[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 159 (Wednesday, August 18, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51166-51167]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-20347]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Departmental Offices; Proposed Collections; Comment Requests
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing
effort to reduce paperwork burdens, invites the general public and
other Federal agencies to comment on a new information collection that
is to be proposed for approval by the Office of Management and Budget.
The Office of International Affairs of the Department of the Treasury
is soliciting comments concerning Treasury International Capital Form
SLT, Report of U.S. and Foreign Resident Aggregate Holdings of Long-
Term Securities.
The recent global financial crisis has highlighted the importance
of enhanced surveillance of the world economy. As a consequence, the
international financial community has a heightened awareness of the
importance of collecting economic and financial data, including more
frequent and accurate data regarding each country's external claims and
liabilities. As a result, the United States needs to collect certain
data on a more frequent and accurate basis, including monthly holdings
of long-term securities. Data on securities are important because they
constitute a large portion of U.S. external claims and liabilities. The
Treasury International Capital (TIC) data reporting system currently
collects monthly data on holdings of short-term securities and on
purchases and sales of long-term securities. It also collects data
annually, but not monthly, on holdings of long-term securities.
Although the annual data currently collected on holdings of long-term
securities, together with the monthly data on purchases and sales, can
be used to estimate aggregate monthly holdings of long-term securities,
the time required to produce the estimates is lengthy and the estimates
must usually be revised substantially when the subsequent annual survey
is released. Consequently, the Department of the Treasury is proposing
the Form SLT to collect data on holdings of long-term securities on a
monthly basis so as to ensure more timely and accurate measurement of
the aggregate holdings of long-term securities. That, in turn, will
help improve the preparation of the U.S. balance of payments accounts
and the U.S. international investment position, as well as the
formulation of U.S. international financial and monetary policies.
DATES: Written comments should be received on or before October 18,
2010 to be assured of consideration.
ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Dwight Wolkow, International
Portfolio Investment Data Systems, Department of the Treasury, Room
5422, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20220. In view of
possible delays in mail delivery, please also notify Mr. Wolkow by
email ([email protected]), FAX (202-622-2009) or telephone
(202-622-1276).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Copies of the proposed forms and
instructions are available on the Treasury's TIC Forms webpage, http://www.treas.gov/tic/forms.html. Requests for additional information
should be directed to Mr. Wolkow.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: Treasury International Capital Form
SLT, Report of U.S. and Foreign Resident Aggregate Holdings of Long-
Term Securities.
OMB Control Number: NEW.
Abstract: Form SLT will be part of the Treasury International
Capital (TIC) reporting system, which is required by law (22 U.S.C.
286f; 22 U.S.C. 3103; E.O. 10033; 31 CFR Part 128) for the purpose of
providing timely information on international capital movements. Form
SLT will be used to collect monthly data on cross-border ownership by
U.S. and foreign residents of long-term securities for portfolio
investment purposes. These data will be used by the U.S. Government in
the formulation of international and financial policies and for the
preparation of the U.S. balance of payments accounts and the U.S.
international investment position.
Current Actions: (a) The fair values of long-term U.S. securities
owned by foreign residents and long-term foreign securities owned by
U.S. residents are to be reported on Form SLT. (b) The reporting panel
for Form SLT consists of U.S.-resident custodians, U.S.-resident
issuers of U.S. securities, and U.S.-resident end-investors in foreign
securities, where for each reporting entity, the consolidated total of
all reportable long-term U.S. and foreign securities on the last
business day of the reporting month has a total fair value equal to or
more than the exemption level. The exemption level is $1 billion. This
consolidated total includes amounts held for a reporting entity's own
account and for customers. The reporting entity should include
reportable securities for all U.S.-resident parts of the reporting
entity, including all U.S. subsidiaries and affiliates of the reporting
entity and investment companies, trusts, and other legal entities
created by the reporting entity. U.S.-resident entities include the
affiliates in the United States of foreign entities. Reportable long-
term securities include: (1) U.S. securities held by U.S.-resident
custodians on behalf of foreign residents; (2) foreign securities held
by U.S.-resident custodians on behalf of U.S. residents; (3) U.S.
securities issued by U.S.-resident issuers in foreign markets and held
directly by foreign residents, i.e., where no U.S.-resident custodian
or U.S.-resident central securities depository is used by the U.S.-
resident issuer; and (4) foreign securities held directly by U.S.-
resident end-investors, i.e., where no U.S.-resident custodian is used
by the U.S.-
[[Page 51167]]
resident end-investor. Securities held as part of a direct investment
relationship should not be reported. (c) Form SLT consists of Parts A
and B, each of which is divided into 13 columns. Part A is required to
be completed by U.S.-resident custodians (including U.S.-resident
central securities depositories). Columns 1 through 9 of Part A capture
long-term U.S. securities owned by foreign residents that are held by
U.S.-resident custodians. Columns 10 through 13 of Part A capture
foreign securities owned by U.S. residents that are held by U.S.-
resident custodians. Part B is required to be completed by U.S.-
resident issuers and U.S.-resident end-investors, including funds and
investment managers. Columns 1 through 9 of Part B, to be completed by
U.S.-resident issuers, capture long-term U.S. securities that are
issued by them in foreign markets and are held directly by foreign
residents, i.e. where no U.S.-resident custodian or U.S.-resident
central securities depository is used by the U.S.-resident issuer.
Columns 10 through 13 of Part B, to be completed by U.S.-resident end-
investors, capture long-term foreign securities that are owned directly
by them, i.e. where no U.S.-resident custodian is used by the U.S.-
resident end-investor. If a reporting entity is both a U.S.-resident
custodian and a U.S.-resident issuer and/or a U.S.-resident end-
investor, then both Parts A and B must be completed. (d) In both Parts
A and B, columns 1 through 9 cover U.S. securities owned by foreign
residents, where each row denotes the residence of the foreign holder.
Each of the columns captures a different type of long-term U.S.
securities: Columns 1 and 2 cover U.S. Treasury and Federal Financing
Bank Bonds and Notes; columns 3 and 4 cover Bonds of U.S. Government
Corporations and Federally Sponsored Agencies; columns 5 and 6 cover
U.S. Corporate and Other Bonds; and columns 7 and 8 cover U.S. Equity.
Further, each of the columns is also subdivided into the two types of
foreign holders: foreign official institutions (columns 1, 3, 5, and 7)
and all other foreigners (columns 2, 4, 6 and 8). Column 9 is the total
of columns 1 through 8. Columns 10 through 13 cover foreign securities
owned by U.S. residents, where each row denotes the residence of the
foreign issuer. Each of the columns captures a different type of
foreign security: Column 10 covers Foreign Government Bonds, column 11
covers Foreign Corporate and Other Bonds, and column 12 covers Foreign
Equity. Column 13 is the total of columns 10, 11 and 12. The Grand
Total of each column is reported in row 9999-6. (e) For each Grand
Total, additional detailed subtotals are also to be reported. For that
purpose, the Grand Total of each column (row 9999-6) is broken out,
depending on the column, into the following subtotals: Type of Security
(Asset-Backed Securities and Fund Shares); Type of U.S. Issuer
(Depository Institutions, Other Financial Institutions, and Non-
Financial Institutions); and Type of U.S. Holder (Depository
Institutions, Other Financial Institutions, and Non-Financial
Institutions). (f) In any month in which the consolidated total of all
reportable long-term U.S. and foreign securities for a reporting entity
has a total fair value equal to or more than the exemption level on the
last business day of a reporting month, that reporting entity must
submit a report for that month. In addition, the reporting entity also
must submit a report for each remaining month in that calendar year,
regardless of the consolidated total of reportable long-term U.S. and
foreign securities held in any subsequent month. (g) These mandatory
reporting requirements will be phased in during 2011. In 2011, the Form
SLT will be required to be submitted quarterly as of June 30, September
30, and December 30, with the mandatory monthly reporting on Form SLT
beginning with the report as of January 31, 2012.
Type of Review: NEW.
Affected Public: Business or other for profit organizations.
Form: SLT (NEW).
Estimated Number of Respondents: 150.
Estimated Average Time per Respondent: 9.4 hours per respondent per
filing, effective with the report as of January 2012 when mandatory
monthly reporting is fully implemented. The estimated average time per
respondent varies widely from about 17 hours for a U.S.-resident
custodian filing Part A to about five hours for a U.S.-resident issuer
or U.S.-resident end-investor filing Part B.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 21,500 hours, based on 12
reporting periods per year.
Request for Comments: Comments submitted in response to this notice
will be summarized and/or included in the request for Office of
Management and Budget approval. All comments will become a matter of
public record. The public is invited to submit written comments
concerning: (a) Whether Form SLT is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the Office, including whether the
information will have practical uses; (b) the accuracy of the above
estimate of the burdens; (c) ways to enhance the quality, usefulness,
and clarity of the information to be collected; (d) ways to minimize
the reporting and/or record keeping burdens on respondents, including
the use of information technologies to automate the collection of the
data; and (e) estimates of capital or start-up costs of operation,
maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.
Dwight Wolkow,
Administrator, International Portfolio Investment Data Systems.
[FR Doc. 2010-20347 Filed 8-17-10; 8:45 am]
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