[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 147 (Wednesday, July 30, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44300-44302]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-17410]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-58215; File No. SR-FINRA-2008-035]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Financial Industry Regulatory
Authority, Inc.; Notice of Filing and Order Granting Accelerated
Approval of Proposed Rule Change Relating to the Addition of Fees
Imposed for the Series 14 and Series 16 Examinations to FINRA's Fee
Schedule
July 23, 2008.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that
on June 26, 2008, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc.
(``FINRA'') (f/k/a National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc.
(``NASD'')) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II,
and III below, which Items have been substantially prepared by FINRA.
This order provides notice of the proposed rule change and approves the
proposed rule change on an accelerated basis.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change
FINRA is proposing to amend Section 4(c) of Schedule A to the FINRA
By-Laws (``Schedule A'') to add the fees
[[Page 44301]]
charged for the Series 14 and Series 16 examinations. The text of the
proposed rule change is available at FINRA, the Commission's Public
Reference Room, and http://www.finra.org/RulesRegulation/RuleFilings/index.htm.
II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
In its filing with the Commission, FINRA included statements
concerning the purpose of, and basis for, the proposed rule change and
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in
Item III below. FINRA has prepared summaries, set forth in Sections A,
B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
On July 30, 2007, NASD and the New York Stock Exchange (``NYSE'')
consolidated their member firm regulation operations into a combined
organization, FINRA. As part of the consolidation, FINRA assumed
ownership of the Series 14 (Compliance Official) and Series 16
(Supervisory Analyst) examinations.\3\ Thus, as of July 30, 2007, these
two examinations became FINRA examinations and ceased being NYSE
examinations, and FINRA retained the entire fee for those
examinations.\4\ The proposed rule change would add the fee for these
two examinations to the fee table in Schedule A. The proposed rule
change does not change the fee charged for either of these
examinations. The fee for the Series 14 examination remains $300,\5\
and the fee for the Series 16 examination remains $200.\6\
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\3\ As part of the consolidation, FINRA also assumed sole
ownership of the Series 7 (General Securities Representative),
Series 86 (Research Analyst--Analysis), and Series 87 (Research
Analyst--Regulatory) examinations. Before the consolidation, the
Series 7 examination was owned by NYSE, and the Series 86 and Series
87 examinations were jointly owned by NASD and NYSE. The fees for
the Series 7, Series 86, and Series 87 examinations are already
listed in Schedule A as required fees to be paid by FINRA members
because, prior to the closing of the consolidation, the examination
was either owned in part by NASD or required by NASD rules.
\4\ Prior to the consolidation, NASD, which administered the
examinations and collected the entire fee for the examinations, and
NYSE, which owned or co-owned the examinations, each received a
portion of the examination fee for the Series 7, Series 14, Series
16, Series 86, and Series 87 examinations. Following the
consolidation, as the sole owner of these examinations, FINRA has
retained the entire examination fee.
\5\ The $300 fee for the Series 14 examination has been in place
since 2001. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 44296 (May 11,
2001), 66 FR 27714 (May 18, 2001) (SR-NYSE-2001-09).
\6\ The $200 fee for the Series 16 examination has been in place
since 1998. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 40731 (December
1, 1998), 63 FR 67964 (December 9, 1998) (SR-NYSE-98-39).
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Because the proposed rule change does not change the amount of the
examination fees for the Series 14 or Series 16, FINRA believes that it
is appropriate for the amendments to Schedule A to have a retroactive
effective date of July 30, 2007, the date FINRA assumed ownership of
the two examinations. As noted above, the proposed rule change will
have no effect on the amount of the fee for either the Series 14 or the
Series 16 examination. Moreover, the retroactive effective date will
not affect the fee paid by individuals who have already taken the
exams.
2. Statutory Basis
FINRA believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the
provisions of Section 15A(b)(5) of the Act,\7\ which require, among
other things, that FINRA rules provide for the equitable allocation of
reasonable dues, fees, and other charges among members and issuers and
other persons using any facility or system that FINRA operates or
controls. Because FINRA now owns the Series 14 and Series 16
examinations, FINRA believes that it is appropriate to reflect the fees
charged in connection with those examinations in the fee table in
Schedule A.
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\7\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-3(b)(5).
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition
FINRA does not believe that the proposed rule change will result in
any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in
furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants or Others
Written comments were neither solicited nor received.
III. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:
Electronic Comments
Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
Send an e-mail to [email protected]. Please include
File Number SR-FINRA-2008-035 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE., Washington, DC 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to File Number SR-FINRA-2008-035. This
file number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used.
To help the Commission process and review your comments more
efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all
comments on the Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments,
all written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that
are filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating
to the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person,
other than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance
with the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for inspection
and copying in the Commission's Public Reference Room, on official
business days between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the
filing also will be available for inspection and copying at the
principal office of FINRA. All comments received will be posted without
change; the Commission does not edit personal identifying information
from submissions. You should submit only information that you wish to
make available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number
SR-FINRA-2008-035 and should be submitted on or before August 20, 2008.
IV. Commission's Findings and Order Granting Accelerated Approval
After careful consideration, the Commission finds that the proposed
rule change is consistent with the requirements of Section 15 of the
Act \8\ and the rules and regulations thereunder applicable to a
national securities association.\9\ In particular, the Commission finds
that the proposed rule change is consistent with Section
[[Page 44302]]
15A(b)(5) of the Act,\10\ which requires that FINRA rules provide for
the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and other charges
among members and issuers and other persons using any facility or
system which FINRA operates or controls.
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\8\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-3.
\9\ In approving this rule change, the Commission notes that it
has considered the proposed rule's impact on efficiency,
competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).
\10\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-3(b)(5).
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The Commission believes that FINRA's proposed rule change is
consistent with Section 15A(b)(5) of the Act \11\ because it would
clarify in FINRA's fee schedule the fees that FINRA charges for the
Series 14 and Series 16 examinations. The Commission notes that the
proposal, while adding references to the fees for the Series 14 and
Series 16 examinations to FINRA's Schedule A, would not change the
amount of the fees charged to persons who take these exams. Rather, the
Commission notes, the proposed rule change simply would reflect the
fact that FINRA, and not NYSE, is now the owner of these examinations
and therefore it must incorporate the fees in its fee schedule. The
Commission also believes that it is appropriate to approve these
changes retroactive to July 30, 2007, because that is the date on which
FINRA assumed ownership of these examinations as a result of the
consolidation. The Commission notes that FINRA has represented that the
retroactive effective date would not affect the fees paid by
individuals who have already taken these examinations.
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\11\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-3(b)(5).
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FINRA has requested that the Commission find good cause for
approving the proposed rule change prior to the thirtieth day after
publication of the notice thereof in the Federal Register. As noted
above, the proposed rule change would not change the amount charged for
either the Series 14 or 16 examinations, but would clarify the fees
charged by FINRA for these examinations by including these fees on
FINRA's fee schedule. The Commission believes that granting accelerated
approval of the proposed rule change would reduce any possible
confusion about the applicable fees for these examinations and would
allow persons currently seeking to take these examinations to determine
more easily the applicable fees. Accordingly, the Commission believes
that there is good cause, consistent with Sections 15A(b)(5) and 19(b)
of the Act,\12\ to approve the proposed rule change on an accelerated
basis.
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\12\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-3(b)(5), and 78s(b).
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V. Conclusion
It is therefore ordered, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the
Act,\13\ that the proposed rule change (File No. SR-FINRA-2008-035) be,
and hereby is, approved on an accelerated basis.
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\13\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\14\
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\14\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Florence E. Harmon,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. E8-17410 Filed 7-29-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-P