2017-28068. Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection Renewals; Comment Request (3064-0022 & -0027)

AGENCY:

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

ACTION:

Notice and request for comment.

SUMMARY:

The FDIC, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the renewal of existing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. Currently, the FDIC is soliciting comment on renewal of the information collections described below.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before February 26, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Interested parties are invited to submit written comments to the FDIC by any of the following methods:

• http://www.FDIC.gov/​regulations/​laws/​federal/​notices.html.
• Email: [e-mail]. Include the name and number of the collection in the subject line of the message.
• Mail: Manny Cabeza (202-898-3767). Counsel, MB 3007, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 550 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20429.
• Hand Delivery: Comments may be hand-delivered to the guard station at the rear of the 17th Street Building (located on F Street), on business days between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

All comments should refer to the relevant OMB control number. A copy of the comments may also be submitted to the OMB desk officer for the FDIC: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Manny Cabeza (202-898-3767) at the FDIC address noted above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Proposal to renew the following currently approved collections of information:

1. Title: Uniform Application and Termination Notice for Municipal Securities Principal or Representative Associated with a Bank Municipal Securities Dealer.

OMB Number: 3064-0022.

Form Number: MSD-4 and MSD-5

Affected Public: Individuals and Insured state nonmember banks and state savings associations.

Burden Estimate:

Source and burden type	Number of respondents	Annual frequency	Total responses	Average time per response (minutes)	Estimated annual burden (hours)
Form MSD-4 Reporting	2	On Occasion	2	60	2
Form MSD-5 Reporting	2	On Occasion	2	15	0.5
Total Estimated Annual Burden					2.5

There is no change in the method or substance of the collection. The overall reduction in burden hours is a result of economic fluctuation. In particular, the number of respondents has decreased while the reporting frequency and the estimated time per response remain the same.

General Description of Collection: The 1975 Amendments to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 established a comprehensive framework for the regulation of the activities of municipal securities dealers. Under Section 15B(a) of the Securities Exchange Act, municipal securities dealers which are banks, or separately identifiable departments or divisions of banks engaging in municipal securities activities, are required to be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission in accordance with such rules as the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB), a rulemaking authority established by the 1975 Amendments, may prescribe as necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors.

One of the areas in which the Act directed the MSRB to promulgate rules is the qualifications of persons associated with municipal securities dealers as municipal securities principals and municipal securities representatives. The MSRB Rules require persons who are or seek to be associated with municipal securities dealers as municipal securities principals or municipal securities representatives to provide certain background information and conversely, require the municipal securities dealers to obtain the information from such persons. Generally, the information required to be furnished relates to employment history and professional background including any disciplinary sanctions and any claimed bases for exemption from MSRB examination requirements.

The FDIC and the other two Federal bank regulatory agencies, the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Federal Reserve Board, have prescribed Forms MSD-4 to satisfy these requirements and have prescribed Form MSD-5 for notification by a bank municipal securities dealer that a municipal securities principal's or a municipal securities representative's association with the dealer has terminated and the reason for such termination. State nonmember banks and state savings associations that are municipal security dealers submit these forms, as applicable, to the FDIC as their appropriate regulatory agency for each person associated with the dealer as a municipal securities principal or municipal securities representative.

2. Title: Request for Deregistration for Registered Transfer Agents.

OMB Number: 3064-0027

Form Number: 6342/12

Affected Public: Insured state nonmember banks and state savings associations.

Burden Estimate:

Source and burden type	Number of respondents	Annual frequency	Total responses	Average time per response	Estimated annual burden (hours)
Form 6342/12 Reporting	1	On Occasion	1	0.42	0.42

There is no change in the method or substance of the collection. There is an overall reduction in burden hours which is the result of (1) economic fluctuation reflected by a decrease in the number of FDIC-supervised institutions and (2) a decrease in the number of requests for deregistration of a registered transfer agent forms submitted to the FDIC.

General Description of Collection: Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78q-1), an insured nonmember bank (or a subsidiary of such a bank) that functions as a transfer agent may withdraw from registration as a transfer agent by filing a written notice of withdrawal with the FDIC. The FDIC requires such banks to file FDIC Form 6342/12 as the written notice of withdrawal.

Request for Comment: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the collections of information are necessary for the proper performance of the FDIC's functions, including whether the information has practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the estimates of the burden of the information collections, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collections of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. All comments will become a matter of public record.

Dated at Washington, DC, on December 22, 2017.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Valerie J. Best,

Assistant Executive Secretary.