[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 205 (Wednesday, October 23, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63205-63206]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-24735]


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FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY

[No. 2013-N-13]


Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCY: Federal Housing Finance Agency.

ACTION: 30-day Notice of Submission of Information Collection for 
Approval from the Office of Management and Budget.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is seeking 
public comments concerning the information collection known as 
``Members of the Banks,'' which has been assigned control number 2590-
0003 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). FHFA will submit the 
information collection to OMB for review and approval of a three-year 
extension of the control number, which is due to expire on October 31, 
2013.

DATES: Interested persons may submit comments on or before November 22, 
2013.
    Comments: Submit comments to the Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget, Attention: 
Desk Officer for the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Washington, DC 
20503, Fax: 202-395-6974, Email: [email protected]. Please 
also submit comments to FHFA using any one of the following methods:
     Email: [email protected]. Please include Proposed 
Collection; Comment Request: ``Members of the Banks, (No. 2013-N-13)'' 
in the subject line of the message.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. If you submit your 
comment to the Federal eRulemaking Portal, please also send it by email 
to FHFA at [email protected] to ensure timely receipt by the agency.
     Mail/Hand Delivery: Federal Housing Finance Agency, Eighth 
Floor, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC 20024, ATTENTION: Public 
Comments/Proposed Collection; Comment Request: ``Members of the Banks, 
(No. 2013-N-13).''
    We will post all public comments we receive without change, 
including any personal information you provide, such as your name, 
address, email address, and telephone number, on the FHFA Web site at 
http://www.fhfa.gov. In addition, copies of all comments received will 
be available for examination by the public on business days between the 
hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., at the Federal Housing Finance Agency, 
Eighth Floor, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC 20024. To make an 
appointment to inspect comments, please call the Office of General 
Counsel at 202-649-3804.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jonathan F. Curtis, Financial Analyst, 
Division of Federal Home Loan Bank Regulation, at 202-649-3321 (not a 
toll free number), [email protected], or by regular mail at the 
Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC 
20024. The telephone number for the Telecommunications Device for the 
Deaf is 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Need For and Use of the Information Collection

    Section 4 of the Federal Home Loan Bank Act (Bank Act) establishes 
the eligibility requirements an institution must meet in order to 
become a member of a Federal Home Loan Bank (Bank).\1\ FHFA's Bank 
membership regulation, located at 12 CFR part 1263, implements

[[Page 63206]]

section 4 of the Bank Act by providing uniform requirements an 
applicant must meet to be approved for Bank membership and review 
criteria a Bank must apply to determine if an applicant satisfies the 
statutory and regulatory membership eligibility requirements, and by 
specifying the information and materials an institution must submit as 
part of its application.\2\ Although the membership regulation 
authorizes the Banks to approve or deny applications for membership, it 
also provides institutions that have been denied membership in a Bank 
the option of appealing the decision to FHFA.\3\ The membership 
regulation also addresses the requirements for withdrawal from Bank 
membership and for the transfer of an institution's membership from one 
Bank to another.\4\
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    \1\ See 12 U.S.C. 1424.
    \2\ See 12 CFR part 1263.
    \3\ See 12 CFR 1263.5.
    \4\ See 12 CFR 1263.26; 1263.18(d), (e).
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    This information collection may require four different types of 
submissions by Bank members or by institutions wishing to become a Bank 
member: (I) Applications for membership and supporting materials; (II) 
notices of appeal to FHFA by institutions that have been denied 
membership by a Bank; (III) requests to withdraw from Bank membership; 
and (IV) applications for transfer of membership to a different Bank 
and supporting materials. The information collection is necessary to 
enable a Bank to determine whether prospective and current Bank 
members, or transferring members of other Banks, satisfy the statutory 
and regulatory requirements to be certified initially and maintain 
their status as members eligible to obtain Bank advances. The 
collection is also necessary to inform a Bank of when to initiate the 
withdrawal process where a member so desires. On appeals, FHFA uses the 
information collection to determine whether to uphold or overrule a 
Bank's decision to deny Bank membership to an applicant.
    The OMB control number for the information collection is 2590-0003, 
which is due to expire on October 31, 2013. The likely respondents are 
institutions that want to be certified as or are members of a Bank 
seeking continued certification.

B. Burden Estimate

    FHFA has analyzed the cost and hour burden for the four facets of 
the information collection: (I) membership application process; (II) 
appeal of membership denial; (III) membership withdrawals, and (IV) 
transfer of membership to another Bank district. The estimate for the 
total annual hour burden for all respondents is 2,261 hours. The 
estimate for the total annual cost burden is $175,613. These estimates 
are based on the following:

I. Membership Application

    FHFA estimates the total annual average number of applicants at 
157, with 1 response per applicant. The estimate for the average hours 
per application is 11.7 hours. The estimate for the annual hour burden 
for applicants is 1,837 hours (157 applicants x 1 response per 
applicant x 11.7 hours per response). The estimate for the total annual 
cost burden to applicants for the membership application process is 
$135,365.

II. Appeal of Membership Denial

    FHFA estimates the total annual average number of appellants at 1, 
with 1 response per appellant. The estimate for the average hours per 
application for appeal is 10 hours. The estimate for the annual hour 
burden for appellants is 10 hours (10 appellants x 1 response per 
appellant x 10 hours per response). The estimate for the total annual 
cost burden to applicants for the appeal of membership denial process 
is $950.

III. Withdrawals From Membership

    FHFA estimates the total annual average number of membership 
withdrawals at 275, with 1 response per applicant. The estimate for the 
average hours per application is 1.5 hours. The estimate for the annual 
hour burden for applicants is 413 hours (275 withdrawals x 1 response 
per applicant x 1.5 hours per response). The estimate for the total 
annual cost burden to members for withdrawals from membership is 
$39,188.

IV. Transfer of Membership

    FHFA estimates the total annual average number of membership 
transfer requests at 1, with 1 response per applicant. The estimate for 
the average hours per application is 1.5 hours. The estimate for the 
annual hour burden for applicants is 1.5 hours (1 transfer x 1 response 
per applicant x 1.5 hours per response). The estimate for the total 
annual cost burden to member respondents of the transfer of membership 
process is $110.

C. Comment Request

    In accordance with the requirements of 5 CFR 1320.8(d), FHFA 
published a request for public comments regarding this information 
collection in the Federal Register on July 1, 2013. See 78 FR 39293 
(July 1, 2013). The 60-day comment period closed on August 30, 2013. No 
public comments were received.
    FHFA requests written comments on the following: (1) Whether the 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
FHFA functions, including whether the information has practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the FHFA's estimates of the burdens of the 
collection of information; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information collected; and (4) ways to minimize the 
burden of the collection of information on respondents, including 
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.

    Dated: September 30, 2013.
Kevin Winkler,
Chief Information Officer, Federal Housing Finance Agency.
[FR Doc. 2013-24735 Filed 10-22-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8070-01-P