[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 35 (Friday, February 21, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8537-8538]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-4199]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Departmental Offices


Proposed Collection; Comment Request

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing 
effort to reduce paperwork burdens, invites the general public and 
other Federal agencies to comment on an information collection that is 
due for revision approval by the Office of Management and Budget. The 
Office of Program Services within the Department of the Treasury is 
soliciting comments concerning the Annual Report of U.S. Ownership of 
Foreign Securities, including Selected Money Market Instruments. The 
next such report is to be conducted as of December 31, 2003.

DATES: Written comments should be received on or before April 22, 2003, 
to be assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Dwight Wolkow, International 
Portfolio Investment Data Systems, Department of the Treasury, Room 
4410-1440NYA, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington DC 20220. In 
view of possible delays in mail delivery, please also notify Mr. Wolkow 
by email ([email protected]), FAX (202-622-1207) or telephone 
(202-622-1276).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Copies of the proposed forms and 
instructions are available on the Treasury's TIC Forms Webpage, http://www.treas.gov/tic/forms.htm. Requests for additional information should 
be directed to Mr. Wolkow.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Treasury Department Forms SHC and SHCA, U.S. Ownership of 
Foreign Securities, including Selected Money Market Instruments.
    OMB Number: 1505-0146.
    Abstract: These forms are used to conduct annual surveys of 
holdings by U.S. residents of foreign securities for portfolio 
investment purposes. Data derived from these surveys are used by the 
U.S. government in the formulation of international and financial 
policies and for the computation of the U.S.

[[Page 8538]]

balance of payments accounts and of the U.S. international investment 
position. These data will also be used to provide information to the 
public and to meet international reporting commitments.
    This survey is also part on an internationally coordinated effort 
under the auspices of the International Monetary Fund to improve data 
on securities worldwide. Most of the major industrial and financial 
countries will be conducting similar surveys.
    Current Actions: The largest U.S.-resident custodians and U.S.-
resident end-investors in foreign securities will report annually 
rather than every three or four years, as they have done in the past. 
The reason for this increased reporting frequency is to gather more 
timely information on U.S. foreign portfolio investment abroad, 
information which will be used in the development of U.S. economic 
policies, improvement of the U.S. international accounts, and United 
States participation in international efforts to gather better data on 
cross-border securities activity.
    In order to collect more timely data with a minimum increase in 
total reporting burden and cost to both reporters and the government, 
(1) the frequency of the current large benchmark surveys (using Form 
SHC) will be decreased to once every five years, from once every three 
or four years, and (2) new inter-benchmark annual surveys (using Form 
SHCA) collecting data from only the largest reporters in the years when 
there are no full benchmark surveys will be instituted.
    The benchmark surveys (using Form SHC) require reporting by all 
significant U.S.-resident custodians of foreign securities and U.S.-
resident end-investors in foreign securities. Both custodians of 
foreign securities and large end-investors who directly manage the 
safekeeping of foreign securities abroad must report on a security-by-
security basis. All survey reporters employing U.S. custodians to 
safekeep their foreign securities need only to identify their 
custodians and the aggregate amounts entrusted to each custodian by 
broad type of security.
    The inter-benchmark annual surveys (using Form SHCA) require 
reporting by a selected group of the largest US-resident custodians and 
end-investors as determined on the basis of data submitted during the 
previous benchmark survey. All custodians and some of the end-investors 
will report on a security-by-security basis, as they do on the 
benchmark surveys. The remaining end-investors will need to identify 
only the aggregate amounts, by broad security type, not entrusted to 
U.S. custodians (on the benchmark surveys these same end-investors must 
report such holdings security by security). All survey reporters will 
report their holdings of foreign securities entrusted to U.S. 
custodians exactly as they do on the benchmark surveys. The data 
collected under the annual surveys will be used in conjunction with the 
results of the previous benchmark survey to make economy-wide estimates 
for the non-benchmark years.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved data collection.
    Affected Public: Business/financial institutions.
    Forms: TDF SHC, Schedules 1, 2 and 3 (1505-0146); TDF SHCA, 
Schedules 1, 2 and 3 (1505-0146).
    Estimated Number of Respondents: An annual average (over five 
years) of 541, but this varies widely from about 1,745 in benchmark 
years (once every five years) to about 240 in all other years (four out 
of every five years).
    Estimated Average Time per Respondent: An annual average (over five 
years) of about 82 hours, but this will vary widely from respondent to 
respondent. (a) In the year of a benchmark survey (using Form SHC), 
which is conducted once every five years, it is estimated that exempt 
respondents will require an average of 16 hours; custodians of 
securities providing security-by-security information will require 360 
hours on average, but this figure will vary widely for individual 
custodians; end-investors providing security-by-security information 
will require 120 hours on average; and end-investors and custodians 
employing U.S. custodians will require 40 hours, on average. (b) In a 
non-benchmark year (using Form SHCA), which occurs four years out of 
every five years, custodians of securities providing security-by-
security information will require 700 hours on average (because only 
the largest U.S.-resident custodians will report), but this figure will 
vary widely for individual custodians; end-investors providing 
security-by-security information will require 145 hours on average; and 
reporters entrusting their foreign securities to U.S. custodians will 
require 48 hours, on average.
    The exemption level in benchmark years for custodians is the 
holding of less than $100 million in foreign long-term securities and 
for end-investors the owning of less than $100 million held with a 
single custodian.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: An annual average (over five 
years) of 44,360 hours.
    Frequency of Response: Annual.
    Request for Comments: Comments submitted in response to this notice 
will be summarized and/or included in the request for Office of 
Management and Budget approval. All comments will become a matter of 
public record. The public is invited to submit written comments 
concerning: (a) Whether the survey is necessary for the proper 
performance of the functions of the Office, including whether the 
information will have practical uses; (b) the accuracy of the above 
estimate of the burdens; (c) ways to enhance the quality, usefulness 
and clarity of the information to be collected; (d) ways to minimize 
the reporting and/or record keeping burdens on respondents, including 
the use of information technologies to automate the collection of the 
data; and (e) estimates of capital or start-up costs of operation, 
maintenance and purchase of services to provide information.

Dwight Wolkow,
Administrator, International Portfolio Investment Data Systems.
[FR Doc. 03-4199 Filed 2-20-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-25-P