[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 163 (Friday, August 21, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51716-51717]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-18371]


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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 Recordkeeping Requirements Associated with the Real 
Estate Lending Standards Regulation for State Member Banks.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 20, 2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by FR H-5, 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 the OMB

[[Page 51717]]

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 
personally identifiable information at the commenter's request. 
Accordingly, comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or 
contact information. Public comments may also be viewed electronically 
or in paper 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 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 
collections of information 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.

Proposal Under OMB Delegated Authority To Extend for Three Years, 
Without Revision, the Following Information Collection

    Report title: Recordkeeping Requirements Associated with the Real 
Estate Lending Standards Regulation for State Member Banks.
    Agency form number: FR H-5.
    OMB control number: 7100-0261.
    Frequency: Policy statement, annually; policy statement (de novo), 
annually; recordkeeping for loans with loan-to-value (LTV's) that 
exceed supervisory limits and maintaining a system of review, 
quarterly.
    Respondents: State member banks.
    Estimated number of respondents: 754.
    Estimated average hours per response: Policy statement, 5 hours; 
policy statement (de novo), 20 hours; recordkeeping for loans with 
LTV's that exceed supervisory limits and maintaining a system of 
review, 5 hours.
    Estimated annual burden hours: Policy statement, 3,770 hours; 
policy statement (de novo), 20 hours; recordkeeping for loans with 
LTV's that exceed supervisory limits and maintaining a system of 
review, 15,080 hours.
    General description of report: Pursuant to the Board's Regulation 
H, state member banks (SMBs) must adopt and maintain a written real 
estate lending policy. Additionally, this information collection 
includes certain voluntary recordkeeping provisions in the Interagency 
Guidelines for Real Estate Lending Policies (Guidelines).\1\
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    \1\ See 12 CFR part 208, Appendix C.
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    Legal authorization and confidentiality: The FR H-5 is authorized 
by section 304 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement 
Act of 1991 (FDICIA),\2\ which provides that ``each appropriate Federal 
banking agency shall adopt uniform regulations prescribing standards 
for extensions of credit that are--(A) secured by liens on interests in 
real estate; or (B) made for the purpose of financing the construction 
of a building or other improvements to real estate.'' \3\ The 
recordkeeping requirement contained in the Board's Regulation H is 
mandatory. The recordkeeping provisions in the Guidelines are 
voluntary, as the Guidelines are nonbinding guidance.
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    \2\ 12 U.S.C. 1828(o).
    \3\ 12 U.S.C. 1828(o)(1). The Board also has the authority to 
require reports from state member banks (12 U.S.C. 248(a) and 324).
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    Because these records would be maintained at each banking 
organization, the Freedom of Information Act (``FOIA'') would only be 
implicated if the Board obtained such records as part of the 
examination or supervision of a banking organization. In the event the 
records are obtained by the Board as part of an examination or 
supervision of a financial institution, this information may be 
considered confidential pursuant to exemption 8 of the FOIA, which 
protects information contained in ``examination, operating, or 
condition reports'' obtained in the bank supervisory process.\4\ In 
addition, the information may also be kept confidential under exemption 
4 of the FOIA, which protects ``commercial or financial information 
obtained from a person [that is] privileged or confidential.'' \5\
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    \4\ 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(8).
    \5\ 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4).

    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, August 17, 
2020.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Assistant Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2020-18371 Filed 8-20-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6210-01-P