[Federal Register: September 10, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 176)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 52576-52577]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10se08-2]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
12 CFR Part 8
[Docket No. OCC-2008-0013]
RIN 1557-AD06
Assessment of Fees
AGENCY: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Treasury.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is
adopting as final and without change the interim final assessments rule
issued on February 19, 2008. The interim final rule added two new
asset-size categories to the table in 12 CFR 8.2(a) used to calculate
each national bank's semiannual assessment. The addition of these
categories is warranted to take account of significant structural
changes in the national banking system since 1992, when the table was
last revised, and has enabled the OCC to realign assessments to better
reflect industry structure and OCC's corresponding expenses of
operations. No comments were received in response to the request for
comment on the interim final rule.
DATES: Effective Date: Effective September 10, 2008 the rule published
on February 19, 2008 (73 FR 9012) and corrected at 73 FR 9625, Feb. 21,
2008 is adopted as final without change.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: MaryAnn Nash, Counsel, Legislative and
Regulatory Activities Division, (202) 874-5090; Stuart Feldstein,
Assistant Director, Legislative and Regulatory Activities Division,
(202) 874-5090; or Colette Baylson, Accounting Operations Manager,
Financial Management, (202) 874-4403, Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency, 250 E Street, SW., Washington, DC 20219.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The National Bank Act authorizes the OCC to fund the expenses of
its operations through assessments on national banks.\1\ Under this
authority, the OCC collects semiannual assessments from national banks
in accordance with part 8 of our regulations and with the OCC's Notice
of the Comptroller of the Currency Fees (Notice of Fees).\2\
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\1\ 12 U.S.C. 482.
\2\ Under part 8, the OCC also collects assessments from Federal
branches and Federal agencies. The changes provided for in this
final rule will also apply to assessments of Federal branches and
Federal agencies.
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Part 8 establishes categories, or brackets, each of which comprises
a range of size values for a national bank's total assets. Each
national bank's assessment is the sum of a base amount, which is the
same for every national bank in that asset-size bracket, plus a
marginal amount, which is computed by applying a marginal assessment
rate to the amount of total assets in excess of the lower boundary of
the asset-size bracket.\3\ The marginal assessment rate declines as
asset size increases, reflecting economies of scale in bank examination
and supervision, which factor into the OCC's overall cost of
operations. Both the base amounts and the marginal rates applicable to
each asset-size bracket are published at least once a year in the OCC's
Notice of Fees.\4\
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\3\ See 12 CFR 8.2(a) (listing the asset-size brackets).
\4\ See, e.g., OCC Bulletin 2007-46, ``Notice of the Comptroller
of the Currency Fees for Year 2008'' (December 1, 2007). The OCC's
regulations provide for the annual publication of the Notice of Fees
and also authorize the publication of interim, or amended, notices
of fees ``from time to time throughout the year as necessary.'' 12
CFR 8.8.
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Prior to the issuance of the interim final rule, the national bank
assessments were based on asset-size brackets that had been last
updated in 1992 \5\ and no longer reflected the structure and
distribution of assets in the national banking system as a whole. For
example, since 1992, there has been a significant increase not only in
the amount of assets held by the largest banks, but also in the assets
held by national banks in other asset-size brackets, resulting in a
general upward shift in the distribution of the population of national
banks on the asset-size bracket table in 12 CFR 8.2(a). The growth in
the average assets held by national banks reflects the consolidation in
the banking industry that has occurred since 1992.
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\5\ 57 FR 22413 (May 28, 1992).
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Given these developments, the OCC has determined that it is
appropriate to update the existing asset-size brackets to reflect the
current structure of the national banking system. The interim final
rule has enabled the OCC to adjust the assessment framework to better
reflect industry structure and the OCC's corresponding expenses of
operations.
Interim Final Rule and Comments
On February 19, 2008, the OCC published and requested comment on an
interim final rule that expanded the number of asset-size assessment
brackets in the table at 12 CFR 8.2(a) by revising the current top
bracket, presently $40 billion and above, to cover banks with assets
between $40 billion and $250 billion.\6\ In addition, the interim final
rule created a new top bracket that applies to banks with assets in
excess of $250 billion.
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\6\ 73 FR 9012 (February 19, 2008).
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The OCC also made a conforming change to delete the word ``ten''
from the description of the asset-size brackets in Sec. 8.2(a)(1) of
the assessment rules since it no longer accurately described the number
of brackets.
The OCC received no comments in response to the interim final rule
and has determined that it is appropriate to adopt as final the interim
final rule as originally published on February 19, 2008.
Regulatory Flexibility Act Analysis
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (Pub. L. 96-354, Sept. 19, 1980)
(RFA) applies only to rules for which an agency publishes a general
notice of proposed rulemaking pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b).\7\ Pursuant
to the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), at 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B),
notice and an opportunity for public comment are not required prior to
the issuance of a final rule if an
[[Page 52577]]
agency, for good cause, finds that ``notice and public procedure
thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public
interest.'' \8\
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\7\ 5 U.S.C. 601(2).
\8\ 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B).
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As we have described, the asset brackets in the assessments table
in 12 CFR 8.2(a) were last revised in 1992 and did not reflect the
current structure of the national banking industry. The OCC adopted the
changes to that framework in the form of an interim final rule because
completion of notice and comment rulemaking procedures prior to issuing
the interim final rule would have required delaying implementation of
the new asset brackets beyond the next scheduled assessment date. Such
a delay would have been contrary to the public interest since it would
have resulted in national banks' continued payment of assessments under
a framework that the OCC has determined is no longer representative of
current industry structure and the OCC's corresponding expenses of
operation. Issuance of the interim final rule also furthered the public
interest and reduced regulatory burden because it allowed the OCC, as
appropriate, to issue an amended Notice of Fees that better reflects
the structure of the national banking system and allocates the OCC's
expenses of operation on that basis. For the same reasons, the OCC
found good cause to publish the interim final rule with an immediate
effective date. See 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1), 553(d)(3).\9\
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\9\ Although notice and comment were not required prior to the
effective date of the interim final rule, the OCC nonetheless
invited comments on all aspects of this interim final rule and
intended to revise the interim final rule if necessary or
appropriate in light of the comments received. As explained above,
however, the OCC received no comments on the interim final rule.
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Because the OCC determined for good cause that the APA did not
require public notice and comment on the interim final rule, we did not
publish a general notice of proposed rulemaking. Thus, the RFA,
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 601(2), does not apply to this final rule because
it is not a rule for which the OCC was required to publish a general
notice of proposed rulemaking pursuant to section 553(b) of the APA.
Executive Order 12866
The OCC has determined that this final rule is not a significant
regulatory action under Executive Order 12866.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 Determinations
Section 202 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 \10\
(Unfunded Mandates Act) requires that an agency prepare a budgetary
impact statement before promulgating any rule likely to result in a
Federal mandate that may result in the expenditure by state, local, and
tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100
million or more in any one year. If a budgetary impact statement is
required, section 205 of the Unfunded Mandates Act also requires the
agency to identify and consider a reasonable number of regulatory
alternatives before promulgating the rule. The OCC has determined that
this final rule will not result in expenditures by state, local, and
tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100
million or more in any one year. Accordingly, the OCC has not prepared
a budgetary impact statement or specifically addressed the regulatory
alternatives considered.
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\10\ 2 U.S.C. 1532.
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Paperwork Reduction Act
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
3506; 5 CFR 1320 appendix A.1), we have reviewed the final rule to
assess any information collections. There are no collections of
information as defined by the Paperwork Reduction Act in the final
rule.
Lists of Subjects in 12 CFR Part 8
Assessment of fees.
PART 8--ASSESSMENT OF FEES
0
Accordingly under the authority at 12 U.S.C. 482 the interim rule
amending 12 CFR part 8 which was published at 73 FR 9012 on February
19, 2008, and corrected at 73 FR 9012, Feb. 21, 2008 is adopted as
final without change.
Dated: August 11, 2008.
John C. Dugan,
Comptroller of the Currency.
[FR Doc. E8-20905 Filed 9-9-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-33-P