2017-17823. Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request

AGENCY:

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

ACTION:

Notice, request for comment.

SUMMARY:

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, without revision, the mandatory Quarterly Savings and Loan Holding Company Report (FR 2320; OMB No. 7100-0345).

On June 15, 1984, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) delegated to the Board authority under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) to approve and assign OMB control numbers to collection of information requests and requirements conducted or sponsored by the Board. In exercising this delegated authority, the Board is directed to take every reasonable step to solicit comment. In determining whether to approve a collection of information, the Board will consider all comments received from the public and other agencies.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before October 23, 2017.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by FR 2320, by any of the following methods:

• Agency Web site: http://www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments at http://www.federalreserve.gov/​apps/​foia/​proposedregs.aspx.
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Email: [e-mail]. Include OMB number in the subject line of the message.
• FAX: [phone] or [phone].
• Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20551.

All public comments are available from the Board's Web site at http://www.federalreserve.gov/​apps/​foia/​proposedregs.aspx as submitted, unless modified for technical reasons. Accordingly, your comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact information. Public comments may also be viewed electronically or in paper form in Room 3515, 1801 K Street (between 18th and 19th Streets NW.) Washington, DC 20006 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekdays.

Additionally, commenters may send a copy of their comments to the OMB Desk Officer—Shagufta Ahmed—Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503 or by fax to [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

A copy of the PRA OMB submission, including the proposed reporting form and instructions, supporting statement, and other documentation will be placed into OMB's public docket files, once approved. These documents will also be made available on the Federal Reserve Board's public Web site at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/​apps/​reportforms/​review.aspx or may be requested from the agency clearance officer, whose name appears below.

Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer—Nuha Elmaghrabi—Office of the Chief Data Officer, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551, [phone]. Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) users may contact [phone], Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Request for Comment on Information Collection Proposal

The Board invites public comment on the following information collection, which is being reviewed under authority delegated by the OMB under the PRA. Comments are invited on the following:

a. Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the Federal Reserve's functions; including whether the information has practical utility;

b. The accuracy of the Federal Reserve's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

c. Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected;

d. Ways to minimize the burden of information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology; and

e. Estimates of capital or startup costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.

At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the Federal Reserve should modify the proposal prior to giving final approval.

Proposal To Approve Under OMB Delegated Authority the Extension for Three Years, Without Revision, of the Following Report

Report Title: Quarterly Savings and Loan Holding Company Report.

Agency Form Number: FR 2320.

OMB Control Number: 7100-0345.

Frequency: Quarterly.

Respondents: Savings and loan holding companies (SLHCs) that are currently exempt from filing other Federal Reserve regulatory reports.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 15.

Estimated Average Hours per Response: 2.5 hours.

Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 150 hours.

General Description of Report: The FR 2320 collects select parent only and consolidated balance sheet and income statement financial data and organizational structure data from SLHCs that are currently exempt from filing other Federal Reserve regulatory reports (exempt SLHCs).^[1] The FR 2320 is used by the Board to analyze the overall financial condition of exempt SLHCs to ensure safe and sound operations. These data assist the Board in the evaluation of a diversified holding company and in determining whether an institution is in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Legal Authorization and Confidentiality: The Board has determined that the Home Owners' Loan Act authorizes the Board to require SLHCs to file “such reports as may be required by the Board” and instructs that such reports “shall contain such information concerning the operations of such savings and loan holding company and its subsidiaries as the Board may require.” (12 U.S.C. 1467a(b)(2)). The obligation to respond is mandatory for exempt SLHCs. In some cases, lower-tier SLHCs may voluntarily file the FR 2320. In other cases lower-tier SLHCs may be required to file (in addition to the top-tier SLHC) for safety and soundness purposes at the discretion of the appropriate Federal Reserve Bank.

The Board also has determined that data items C572, C573, and C574 (line items 24, 25, and 26) may be protected from disclosure under exemption 4 of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Commercial or financial information may be protected from disclosure under exemption 4 if disclosure of such information is likely to cause substantial competitive harm to the provider of the information. (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4)). The data items listed above pertain to new or changed pledges, or capital stock of any subsidiary savings association that secures short-term or long-term debt or other borrowings of the SLHC; changes to any class of securities of the SLHC or any of its subsidiaries that would negatively impact investors; and defaults of the SLHC or any of its subsidiaries during the quarter. Disclosure of this type of information is likely to cause substantial competitive harm to the SLHC providing the information and thus this information may be protected from disclosure under FOIA exemption 4.

With regard to the remaining data items on the FR 2320, the Board has determined that institutions may request confidential treatment for any FR 2320 data item or for all FR 2320 data items, and that confidential treatment will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, August 18, 2017.

Ann E. Misback,

Secretary of the Board.

Footnotes

1.  To be exempt, an SLHC must meet one of the following criteria: (1) The SLHC was formed under section 10(c)(9)(C) of the Home Owners' Loan Act (HOLA) and the consolidated assets of its saving association subsidiaries make up less than 5 percent of the total consolidated assets of the SLHC; or (2) its top-tier holding company is an insurance company that only prepares financial statements using statutory accounting principles.