[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 111 (Thursday, June 9, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37188-37191]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-13623]


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COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION


Agency Information Collection Activities: Notice Requesting 
Approval of New Collection, CFTC SmartCheck Annual Campaign Impact 
Tracking Survey, 3038--NEW

AGENCY: Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (``CFTC'' or 
``Commission'') is announcing an opportunity for public comment on a 
proposed collection of information by the agency. Under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (``PRA''), Federal agencies are required to publish 
notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of 
information and to allow 60 days for public comment. The CFTC's Office 
of Customer Education and Outreach (OCEO) develops campaigns to change 
customer behaviors, so that customers can better avoid fraud as defined 
under the Commodities Exchange Act. The OCEO intends to survey the 
public by identifying customers and determining if the CFTC's 
SmartCheck\SM\ campaign is helping them to identify, avoid, and report 
financial fraud.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 8, 2016.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, regarding the burden estimated or 
any other aspect of the information collection, including suggestions 
for reducing the burden. Please refer to this notice in any 
correspondence. Comments, identified by ``CFTC SmartCheck Annual 
Campaign Impact Tracking Survey,'' and Collection Number 3038--NEW may 
be submitted by any of the following methods:
     The Agency Web site, via its Comments Online process: 
http://comments.cftc.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting 
comments through the Web site.
     Mail: Christopher Kirkpatrick, Secretary of the 
Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, 1155 21st Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20581.
     Hand delivery/Courier: Same as Mail above.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov/. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
    Please submit your comments using only one method, and identify 
that it is for the ``SmartCheck Campaign Annual Tracking Survey.''
    All comments must be submitted in English, or if not, accompanied 
by an English translation. Comments will be posted as received to 
http://www.cftc.gov. You should submit only information that you wish 
to make available publicly. If you wish the Commission to consider 
information that you believe is exempt from disclosure under the 
Freedom of Information Act, a petition for confidential treatment of 
the exempt information may be submitted according to the procedures 
established in Sec.  145.9 of the Commission's regulations.\1\
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    \1\ 17 CFR 145.9.
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    The Commission reserves the right, but shall have no obligation, to 
review, pre-screen, filter, redact, refuse or remove any or all of your 
submission from http://www.cftc.gov that it may deem to be 
inappropriate for publication, such as obscene language. All 
submissions that have been redacted or removed that contain comments on 
the merits of the rulemaking will be retained in the public comment 
file and will be considered as required under the Administrative 
Procedure Act and other applicable laws, and may be accessible under 
the Freedom of Information Act.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nisha Smalls, Lead Customer Outreach 
Specialist, 202-418-5000, [email protected], Office of Customer 
Education and Outreach, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Three 
Lafayette Centre, 1151 21st Street NW., Washington, DC 20581.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the PRA, federal agencies must obtain 
approval from the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for each 
collection of information they collect or sponsor. ``Collection of 
information'' is defined in 44 U.S.C. 3502(3) as ``the obtaining, 
causing to be obtained, soliciting . . . facts or opinions by or for an 
agency, regardless of form or format [from] ten or more persons.'' An 
agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to 
respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB 
control number. 44 U.S.C. 3506(c). The Commission is submitting this 
collection of information to OMB for approval and assigning of a 
collection number, pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.10.
    Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), requires 
federal agencies to provide a 60-day notice in the Federal Register for 
each proposed collection of information before submitting the 
collection to OMB for approval. Under OMB regulations, which implement 
provisions of the PRA, certain ``facts or opinions submitted in 
response to general solicitations of comments from the public, 
published in the Federal Register or other publications,'' 5 CFR 
1320.3(h)(4), or ``facts or opinions obtained or solicited at or in 
connection with public hearings or meetings,'' 5 CFR 1320.3(h)(8), are 
excluded from the OMB approval process.
    Title: CFTC SmartCheck Annual Campaign Impact Tracking Survey (OMB 
Control No. 3038--NEW). This is a request for approval of a new 
collection.
    Abstract: In 2010, the Dodd-Frank Act \2\ expanded the Commission's 
authority to, among other matters related to regulatory oversight, 
establish funding of consumer education initiatives under its new 
Whistleblower authority.\3\ Under this new authority, the Commission 
established an Office of Customer Education and Outreach (``OCEO'') to, 
among other efforts, survey the public regarding consumer education 
initiatives.\4\ This notice announces a public survey. This survey will 
include screening questions to identify the correct respondents and 
questions to determine if the CFTC's SmartCheck\SM\ campaign is helping

[[Page 37189]]

customers identify, avoid, and report financial fraud.
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    \2\ See Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection 
Act, Public Law 111-203, 124 Stat. 1376 (2010). The text of the 
Dodd-Frank Act may be accessed at http://www.cftc.gov/LawRegulation/DoddFrankAct/index.htm.
    \3\ See 7 U.S.C. 26.
    \4\ See 17 CFR 165.12.
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    The OCEO will use the information collected in the survey to refine 
the methods used to inform the public about how to best detect and 
report financial fraud. This will be done by creating a final summary 
report that includes key findings from the survey.
    Findings from the summary report will be used to directionally 
inform the outreach efforts that the CFTC undertakes concerning helping 
customers avoid financial fraud.
    The survey will be administered using an online survey tool. The 
online modality approach will allow presentation of test material to 
participants in a more convenient and time-efficient manner than other 
collection methods such as mall intercepts. The online method also 
allows for a quicker turnaround for data collection. No other 
collection methods will be used.
    With respect to the collection of information, the CFTC invites 
comments on:
     Whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the 
Commission, including whether the information will have a practical 
use;
     The accuracy of the Commission's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
     Ways to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and
     Ways to minimize the burden of collection of information 
on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology; e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses.
    You should submit only information that you wish to make available 
publicly. If you wish the Commission to consider information that you 
believe is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, 
a petition for confidential treatment of the exempt information may be 
submitted according to the procedures established in Sec.  145.9 of the 
Commission's regulations.\5\
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    \5\ 17 CFR 145.9.
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    Burden Statement: The screening questions will take about 1 minute 
to complete. It is anticipated that 4,000 people will be screened. The 
survey will take about 15 minutes. The cost of the screener survey will 
be approximately $3,125, which equates to $46.85 per burden hour. 2,000 
people will take the 15 minute survey. The cost of the full survey will 
be approximately $46,875, which equates to $93.75 per burden hour. 
Based on these assumptions, the total burden hours will be 566.7 hours. 
The Commission estimates the average burden of this collection of 
information as follows:

                                                         Estimated Annual Reporting Burden Hours
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                                       Annual
                                      reporting          Frequency         Hours per report         Total
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17 CFR 165.12....................           4,000  1 response per        1 minute per                   4,000  66.7 hours, total burden.
                                                    respondent.           response.
17 CFR 165.12....................           2,000  1 response per        15 minutes per                 2,000  500 hours, burden hour.
                                                    respondent.           response.
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    The proposed survey questions appear below:

CFTC SmartCheck Annual Campaign Impact Tracking Survey

CFTC TARGET = Age 50-65; HH income 60k+; Answers 1 or 2 for question 1; 
Invests in 2 or more products in question 2

Screener

    1. When it comes to family and personal investments like stocks, 
mutual funds, or other trading products, how likely are you to be 
involved in making decisions for your household?

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1................................  Very likely.
2................................  Somewhat likely.
3................................  Not too likely.
4................................  Not at all likely.
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    2. Below is a list of financial products. Please select all that 
you currently are invested in or have invested in.

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1................................  Stocks or shares.
2................................  Precious metals like gold or silver.
3................................  Foreign currency trading (FOREX).
4................................  Any type of futures or options.
5................................  None of these [Single Punch (SP)].
6................................  Don't know [SP].
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Survey

[GRID, SP ACROSS]
    Please answer yes or no to each of the following questions.

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                Yes                                   No
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                       1                                    2
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3.....................................  Have you read, seen, or heard
                                         anything about the Commodity
                                         Futures Trading Commission
                                         (CFTC)?
4.....................................  Have you read, seen, or heard
                                         anything about CFTC SmartCheck,
                                         a campaign that promotes expert
                                         tools and resources to check
                                         the background of financial
                                         professionals, learn how to
                                         avoid investment fraud, and
                                         report suspicious activity?

[[Page 37190]]

 
5.....................................  Have you read, seen, or heard
                                         anything about SmartCheck.gov,
                                         a Web site that links to
                                         databases which allow investors
                                         to check the background of
                                         financial professionals?
6.....................................  Have you read, seen, or heard
                                         anything about Investor.gov, a
                                         Web site that allows you to
                                         check the background of
                                         investment adviser
                                         representatives and firms?
7.....................................  Have you read, seen, or heard
                                         anything about BrokerCheck.org,
                                         a Web site that allows you to
                                         check the background of brokers
                                         who sell stocks, bonds, mutual
                                         funds and other securities?
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[GRID, SP ACROSS. RANDOMIZE GRID ROWS]
    Below are a number of actions that you may or may not be likely to 
complete. Please indicate how likely or unlikely you are to complete 
the actions using the scale below.
    If you were considering investing with someone you had not invested 
with before, how likely are you to:

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                                                  Not likely or
     Very likely          Somewhat likely            unlikely            Not too likely       Not at all likely
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                1                      2                      3                      4                      5
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8................................  Review performance history.
9................................  Talk to references and/or past
                                    clients.
10...............................  Confirm certifications and/or
                                    education.
11...............................  Perform a general Internet search.
12...............................  Check disciplinary history with an
                                    official financial regulator.
13...............................  Check licensing and/or registration
                                    status with an official financial
                                    regulator.
14...............................  Personally interview.
15...............................  Check job affiliations with an
                                    official financial regulator.
16...............................  None of these/don't know [SP].
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[SP]
    17. Generally speaking, how concerned are you about unknowingly 
being part of a fraudulent investment?

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1................................  Very concerned.
2................................  Somewhat concerned.
3................................  Not too concerned.
4................................  Not at all concerned.
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[SP]
    18. If you suspected an investment you were aware of was 
fraudulent, how likely would you be to report it to a government 
financial agency such as the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission 
(CFTC) or the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)?

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1................................  Very likely.
2................................  Somewhat likely.
3................................  Not too likely.
4................................  Not at all likely.
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[SP]
    19. If you became aware that an investment you were already a part 
of was fraudulent, how likely would you be to report it to a government 
financial agency such as the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission 
(CFTC) or the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)?

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1................................  Very likely.
2................................  Somewhat likely.
3................................  Not too likely.
4................................  Not at all likely.
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[MP; RANDOMIZE LEAVING LAST 1 AT THE END]
    20. Which, if any, of the following do you think are potential 
signs of investment fraud? If the person selling the investment . . .

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1................................  said the investment has a guaranteed
                                    rate of return.
2................................  said s/he has a special credential,
                                    so they can be trusted.
3................................  said that many of your friends have
                                    already invested in the opportunity.
4................................  was willing to charge you half of the
                                    regular commission.
5................................  said the opportunity was closing
                                    soon, so it was important to act
                                    quickly.
6................................  None of these [SP].
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[GRID, SP ACROSS. RANDOMIZE GRID ROWS]
    Below are a number of statements with which you may or may not 
agree. Please indicate how much you agree or disagree with each 
statement.

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                                                Neither agree nor
  Strongly disagree      Somewhat disagree           disagree            Somewhat agree        Strongly agree
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                1                      2                      3                      4                      5
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21....................................  It is important to know the
                                         common signs of fraud when
                                         investing.
22....................................  The government reviews and
                                         investigates all alleged
                                         reports of investment fraud.
23....................................  I know where to go to report
                                         suspected or known incidents of
                                         investment fraud.
24....................................  I know where to go to check the
                                         background of a financial
                                         professional.
25....................................  Before I invest, it is important
                                         to check the registration and/
                                         or licensing status of a
                                         financial professional.
26....................................  Each year, it is important to
                                         check the registration and/or
                                         licensing of a financial
                                         professional with whom I
                                         invest.
27....................................  Before I invest, it is important
                                         to check the disciplinary
                                         history of a financial
                                         professional.
28....................................  Each year, it is important to
                                         check the disciplinary history
                                         of a financial professional.
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    Authority:  44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

    Dated: June 3, 2016.
Robert N. Sidman,
Deputy Secretary of the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2016-13623 Filed 6-8-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6351-01-P