2010-30680. Sound Incentive Compensation Guidance

AGENCY:

Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS), Treasury.

ACTION:

Notice and request for comment.

SUMMARY:

The proposed information collection request (ICR) described below has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. OTS is soliciting public comments on the proposal.

DATES:

Submit written comments on or before January 6, 2011. A copy of this ICR, with applicable supporting documentation, can be obtained from RegInfo.gov at http://www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain.

ADDRESSES:

Send comments, referring to the collection by title of the proposal or by OMB approval number, to OMB and OTS at these addresses: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Desk Officer for OTS, U.S. Office of Management and Budget, 725 17th Street, NW., Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, or by fax to [phone]; and Information Collection Comments, Chief Counsel's Office, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552, by fax to [phone], or by e-mail to [e-mail]. OTS will post comments and the related index on the OTS Internet Site at http://www.ots.treas.gov. In addition, interested persons may inspect comments at the Public Reading Room, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552 by appointment. To make an appointment, call [phone], send an e-mail to [e-mail], or send a facsimile transmission to [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For further information or to obtain a copy of the submission to OMB, please contact Ira L. Mills at, [e-mail] [phone], or facsimile number [phone], Regulations and Legislation Division, Chief Counsel's Office, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

OTS may not conduct or sponsor an information collection, and respondents are not required to respond to an information collection, unless the information collection displays a currently valid OMB control number. As part of the approval process, we invite comments on the following information collection.

Title of Proposal: Sound Incentive Compensation Guidance.

OMB Number: 1550-0129.

Form Number: N/A.

Description: The guidance is based on three key principles that are designed to ensure that incentive compensation arrangements at a financial institution do not encourage employees to take excessive risks. These principles provide that incentive compensation arrangements should:

• Provide employees incentives that do not encourage excessive risk-taking beyond the organization's ability to effectively identify and manage risk;
• Be compatible with effective controls and risk management; and
• Be supported by strong corporate governance, including active and effective oversight by the organization's board of directors.

These principles and the guidance are consistent with the Principles for Sound Compensation Practices adopted by the Financial Stability Board (FSB) in April 2009, as well as the Implementation Standards for those principles issued by the FSB in September 2009. This guidance will promote the prompt improvement of incentive compensation practices in the banking industry by providing a common prudential foundation for incentive compensation arrangements across banking organizations and promoting the overall movement of the industry towards better practices. Supervisory action could play a critical role in addressing misaligned compensation incentives, especially where issues of competition may make it difficult for individual firms to act alone. Through their actions, supervisors could help to better align the interests of managers and other employees with organizations' long-term health and reduce concerns that making prudent modifications to incentive compensation arrangements might have adverse competitive consequences.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profit.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 757.

Estimated Burden Hours per Response: 40 hours.

Estimated Frequency of Response: On occasion.

Estimated Total Burden: 30,280 hours.

Clearance Officer: Ira L. Mills, [phone], Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552.

Dated: December 1, 2010.

Ira L. Mills,

Paperwork Clearance Officer, Office of Chief Counsel, Office of Thrift Supervision.