[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 155 (Monday, August 12, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39845-39847]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-17185]


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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, with revision, 
the Reporting and Disclosure Requirements Related to Securities of 
State Member Banks as Required by Regulation H (FR H-1; OMB No. 7100-
0091).

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 11, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by FR H-1, by any of the 
following methods:
     Agency Website: https://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 on the Board's website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx as submitted, 
unless modified for technical reasons. Accordingly, your comments will 
not be edited to remove any identifying or contact information. Public 
comments may also be viewed electronically or in paper form in Room 
146, 1709 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006, between 9:00 a.m. 
and 5:00 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 
Office of Management and Budget (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 Paperwork Reduction Act 
(PRA) OMB submission, including the proposed reporting form and 
instructions, supporting statement, and other documentation will be 
placed into OMB's public docket files, if approved. These documents 
will also be made available on the Board's public website at https://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.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 15, 1984, OMB delegated to the Board 
authority under the PRA to approve 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.

[[Page 39846]]

Proposal Under OMB Delegated Authority To Extend for Three Years, With 
Revision, the Following Information Collection

    Report title: Reporting and Disclosure Requirements Related to 
Securities of State Member Banks as Required by Regulation H.
    Agency form number: FR H-1.
    OMB control number: 7100-0091.
    Frequency: Annually, Quarterly, and on occasion.
    Respondents: State member banks (SMBs).
    Estimated number of respondents: 2.
    Estimated average hours per response: Reporting requirements: Form 
8-A, 3.0 hours; Form 10, 218 hours; Regulation 12B, 1 hour; Rule 13e-1, 
13.0 hours; Regulation 14C and Schedule 14C, 98.2 hours; Regulation 14D 
and Schedule 14D, 65.14 hours; Rule 14f-l, 2.0 hours; Form 10-K, 
2395.73 hours; Form 10-Q, 190.42 hours; and Form 8-K, 7.71 hours; 
Disclosure requirements: Form 3, 0.16 hours; Form 4, 0.16 hours; and 
Form 5, 0.16 hours; Reporting and Disclosure requirements: Regulation 
14A and Schedule 14A, 12.75 hours; Rule 12b-25 and Form 12b-25, 2.50 
hours; Rule 13e-3 and Schedule 13E-3, 34.36 hours; and Form 15, 1.50 
hours.
    Estimated annual burden hours: Reporting requirements: Form 8-A, 6 
hours; Form 10, 436 hours; Regulation 12B, 2 hours; Rule 13e-1, 26 
hours; Regulation 14C and Schedule 14C, 196 hours; Regulation 14D and 
Schedule 14D, 130 hours; Rule 14f-l, 4 hours; Form 10-K, 4,791 hours; 
Form 10-Q, 1,143 hours; and Form 8-K, 15 hours; Disclosure 
requirements: Form 3, 0.32 hours; Form 4, 11 hours; and Form 5, 3 
hours; Reporting and Disclosure requirements: Regulation 14A and 
Schedule 14A, 26 hours; Rule 12b-25 and Form 12b-25, 5 hours; Rule 13e-
3 and Schedule 13E-3, 69 hours; and Form 15, 3 hours.
    General description of report: The Board's Regulation H requires 
SMBs whose securities are subject to registration pursuant to the 
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act) \1\ to disclose certain 
information to shareholders and securities exchanges and to report 
information relating to their securities to the Board using forms 
adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and in 
compliance with certain rules and regulations adopted by the SEC.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78a et seq.
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    Proposed revisions: The Board proposes to revise the FR H-1 to 
account for certain collections of information in SEC regulations that 
apply to SMBs with registered securities (that have not previously been 
accounted for) and the following relevant revisions to disclosure and 
reporting requirements associated with the FR H-1:
     In August 2015, the SEC adopted amendments to Item 402 of 
Regulation S-K and Form 8-K under the Exchange Act to implement Section 
953(b) of the Dodd-Frank Act by requiring disclosure of the median of 
the annual total compensation of all employees of a registrant 
(excluding the chief executive officer), the annual total compensation 
of that registrant's chief executive officer, and the ratio of the 
median of the annual total compensation of all employees to the annual 
total compensation of the chief executive officer.\2\ These revisions 
affect the collections associated with Regulation S-K, Regulation 14A 
and Schedule 14A, Regulation 14C and Schedule 14C, Form 8-K, and Form 
10-K.
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    \2\ See 80 FR 50103 (August 8, 2015).
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     In March 2017, the SEC adopted rule and form amendments 
that require registrants to include a hyperlink to the exhibits in 
their filings.\3\ These revisions affect the collections associated 
with Regulation S-K, Regulation S-T, Form 10, Form 8-K, Form 10-Q, and 
Form 10-K.
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    \3\ See 82 FR 14130 (March 3, 2017).
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     In June 2018, the SEC adopted amendments to the definition 
of ``smaller reporting company'' to expand the number of registrants 
that qualify as smaller reporting companies and thereby are eligible to 
rely on the scaled disclosure requirements.\4\ These revisions affect 
the collections associated with Regulation S-K, Regulation 12B, 
Regulation 14A and Schedule 14A, Regulation 14C and Schedule 14C, Form 
10, Form 10-Q, and Form 10-K.
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    \4\ See 83 FR 31992 (July 10, 2018).
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     In October 2018, the SEC adopted rule and form amendments 
to address disclosure requirements that have become redundant, 
duplicative, overlapping, outdated, or superseded as a result of other 
SEC disclosure requirements, U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting 
Principles, International Financial Reporting Standards, or changes in 
the information environment.\5\ These revisions affect the collections 
associated with Regulation S-X, Form 10-Q, Form 10-K, and Form 10.
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    \5\ See 83 FR 50148 (October 4, 2018).
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     In December 2018, the SEC adopted amendments to implement 
Section 955 of the Dodd-Frank Act, which require a company to describe 
any practices or policies it has adopted regarding the ability of its 
employees (including officers) or directors to purchase financial 
instruments, or otherwise engage in transactions, that hedge or offset, 
or are designed to hedge or offset, any decrease in the market value of 
equity securities granted as compensation, or held directly or 
indirectly by the employee or director.\6\ These revisions affect the 
collections associated with Regulation S-K, Regulation 14A and Schedule 
14A, and Regulation 14C and Schedule 14C.
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    \6\ See 84 FR 2402 (February 6, 2019).
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     In December 2018, the SEC adopted rule and form revisions 
that would modernize the property disclosure requirements for mining 
registrants.\7\ These revisions affect the collections associated with 
Regulation S-K, Form 10, and Form 10-K.
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    \7\ See 83 FR 66344 (December 26, 2018).
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     In March 2019, the SEC adopted rule amendments based on 
the recommendations made in the staff's Report on Modernization and 
Simplification of Regulation S-K, as required by Section 72003 of the 
Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act.\8\ These amendments were 
designed to modernize and simplify disclosure requirements for public 
companies, investment advisers, and investment companies. These 
revisions affect the collections associated with Regulation S-K, 
Regulation S-T, Regulation 12B, Form 10, Form 8-K, Form 10-Q, and Form 
10-K.
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    \8\ See 84 FR 12674 (April 2, 2019).
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    Legal authorization and confidentiality: Various provisions of the 
Exchange Act require issuers to file reports with the SEC and make 
certain disclosures, and sections 12(i) and 23(a)(1) of the Exchange 
Act authorize the Board to adopt rules and regulations requiring 
qualifying SMBs to file those reports with the Board (15 U.S.C. 78l(i) 
and 78w(a)(1)). The FR H-1 is mandatory. Reports filed with the Board 
pursuant to this collection are not considered confidential and must be 
disclosed publically under Regulation H (12 CFR 208.36(c)(3)). However, 
a SMB may request that a report or document not be disclosed to the 
public (12 CFR 208.36(d)). Should a SMB request confidential treatment 
of such information, the question of whether the information is 
entitled to confidential treatment would be determined on a case-by-
case basis. Information may be kept confidential under exemption 4 of 
the Freedom of Information Act, which protects privileged or 
confidential commercial or financial information (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4)).

[[Page 39847]]

    Consultation outside the agency: The reporting and disclosure 
requirements discussed in this supporting statement were promulgated by 
the SEC. The Board has not consulted with the SEC or any other parties 
with regard to the proposed extension for three years, with revision, 
of the FR H-1.

    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, August 7, 
2019.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Assistant Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2019-17185 Filed 8-9-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6210-01-P