[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 231 (Friday, November 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61636-61637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-26087]


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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM


Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment 
Request

AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

ACTION: Notice, request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) 
invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, without 
revision, the Domestic Branch Notification (FR 4001; OMB No. 7100-
0097).

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before January 29, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by FR 4001, by any of 
the following methods:
     Agency website: http://www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx.
     Email: [email protected]. Include OMB 
number in the subject line of the message.
     Fax: (202) 452-3819 or (202) 452-3102.
     Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary, Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, 
Washington, DC 20551.

All public comments are available from the Board's website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx as submitted, unless 
modified for technical reasons or to remove sensitive PII (personally 
identifiable information) at the commenter's request. Public comments 
may also be viewed electronically or in paper form in Room 3515, 1801 K 
Street NW. (between 18th and 19th Streets NW), Washington, DC 20006 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays. For security reasons, the Board 
requires that visitors make an appointment to inspect comments. You may 
do so by calling (202) 452-3684. Upon arrival, visitors will be 
required to present valid government-issued photo identification and to 
submit to security screening in order to inspect and photocopy 
comments.
    Additionally, commenters may send a copy of their comments to the 
OMB Desk Officer--Shagufta Ahmed--Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office 
Building, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503 or by 
fax to (202) 395-6974.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A copy of the PRA OMB submission, 
including the proposed reporting form and instructions, supporting 
statement, and other documentation will be placed into OMB's public 
docket files, once approved. These documents will also be made 
available on the Board's public website at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/reportforms/review.aspx or may be requested 
from the agency clearance officer, whose name appears below.
    Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer--Nuha Elmaghrabi--Office of 
the Chief Data Officer, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System, Washington, DC 20551 (202) 452-3829. Telecommunications Device 
for the Deaf (TDD) users may contact (202) 263-4869, Board of Governors 
of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 15, 1984, the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) delegated to the Board authority under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (PRA) to approve of and assign OMB control numbers to 
collection of information requests and requirements conducted or 
sponsored by the Board. In exercising this delegated authority, the 
Board is directed to take every reasonable step to solicit comment. In 
determining whether to approve a collection of information, the Board 
will consider all comments received from the public and other agencies.

Request for Comment on Information Collection Proposal

    The Board invites public comment on the following information 
collection, which is being reviewed under authority delegated by the 
OMB under the PRA. Comments are invited on the following:
    a. Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the Board's functions; including whether the 
information has practical utility;
    b. The accuracy of the Board's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed information collection, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    c. Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected;
    d. Ways to minimize the burden of information collection on 
respondents, including through the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology; and
    e. Estimates of capital or startup costs and costs of operation, 
maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.

At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations 
received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the Board 
should modify the proposal prior.

Proposal To Approve Under OMB Delegated Authority the Extension for 
Three Years, Without Revision, of the Following Report

    Report title: Domestic Branch Notification.
    Agency form number: FR 4001.
    OMB control number: 7100-0097.
    Frequency: On Occasion.
    Respondents: State member banks (SMBs).
    Estimated number of respondents: 320.
    Estimated average hours per response: Expedited notifications, 1.5 
hours; and nonexpedited notifications, 2 hours.
    Estimated annual burden hours: Expedited notifications, 98 hours; 
and nonexpedited notifications, 510 hours.
    General description of report: The Federal Reserve Act and the 
Board's

[[Page 61637]]

Regulation H require a state member bank to seek prior approval of the 
Federal Reserve System before establishing or acquiring a domestic 
branch. Such requests for approval must be filed as applications at the 
appropriate Reserve Bank for the state member bank. Due to the limited 
information that a state member bank generally has to provide for 
branch proposals, there is no formal reporting form for a domestic 
branch application. A state member bank is required to notify the 
Federal Reserve by letter of its intent to establish one or more new 
branches and provide with the letter evidence that public notice of the 
proposed branch(es) has been published by the state member bank in the 
appropriate newspaper(s).\1\ The Federal Reserve uses the information 
provided to fulfill its statutory obligation to review branch 
applications before acting on the proposals and otherwise to supervise 
state member banks.
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    \1\ Per Rules of Procedure (12 CFR 262), Board regulations 
require the use of newspaper for public notifications. For the 
purposes of FR 4001, the newspaper used must be in the general 
circulation of the community or communities in which the head office 
of the bank and the proposed branch are located.
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    Legal authorization and confidentiality: The Board's filing 
requirements associated with Domestic Branch Notification are 
authorized under section 9(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 
321), which requires state member banks to obtain Board approval before 
establishing a domestic branch (Board's Regulation H (12 CFR 208.6)). 
The obligation of state member banks to request prior approval from the 
Federal Reserve to establish a domestic branch is mandatory. The 
information contained in a state member bank's Domestic Branch 
Notification is considered public. A state member bank's request that 
any portion(s) of a Domestic Branch Notification be kept confidential 
pursuant to exemption 4 of the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 
552(b)(4)) must be submitted in accordance with section 261.15 of the 
Board's Rules Regarding Availability of Information (12 CFR 261.15).

    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, November 27, 
2018.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Assistant Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2018-26087 Filed 11-29-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6210-01-P