[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 115 (Thursday, June 16, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35155-35157]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-11925]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of Thrift Supervision


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request Concerning the Interagency Bank Merger Act 
Application

AGENCIES: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Treasury; 
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve

[[Page 35156]]

System (Board); Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC); and 
Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS), Treasury.

ACTION: Notice of information collections to be submitted to OMB for 
review and approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the OCC, Board, FDIC, and OTS 
(Agencies) hereby give notice that they plan to submit to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) a request for OMB review and approval of 
the information collection systems described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before July 18, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit comments to any or 
all of the Agencies. All comments, which should refer to the OMB 
control number, will be shared among the Agencies:
    OCC: Comments should be sent to Communications Division, Office of 
the Comptroller of the Currency, Public Information Room, Mailstop 1-5, 
Attention: 1557-0014, 250 E Street, SW., Washington, DC 20219. In 
addition, comments may be sent by fax to (202) 874-4448, or by 
electronic mail to [email protected]. You can inspect and 
photocopy the comments at the OCC's Public Information Room, 250 E 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20219. You can make an appointment to 
inspect the comments by calling (202) 874-5043.
    Board: You may submit comments, identified by FR 2070; OMB No. 
7100-0171, by any of the following methods:
     Agency Web Site: http://www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments on the http://www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. E-mail: 
[email protected]. Include docket number in the subject 
line of the message.
     FAX: 202/452-3819 or 202/452-3102.
     Mail: Jennifer J. Johnson, 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/generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm as 
submitted, except as necessary 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 in Room MP-500 of the Board's Martin Building (20th and C 
Streets, NW.) between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.
    FDIC: All comments should refer to ``Bank Merger Application, 3064-
0015.'' Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods:
     http://www.FDIC.gov/regulations/laws/federal/propose.html.
     E-mail: [email protected]. Include ``Bank Merger 
Application, 3064-0015.'' in the subject line of the message.
     Mail: Gary A. Kuiper (202.942.3824), Counsel, Federal 
Deposit Insurance Corporation, PA1730-3000, 550 17th Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20429.
     Hand Delivery: 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.
    OTS: You may submit comments to Information Collection Comments, 
Chief Counsel's Office, Office of Thrift Supervision, ATTN: 1550-0016, 
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.
    A copy of the comments should also be submitted to the OMB desk 
officer for the agencies: Mark Menchik, Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive 
Office Building, Room 3208, Washington, DC 20503, or by electronic mail 
to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: You may request additional information 
from:
    OCC: Mary Gottlieb, OCC Clearance Officer, (202) 874-4824, or 
Camille Dixon, (202) 874-5090, Legislative and Regulatory Activities 
Division, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, 250 E Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20219. For subject matter information, you may contact 
Cheryl Martin at (202) 874-4614, Licensing Activities Division, Office 
of the Comptroller of the Currency, 250 E Street, SW., Washington, DC 
20219.
    Board: Michelle Long, Federal Reserve 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 contact 
Capria Mitchell, (202) 872-4984, Board of Governors of the Federal 
Reserve System, 20th and C Streets, NW., Washington, DC 20551.
    FDIC: Gary A. Kuiper, Counsel, (202) 942-3824, Federal Deposit 
Insurance Corporation, PA1730-3000, 550 17th Street, NW., Washington, 
DC 20429.
    OTS: Marilyn K. Burton, OTS Clearance Officer, (202) 906-6467; 
Frances C. Augello, Senior Counsel, Business Transactions Division, 
(202) 906-6151; or Patricia D. Goings, Regulatory Analyst, Examination 
Policy, (202) 906-5668, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, 
NW., Washington, DC 20552.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Proposal to extend for three years, with 
clarifications, the following currently approved collection of 
information:
    FRB, FDIC, and OTS Report Title: Interagency Bank Merger Act 
Application.
    OCC Title: Comptroller's Licensing Manual (Manual). The specific 
portions of the Manual covered by this notice are those that pertain to 
clarifying changes to the instructions.
    OMB Numbers:

 OCC: 1557-0014.
 Board: 7100-0171.
 FDIC: 3064-0015.
 OTS: 1550-0016.
    Form Numbers:

 OCC: None.
 Board: FR 2070.
 FDIC: None.
 OTS: 1639.

    Affected Public: Individuals or households; businesses or other 
for-profit.
    Type of Review: Review of a currently approved collection.
    Estimated Number of Respondents:

 OCC: Nonaffiliate--90; Affiliate--106.
 Board: Nonaffiliate--62; Affiliate--18.
 FDIC: Nonaffiliate--190; Affiliate--172.
 OTS: Nonaffiliate--16; Affiliate--0.

    Frequency of Response: On occasion.
    Estimated Annual Burden Hours per Response:

 OCC: Nonaffiliate--30; Affiliate--18.
 Board: Nonaffiliate--30; Affiliate--18.
 FDIC: Nonaffiliate--30; Affiliate--18.

[[Page 35157]]

 OTS: Nonaffiliate--30; Affiliate--18.

    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours:

 OCC: Nonaffiliate--2,700; Affiliate--1,908. Total: 4,608 burden hours.
 Board: Nonaffiliate--1,860; Affiliate--324. Total: 2,184 burden hours.
 FDIC: Nonaffiliate--5,700; Affiliate--3,096. Total: 8,796 burden 
hours.
 OTS: Nonaffiliate--480; Affiliate--0. Total: 480 burden hours.

    General Description of Report: This information collection is 
mandatory. 12 U.S.C. 1828(c) (OCC, FDIC, and OTS), and 12 U.S.C. 321, 
1828(c), and 4804 (Board). Except for select sensitive items, this 
information collection is not given confidential treatment. Small 
businesses, that is, small institutions, are affected.
    Abstract: This submission covers a renewal of the Agencies' merger 
application form, which may include clarified instructions for both 
affiliated and nonaffiliated institutions. The Agencies need the 
information to ensure that the proposed transactions are permissible 
under law and regulation and are consistent with safe and sound banking 
practices. The Agencies are required, under the Bank Merger Act, to 
consider financial and managerial resources, future prospects, 
convenience and needs of the community, community reinvestment, 
competition, bank secrecy, and anti-money laundering efforts.
    Some agencies collect limited supplemental information in certain 
cases. For example, the OCC and OTS collect information regarding CRA 
commitments; the Federal Reserve collects information on debt servicing 
from certain institutions; and the FDIC requires additional information 
on the competitive impact of proposed mergers.
    Current Actions: On March 30, 2005, the Agencies published in the 
Federal Register (70 FR 16331) a notice on the proposed clarifications 
to this information collection. The comment period expired on May 31, 
2005. The Agencies received no public comments, and each Agency is now 
submitting its request to OMB for approval of this information 
collection, as proposed.
    The General Information and Instructions section of the merger 
application form would be modified to clarify the first subsection 
(Preparation and Use), which explains more clearly the range of merger 
transactions that may require use of the application. The remaining 
clarifications include a new paragraph in the Preparation and Use 
subsection noting that applications must be submitted to the 
appropriate regulatory agency. Also, a new Compliance subsection would 
inform applicants of compliance expectations and of the potential that 
some very large transactions may be subject to the Hart-Scott-Rodino 
Antitrust Improvement Act. These additional paragraphs, which would 
provide further practical advice that is generally included in the 
other recently approved interagency forms, are intended to highlight 
certain elements of the applications process to prevent confusion or 
delay, and add no additional burden.
    The Federal Reserve approved extending for three years, with minor 
revisions, its current supplemental form. The two revisions are 
intended to facilitate the applications review process and provide 
further practical guidance to the applicant. The first revision 
recognizes the possible need of biographical or financial information 
from any individual that, as a consequence of the proposed transaction, 
becomes a new principal, shareholder, director, or senior executive 
officer of a state member bank. While all of the Agencies agree that a 
significant change in management or ownership must be evaluated under 
the statutory factors of the Bank Merger Act, they have elected to deal 
with this information need on a case-by-case basis. The second revision 
eliminates the need for any formal certification from a target 
institution. This certification is unique to the bank merger 
application, and is not specifically required by the Bank Merger Act. 
As the FRB generally waives this requirement if objected to by the 
target institution and as the applicant is the party to which bank 
merger authority is granted, the FRB believes that only the applicant 
need provide the requested certification. The other agencies believe 
that the target institution should certify to the accuracy of the 
information and that the institutions will notify the agency if any 
material changes occur prior to a decision. Also, the target 
institution certifies that any communications with the agency do not 
constitute a contract.
    Comments: No comments were received in response to the first 
notice. Comments submitted in response to this second notice will be 
analyzed to determine the extent to which the instructions for the 
collection should be modified. All comments will become a matter of 
public record.
    Written comments are invited on:
    a. Whether the information collection is necessary for the proper 
performance of the Agencies' functions, and how the instructions can be 
clarified so that information gathered has more practical utility;
    b. The accuracy of the Agencies' estimates 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.

    Dated: June 13, 2005.
Stuart Feldstein,
Assistant Director, Legislative and Regulatory Activities Division, 
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

    Dated: June 8, 2005.

    By order of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System,
Jennifer J. Johnson,
Secretary of the Board.

    Dated at Washington, DC, this 13th day of June, 2005.
Robert E. Feldman,
Executive Secretary, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

    Dated: June 10, 2005.

    By the Office of Thrift Supervision.
Richard M. Riccobono,
Acting Director.
[FR Doc. 05-11925 Filed 6-15-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-33-P, 6210-01-P, 6714-01-P, 6720-01-P