[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 69 (Thursday, April 10, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19934-19935]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-08005]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[SEC File No. 270-485, OMB Control No. 3235-0547]


Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Upon Written Request Copies Available From: Securities and Exchange 
Commission, Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, Washington, DC 
20549.

Extension:
    Investor Form.

    Notice is hereby given pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) that the Securities and Exchange 
Commission (``Commission'') is soliciting comments on the collection of 
information summarized below. The Commission plans to submit this 
existing collection of information to the Office of Management and 
Budget for extension and approval.
    In both 2012 and 2013, the Commission received over a million 
contacts from investors who have complaints or questions on a wide 
range of investment-related issues. These contacts generally fall into 
the following three categories:
    (a) complaints against Commission-regulated individuals or 
entities;
    (b) questions concerning the federal securities laws, companies or 
firms that the Commission regulates, or other investment-related 
questions; and
    (c) tips concerning potential violations of the federal securities 
laws.
    Investors who submit complaints, ask questions, or provide tips do 
so voluntarily. To make it easier for the public to contact the agency 
electronically, the Commission created a series of investor complaint 
and question electronic forms. Investors can access forms through the 
SEC Center for Complaints and Enforcement Tips portal. The Commission 
consolidated four paper complaint forms into one electronic form (the 
Investor Form) that provides drop down options to choose from in order 
to categorize the investor's complaint or question, and may also 
provide the investor with automated information about their issue. The 
investor may describe their complaint and submit it without their name 
or contact information.
    Although the Investor Form provides a structured format for 
incoming investor correspondence, the Commission does not require that 
investors use any particular form or format when contacting the agency. 
To the contrary, investors may submit complaints, questions, and tips 
through a variety of other means, including telephone, letter, 
facsimile, or email.
    Approximately 20,000 investors each year voluntarily choose to use 
the complaint and question forms. Investors who choose not to use the 
Investor Form receive the same level of service as those who do. The 
dual purpose of the form is to make it easier for the public to contact 
the agency with complaints, questions, tips, or other feedback and to 
streamline the workflow of the Commission staff who handle those 
contacts.
    The Commission has used--and will continue to use--the information 
that investors supply on the Investor Form to review and process the 
contact (which may, in turn, involve responding to questions, 
processing complaints, or, as appropriate, initiating enforcement 
investigations), to maintain a record of contacts, to track the volume 
of investor complaints, and to analyze trends. Use

[[Page 19935]]

of the Investor Form is strictly voluntary. The Investor Form will ask 
investors to provide information concerning, among other things, their 
names, how they can be reached, the names of the individuals or 
entities involved, the nature of their complaint or tip, what documents 
they can provide, and what, if any, actions they have taken.
    The staff of the Commission estimates that the total reporting 
burden for using the complaint and question forms is 5,000 hours. The 
calculation of this estimate depends on the number of investors who use 
the forms each year and the estimated time it takes to complete the 
forms: 20,000 respondents x 15 minutes = 5,000 burden hours.
    The Commission may not conduct or sponsor a collection of 
information unless it displays a currently valid control number. No 
person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a 
collection of information subject to the PRA that does not display a 
valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.
    Written comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of the agency, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of 
the burden of the collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the 
quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; and (d) 
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. Consideration will 
be given to comments and suggestions submitted in writing within 60 
days of this publication.
    Please direct your written comments to Thomas Bayer, Chief 
Information Officer, Securities and Exchange Commission, c/o Remi 
Pavlik-Simon, 100 F St. NE., Washington DC, 20549; or send an email to: 
[email protected].

    Dated: April 4, 2014.
Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-08005 Filed 4-9-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P