[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 150 (Monday, August 5, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63398-63400]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-17180]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Bureau of Economic Analysis


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; Services Surveys: BE-185, Quarterly Survey of Financial 
Services Transactions Between U.S. Financial Services Providers and 
Foreign Persons

AGENCY: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of information collection, request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies to comment on proposed and continuing information 
collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information 
collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The 
purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment 
preceding submission of the collection to OMB.

DATES: To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed 
information collection must be received on or before October 4, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments to 
Christopher Stein, Chief, Services Surveys Branch, Bureau of Economic

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Analysis, by email to [email protected] or [email protected]. 
Please reference OMB Control Number 0608-0065 in the subject line of 
your comments. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or 
otherwise sensitive or protected information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
specific questions related to collection activities should be directed 
to Christopher Stein, Chief, Services Surveys Branch, Bureau of 
Economic Analysis; 301-278-9189; or via email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The Quarterly Survey of Financial Services Transactions between 
U.S. Financial Services Providers and Foreign Persons (Form BE-185) is 
an ongoing survey that collects data from U.S. persons who engage in 
covered financial services transactions with foreign persons. A U.S. 
person means any individual, branch, partnership, associated group, 
association, estate, trust, corporation, or other organization (whether 
or not organized under the laws of any State), resident in the United 
States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. A U.S. 
person must report if they had combined sales of covered financial 
services to foreign persons that exceeded $20 million for the previous 
fiscal year or are expected to exceed that amount during the current 
fiscal year, or if they had combined purchases of covered financial 
services from foreign persons that exceeded $15 million for the 
previous fiscal year, or are expected to exceed that amount during the 
current fiscal year.
    The data are needed to monitor U.S. trade in financial services, to 
analyze the impact of these cross-border services on the U.S. and 
foreign economies, to compile and improve the U.S. economic accounts, 
to support U.S. commercial policy on trade in financial services, to 
conduct trade promotion, and to improve the ability of U.S. businesses 
to identify and evaluate market opportunities. The data are used in 
estimating the trade in financial services component of the U.S. 
international transactions accounts (ITAs) and national income and 
product accounts (NIPAs).
    The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is proposing a single 
modification to the survey beginning with reporting for the first 
quarter of 2025. BEA proposes to collect sales and purchases of 
underwriting and private placement services separately for equity and 
debt instruments. Currently, the BE-185 quarterly survey collects sales 
and purchases of underwriting services for these types of instruments 
as a single type of financial service. This proposed breakout by 
instrument type would better align these services transactions with 
other source data used to produce financial account transactions, which 
also include a debt and equity breakout. The breakout would thus allow 
for methodological improvements to the estimation of fees and 
commissions used to produce financial account transactions. Lastly, the 
change would align the service types collected on the BE-185 quarterly 
survey with those collected on the BE-180 Benchmark Survey of Financial 
Services Transactions between U.S. Financial Services Providers and 
Foreign Persons.
    BEA estimates there will be no change in the average number of 
burden hours per response because reporters are already providing these 
data on their survey as a combined service type. Additionally, BEA 
believes the data are readily available in their accounting records and 
reporters are familiar with the breakout since the BE-180 benchmark 
survey already collects the data separately for equity and debt 
instruments.
    BEA does not plan to change the exemption levels used for the 
current quarterly survey. The language in the instructions and 
definitions will be reviewed and adjusted as necessary to clarify 
survey requirements.

II. Method of Collection

    BEA contacts potential respondents by mail at the end of each 
quarter. Respondents would be required to file the completed BE-185 
forms within 30 days after the end of each fiscal quarter that is not 
the final fiscal quarter of the year and within 45 days after the close 
of the final fiscal quarter of the year. Reports would be required from 
each U.S. person that had combined sales of covered financial services 
to foreign persons that exceeded $20 million for the previous fiscal 
year, or are expected to exceed that amount during the current fiscal 
year, or that had combined purchases of covered financial services from 
foreign persons that exceeded $15 million for the previous fiscal year, 
or that are expected to exceed that amount during the current fiscal 
year. Entities required to report will be contacted individually by 
BEA. Entities not contacted by BEA have no reporting responsibilities.
    BEA offers its electronic filing option, the eFile system, for use 
in reporting on Form BE-185. For more information about eFile, go to 
www.bea.gov/efile. In addition, BEA posts all its survey forms and 
reporting instructions on its website, www.bea.gov/ssb. These may be 
downloaded, completed, printed, and submitted via fax or mail.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0608-0065.
    Form Number(s): BE-185.
    Type of Review: Regular submission.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 2,860 annually (715 filed each 
quarter; 580 reporting mandatory data and 135 that would file exemption 
claims or voluntary responses).
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 hours is the average for the 
respondents filing mandatory data and 1 hour for those filing an 
exemption claim or voluntary response. Hours may vary considerably 
among respondents because of differences in company size and 
complexity.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 23,740.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: International Investment and Trade in Services 
Survey Act (Pub. L. 94-472, 22 U.S.C. 3101-3108, as amended), and 
section 5408 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988.

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Agency, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request 
to OMB to approve this Information Collection Request (ICR). Before 
including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal 
identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your 
entire comment--including your personal identifying information--may be 
made publicly available at any time. While you may ask us in your 
comment

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to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, 
we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Under Secretary of 
Economic Affairs, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2024-17180 Filed 8-2-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-06-P