[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 138 (Friday, July 17, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 43420-43422]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-14108]


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DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

12 CFR Part 34

[Docket ID OCC-2019-0004]
RIN 1557-AE91


Other Real Estate Owned and Technical Amendments

AGENCY: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Treasury.

ACTION: Final rule; correction.

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SUMMARY: On October 22, 2019, the Office of the Comptroller of the 
Currency (OCC) published in the Federal Register a final rule to revise 
provisions on other real estate owned and make related technical 
amendments. Due to a technical error in the amendatory text, certain 
revisions in the final rule were not incorporated in the Code of 
Federal Regulations. This final rule corrects those omissions.

DATES: The final rule is effective on July 17, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Korzeniewski, Counsel, or 
Anthony Borzaro, Attorney, Chief Counsel's Office, (202) 649-5490; or 
for persons who are hearing impaired, TTY, (202) 649-5597.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On October 22, 2019, the OCC published in the Federal Register a 
final rule to revise its rule on other real estate owned (OREO) at 12 
CFR part 34, subpart E, and make related technical amendments (OREO 
final rule).\1\ The OREO final rule was intended to apply to national 
banks and federal savings associations, and the rule text printed in 
the OREO final rule did incorporate both types of institutions in all 
relevant sections. However, due to a technical error in the amendatory 
instructions, the phrase ``federal savings associations'' was not 
included in two places in the introductory text to 12 CFR 
34.83(a)(3)(i). This final rule corrects the amendatory instructions to 
add the phrase ``federal savings associations'' in those two locations. 
This final rule does not make any substantive changes to the OREO final 
rule or any requirements of 12 CFR part 34, subpart E.
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    \1\ 84 FR 56369 (Oct. 22, 2019).
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II. Administrative Law Statements

A. Administrative Procedure Act

    The OCC is issuing the final rule without prior notice and the 
opportunity for public comment and the delayed effective date 
ordinarily prescribed by the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).\2\ 
Pursuant to section 553(b)(B) of the APA, general notice and the 
opportunity for public comment are not required with respect to a 
rulemaking when an ``agency for good cause finds (and incorporates the 
finding and a brief statement of reasons therefor in the rules issued) 
that notice and public procedure thereon are impracticable, 
unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.'' \3\
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    \2\ 5 U.S.C. 553.
    \3\ 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(A).
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    The OCC believes that the final rule should be effective 
immediately upon publication in the Federal Register. The final rule 
merely implements a technical correction to the amendatory text to 
reflect the text of the OREO final rule for purposes of accurate 
printing in the Code of Federal Regulations and has no substantive 
effect. The OCC previously requested comment on the revision, adopted 
the revision in a final rule, and believes requesting further comment 
or delaying the correction would be unnecessary.
    For these reasons, the OCC finds that there is good cause to issue 
the rule without notice and comment.\4\
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    \4\ 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B); 553(d)(3).
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    The APA also requires a 30-day delayed effective date, except for 
(1) substantive rules which grant or

[[Page 43421]]

recognize an exemption or relieve a restriction; (2) interpretative 
rules and statements of policy; or (3) as otherwise provided by the 
agency for good cause.\5\ The final rule merely implements a technical 
correction to the amendatory text to reflect the text of the OREO final 
rule for purposes of accurate printing in the Code of Federal 
Regulations and has no substantive effect.\6\ Therefore, the OCC 
similarly finds good cause to dispense with the 30-day delayed 
effective date.
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    \5\ 5 U.S.C. 553(d).
    \6\ 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1).
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B. Congressional Review Act

    For purposes of Congressional Review Act, the OMB makes a 
determination as to whether a final rule constitutes a ``major'' 
rule.\7\ If a rule is deemed a ``major rule'' by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB), the Congressional Review Act generally 
provides that the rule may not take effect until at least 60 days 
following its publication.\8\
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    \7\ 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.
    \8\ 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(3).
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    The Congressional Review Act defines a ``major rule'' as any rule 
that the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs of the OMB finds has resulted in or is likely to result in (A) 
an annual effect on the economy of $100,000,000 or more; (B) a major 
increase in costs or prices for consumers, individual industries, 
Federal, State, or local government agencies or geographic regions, or 
(C) significant adverse effects on competition, employment, investment, 
productivity, innovation, or on the ability of United States-based 
enterprises to compete with foreign-based enterprises in domestic and 
export markets.\9\
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    \9\ 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
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    For the same reasons set forth above, the OCC is adopting the final 
rule without the delayed effective date generally prescribed under the 
Congressional Review Act. The delayed effective date required by the 
Congressional Review Act does not apply to any rule for which an agency 
for good cause finds (and incorporates the finding and a brief 
statement of reasons therefor in the rule issued) that notice and 
public procedure thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to 
the public interest.\10\ In light of the fact that the final rule has 
no substantive effect and merely implements a technical correction to 
the amendatory text to reflect the text of the OREO final rule for 
purposes of accurate printing in the Code of Federal Regulations, the 
OCC believes that delaying the effective date of the rule is 
unnecessary.
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    \10\ 5 U.S.C. 808.
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    As required by the Congressional Review Act, the OCC will submit 
the final rule and other appropriate reports to Congress and the 
Government Accountability Office for review.

C. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521) (PRA) 
states that no agency may conduct or sponsor, nor is the respondent 
required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number. The final rule does not affect any 
current information collections for 12 CFR part 34.

D. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) \11\ requires an agency to 
consider whether the rules it proposes will have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities.\12\ The RFA applies 
only to rules for which an agency publishes a general notice of 
proposed rulemaking pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b). As discussed 
previously, consistent with section 553(b)(B) of the APA, the OCC has 
determined for good cause that general notice and opportunity for 
public comment is unnecessary, and therefore the OCC has not issued a 
notice of proposed rulemaking. Accordingly, the OCC has concluded that 
the RFA's requirements relating to initial and final regulatory 
flexibility analysis do not apply.
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    \11\ 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.
    \12\ Under regulations issued by the Small Business 
Administration, a small entity includes a depository institution, 
bank holding company, or savings and loan holding company with total 
assets of $600 million or less and trust companies with total assets 
of $41.5 million or less. See 13 CFR 121.201.
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E. Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994

    Pursuant to section 302(a) of the Riegle Community Development and 
Regulatory Improvement Act (RCDRIA),\13\ in determining the effective 
date and administrative compliance requirements for new regulations 
that impose additional reporting, disclosure, or other requirements on 
insured depository institutions (IDIs), each Federal banking agency 
must consider, consistent with the principle of safety and soundness 
and the public interest, any administrative burdens that such 
regulations would place on depository institutions, including small 
depository institutions, and customers of depository institutions, as 
well as the benefits of such regulations. In addition, section 302(b) 
of RCDRIA requires new regulations and amendments to regulations that 
impose additional reporting, disclosures, or other new requirements on 
IDIs generally to take effect on the first day of a calendar quarter 
that begins on or after the date on which the regulations are published 
in final form, with certain exceptions, including for good cause.\14\ 
For the reasons described above, the OCC finds good cause exists under 
section 302 of RCDRIA to publish this final rule with an immediate 
effective date.
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    \13\ 12 U.S.C. 4802(a).
    \14\ 12 U.S.C. 4802.
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    As such, the final rule will be effective on July 17, 2020.

F. Use of Plain Language

    Section 722 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act \15\ requires the Federal 
banking agencies to use plain language in all proposed and final rules 
published after January 1, 2000. The OCC has sought to present the 
final rule in a simple and straightforward manner.
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    \15\ 12 U.S.C. 4809.
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G. Unfunded Mandates

    As a general matter, the Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995 (UMRA), 2 
U.S.C. 1531 et seq., requires the preparation of a budgetary impact 
statement before promulgating a rule that includes a Federal mandate 
that may result in the expenditure by State, local, and tribal 
governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 
million or more in any one year. However, the UMRA does not apply to 
final rules for which a general notice of proposed rulemaking was not 
published. See 2 U.S.C. 1532(a). Therefore, because the OCC has found 
good cause to dispense with notice and comment for this final rule, the 
OCC has not prepared a budgetary impact statement for the rule under 
the UMRA.

List of Subjects in 12 CFR Part 34

    Appraisal, Appraiser, Banks, Banking, Consumer protection, Credit, 
Mortgages, National banks, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, 
Savings associations, Truth in lending.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Office of the 
Comptroller of the Currency amends 12 CFR part 34 as follows:

PART 34--REAL ESTATE LENDING AND APPRAISALS

0
1. The authority citation for part 34 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 12 U.S.C. 1 et seq., 25b, 29, 93a, 371, 1462a, 1463, 
1464, 1465, 1701j-3, 1828(o), 3331 et seq., 5101 et seq., and 
5412(b)(2)(B) and 15 U.S.C. 1639h.

[[Page 43422]]

Subpart E--Other Real Estate Owned


Sec.  34.83  [Amended]

0
2. In Sec.  34.83 amend paragraph (a)(3)(i) introductory text by adding 
``or Federal savings association'' after ``national bank'' wherever it 
occurs.

Brian P. Brooks,
Acting Comptroller of the Currency.

[FR Doc. 2020-14108 Filed 7-16-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-33-P