2019-25165. Agency Information Collection Activities: Notice of Intent To Extend Collection 3038-0025, Practice by Former Members and Employees of the Commission

AGENCY:

Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC” or “Commission”) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed renewal of an information collection by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (“PRA”), Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment. This notice solicits comments regarding the reporting requirement imposed on former members and employees of the Commission who are employed or retained by third parties to appear before the Commission.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before January 21, 2020.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by “Practice by Former Members and Employees of the Commission Pursuant to 17 CFR 140.735-6, OMB Control No. 3038-0025,” by any of the following methods:

• The Agency's website, at http://comments.cftc.gov/​. Follow the instructions for submitting comments through the website.
• Mail: Christopher Kirkpatrick, Secretary of the Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Three Lafayette Centre, 1155 21st Street NW, Washington, DC 20581.
• Hand Delivery/Courier: Same as Mail above.

Please submit your comments using only one method. All comments must be submitted in English, or if not, accompanied by an English translation. Comments will be posted as received to http://www.cftc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

John Dolan, Counsel for General Law, Office of the General Counsel, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, [phone]; email: [e-mail], and refer to OMB Control No. 3038-0025.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Under the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., Federal agencies must obtain approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for each collection of information they conduct or sponsor. “Collection of Information” is defined in 44 U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 1320.3 and includes agency requests or requirements that members of the public submit reports, keep records, or provide information to a third party. Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), requires Federal agencies to provide a 60-day notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, before submitting the collection to OMB for approval. To comply with this requirement, the CFTC is publishing notice of a proposed extension of the currently approved information collection listed below. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

Title: Practice by Former Members and Employees of the Commission (OMB Control No. 3038-0025). This is a request for an extension of a currently approved information collection.

Abstract: Commission Rule 140.735-6 governs the practice before the Commission of former members and employees of the Commission and is intended to ensure that the Commission is aware of any existing conflict of interest. The rule, at 17 CFR 140.735-6 (e), requires former members and employees who are employed or retained to represent any person before the Commission within two years of their separation from the CFTC, to file a brief written statement with the Commission's Office of the General Counsel. The proposed rule was promulgated pursuant to the Commission's rulemaking authority contained in Section 8a(5) of the Commodity Exchange Act, 7 U.S.C. 12a(5) (1994), as amended.

With respect to the collection of information, the CFTC invites comments on:

• Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the CFTC, including whether the information will have a practical use;
• The accuracy of the CFTC's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
• Ways to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; and
• Ways to minimize the burden of collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology; e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

You should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. If you wish the CFTC to consider information that you believe is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), a petition for confidential treatment of the exempt information may be submitted according to the procedures established in § 145.9 of the CFTC's regulations.^[1]

The CFTC reserves the right, but shall have no obligation, to review, pre-screen, filter, redact, refuse or remove any or all of your submission from http://www.cftc.gov that it may deem to be inappropriate for publication, such as obscene language. All submissions that have been redacted or removed that contain comments on the merits of the Information Correction Request will be retained in the public comment file and will be considered as required under the Administrative Procedure Act and other applicable laws, and may be accessible under FOIA.

Burden statement: The respondent's burden for this collection is estimated to average .10 hours per response to file the brief written statement. This estimate includes the time needed to review instructions, utilize technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, verifying, processing and disclosing information, and adjust/update existing methods to comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements.

Respondents/Affected Entities: Former Commission members, employees, and their current employers.

Estimated number of respondents: 30.

Estimated annual burden hours per respondent: 0.10 hours (or 6 minutes).

Estimated total annual responses: 30.

Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 3 hours.

Frequency of collection: On occasion.

There are no capital costs or operating and maintenance costs associated with this collection.

Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

Dated: November 15, 2019.

Robert Sidman,

Deputy Secretary of the Commission.

Footnotes

1.  17 CFR 145.9.