[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 234 (Friday, December 5, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68082-68083]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-30212]


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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM


Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment 
Request

AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System (Board), the Federal Deposit Insurance 
Corporation (FDIC), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 
(OCC) (the ``agencies'') may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent 
is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it 
displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
control number. The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council 
(FFIEC), of which the agencies are members, has approved the agencies' 
publication for public comment of proposed revisions to the Report of 
Assets and Liabilities of U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks 
(FFIEC 002). The Board is publishing the proposed revisions on behalf 
of the agencies. At the end of the comment period, the comments and 
recommendations received will be analyzed to determine the extent to 
which the FFIEC should modify the proposed revisions prior to giving 
its final approval. The Board will then submit the revisions to OMB for 
review and approval.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before February 3, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments to 
the agency listed below. All comments, which should refer to the OMB 
control number, will be shared among the agencies.
    Written comments, which should refer to the ``Report of Assets and 
Liabilities of U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks, 7100-dquo; 
should be addressed to Ms. Jennifer J. Johnson, Secretary, Board of 
Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th and C Streets, NW, 
Washington, DC 20551. Due to temporary disruptions in the Board's mail 
service, commenters are encouraged to submit comments by electronic 
mail to [email protected], or fax 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 mailroom between 
8:45 a.m. and 5:15 p.m. weekdays, and to the security control room 
outside those hours. Both the mailroom and the security control room 
are accessible from the Eccles building courtyard entrance on 20th 
Street between Constitution Avenue and C Street, NW. Comments may be 
inspected in room M-P-500 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays 
pursuant to sections 261.12 and 261.14 of the Board's Rules Regarding 
Availability of Information, 12 CFR 261.12 and 261.14.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A draft copy of the proposed FFIEC 002 
reporting form may be obtained at the FFIEC's web site (www.ffiec.gov). 
A copy of the proposed revisions to the collection of information may 
also be requested from Cindy Ayouch, Board Clearance Officer, (202) 
452-3829, Division of Research and Statistics, Board of Governors of 
the Federal Reserve System, 20th and C Streets, NW, Washington, DC 
20551. Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) users may call 
(202) 263-4869.

Proposal to revise the following currently approved collection of 
information:

    Report Title: Report of Assets and Liabilities of U.S. Branches and 
Agencies of Foreign Banks.
    Form Number: FFIEC 002.
    OMB Number: 7100-0032.
    Frequency of Response: Quarterly.
    Affected Public: U.S. branches and agencies of foreign banks.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 295.
    Estimated Total Annual Responses: 1,180.
    Estimated Time per Response: 22.75 burden hours.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 26,845 burden hours.
    General Description of Report: This information collection is 
mandatory: 12 U.S.C. 3105(b)(2), 1817(a)(1) and (3), and 3102(b). 
Except for select sensitive items, this information collection is not 
given confidential treatment (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(8)). Small businesses 
(that is, small U.S. branches and agencies of foreign banks) are 
affected.
    Abstract: On a quarterly basis, all U.S. branches and agencies of 
foreign banks (U.S. branches) are required to file detailed schedules 
of assets and liabilities in the form of a condition report and a 
variety of supporting schedules. This information is used to fulfill 
the supervisory and regulatory requirements of the International 
Banking Act of 1978. The data are also used to augment the bank credit, 
loan, and deposit information needed for monetary policy and other 
public policy purposes. The Federal Reserve System collects and 
processes this report on behalf of all three agencies.
    Current Actions: The agencies propose to implement a small number 
of revisions to the existing reporting requirements of the Report of 
Assets and Liabilities of U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks 
(FFIEC 002). The proposed revisions would help to achieve consistency 
with the Reports of Condition and Income (Call Report) (forms FFIEC 031 
and 041) filed by insured commercial banks and FDIC-supervised savings 
banks.
    The proposed revisions to the FFIEC 002 that would take effect as 
of the March 31, 2004, reporting date include:
    Schedule L--Derivatives and Off-Balance-Sheet Items

[[Page 68083]]

    Modifying Line Item 12, ``Gross fair values of derivative 
contracts,'' by removing the following requirement: ``The following 
items should be completed by those branches or agencies with total 
assets of $100 million or more.'' The exemption from reporting the fair 
values of derivative contracts for branches and agencies with less than 
dollar;100 million in assets originated when derivatives were 
considered off-balance sheet items and predates FASB Statement No. 133, 
Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities (FAS 133), 
which took effect in 2001. FAS 133 require all derivatives to be 
measured at fair value and reported on the balance sheet as assets or 
liabilities. Because branches and agencies with less than dollar;100 
million in assets that have derivatives now have to regularly determine 
their fair value for reporting purposes, they have the information 
necessary to disclose the fair value of their derivatives in Schedule 
L. Accordingly, the agencies are proposing to eliminate this disclosure 
exemption. The fair value data on derivatives will complement the data 
that branches and agencies with less than $100 million in assets 
currently report on the notional amount of their derivative contracts.
    Schedule M--Due from/Due to Related Institutions in the U.S. and in 
Foreign Countries (CONFIDENTIAL)
    1. Modifying Line Item 12, ``Gross fair values of derivative 
contracts,'' by removing the following requirement: ``The following 
items should be completed by those branches or agencies with total 
assets of $100 million or more.'' The rationale for the proposed change 
is similar to the justification above for the comparable change to 
Schedule L.
    2. Adding Memoranda items 1.a, ``Gross positive fair value,'' and 
1.b, ``Gross negative fair value'' to Memorandum item 1, ``Notional 
amount of all credit derivatives on which the reporting branch or 
agency is the guarantor.'' The new items would provide a better measure 
of credit and market risk for credit derivatives entered into with 
related depository institutions, particularly for branches and agencies 
with large positions in such credit derivatives.
    3. Adding Memoranda items 2.a, ``Gross positive fair value,'' and 
2.b, ``Gross negative fair value'' to Memorandum item 2, ``Notional 
amount of all credit derivatives on which the reporting branch or 
agency is the beneficiary.'' The rationale for the proposed change is 
the same as the justification above for adding items to Memorandum item 
1.
    Request for Comment: Comments submitted in response to this Notice 
will be shared among the agencies and will be summarized or included in 
the Board's request for OMB approval. All comments will become a matter 
of public record. Written comments should address the accuracy of the 
burden estimates and ways to minimize burden as well as other relevant 
aspects of the information collection requests. Comments are invited 
on:
    (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the agencies' functions, including whether 
the information has practical utility;
    (b) The accuracy of the agencies' estimate of the burden of the 
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 the information collection 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.

    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, December 1, 
2003.
Jennifer J. Johnson
Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 03-30212 Filed 12-4-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6210-01-S