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FIL-86-2004 Attachment

[Federal Register: July 20, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 138)]

[Proposed Rules]

[Page 43347-43351]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr20jy04-16]


 

========================================================================

Proposed Rules

Federal Register

________________________________________________________________________


 

This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of

the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these

notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in

the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.


 

========================================================================


 

[[Page 43347]]


 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY


 

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency


 

12 CFR Chap. I


 

[Docket No. 04-18]


 

BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM


 

12 CFR Chap. II


 

[Docket No. R-1206]


 

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION


 

12 CFR Chap. III


 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY


 

Office of Thrift Supervision


 

12 CFR Chap. V


 

[No. 2004-35]


 

 

Request for Burden Reduction Recommendations; Consumer

Protection: Account/Deposit Relationships and Miscellaneous Consumer

Rules; Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act of 1996

Review


 

AGENCIES: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Treasury;

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board); Federal

Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC); and Office of Thrift Supervision

(OTS), Treasury.


 

ACTION: Notice of regulatory review; request for comments.


 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------


 

SUMMARY: The OCC, Board, FDIC, and OTS (``we'' or ``the Agencies'') are

reviewing our regulations to identify outdated, unnecessary, or unduly

burdensome regulatory requirements pursuant to the Economic Growth and

Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act of 1996 (EGRPRA). Today, we request

your comments and suggestions on ways to reduce burden in rules we have

categorized as Consumer Protection: Account/Deposit Relationships and

Miscellaneous Consumer Rules, consistent with our statutory

obligations. All comments are welcome. We specifically invite comment

on the following issues: Whether statutory changes are needed; whether

the regulations contain requirements that are not needed to serve the

purposes of the statutes they implement; the extent to which the

regulations may adversely affect competition; the cost of compliance

associated with reporting, recordkeeping, and disclosure requirements,

particularly on small institutions; whether any regulatory requirements

are inconsistent or redundant; and whether any regulations are unclear.

We will analyze the comments received and propose burden-reducing

changes to our regulations where appropriate. Some of your suggestions

for burden reduction might require legislative changes. Where

legislative changes would be required, we will consider your

suggestions in recommending appropriate changes to Congress.


 

DATES: Written comments must be received no later than October 18,

2004.


 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:

EGRPRA Web site: http://www.EGRPRA.gov.


 

Comments submitted at the Agencies' joint Web site will

automatically be distributed to all the Agencies upon receipt. Comments

received at the EGRPRA Web site and by other means will be posted on

the Web site to the extent possible.

Individual agency addresses: You are also welcome to submit

comments to the Agencies at the following contact points (due to delays

in paper mail delivery in the Washington area, commenters may prefer to

submit their comments by alternative means):

OCC: You may submit comments, identified by [docket 0418], by any

of the following methods:

E-mail: regs.comments@occ.treas.gov. Include [docket 0418]

in the subject line of the message.

Fax: (202) 874-4448.

Mail: Public Information Room, Office of the Comptroller

of the Currency,250 E Street, SW., Mailstop 1-5,Washington, DC

20219,Attention: Docket .

Public Inspection: You may inspect and photocopy comments at the

Public Information Room. You can make an appointment to inspect the

comments by calling (202) 874-5043.

Board: You may submit comments, identified by Docket Number R-1206,

by any of the following methods:

Agency Web site: http://www.federalreserve.gov Follow the instructions for submitting comments at http://www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm.

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.


 

Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

E-mail: regs.comments@federalreserve.gov. Include docket

number in the subject line of the message.

Fax: (202) 452-3819 or (202) 452-3102.

Mail: Jennifer J. Johnson, 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 Web site at

http://www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm as submitted,


 

except as necessary 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 in Room

MP-500 of the Board's Martin Building (20th and C Streets, NW.) between

9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.

FDIC: You may submit comments, identified as EGRPRA burden

reduction comments, by any of the following methods:

http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/federal/propose.html.. E-mail: comments@fdic.gov. Include ``EGRPRA burden


 

reduction comment'' in the subject line of the message.

Mail: Robert E. Feldman, Executive Secretary, Federal

Deposit Insurance Corporation,550 17th Street, NW.,Washington, DC

20429.

Hand Delivery: Comments may be hand delivered to the guard

station at the rear of the 550 17th Street Building (located on F

Street) on business days between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Public Inspection: You may inspect comments at the FDIC Public


 

[[Page 43348]]


 

Information Center, Room 100, 801 17th Street, NW., between 9 a.m. and

4:30 p.m. on business days.

OTS: You may submit comments, identified by ``No. 2004-35.'' by any

of the following methods:

E-Mail: regs.comments@ots.treas.gov. Include ``No. 2004-

35'' in the subject line of the message, and provide your name and

telephone number.

Fax: (202) 906-6518.

Mail: Regulation Comments, Chief Counsel's Office, Office

of Thrift Supervision,1700 G Street, NW.,Washington, DC 20552.

Hand Delivery: Comments may be hand delivered to the

Guard's Desk, East Lobby Entrance, 1700 G Street, NW., from 9 a.m. to 4

p.m. on business days, Attention: Regulation Comments, Chief Counsel's

Office.

Public Inspection: OTS will post comments and the related index on

the OTS Internet site at http://www.ots.treas.gov. In addition, you may


 

inspect comments at the Public Reading Room, 1700 G Street, NW., by

appointment. To make an appointment for access, call (202) 906-5922,

send an e-mail to public.info@ots.treas.gov, or send a fax to (202)

906-7755. (Please identify the material you would like to inspect to

assist us in serving you.)


 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

OCC:

Stuart Feldstein, Assistant Director, Legislative and

Regulatory Activities Division, (202) 874-5090.

Heidi Thomas, Special Counsel, Legislative and Regulatory

Activities Division, (202) 874-5090.

Lee Walzer, Counsel, Legislative and Regulatory Activities

Division, (202) 874-5090.

Board:

Patricia A. Robinson, Managing Senior Counsel, Legal

Division, (202) 452-3005.

Michael J. O'Rourke, Counsel, Legal Division, (202) 452-

3288.

John C. Wood, Counsel, Division of Consumer and Community

Affairs, (202) 452-2412.

Arleen Lustig, Supervisory Financial Analyst, Division of

Banking Supervision and Regulation, (202) 452-5259.

For users of Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD)

only, contact (202) 263-4869.

FDIC:

Claude A. Rollin, Special Assistant to the Vice Chairman,

(202) 898-8741.

Steven D. Fritts, Associate Director, Division of

Supervision and Consumer Protection, (202) 898-3723.

Ruth R. Amberg, Senior Counsel, Legal Division, (202) 898-

3736.

Thomas Nixon, Counsel, Legal Division, (202) 898-8766.

OTS:

Robyn Dennis, Manager, Thrift Policy, Supervision Policy,

(202) 906-5751.

Josephine Battle, Program Analyst, Thrift Policy,

Supervision Policy, (202) 906-6870.

Karen Osterloh, Special Counsel, Regulations and

Legislation Division, Chief Counsel's Office, (202) 906-6639.


 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:


 

I. Overview of the EGRPRA Review and the Steps Taken So Far


 

The Agencies \1\ are asking for your comments and suggestions on

ways in which we can reduce regulatory burdens consistent with our

statutory obligations. Today, we request your input to help us identify

which regulatory requirements in the category ``Consumer Protection:

Account/Deposit Relationships and Miscellaneous Consumer Rules' are

outdated, unnecessary, or unduly burdensome. We list the rules in this

category in a chart at the end of this notice. Please send us your

recommendations at our Web site, http://www.EGRPRA.gov, or to one of


 

the listed addresses.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------


 

\1\ The National Credit Union Administration has participated in

planning the EGRPRA review but has issued, and will issue, requests

for comment separately.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------


 

Today's request for comment is the third notice in our multi-year

review of regulations for burden reduction required by section 2222 of

EGRPRA.\2\ We described the EGRPRA review's requirements in our first

EGRPRA notice. In summary, EGRPRA requires us to:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------


 

\2\ Public Law 104-208, Sept. 30, 1996, 12 U.S.C. 3311. We

published our first notice in the Federal Register on June 16, 2003,

at 68 FR 35589. We published our second notice on January 21, 2004,

at 69 FR 2852. You may view the notices at our Web site: http://www.EGRPRA.gov

.


 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------


 

Categorize our regulations by type.

Publish the regulations by category to request comments on

which regulations contain requirements that are:


 

Outdated,

Unnecessary, or

Unduly burdensome.


 

Publish a summary of those comments.

Eliminate unnecessary regulations to the extent

appropriate.

Report to Congress:


 

Summarizing the significant issues raised and their relative

merits

Analyzing whether legislative change is required to reduce

burden.


 

The first publication cycle must be complete by September 2006.

We have identified 13 categories of rules to implement our EGRPRA

review. The categories are: Applications and Reporting; Banking

Operations; Capital; Community Reinvestment Act; Consumer Protection:

Lending Related Rules; Consumer Protection: Account/Deposit

Relationships and Miscellaneous Consumer Rules; Directors, Officers and

Employees; International Operations; Money Laundering; Powers and

Activities; Rules of Procedure; Safety and Soundness; and Securities.

You may see the categories and the rules placed within them at our Web

site http://www.EGRPRA.gov.


 

We previously requested public comment about possible burden

reduction in four categories of rules. Our June 16, 2003, notice

requested comment on three categories: Applications and Reporting,

Powers and Activities, and International Operations. Our January 21,

2004, notice requested comment on Consumer Protection: Lending Related

Rules. Today, we request comment on Consumer Protection: Account/

Deposit Relationships and Miscellaneous Consumer Rules.

We plan to publish one or more categories of rules approximately

every six months between 2003 and 2006 and provide a 90-day comment

period for each publication. As noted earlier, we must publish all our

covered categories of rules for comment and review them by the end of

September 2006.

In addition to soliciting written comments, we held banker outreach

meetings in Orlando, St. Louis, Denver, San Francisco, New York City,

Nashville and Seattle to hear directly from the industry about ways the

Agencies could reduce regulatory burden. More than 300 representatives

from the industry have attended the outreach meetings. On February 20,

2004, the Agencies also held a conference in the Washington, DC area

for consumer groups to obtain their input on regulatory burden

reduction. Another consumer group meeting was held in San Francisco on

June 24, 2004. These meetings have helped focus our regulatory burden

reduction efforts. We anticipate holding additional outreach events

this year. You may learn more about the meetings and related

recommendations at our EGRPRA Web site (http://www.EGRPRA.gov).


 

We received 19 comments in response to the first notice and over

590 to the second notice. The Agencies appreciate the response to our

notices and the outreach meetings. The written comments and remarks at

the meetings came from individuals, banks, savings


 

[[Page 43349]]


 

associations, holding companies, industry trade groups, and consumer

and community groups. You may view the comments at our EGRPRA Web site

(http://www.EGRPRA.gov). We are actively reviewing the feedback


 

received about specific ways to reduce regulatory burden, as well as

conducting our own analyses.

On May 12, 2004, FDIC Vice Chairman John M. Reich testified about

burden reduction before the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and

Consumer Credit of the House Committee on Financial Services. On June

22, 2004, Agency and industry leaders testified about regulatory reform

before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

Agency leaders included Federal Reserve Board Governor Donald Kohn,

FDIC Vice Chairman John M. Reich, NCUA Chairman JoAnn Johnson, OCC

First Senior Deputy Comptroller and Chief Counsel Julie L. Williams,

and OTS Chief Counsel John Bowman. We will continue to post information

about our burden reduction efforts at our Web site.


 

II. Request for Comment on Consumer Protection: Account/Deposit

Relationships and Miscellaneous Consumer Rules


 

Today, we are asking the public to identify the ways in which the

Consumer Protection: Account/Deposit Relationships and Miscellaneous

Consumer Rules may be outdated, unnecessary, or unduly burdensome. We

chose this category for publication relatively early in the series of

requests for comment based on earlier comments from some industry

representatives that the requirements imposed by the consumer

protection regulations are among the most burdensome. As shown on the

chart at the end of this notice, there are 11 regulations in this

category.

We encourage comments that address not only individual rules or

requirements but also pertain to certain product lines. For example, in

the case of a particular deposit product, are any disclosure

requirements under one regulation inconsistent with or duplicative of

requirements under another regulation? Do the rules require that you

keep unnecessary records? A product line approach is consistent with

EGRPRA's focus on how rules interact, and may be especially helpful in

exposing redundant or potentially inconsistent regulatory requirements.

We recognize that commenters using a product line approach may want to

make recommendations about rules that are not in our current request

for comment. They should do so since we designed the EGRPRA categories

to stimulate creative approaches rather than limiting them.

Specific issues to consider: While all comments are welcome, we

specifically invite comment on the following issues:

A. Need for statutory change. (1) Do any statutory requirements

underlying the rules impose unnecessary, redundant, conflicting or

unduly burdensome requirements? (2) Are there less burdensome

alternatives?

B. Need and purpose of the regulations. (1) Are the regulations

consistent with the purposes of the statutes that they implement? (2)

Have circumstances changed so that a rule is no longer necessary? (3)

Do changes in the financial products and services offered to consumers

suggest a need to revise certain regulations (or statutes)? (4) Do any

of the regulations impose compliance burdens not required by the

statutes they implement?

C. General approach/flexibility. (1) Would a different general

approach to regulating achieve statutory goals with less burden? (2) Do

any of these rules impose unnecessarily inflexible requirements?

D. Effect of the regulations on competition. Do any of the

regulations or statutes create competitive disadvantages for insured

depository institutions compared to the rest of the financial services

industry or competitive disadvantages for one type of insured

depository institution over another?

E. Reporting, recordkeeping and disclosure requirements. (1) Which

reporting, recordkeeping, or disclosure requirements impose the most

compliance burdens? (2) Are any of the reporting or recordkeeping

requirements unnecessary to demonstrate compliance with the law?

F. Consistency and redundancy. (1) Are any of the requirements

under one regulation inconsistent with or duplicative of requirements

under another regulation? (2) If so, are the inconsistencies not

warranted by the purposes of the regulations?

G. Clarity. Are any of the regulations drafted unclearly?

H. Burden on small insured institutions. We have particular

interest in minimizing burden on small insured institutions (those with

assets of $150 million or less). How could we amend these rules to

minimize adverse economic impact on small insured institutions?

The Agencies appreciate the efforts of all interested parties to

help us eliminate outdated, unnecessary, or unduly burdensome

regulatory requirements.

BILLING CODE 4810-33-P; 6210-01-P; 6714-01-P; 6720-01-P


 

[[Page 43350]]


 

[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP20JY04.000



 

[[Page 43351]]



 

BILLING CODE 4810-33-C; 6210-01-C; 6714-01-C; 6720-01-C


 

Dated: July 14, 2004.

John D. Hawke, Jr.,

Comptroller of the Currency.

By order of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

on July 6, 2004.

Robert deV. Frierson,

DeputySecretary of the Board.


 

Dated in Washington, DC, this 28 day of June, 2004.


 

By order of the Board of Directors.


 

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Valerie J. Best,

Assistant Executive Secretary.

Dated: June 24, 2004.

James E. Gilleran,

Director, Office of Thrift Supervision.

[FR Doc. 04-16401 Filed 7-19-04; 8:45 am]


 

BILLING CODE 4810-33-P

Last Updated: March 24, 2024