[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 47 (Tuesday, March 11, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11617-11625]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-5649]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

Office of Thrift Supervision

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION

NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION


Financial Crimes Enforcement Network; Agency Information 
Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; 
Suspicious Activity Report

ACTION: Submission for OMB review; joint comment request.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, FinCEN, OCC, OTS, FDIC, and NCUA hereby give notice that 
they plan to submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
requests for review of the information collections described below. 
Pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.16 the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System (the Board) hereby announces the Board's approval of the 
information collection and plan to submit its supporting documentation 
to OMB. The above-mentioned agencies are collectively referred to as 
the ``agencies'' throughout this notice.
    On November 4, 2002, the agencies, requested public comment on the 
minor revision of the Suspicious Activity Report (SAR). The OCC also 
requested comments on all information collections contained in 12 CFR 
part 21. The agencies are making the changes proposed and are making an 
additional change suggested by the commenters. None of the changes will 
impose substantial additional burden on respondents.

DATES: Written comments should be received on or before April 10, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments to 
any or all of the agencies. All comments, which should refer to the OMB 
control number(s), will be shared among the agencies. Direct all 
written comments as follows:
    FinCEN: Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Department of the 
Treasury, P.O. Box 39, Vienna, VA 22183, Attention: 1506-0001, Revised 
SAR, Financial Institutions. Comments also may be submitted by 
electronic mail to the following Internet address: 
[email protected] with the caption in the body of the text, 
``Attention: 1506-0001, Revised SAR, Financial Institutions''.
    OCC: Public Information Room, Office of the Comptroller of the 
Currency, 250 E Street, SW., Mail stop 1-5, Attention: 1557-0180-2, 
Washington, DC 20219. In addition, comments may be sent by facsimile 
transmission to (202) 874-4448, or by electronic mail to 
[email protected]. Due to delays in paper mail in the 
Washington area, commenters are encouraged to submit comments by fax or 
e-mail. You can make an appointment to inspect comments by calling 
(202) 874-5043.
    OTS: Information Collection Comments, Chief Counsel's Office, 
Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552; 
send a facsimile transmission to (202) 906-6518; or send an e-mail to 
[email protected]. 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., by appointment. To make an appointment, call 
(202) 906-5922, send an e-mail to [email protected], or send a 
facsimile transmission to (202) 906-7755.
    Board: Comments may be mailed to Ms. Jennifer J. Johnson, 
Secretary, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th 
Street and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20551. However, 
because paper mail in the Washington area and at the Board of Governors 
is subject to delay, please consider submitting your comments by e-mail 
to [email protected], or faxing them to the office of 
the Secretary at 202-452-3819 or 202-452-3102. Comments addressed to 
Ms. Johnson may also be delivered to the Board's mail facility in the 
West Courtyard between 8:45 a.m. and 5:15 p.m., located on 21st Street 
between Constitution Avenue and C Street, NW. Members of the public may 
inspect comments in Room MP-500 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays 
pursuant to 261.12, except as provided in 261.14, of the Board's Rules 
Regarding Availability of Information, 12 CFR 261.12 and 261.14.
    FDIC: Written comments should be addressed to Robert E. Feldman, 
Executive Secretary, Attention: Comments/Legal, Federal Deposit 
Insurance Corporation, 550 17th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20429. 
Comments may be hand-delivered to the guard station at the rear of the 
550 17th Street Building (located on F Street), on business days 
between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. [FAX number (202) 898-3838; Internet address: 
[email protected]]. Comments may be inspected and photocopied in the 
FDIC Public Information Center, Room 100, 801 17th Street, NW., 
Washington, DC between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., on business days.
    NCUA: Clearance Officer: Mr. Neil M. McNamara, (703) 518-6447, 
National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke Street, Alexandria, VA 
22314-3428, Fax No. 703-518-6489, E-mail: [email protected].
    OMB: Joseph F. Lackey, Jr., Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office 
Building, Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: You may request additional information 
or a copy of the collection by contacting:
    FinCEN: Russell Stephenson, 202-354-6400 (ORP);
    OCC: Jessie Dunaway, OCC Clearance Officer, or Camille Dixon, 
Legislative and Regulatory Activities Division, Office of the 
Comptroller of the

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Currency, 250 E Street, SW., Washington DC 20219, (202) 874-5090.
    OTS: Richard Stearns, Enforcement Deputy Counsel, Office of 
Enforcement, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20552, (202) 906-7966.
    Board: Herbert A. Biern, Senior Associate Director, Division of 
Banking Supervision and Regulation, (202) 452-2620. For users of 
Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf (TDD) only, contact 202-263-
4869, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and 
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20551.
    FDIC: Tamara R. Manly, Legal Division, FDIC, 550 17th Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20429, (202) 898-7453.
    NCUA: NCUA Clearance Officer, Mr. Neil M. McNamara, (703) 518-6447, 
or John K. Ianno, Office of General Counsel, (703) 518-6540.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Suspicious Activity Report. (The OCC is renewing all 
information collections covered under the information collection 
titled: ``(MA)-Minimum Security Devices and Procedures, Reports of 
Suspicious Activities, and Bank Secrecy Act Compliance Program (12 CFR 
21).'') FinCEN is renewing 31 CFR 103.18.

OMB Numbers

    FinCEN: 1506-0001.
    OCC: 1557-0180.
    OTS: 1550-0003.
    FDIC: 3064-0077.
    Board: 7100-0212.
    NCUA: 3133-0094.

Form Numbers

    FinCEN: TD F 90-22.47.
    OCC: None.
    OTS: 1601.
    Board: FR 2230.
    FDIC: 6710/06.
    NCUA: 2362.
    Abstract: In 1985, the agencies issued procedures to be used by 
banks, thrifts, credit unions, their holding companies, and certain 
other financial institutions operating in the United States to report 
known or suspected criminal activities to the appropriate law 
enforcement agencies and the agencies. Beginning in 1994, the agencies 
completely redesigned the reporting process. This redesign resulted in 
the existing SAR, which became effective in April 1996.\1\
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    \1\ The report is authorized by the following rules: 31 CFR 
103.21 (FinCEN); 12 CFR 21.11 (OCC); 12 CFR 563.180 (OTS); 12 CFR 
208.20 (Board); 12 CFR 353.3 (FDIC); 12 CFR 748.1 (NCUA). The rules 
were issued under the authority of 31 U.S.C. 5318(g) (FinCEN); 12 
U.S.C. 93a, 1818, 1881-84, 3401-22, 31 U.S.C. 5318 (OCC); 12 U.S.C. 
1463 and 1464 (OTS); 12 U.S.C. 324, 334, 6114a, 1844(b) and (c), 
3015(c)(2) and 3106(a) (Board); 12 U.S.C. 93a, 1818, 1881-84, 3401-
22 (FDIC); 12 U.S.C. 1766(a), 1789(a) (NCUA).
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    Agencies Current Actions: FinCEN and the financial regulators 
issued a joint initial Federal Register notice (60-day notice) 
regarding the revised SAR on November 4, 2002, (67 FR 67239). A copy of 
the revised SAR, together with the instructions to the form, was 
published as part of the 60-day notice. The comments received in 
response to the 60-day notice (discussed in the next paragraph) were 
carefully considered. This notice proposed three minor revisions to the 
form. In Part III Suspicious Activity Information, block 35 Summary 
characterization of suspicious activity, two new check boxes would be 
added, one to indicate ``Terrorist Financing'' and another to indicate 
``Identity Theft.'' The third revision is an update to the ``Safe 
Harbor'' wording in the instructions, to reflect changes by the USA 
Patriot Act. These additions will improve the form's usefulness to law 
enforcement and the agencies.
    Comments Received and Agency Action Taken. The agencies received 
five generally favorable comment letters from two banking trade 
associations, a credit union trade association, a bank holding company, 
and a credit card bank. The comments and recommendations for the most 
part involved policy issues rather than comments affecting the form's 
data collection elements. Four commenters suggested that examples of 
suspicious activities be included with the form. Rather than including 
numerous examples on the form itself, FinCEN and the financial 
regulators decided to include a reference to the SAR Activity Review in 
the instructions. The SAR Activity Review is readily available on 
FinCEN's Web site (http://www.fincen.gov), contains examples and 
definitions, and is updated regularly. This addition was made to Part 
V, the ``Narrative.'' One commenter suggested alternate language for 
the safe harbor provisions. After careful review, FinCEN and the 
financial regulators elected to retain the language presented in the 
initial Federal Register notice. One commenter recommended expanding 
the reporting categories in Part III, block 35 and that FinCEN address 
the issue of supplemental SARs. This commenter also requested 
clarification on whether transactions that are reported to the Office 
of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) should also be reported on a SAR. This 
commenter's recommendations have merit and will be taken under 
consideration by FinCEN and the financial regulators for possible 
implementation at a later date.
    Special Instructions: The SAR form included in this final Federal 
Register notice is effective July 1, 2003. The SAR form included in 
this Federal Register is for training and system configuration use 
only. Do not use this form to report suspicious activity before July 1, 
2003. Depository institutions should use the current SAR dated June 
2000, until June 30, 2003.
    Depository institutions reporting possible terrorist financing 
suspicious activity must file a SAR as indicated above, but should also 
contact FinCEN's Financial Institutions Hotline (866) 556-3974 to 
report the activity.
    For individual copies of the form, call FinCEN's Regulatory 
Helpline (800) 949-2732 after April 15, 2003, for individual copies of 
the form. For information about obtaining bulk copies of the form, or 
access to a fill-in version, visit the IRS's Internet Web site at 
http://www.irs.gov after April 15, 2003. Copies of both the fill-in 
version and individual copies may also be obtained on the FinCEN Web 
site at http://www.fincen.gov after April 15, 2003.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Affected Public: Businesses, for-profit institutions, and non-
profit institutions.

Estimated Number of Respondents

    FinCEN: 22,600.\2\
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    \2\ Many respondents included in this estimate are also counted 
in the agencies' estimates.
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    OCC: 2,252.
    OTS: 990.
    Board: 10,000.
    FDIC: 8,000.
    NCUA: 9,300.

Estimated Total Annual Responses

    FinCEN: 637,500.
    OCC: 54,172.
    OTS: 20,804.
    Board: 11,162.
    FDIC: 16,018.
    NCUA: 2,961.

Estimated Total Annual Burden

    The agencies have estimated 30 minutes per form.
    FinCEN: 31,750 hours.\3\
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    \3\ A respondent need only file one form. The estimated burden 
per form is 30 minutes; this estimate does not allocate time between 
agencies when copies of the form are filed to satisfy the rules of 
more than one agency.
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    OCC: 32,906 hours.
    OTS: 10,402 hours.
    Board: 5,581 hours.
    FDIC: 8,009 hours.
    NCUA: 1,480 hours.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to

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respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of 
information displays a valid OMB control number. A respondent must 
retain the SAR and supporting documentation for five years. Generally, 
information collected pursuant to the Bank Secrecy Act is confidential, 
but may be shared as provided by law with regulatory and law 
enforcement authorities.
    Request for Comments: Comments are invited on:
    (a) Whether the collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the agencies, including whether 
the information shall have practical utility;
    (b) The accuracy of the agencies' estimate of the burden of the 
collection of information;
    (c) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected;
    (d) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
respondents, including through the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology; and
    (e) Estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, 
maintenance and purchase of services to provide information.

    Dated: March 3, 2003.
James F. Sloan,
Director, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

    Dated: February 20, 2003.
Mark J. Tenhundfeld,
Assistant Director, Legislative and Regulatory Activities Division, 
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.


    Dated: February 26, 2003.
Deborah Dakin,
Deputy Chief Counsel, Regulations and Legislation Division, Office of 
Thrift Supervision.


    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, February 24, 
2003.
Jennifer J. Johnson,
Secretary of the Board, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System.


    Dated at Washington, DC, this 5th day of February, 2003.

    By Order of the Board of Directors.

    Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Robert E. Feldman,
Executive Secretary.


    By the National Credit Union Administration Board on February 
24, 2003.
Becky Baker,
Secretary of the Board.

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[FR Doc. 03-5649 Filed 3-10-03; 8:45 a.m.]
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