[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 211 (Thursday, October 31, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58388-58390]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-23797]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') is 
seeking public comment on its proposal to extend for an additional 
three years, the current PRA clearance for its shared enforcement 
authority with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (``CFPB'') for 
information collection requirements contained in the CFPB's Regulation 
O. That clearance expires on February 29, 2020.

DATES: Comments must be filed by December 30, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper, by 
following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ``MARS (Regulation O) 
PRA Comment, FTC File No. P134812'' on your comment, and file your 
comment online at https://www.regulations.gov by following the 
instructions on the web-based form. If you prefer to file your comment 
on paper, mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade 
Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 
CC-5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the 
following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 
Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW, 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex 
J), Washington, DC 20024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information 
should be addressed to Stephanie Rosenthal, Division of Financial 
Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, 600 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20580, (202) 326-3332.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title X of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform 
and Consumer Protection Act (``Dodd-Frank Act''), Public Law 111-203, 
124 Stat. 1376 (2010), transferred the Commission's rulemaking 
authority under the mortgage provisions in section 626 of the 2009 
Omnibus Appropriations Act, as amended,\1\ to the CFPB.\2\ On December 
16, 2011, the CFPB republished the Mortgage Assistance Relief Services 
(``MARS'') Rule as Regulation O (12 CFR 1015).\3\ As a result, the 
Commission subsequently rescinded its MARS Rule (16 CFR part 322).\4\ 
Nonetheless, under the Dodd-Frank Act, the FTC retains its authority to 
bring law enforcement actions to enforce Regulation O.\5\
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    \1\ Public Law 111-8, section 626, 123 Stat. 524 (Mar. 11, 
2009).
    \2\ Dodd-Frank Act, Sec.  1061, 12 U.S.C. 5581 (2010).
    \3\ 76 FR 78130.
    \4\ 77 FR 22200 (April 13, 2012).
    \5\ Dodd-Frank Act, Sec.  1061(b)(5), 12 U.S.C. 5581(b)(5).
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    Regulation O contains information collection requirements that have 
been approved by OMB under the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. (OMB Control 
Number 3084-0157). The FTC, as a co-enforcer, seeks OMB clearance for 
its share of the estimated PRA burden for the information collection 
requirements of Regulation O. The Rule includes disclosure requirements 
to assist purchasers of mortgage assistance relief services in making 
well-informed decisions and avoiding unfair or

[[Page 58389]]

deceptive acts and practices. The information that must be retained 
under Regulation O's recordkeeping requirements is used by the CFPB and 
the FTC for enforcement purposes and to ensure compliance by MARS 
providers with Regulation O.

Burden Statement

    Because the FTC and CFPB share enforcement authority for this rule, 
the FTC is seeking clearance for one-half of the following burden 
estimates. These estimates are based on the agencies' law enforcement 
experience and the recent analysis conducted as part of the CFPB's 
clearance renewal for the information collections associated with 
Regulation O.\6\ The FTC and CFPB estimate that there are approximately 
120 for-profit, non-attorney entities offering MARS services and 
subject to Regulation O's requirements.\7\
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    \6\ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Agency Information 
Collection Activities: Comment Request, 83 FR 45,111 (Nov. 5, 2018).
    \7\ See CFPB Supporting Statement, Mortgage Assistance Relief 
Services (Regulation O) 12 CFR 1015, OMB Control No: 3170-0007 (Nov. 
28, 2018), available at https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewDocument?ref_nbr=201808-3170-003; clearance expires on July 
31, 2022.
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    Estimated annual hours burden: 360 (FTC share).
    FTC staff estimates that compliance with Regulation O's disclosure 
requirements for MARS providers requires 6 hours of labor annually.\8\ 
Multiplying this figure by 120 entities yields a total burden for 
covered providers of 720 hours annually.\9\ For PRA purposes, the FTC 
and CFPB share enforcement authority and split the information 
collection burden associated with the Rule equally. As a result, the 
FTC assumes 360 hours of this total annual hours burden.
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    \8\ Id.
    \9\ Id.
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    Estimated associated labor cost: $11,747 (FTC share).
    In calculating the associated labor costs, FTC staff estimates that 
a compliance officer or equivalent will prepare the required 
disclosures at an hourly rate of $32.63/hr.\10\ Thus, the estimated 
annual labor cost is $23,494 (120 providers x 6 hours x $33.26) of 
which the FTC assumes half, or $11,747.
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    \10\ This estimate is based on the median hourly wage for a 
Compliance Officer (occupation code 13-1041) of $32.63 provided by 
the Bureau of Labor Statistics. See BLS Occupational Employment and 
Wages estimate of the median hourly wage for a Compliance Officer 
(occupation code 13-1041) of $32.63, available at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes131041.htm.

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                                                   Annual burden                    Associated         Total
     Information collection          Number of       hours per     Total burden    hourly labor     respondent
                                    respondents     respondent         hours           cost            costs
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                                             120               6             720          $32.63         $23,494
FTC 50% Share...................  ..............  ..............             360  ..............          11,747
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Request for Comment

    Pursuant to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC invites 
comments on: (1) Whether the disclosure and recordkeeping requirements 
are necessary, including whether the information will be practically 
useful; (2) the accuracy of our burden estimates, including whether the 
methodology and assumptions used are valid; (3) ways to enhance the 
quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and 
(4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. For the FTC to consider 
your comment, we must receive it on or before December 30, 2019. Write 
``MARS (Regulation O) PRA Comment, FTC File No. P134812'' on your 
comment. Postal mail addressed to the Commission is subject to delay 
due to heightened security screening. As a result, we encourage you to 
submit your comments online, or to send them to the Commission by 
courier or overnight service. To make sure that the Commission 
considers your online comment, you must file it through the https://www.regulations.gov website by following the instructions on the web-
based form provided. Your comment--including your name and your state--
will be placed on the public record of this proceeding, including the 
https://www.regulations.gov website. As a matter of discretion, the 
Commission tries to remove individuals' home contact information from 
comments before placing them on the regulations.gov site.
    If you file your comment on paper, write ``MARS (Regulation O) PRA 
Comment, FTC File No. P134812'' on your comment and on the envelope, 
and mail it to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office 
of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite CC-5610 (Annex J), 
Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the following address: 
Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Constitution Center, 
400 7th Street SW, 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 
20024. If possible, submit your paper comment to the Commission by 
courier or overnight service.
    Because your comment will be placed on the publicly accessible 
website at www.regulations.gov, you are solely responsible for making 
sure that your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential 
information. In particular, your comment should not include any 
sensitive personal information, such as your or anyone else's Social 
Security number; date of birth; driver's license number or other state 
identification number, or foreign country equivalent; passport number; 
financial account number; or credit or debit card number. You are also 
solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include 
any sensitive health information, such as medical records or other 
individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment 
should not include any ``trade secret or any commercial or financial 
information which . . . is privileged or confidential''--as provided by 
Section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 
16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)--including in particular competitively sensitive 
information such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, 
patterns, devices, manufacturing processes, or customer names.
    Comments containing material for which confidential treatment is 
requested must be filed in paper form, must be clearly labeled 
``Confidential,'' and must comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c). In particular, 
the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the 
comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and 
must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from 
the public record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c). Your comment will be kept 
confidential only if the General Counsel grants your request in 
accordance with the law and the public interest. Once your comment has 
been posted publicly at www.regulations.gov, we cannot redact

[[Page 58390]]

or remove your comment unless you submit a confidentiality request that 
meets the requirements for such treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and 
the General Counsel grants that request.
    The FTC Act and other laws that the Commission administers permit 
the collection of public comments to consider and use in this 
proceeding as appropriate. The Commission will consider all timely and 
responsive public comments that it receives on or before December 30, 
2019. For information on the Commission's privacy policy, including 
routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy.

Heather Hippsley,
Deputy General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2019-23797 Filed 10-30-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6750-01-P