[Federal Register: August 31, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 169)]
[Notices]
[Page 51888-51891]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr31au06-116]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of Thrift Supervision
NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request
AGENCIES: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Treasury;
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board); Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC); Office of Thrift Supervision
(OTS), Treasury; National Credit Union Administration (NCUA); and
Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
ACTION: Joint notice and request for comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, the OCC, the Board, the FDIC, the OTS, the NCUA, and the
FTC (Agencies) may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not
required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a
currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.
Pursuant to section 214(e) of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions
Act of 2003 (FACT Act or Act), the Agencies are requesting public
comment on a proposed information collection concerning the ``Survey of
Information Sharing Practices with Affiliates'' (Survey).
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 30, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments to
any or all of the Agencies. All comments, which should refer to the OMB
control number, will be shared among the Agencies.
OCC: You may submit comments, identified by ``Survey of Information
Sharing Practices with Affiliates (1557-NEW),'' by any of the following
methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
OCC Web site: http://www.occ.treas.gov. Click on ``Contact
the OCC,'' scroll down and click on ``Comments on Proposed
Regulations.''
Mail: Communications Division, Office of the Comptroller
of the Currency, Public Information Room, Mailstop 1-5, Attention:
1557-NEW, 250 E Street, SW., Washington, DC 20219.
Fax: (202) 874-4448
E-mail: regs.comments@occ.treas.gov.
You may review comments by any of the following methods:
Viewing Comments Personally: You can inspect and photocopy
the comments at the OCC's Public Information Room, 250 E Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20219. You can make an appointment to inspect the
comments by calling (202) 874-5043.
Viewing Comments Electronically: You may request that we
send you an electronic copy of comments via e-mail or mail you a CD-ROM
containing electronic copies by contacting the OCC at
regs.comments@occ.treas.gov.
A copy of the comments may also be submitted to the OMB desk
officer: OCC Desk Officer, by mail to U.S. Office of Management and
Budget, 725 17th Street, NW., 10235, Washington, DC 20503, or
by fax to (202) 395-6974.
Board: You may submit comments, identified by ``Survey of
Information Sharing Practices with Affiliates,'' by any of the
following methods:
Agency Web Site: http://www.federalreserve.gov Follow the instructions for submitting comments on the http://.
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,
[[Page 51889]]
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: Written comments should identify ``Survey of Information
Sharing Practices with Affiliates,'' as the subject and be submitted by
any of the following methods:
Agency Web site: http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/federal/propose.html
.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: Comments@FDIC.gov.
Mail: Robert E. Feldman, Executive Secretary, Attention:
Comments, FDIC, 550 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20429.
Hand Delivery/Courier: 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.
Comments may be inspected and photocopied in the FDIC Public
Information Center, Room E-1002, 3502 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington,
VA 22226, between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on business days.
OTS: You may submit comments, identified by ``Survey of Information
Sharing Practices with Affiliates (1550-NEW),'' by any of the following
methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: infocollection.comments@ots.treas.gov. Please
include ``Survey of Information Sharing Practices with Affiliates
(1550-NEW)'' in the subject line of the message and include your name
and telephone number in the message.
Fax: (202) 906-6518.
Mail: Information Collection Comments, Chief Counsel's
Office, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington,
DC 20552, Attention: ``Survey of Information Sharing Practices with
Affiliates (1550-NEW).''
Hand Delivery/Courier: Guard's Desk, East Lobby Entrance,
1700 G Street, NW., from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on business days, Attention:
Information Collection Comments, Chief Counsel's Office, ``Survey of
Information Sharing Practices with Affiliates (1550-NEW).''
Instructions: All comments received will be posted without change
to http://www.ots.treas.gov/pagehtml.cfm?catNumber=67&an=1, including
any personal information provided. Docket: For access to the docket to
read comments received, go to http://www.ots.treas.gov/pagehtml.cfm?catNumber=67&an=1.
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 facsimile transmission to (202)
906-7755. (Prior notice identifying the materials you will be
requesting will assist us in serving you.) We schedule appointments on
business days between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. In most cases, appointments
will be available the next business day following the date we receive a
request.
NCUA: You may submit comments by any of the following methods
(please send comments by one method only):
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
NCUA Web Site: http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/proposedregs/proposedregs.html.
Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: Address to regcomments@ncua.gov. Include ``[Your
name] Comments on FACT Act 214(e) Study,'' in the e-mail subject line.
Fax: (703) 518-6319. Use the subject line described above
for e-mail.
Mail: Address to Neil McNamara, Deputy Chief Information
Officer, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke Street,
Alexandria, VA 22314-3428.
Hand Delivery/Courier: Same as mail address.
FTC: Comments should refer to ``Affiliate Sharing Study: FTC File
No. P064802'' and may be submitted by any of the following methods.
However, if a given comment contains any material for which
confidential treatment is requested, it must be filed in paper form,
and the first page of the document must be clearly labeled
``Confidential.''\1\ A copy of each comment should additionally be
submitted--via facsimile, to (202) 395-6974--and addressed to: Office
of Management and Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for the Federal Trade
Commission.
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\1\ Commission Rule 4.2(d), 16 CFR 4.2(d). The comment must be
accompanied by an explicit request for confidential treatment,
including the factual and legal basis for the request, and must
identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from
the public record. The request will be granted or denied by the
Commission's General Counsel, consistent with applicable law and the
public interest. See Commission Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR 4.9(c).
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E-mail: Comments filed in electronic form should be
submitted as part of or as an attachment to e-mail messages directed to
the following e-mail box: affiliatestudy@ftc.gov. To ensure that the
Commission considers an electronic comment, you must send it to the
above e-mail box.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: If this notice appears at
http://www.regulations.gov, you may also file an electronic comment
through that Web site. The Commission will consider all comments that
regulations.gov forwards to it.
Mail or Hand Delivery: A comment filed in paper form
should include ``Affiliate Sharing Study: FTC File No. P064802'' both
in the text and on the envelope, and should be mailed or delivered,
with two complete copies, to the following address: Federal Trade
Commission/Office of the Secretary, Room H-135 (Annex J), 600
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580. Because paper mail in
the Washington area and at the Commission is subject to delay, please
consider submitting your comments in electronic form, as prescribed
above. The FTC is requesting that any comment filed in paper form be
sent by courier or overnight service, if possible.
The FTC Act and other laws the Commission administers permit the
collection of public comments to consider and use in this proceeding as
appropriate. All timely and responsive public comments, whether filed
in paper or electronic form, will be considered by the Commission, and
will be available to the public on the FTC Web site, to the extent
practicable, at http://www.ftc.gov/os/publiccomments.htm. As a matter
of discretion, the FTC makes every effort to remove home contact
information for individuals from the public comments it receives before
placing those comments on the FTC Web site. More information, including
routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, may be found in the FTC's
privacy policy, at http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.htm.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Additional information may be
requested from:
OCC: Karen Furst, Policy Analyst, (202) 874-4509, Policy Analysis
Division; Mary Gottlieb, OCC Clearance Officer or Camille Dickerson,
Legal Technician, (202) 874-5090, Legislative and Regulatory Activities
Division.
Board: Kathleen Conley, Supervisory Consumer Financial Services
Analyst, (202) 452-2389; or Michelle Long,
[[Page 51890]]
Clearance Office, (202) 452-3829, Division of Research and Statistics.
Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) users may call (202) 263-
4869.
FDIC: Richard M. Schwartz, Counsel, (202) 898-7424; or Leneta G.
Gregorie, Counsel, (202) 898-3719.
OTS: Marilyn K. Burton, OTS Clearance Officer, (202) 906-6467; or
Donna Deale, Director of Holding Companies and Affiliates, (202) 906-
7488.
NCUA: Regina M. Metz, Staff Attorney, Office of General Counsel,
(703) 518-6540; or Matthew Biliouris, Program Officer, Examination and
Insurance, (703) 518-6394.
FTC: Sandra Farrington, Attorney, Division of Privacy and Identity
Protection, Bureau of Consumer Protection, (202) 326-2531; or Margaret
Patterson, Economist, Bureau of Economics, (202) 326-3472.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Proposal for Approval of the Following New Collections of Information
Title: Survey of Information Sharing Practices with Affiliates.
Frequency of Response: Every three years.
Affected Public: Business or other for profit.
Type of Review: New collection.
OCC
OMB Number: 1557-NEW.
Form Number: N/A.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 40.
Estimated Average Time per Response: 10 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 400 hours.
Board
OMB Number: 7100-NEW.
Form Number: FR 3214e.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 60.
Estimated Average Time per Response: 10 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 600 hours.
FDIC
OMB Number: 3064-NEW.
Form Number: N/A.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 100.
Estimated Average Time per Response: 10 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 1,000 hours.
OTS
OMB Number: 1550-NEW.
Form Number: N/A.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 30.
Estimated Average Time per Response: 10 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 300 hours.
NCUA
OMB Number: 3133-NEW.
Form Number: N/A.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 50.
Estimated Average Time per Response: 10.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 500.
FTC
OMB Number: 3084-NEW.
Form Number: N/A.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 20.
Estimated Average Time per Response: 10 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 200 hours.
General Description of Report
This information collection is voluntary for financial institution
respondents and authorized pursuant to 12 U.S.C. 481 and 484 (national
banks); 12 U.S.C. 248(a)(1) (state member banks); 12 U.S.C. 1463 and
1464 (savings associations); and 12 U.S.C. 1819(a)(Eighth) (state non-
member banks and state branches of any foreign bank). Confidentiality
would be determined on a case-by-case basis. In gathering information
from respondents under its jurisdiction, the FTC may use the compulsory
authority granted to it in Section 6(b) of the Federal Trade Commission
Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(b). Confidentiality will be protected in accordance
with the FTC Act and the Commission's Rules of Practice.
Abstract
The study the Agencies propose will use a written Survey to be
completed by financial institutions and other persons that are
creditors or users of consumer reports (``respondents'').\2\ The
Agencies will use the responses to the Survey to prepare an initial
report to the Congress on information sharing practices by financial
institutions, creditors, or users of consumer reports with their
affiliates. The Agencies are required jointly to submit this report to
the Congress together with any recommendations for legislative or
regulatory action, pursuant to Section 214(e) of the FACT Act. A copy
of the Board's draft survey of information sharing practices with
affiliates will be made available, within seven days after publication
of this notice, on the Board's public Web site at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/reportforms/review.cfm
under
``Information Collections Out for Public Comment.''
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\2\ Each respondent will provide information about more than one
financial institution or other person that is a creditor or user of
consumer reports. At a minimum, each respondent will be providing
information about itself and at least one affiliate.
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Background
The FACT Act became law on December 4, 2003. Pub. L. 108-159, 117
Stat. 1952. In general, the FACT Act amends the Fair Credit Reporting
Act (``FCRA'') to enhance the ability of consumers to combat identity
theft, increase the accuracy of consumer reports, and allow consumers
to exercise greater control regarding the type and amount of marketing
solicitations they receive. To promote increasingly efficient national
credit markets, the FACT Act also establishes uniform national
standards in key areas of regulation regarding consumer report
information. The Act contains a number of provisions intended to combat
consumer fraud and related crimes, including identity theft, and to
assist victims of these crimes. Finally, the Act requires the Agencies
to conduct a number of studies.
Section 214(e) of the FACT Act requires the Agencies jointly to
conduct regular studies of the consumer information sharing practices
by financial institutions, and other persons that are creditors or
users of consumer reports, with their affiliates. In that regard,
Section 214(e) requires the Agencies to identify: (i) The purposes for
which financial institutions and other creditors and users of consumer
reports share consumer information; (ii) the types of information
shared by such entities; (iii) the number of choices provided to
consumers with respect to the control of such sharing, and the degree
to which and manner in which consumers exercise such choices, if at
all; and (iv) whether such entities share or may share personally
identifiable transaction or experience information with affiliates for
purposes--(I) That are related to employment or hiring including
whether the person that is the subject of such information is given
notice of such sharing, and the specific uses of such shared
information; or (II) of general publication of such information.
The statute also requires the Agencies specifically to examine the
information sharing practices that financial institutions and other
creditors or users of consumer reports and their affiliates employ to
make underwriting decisions or credit evaluations of consumers. The
Agencies must jointly submit a report to the Congress on the results of
the initial study together with any
[[Page 51891]]
recommendations for legislative or regulatory action. After the initial
report, the Agencies must jointly submit follow-up reports to the
Congress at least once every three years.
Proposed Survey Panel
The Agencies will select the survey panel based on whether the
prospective respondent has affiliates with which it can share
information, whether the prospective respondent is likely to be a user
of consumer reports, and other factors.
Estimated Annual Burden Hours
Each respondent will complete a written Survey. In order to
complete the Survey, the individual completing the form for the
respondent will most likely need to consult staff in other parts of the
organization and obtain data from recordkeeping systems. Based on the
Agencies' expertise and experience, we estimate the consultations and
the collection of data will take between four and eight hours per
respondent. The Agencies estimate it will then take less than two hours
for each respondent to complete the Survey. However, numerous factors
are likely to influence the amount of time it will take a respondent to
complete the Survey, including the number and type of affiliates, as
well as the diversity of information sharing practices among
affiliates. Based on the methodology proposed, the total burden imposed
by the initial study, for all six agencies, will be approximately 3,000
hours.
Request for Comment
The Agencies invite comment on:
a. Whether the information collections are necessary for the proper
performance of the Agencies' functions, including whether the
information has practical utility;
b. The accuracy of the Agencies' estimates of the burden of the
information collections, including the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
c. Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
d. Ways to minimize the burden of information collections on
respondents, including through the use of automated collection
techniques or other forms of information technology.
In addition, the OCC invites comments on the following:
aa. The specific data the Agencies should collect to prepare the
report required by Section 214(e) of the Fact Act and the terminology
that will best describe and correctly specify the data to be collected;
bb. If any data the Agencies should collect are not available, the
type of proxy data the Agencies should request;
cc. The extent to which depository institutions currently track and
are able to report on the methods (e.g., telephone, online) used by
consumers to opt-out of affiliate information sharing; and
dd. Information related to recordkeeping practices or other aspects
of the data specification and survey development process.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be shared among
the Agencies. Unless otherwise afforded confidential treatment pursuant
to Federal law, all comments will become a matter of public record.
Dated: August 22, 2006.
Stuart Feldstein,
Assistant Director, Legislative and Regulatory Activities Division,
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, August 25,
2006.
Jennifer J. Johnson,
Secretary of the Board.
Dated at Washington, DC, this 22nd day of August, 2006.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Robert E. Feldman,
Executive Secretary.
Dated: August 21, 2006.
Deborah Dakin,
Senior Deputy Chief Counsel, Regulations and Legislation Division,
Office of Thrift Supervision.
Dated at Washington, DC, this 24th day of August, 2006.
By the National Credit Union Administration.
John Ianno,
Acting Secretary of the Board.
Dated at Washington, DC, this twenty-first day of August, 2006.
Federal Trade Commission.
By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 06-7271 Filed 8-30-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-33-P