[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 227 (Friday, November 25, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 85222-85223]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-28393]


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FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Revision of 
Information Collection; National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked 
Households; Comment Request (3064-0167)

AGENCY: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

ACTION: Notice and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The FDIC, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork 
and respondent burden and as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment 
on the survey collection instrument for its fourth National Survey of 
Unbanked and Underbanked Households (Household Survey), currently 
approved under OMB Control No. 3064-0167, scheduled to be conducted in 
partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau as a supplement to its June 
2017 Current Population Survey (CPS). The survey seeks to estimate the 
proportions of unbanked and underbanked households in the U.S. and to 
identify the factors that inhibit the participation of these households 
in the mainstream banking system, and opportunities to expand the use 
of banking services among underserved consumers. The results of these 
ongoing surveys will help policymakers and bankers understand the 
issues and challenges underserved households perceive when deciding how 
and where to conduct financial transactions.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before January 24, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments to 
the FDIC by any of the following methods:
     http://www.FDIC.gov/regulations/laws/federal/notices.html.
     Email: [email protected]. Include the name and number of 
the collection in the subject line of the message.
     Mail: Manny Cabeza (202-898-3767), Counsel, MB-3007, 
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 550 17th Street NW., Washington, 
DC 20429.
     Hand Delivery: Comments may be hand-delivered to the guard 
station at the rear of the 17th Street Building (located on F Street), 
on business days between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

All comments should refer to OMB control number 3064-0167. A copy of 
the comments may also be submitted to the OMB desk officer for the 
FDIC: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of 
Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 
20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Manny Cabeza, at the FDIC address 
above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FDIC is considering possible revisions 
to the following collection of information:
    Title: National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households.
    OMB Number: 3064-0167.
    Frequency of Response: Once.
    Affected Public: U.S. Households.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 50,000.
    Average Time per Response: 10 minutes (0.16 hours) per respondent.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 0.16 hours x 50,000 respondents = 
8,334 hours.
    General Description of Collection: The FDIC recognizes that public 
confidence in the banking system is strengthened when banks effectively 
serve the broadest possible set of consumers. As a result, the agency 
is committed to increasing the participation of unbanked and 
underbanked households in the financial mainstream by ensuring that all 
Americans have access to safe, secure, and affordable banking services. 
The National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households is one 
contribution to this end.
    The National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households is also 
a key component of the FDIC's efforts to

[[Page 85223]]

comply with a Congressional mandate contained in section 7 of the 
Federal Deposit Insurance Reform Conforming Amendments Act of 2005 
(``Reform Act'') (Pub. L. 109-173), which calls for the FDIC to conduct 
ongoing surveys ``on efforts by insured depository institutions to 
bring those individuals and families who have rarely, if ever, held a 
checking account, a savings account or other type of transaction or 
check cashing account at an insured depository institution (hereafter 
in this section referred to as the `unbanked') into the conventional 
finance system.'' Section 7 further instructs the FDIC to consider 
several factors in its conduct of the surveys, including: (1) ``what 
cultural, language and identification issues as well as transaction 
costs appear to most prevent `unbanked' individuals from establishing 
conventional accounts''; and (2) ``what is a fair estimate of the size 
and worth of the ``unbanked'' market in the United States.'' The 
National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households is designed to 
address these factors and provide a factual basis on the proportions of 
unbanked households. Such a factual basis is necessary to adequately 
assess banks' efforts to serve these households as required by the 
statutory mandate.
    To obtain this information, the FDIC partnered with the U.S. Census 
Bureau, which administered the Household Survey supplement (``FDIC 
Supplement') to households that participated in the January 2009, June 
2011, June 2013 and June 2015 CPS. The results of these surveys were 
released to the public in December 2009, September 2012, October 2014, 
and October 2016, respectively.
    The FDIC supplement has yielded nationally-representative data, not 
otherwise available, on the size and characteristics of the population 
that is unbanked or underbanked, the use by this population of 
alternative financial services, and the reasons why some households do 
not make greater use of mainstream banking services. The National 
Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households is the only population-
representative survey conducted at the national level that provides 
state-level estimates of the size and characteristics of unbanked and 
underbanked households for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. 
An executive summary of the results of the first three Household 
Surveys, the full reports, and the survey instruments can be accessed 
through the following link: http://www.economicinclusion.gov/surveys/.
    Consistent with the statutory mandate to conduct the surveys on an 
ongoing basis, the FDIC already has in place arrangements for 
conducting the fourth Household Survey as a supplement to the June 2017 
CPS. However, prior to finalizing the next survey questionnaire, the 
FDIC seeks to solicit public comment on whether changes to the existing 
instrument are desirable and, if so, to what extent. It should be noted 
that, as a supplement of the CPS survey, the Household Survey needs to 
adhere to specific parameters that include limits in the length and 
sensitivity of the questions that can be asked of CPS respondents. 
Specifically, there is a strict limitation on the number of questions 
permitted and the average time required to complete the survey.

Request for Comment

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the collections of information 
are necessary for the proper performance of the FDIC's functions, 
including whether the information has practical utility; (b) the 
accuracy of the estimates of the burden of the information collections, 
including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) 
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collections of 
information on respondents, including through the use of automated 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology. All 
comments will become a matter of public record.

    Dated at Washington, DC, this 21st day of November 2016.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Robert E. Feldman,
Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-28393 Filed 11-23-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6714-01-P