[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 159 (Friday, August 17, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46225-46226]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-16215]


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FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION


Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request; 3064-0121

AGENCY: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

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 FDIC hereby gives notice that it 
is submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request 
for OMB review and approval of the renewal or revision of the 
information collection systems described below. The collection would 
provide information on the features and effectiveness of small-dollar 
programs offered by FDIC-insured financial institutions.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before September 17, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments on 
the collection of information entitled: Pilot Study of Small Dollar 
Loan Programs. All comments should refer to the name of the collection. 
Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods:
     http://www.FDIC.gov/regulations/laws/federal/propose.html.
     E-mail: [email protected]. Include the name and number of 
the collection in the subject line of the message.
     Mail: Leneta G. Gregorie (202.898.3719), Counsel, Federal 
Deposit Insurance Corporation, Room F-1064, 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.
    A copy of the comments may also be submitted to the OMB Desk 
Officer for the FDIC, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 
Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 
10235, Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Interested members of the public may 
obtain additional information about the collection, including a copy of 
the proposed collection and related instructions without charge, by 
contacting Leneta G. Gregorie, at the address identified above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Proposal To Seek OMB Approval for the Following New Collection of 
Information

    Title: Pilot Study of Small-Dollar Loan Programs.
    OMB Number: 3064-NEW.
    Frequency of Response: Pilot study application--one time; Program 
evaluation reports--quarterly for two years.
    Affected Public: Insured depository institutions that apply for and 
are accepted to participate in the pilot study.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: Pilot study application--40; 
Program evaluation reports--20 to 40.
    Estimated Time per Response: Pilot study application--estimated 
average of 2 hours per respondent; Program evaluation reports--
estimated average of 5 hours per respondent.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: Pilot study application--40 
respondents times 2 hours per respondent = 80 hours; Program evaluation 
reports--20 to 40 respondents times 5 hours per respondent times 4 
(quarterly). Total burden = 80 + 800 = 880 hours.
    General Description of Collection: In recognition of the huge 
demand for small-dollar, unsecured loans, as evidenced by the 
proliferation around the country of payday lenders, the FDIC, on 
December 4, 2006, proposed and sought comment on guidelines for such 
products (http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/press/2006/pr06107.html). The 
proposed guidelines addressed several aspects of product development, 
including affordability and streamlined underwriting. Based on the 
comments received, the FDIC issued final guidelines on June 19, 2007, 
entitled ``Affordable Small-Dollar Loan Guidelines'' (http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/financial/2007/fil07050.html). The FDIC's goal 
in issuing the guidelines is to encourage financial institutions to 
offer small-dollar, unsecured loans in a safe and sound manner that is 
also cost-effective and responsive to customer needs.
    To further encourage the development by insured financial 
institutions of small-dollar credit programs, the FDIC is contemplating 
conducting a pilot study to assess the viability of such programs, with 
the goal of demonstrating the extent of their profitability, 
determining the degree to which customers of such programs migrate into 
other banking products, determining the extent to which a savings 
component results in increased savings and debt reduction, and 
identifying program features which can be deemed ``best practices.'' 
Programs selected for the pilot may be either already in existence at a 
bank or developed specifically for participation in the study.
    Volunteers for the program must be well managed, well capitalized 
institutions, and not be subject to any

[[Page 46226]]

enforcement actions. Banks interested in participating will provide a 
description of their existing or proposed small-dollar loan program to 
the FDIC. Key features of a preferred small-dollar lending program 
might include loan amounts of up to $1,000; amortization periods longer 
than a single pay cycle and up to 36 months for closed end credit, or 
minimum payments which reduce principal (i.e., do not result in 
negative amortization) for open end credit; annual percentage rates 
(APR) below 36 percent; no prepayment penalties; origination fees 
limited to the amount necessary to cover actual costs; a savings 
component; and a financial education component.
    The pilot study will require the quarterly collection of data from 
participating institutions, to the extent such data are not currently 
included in the Call Reports or other standard regulatory reports, to 
evaluate program success. For this purpose, the FDIC anticipates that 
the following (or similar) information will be collected from 
participating institutions on a quarterly basis:
     The total number and total dollar amount of small-dollar 
loans made under the pilot program;
     Average loan term and average dollar size of such loans;
     Average interest rates charged, average fees levied, and 
average calculations of APR, as required by the Truth in Lending Act;
     Aggregate delinquency, charge-off, and workout financing 
data;
     Profitability and/or break-even data for the overall 
program;
     The total number and total dollar amount of linked savings 
accounts opened as part of the program;
     Information as to duration and withdrawal rates of linked 
savings accounts;
     Data on utilization rates of any financial education 
component;
     Information regarding whether customers of the program 
migrated to other bank products; and
     To the extent possible, whether offering affordable loan 
products helped to wean customers off of high-cost debt.

The preferred method for collecting these data is electronic submission 
through the existing FDIConnect data interface system to minimize 
burden on respondents. The survey will be conducted quarterly, fifteen 
days after the deadline for banks to file their mandatory Call Reports. 
The study will conform to privacy rules and will not request any 
information that could be used to identify individual bank customers, 
such as name, address, or account number. All data from participating 
insured institutions will remain confidential. It is the intent of the 
FDIC to publish only general findings of the study.

Request for Comment

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether these collections of 
information are necessary for the proper performance of the FDIC's 
functions, including whether the information has practical utility; (b) 
the accuracy of the estimate of the burden of the information 
collections, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
information collections on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology. All comments will become a matter of public record.

    Dated at Washington, DC, this 14th day of August, 2007.

    Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Robert E. Feldman,
Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. E7-16215 Filed 8-16-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6714-01-P