[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 184 (Tuesday, September 23, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 55204-55206]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-24129]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Bureau of Economic Analysis

15 CFR Part 801

[Docket No. 030910228-3228-01]
RIN 0691-AA54


International Services Surveys: BE-25, Quarterly Survey of 
Transactions With Unaffiliated Foreign Persons in Selected Services and 
in Intangible Assets

AGENCY: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: This document sets forth a proposed rule to institute a new 
survey, BE-25, Quarterly Survey of Transactions with Unaffiliated 
Foreign Persons in Selected Services and in Intangible Assets, to be 
conducted by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), U.S. Department of 
Commerce.
    The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to 
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and 
other Federal agencies to comment on proposed and/or continuing 
information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995. The proposed survey is mandatory and will be conducted under the 
International Investment and Trade in Services Survey Act. Data from 
the proposed BE-25 survey are needed to monitor trade in services and 
intangible assets, analyze its impact on the U.S. and foreign 
economies, compile and improve the U.S. economic accounts, support U.S. 
commercial policy on financial services, conduct trade promotion, 
improve the ability of U.S. businesses to identify and evaluate market 
opportunities, and for other Government and public uses.
    The proposed survey will cover some of the selected services 
presently covered by the BE-22, Annual Survey of Selected Services 
Transactions with Unaffiliated Foreign Persons. The selected services 
covered by the BE-25 survey will be removed from the BE-22 survey after 
the survey for 2003 is conducted. The BE-22 survey will continue to be 
conducted for those services that were not moved to the BE-25 survey. 
The proposed survey will also cover construction, engineering, 
architectural, and surveying services presently covered by the BE-47, 
Annual Survey of Construction, Engineering, Architectural, and Mining 
Services Provided by U.S. Firms to Unaffiliated Foreign Persons, and 
will cover the same transactions in intangible assets presently covered 
by the BE-93, Annual Survey of Royalties, License Fees, and Other 
Receipts and Payments for Intangible Rights Between U.S. and 
Unaffiliated Foreign Persons; both of these annual surveys would be 
discontinued, following a final data collection for 2003.

DATES: Comments on this proposed rule will receive consideration if 
submitted in writing on or before November 24, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to the Office of the Chief, 
International Investment Division (BE-50), Bureau of Economic Analysis, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, DC 20230. To ensure that 
comments are received in a timely manner, please consider using one of 
the following delivery methods: (1) Fax to (202) 606-5318; (2) deliver 
by courier to U.S. Department of Commerce; Bureau of Economic Analysis, 
BE-50, Shipping and Receiving Section M100, 1441 L Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20005; or (3) e-mail to [email protected]. Comments 
will be available for public inspection in room 7006, 1441 L Street, 
NW., between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Obie G. Whichard, Chief, International 
Investment Division (BE-50), Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, Washington, DC 20230; or via e-mail at 
[email protected] (Telephone (202) 606-9800).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This proposed rule amends 15 CFR Part 801.9 
to set forth the reporting requirements for the BE-25, Quarterly Survey 
of Transactions with Unaffiliated Foreign Persons in Selected Services 
and in Intangible Assets. The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), U.S. 
Department of Commerce, will conduct the survey under the International 
Investment and Trade in Services Survey Act (22 U.S.C. 3101-3108). 
Section 4(a) of the Act (22 U.S.C. 3103(a)) provides that the President 
shall, to the extent he deems necessary and feasible, conduct a regular 
data collection program to secure current information related to 
international investment and trade in services and publish for the use 
of the general public and United States Government agencies periodic, 
regular, and comprehensive statistical information collected pursuant 
to this subsection. In Section 3 of Executive Order 11961, as amended 
by Executive Order 12518, the President delegated his authority granted 
under the Act as concerns international trade in services to the 
Secretary of Commerce, who has redelegated it to BEA.
    The major purposes of the survey are to monitor trade in services 
and in intangible assets, analyze the impact of this trade on the U.S. 
and foreign economies, compile and improve the U.S. economic accounts, 
support U.S. commercial policy on services and intangible assets, 
conduct trade promotion, and improve the ability of U.S. businesses to 
identify and evaluate market opportunities.
    As proposed, BEA will conduct the BE-25 survey beginning with the 
first quarter of 2004. The survey will update the data provided on the 
universe of transactions between U.S. and unaffiliated foreign persons 
in selected services and in intangible assets. Reporting is required 
from U.S. persons whose sales of covered services to unaffiliated 
foreign persons exceeded $6 million for the previous fiscal year or are 
expected to exceed that amount during the current fiscal year, or whose 
purchases of covered services from unaffiliated foreign persons 
exceeded $4 million for the previous fiscal year or are expected to 
exceed that amount during the current fiscal year. U.S. persons meeting 
any of these criteria must supply data on the amount of their sales or 
purchases for each type of covered service, disaggregated by country. 
U.S. persons that do not meet the mandatory reporting requirements are 
requested to provide voluntary estimates of their total sales and 
purchases of each type of covered service or intangible asset.
    The proposed survey will also cover construction, engineering, 
architectural, and surveying services presently covered by the BE-47, 
Annual Survey of Construction, Engineering, Architectural, and Mining 
Services Provided by U.S. Firms to Unaffiliated Foreign Persons, and 
will cover the same transactions in intangible rights presently covered 
by the BE-93, Annual Survey of Royalties, License Fees, and Other 
Receipts and Payments for Intangible Rights Between U.S. and 
Unaffiliated Foreign Persons; both of these annual surveys would be 
discontinued, following a final data collection for 2003.
    The proposed survey is mandatory and will be conducted under the

[[Page 55205]]

International Investment and Trade in Services Survey Act. The first 
survey conducted under this proposed rule will cover transactions in 
the first quarter 2004. BEA will send the survey to potential 
respondents in March of 2004; responses will be due by May 15, 2004.

Executive Order 12866

    This proposed rule is not significant for purposes of E.O. 12866.

Executive Order 13132

    This proposed rule does not contain policies with Federalism 
implications as that term is defined in E.O. 13132.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This proposed rule contains a collection of information requirement 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) and has been submitted to 
the Office of Management and Budget for review under the PRA.
    Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty 
for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act unless that collection 
displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget Control 
Number.
    The BE-25 survey, as proposed, is expected to result in the filing 
of reports containing mandatory data from about 700 respondents on a 
quarterly basis, or 2,800 responses annually. The average burden for 
completing the BE-25 is estimated to be 16 hours. Thus, the total 
respondent burden of the survey is estimated at 44,800 hours (2,800 
responses times 16 hours average burden). The actual burden will vary 
from reporter to reporter, depending upon the number and variety of 
their covered services transactions and the ease of assembling the 
data. This estimate includes time for reviewing instructions, searching 
existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and 
completing and reviewing the collection of information.
    Comments are requested concerning: (a) whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of the agency, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the burden estimate; (c) 
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on the respondents, including the use of automated 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology. 
Comments should be addressed to: Director, Bureau of Economic Analysis 
(BE-1), U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, DC 20230, and either 
faxed (202-395-7245) or e-mailed ([email protected]) to the Office of 
Management and Budget, O.I.R.A. (Attention PRA Desk Officer for BEA).

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Chief Counsel for Regulation, Department of Commerce, has 
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy, Small Business 
Administration, under provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 
U.S.C. 605(b)), that this proposed rulemaking, if adopted, will not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities. The information collection excludes most small businesses 
from mandatory reporting. Companies that engage in international 
transactions in covered services or intangible assets tend to be quite 
large. In addition, the reporting threshold for this survey is set at a 
level that will exempt most small businesses from reporting. The 
proposed BE-25 quarterly survey will be required from U.S. persons 
whose sales of covered services to unaffiliated foreign persons 
exceeded $6 million for the previous fiscal year or are expected to 
exceed that amount during the current fiscal year, or whose purchases 
of covered services from unaffiliated foreign persons exceeded $4 
million for the previous fiscal year or are expected to exceed that 
amount during the current fiscal year. Thus, the exemption level will 
exclude most small businesses from mandatory coverage. Of those smaller 
businesses that must report, most will tend to have specialized 
operations and activities, so they will likely report only one type of 
transaction; therefore, the burden on them should be small.

List of Subjects in 15 CFR Part 801

    International transactions, Economic statistics, Foreign trade, 
Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: August 18, 2003.
J. Steven Landefeld,
Director, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, BEA proposes to amend 15 
CFR part 801, as follows:

PART 801--SURVEY OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN SERVICES BETWEEN U.S. 
AND FOREIGN PERSONS

    1. The authority citation for 15 CFR part 801 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 15 U.S.C. 4908; 22 U.S.C. 3101-3108; 
E.O. 11961, 3 CFR, 1977 Comp., p. 86 as amended by E.O. 12013, 3 
CFR, 1977 Comp., p. 147, E.O. 12318, 3 CFR, 1981 Comp., p. 173, and 
E.O. 12518, 3 CFR, 1985 Comp., p. 348.

    2. Section 801.9 is amended by revising paragraph (c)(6) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  801.9  Reports required.

    (c) Quarterly surveys. * * *
    (6) BE-25, Quarterly Survey of Transactions with Unaffiliated 
Foreign Persons in Selected Services and in Intangible Assets:
    (i) A BE-25, Quarterly Survey of Transactions with Unaffiliated 
Foreign Persons in Selected Services and in Intangible Assets, will be 
conducted covering the first quarter of the 2004 calendar year and 
every quarter thereafter.
    (A) Who must report--(1) Mandatory reporting. Reports are required 
from each U.S. person that: (a) had sales of covered services to 
unaffiliated foreign persons that exceeded $6 million for the previous 
fiscal year or are expected to exceed that amount during the current 
fiscal year; or (b) had purchases of covered services from unaffiliated 
foreign persons that exceeded $4 million for the previous fiscal year 
or are expected to exceed that amount during the current fiscal year. 
Because the thresholds are applied separately to sales and purchases, 
the mandatory reporting requirement may apply only to sales, only to 
purchases, or to both sales and purchases. Quarterly reports for a year 
may be required retroactively when it is determined that the exemption 
level has been exceeded.
    (2) Voluntary reporting. Reports are requested from each U.S. 
person that had sales of covered services to unaffiliated foreign 
persons that were $6 million or less for the previous fiscal year and 
are expected to be less than or equal to that amount during the current 
fiscal year, or had purchases of covered services from unaffiliated 
foreign persons that were $4 million or less for the previous fiscal 
year and are expected to be less than or equal to that amount during 
the current fiscal year. Provision of this information is voluntary. 
The estimates may be based on recall, without conducting a detailed 
records search.
    (B) Any person receiving a BE-25 survey form from BEA must complete 
all relevant parts of the form and return the form to BEA. A person 
that is not subject to the mandatory reporting requirement in paragraph 
(c)(6)(i)(A) of this section and is not filing information on a 
voluntary basis must only complete the ``Determination of reporting 
status'' and the ``Certification'' sections of the survey. This 
requirement is necessary to

[[Page 55206]]

ensure compliance with the reporting requirements and efficient 
administration of the survey by eliminating unnecessary followup 
contact.
    (C) Covered services and intangible assets. The services covered by 
this survey are: Accounting, auditing, and bookkeeping services; 
computer and data processing services; construction services; foreign 
expenses related to construction projects; data base and other 
information services; engineering, architectural, and surveying 
services; industrial engineering services; industrial-type maintenance, 
installation, alteration, and training services; legal services; 
management, consulting, and public relations services; operational 
leasing services; research, development, and testing services; and 
telecommunication services. The intangible assets covered by this 
survey are rights related to: industrial processes and products; books, 
compact discs, audio tapes and other copyrighted material and 
intellectual property; trademarks, brand names, and signatures; 
performances and events pre-recorded on motion picture film and 
television tape, including digital recording; broadcast and recording 
of live performances and events; general use computer software; 
business format franchising fees; and other intangible assets, 
including indefeasible rights of users.
    (ii) [Reserved]
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 03-24129 Filed 9-22-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-06-P