereby. Capital Securities will be issued only in blocks having an aggregate liquidation amount of not less than $100,000.

(b) The Capital Securities are being offered and sold by the Trust pursuant to the Placement Agreement in definitive form, registered in the name of the Holder thereof, without coupons and with the Restricted Securities Legend.

Section 6.4. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Certificates . If:

(a) any mutilated Certificate should be surrendered to the Registrar, or if the Registrar shall receive evidence to its satisfaction of the destruction, loss or theft of any Certificate; and

(b) the related Holder shall deliver to the Registrar, the Administrators and the Institutional Trustee such security or indemnity as may be required by them to keep each of them harmless; then, in the absence of notice that such Certificate shall have been acquired by a bona fide purchaser, an Administrator on behalf of the Trust shall execute (and in the case of a Capital Security Certificate, the Institutional Trustee shall authenticate) and deliver to such Holder, in exchange for or in lieu of any such mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Certificate, a new Certificate of like denomination. In connection with the issuance of any new Certificate under this Section 6.4, the Registrar or the Administrators may require such Holder to pay a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in connection therewith. Any Certificate executed and delivered pursuant to this Section shall constitute conclusive evidence of an ownership interest in the relevant Securities, as if originally issued, whether or not the lost, stolen or destroyed Certificate shall be found at any time.

Section 6.5. Temporary Certificates . Until definitive Certificates are ready for delivery, the Administrators may prepare and execute on behalf of the Trust and, in the case of Capital Security Certificates, the Institutional Trustee shall authenticate, temporary Certificates. Temporary Certificates shall be substantially in the form of definitive Certificates but may have variations that the Administrators consider appropriate for temporary Certificates. Without unreasonable delay, the Administrators shall prepare and execute on behalf of the Trust and, in the case of the Capital Security Certificates, the Institutional Trustee shall authenticate definitive Certificates in exchange for temporary Certificates.

Section 6.6. Cancellation . The Administrators at any time may deliver Certificates evidencing Securities to the Institutional Trustee for cancellation. The Registrar shall forward to the Institutional Trustee any Certificates evidencing Securities surrendered to it for registration of transfer, redemption or payment. The Institutional Trustee shall promptly cancel all Certificates surrendered for registration of transfer, payment, replacement or cancellation and shall dispose of such canceled Certificates as the Administrators direct. The Administrators may not issue new Certificates to replace Certificates evidencing Securities that have been paid or, except for Certificates surrendered for purposes of the transfer or exchange of the Securities evidenced thereby, that have been delivered to the Institutional Trustee for cancellation.

Section 6.7. Rights of Holders; Waivers of Past Defaults .

(a) The legal title to the Trust Property is vested exclusively in the Institutional Trustee (in its capacity as such) in accordance with Section 2.5, and the Holders shall not have any right or title therein other than the undivided beneficial interest in the assets of the Trust conferred by their Securities and they shall have no right to call for any partition or division of property, profits or rights of the Trust except as described below. The Securities shall be personal property giving only the rights specifically set forth therein and in this Declaration. The Securities shall have no, and the issuance of the Securities shall not be subject to, preemptive or other similar rights and when issued and delivered to Holders against payment of the purchase price therefor, the Securities will be fully paid and nonassessable by the Trust.

(b) For so long as any Capital Securities remain outstanding, if, upon an Indenture Event of Default pursuant to Section 5.01(b), 5.01(e) or 5.01(f) of the Indenture the Debenture Trustee fails or the holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the outstanding Debentures fail to declare the principal of all of the Debentures to be immediately due and payable, the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities then outstanding shall have the right to make such declaration by a notice in writing to the Institutional Trustee, the Sponsor and the Debenture Trustee.

(c) At any time after the acceleration of maturity of the Debentures has been made and before a judgment or decree for payment of the money due has been obtained by the Debenture Trustee as provided in the Indenture, if the Institutional Trustee, subject to the provisions hereof, fails to annul any such acceleration and waive such default, the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities, by written notice to the Institutional Trustee, the Sponsor and the Debenture Trustee, may rescind and annul such acceleration and its consequences if:

(i) the Sponsor has paid or deposited with the Debenture Trustee a sum sufficient to pay

(A) all overdue installments of interest on all of the Debentures;

(B) any accrued Deferred Interest on all of the Debentures;

(C) all payments on any Debentures that have become due otherwise than by such acceleration and interest and Deferred Interest thereon at the rate borne by the Debentures; and

(D) all sums paid or advanced by the Debenture Trustee under the Indenture and the reasonable compensation, documented expenses, disbursements and advances of the Debenture Trustee and the Institutional Trustee, their agents and counsel; and

(ii) all Events of Default with respect to the Debentures, other than the non-payment of the principal of or premium, if any on the Debentures that has become due solely by such acceleration, have been cured or waived as provided in Section 5.07 of the Indenture.

(d) The Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities may, on behalf of the Holders of all the Capital Securities, waive any past Default or Event of Default, except a Default or Event of Default in the payment of principal, premium, if any, or interest (unless such Default or Event of Default has been cured and a sum sufficient to pay all matured installments of interest and principal due otherwise than by acceleration has been deposited with the Debenture Trustee) or a default or Event of Default in respect of a covenant or provision that under the Indenture cannot be modified or amended without the consent of the holder of each outstanding Debenture. No such rescission shall affect any subsequent default or impair any right consequent thereon.

(e) Upon receipt by the Institutional Trustee of written notice declaring such an acceleration, or rescission and annulment thereof, by Holders of any part of the Capital Securities, a record date shall be established for determining Holders of outstanding Capital Securities entitled to join in such notice, which record date shall be at the close of business on the day the Institutional Trustee receives such notice. The Holders on such record date, or their duly designated proxies, and only such Persons, shall be entitled to join in such notice, whether or not such Holders remain Holders after such record date; provided, that, unless such declaration of acceleration, or rescission and annulment, as the case may be, shall have become effective by virtue of the requisite percentage having joined in such notice prior to the day that is 90 days after such record date, such notice of declaration of acceleration, or rescission and annulment, as the case may be, shall automatically and without further action by any Holder be canceled and of no further effect. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent a Holder, or a proxy of a Holder, from giving, after expiration of such 90-day period, a new written notice of declaration of acceleration, or rescission and annulment thereof, as the case may be, that is identical to a written notice that has been canceled pursuant to the proviso to the preceding sentence, in which event a new record date shall be established pursuant to the provisions of this Section 6.7.

(f) Except as otherwise provided in this Section 6.7, the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities may, on behalf of the Holders of all the Capital Securities, waive any past Default or Event of Default and its consequences. Upon such waiver, any such Default or Event of Default shall cease to exist, and any Default or Event of Default arising therefrom shall be deemed to have been cured, for every purpose of this Declaration, but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other Default or Event of Default or impair any right consequent thereon.

ARTICLE VII

DISSOLUTION AND TERMINATION OF TRUST

Section 7.1. Dissolution and Termination of Trust . (a) The Trust shall dissolve on the first to occur of :

(i) unless earlier dissolved, on September 23, 2041, the expiration of the term of the Trust;

(ii) a Bankruptcy Event with respect to the Sponsor, the Trust or the Debenture Issuer;

(iii) (other than in connection with a merger, consolidation or similar transaction not prohibited by the Indenture, this Declaration or the Guarantee, as the case may be) the filing of a certificate of dissolution or its equivalent with respect to the Sponsor or upon the revocation of the charter of the Sponsor and the expiration of 90 days after the date of revocation without a reinstatement thereof;

(iv) the distribution of the Debentures to the Holders of the Securities, upon exercise of the right of the Holders of all of the outstanding Common Securities to dissolve the Trust as provided in Annex I hereto;

(v) the entry of a decree of judicial dissolution of any Holder of the Common Securities, the Sponsor, the Trust or the Debenture Issuer;

(vi) when all of the Securities shall have been called for redemption and the amounts necessary for redemption thereof shall have been paid to the Holders in accordance with the terms of the Securities; or

(vii) before the issuance of any Securities, with the consent of all of the Trustees and the Sponsor.

(b) As soon as is practicable after the occurrence of an event referred to in Section 7.1(a), and after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors of the Trust as required by applicable law, including Section 3808 of the Statutory Trust Act, and subject to the terms set forth in Annex I, the Institutional Trustee shall terminate the Trust by filing a certificate of cancellation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware.

ARTICLE VIII

TRANSFER OF INTERESTS

Section 8.1. General . (a) Where a Holder of Capital Securities delivers to the Registrar in accordance with this Declaration a request to register a transfer of such Holder’s Capital Securities or to exchange them for an equal aggregate liquidation amount of Capital Securities represented by different Certificates, the Registrar shall register the transfer or make the exchange when the requirements specified in this Article VIII for such transfer or exchange are met. To facilitate registrations of transfers and exchanges, the Trust shall execute and the Institutional Trustee shall authenticate Capital Security Certificates at the Registrar’s request.

(b) Upon issuance of the Common Securities, the Sponsor shall acquire and retain beneficial and record ownership of the Common Securities and, for so long as the Securities remain outstanding, the Sponsor shall maintain 100% ownership of the Common Securities; provided , however , that any permitted successor of the Sponsor under the Indenture that is a U.S. Person may succeed to the Sponsor’s ownership of the Common Securities.

(c) Capital Securities may only be transferred, in whole or in part, in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in this Declaration and in the terms of the Capital Securities. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any transfer or purported transfer of any Security not made in accordance with this Declaration shall be null and void and will be deemed to be of no legal effect whatsoever and any such purported transferee shall be deemed not to be the Holder of such Capital Securities for any purpose, including, but not limited to, the receipt of Distributions on such Capital Securities, and such transferee shall be deemed to have no interest whatsoever in such Capital Securities.

(d) The Registrar shall provide in the Securities Register for the registration of Securities and of transfers of Securities, which will be effected without charge but only upon payment (with such indemnity as the Registrar may reasonably require) in respect of any tax or other governmental charges that may be imposed in relation to it. Upon its receipt of the documents required under this Section 8.1(d) for registration of transfer of any Securities, the Registrar shall register in the Securities Register, in the name of the designated transferee or transferees, the Securities being transferred and thereupon, for all purposes of this Declaration, such transfer shall be effective and such transferee or transferees shall be, and such transferor shall no longer be, the Holder of the transferred Securities. Upon the registration of transfer of a Security pursuant to the terms of this Declaration in the name of the new Holder thereof, such Security shall constitute the same Security as the Security so transferred and shall be entitled to the same benefits under this Declaration as the Security so transferred. The Registrar shall, and is authorized to, record and register in the Securities Register the transfer of a Security upon the Registrar’s receipt of originals or copies (which may be by facsimile or other form of electronic transmission) of (i) a written instrument of transfer in form reasonably satisfactory to the Registrar duly executed by the Holder or such Holder’s attorney duly authorized in writing, and (ii) if such Security is being transferred other than in accordance with Section 8.4, a certificate substantially in the form set forth as Exhibit B or C, as applicable, hereto, executed by the transferor or transferee, as applicable; thereupon, the Registrar is authorized to confirm in

writing to the transferee and, if requested, to the transferor of such Security that such transfer has been registered in the Securities Register and that such transferee is the Holder of such Security. The Certificate evidencing the Security so transferred, duly endorsed by the transferor, shall be surrendered to the Registrar at the time the transfer conditions specified in the immediately preceding sentence are satisfied or within five (5) Business Days after the Registrar has registered the transfer of such Security on the Securities Register, and promptly after such surrender, an Administrator on behalf of the Trust shall execute and, in the case of a Capital Security Certificate, the Institutional Trustee shall, and is authorized to, authenticate a Certificate in the name of the transferee as the new Holder of the Security evidenced thereby. Until the Certificate evidencing the Security so transferred is surrendered to the Registrar, such Security may not be transferred by such new Holder. Each Certificate surrendered in connection with a registration of transfer shall be canceled by the Institutional Trustee pursuant to Section 6.6. A transferee of a Security shall be entitled to the rights and subject to the obligations of a Holder hereunder upon the registration of such transfer in the Securities Register. Each such transferee shall be deemed to have agreed to be bound by this Declaration.

(e) Neither the Trust nor the Registrar shall be required (i) to issue Certificates representing Securities or register the transfer of or exchange any Securities, during a period beginning at the opening of business 15 days before the day of any selection of Securities for redemption and ending at the close of business on the earliest date on which the relevant notice of redemption is deemed to have been given to all Holders of the Securities to be redeemed, or (ii) to register the transfer or exchange of any Security so selected for redemption in whole or in part, except the unredeemed portion of any Security being redeemed in part.

Section 8.2. Transfer Procedures and Restrictions .

(a) The Certificates evidencing Capital Securities shall bear the Restricted Securities Legend (as defined below), which shall not be removed unless there is delivered to the Trust such satisfactory evidence, which may include an opinion of counsel reasonably acceptable to the Trustee, as may be reasonably required by the Trust, that neither the Restricted Securities Legend nor the restrictions on transfer set forth therein are required to ensure that transfers thereof comply with the provisions of the Securities Act or to ensure that such Securities are not “restricted” within the meaning of Rule 144 under the Securities Act. Upon provision of such satisfactory evidence, the Institutional Trustee, at the written direction of the Trust, shall authenticate and deliver Capital Securities Certificates that do not bear the Restricted Securities Legend in exchange for the Capital Securities Certificates bearing the Restricted Securities Legend.

(b) Without the written consent of the Sponsor, Capital Securities may only be transferred: (i) to a QIB if the instrument of transfer is accompanied by a certificate of the transferor substantially in the form set forth as Exhibit C hereto; or (ii) otherwise than to a QIB if the instrument of transfer is accompanied by a certificate of the transferee substantially in the form set forth as Exhibit B hereto. Each certificate furnished pursuant to this Section 8.2(b) may be an original or a copy (which may be furnished by facsimile or other form of electronic transmission).

(c) Except as permitted by Section 8.2(a), each Certificate evidencing a Capital Security shall bear a legend (the “Restricted Securities Legend”) in substantially the following form:

THIS SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), OR ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS OR ANY OTHER APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS. NEITHER THIS SECURITY NOR ANY INTEREST OR PARTICIPATION HEREIN MAY BE REOFFERED, SOLD, ASSIGNED, TRANSFERRED, PLEDGED, ENCUMBERED OR OTHERWISE DISPOSED OF IN THE ABSENCE OF SUCH REGISTRATION OR UNLESS SUCH TRANSACTION IS EXEMPT FROM, OR NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT. THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES TO OFFER, SELL OR OTHERWISE TRANSFER SUCH SECURITY ONLY (A) TO THE DEBENTURE ISSUER OR THE TRUST, (B) PURSUANT TO RULE 144A UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT (“RULE 144A”), TO A PERSON THE HOLDER REASONABLY BELIEVES IS A “QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER” AS DEFINED IN RULE 144A THAT PURCHASES FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF A QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER TO WHOM NOTICE IS GIVEN THAT THE TRANSFER IS BEING MADE IN RELIANCE ON RULE 144A, (C) PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT TO AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR” WITHIN THE MEANING OF SUBPARAGRAPH (a) (1), (2), (3) OR (7) OF RULE 501 UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT THAT IS ACQUIRING THE SECURITY FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT, OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF SUCH AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR,” FOR INVESTMENT PURPOSES AND NOT WITH A VIEW TO, OR FOR OFFER OR SALE IN CONNECTION WITH, ANY DISTRIBUTION IN VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES ACT, OR (D) PURSUANT TO ANOTHER AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT, SUBJECT TO THE DEBENTURE ISSUER’S AND THE TRUST’S RIGHT PRIOR TO ANY SUCH OFFER, SALE OR TRANSFER PURSUANT TO CLAUSES (C) OR (D) ABOVE TO REQUIRE THE DELIVERY OF AN OPINION OF COUNSEL, CERTIFICATION AND/OR OTHER INFORMATION SATISFACTORY TO EACH OF THEM IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE AMENDED AND RESTATED DECLARATION OF TRUST, A COPY OF WHICH MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DEBENTURE ISSUER OR THE TRUST. THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES THAT IT WILL COMPLY WITH THE FOREGOING RESTRICTIONS.

CODE OF 1986, AS AMENDED (THE “CODE”), (EACH A “PLAN”), OR AN ENTITY WHOSE UNDERLYING ASSETS INCLUDE “PLAN ASSETS” BY REASON OF ANY PLAN’S INVESTMENT IN THE ENTITY AND NO PERSON INVESTING “PLAN ASSETS” OF ANY PLAN MAY ACQUIRE OR HOLD THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN, UNLESS SUCH PURCHASER OR HOLDER IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE EXEMPTIVE RELIEF AVAILABLE UNDER U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR PROHIBITED TRANSACTION CLASS EXEMPTION 96-23, 95-60, 91-38, 90-1 OR 84-14 OR ANOTHER APPLICABLE EXEMPTION OR ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING OF THIS SECURITY IS NOT PROHIBITED BY SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE WITH RESPECT TO SUCH PURCHASE OR HOLDING. ANY PURCHASER OR HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN WILL BE DEEMED TO HAVE REPRESENTED BY ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING THEREOF THAT EITHER (i) IT IS NOT AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN WITHIN THE MEANING OF SECTION 3(3) OF ERISA, OR A PLAN TO WHICH SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE IS APPLICABLE, A TRUSTEE OR OTHER PERSON ACTING ON BEHALF OF AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY USING THE ASSETS OF ANY EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN TO FINANCE SUCH PURCHASE, OR (ii) SUCH PURCHASE AND HOLDING WILL NOT RESULT IN A PROHIBITED TRANSACTION UNDER SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE FOR WHICH THERE IS NO APPLICABLE STATUTORY OR ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTION.

IN CONNECTION WITH ANY TRANSFER, THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY WILL DELIVER TO THE REGISTRAR AND TRANSFER AGENT SUCH CERTIFICATES AND OTHER INFORMATION AS MAY BE REQUIRED BY THE AMENDED AND RESTATED DECLARATION OF TRUST TO CONFIRM THAT THE TRANSFER COMPLIES WITH THE FOREGOING RESTRICTIONS.

THIS SECURITY WILL BE ISSUED AND MAY BE TRANSFERRED ONLY IN BLOCKS HAVING A LIQUIDATION AMOUNT OF NOT LESS THAN $100,000 AND MULTIPLES OF $1,000 IN EXCESS THEREOF. ANY ATTEMPTED TRANSFER OF THIS SECURITY IN A BLOCK HAVING A LIQUIDATION AMOUNT OF LESS THAN $100,000 SHALL BE DEEMED TO BE VOID AND OF NO LEGAL EFFECT WHATSOEVER. ANY SUCH PURPORTED TRANSFEREE SHALL BE DEEMED NOT TO BE THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY FOR ANY PURPOSE, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE RECEIPT OF DISTRIBUTIONS ON THIS SECURITY, AND SUCH PURPORTED TRANSFEREE SHALL BE DEEMED TO HAVE NO INTEREST WHATSOEVER IN THIS SECURITY.

(d) Capital Securities may only be transferred in minimum blocks of $100,000 aggregate liquidation amount (100 Capital Securities) and multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof. Any attempted transfer of Capital Securities in a block having an aggregate liquidation amount of less than $100,000 shall be deemed to be void and of no legal effect whatsoever. Any such purported transferee shall be deemed not to be a Holder of such Capital Securities for any purpose, including, but not limited to, the receipt of Distributions on such Capital Securities, and such purported transferee shall be deemed to have no interest whatsoever in such Capital Securities.

Section 8.3. Deemed Security Holders . The Trust, the Administrators, the Trustees, the Paying Agent, the Transfer Agent or the Registrar may treat the Person in whose name any Security shall be registered on the Securities Register of the Trust as the sole Holder and owner of such Security for purposes of receiving Distributions and for all other purposes whatsoever and, accordingly, shall not be bound to recognize any equitable or other claim to or interest in such Security on the part of any other Person, whether or not the Trust, the Administrators, the Trustees, the Paying Agent, the Transfer Agent or the Registrar shall have actual or other notice thereof.

Section 8.4. Transfer of Initial Securities . Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Article VIII or any other provision of this Declaration (including all Annexes and Exhibits hereto) to the contrary, any or all of the Capital Securities initially issued to SCP Structured Fund I, Ltd. (the “Initial Securities”) may be transferred by SCP Structured Fund I, Ltd. to any transferee selected by it that meets the parameters specified below and, upon delivery to the Registrar, of originals or copies (which may be by facsimile or other form of electronic transmission) of a written instrument of transfer in form reasonably satisfactory to the Registrar duly executed by SCP Structured Fund I, Ltd. or SCP Structured Fund I, Ltd.’s attorney duly authorized in writing (it being understood that no signature guarantee shall be required), then the Registrar shall, and is authorized to, record and register on the Securities Register the transfer of such Initial Securities to such transferee; thereupon, the Registrar is authorized to confirm in writing to the transferee and, if requested, to the transferor of such Initial Securities that such transfer has been registered in the Securities Register and that such transferee is the Holder of such Initial Securities; provided, however, that SCP Structured Fund I, Ltd., by its acceptance thereof, agrees that it may not transfer any Initial Securities to any transferee that is not a permitted transferee as provided herein and in the legend attached to the Certificate representing any Capital Security. The Certificate evidencing the Initial Securities to be transferred, duly endorsed by SCP Structured Fund I, Ltd., shall be surrendered to the Registrar at the time the transfer conditions specified in the immediately preceding sentence are satisfied or within five (5) Business Days after the Registrar has registered the transfer of such Initial Securities in the Securities Register, and promptly after such surrender, an Administrator on behalf of the Trust shall execute and, in the case of a Capital Security Certificate, the Institutional Trustee shall, and is authorized to, authenticate a Certificate in the name of the transferee as the new Holder of the Initial Securities evidenced thereby. Until the Certificate evidencing the Initial Securities so transferred is surrendered to the Registrar, such Initial Securities may not be transferred by such new Holder. No other conditions, restrictions or other provisions of this Declaration or any other document shall apply to a transfer of Initial Securities by SCP Structured Fund I, Ltd.

ARTICLE IX

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY OF HOLDERS OF SECURITIES, TRUSTEES OR OTHERS

Section 9.1. Liability . (a) Except as expressly set forth in this Declaration, the Guarantee and the terms of the Securities, the Sponsor shall not be:

(i) personally liable for the return of any portion of the capital contributions (or any return thereon) of the Holders of the Securities which shall be made solely from assets of the Trust; and

(ii) required to pay to the Trust or to any Holder of the Securities any deficit upon dissolution of the Trust or otherwise.

(b) The Holder of the Common Securities shall be liable for all of the debts and obligations of the Trust (other than with respect to the Securities) to the extent not satisfied out of the Trust’s assets.

(c) Pursuant to § 3803(a) of the Statutory Trust Act, the Holders of the Securities shall be entitled to the same limitation of personal liability extended to stockholders of private corporations for profit organized under the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, except as otherwise specifically set forth herein.

Section 9.2. Exculpation . (a) No Indemnified Person shall be liable, responsible or accountable in damages or otherwise to the Trust or any Covered Person for any loss, damage or claim incurred by reason of any act or omission performed or omitted by such Indemnified Person in good faith on behalf of the Trust and in a manner such Indemnified Person reasonably believed to be within the scope of the authority conferred on such Indemnified Person by this Declaration or by law, except that an Indemnified Person (other than an Administrator) shall be liable for any such loss, damage or claim incurred by reason of such Indemnified Person’s negligence or willful misconduct with respect to such acts or omissions and except that an Administrator shall be liable for any such loss, damage or claim incurred by reason of such Administrator’s gross negligence or willful misconduct with respect to such acts or omissions.

(b) An Indemnified Person shall be fully protected in relying in good faith upon the records of the Trust and upon such information, opinions, reports or statements presented to the Trust by any Person as to matters the Indemnified Person reasonably believes are within such other Person’s professional or expert competence and, if selected by such Indemnified Person, has been selected by such Indemnified Person with reasonable care by or on behalf of the Trust, including information, opinions, reports or statements as to the value and amount of the assets, liabilities, profits, losses or any other facts pertinent to the existence and amount of assets from which Distributions to Holders of Securities might properly be paid.

Section 9.3. Fiduciary Duty . (a) To the extent that, at law or in equity, an Indemnified Person has duties (including fiduciary duties) and liabilities relating thereto to the Trust or to any other Covered Person, an Indemnified Person acting under this Declaration shall not be liable to the Trust or to any other Covered Person for its good faith reliance on the provisions of this Declaration. The provisions of this Declaration, to the extent that they restrict the duties and liabilities of an Indemnified Person otherwise existing at law or in equity (other than the duties imposed on the Institutional Trustee under the Trust Indenture Act), are agreed by the parties hereto to replace such other duties and liabilities of the Indemnified Person.

(b) Whenever in this Declaration an Indemnified Person is permitted or required to make a decision:

(i) in its “discretion” or under a grant of similar authority, the Indemnified Person shall be entitled to consider such interests and factors as it desires, including its own interests, and shall have no duty or obligation to give any consideration to any interest of or factors affecting the Trust or any other Person; or

(ii) in its “good faith” or under another express standard, the Indemnified Person shall act under such express standard and shall not be subject to any other or different standard imposed by this Declaration or by applicable law.

Section 9.4. Indemnification . (a) (i) The Sponsor shall indemnify, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any Indemnified Person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of the Trust) by reason of the fact that such Person is or was an Indemnified Person against expenses (including attorneys’ fees and expenses), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by such Person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if such Person acted in good faith and in a manner such Person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Trust, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe such conduct was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit or proceeding by judgment, order, settlement, conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not, of itself, create a presumption that the Indemnified Person did not act in good faith and in a manner which such Person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Trust, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had reasonable cause to believe that such conduct was unlawful.

(ii) The Sponsor shall indemnify, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any Indemnified Person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the Trust to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that such Person is or was an Indemnified Person against expenses (including attorneys’ fees and expenses) actually and reasonably incurred by such Person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if such Person acted in good faith and in a manner such Person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Trust and except that no such indemnification shall be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such Indemnified Person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the Trust unless and only to the extent that the Court of Chancery of Delaware or the court in which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all the circumstances of the case, such Person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses which such Court of Chancery or such other court shall deem proper.

(iii) To the extent that an Indemnified Person shall be successful on the merits or otherwise (including dismissal of an action without prejudice or the

settlement of an action without admission of liability) in defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to in paragraphs (i) and (ii) of this Section 9.4(a), or in defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, such Person shall be indemnified, to the fullest extent permitted by law, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees and expenses) actually and reasonably incurred by such Person in connection therewith.

(iv) Any indemnification of an Administrator under paragraphs (i) and (ii) of this Section 9.4(a) (unless ordered by a court) shall be made by the Sponsor only as authorized in the specific case upon a determination that indemnification of the Indemnified Person is proper in the circumstances because such Person has met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in paragraphs (i) and (ii). Such determination shall be made (A) by the Administrators by a majority vote of a Quorum consisting of such Administrators who were not parties to such action, suit or proceeding, (B) if such a Quorum is not obtainable, or, even if obtainable, if a Quorum of disinterested Administrators so directs, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion, or (C) by the Common Security Holder of the Trust.

(v) To the fullest extent permitted by law, expenses (including attorneys’ fees and expenses) incurred by an Indemnified Person in defending a civil, criminal, administrative or investigative action, suit or proceeding referred to in paragraphs (i) and (ii) of this Section 9.4(a) shall be paid by the Sponsor in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of such Indemnified Person to repay such amount if it shall ultimately be determined that such Person is not entitled to be indemnified by the Sponsor as authorized in this Section 9.4(a). Notwithstanding the foregoing, no advance shall be made by the Sponsor if a determination is reasonably and promptly made (1) in the case of a Company Indemnified Person (A) by the Administrators by a majority vote of a Quorum of disinterested Administrators, (B) if such a Quorum is not obtainable, or, even if obtainable, if a Quorum of disinterested Administrators so directs, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion or (C) by the Common Security Holder of the Trust, that, based upon the facts known to the Administrators, counsel or the Common Security Holder at the time such determination is made, such Indemnified Person acted in bad faith or in a manner that such Person either believed to be opposed to or did not believe to be in the best interests of the Trust, or, with respect to any criminal proceeding, that such Indemnified Person believed or had reasonable cause to believe such conduct was unlawful, or (2) in the case of a Fiduciary Indemnified Person, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion that, based upon the facts known to the counsel at the time such determination is made, such Indemnified Person acted in bad faith or in a manner that such Indemnified Person either believed to be opposed to or did not believe to be in the best interests of the Trust, or, with respect to any criminal proceeding, that such Indemnified Person believed or had reasonable cause to believe such conduct was unlawful. In no event shall any advance be made (i) to a Company Indemnified Person in instances where the Administrators, independent legal counsel or the

Common Security Holder reasonably determine that such Person deliberately breached such Person’s duty to the Trust or its Common or Capital Security Holders or (ii) to a Fiduciary Indemnified Person in instances where independent legal counsel promptly and reasonably determines in a written opinion that such Person deliberately breached such Person’s duty to the Trust or its Common or Capital Security Holders.

(b) The Sponsor shall indemnify, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, each Indemnified Person from and against any and all loss, damage, liability, tax (other than taxes based on the income of such Indemnified Person), penalty, expense or claim of any kind or nature whatsoever incurred by such Indemnified Person arising out of or in connection with or by reason of the creation, administration or termination of the Trust, or any act or omission of such Indemnified Person in good faith on behalf of the Trust and in a manner such Indemnified Person reasonably believed to be within the scope of authority conferred on such Indemnified Person by this Declaration, except that no Indemnified Person shall be entitled to be indemnified in respect of any loss, damage, liability, tax, penalty, expense or claim incurred by such Indemnified Person by reason of negligence or willful misconduct with respect to such acts or omissions.

(c) The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, the other paragraphs of this Section 9.4 shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification and advancement of expenses may be entitled under any agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors of the Sponsor or Capital Security Holders of the Trust or otherwise, both as to action in such Person’s official capacity and as to action in another capacity while holding such office. All rights to indemnification under this Section 9.4 shall be deemed to be provided by a contract between the Sponsor and each Indemnified Person who serves in such capacity at any time while this Section 9.4 is in effect. Any repeal or modification of this Section 9.4 shall not affect any rights or obligations then existing.

(d) The Sponsor or the Trust may purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any Person who is or was an Indemnified Person against any liability asserted against such Person and incurred by such Person in any such capacity, or arising out of such Person’s status as such, whether or not the Sponsor would have the power to indemnify such Person against such liability under the provisions of this Section 9.4.

(e) For purposes of this Section 9.4, references to “the Trust” shall include, in addition to the resulting or surviving entity, any constituent entity (including any constituent of a constituent) absorbed in a consolidation or merger, so that any Person who is or was a director, trustee, officer or employee of such constituent entity, or is or was serving at the request of such constituent entity as a director, trustee, officer, employee or agent of another entity, shall stand in the same position under the provisions of this Section 9.4 with respect to the resulting or surviving entity as such Person would have with respect to such constituent entity if its separate existence had continued.

(f) The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, this Section 9.4 shall, unless otherwise provided when authorized or ratified, continue as to a Person who has ceased to be an Indemnified Person and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a Person.

(g) The provisions of this Section 9.4 shall survive the termination of this Declaration or the earlier resignation or removal of the Institutional Trustee. The obligations of the Sponsor under this Section 9.4 to compensate and indemnify the Trustees and to pay or reimburse the Trustees for expenses, disbursements and advances shall constitute additional indebtedness hereunder. Such additional indebtedness shall be secured by a lien prior to that of the Securities upon all property and funds held or collected by the Trustees as such, except funds held in trust for the benefit of the Holders of particular Capital Securities, provided , that the Sponsor is the Holder of the Common Securities.

Section 9.5. Outside Businesses . Any Covered Person, the Sponsor, the Delaware Trustee and the Institutional Trustee (subject to Section 4.3(c)) may engage in or possess an interest in other business ventures of any nature or description, independently or with others, similar or dissimilar to the business of the Trust, and the Trust and the Holders of Securities shall have no rights by virtue of this Declaration in and to such independent ventures or the income or profits derived therefrom, and the pursuit of any such venture, even if competitive with the business of the Trust, shall not be deemed wrongful or improper. None of any Covered Person, the Sponsor, the Delaware Trustee or the Institutional Trustee shall be obligated to present any particular investment or other opportunity to the Trust even if such opportunity is of a character that, if presented to the Trust, could be taken by the Trust, and any Covered Person, the Sponsor, the Delaware Trustee and the Institutional Trustee shall have the right to take for its own account (individually or as a partner or fiduciary) or to recommend to others any such particular investment or other opportunity. Any Covered Person, the Delaware Trustee and the Institutional Trustee may engage or be interested in any financial or other transaction with the Sponsor or any Affiliate of the Sponsor, or may act as depositary for, trustee or agent for, or act on any committee or body of holders of, securities or other obligations of the Sponsor or its Affiliates.

Section 9.6. Compensation; Fee . (a) The Sponsor agrees:

(i) to pay to the Trustees from time to time such compensation for all services rendered by them hereunder as the parties shall agree in writing from time to time (which compensation shall not be limited by any provision of law in regard to the compensation of a trustee of an express trust); and

(ii) except as otherwise expressly provided herein, to reimburse the Trustees upon request for all reasonable, documented expenses, disbursements and advances incurred or made by the Trustees in accordance with any provision of this Declaration (including the reasonable compensation and the expenses and disbursements of their respective agents and counsel), except any such expense, disbursement or advance attributable to their negligence or willful misconduct.

(b) The provisions of this Section 9.6 shall survive the dissolution of the Trust and the termination of this Declaration and the removal or resignation of any Trustee.

ARTICLE X

ACCOUNTING

Section 10.1. Fiscal Year . The fiscal year (the “Fiscal Year”) of the Trust shall be the calendar year, or such other year as is required by the Code.

Section 10.2. Certain Accounting Matters .

(a) At all times during the existence of the Trust, the Administrators shall keep, or cause to be kept at the principal office of the Trust in the United States, as defined for purposes of Treasury Regulations section 301.7701-7, full books of account, records and supporting documents, which shall reflect in reasonable detail each transaction of the Trust. The books of account shall be maintained on the accrual method of accounting, in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, consistently applied.

(b) The Sponsor shall cause the Administrators to deliver to each Holder of the Securities: (i) if the Sponsor or any of its Subsidiaries is not then (x) subject to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act or (y) exempt from reporting pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) thereunder, the information required by Rule 144A(d)(4) under the Securities Act, (ii) if the Sponsor is not then required to file Form FR Y-9C, the audited financial statements (or, if no audited financial statements are prepared, the unaudited financial statements) of the Sponsor and any Subsidiaries within 90 days after the end of the Fiscal Year, and (iii) within 90 days after the end of each Fiscal Year of the Trust, annual financial statements of the Trust, including a balance sheet of the Trust as of the end of such Fiscal Year, and the statements of income or loss for the Fiscal Year then ended, that are prepared at the principal office of the Trust in the United States, as defined for purposes of Treasury Regulations section 301.7701-7.

(c) The Administrators shall cause to be duly prepared and delivered to each of the Holders of Securities Form 1099 or such other annual United States federal income tax information statement required by the Code, containing such information with regard to the Securities held by each Holder as is required by the Code and the Treasury Regulations. Notwithstanding any right under the Code to deliver any such statement at a later date, the Administrators shall endeavor to deliver all such statements within 30 days after the end of each Fiscal Year of the Trust.

(d) The Administrators shall cause to be duly prepared in the United States, as defined for purposes of Treasury Regulations section 301.7701-7, and filed an annual United States federal income tax return on a Form 1041 or such other form required by United States federal income tax law, and any other annual income tax returns required to be filed by the Administrators on behalf of the Trust with any state or local taxing authority.

(e) So long as the only Holder or beneficial owner of the Capital Securities is an entity that holds a pool of trust preferred securities, debt securities and/or similar securities or a trustee thereof, the Administrators will cause the Sponsor’s reports on Form FR Y-9C to be delivered to the Holder promptly following their filing with the Federal Reserve.

Section 10.3. Banking . The Trust shall maintain one or more bank accounts in the United States, as defined for purposes of Treasury Regulations section 301.7701-7, in the name and for the sole benefit of the Trust; provided , however , that all payments of funds in respect of the Debentures held by the Institutional Trustee shall be made directly to the Property Account and no other funds of the Trust shall be deposited in the Property Account. The sole signatories for such accounts (including the Property Account) shall be designated by the Institutional Trustee.

Section 10.4. Withholding . The Institutional Trustee or any Paying Agent and the Administrators shall comply with all withholding requirements under United States federal, state and local law. The Institutional Trustee or any Paying Agent shall request, and each Holder shall provide to the Institutional Trustee or any Paying Agent, such forms or certificates as are necessary to establish an exemption from withholding with respect to the Holder, and any representations and forms as shall reasonably be requested by the Institutional Trustee or any Paying Agent to assist it in determining the extent of, and in fulfilling, its withholding obligations. The Administrators shall file required forms with applicable jurisdictions and, unless an exemption from withholding is properly established by a Holder, shall remit amounts withheld with respect to the Holder to applicable jurisdictions. To the extent that the Institutional Trustee or any Paying Agent is required to withhold and pay over any amounts to any authority with respect to distributions or allocations to any Holder, the amount withheld shall be deemed to be a Distribution to the Holder in the amount of the withholding. In the event of any claimed overwithholding, Holders shall be limited to an action against the applicable jurisdiction. If the amount required to be withheld was not withheld from actual Distributions made, the Institutional Trustee or any Paying Agent may reduce subsequent Distributions by the amount of such withholding.

ARTICLE XI

AMENDMENTS AND MEETINGS

Section 11.1. Amendments . (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Declaration or by any applicable terms of the Securities, this Declaration may only be amended by a written instrument approved and executed by

(i) the Institutional Trustee,

(ii) if the amendment affects the rights, powers, duties, obligations or immunities of the Delaware Trustee, the Delaware Trustee,

(iii) if the amendment affects the rights, powers, duties, obligations or immunities of the Administrators, the Administrators, and

(iv) the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities.

(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article XI, no amendment shall be made, and any such purported amendment shall be void and ineffective:

(i) unless the Institutional Trustee shall have first received

(A) an Officers’ Certificate from each of the Trust and the Sponsor that such amendment is permitted by, and conforms to, the terms of this Declaration (including the terms of the Securities); and

(B) an opinion of counsel (who may be counsel to the Sponsor or the Trust) that such amendment is permitted by, and conforms to, the terms of this Declaration (including the terms of the Securities) and that all conditions precedent to the execution and delivery of such amendment have been satisfied; or

(ii) if the result of such amendment would be to

(A) cause the Trust to cease to be classified for purposes of United States federal income taxation as a grantor trust;

(B) reduce or otherwise adversely affect the powers of the Institutional Trustee in contravention of the Trust Indenture Act;

(C) cause the Trust to be deemed to be an Investment Company required to be registered under the Investment Company Act; or

(D) cause the Debenture Issuer to be unable to treat an amount equal to the Liquidation Amount of the Debentures as “Tier 1 Capital” (or its equivalent) for purposes of the capital adequacy guidelines of the Federal Reserve (or any successor regulatory authority with jurisdiction over bank holding companies).

(c) Except as provided in Section 11.1(d), (e) or (g), no amendment shall be made, and any such purported amendment shall be void and ineffective, unless the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities shall have consented to such amendment.

(d) In addition to and notwithstanding any other provision in this Declaration, without the consent of each affected Holder, this Declaration may not be amended to (i) change the amount or timing of any Distribution on the Securities or otherwise adversely affect the amount of any Distribution required to be made in respect of the Securities as of a specified date or (ii) restrict the right of a Holder to institute suit for the enforcement of any such payment on or after such date.

(e) Sections 9.1(b) and 9.1(c) and this Section 11.1 shall not be amended without the consent of all of the Holders of the Securities.

(f) The rights of the Holders of the Capital Securities and Common Securities, as applicable, under Article IV to increase or decrease the number of, and appoint and remove, Trustees shall not be amended without the consent of the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities or Common Securities, as applicable.

(g) This Declaration may be amended by the Institutional Trustee and the Holder of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities without the consent of the Holders of the Capital Securities to:

(i) cure any ambiguity;

(ii) correct or supplement any provision in this Declaration that may be defective or inconsistent with any other provision of this Declaration;

(iii) add to the covenants, restrictions or obligations of the Sponsor; or

(iv) modify, eliminate or add to any provision of this Declaration to such extent as may be necessary or desirable, including, without limitation, to ensure that the Trust will be classified for United States federal income tax purposes at all times as a grantor trust and will not be required to register as an Investment Company under the Investment Company Act (including without limitation to conform to any change in Rule 3a-5, Rule 3a-7 or any other applicable rule under the Investment Company Act or written change in interpretation or application thereof by any legislative body, court, government agency or regulatory authority) which amendment does not have a material adverse effect on the right, preferences or privileges of the Holders of Securities;

provided , however , that no such modification, elimination or addition referred to in clauses (i), (ii), (iii) or (iv) shall adversely affect the powers, preferences or rights of Holders of Capital Securities.

Section 11.2. Meetings of the Holders of the Securities; Action by Written Consent .

(a) Meetings of the Holders of any class of Securities may be called at any time by the Administrators (or as provided in the terms of the Securities) to consider and act on any matter on which Holders of such class of Securities are entitled to act under the terms of this Declaration, the terms of the Securities or the rules of any stock exchange on which the Capital Securities are listed or admitted for trading, if any. The Administrators shall call a meeting of the Holders of such class if directed to do so by the Holders of not less than 10% in liquidation amount of such class of Securities. Such direction shall be given by delivering to the Administrators one or more notices in a writing stating that the signing Holders of the Securities wish to call a meeting and indicating the general or specific purpose for which the meeting is to be called. Any Holders of the Securities calling a meeting shall specify in writing the

Certificates held by the Holders of the Securities exercising the right to call a meeting and only those Securities represented by such Certificates shall be counted for purposes of determining whether the required percentage set forth in the second sentence of this paragraph has been met.

(b) Except to the extent otherwise provided in the terms of the Securities, the following provisions shall apply to meetings of Holders of the Securities:

(i) notice of any such meeting shall be given to all the Holders of the Securities having a right to vote thereat at least 7 days and not more than 60 days before the date of such meeting. Whenever a vote, consent or approval of the Holders of the Securities is permitted or required under this Declaration or the rules of any stock exchange on which the Capital Securities are listed or admitted for trading, if any, such vote, consent or approval may be given at a meeting of the Holders of the Securities. Any action that may be taken at a meeting of the Holders of the Securities may be taken without a meeting if a consent in writing setting forth the action so taken is signed by the Holders of the Securities owning not less than the minimum liquidation amount of Securities that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all Holders of the Securities having a right to vote thereon were present and voting. Prompt notice of the taking of action without a meeting shall be given to the Holders of the Securities entitled to vote who have not consented in writing. The Administrators may specify that any written ballot submitted to the Holders of the Securities for the purpose of taking any action without a meeting shall be returned to the Trust within the time specified by the Administrators;

(ii) each Holder of a Security may authorize any Person to act for it by proxy on all matters in which a Holder of Securities is entitled to participate, including waiving notice of any meeting, or voting or participating at a meeting. No proxy shall be valid after the expiration of 11 months from the date thereof unless otherwise provided in the proxy. Every proxy shall be revocable at the pleasure of the Holder of the Securities executing it. Except as otherwise provided herein, all matters relating to the giving, voting or validity of proxies shall be governed by the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware relating to proxies, and judicial interpretations thereunder, as if the Trust were a Delaware corporation and the Holders of the Securities were stockholders of a Delaware corporation; each meeting of the Holders of the Securities shall be conducted by the Administrators or by such other Person that the Administrators may designate; and

(iii) unless the Statutory Trust Act, this Declaration, the terms of the Securities, the Trust Indenture Act or the listing rules of any stock exchange on which the Capital Securities are then listed for trading, if any, otherwise provides, the Administrators, in their sole discretion, shall establish all other provisions relating to meetings of Holders of Securities, including notice of the time, place or purpose of any meeting at which any matter is to be voted on by any Holders of the Securities, waiver of any such notice, action by consent without a meeting, the

establishment of a record date, quorum requirements, voting in person or by proxy or any other matter with respect to the exercise of any such right to vote; provided , however , that each meeting shall be conducted in the United States (as that term is defined in Treasury Regulations section 301.7701-7).

ARTICLE XII

REPRESENTATIONS OF INSTITUTIONAL TRUSTEE AND DELAWARE TRUSTEE

Section 12.1. Representations and Warranties of Institutional Trustee . The Trustee that acts as initial Institutional Trustee represents and warrants to the Trust and to the Sponsor at the date of this Declaration, and each Successor Institutional Trustee represents and warrants to the Trust and the Sponsor at the time of the Successor Institutional Trustee’s acceptance of its appointment as Institutional Trustee, that:

(a) the Institutional Trustee is a banking corporation or national association with trust powers, duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware or the United States of America, respectively, with trust power and authority to execute and deliver, and to carry out and perform its obligations under the terms of, this Declaration;

(b) the Institutional Trustee has a combined capital and surplus of at least fifty million U.S. dollars ($50,000,000);

(c) the Institutional Trustee is not an Affiliate of the Sponsor, nor does the Institutional Trustee offer or provide credit or credit enhancement to the Trust;

(d) the execution, delivery and performance by the Institutional Trustee of this Declaration has been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Institutional Trustee, and this Declaration has been duly executed and delivered by the Institutional Trustee, and under Delaware law (excluding any securities laws) constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Institutional Trustee, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, reorganization, moratorium, insolvency and other similar laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and to general principles of equity and the discretion of the court (regardless of whether considered in a proceeding in equity or at law);

(e) the execution, delivery and performance of this Declaration by the Institutional Trustee does not conflict with or constitute a breach of the charter or by-laws of the Institutional Trustee; and

(f) no consent, approval or authorization of, or registration with or notice to, any state or federal banking authority governing the trust powers of the Institutional Trustee is required for the execution, delivery or performance by the Institutional Trustee of this Declaration.

Section 12.2. Representations and Warranties of Delaware Trustee . The Trustee that acts as initial Delaware Trustee represents and warrants to the Trust and to the Sponsor at

the date of this Declaration, and each Successor Delaware Trustee represents and warrants to the Trust and the Sponsor at the time of the Successor Delaware Trustee’s acceptance of its appointment as Delaware Trustee that:

(a) if it is not a natural person, the Delaware Trustee is duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware;

(b) if it is not a natural person, the execution, delivery and performance by the Delaware Trustee of this Declaration has been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action on the part of the Delaware Trustee. This Declaration has been duly executed and delivered by the Delaware Trustee, and under Delaware law (excluding any securities laws) constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Delaware Trustee, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, reorganization, moratorium, insolvency and other similar laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and to general principles of equity and the discretion of the court (regardless of whether considered in a proceeding in equity or at law);

(c) if it is not a natural person, the execution, delivery and performance of this Declaration by the Delaware Trustee does not conflict with or constitute a breach of the charter or by-laws of the Delaware Trustee;

(d) it has trust power and authority to execute and deliver, and to carry out and perform its obligations under the terms of, this Declaration;

(e) no consent, approval or authorization of, or registration with or notice to, any state or federal banking authority governing the trust powers of the Delaware Trustee is required for the execution, delivery or performance by the Delaware Trustee of this Declaration; and

(f) the Delaware Trustee is a natural person who is a resident of the State of Delaware or, if not a natural person, it is an entity which has its principal place of business in the State of Delaware and, in either case, a Person that satisfies for the Trust the requirements of Section 3807 of the Statutory Trust Act.

ARTICLE XIII

MISCELLANEOUS

Section 13.1. Notices . All notices provided for in this Declaration shall be in writing, duly signed by the party giving such notice, and shall be delivered, telecopied (which telecopy shall be followed by notice delivered or mailed by first class mail) or mailed by first class mail, as follows:

(a) if given to the Trust, in care of the Administrators at the Trust’s mailing address set forth below (or such other address as the Trust may give notice of to the Holders of the Securities):

Sierra Capital Trust III

c/o Sierra Bancorp

86 North Main Street

Porterville, California 93257

Attention: Thomas Y. Yamaguchi

Telecopy: 559-782-4994

Telephone: 559-782-4900

(b) if given to the Delaware Trustee, at the mailing address set forth below (or such other address as the Delaware Trustee may give notice of to the Holders of the Securities):

Wilmington Trust Company

Rodney Square North

1100 North Market Street

Wilmington, Delaware 19890-0001

Attention: Corporate Capital Markets

Telecopy: (302) 636-4140

Telephone: (302) 651-1000

(c) if given to the Institutional Trustee, at the Institutional Trustee’s mailing address set forth below (or such other address as the Institutional Trustee may give notice of to the Holders of the Securities):

Wilmington Trust Company

Rodney Square North

1100 North Market Street

Wilmington, Delaware 19890-0001

Attention: Corporate Capital Markets

Telecopy: (302) 636-4140

Telephone: (302) 651-1000

(d) if given to the Holder of the Common Securities, at the mailing address of the Sponsor set forth below (or such other address as the Holder of the Common Securities may give notice of to the Trust):

Sierra Bancorp

86 North Main Street

Porterville, California 93257

Attention: Thomas Y. Yamaguchi

Telecopy: 559-782-4994

Telephone: 559-782-4900

(e) if given to any other Holder, at the address set forth on the books and records of the Trust.

All such notices shall be deemed to have been given when received in person, telecopied with receipt confirmed, or mailed by first class mail, postage prepaid, except that if a notice or other document is refused delivery or cannot be delivered because of a changed address of which no notice was given, such notice or other document shall be deemed to have been delivered on the date of such refusal or inability to deliver.

Section 13.2. Governing Law . This Declaration and the rights and obligations of the parties hereunder shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the law of the State of Delaware and all rights, obligations and remedies shall be governed by such laws without regard to the principles of conflict of laws of the State of Delaware or any other jurisdiction that would call for the application of the law of any jurisdiction other than the State of Delaware.

Section 13.3. Submission to Jurisdiction .

(a) Each of the parties hereto agrees that any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or based upon this Declaration, or the transactions contemplated hereby, may be instituted in any of the courts of the State of New York and the United States District Courts, in each case located in the Borough of Manhattan, City and State of New York, and further agrees to submit to the jurisdiction of any competent court in the place of its corporate domicile in respect of actions brought against it as a defendant. In addition, each such party irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying of the venue of such suit, action or proceeding brought in any such court and irrevocably waives any claim that any such suit, action or proceeding brought in any such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum and irrevocably waives any right to which it may be entitled on account of its place of corporate domicile. Each such party hereby irrevocably waives any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Declaration or the transactions contemplated hereby. Each such party agrees that final judgment in any proceedings brought in such a court shall be conclusive and binding upon it and may be enforced in any court to the jurisdiction of which it is subject by a suit upon such judgment.

(b) Each of the Sponsor, the Trustees, the Administrators and the Holder of the Common Securities irrevocably consents to the service of process on it in any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court by the mailing thereof by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, to it at its address given in or pursuant to Section 13.1 hereof.

(c) To the extent permitted by law, nothing herein contained shall preclude any party from effecting service of process in any lawful manner or from bringing any suit, action or proceeding in respect of this Declaration in any other state, country or place.

Section 13.4. Intention of the Parties . It is the intention of the parties hereto that the Trust be classified for United States federal income tax purposes as a grantor trust. The provisions of this Declaration shall be interpreted to further this intention of the parties.

Section 13.5. Headings . Headings contained in this Declaration are inserted for convenience of reference only and do not affect the interpretation of this Declaration or any provision hereof.

Section 13.6. Successors and Assigns . Whenever in this Declaration any of the parties hereto is named or referred to, the successors and assigns of such party shall be deemed to be included, and all covenants and agreements in this Declaration by the Sponsor and the Trustees shall bind and inure to the benefit of their respective successors and assigns, whether or not so expressed.

Section 13.7. Partial Enforceability . If any provision of this Declaration, or the application of such provision to any Person or circumstance, shall be held invalid, the remainder of this Declaration, or the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those to which it is held invalid, shall not be affected thereby.

Section 13.8. Counterparts . This Declaration may contain more than one counterpart of the signature page and this Declaration may be executed by the affixing of the signature of each of the Trustees and Administrators to any of such counterpart signature pages. All of such counterpart signature pages shall be read as though one, and they shall have the same force and effect as though all of the signers had signed a single signature page.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned have caused this Declaration to be duly executed as of the day and year first above written.


WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY, as Delaware Trustee

By:		/s/ Geoffrey J. Lewis
Name:		Geoffrey J. Lewis
Title		Financial Services Officer

WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY, as Institutional Trustee

By:		/s/ Geoffrey J. Lewis
Name:		Geoffrey J. Lewis
Title:		Financial Services Officer

SIERRA BANCORP as Sponsor

By:		/s/ Kenneth R. Taylor
Name:		Kenneth R. Taylor
Title:		Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

By:		/s/ Kenneth R. Taylor
		Administrator

By:		/s/ James C. Holly
		Administrator

ANNEX I

TERMS OF FLOATING RATE CAPITAL SECURITIES AND

FLOATING RATE COMMON SECURITIES

Pursuant to Section 6.1 of the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust, dated as of June 15, 2006 (as amended from time to time, the “Declaration”), the designation, rights, privileges, restrictions, preferences and other terms and provisions of the Capital Securities and the Common Securities are set out below (each capitalized term used but not defined herein has the meaning set forth in the Declaration):

1. Designation and Number .

(a) Capital Securities. 15,000 Capital Securities of Sierra Capital Trust III (the “Trust”), with an aggregate stated liquidation amount with respect to the assets of the Trust of FIFTEEN MILLION Dollars ($15,000,000) and a stated liquidation amount with respect to the assets of the Trust of $1,000 per Capital Security, are hereby designated for the purposes of identification only as the “Floating Rate Capital Securities” (the “Capital Securities”). The Capital Security Certificates evidencing the Capital Securities shall be substantially in the form of Exhibit A-1 to the Declaration, with such changes and additions thereto or deletions therefrom as may be required by ordinary usage, custom or practice or to conform to the rules of any stock exchange on which the Capital Securities are listed, if any.

(b) Common Securities. 464 Common Securities of the Trust (the “Common Securities”) will be evidenced by Common Security Certificates substantially in the form of Exhibit A-2 to the Declaration, with such changes and additions thereto or deletions therefrom as may be required by ordinary usage, custom or practice. In the absence of an Event of Default, the Common Securities will have an aggregate stated liquidation amount with respect to the assets of the Trust of FOUR HUNDRED SIXTY-FOUR THOUSAND Dollars ($464,000) and a stated liquidation amount with respect to the assets of the Trust of $1,000 per Common Security.

2. Distributions . (a) Distributions payable on each Security will be payable at a variable per annum rate of interest which, with respect to any Distribution Period (as defined herein), will be equal to LIBOR, as determined on the LIBOR Determination Date for such Distribution Period, plus 1.40% (the “Coupon Rate”), such rate being the rate of interest payable on the Debentures to be held by the Institutional Trustee. Except as set forth below in respect of an Extension Period, Distributions in arrears for more than one Distribution Period will bear interest thereon compounded quarterly at the applicable Coupon Rate for each such Distribution Period (to the extent permitted by applicable law). The term “Distributions” as used herein includes cash distributions, any such compounded distributions and any Additional Interest payable on the Debentures unless otherwise stated. A Distribution is payable only to the extent that payments are made in respect of the Debentures held by the Institutional Trustee and to the extent the Institutional Trustee has funds available in the Property Account therefor. The amount of Distributions payable for any Distribution Period will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year and the actual number of days elapsed in the relevant Distribution Period; provided ,

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however , that upon the occurrence of a Special Event redemption pursuant to paragraph 4(a) below the amounts payable pursuant to this Declaration shall be calculated as set forth in the definition of Special Redemption Price.

The term “Distribution Period” means the period from and including each Distribution Payment Date or, in the case of the first Distribution Period, the original date of issuance of the Securities to, but excluding, the next succeeding Distribution Payment Date or, in the case of the last Distribution Period, the Redemption Date, Special Redemption Date or Maturity Date, as applicable.

(b) LIBOR shall be determined by the Calculation Agent for each Distribution Period in accordance with the following provisions:

(1) On the second LIBOR Business Day ( provided , that on such day commercial banks are open for business (including dealings in foreign currency deposits) in London (a “LIBOR Banking Day”), and otherwise the next preceding LIBOR Business Day that is also a LIBOR Banking Day) prior to March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23, as the case may be, immediately preceding the commencement of such Distribution Period (or, in the case of the first Distribution Period, prior to June 15, 2006), (each such day, a “LIBOR Determination Date”), LIBOR shall equal the rate, as obtained by the Calculation Agent for three-month U.S. Dollar deposits in Europe, which appears on Telerate (as defined in the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. 2000 Interest Rate and Currency Exchange Definitions) Page 3750 or such other page as may replace such Telerate Page 3750, as of 11:00 a.m. (London time) on such LIBOR Determination Date, as reported by Bloomberg Financial Markets Commodities News (or any successor service). “LIBOR Business Day” means any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions in New York, New York or Wilmington, Delaware are authorized or obligated by law or executive order to be closed. If such rate is superseded on Telerate Page 3750 by a corrected rate before 12:00 noon (London time) on the same LIBOR Determination Date, the corrected rate as so substituted will be the applicable LIBOR for that LIBOR Determination Date.

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quotation, LIBOR shall be deemed to be the arithmetic mean of the offered quotations that at least two leading banks in the City of New York (as selected by the Calculation Agent) are quoting on the relevant LIBOR Determination Date for three-month U.S. Dollar deposits in Europe at approximately 11:00 a.m. (London time) (in an amount determined by the Calculation Agent). As used herein, “Reference Banks” means four major banks in the London interbank market selected by the Calculation Agent.

(c) All percentages resulting from any calculations on the Securities will be rounded, if necessary, to the nearest one hundred-thousandth of a percentage point, with five one-millionths of a percentage point rounded upward (e.g., 9.876545% (or .09876545) being rounded to 9.87655% (or .0987655)), and all dollar amounts used in or resulting from such calculation will be rounded to the nearest cent (with one-half cent being rounded upward).

(d) On each LIBOR Determination Date, the Calculation Agent shall notify, in writing, the Sponsor and the Paying Agent of the applicable Coupon Rate in effect for the related Distribution Period. The Calculation Agent shall, upon the request of the Holder of any Securities, provide the Coupon Rate then in effect. All calculations made by the Calculation Agent in the absence of manifest error shall be conclusive for all purposes and binding on the Sponsor and the Holders of the Securities. The Paying Agent shall be entitled to rely on information received from the Calculation Agent or the Sponsor as to the Coupon Rate. The Sponsor shall, from time to time, provide any necessary information to the Paying Agent relating to any original issue discount and interest on the Securities that is included in any payment and reportable for taxable income calculation purposes.

(e) Distributions on the Securities will be cumulative, will accrue from the date of original issuance, and will be payable, subject to extension of Distribution Periods as described herein, quarterly in arrears on March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 of each year, commencing on September 23, 2006 (each, a “Distribution Payment Date”). The Debenture Issuer has the right under the Indenture to defer payments of interest on the Debentures by extending the interest payment period for up to 20 consecutive quarterly periods (each, an “Extension Period”) at any time and from time to time on the Debentures, subject to the conditions described below. During any Extension Period, interest will continue to accrue on the Debentures, and interest on such accrued interest (such accrued interest and interest thereon referred to herein as “Deferred Interest”) will accrue at an annual rate equal to the Coupon Rate in effect for each such Extension Period, compounded quarterly from the date such Deferred Interest would have been payable were it not for the Extension Period, to the extent permitted by law. No Extension Period may end on a date other than a Distribution Payment Date. At the end of any such Extension Period, the Debenture Issuer shall pay all Deferred Interest then accrued and unpaid on the Debentures; provided , however , that no Extension Period may extend beyond

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the Maturity Date, Redemption Date or Special Redemption Date and provided , further , that, during any such Extension Period, the Debenture Issuer may not (i) declare or pay any dividends or distributions on, or redeem, purchase, acquire, or make a liquidation payment with respect to, any of the Debenture Issuer’s capital stock, (ii) make any payment due on or repay, repurchase or redeem any debt securities of the Debenture Issuer that rank pari passu in all respects with or junior in interest to the Debentures or (iii) make any payment under any guarantees of the Debenture Issuer that rank pari passu in all respects with or junior in interest to the Guarantee (other than (a) repurchases, redemptions or other acquisitions of shares of capital stock of the Debenture Issuer (I) in connection with any employment contract, benefit plan or other similar arrangement with or for the benefit of one or more employees, officers, directors or consultants, (II) in connection with a dividend reinvestment or stockholder stock purchase plan or (III) in connection with the issuance of capital stock of the Debenture Issuer (or securities convertible into or exercisable for such capital stock) as consideration in an acquisition transaction entered into prior to the occurrence of (I), (II) or (III) above, (b) as a result of any exchange or conversion of any class or series of the Debenture Issuer’s capital stock (or any capital stock of a subsidiary of the Debenture Issuer) for any class or series of the Debenture Issuer’s capital stock or of any class or series of the Debenture Issuer’s indebtedness for any class or series of the Debenture Issuer’s capital stock, (c) the purchase of fractional interests in shares of the Debenture Issuer’s capital stock pursuant to the conversion or exchange provisions of such capital stock or the security being converted or exchanged, (d) any declaration of a dividend in connection with any stockholder’s rights plan, or the issuance of rights, stock or other property under any stockholder’s rights plan, or the redemption or repurchase of rights pursuant thereto or (e) any dividend in the form of stock, warrants, options or other rights where the dividend stock or the stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants, options or other rights is the same stock as that on which the dividend is being paid or ranks pari passu with or junior in interest to such stock). Prior to the termination of any Extension Period, the Debenture Issuer may further extend such period, provided , that such period together with all such previous and further consecutive extensions thereof shall not exceed 20 consecutive quarterly periods. Upon the termination of any Extension Period and upon the payment of all Deferred Interest, the Debenture Issuer may commence a new Extension Period, subject to the foregoing requirements. No interest or Deferred Interest (except any Additional Interest that may be due and payable) shall be due and payable during an Extension Period, except at the end thereof, but interest shall accrue upon each installment of interest that would otherwise have been due and payable during such Extension Period until such installment is paid. If Distributions are deferred, the Distributions due shall be paid on the date that the related Extension Period terminates, or, if such date is not a Distribution Payment Date, on the immediately following Distribution Payment Date, to Holders of the Securities as they appear on the books and records of the Trust on the record date immediately preceding such date. Distributions on the Securities must be paid on the dates payable (after giving effect to any Extension Period) to the extent that the Trust has funds legally available for the payment of such distributions in the Property Account of the Trust. The Trust’s funds available for Distribution to the Holders of the Securities will be limited to payments received from the Debenture Issuer. The payment of Distributions out of moneys held by the Trust is guaranteed by the Guarantor pursuant to the Guarantee.

(f) Distributions on the Securities will be payable to the Holders thereof as they appear on the books and records of the Registrar on the relevant record dates. The relevant

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record dates shall be selected by the Administrators, which dates shall be 15 days before the relevant payment dates. Distributions payable on any Securities that are not punctually paid on any Distribution Payment Date, as a result of the Debenture Issuer having failed to make a payment under the Debentures, as the case may be, when due (taking into account any Extension Period), will cease to be payable to the Person in whose name such Securities are registered on the relevant record date, and such defaulted Distribution will instead be payable to the Person in whose name such Securities are registered on the special record date or other specified date determined in accordance with the Indenture. If any Distribution Payment Date other than any date of redemption, falls on a day that is not a Business Day, then Distributions payable will be paid on, and such Distribution Payment Date will be moved to, the next succeeding Business Day, and additional Distributions will accrue for each day that such payment is delayed as a result thereof.

(g) In the event that there is any money or other property held by or for the Trust that is not accounted for hereunder, such property shall be distributed pro rata (as defined herein) among the Holders of the Securities.

3. Liquidation Distribution Upon Dissolution . In the event of the voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution, winding-up or termination of the Trust (each, a “Liquidation”) other than in connection with a redemption of the Debentures, the Holders of the Securities will be entitled to receive out of the assets of the Trust available for distribution to Holders of the Securities, after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors of the Trust (to the extent not satisfied by the Debenture Issuer), distributions equal to the aggregate of the stated liquidation amount of $1,000 per Security plus accrued and unpaid Distributions thereon to the date of payment (such amount being the “Liquidation Distribution”), unless in connection with such Liquidation, the Debentures in an aggregate stated principal amount equal to the aggregate stated liquidation amount of such Securities, with an interest rate equal to the Coupon Rate of, and bearing accrued and unpaid interest in an amount equal to the accrued and unpaid Distributions on, and having the same record date as, such Securities, after paying or making reasonable provision to pay all claims and obligations of the Trust in accordance with Section 3808(e) of the Statutory Trust Act, shall be distributed on a Pro Rata basis to the Holders of the Securities in exchange for such Securities.

The Sponsor, as the Holder of all of the Common Securities, has the right at any time to dissolve the Trust (including without limitation upon the occurrence of a Tax Event, an Investment Company Event or a Capital Treatment Event), subject to the receipt by the Debenture Issuer of prior approval from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve”), if then required under applicable capital guidelines or policies of the Federal Reserve and, after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors of the Trust, cause the Debentures to be distributed to the Holders of the Securities on a Pro Rata basis in accordance with the aggregate stated liquidation amount thereof.

The Trust shall dissolve on the first to occur of (i) September 23, 2041, the expiration of the term of the Trust, (ii) a Bankruptcy Event with respect to the Sponsor, the Trust or the Debenture Issuer, (iii) (other than in connection with a merger, consolidation or similar transaction not prohibited by the Indenture, this Declaration or the Guarantee, as the case may

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be) the filing of a certificate of dissolution of the Sponsor or upon the revocation of the charter of the Sponsor and the expiration of 90 days after the date of revocation without a reinstatement thereof, (iv) the distribution to the Holders of the Securities of the Debentures, upon exercise of the right of the Holder of all of the outstanding Common Securities to dissolve the Trust as described above, (v) the entry of a decree of a judicial dissolution of the Sponsor or the Trust, or (vi) when all of the Securities shall have been called for redemption and the amounts necessary for redemption thereof shall have been paid to the Holders in accordance with the terms of the Securities. As soon as practicable after the dissolution of the Trust and upon completion of the winding up of the Trust, the Trust shall terminate upon the filing of a certificate of cancellation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware.

If a Liquidation of the Trust occurs as described in clause (i), (ii), (iii) or (v) in the immediately preceding paragraph, the Trust shall be liquidated by the Institutional Trustee of the Trust as expeditiously as such Trustee determines to be possible by distributing, after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors of the Trust as provided by applicable law, to the Holders of the Securities, the Debentures on a Pro Rata basis to the extent not satisfied by the Debenture Issuer, unless such distribution is determined by the Institutional Trustee not to be practical, in which event such Holders will be entitled to receive out of the assets of the Trust available for distribution to the Holders, after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors of the Trust to the extent not satisfied by the Debenture Issuer, an amount equal to the Liquidation Distribution. An early Liquidation of the Trust pursuant to clause (iv) of the immediately preceding paragraph shall occur if the Institutional Trustee determines that such Liquidation is possible by distributing, after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors of Trust, to the Holders of the Securities on a Pro Rata basis, the Debentures, and such distribution occurs.

If, upon any such Liquidation, the Liquidation Distribution can be paid only in part because the Trust has insufficient assets available to pay in full the aggregate Liquidation Distribution, then the amounts payable directly by the Trust on such Capital Securities shall be paid to the Holders of the Securities on a Pro Rata basis, except that if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the Capital Securities shall have a preference over the Common Securities with regard to such distributions.

Upon any such Liquidation of the Trust involving a distribution of the Debentures, if at the time of such Liquidation, the Capital Securities were rated by at least one nationally-recognized statistical rating organization, the Debenture Issuer will use its reasonable best efforts to obtain from at least one such or other rating organization a rating for the Debentures.

After the date for any distribution of the Debentures upon dissolution of the Trust, (i) the Securities of the Trust will be deemed to be no longer outstanding, (ii) any certificates representing the Capital Securities will be deemed to represent undivided beneficial interests in such of the Debentures as have an aggregate principal amount equal to the aggregate stated liquidation amount of, with an interest rate identical to the distribution rate of, and bearing accrued and unpaid interest equal to accrued and unpaid distributions on, the Securities until such certificates are presented to the Debenture Issuer or its agent for transfer or reissuance (and until such certificates are so surrendered, no payments of interest or principal shall be made to

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Holders of Securities in respect of any payments due and payable under the Debentures) and (iii) all rights of Holders of Securities under the Capital Securities or the Common Securities, as applicable, shall cease, except the right of such Holders to receive Debentures upon surrender of certificates representing such Securities.

4. Redemption and Distribution .

(a) The Debentures will mature on September 23, 2036. The Debentures may be redeemed by the Debenture Issuer, in whole or in part, on any March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 on or after September 23, 2011, at the Redemption Price, upon not less than 30 nor more than 60 days’ notice to Holders of such Debentures. In addition, upon the occurrence and continuation of a Tax Event, an Investment Company Event or a Capital Treatment Event, the Debentures may be redeemed by the Debenture Issuer in whole but not in part, at any time within 90 days following the occurrence of such Tax Event, Investment Company Event or Capital Treatment Event, as the case may be (the “Special Redemption Date”), at the Special Redemption Price, upon not less than 30 nor more than 60 days’ notice to Holders of the Debentures so long as such Tax Event, Investment Company Event or Capital Treatment Event, as the case may be, is continuing. In each case, the right of the Debenture Issuer to redeem the Debentures is subject to the Debenture Issuer having received prior approval from the Federal Reserve, if then required under applicable capital guidelines or policies of the Federal Reserve.

“Tax Event” means the receipt by the Debenture Issuer and the Trust of an opinion of counsel experienced in such matters to the effect that, as a result of any amendment to or change (including any announced prospective change) in the laws or any regulations thereunder of the United States or any political subdivision or taxing authority thereof or therein, or as a result of any official administrative pronouncement (including any private letter ruling, technical advice memorandum, regulatory procedure, notice or announcement) (an “Administrative Action”) or judicial decision interpreting or applying such laws or regulations, regardless of whether such Administrative Action or judicial decision is issued to or in connection with a proceeding involving the Debenture Issuer or the Trust and whether or not subject to review or appeal, which amendment, clarification, change, Administrative Action or decision is enacted, promulgated or announced, in each case on or after the date of original issuance of the Debentures, there is more than an insubstantial risk that: (i) the Trust is, or will be within 90 days of the date of such opinion, subject to United States federal income tax with respect to income received or accrued on the Debentures; (ii) interest payable by the Debenture Issuer on the Debentures is not, or within 90 days of the date of such opinion, will not be, deductible by the Debenture Issuer, in whole or in part, for United States federal income tax purposes; or (iii) the Trust is, or will be within 90 days of the date of such opinion, subject to or otherwise required to pay, or required to withhold from distributions to holders of Trust Securities, more than a de minimis amount of other taxes (including withholding taxes), duties, assessments or other governmental charges.

“Investment Company Event” means the receipt by the Debenture Issuer and the Trust of an opinion of counsel experienced in such matters to the effect that, as a result of a change in law or regulation or written change in interpretation or application of law or regulation

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by any legislative body, court, governmental agency or regulatory authority, there is more than an insubstantial risk that the Trust is or, within 90 days of the date of such opinion will be, considered an “investment company” that is required to be registered under the Investment Company Act, which change becomes effective on or after the date of the original issuance of the Debentures.

“Capital Treatment Event” means the receipt by the Debenture Issuer and the Trust of an opinion of counsel experienced in such matters to the effect that, as a result of any amendment to, or change in, the laws, rules or regulations of the United States or any political subdivision thereof or therein, or as the result of any official or administrative pronouncement or action or decision interpreting or applying such laws, rules or regulations, which amendment or change is effective or which pronouncement, action or decision is announced on or after the date of original issuance of the Debentures, there is more than an insubstantial risk that the Debenture Issuer will not, within 90 days of the date of such opinion, be entitled to treat an amount equal to the aggregate Liquidation Amount of the Capital Securities as “Tier 1 Capital” (or the then equivalent thereof) for purposes of the capital adequacy guidelines of the Federal Reserve (or any successor regulatory authority with jurisdiction over bank holding companies), as then in effect and applicable to the Debenture Issuer; provided , however , that the distribution of the Debentures in connection with the Liquidation of the Trust by the Debenture Issuer shall not in and of itself constitute a Capital Treatment Event unless such Liquidation shall have occurred in connection with a Tax Event or an Investment Company Event.

“Special Event” means any of a Capital Treatment Event, a Tax Event or an Investment Company Event.

“Redemption Price” means 100% of the principal amount of the Debentures being redeemed plus accrued and unpaid interest on such Debentures to the Redemption Date or, in the case of a redemption in full at maturity, the Maturity Date, or, in the case of a redemption due to the occurrence of a Special Event, to the Special Redemption Date if such Special Redemption Date is on or after September 23, 2011.

“Special Redemption Price” means, with respect to the redemption of any Debenture following a Special Event, an amount in cash equal to the percentage for the principal amount of the Debentures that is specified below for the Special Redemption Date plus unpaid interest accrued thereon to the Special Redemption Date:


Special Event Redemption During Period Beginning On		Percentage of Principal Amount
June 15, 2006		104.40
September 23, 2007		103.52
September 23, 2008		102.64
September 23, 2009		101.76
September 23, 2010		100.88
September 23, 2011		100.00

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“Redemption Date” means the date fixed for the redemption of Capital Securities, which shall be any March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 on or after September 23, 2011.

(b) Upon the repayment in full at maturity or redemption in whole or in part of the Debentures (other than following the distribution of the Debentures to the Holders of the Securities), the proceeds from such repayment or payment shall concurrently be applied to redeem Pro Rata at the applicable Redemption Price or Special Redemption Price, as the case may be, Securities having an aggregate liquidation amount equal to the aggregate principal amount of the Debentures so repaid or redeemed; provided , however , that holders of such Securities shall be given not less than 30 nor more than 60 days’ notice of such redemption (other than at the scheduled maturity of the Debentures).

(c) If fewer than all the outstanding Securities are to be so redeemed, the Common Securities and the Capital Securities will be redeemed Pro Rata and the Capital Securities to be redeemed will be as described in Section 4(e)(ii) below.

(d) The Trust may not redeem fewer than all the outstanding Capital Securities unless all accrued and unpaid Distributions have been paid on all Capital Securities for all Distribution Periods terminating on or before the date of redemption.

(e) Redemption or Distribution Procedures.

(i) Notice of any redemption of, or notice of distribution of the Debentures in exchange for, the Securities (a “Redemption/Distribution Notice”) will be given by the Trust by mail to each Holder of Securities to be redeemed or exchanged not fewer than 30 nor more than 60 days before the date fixed for redemption or exchange thereof which, in the case of a redemption, will be the date fixed for redemption of the Debentures. For purposes of the calculation of the date of redemption or exchange and the dates on which notices are given pursuant to this Section 4(e)(i), a Redemption/Distribution Notice shall be deemed to be given on the day such notice is first mailed by first-class mail, postage prepaid, to Holders of such Securities. Each Redemption/Distribution Notice shall be addressed to the Holders of such Securities at the address of each such Holder appearing on the books and records of the Registrar. No defect in the Redemption/Distribution Notice or in the mailing thereof with respect to any Holder shall affect the validity of the redemption or exchange proceedings with respect to any other Holder.

(ii) In the event that fewer than all the outstanding Securities are to be redeemed, the Securities to be redeemed shall be redeemed Pro Rata from each Holder of Capital Securities.

(iii) If the Securities are to be redeemed and the Trust gives a Redemption/Distribution Notice, which notice may only be issued if the Debentures are redeemed as set out in this Section 4 (which notice will be irrevocable), then, provided , that the Institutional Trustee has a sufficient amount of cash in connection with the related redemption or maturity of the Debentures, the Institutional Trustee will pay the

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relevant redemption price to the Holders of such Securities by check mailed to the address of each such Holder appearing on the books and records of the Trust on the redemption date. If a Redemption/Distribution Notice shall have been given and funds deposited as required, then immediately prior to the close of business on the date of such deposit, Distributions will cease to accrue on the Securities so called for redemption and all rights of Holders of such Securities so called for redemption will cease, except the right of the Holders of such Securities to receive the applicable redemption price specified in Section 4(a), but without interest on such redemption price. If any date fixed for redemption of Securities is not a Business Day, then payment of any such redemption price payable on such date will be made on the next succeeding day that is a Business Day (and without any interest or other payment in respect of any such delay) except that, if such Business Day falls in the next calendar year, such payment will be made on the immediately preceding Business Day, in each case with the same force and effect as if made on such date fixed for redemption. If payment of the redemption price in respect of any Securities is improperly withheld or refused and not paid either by the Trust or by the Debenture Issuer as guarantor pursuant to the Guarantee, Distributions on such Securities will continue to accrue at the then applicable rate from the original redemption date to the actual date of payment, in which case the actual payment date will be considered the date fixed for redemption for purposes of calculating the redemption price. In the event of any redemption of the Capital Securities issued by the Trust in part, the Trust shall not be required to (i) issue, register the transfer of or exchange any Security during a period beginning at the opening of business 15 days before any selection for redemption of the Capital Securities and ending at the close of business on the earliest date on which the relevant notice of redemption is deemed to have been given to all Holders of the Capital Securities to be so redeemed or (ii) register the transfer of or exchange any Capital Securities so selected for redemption, in whole or in part, except for the unredeemed portion of any Capital Securities being redeemed in part.

(iv) Redemption/Distribution Notices shall be sent by the Administrators on behalf of the Trust (A) in respect of the Capital Securities, to the Holders thereof, and (B) in respect of the Common Securities, to the Holder thereof.

(v) Subject to the foregoing and applicable law (including, without limitation, United States federal securities laws), and provided , that the acquiror is not the Holder of the Common Securities or the obligor under the Indenture, the Sponsor or any of its subsidiaries may at any time and from time to time purchase outstanding Capital Securities by tender, in the open market or by private agreement.

5. Voting Rights - Capital Securities . (a) Except as provided under Sections 5(b) and 7 and as otherwise required by law and the Declaration, the Holders of the Capital Securities will have no voting rights. The Administrators are required to call a meeting of the Holders of the Capital Securities if directed to do so by Holders of not less than 10% in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities.

(b) Subject to the requirements of obtaining a tax opinion by the Institutional Trustee in certain circumstances set forth in the last sentence of this paragraph, the Holders of a

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Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities, voting separately as a class, have the right to direct the time, method, and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Institutional Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Institutional Trustee under the Declaration, including the right to direct the Institutional Trustee, as holder of the Debentures, to (i) exercise the remedies available under the Indenture as the holder of the Debentures, (ii) waive any past default that is waivable under the Indenture, (iii) exercise any right to rescind or annul a declaration that the principal of all the Debentures shall be due and payable or (iv) consent on behalf of all the Holders of the Capital Securities to any amendment, modification or termination of the Indenture or the Debentures where such consent shall be required; provided , however , that, where a consent or action under the Indenture would require the consent or act of the holders of greater than a simple majority in principal amount of Debentures (a “Super Majority”) affected thereby, the Institutional Trustee may only give such consent or take such action at the written direction of the Holders of not less than the proportion in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities outstanding which the relevant Super Majority represents of the aggregate principal amount of the Debentures outstanding. If the Institutional Trustee fails to enforce its rights under the Debentures after the Holders of a Majority or Super Majority, as the case may be, in liquidation amount of such Capital Securities have so directed the Institutional Trustee, to the fullest extent permitted by law, a Holder of the Capital Securities may institute a legal proceeding directly against the Debenture Issuer to enforce the Institutional Trustee’s rights under the Debentures without first instituting any legal proceeding against the Institutional Trustee or any other person or entity. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing and such event is attributable to the failure of the Debenture Issuer to pay interest or premium, if any, on or principal of the Debentures on the date the interest, premium, if any, or principal is payable (or in the case of redemption, the redemption date), then a Holder of record of the Capital Securities may directly institute a proceeding for enforcement of payment, on or after the respective due dates specified in the Debentures, to such Holder directly of the principal of, or premium, if any, or interest on the Debentures having an aggregate principal amount equal to the aggregate liquidation amount of the Capital Securities of such Holder. The Institutional Trustee shall notify all Holders of the Capital Securities of any default actually known to the Institutional Trustee with respect to the Debentures unless (x) such default has been cured prior to the giving of such notice or (y) the Institutional Trustee determines in good faith that the withholding of such notice is in the interest of the Holders of such Capital Securities, except where the default relates to the payment of principal of or interest on any of the Debentures. Such notice shall state that such Indenture Event of Default also constitutes an Event of Default hereunder. Except with respect to directing the time, method and place of conducting a proceeding for a remedy, the Institutional Trustee shall not take any of the actions described in clause (i), (ii) or (iii) above unless the Institutional Trustee has obtained an opinion of tax counsel to the effect that, as a result of such action, the Trust will not be classified as other than a grantor trust for United States federal income tax purposes.

In the event the consent of the Institutional Trustee, as the holder of the Debentures is required under the Indenture with respect to any amendment, modification or termination of the Indenture, the Institutional Trustee shall request the written direction of the Holders of the Securities with respect to such amendment, modification or termination and shall vote with respect to such amendment, modification or termination as directed by a Majority in

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liquidation amount of the Securities voting together as a single class; provided , however , that where a consent under the Indenture would require the consent of a Super Majority, the Institutional Trustee may only give such consent at the written direction of the Holders of not less than the proportion in liquidation amount of such Securities outstanding which the relevant Super Majority represents of the aggregate principal amount of the Debentures outstanding. The Institutional Trustee shall not take any such action in accordance with the written directions of the Holders of the Securities unless the Institutional Trustee has obtained an opinion of tax counsel to the effect that, as a result of such action, the Trust will not be classified as other than a grantor trust for United States federal income tax purposes.

A waiver of an Indenture Event of Default will constitute a waiver of the corresponding Event of Default hereunder. Any required approval or direction of Holders of the Capital Securities may be given at a separate meeting of Holders of the Capital Securities convened for such purpose, at a meeting of all of the Holders of the Securities in the Trust or pursuant to written consent. The Institutional Trustee will cause a notice of any meeting at which Holders of the Capital Securities are entitled to vote, or of any matter upon which action by written consent of such Holders is to be taken, to be mailed to each Holder of record of the Capital Securities. Each such notice will include a statement setting forth the following information (i) the date of such meeting or the date by which such action is to be taken, (ii) a description of any resolution proposed for adoption at such meeting on which such Holders are entitled to vote or of such matter upon which written consent is sought and (iii) instructions for the delivery of proxies or consents. No vote or consent of the Holders of the Capital Securities will be required for the Trust to redeem and cancel Capital Securities or to distribute the Debentures in accordance with the Declaration and the terms of the Securities.

Notwithstanding that Holders of the Capital Securities are entitled to vote or consent under any of the circumstances described above, any of the Capital Securities that are owned by the Sponsor or any Affiliate of the Sponsor shall not entitle the Holder thereof to vote or consent and shall, for purposes of such vote or consent, be treated as if such Capital Securities were not outstanding.

In no event will Holders of the Capital Securities have the right to vote to appoint, remove or replace the Administrators, which voting rights are vested exclusively in the Sponsor as the Holder of all of the Common Securities of the Trust. Under certain circumstances as more fully described in the Declaration, Holders of Capital Securities have the right to vote to appoint, remove or replace the Institutional Trustee and the Delaware Trustee.

6. Voting Rights - Common Securities . (a) Except as provided under Sections 6(b), 6(c) and 7 and as otherwise required by law and the Declaration, the Common Securities will have no voting rights.

(b) The Holders of the Common Securities are entitled, in accordance with Article IV of the Declaration, to vote to appoint, remove or replace any Administrators.

(c) Subject to Section 6.7 of the Declaration and only after each Event of Default (if any) with respect to the Capital Securities has been cured, waived or otherwise eliminated and subject to the requirements of the second to last sentence of this paragraph, the

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Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Common Securities, voting separately as a class, may direct the time, method, and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Institutional Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Institutional Trustee under the Declaration, including (i) directing the time, method, place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Debenture Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred on the Debenture Trustee with respect to the Debentures, (ii) waiving any past default and its consequences that are waivable under the Indenture, or (iii) exercising any right to rescind or annul a declaration that the principal of all the Debentures shall be due and payable, provided , however , that, where a consent or action under the Indenture would require a Super Majority, the Institutional Trustee may only give such consent or take such action at the written direction of the Holders of not less than the proportion in liquidation amount of the Common Securities which the relevant Super Majority represents of the aggregate principal amount of the Debentures outstanding. Notwithstanding this Section 6(c), the Institutional Trustee shall not revoke any action previously authorized or approved by a vote or consent of the Holders of the Capital Securities. Other than with respect to directing the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Institutional Trustee or the Debenture Trustee as set forth above, the Institutional Trustee shall not take any action described in clause (i), (ii) or (iii) above, unless the Institutional Trustee has obtained an opinion of tax counsel to the effect that for the purposes of United States federal income tax the Trust will not be classified as other than a grantor trust on account of such action. If the Institutional Trustee fails to enforce its rights under the Declaration, to the fullest extent permitted by law any Holder of the Common Securities may institute a legal proceeding directly against any Person to enforce the Institutional Trustee’s rights under the Declaration, without first instituting a legal proceeding against the Institutional Trustee or any other Person.

Any approval or direction of Holders of the Common Securities may be given at a separate meeting of Holders of the Common Securities convened for such purpose, at a meeting of all of the Holders of the Securities in the Trust or pursuant to written consent. The Administrators will cause a notice of any meeting at which Holders of the Common Securities are entitled to vote, or of any matter upon which action by written consent of such Holders is to be taken, to be mailed to each Holder of the Common Securities. Each such notice will include a statement setting forth (i) the date of such meeting or the date by which such action is to be taken, (ii) a description of any resolution proposed for adoption at such meeting on which such Holders are entitled to vote or of such matter upon which written consent is sought and (iii) instructions for the delivery of proxies or consents.

No vote or consent of the Holders of the Common Securities will be required for the Trust to redeem and cancel Common Securities or to distribute the Debentures in accordance with the Declaration and the terms of the Securities.

7. Amendments to Declaration and Indenture . (a) In addition to any requirements under Section 11.1 of the Declaration, if any proposed amendment to the Declaration provides for, or the Trustees otherwise propose to effect, (i) any action that would adversely affect the powers, preferences or special rights of the Securities, whether by way of amendment to the Declaration or otherwise, or (ii) the Liquidation of the Trust, other than as described in Section 7.1 of the Declaration, then the Holders of outstanding Securities, voting

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together as a single class, will be entitled to vote on such amendment or proposal and such amendment or proposal shall not be effective except with the approval of the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Securities affected thereby; provided , however , if any amendment or proposal referred to in clause (i) above would adversely affect only the Capital Securities or only the Common Securities, then only the affected class will be entitled to vote on such amendment or proposal and such amendment or proposal shall not be effective except with the approval of a Majority in liquidation amount of such class of Securities.

(b) In the event the consent of the Institutional Trustee as the holder of the Debentures is required under the Indenture with respect to any amendment, modification or termination of the Indenture or the Debentures, the Institutional Trustee shall request the written direction of the Holders of the Securities with respect to such amendment, modification or termination and shall vote with respect to such amendment, modification, or termination as directed by a Majority in liquidation amount of the Securities voting together as a single class; provided , however , that where a consent under the Indenture would require a Super Majority, the Institutional Trustee may only give such consent at the written direction of the Holders of not less than the proportion in liquidation amount of the Securities which the relevant Super Majority represents of the aggregate principal amount of the Debentures outstanding.

(c) Notwithstanding the foregoing, no amendment or modification may be made to the Declaration if such amendment or modification would (i) cause the Trust to be classified for purposes of United States federal income taxation as other than a grantor trust, (ii) reduce or otherwise adversely affect the powers of the Institutional Trustee or (iii) cause the Trust to be deemed an Investment Company which is required to be registered under the Investment Company Act.

(d) Notwithstanding any provision of the Declaration, the right of any Holder of the Capital Securities to receive payment of distributions and other payments upon redemption or otherwise, on or after their respective due dates, or to institute a suit for the enforcement of any such payment on or after such respective dates, shall not be impaired or affected without the consent of such Holder. For the protection and enforcement of the foregoing provision, each and every Holder of the Capital Securities shall be entitled to such relief as can be given either at law or equity.

8. Pro Rata . A reference in these terms of the Securities to any payment, distribution or treatment as being “Pro Rata” shall mean pro rata to each Holder of the Securities according to the aggregate liquidation amount of the Securities held by the relevant Holder in relation to the aggregate liquidation amount of all Securities outstanding unless, in relation to a payment, an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, in which case any funds available to make such payment shall be paid first to each Holder of the Capital Securities Pro Rata according to the aggregate liquidation amount of the Capital Securities held by the relevant Holder relative to the aggregate liquidation amount of all Capital Securities outstanding, and only after satisfaction of all amounts owed to the Holders of the Capital Securities, to each Holder of the Common Securities Pro Rata according to the aggregate liquidation amount of the Common Securities held by the relevant Holder relative to the aggregate liquidation amount of all Common Securities outstanding.

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9. Ranking . The Capital Securities rank pari passu with, and payment thereon shall be made Pro Rata with, the Common Securities except that, where an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the rights of Holders of the Common Securities to receive payment of Distributions and payments upon liquidation, redemption and otherwise are subordinated to the rights of the Holders of the Capital Securities with the result that no payment of any Distribution on, or redemption price of, any Common Security, and no other payment on account of redemption, liquidation or other acquisition of Common Securities, shall be made unless payment in full in cash of all accumulated and unpaid Distributions on all outstanding Capital Securities for all distribution periods terminating on or prior thereto, or in the case of payment of the redemption price the full amount of such redemption price on all outstanding Capital Securities then called for redemption, shall have been made or provided for, and all funds immediately available to the Institutional Trustee shall first be applied to the payment in full in cash of all Distributions on, or the redemption price of, the Capital Securities then due and payable.

10. Acceptance of Guarantee and Indenture . Each Holder of the Capital Securities and the Common Securities, by the acceptance of such Securities, agrees to the provisions of the Guarantee, including the subordination provisions therein and to the provisions of the Indenture.

11. No Preemptive Rights . The Holders of the Securities shall have no, and the issuance of the Securities is not subject to, preemptive or similar rights to subscribe for any additional securities.

12. Miscellaneous . These terms constitute a part of the Declaration. The Sponsor will provide a copy of the Declaration, the Guarantee, and the Indenture to a Holder without charge on written request to the Sponsor at its principal place of business.

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EXHIBIT A-1

FORM OF CAPITAL SECURITY CERTIFICATE

[FORM OF FACE OF SECURITY]

THIS SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”), OR ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS OR ANY OTHER APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS. NEITHER THIS SECURITY NOR ANY INTEREST OR PARTICIPATION HEREIN MAY BE REOFFERED, SOLD, ASSIGNED, TRANSFERRED, PLEDGED, ENCUMBERED OR OTHERWISE DISPOSED OF IN THE ABSENCE OF SUCH REGISTRATION OR UNLESS SUCH TRANSACTION IS EXEMPT FROM, OR NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT. THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES TO OFFER, SELL OR OTHERWISE TRANSFER SUCH SECURITY ONLY (A) TO THE DEBENTURE ISSUER OR THE TRUST, (B) PURSUANT TO RULE 144A UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT (“RULE 144A”), TO A PERSON THE HOLDER REASONABLY BELIEVES IS A “QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER” AS DEFINED IN RULE 144A THAT PURCHASES FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF A QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER TO WHOM NOTICE IS GIVEN THAT THE TRANSFER IS BEING MADE IN RELIANCE ON RULE 144A, (C) PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT TO AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR” WITHIN THE MEANING OF SUBPARAGRAPH (a) (1), (2), (3) OR (7) OF RULE 501 UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT THAT IS ACQUIRING THE SECURITY FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT, OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF SUCH AN “ACCREDITED INVESTOR,” FOR INVESTMENT PURPOSES AND NOT WITH A VIEW TO, OR FOR OFFER OR SALE IN CONNECTION WITH, ANY DISTRIBUTION IN VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES ACT, OR (D) PURSUANT TO ANOTHER AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT, SUBJECT TO THE DEBENTURE ISSUER’S AND THE TRUST’S RIGHT PRIOR TO ANY SUCH OFFER, SALE OR TRANSFER PURSUANT TO CLAUSES (C) OR (D) ABOVE TO REQUIRE THE DELIVERY OF AN OPINION OF COUNSEL, CERTIFICATION AND/OR OTHER INFORMATION SATISFACTORY TO EACH OF THEM IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE AMENDED AND RESTATED DECLARATION OF TRUST, A COPY OF WHICH MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DEBENTURE ISSUER OR THE TRUST. THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF AGREES THAT IT WILL COMPLY WITH THE FOREGOING RESTRICTIONS.

THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF ALSO AGREES, REPRESENTS AND WARRANTS THAT IT IS NOT AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT, INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNT OR OTHER PLAN OR ARRANGEMENT

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SUBJECT TO TITLE I OF THE EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974, AS AMENDED (“ERISA”), OR SECTION 4975 OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986, AS AMENDED (THE “CODE”), (EACH A “PLAN”), OR AN ENTITY WHOSE UNDERLYING ASSETS INCLUDE “PLAN ASSETS” BY REASON OF ANY PLAN’S INVESTMENT IN THE ENTITY AND NO PERSON INVESTING “PLAN ASSETS” OF ANY PLAN MAY ACQUIRE OR HOLD THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN, UNLESS SUCH PURCHASER OR HOLDER IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE EXEMPTIVE RELIEF AVAILABLE UNDER U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR PROHIBITED TRANSACTION CLASS EXEMPTION 96-23, 95-60, 91-38, 90-1 OR 84-14 OR ANOTHER APPLICABLE EXEMPTION OR ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING OF THIS SECURITY IS NOT PROHIBITED BY SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE WITH RESPECT TO SUCH PURCHASE OR HOLDING. ANY PURCHASER OR HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN WILL BE DEEMED TO HAVE REPRESENTED BY ITS PURCHASE AND HOLDING THEREOF THAT EITHER (i) IT IS NOT AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN WITHIN THE MEANING OF SECTION 3(3) OF ERISA, OR A PLAN TO WHICH SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE IS APPLICABLE, A TRUSTEE OR OTHER PERSON ACTING ON BEHALF OF AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY USING THE ASSETS OF ANY EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN OR PLAN TO FINANCE SUCH PURCHASE, OR (ii) SUCH PURCHASE AND HOLDING WILL NOT RESULT IN A PROHIBITED TRANSACTION UNDER SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE FOR WHICH THERE IS NO APPLICABLE STATUTORY OR ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTION.

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Certificate Number [ ]		Number of Capital Securities [ ]

Certificate Evidencing Capital Securities

SIERRA CAPITAL TRUST III

Floating Rate Capital Securities

(liquidation amount $1,000 per Capital Security)

Sierra Capital Trust III, a statutory trust created under the laws of the State of Delaware (the “Trust”), hereby certifies that SIGLER & CO. (the “Holder”) is the registered owner of 15,000 capital securities of the Trust representing undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust, designated the Floating Rate Capital Securities (liquidation amount $1,000 per Capital Security) (the “Capital Securities”). Subject to the Declaration (as defined below), the Capital Securities are transferable on the books and records of the Trust, in person or by a duly authorized attorney, upon surrender of this Certificate duly endorsed and in proper form for transfer. The Capital Securities represented hereby are issued pursuant to, and the designation, rights, privileges, restrictions, preferences and other terms and provisions of the Capital Securities shall in all respects be subject to, the provisions of the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of the Trust, dated as of June 15, 2006, among Kenneth R. Taylor and James C. Holly, as Administrators, Wilmington Trust Company, as Delaware Trustee, Wilmington Trust Company, as Institutional Trustee, Sierra Bancorp, as Sponsor, and the holders from time to time of undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust, including the designation of the terms of the Capital Securities as set forth in Annex I to the Declaration, as the same may be amended from time to time (the “Declaration”). Capitalized terms used herein but not defined shall have the meaning given them in the Declaration. The Holder is entitled to the benefits of the Guarantee to the extent provided therein. The Sponsor will provide a copy of the Declaration, the Guarantee, and the Indenture to the Holder without charge upon written request to the Sponsor at its principal place of business.

By acceptance of this Certificate, the Holder is bound by the Declaration and is entitled to the benefits thereunder.

By acceptance of this Certificate, the Holder agrees to treat, for United States federal income tax purposes, the Debentures as indebtedness and the Capital Securities as evidence of beneficial ownership in the Debentures.

This Certificate and the Capital Securities evidenced hereby are governed by, and shall be construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to principles of conflict of laws.

This Certificate may contain more than one counterpart of the signature page and this Certificate may be executed and authenticated by the affixing of the signature of an Administrator on behalf of the Trust, and the signature of the Institutional Trustee providing authentication, to any of such counterpart signature pages. All of such counterpart signature pages shall be read as though one, and they shall have the same force and effect as though the Trust had executed, and the Institutional Trustee had authenticated, a single signature page.

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Trust has duly executed this Certificate.


SIERRA CAPITAL TRUST III

By:
Name:		Kenneth R. Taylor
Title:		Administrator

Dated:

CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICATION

This Certificate represents Capital Securities referred to in the within-mentioned Declaration.


WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY, not in its individual capacity but solely as the Institutional Trustee

By:
		Authorized Officer

Dated:

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[FORM OF REVERSE OF SECURITY]

Distributions payable on each Capital Security will be payable at a variable per annum rate of interest, which, with respect to any Distribution Period (as defined herein) will be equal to LIBOR (as defined in the Declaration) plus 1.40% (the “Coupon Rate”), such rate being the rate of interest payable on the Debentures to be held by the Institutional Trustee. Except as set forth below in respect of an Extension Period, Distributions in arrears for more than one Distribution Period will bear interest thereon compounded quarterly at the applicable Coupon Rate for each such Distribution Period (to the extent permitted by applicable law). The term “Distributions” as used herein includes cash distributions, any such compounded distributions and any Additional Interest payable on the Debentures unless otherwise stated. A Distribution is payable only to the extent that payments are made in respect of the Debentures held by the Institutional Trustee and to the extent the Institutional Trustee has funds legally available in the Property Account therefor. The amount of Distributions payable for any Distribution Period will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year and the actual number of days elapsed in the relevant Distribution Period.

Except as otherwise described below, Distributions on the Capital Securities will be cumulative, will accrue from the date of original issuance and will be payable quarterly in arrears on March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 of each year, commencing on September 23, 2006 (each, a “Distribution Payment Date”). The Debenture Issuer has the right under the Indenture to defer payments of interest on the Debentures by extending the interest payment period for up to 20 consecutive quarterly periods (each, an “Extension Period”) at any time and from time to time on the Debentures, subject to the conditions described below. During any Extension Period, interest will continue to accrue on the Debentures, and interest on such accrued interest (such accrued interest and interest thereon referred to herein as “Deferred Interest”) will accrue at an annual rate equal to the Coupon Rate in effect for each such Extension Period, compounded quarterly from the date such Deferred Interest would have been payable were it not for the Extension Period, to the extent permitted by law. No Extension Period may end on a date other than a Distribution Payment Date. At the end of any such Extension Period, the Debenture Issuer shall pay all Deferred Interest then accrued and unpaid on the Debentures; provided , however , that no Extension Period may extend beyond the Maturity Date, Redemption Date or Special Redemption Date. Prior to the termination of any Extension Period, the Debenture Issuer may further extend such period, provided , that such period together with all such previous and further consecutive extensions thereof shall not exceed 20 consecutive quarterly periods, or extend beyond the Maturity Date, Redemption Date or Special Redemption Date. Upon the termination of any Extension Period and upon the payment of all Deferred Interest, the Debenture Issuer may commence a new Extension Period, subject to the foregoing requirements. No interest or Deferred Interest (except any Additional Interest that may be due and payable) shall be due and payable during an Extension Period, except at the end thereof, but interest shall accrue upon each installment of interest that would otherwise have been due and payable during such Extension Period until such installment is paid. If Distributions are deferred, the Distributions due shall be paid on the date that the related Extension Period terminates to Holders of the Securities as they appear on the books and records of the Trust on the record date immediately preceding such date. Distributions on the Securities must be paid on the dates payable (after giving effect to any Extension Period) to the extent that the Trust has funds legally available for the payment of such distributions in the Property Account of the Trust. The Trust’s funds available for Distribution to the Holders of the Securities will be limited to payments received from the Debenture Issuer. The payment of Distributions out of moneys held by the Trust is guaranteed by the Guarantor pursuant to the Guarantee.

The Capital Securities shall be redeemable as provided in the Declaration.

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ASSIGNMENT

FOR VALUE RECEIVED, the undersigned assigns and transfers the Capital Securities evidenced by this Capital Security Certificate to:








(Insert assignee’s social security or tax identification number)






(Insert address and zip code of assignee),

and irrevocably appoints

as agent to transfer the Capital Securities evidenced by this Capital Security Certificate on the books of the Trust. The agent may substitute another to act for it, him or her.


		Date:

		Signature:

		(Sign exactly as your name appears on the other side of this Capital Security Certificate)

		Signature Guarantee: ¹

Signature must be guaranteed by an “eligible guarantor institution” that is a bank, stockbroker, savings and loan association or credit union meeting the requirements of the Security registrar, which requirements include membership or participation in the Securities Transfer Agents Medallion Program (“STAMP”) or such other “signature guarantee program” as may be determined by the Security registrar in addition to, or in substitution for, STAMP, all in accordance with the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

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EXHIBIT A-2

FORM OF COMMON SECURITY CERTIFICATE

THIS COMMON SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, OR ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS OR ANY OTHER APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED, SOLD, PLEDGED OR OTHERWISE TRANSFERRED EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION.

EXCEPT AS SET FORTH IN SECTION 8.1(b) OF THE DECLARATION (AS DEFINED BELOW), THIS SECURITY MAY NOT BE OFFERED, SOLD, PLEDGED OR OTHERWISE TRANSFERRED.

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Certificate Number [ ]		Number of Common Securities [ ]

Certificate Evidencing Common Securities

SIERRA CAPITAL TRUST III

Sierra Capital Trust III, a statutory trust created under the laws of the State of Delaware (the “Trust”), hereby certifies that Sierra Bancorp (the “Holder”) is the registered owner of 464 common securities of the Trust representing undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust (liquidation amount $1,000 per Common Security) (the “Common Securities”). The Common Securities represented hereby are issued pursuant to, and the designation, rights, privileges, restrictions, preferences and other terms and provisions of the Common Securities shall in all respects be subject to, the provisions of the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of the Trust, dated as of June 15, 2006, among Kenneth R. Taylor and James C. Holly, as Administrators, Wilmington Trust Company, as Delaware Trustee, Wilmington Trust Company, as Institutional Trustee, the Holder, as Sponsor, and the holders from time to time of undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust, including the designation of the terms of the Common Securities as set forth in Annex I to the Declaration, as the same may be amended from time to time (the “Declaration”). Capitalized terms used herein but not defined shall have the meaning given them in the Declaration. The Sponsor will provide a copy of the Declaration and the Indenture to the Holder without charge upon written request to the Sponsor at its principal place of business.

As set forth in the Declaration, when an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the rights of Holders of Common Securities to payment in respect of Distributions and payments upon Liquidation, redemption or otherwise are subordinated to the rights of payment of Holders of the Capital Securities.

By acceptance of this Certificate, the Holder is bound by the Declaration and is entitled to the benefits thereunder.

By acceptance of this Certificate, the Holder agrees to treat, for United States federal income tax purposes, the Debentures as indebtedness and the Common Securities as evidence of undivided beneficial ownership in the Debentures.

This Certificate and the Common Securities evidenced hereby are governed by, and shall be construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to principles of conflict of laws.

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Trust has executed this Certificate this day of , 20 .


SIERRA CAPITAL TRUST III

By:
Name:		Kenneth R. Taylor
Title:		Administrator

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[FORM OF REVERSE OF SECURITY]

Distributions payable on each Common Security will be identical in amount to the Distributions payable on each Capital Security, which is at a variable per annum rate of interest, which, with respect to any Distribution Period (as defined herein) will be equal to LIBOR (as defined in the Declaration) plus 1.40% (the “Coupon Rate”), such rate being the rate of interest payable on the Debentures to be held by the Institutional Trustee. Except as set forth below in respect of an Extension Period, Distributions in arrears for more than one Distribution Period will bear interest thereon compounded quarterly at the applicable Coupon Rate for each such Distribution Period (to the extent permitted by applicable law). The term “Distributions” as used herein includes cash distributions, any such compounded distributions and any Additional Interest payable on the Debentures unless otherwise stated. A Distribution is payable only to the extent that payments are made in respect of the Debentures held by the Institutional Trustee and to the extent the Institutional Trustee has funds legally available in the Property Account therefor. The amount of Distributions payable for any Distribution Period will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year and the actual number of days elapsed in the relevant Distribution Period.

Except as otherwise described below, Distributions on the Common Securities will be cumulative, will accrue from the date of original issuance and will be payable quarterly in arrears on March 23, June 23, September 23 and December 23 of each year, commencing on September 23, 2006 (each, a “Distribution Payment Date”). The Debenture Issuer has the right under the Indenture to defer payments of interest on the Debentures by extending the interest payment period for up to 20 consecutive quarterly periods (each, an “Extension Period”) at any time and from time to time on the Debentures, subject to the conditions described below. During any Extension Period, interest will continue to accrue on the Debentures, and interest on such accrued interest (such accrued interest and interest thereon referred to herein as “Deferred Interest”) will accrue at an annual rate equal to the Coupon Rate in effect for each such Extension Period, compounded quarterly from the date such Deferred Interest would have been payable were it not for the Extension Period, to the extent permitted by law. No Extension Period may end on a date other than a Distribution Payment Date. At the end of any such Extension Period, the Debenture Issuer shall pay all Deferred Interest then accrued and unpaid on the Debentures; provided , however , that no Extension Period may extend beyond the Maturity Date, Redemption Date or Special Redemption Date. Prior to the termination of any Extension Period, the Debenture Issuer may further extend such period, provided , that such period together with all such previous and further consecutive extensions thereof shall not exceed 20 consecutive quarterly periods, or extend beyond the Maturity Date, Redemption Date or Special Redemption Date. Upon the termination of any Extension Period and upon the payment of all Deferred Interest, the Debenture Issuer may commence a new Extension Period, subject to the foregoing requirements. No interest or Deferred Interest (except any Additional Interest that may be due and payable) shall be due and payable during an Extension Period, except at the end thereof, but interest shall accrue upon each installment of interest that would otherwise have been due and payable during such Extension Period until such installment is paid. If Distributions are deferred, the Distributions due shall be paid on the date that the related Extension Period terminates to Holders of the Securities as they appear on the books and records of the Trust on the record date immediately preceding such date. Distributions on the Securities must be paid on

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the dates payable (after giving effect to any Extension Period) to the extent that the Trust has funds legally available for the payment of such distributions in the Property Account of the Trust. The Trust’s funds available for Distribution to the Holders of the Securities will be limited to payments received from the Debenture Issuer. The payment of Distributions out of moneys held by the Trust is guaranteed by the Guarantor pursuant to the Guarantee.

The Common Securities shall be redeemable as provided in the Declaration.

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ASSIGNMENT

FOR VALUE RECEIVED, the undersigned assigns and transfers the Common Securities evidenced by this Common Security Certificate to:

(Insert assignee’s social security or tax identification number)

(Insert address and zip code of assignee),

and irrevocably appoints as agent to transfer the Common Securities evidenced by this Common Security Certificate on the books of the Trust. The agent may substitute another to act for him or her.


		Date:

		Signature:

		(Sign exactly as your name appears on the other side of this Common Security Certificate)

		Signature Guarantee: ¹

Signature must be guaranteed by an “eligible guarantor institution” that is a bank, stockbroker, savings and loan association or credit union, meeting the requirements of the Security registrar, which requirements include membership or participation in the Securities Transfer Agents Medallion Program (“STAMP”) or such other “signature guarantee program” as may be determined by the Security registrar in addition to, or in substitution for, STAMP, all in accordance with the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

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EXHIBIT B

FORM OF TRANSFEREE CERTIFICATE

TO BE EXECUTED BY TRANSFEREES OTHER THAN QIBS

, [ ]

Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Capital Trust III

86 North Main Street

Porterville, California 93257

Re:	Purchase of $1,000 stated liquidation amount of Floating Rate Capital Securities (the “Capital Securities”) of Sierra Capital Trust III

Ladies and Gentlemen:

In connection with our purchase of the Capital Securities we confirm that:

1. We understand that the Floating Rate Capital Securities (the “Capital Securities”) of Sierra Capital Trust III (the “Trust”) (including the guarantee (the “Guarantee”) of Sierra Bancorp (the “Company”) executed in connection therewith) and the Floating Rate Junior Subordinated Debt Securities due 2036 of the Company (the “Subordinated Debt Securities”) (the Capital Securities, the Guarantee and the Subordinated Debt Securities together being referred to herein as the “Offered Securities”), have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and may not be offered or sold except as permitted in the following sentence. We agree on our own behalf and on behalf of any investor account for which we are purchasing the Capital Securities that, if we decide to offer, sell or otherwise transfer any such Capital Securities, such offer, sale or transfer will be made only (a) to the Company or the Trust, (b) pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act, to a person we reasonably believe is a qualified institutional buyer under Rule 144A (a “QIB”) that purchases for its own account or for the account of a QIB and to whom notice is given that the transfer is being made in reliance on Rule 144A, (c) pursuant to an exemption from registration, to an “accredited investor” within the meaning of subparagraph (a) (1), (2), (3) or (7) of Rule 501 under the Securities Act that is acquiring Capital Securities for its own account or for the account of such an accredited investor for investment purposes and not with a view to, or for offer or sale in connection with, any distribution thereof in violation of the Securities Act, or (d) pursuant to another available exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act, and in each of the foregoing cases in accordance with any applicable state securities laws and any requirements of law that govern the disposition of our property. The foregoing restrictions on resale will not apply subsequent to the date on which, in the written opinion of counsel, the Capital Securities are not “restricted securities” within the meaning of Rule 144 under the Securities Act. If any resale or other transfer of the Capital Securities is proposed to be made pursuant to clause (c) or (d) above, the transferor shall deliver a letter from the transferee substantially in the form of this letter to the Institutional Trustee as Transfer Agent, which shall provide as applicable, among other things, that the transferee is an “accredited investor” within the meaning of subparagraph (a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) of Rule 501 under the Securities Act that is

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acquiring such Securities for investment purposes and not for distribution in violation of the Securities Act. We acknowledge on our behalf and on behalf of any investor account for which we are purchasing Securities that the Trust and the Company reserve the right prior to any offer, sale or other transfer pursuant to clause (c) or (d) to require the delivery of any opinion of counsel, certifications and/or other information satisfactory to the Trust and the Company. We understand that the certificates for any Capital Security that we receive will bear a legend substantially to the effect of the foregoing.

2. We are an “accredited investor” within the meaning of subparagraph (a) (1), (2), (3) or (7) of Rule 501 under the Securities Act purchasing for our own account or for the account of such an “accredited investor,” and we are acquiring the Capital Securities for investment purposes and not with view to, or for offer or sale in connection with, any distribution in violation of the Securities Act, and we have such knowledge and experience in financial and business matters as to be capable of evaluating the merits and risks of our investment in the Capital Securities, and we and any account for which we are acting are each able to bear the economic risks of our or its investment.

3. We are acquiring the Capital Securities purchased by us for our own account (or for one or more accounts as to each of which we exercise sole investment discretion and have authority to make, and do make, the statements contained in this letter) and not with a view to any distribution of the Capital Securities, subject, nevertheless, to the understanding that the disposition of our property will at all times be and remain within our control.

4. In the event that we purchase any Capital Securities or any Subordinated Debt Securities, we will acquire such Capital Securities having an aggregate stated liquidation amount of not less than $100,000 or such Subordinated Debt Securities having an aggregate principal amount not less than $100,000, for our own account and for each separate account for which we are acting.

5. We acknowledge that we either (A) are not a fiduciary of a pension, profit-sharing or other employee benefit plan subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) (a “Plan”), or an entity whose assets include “plan assets” by reason of any Plan’s investment in the entity and are not purchasing the Capital Securities on behalf of or with “plan assets” by reason of any Plan’s investment in the entity and are not purchasing the Capital Securities on behalf of or with “plan assets” of any Plan or (B) are eligible for the exemptive relief available under one or more of the following prohibited transaction class exemptions (“PTCEs”) issued by the U.S. Department of Labor: PTCE 96-23, 95-60, 91-38, 90-1 or 84-14.

6. We acknowledge that each Plan, by its purchase of the Capital Securities, will be deemed to have directed the Trust to invest in the junior subordinated debt securities of the Company, and to have consented to the appointment of the institutional trustee of the Trust.

7. We acknowledge that the Trust and the Company and others will rely upon the truth and accuracy of the foregoing acknowledgments, representations, warranties and agreements and agree that if any of our acknowledgments, representations, warranties and agreements are no longer accurate, we shall promptly notify the Placement Agent. If we are

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acquiring any Capital Securities as a fiduciary or agent for one or more investor accounts, we represent that we have sole discretion with respect to each such investor account and that we have full power to make the foregoing acknowledgments, representations and agreements on behalf of each such investor account.

You are entitled to rely upon this letter and are irrevocably authorized to produce this letter or a copy hereof to any interested party in any administrative or legal proceeding or official inquiry with respect to the matters covered hereby.


(Name of Purchaser)

By:

Date:

Upon transfer, the Capital Securities should be registered in the name of the new beneficial owner as follows.


Name:

Address:

Taxpayer ID Number:

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EXHIBIT C

FORM OF TRANSFEROR CERTIFICATE

TO BE EXECUTED FOR QIBs

, [ ]

Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Capital Trust III

86 North Main Street

Porterville, California 93257

Re:	Purchase of $1,000 stated liquidation amount of Floating Rate Capital Securities (the “Capital Securities”) of Sierra Capital Trust III

Reference is hereby made to the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of Sierra Capital Trust III, dated as of June 15, 2006 (the “Declaration”), among Kenneth R. Taylor and James C. Holly, as Administrators, Wilmington Trust Company, as Delaware Trustee, Wilmington Trust Company, as Institutional Trustee, Sierra Bancorp, as Sponsor, and the holders from time to time of undivided beneficial interests in the assets of Sierra Capital Trust III. Capitalized terms used but not defined herein shall have the meanings given them in the Declaration.

This letter relates to $[ ] aggregate liquidation amount of Capital Securities which are held in the name of [name of transferor] (the “Transferor”).

In accordance with Section 8.2(b) of the Declaration, the Transferor does hereby certify that such Capital Securities are being transferred in accordance with (i) the transfer restrictions set forth in the Capital Securities and (ii) Rule 144A under the Securities Act (“Rule 144A”), to a transferee that the Transferor reasonably believes is purchasing the Capital Securities for its own account or an account with respect to which the transferee exercises sole investment discretion and the transferee and any such account is a “qualified institutional buyer” within the meaning of Rule 144A, in a transaction meeting the requirements of Rule 144A and in accordance with applicable securities laws of any state of the United States or any other jurisdiction.

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(Name of Transferor)

By:
Name:
Title:

Date:

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EXHIBIT D

ADMINISTRATOR’S CERTIFICATE

SIERRA CAPITAL TRUST III

Pursuant to Section 2.6(a)(i)(P) of the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of Sierra Capital Trust III (the “Trust”) among Sierra Bancorp as Sponsor, Wilmington Trust Company, as Institutional Trustee, Wilmington Trust Company, as Delaware Trustee, the Administrators named therein, and the holders from time to time of beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust, dated as of June 15, 2006 (as modified, supplemented or amended from time to time, the “Trust Agreement”), the undersigned (on behalf of the Trust) hereby certifies that he/she is an Administrator of the Trust and that, to his/her knowledge under the terms of the Trust Agreement, the Trust has complied (without regard to any period of grace or requirement of notice provided under the Trust Agreement) with all conditions and covenants under the Trust Agreement for the year 20 .

Capitalized terms used herein, and not otherwise defined herein, have the respective meanings ascribed thereto in the Trust Agreement.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this Administrator’s Certificate as of , 20 .

as Administrator

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EXHIBIT 10.28

GUARANTEE AGREEMENT

SIERRA BANCORP

Dated as of June 15, 2006

TABLE OF CONTENTS


		Page
ARTICLE I DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION		1

Section 1.1. Definitions and Interpretation		1

ARTICLE II POWERS, DUTIES AND RIGHTS OF THE GUARANTEE TRUSTEE		4

Section 2.1. Powers and Duties of the Guarantee Trustee		4

Section 2.2. Certain Rights of the Guarantee Trustee		5

Section 2.3. Not Responsible for Recitals or Issuance of Guarantee		7

Section 2.4. Events of Default; Waiver		7

Section 2.5. Events of Default; Notice		8

ARTICLE III THE GUARANTEE TRUSTEE		8

Section 3.1. The Guarantee Trustee; Eligibility		8

Section 3.2. Appointment, Removal and Resignation of the Guarantee Trustee		9

ARTICLE IV GUARANTEE		10

Section 4.1. Guarantee		10

Section 4.2. Waiver of Notice and Demand		10

Section 4.3. Obligations Not Affected		10

Section 4.4. Rights of Holders		11

Section 4.5. Guarantee of Payment		12

Section 4.6. Subrogation		12

Section 4.7. Independent Obligations		12

Section 4.8. Enforcement		12

ARTICLE V LIMITATION OF TRANSACTIONS; SUBORDINATION		12

Section 5.1. Limitation of Transactions		12

Section 5.2. Ranking		13

ARTICLE VI TERMINATION		14

Section 6.1. Termination		14

ARTICLE VII INDEMNIFICATION		14

Section 7.1. Exculpation		14

Section 7.2. Indemnification		14

Section 7.3. Compensation; Reimbursement of Expenses		15

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

(continued)


		Page
ARTICLE VIII MISCELLANEOUS		16

Section 8.1. Successors and Assigns		16

Section 8.2. Amendments		16

Section 8.3. Notices		16

Section 8.4. Benefit		17

Section 8.5. Governing Law		17

Section 8.6. Counterparts		17

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GUARANTEE AGREEMENT

This GUARANTEE AGREEMENT (the “Guarantee”), dated as of June 15, 2006, is executed and delivered by Sierra Bancorp, a bank holding company incorporated in California (the “Guarantor”), and Wilmington Trust Company, a Delaware banking corporation, as trustee (the “Guarantee Trustee”), for the benefit of the Holders (as defined herein) from time to time of the Capital Securities (as defined herein) of Sierra Capital Trust III, a Delaware statutory trust (the “Issuer”).

WHEREAS, pursuant to an Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust (the “Declaration”), dated as of June 15, 2006, among the trustees named therein of the Issuer, Sierra Bancorp, as sponsor, and the Holders from time to time of undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Issuer, the Issuer is issuing on the date hereof securities, having an aggregate liquidation amount of up to $15,000,000, designated the Capital Securities (the “Capital Securities”); and

WHEREAS, as incentive for the Holders to purchase the Capital Securities, the Guarantor desires irrevocably and unconditionally to agree, to the extent set forth in this Guarantee, to pay to the Holders of Capital Securities the Guarantee Payments (as defined herein) and to make certain other payments on the terms and conditions set forth herein.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the purchase by each Holder of the Capital Securities, which purchase the Guarantor hereby agrees shall benefit the Guarantor, the Guarantor executes and delivers this Guarantee for the benefit of the Holders.

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION

Section 1.1. Definitions and Interpretation .

In this Guarantee, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) capitalized terms used in this Guarantee but not defined in the preamble above have the respective meanings assigned to them in this Section 1.1;

(b) a term defined anywhere in this Guarantee has the same meaning throughout;

(c) all references to “the Guarantee” or “this Guarantee” are to this Guarantee as modified, supplemented or amended from time to time;

(d) all references in this Guarantee to Articles and Sections are to Articles and Sections of this Guarantee, unless otherwise specified;

(e) terms defined in the Declaration as of the date of execution of this Guarantee have the same meanings when used in this Guarantee, unless otherwise defined in this Guarantee or unless the context otherwise requires; and

(f) a reference to the singular includes the plural and vice versa.

“Beneficiaries” means any Person to whom the Issuer is or hereafter becomes indebted or liable.

“Corporate Trust Office” means the office of the Guarantee Trustee at which the corporate trust business of the Guarantee Trustee shall, at any particular time, be principally administered, which office at the date of execution of this Guarantee is located at Rodney Square North, 1100 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19890-0001.

“Covered Person” means any Holder of Capital Securities.

“Debentures” means the junior subordinated debentures of Sierra Bancorp, designated the Floating Rate Junior Subordinated Debt Securities due 2036, held by the Institutional Trustee (as defined in the Declaration) of the Issuer.

“Event of Default” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.4.

“Guarantee Payments” means the following payments or distributions, without duplication, with respect to the Capital Securities, to the extent not paid or made by the Issuer: (i) any accrued and unpaid Distributions (as defined in the Declaration) which are required to be paid on such Capital Securities to the extent the Issuer has funds available in the Property Account (as defined in the Declaration) therefor at such time, (ii) the Redemption Price (as defined in the Indenture) to the extent the Issuer has funds available in the Property Account therefor at such time, with respect to the Capital Securities at maturity or any Capital Securities called for redemption by the Issuer, (iii) the Special Redemption Price (as defined in the Indenture) to the extent the Issuer has funds available in the Property Account therefor at such time, with respect to Capital Securities called for redemption upon the occurrence of a Special Event (as defined in the Indenture), and (iv) upon a voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution, winding-up or termination of the Issuer (other than in connection with the distribution of Debentures to the Holders of the Capital Securities in exchange therefor as provided in the Declaration), the lesser of (a) the aggregate of the liquidation amount and all accrued and unpaid Distributions on the Capital Securities to the date of payment, to the extent the Issuer has funds available in the Property Account therefor at such time, and (b) the amount of assets of the Issuer remaining available for distribution to Holders in liquidation of the Issuer after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors of the Issuer as required by applicable law (in either case, the “Liquidation Distribution”).

“Guarantee Trustee” means Wilmington Trust Company, until a Successor Guarantee Trustee has been appointed and has accepted such appointment pursuant to the terms of this Guarantee and thereafter means each such Successor Guarantee Trustee.

“Holder” means any holder, as registered on the books and records of the Issuer, of any Capital Securities; provided , however , that, in determining whether the holders of the requisite percentage of Capital Securities have given any request, notice, consent or waiver hereunder, “Holder” shall not include the Guarantor or any Affiliate of the Guarantor.

“Indemnified Person” means the Guarantee Trustee (including in its individual capacity), any Affiliate of the Guarantee Trustee, or any officers, directors, shareholders, members, partners, employees, representatives, nominees, custodians or agents of the Guarantee Trustee.

“Indenture” means the Indenture, dated as of June 15, 2006, between the Guarantor and Wilmington Trust Company, not in its individual capacity but solely as trustee, and any indenture supplemental thereto pursuant to which the Debentures are to be issued to the Institutional Trustee of the Issuer.

“Liquidation Distribution” has the meaning set forth in the definition of “Guarantee Payments” herein.

“Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities” means Holder(s) of outstanding Capital Securities, voting together as a class, but separately from the holders of Common Securities, of more than 50% of the aggregate liquidation amount (including the stated amount that would be paid on redemption, liquidation or otherwise, plus accrued and unpaid Distributions to, but excluding, the date upon which the voting percentages are determined) of all Capital Securities then outstanding.

“Obligations” means any costs, expenses or liabilities (but not including liabilities related to taxes) of the Issuer, other than obligations of the Issuer to pay to holders of any Trust Securities the amounts due such holders pursuant to the terms of the Trust Securities.

“Officer’s Certificate” means, with respect to any Person, a certificate signed by one Authorized Officer of such Person. Any Officer’s Certificate delivered with respect to compliance with a condition or covenant provided for in this Guarantee shall include:

(a) a statement that each officer signing the Officer’s Certificate has read the covenant or condition and the definitions relating thereto;

(b) a brief statement of the nature and scope of the examination or investigation undertaken by each officer in rendering the Officer’s Certificate;

(d) a statement as to whether, in the opinion of each such officer, such condition or covenant has been complied with.

“Responsible Officer” means, with respect to the Guarantee Trustee, any officer within the Corporate Trust Office of the Guarantee Trustee with direct responsibility for the

administration of any matters relating to this Guarantee, including any vice president, any assistant vice president, any secretary, any assistant secretary, the treasurer, any assistant treasurer, any trust officer or other officer of the Corporate Trust Office of the Guarantee Trustee customarily performing functions similar to those performed by any of the above designated officers and also means, with respect to a particular corporate trust matter, any other officer to whom such matter is referred because of that officer’s knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject.

“Successor Guarantee Trustee” means a successor Guarantee Trustee possessing the qualifications to act as Guarantee Trustee under Section 3.1.

“Trust Securities” means the Common Securities and the Capital Securities.

ARTICLE II

POWERS, DUTIES AND RIGHTS OF THE GUARANTEE TRUSTEE

Section 2.1. Powers and Duties of the Guarantee Trustee .

(a) This Guarantee shall be held by the Guarantee Trustee for the benefit of the Holders of the Capital Securities, and the Guarantee Trustee shall not transfer this Guarantee to any Person except a Holder of Capital Securities exercising his or her rights pursuant to Section 4.4(b) or to a Successor Guarantee Trustee on acceptance by such Successor Guarantee Trustee of its appointment to act as Successor Guarantee Trustee. The right, title and interest of the Guarantee Trustee shall automatically vest in any Successor Guarantee Trustee, and such vesting and cessation of title shall be effective whether or not conveyancing documents have been executed and delivered pursuant to the appointment of such Successor Guarantee Trustee.

(b) If an Event of Default actually known to a Responsible Officer of the Guarantee Trustee has occurred and is continuing, the Guarantee Trustee shall enforce this Guarantee for the benefit of the Holders of the Capital Securities.

(c) The Guarantee Trustee, before the occurrence of any Event of Default and after the curing or waiving of all Events of Default that may have occurred, shall undertake to perform only such duties as are specifically set forth in this Guarantee, and no implied covenants shall be read into this Guarantee against the Guarantee Trustee. In case an Event of Default has occurred (that has not been cured or waived pursuant to Section 2.4(b)) and is actually known to a Responsible Officer of the Guarantee Trustee, the Guarantee Trustee shall exercise such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Guarantee, and use the same degree of care and skill in its exercise thereof, as a prudent person would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of his or her own affairs.

(d) No provision of this Guarantee shall be construed to relieve the Guarantee Trustee from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct, except that:

(i) prior to the occurrence of any Event of Default and after the curing or waiving of all Events of Default that may have occurred:

(A) the duties and obligations of the Guarantee Trustee shall be determined solely by the express provisions of this Guarantee, and the Guarantee Trustee shall not be liable except for the performance of such duties and obligations as are specifically set forth in this Guarantee, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Guarantee against the Guarantee Trustee; and

(B) in the absence of bad faith on the part of the Guarantee Trustee, the Guarantee Trustee may conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon any certificates or opinions furnished to the Guarantee Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Guarantee; but in the case of any such certificates or opinions furnished to the Guarantee Trustee, the Guarantee Trustee shall be under a duty to examine the same to determine whether or not on their face they conform to the requirements of this Guarantee;

(ii) the Guarantee Trustee shall not be liable for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Responsible Officer of the Guarantee Trustee, unless it shall be proved that such Responsible Officer of the Guarantee Trustee or the Guarantee Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts upon which such judgment was made;

(iii) the Guarantee Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith in accordance with the written direction of the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities relating to the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Guarantee Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Guarantee Trustee under this Guarantee; and

(iv) no provision of this Guarantee shall require the Guarantee Trustee to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise incur personal financial liability in the performance of any of its duties or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers, if the Guarantee Trustee shall have reasonable grounds for believing that the repayment of such funds is not reasonably assured to it under the terms of this Guarantee, or security and indemnity, reasonably satisfactory to the Guarantee Trustee, against such risk or liability is not reasonably assured to it.

Section 2.2. Certain Rights of the Guarantee Trustee .

(a) Subject to the provisions of Section 2.1:

(i) The Guarantee Trustee may conclusively rely, and shall be fully protected in acting or refraining from acting upon, any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, direction, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, other evidence of indebtedness or other paper or document believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed, sent or presented by the proper party or parties.

(ii) Any direction or act of the Guarantor contemplated by this Guarantee shall be sufficiently evidenced by an Officer’s Certificate.

(iii) Whenever, in the administration of this Guarantee, the Guarantee Trustee shall deem it desirable that a matter be proved or established before taking, suffering or omitting any action hereunder, the Guarantee Trustee (unless other evidence is herein specifically prescribed) may, in the absence of bad faith on its part, request and conclusively rely upon an Officer’s Certificate of the Guarantor which, upon receipt of such request, shall be promptly delivered by the Guarantor.

(iv) The Guarantee Trustee shall have no duty to see to any recording, filing or registration of any instrument or other writing (or any rerecording, refiling or reregistration thereof).

(v) The Guarantee Trustee may consult with counsel of its selection, and the advice or opinion of such counsel with respect to legal matters shall be full and complete authorization and protection in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted by it hereunder in good faith and in accordance with such advice or opinion. Such counsel may be counsel to the Guarantor or any of its Affiliates and may include any of its employees. The Guarantee Trustee shall have the right at any time to seek instructions concerning the administration of this Guarantee from any court of competent jurisdiction.

(vi) The Guarantee Trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Guarantee at the request or direction of any Holder, unless such Holder shall have provided to the Guarantee Trustee such security and indemnity, reasonably satisfactory to the Guarantee Trustee, against the costs, expenses (including attorneys’ fees and expenses and the expenses of the Guarantee Trustee’s agents, nominees or custodians) and liabilities that might be incurred by it in complying with such request or direction, including such reasonable advances as may be requested by the Guarantee Trustee; provided , however , that nothing contained in this Section 2.2(a)(vi) shall be taken to relieve the Guarantee Trustee, upon the occurrence of an Event of Default, of its obligation to exercise the rights and powers vested in it by this Guarantee.

(vii) The Guarantee Trustee shall not be bound to make any investigation into the facts or matters stated in any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, direction, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, other evidence of indebtedness or other paper or document, but the Guarantee Trustee, in its discretion, may make such further inquiry or investigation into such facts or matters as it may see fit.

(viii) The Guarantee Trustee may execute any of the trusts or powers hereunder or perform any duties hereunder either directly or by or through agents, nominees, custodians or attorneys, and the Guarantee Trustee shall not be responsible for any misconduct or negligence on the part of any agent or attorney appointed with due care by it hereunder.

(ix) Any action taken by the Guarantee Trustee or its agents hereunder shall bind the Holders of the Capital Securities, and the signature of the Guarantee Trustee or its agents alone shall be sufficient and effective to perform any such action. No third party shall be required to inquire as to the authority of the Guarantee Trustee to so act or as to its compliance with any of the terms and provisions of this Guarantee, both of which shall be conclusively evidenced by the Guarantee Trustee’s or its agent’s taking such action.

(x) Whenever in the administration of this Guarantee the Guarantee Trustee shall deem it desirable to receive instructions with respect to enforcing any remedy or right or taking any other action hereunder, the Guarantee Trustee (A) may request instructions from the Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities, (B) may refrain from enforcing such remedy or right or taking such other action until such instructions are received and (C) shall be protected in conclusively relying on or acting in accordance with such instructions.

(xi) The Guarantee Trustee shall not be liable for any action taken, suffered, or omitted to be taken by it in good faith and reasonably believed by it to be authorized or within the discretion or rights or powers conferred upon it by this Guarantee.

(b) No provision of this Guarantee shall be deemed to impose any duty or obligation on the Guarantee Trustee to perform any act or acts or exercise any right, power, duty or obligation conferred or imposed on it, in any jurisdiction in which it shall be illegal or in which the Guarantee Trustee shall be unqualified or incompetent in accordance with applicable law to perform any such act or acts or to exercise any such right, power, duty or obligation. No permissive power or authority available to the Guarantee Trustee shall be construed to be a duty.

Section 2.3. Not Responsible for Recitals or Issuance of Guarantee .

The recitals contained in this Guarantee shall be taken as the statements of the Guarantor, and the Guarantee Trustee does not assume any responsibility for their correctness. The Guarantee Trustee makes no representation as to the validity or sufficiency of this Guarantee.

Section 2.4. Events of Default; Waiver .

(a) An Event of Default under this Guarantee will occur upon the failure of the Guarantor to perform any of its payment or other obligations hereunder.

(b) The Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities may, voting or consenting as a class, on behalf of the Holders of all of the Capital Securities, waive any past Event of Default and its consequences. Upon such waiver, any such Event of Default shall cease to exist, and shall be deemed to have been cured, for every purpose of this Guarantee, but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other default or Event of Default or impair any right consequent thereon.

Section 2.5. Events of Default; Notice .

(a) The Guarantee Trustee shall, within 90 days after the occurrence of an Event of Default, transmit by mail, first class postage prepaid, to the Holders of the Capital Securities, notices of all Events of Default actually known to a Responsible Officer of the Guarantee Trustee, unless such defaults have been cured before the giving of such notice, provided , however , that the Guarantee Trustee shall be protected in withholding such notice if and so long as a Responsible Officer of the Guarantee Trustee in good faith determines that the withholding of such notice is in the interests of the Holders of the Capital Securities.

(b) The Guarantee Trustee shall not be charged with knowledge of any Event of Default unless the Guarantee Trustee shall have received written notice thereof from the Guarantor or a Holder of the Capital Securities, or a Responsible Officer of the Guarantee Trustee charged with the administration of this Guarantee shall have actual knowledge thereof.

ARTICLE III

THE GUARANTEE TRUSTEE

Section 3.1. The Guarantee Trustee; Eligibility .

(a) There shall at all times be a Guarantee Trustee which shall:

(i) not be an Affiliate of the Guarantor; and

(ii) be a corporation or national association organized and doing business under the laws of the United States of America or any State or Territory thereof or of the District of Columbia, or Person authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers, having a combined capital and surplus of at least 50 million U.S. dollars ($50,000,000), and subject to supervision or examination by Federal, State, Territorial or District of Columbia authority. If such corporation or national association publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law or to the requirements of the supervising or examining authority referred to above, then, for the purposes of this Section 3.1(a)(ii), the combined capital and surplus of such corporation or national association shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published.

(b) If at any time the Guarantee Trustee shall cease to be eligible to so act under Section 3.1(a), the Guarantee Trustee shall immediately resign in the manner and with the effect set forth in Section 3.2(c).

(c) If the Guarantee Trustee has or shall acquire any “conflicting interest” within the meaning of Section 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act, the Guarantee Trustee shall either eliminate such interest or resign to the extent and in the manner provided by, and subject to, this Guarantee.

Section 3.2. Appointment, Removal and Resignation of the Guarantee Trustee .

(a) Subject to Section 3.2(b), the Guarantee Trustee may be appointed or removed without cause at any time by the Guarantor except during an Event of Default.

(b) The Guarantee Trustee shall not be removed in accordance with Section 3.2(a) until a Successor Guarantee Trustee has been appointed and has accepted such appointment by written instrument executed by such Successor Guarantee Trustee and delivered to the Guarantor.

(c) The Guarantee Trustee appointed to office shall hold office until a Successor Guarantee Trustee shall have been appointed or until its removal or resignation. The Guarantee Trustee may resign from office (without need for prior or subsequent accounting) by an instrument in writing executed by the Guarantee Trustee and delivered to the Guarantor, which resignation shall not take effect until a Successor Guarantee Trustee has been appointed and has accepted such appointment by an instrument in writing executed by such Successor Guarantee Trustee and delivered to the Guarantor and the resigning Guarantee Trustee.

(d) If no Successor Guarantee Trustee shall have been appointed and accepted appointment as provided in this Section 3.2 within 60 days after delivery of an instrument of removal or resignation, the Guarantee Trustee resigning or being removed may petition any court of competent jurisdiction for appointment of a Successor Guarantee Trustee. Such court may thereupon, after prescribing such notice, if any, as it may deem proper, appoint a Successor Guarantee Trustee.

(e) No Guarantee Trustee shall be liable for the acts or omissions to act of any Successor Guarantee Trustee.

(f) Upon termination of this Guarantee or removal or resignation of the Guarantee Trustee pursuant to this Section 3.2, the Guarantor shall pay to the Guarantee Trustee all amounts owing to the Guarantee Trustee under Sections 7.2 and 7.3 accrued to the date of such termination, removal or resignation.

ARTICLE IV

GUARANTEE

Section 4.1. Guarantee .

(a) The Guarantor irrevocably and unconditionally agrees to pay in full to the Holders the Guarantee Payments (without duplication of amounts theretofore paid by the Issuer), as and when due, regardless of any defense (except as defense of payment by the Issuer), right of set-off or counterclaim that the Issuer may have or assert. The Guarantor’s obligation to make a Guarantee Payment may be satisfied by direct payment of the required amounts by the Guarantor to the Holders or by causing the Issuer to pay such amounts to the Holders.

(b) The Guarantor hereby also agrees to assume any and all Obligations of the Issuer and in the event any such Obligation is not so assumed, subject to the terms and conditions hereof, the Guarantor hereby irrevocably and unconditionally guarantees to each Beneficiary the full payment, when and as due, of any and all Obligations to such Beneficiaries. This Guarantee is intended to be for the Beneficiaries who have received notice hereof.

Section 4.2. Waiver of Notice and Demand .

The Guarantor hereby waives notice of acceptance of this Guarantee and of any liability to which it applies or may apply, presentment, demand for payment, any right to require a proceeding first against the Issuer or any other Person before proceeding against the Guarantor, protest, notice of nonpayment, notice of dishonor, notice of redemption and all other notices and demands.

Section 4.3. Obligations Not Affected .

The obligations, covenants, agreements and duties of the Guarantor under this Guarantee shall in no way be affected or impaired by reason of the happening from time to time of any of the following:

(a) the release or waiver, by operation of law or otherwise, of the performance or observance by the Issuer of any express or implied agreement, covenant, term or condition relating to the Capital Securities to be performed or observed by the Issuer;

(b) the extension of time for the payment by the Issuer of all or any portion of the Distributions, Redemption Price, Special Redemption Price, Liquidation Distribution or any other sums payable under the terms of the Capital Securities or the extension of time for the performance of any other obligation under, arising out of, or in connection with, the Capital Securities (other than an extension of time for the payment of the Distributions, Redemption Price, Special Redemption Price, Liquidation Distribution or other sums payable that results from the extension of any interest payment period on the Debentures or any extension of the maturity date of the Debentures permitted by the Indenture);

(c) any failure, omission, delay or lack of diligence on the part of the Holders to enforce, assert or exercise any right, privilege, power or remedy conferred on the Holders pursuant to the terms of the Capital Securities, or any action on the part of the Issuer granting indulgence or extension of any kind;

(d) the voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution, sale of any collateral, receivership, insolvency, bankruptcy, assignment for the benefit of creditors, reorganization, arrangement, composition or readjustment of debt of, or other similar proceedings affecting, the Issuer or any of the assets of the Issuer;

(e) any invalidity of, or defect or deficiency in, the Capital Securities;

(f) the settlement or compromise of any obligation guaranteed hereby or hereby incurred; or

(g) any other circumstance whatsoever that might otherwise constitute a legal or equitable discharge or defense of a guarantor, it being the intent of this Section 4.3 that the obligations of the Guarantor hereunder shall be absolute and unconditional under any and all circumstances.

There shall be no obligation of the Holders to give notice to, or obtain consent of, the Guarantor with respect to the happening of any of the foregoing.

Section 4.4. Rights of Holders .

(a) The Holders of a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Guarantee Trustee in respect of this Guarantee or to direct the exercise of any trust or power conferred upon the Guarantee Trustee under this Guarantee; provided , however , that (subject to Sections 2.1 and 2.2) the Guarantee Trustee shall have the right to decline to follow any such direction if the Guarantee Trustee shall determine that the actions so directed would be unjustly prejudicial to the Holders not taking part in such direction or if the Guarantee Trustee being advised by counsel determines that the action or proceeding so directed may not lawfully be taken or if the Guarantee Trustee in good faith by its board of directors or trustees, executive committee or a trust committee of directors or trustees and/or Responsible Officers shall determine that the action or proceeding so directed would involve the Guarantee Trustee in personal liability.

(b) Any Holder of Capital Securities may institute a legal proceeding directly against the Guarantor to enforce the Guarantee Trustee’s rights under this Guarantee, without first instituting a legal proceeding against the Issuer, the Guarantee Trustee or any other Person. The Guarantor waives any right or remedy to require that any such action be brought first against the Issuer, the Guarantee Trustee or any other Person before so proceeding directly against the Guarantor.

Section 4.5. Guarantee of Payment .

This Guarantee creates a guarantee of payment and not of collection.

Section 4.6. Subrogation .

The Guarantor shall be subrogated to all (if any) rights of the Holders of Capital Securities against the Issuer in respect of any amounts paid to such Holders by the Guarantor under this Guarantee; provided , however , that the Guarantor shall not (except to the extent required by applicable provisions of law) be entitled to enforce or exercise any right that it may acquire by way of subrogation or any indemnity, reimbursement or other agreement, in all cases as a result of payment under this Guarantee, if, after giving effect to any such payment, any amounts are due and unpaid under this Guarantee. If any amount shall be paid to the Guarantor in violation of the preceding sentence, the Guarantor agrees to hold such amount in trust for the Holders and to pay over such amount to the Holders.

Section 4.7. Independent Obligations .

The Guarantor acknowledges that its obligations hereunder are independent of the obligations of the Issuer with respect to the Capital Securities and that the Guarantor shall be liable as principal and as debtor hereunder to make Guarantee Payments pursuant to the terms of this Guarantee notwithstanding the occurrence of any event referred to in subsections (a) through (g), inclusive, of Section 4.3 hereof.

Section 4.8. Enforcement .

A Beneficiary may enforce the Obligations of the Guarantor contained in Section 4.1(b) directly against the Guarantor, and the Guarantor waives any right or remedy to require that any action be brought against the Issuer or any other person or entity before proceeding against the Guarantor.

The Guarantor shall be subrogated to all rights (if any) of any Beneficiary against the Issuer in respect of any amounts paid to the Beneficiaries by the Guarantor under this Guarantee; provided , however , that the Guarantor shall not (except to the extent required by applicable provisions of law) be entitled to enforce or exercise any rights that it may acquire by way of subrogation or any indemnity, reimbursement or other agreement, in all cases as a result of payment under this Guarantee, if, after giving effect to such payment, any amounts are due and unpaid under this Guarantee.

ARTICLE V

LIMITATION OF TRANSACTIONS; SUBORDINATION

Section 5.1. Limitation of Transactions .

So long as any Capital Securities remain outstanding, if (a) there shall have occurred and be continuing an Event of Default or (b) the Guarantor shall have selected an Extension Period as provided in the Declaration and such period, or any extension thereof, shall have commenced and be continuing, then the Guarantor may not (x) declare or pay any dividends or distributions on, or redeem, purchase, acquire, or make a liquidation payment with

respect to, any of the Guarantor’s capital stock or (y) make any payment of principal of or interest or premium, if any, on or repay, repurchase or redeem any debt securities of the Guarantor that rank pari passu in all respects with or junior in interest to the Debentures (other than (i) payments under this Guarantee, (ii) repurchases, redemptions or other acquisitions of shares of capital stock of the Guarantor (A) in connection with any employment contract, benefit plan or other similar arrangement with or for the benefit of one or more employees, officers, directors, or consultants, (B) in connection with a dividend reinvestment or stockholder stock purchase plan or (C) in connection with the issuance of capital stock of the Guarantor (or securities convertible into or exercisable for such capital stock), as consideration in an acquisition transaction entered into prior to the occurrence of the Event of Default or the applicable Extension Period, (iii) as a result of any exchange or conversion of any class or series of the Guarantor’s capital stock (or any capital stock of a subsidiary of the Guarantor) for any class or series of the Guarantor’s capital stock or of any class or series of the Guarantor’s indebtedness for any class or series of the Guarantor’s capital stock, (iv) the purchase of fractional interests in shares of the Guarantor’s capital stock pursuant to the conversion or exchange provisions of such capital stock or the security being converted or exchanged, (v) any declaration of a dividend in connection with any stockholder’s rights plan, or the issuance of rights, stock or other property under any stockholder’s rights plan, or the redemption or repurchase of rights pursuant thereto, or (vi) any dividend in the form of stock, warrants, options or other rights where the dividend stock or the stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants, options or other rights is the same stock as that on which the dividend is being paid or ranks pari passu with or junior to such stock).

Section 5.2. Ranking .

This Guarantee will constitute an unsecured obligation of the Guarantor and will rank subordinate and junior in right of payment to all present and future Senior Indebtedness (as defined in the Indenture) of the Guarantor. By their acceptance thereof, each Holder of Capital Securities agrees to the foregoing provisions of this Guarantee and the other terms set forth herein.

The right of the Guarantor to participate in any distribution of assets of any of its subsidiaries upon any such subsidiary’s liquidation or reorganization or otherwise is subject to the prior claims of creditors of that subsidiary, except to the extent the Guarantor may itself be recognized as a creditor of that subsidiary. Accordingly, the Guarantor’s obligations under this Guarantee will be effectively subordinated to all existing and future liabilities of the Guarantor’s subsidiaries, and claimants should look only to the assets of the Guarantor for payments thereunder. This Guarantee does not limit the incurrence or issuance of other secured or unsecured debt of the Guarantor, including Senior Indebtedness of the Guarantor, under any indenture or agreement that the Guarantor may enter into in the future or otherwise.

ARTICLE VI

TERMINATION

Section 6.1. Termination .

This Guarantee shall terminate as to the Capital Securities (i) upon full payment of the Redemption Price or the Special Redemption Price, as the case may be, of all Capital Securities then outstanding, (ii) upon the distribution of all of the Debentures to the Holders of all of the Capital Securities or (iii) upon full payment of the amounts payable in accordance with the Declaration upon dissolution of the Issuer. This Guarantee will continue to be effective or will be reinstated, as the case may be, if at any time any Holder of Capital Securities must restore payment of any sums paid under the Capital Securities or under this Guarantee.

ARTICLE VII

INDEMNIFICATION

Section 7.1. Exculpation .

(a) No Indemnified Person shall be liable, responsible or accountable in damages or otherwise to the Guarantor or any Covered Person for any loss, damage or claim incurred by reason of any act or omission of such Indemnified Person in good faith in accordance with this Guarantee and in a manner that such Indemnified Person reasonably believed to be within the scope of the authority conferred on such Indemnified Person by this Guarantee or by law, except that an Indemnified Person shall be liable for any such loss, damage or claim incurred by reason of such Indemnified Person’s negligence or willful misconduct with respect to such acts or omissions.

(b) An Indemnified Person shall be fully protected in relying in good faith upon the records of the Issuer or the Guarantor and upon such information, opinions, reports or statements presented to the Issuer or the Guarantor by any Person as to matters the Indemnified Person reasonably believes are within such other Person’s professional or expert competence and who, if selected by such Indemnified Person, has been selected with reasonable care by such Indemnified Person, including information, opinions, reports or statements as to the value and amount of the assets, liabilities, profits, losses, or any other facts pertinent to the existence and amount of assets from which Distributions to Holders of Capital Securities might properly be paid.

Section 7.2. Indemnification .

(a) The Guarantor agrees to indemnify each Indemnified Person for, and to hold each Indemnified Person harmless against, any and all loss, liability, damage, claim or expense incurred without negligence or willful misconduct on the part of the Indemnified Person, arising out of or in connection with the acceptance or administration of the trust or trusts hereunder, including but not limited to the costs and expenses (including reasonable legal fees and expenses) of the Indemnified Person defending itself against, or investigating, any claim or liability in connection with the exercise or performance of any

of the Indemnified Person’s powers or duties hereunder. The obligation to indemnify as set forth in this Section 7.2 shall survive the resignation or removal of the Guarantee Trustee and the termination of this Guarantee.

(b) Promptly after receipt by an Indemnified Person under this Section 7.2 of notice of the commencement of any action, such Indemnified Person will, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the Guarantor under this Section 7.2, notify the Guarantor in writing of the commencement thereof; but the failure so to notify the Guarantor (i) will not relieve the Guarantor from liability under paragraph (a) above unless and to the extent that the Guarantor did not otherwise learn of such action and such failure results in the forfeiture by the Guarantor of substantial rights and defenses and (ii) will not, in any event, relieve the Guarantor from any obligations to any Indemnified Person other than the indemnification obligation provided in paragraph (a) above. The Guarantor shall be entitled to appoint counsel of the Guarantor’s choice at the Guarantor’s expense to represent the Indemnified Person in any action for which indemnification is sought (in which case the Guarantor shall not thereafter be responsible for the fees and expenses of any separate counsel retained by the Indemnified Person or Persons except as set forth below); provided , however , that such counsel shall be satisfactory to the Indemnified Person. Notwithstanding the Guarantor’s election to appoint counsel to represent the Indemnified Person in any action, the Indemnified Person shall have the right to employ separate counsel (including local counsel), and the Guarantor shall bear the reasonable fees, costs and expenses of such separate counsel, if (i) the use of counsel chosen by the Guarantor to represent the Indemnified Person would present such counsel with a conflict of interest, (ii) the actual or potential defendants in, or targets of, any such action include both the Indemnified Person and the Guarantor and the Indemnified Person shall have reasonably concluded that there may be legal defenses available to it and/or other Indemnified Persons which are different from or additional to those available to the Guarantor, (iii) the Guarantor shall not have employed counsel satisfactory to the Indemnified Person to represent the Indemnified Person within a reasonable time after notice of the institution of such action or (iv) the Guarantor shall authorize the Indemnified Person to employ separate counsel at the expense of the Guarantor. The Guarantor will not, without the prior written consent of the Indemnified Persons, settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to any pending or threatened claim, action, suit or proceeding in respect of which indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the Indemnified Persons are actual or potential parties to such claim or action) unless such settlement, compromise or consent includes an unconditional release of each Indemnified Person from all liability arising out of such claim, action, suit or proceeding.

Section 7.3. Compensation; Reimbursement of Expenses .

The Guarantor agrees:

(a) to pay to the Guarantee Trustee from time to time such compensation for all services rendered by it hereunder as the parties shall agree to from time to time (which compensation shall not be limited by any provision of law in regard to the compensation of a trustee of an express trust); and

(b) except as otherwise expressly provided herein, to reimburse the Guarantee Trustee upon request for all reasonable expenses, disbursements and advances incurred or made by it in accordance with any provision of this Guarantee (including the reasonable compensation and the expenses and disbursements of its agents and counsel), except any such expense, disbursement or advance as may be attributable to its negligence or willful misconduct.

The provisions of this Section 7.3 shall survive the resignation or removal of the Guarantee Trustee and the termination of this Guarantee.

ARTICLE VIII

MISCELLANEOUS

Section 8.1. Successors and Assigns .

All guarantees and agreements contained in this Guarantee shall bind the successors, assigns, receivers, trustees and representatives of the Guarantor and shall inure to the benefit of the Holders of the Capital Securities then outstanding. Except in connection with any merger or consolidation of the Guarantor with or into another entity or any sale, transfer or lease of the Guarantor’s assets to another entity, in each case to the extent permitted under the Indenture, the Guarantor may not assign its rights or delegate its obligations under this Guarantee without the prior approval of the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities.

Section 8.2. Amendments .

Except with respect to any changes that do not adversely affect the rights of Holders of the Capital Securities in any material respect (in which case no consent of Holders will be required), this Guarantee may be amended only with the prior approval of the Holders of not less than a Majority in liquidation amount of the Capital Securities. The provisions of the Declaration with respect to amendments thereof shall apply equally with respect to amendments of the Guarantee.

Section 8.3. Notices .

All notices provided for in this Guarantee shall be in writing, duly signed by the party giving such notice, and shall be delivered, telecopied or mailed by first class mail, as follows:

(a) If given to the Guarantee Trustee, at the Guarantee Trustee’s mailing address set forth below (or such other address as the Guarantee Trustee may give notice of to the Holders of the Capital Securities):

Wilmington Trust Company

Rodney Square North

1100 North Market Street

Wilmington, Delaware 19890-0001

Attention: Corporate Capital Markets

Telecopy: 302-636-4140

Telephone: 302-651-1000

(b) If given to the Guarantor, at the Guarantor’s mailing address set forth below (or such other address as the Guarantor may give notice of to the Holders of the Capital Securities and to the Guarantee Trustee):

Sierra Bancorp

86 North Main Street

Porterville, California

Attention: Thomas Y. Yamaguchi

Telecopy: 559-782-4994

Telephone: 559-782-4900

Section 8.4. Benefit .

This Guarantee is solely for the benefit of the Holders of the Capital Securities and, subject to Section 2.1(a), is not separately transferable from the Capital Securities.

Section 8.5. Governing Law .

THIS GUARANTEE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAW OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, WITHOUT REGARD TO CONFLICT OF LAWS PRINCIPLES THEREOF.

Section 8.6. Counterparts .

This Guarantee may contain more than one counterpart of the signature page and this Guarantee may be executed by the affixing of the signature of the Guarantor and the Guarantee Trustee to any of such counterpart signature pages. All of such counterpart signature pages shall be read as though one, and they shall have the same force and effect as though all of the signers had signed a single signature page.

THIS GUARANTEE is executed as of the day and year first above written.


SIERRA BANCORP, as Guarantor

By:		/s/ Kenneth R. Taylor
Name:		Kenneth R. Taylor
Title:		Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

WILMINGTON TRUST COMPANY, as Guarantee Trustee

By:		/s/ Geoffrey J. Lewis
Name:		Geoffrey J. Lewis
Title:		Financial Services Officer

Exhibit 31.1

Exhibit 31.1 – Certification of Chief Executive Officer (Section 302 Certification)

I, James C. Holly, certify that:

1. I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of Sierra Bancorp (“Registrant”);

2. Based on my knowledge, this quarterly report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this quarterly report;

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this quarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the Registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this quarterly report;

4. The Registrant’s other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the Registrant and have:

(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the Registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

(b) Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

(c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the Registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

(d) Disclosed in this report any change in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the Registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the Registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5. The Registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the Registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the Registrant’s board of directors:

(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the Registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: August 9, 2006

/s/ James C. Holly

James C. Holly

President &

Chief Executive Officer

Exhibit 31.2

Exhibit 31.2 – Certification of Chief Financial Officer (Section 302 Certification)

I, Kenneth R. Taylor, certify that:

1. I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of Sierra Bancorp;

(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: August 9, 2006

/s/ Kenneth R. Taylor

Kenneth R. Taylor

Executive Vice President &

Chief Financial Officer

Exhibit 32

Exhibit 32 – Certification of Periodic Financial Report

James C. Holly and Kenneth R. Taylor hereby certify as follows:

1. They are the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, respectively, of Sierra Bancorp.

2. The Form 10-Q of Sierra Bancorp for the Quarter Ended June 30, 2006 complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m or 78o(d)) and the information contained in the report on Form 10-Q fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of Sierra Bancorp.



August 9, 2006				/s/ James C. Holly
Date				James C. Holly
				President & Chief Executive Officer

August 9, 2006				/s/ Kenneth R. Taylor
Date				Kenneth R. Taylor
				Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer