[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 162 (Monday, August 23, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51864-51866]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-20817]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-62734; File No. SR-MSRB-2010-06]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; Municipal Securities Rulemaking 
Board; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change To Establish a 
Subscription To the Information Collected by the MSRB's Short-term 
Obligation Rate Transparency (``SHORT'') System

August 17, 2010.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on August 10, 2010, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board 
(``MSRB'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I and 
II below, which Items have been prepared by the MSRB. The Commission is 
publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule change 
from interested persons.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance 
of the Proposed Rule Change

    The MSRB is filing with the Commission a proposed rule change to 
establish a subscription to the information collected by the MSRB's 
Short-term Obligation Rate Transparency (``SHORT'') System. The MSRB 
has requested that the proposed rule change be made effective on 
September 30, 2010.
    The text of the proposed rule change is available on the MSRB's Web 
site at http://www.msrb.org, at the MSRB's principal office, and at the 
Commission's Public Reference Room. If approved, the rule text for the 
Short-term Obligation Rate Transparency Subscription Service would be 
available on the MSRB Web site at http://www.msrb.org/Rules-and-Interpretations.aspx under the heading Information Facilities.

[[Page 51865]]

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, the MSRB included statements 
concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change. The 
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in 
Item IV below. The MSRB has prepared summaries, set forth in Sections 
A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The SHORT System is a facility of the MSRB for the collection and 
dissemination of information about securities bearing interest at 
short-term rates. Currently, these securities consist of Auction Rate 
Securities (``ARS'') and Variable Rate Demand Obligations (``VRDOs''). 
The proposed rule change consists of a proposal to establish a 
subscription to the information collected by the SHORT System. The data 
stream subscription would be provided through a Web service and would 
be made available for an annual fee of $10,000.\3\
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    \3\ The proposed subscription price would cover a portion of the 
administrative, technical and operating costs of the SHORT 
subscription service but would not cover all costs of such 
subscription service or of the SHORT System. The MSRB has proposed 
establishing the subscription price at a commercially reasonable 
level.
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    Information disseminated from the SHORT System also is posted to 
the MSRB's Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA) Web portal 
pursuant to the EMMA short-term obligation rate transparency service. 
Such information would be made available to subscribers simultaneously 
with the availability of such information to the EMMA Web portal. The 
subscription service would make the information collected by the SHORT 
System available to market participants for re-dissemination and for 
use in creating value-added products and services. Such re-
dissemination and third-party use would provide market participants, 
including investors and the general public, additional avenues for 
obtaining the information collected by the SHORT System and would make 
additional tools available for making well-informed investment 
decisions.
    Data elements with respect to the SHORT subscription service that 
would be provided through the data stream would be set forth in the 
SHORT System Subscriber Manual posted on the MSRB Web site. The SHORT 
System Subscriber Manual would provide a complete, up-to-date listing 
of all data elements made available through the SHORT subscription 
service, including any additions, deletions or modifications to 
disseminated data elements, detailed definitions of each data element, 
specific data format information, and information about technical data 
elements to support transmission and data-integrity processes between 
the SHORT System and subscribers.
    Subscriptions would be provided through computer-to-computer data 
streams utilizing XML files for data. Appropriate schemas and other 
technical specifications for accessing the Web services through which 
the data stream will be provided would be set forth in the SHORT System 
Subscriber Manual posted on the MSRB Web site.
    The MSRB would make the SHORT subscription service available on an 
equal and non-discriminatory basis. Subscribers would be subject to all 
of the terms of the subscription agreement to be entered into between 
the MSRB and each subscriber, including proprietary rights of third 
parties in information provided by such third parties that is made 
available through the subscription. The MSRB would not be responsible 
for the content of the information submitted by submitters that is 
distributed to subscribers of the SHORT subscription service.
2. Statutory Basis
    The MSRB has adopted the proposed rule change pursuant to Section 
15B(b)(2)(C) of the Act,\4\ which provides that the MSRB's rules shall 
be designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, 
to promote just and equitable principles of trade, to foster 
cooperation and coordination with persons engaged in regulating, 
clearing, settling, processing information with respect to, and 
facilitating transactions in municipal securities, to remove 
impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market in 
municipal securities, and, in general, to protect investors and the 
public interest.
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    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-4(b)(2)(C).
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    The MSRB believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with 
the Act. The SHORT subscription service would serve as an additional 
mechanism by which the MSRB works toward removing impediments to and 
helping to perfect the mechanisms of a free and open market in 
municipal securities. The subscription service would make the 
information collected by the SHORT System available to market 
participants for re-dissemination and for use in creating value-added 
products and services. Such re-dissemination and third-party use would 
provide market participants, including investors and the general 
public, additional avenues for obtaining the information collected by 
the SHORT System and would make additional tools available for making 
well-informed investment decisions. Broad access to the information 
collected by the SHORT System, in addition to the public access through 
the EMMA Web portal, should further assist in preventing fraudulent and 
manipulative acts and practices by improving the opportunity for public 
investors to access material information about Auction Rate Securities 
and Variable Rate Demand Obligations.
    Furthermore, broader re-dissemination and third-party use of the 
information collected by the SHORT System should promote a more fair 
and efficient municipal securities market in which transactions are 
effected on the basis of material information available to all parties 
to such transactions, which should allow for fairer pricing of 
transactions based on a more complete understanding of the terms of the 
securities (including any changes thereto).

B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    The MSRB does not believe the proposed rule change will impose any 
burden on competition not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of 
the purposes of the Act. The proposed rule change would make the 
information collected by the SHORT System available to all persons on 
an equal and non-discriminatory basis. The information provided through 
the subscription service would be available to all subscribers 
simultaneously with the availability of the information through the 
EMMA Web portal. In addition to making the information available for 
free on the EMMA Web portal to all members of the public, the MSRB 
would make the information collected by the SHORT System available by 
subscription on an equal and non-discriminatory basis without imposing 
restrictions on subscribers from, or imposing additional charges on 
subscribers for, re-disseminating such information or otherwise adding 
value-added services and products based on

[[Page 51866]]

such information on terms determined by each subscriber.\5\
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    \5\ The MSRB notes that subscribers may be subject to 
proprietary rights of third parties in information provided by such 
third parties that is made available through the subscription.
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C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed 
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

    Written comments were neither solicited nor received on the 
proposed rule change.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 
Commission Action

    Within 45 days of the date of publication of this notice in the 
Federal Register or within such longer period up to 90 days (i) as the 
Commission may designate if it finds such longer period to be 
appropriate and publishes its reasons for so finding or (ii) as to 
which the self-regulatory organization consents, the Commission will:
    A. By order approve or disapprove such proposed rule change, or
    B. Institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule 
change should be disapproved.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and 
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule 
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of 
the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an e-mail to [email protected]. Please include 
File Number SR-MSRB-2010-06 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Elizabeth M. Murphy, 
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-MSRB-2010-06. This file 
number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used. To 
help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently, 
please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on 
the Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all 
written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are 
filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to 
the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other 
than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the 
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for Web site viewing and 
printing in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of 10 
a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of such filing also will be available for 
inspection and copying at the principal office of the MSRB. All 
comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does 
not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should 
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All 
submissions should refer to File Number SR-MSRB-2010-06 and should be 
submitted on or before September 13, 2010.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\6\
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    \6\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-20817 Filed 8-20-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-P