[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 2, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26061-26062]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-10542]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-66865; File No. SR-MSRB-2012-03]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; Municipal Securities Rulemaking 
Board; Order Granting Approval of Proposed Rule Change Consisting of 
Establishment of a Subscription to Historical Information and Documents 
Submitted to the MSRB's Short-Term Obligation Rate Transparency System

April 26, 2012.

I. Introduction

    On February 27, 2012, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board 
(``MSRB'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``Commission''), pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities 
Exchange Act of 1934 (``Exchange Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 
thereunder,\2\ a proposed rule change to establish a subscription to 
historical information and documents submitted to the MSRB's Short-Term 
Obligation Rate Transparency System. The proposed rule change was 
published for comment in the Federal Register on March 12, 2012.\3\ The 
Commission received no comments on the proposed rule change. This order 
approves the proposed rule change.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
    \3\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 66521 (March 6, 
2012), 77 FR 14572 (the Commission's Notice'').
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II. Background and Description of Proposal

    In January 2009, the MSRB implemented an electronic system to 
collect and disseminate information about securities bearing interest 
at short-term rates and making such information and documents publicly 
available through a dissemination service (``SHORT System''). In May 
2011, MSRB enhanced the SHORT System to add documents to the 
information collected and disseminated. Information and documents 
collected by the SHORT System are made available for free on the MSRB's 
Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA[supreg]) Web site pursuant to 
the EMMA short-term obligation rate transparency service.\4\ MSRB also 
makes the information and documents collected by the SHORT System 
available through a subscription service, which is available for an 
annual fee of $10,000. The proposed rule change would clarify that 
subscribers to the SHORT subscription service would be able to access 
historical data for the most recent six months on a daily rolling basis 
and establish purchase agreements for historical products consisting of 
twelve consecutive complete month data sets of the documents and 
related indexing information collected by the SHORT System (the ``SHORT 
Historical Data Product'') dating to January 30, 2009.\5\ The purpose 
of the proposed rule change is to provide another avenue for obtaining 
the information and documents provided through the SHORT subscription 
service, which is currently only available on a current basis through 
the real-time data stream. A more complete description of the proposal 
is contained in the Commission's Notice.
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    \4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 59212 (January 7, 
2009).
    \5\ The SHORT Subscriber Manual provides a complete, up-to-date 
listing of all data elements made available through the SHORT 
Subscription Service. The information provided in the SHORT 
Historical Data Product are the same as those currently provided in 
the SHORT Subscription Service.
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III. Discussion and Commission Findings

    The Commission has carefully considered the proposed rule change 
and finds that the proposed rule change is consistent with the 
requirements of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations 
thereunder applicable to the MSRB.\6\ In particular, the proposed rule 
change is consistent with Section 15B(b)(2)(C) of the Exchange Act, 
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 and municipal financial products, to remove impediments to 
and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market in municipal 
securities and municipal financial products, and, in general, to 
protect investors, municipal entities, obligated persons, and the 
public interest.\7\
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    \6\ In approving this proposed rule change, the Commission notes 
that it has considered the proposed rule's impact on efficiency, 
competition and capital formation. 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).
    \7\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-4(b)(2)(C).
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    The proposed rule change is also consistent with Section 
15B(b)(3)(B)(ii) of the Exchange Act, which provides that the MSRB 
shall not be prohibited from charging commercially reasonable fees for 
automated subscription-based feeds or similar services, or for charging 
for other data or document-based services customized upon request of 
any person, made available to commercial enterprises, municipal 
securities market professionals, or the general public, whether 
delivered through the Internet or any other means, that contain all or 
part of the documents or information, subject to approval of the fees 
by the Commission under Section 19(b).\8\
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    \8\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-4(b)(3)(B)(ii).
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    The Commission believes that the proposed rule change is consistent 
with the Exchange Act. The proposed rule change would establish a 
subscription service that would make information collected by the SHORT 
System available to market participants as an additional avenue for 
obtaining information that is submitted to the EMMA short-term 
obligation rate transparency service. Broad access to the information 
collected by the SHORT

[[Page 26062]]

System, in addition to the public access through the EMMA short-term 
obligation rate transparency service 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 SHORT System disclosure information. The proposed 
rule change also provides for commercially reasonable fees to partially 
offset costs associated with operating the SHORT System and producing 
and disseminating information products to purchasers.

IV. Conclusion

    It is therefore ordered, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the 
Exchange Act,\9\ that the proposed rule change (SR-MSRB-2012-03) be, 
and it hereby is, approved.
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    \9\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\10\
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    \10\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2012-10542 Filed 5-1-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P