FDIC Federal Register Citations

[Federal Register: January 4, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 2)]
[Proposed Rules]              
[Page 287-290]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr04ja06-23]                        

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

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

12 CFR Chapter I

[Docket No. 05-22]

Office of Thrift Supervision

12 CFR Chapter V

[No. 2005-53]

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

12 CFR Chapter II

[Docket No. R-1243]

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION

12 CFR Chapter III
 
Request for Burden Reduction Recommendations; Rules Relating to
Prompt Corrective Action and the Disclosure and Reporting of CRA-
Related Agreements; 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reviewing our regulations to identify outdated, unnecessary, or unduly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 with respect to
rules regarding Prompt Corrective Action and the Disclosure and
Reporting of CRA-Related Agreements, which are in the Capital and
Community Reinvestment Act categories of regulations. 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; whether the cost of compliance associated with
reporting, recordkeeping, and disclosure requirements, particularly on
small institutions, is justified; whether any regulatory requirements
are inconsistent or redundant; and whether any regulations are unclear.
    This is our last request for comment on categories of regulations
in the first 10-year cycle of regulatory review under EGRPRA. 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 April 4, 2006.

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. 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 should include OCC and Docket Number 05-22 in your
comment. You may submit comments 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.''
     E-mail address: regs.comments@occ.treas.gov.
     Fax: (202) 874-4448.
     Mail: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, 250 E
Street, SW., Mail Stop 1-5, Washington, DC 20219.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: 250 E Street, SW., Attn: Public
Information Room, Mail Stop 1-5, Washington, DC 20219.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name (OCC)
and docket number or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) for this
notice of proposed rulemaking. In general, OCC will enter all comments
received into the docket without change, including any business or
personal information that you provide. You may review comments and
other

[[Page 288]]

related materials by any of the following methods:
     Viewing Comments Personally: You may personally inspect
and photocopy comments at the OCC's Public Information Room, 250 E
Street, SW., Washington, DC. You can make an appointment to inspect
comments by calling (202) 874-5043.
     Viewing Comments Electronically: You may request e-mail or
CD-ROM copies of comments that the OCC has received by contacting the
OCC's Public Information Room at regs.comments@occ.treas.gov.
     Docket: You may also request available background
documents and project summaries using the methods described above.
    Board: You may submit comments, identified by Docket Number R-1243,
by any of the following methods:
     Agency Web site: http://www.federalreserve.gov Follow the instructions for submitting comments at http://www.federalreserve.gov/.

.

     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, unless modified 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:
     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. Include ``EGRPRA'' in the
subject line of the message.
     Mail: Robert E. Feldman, Executive Secretary, Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation, 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
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. 2005-53'' by any
of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.

Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     E-Mail: regs.comments@ots.treas.gov. Include ``No. 2005-
53'' 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/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 fax to (202) 906-7755. (Please

identify the material you would like to inspect to assist us in serving
you.) OTS schedules 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 OTS receives a request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: OCC:
     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, Assistant General 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.
     Kevin H. Wilson, Supervisory Financial Analyst, Division
of Banking Supervision and Regulation, (202) 452-2362.
     For users of Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD)
only, contact (202) 263-4869.
    FDIC:
     Steven D. Fritts, Associate Director, Division of
Supervision and Consumer Protection, (202) 898-3723.
     Ruth R. Amberg, Senior Counsel, Legal Division, (202) 898-
3736.
     Susan van den Toorn, Counsel, Legal Division, (202) 898-
8707.
    OTS:
     Glenn Gimble, Senior Project Manager, Thrift Policy,
Supervision Policy, (202) 906-7158.
     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 burden consistent with our
statutory obligations. Today, we request your input to help us identify
which regulatory requirements involving Prompt Corrective Action and
the Disclosure and Reporting of CRA-Related Agreements are outdated,
unnecessary, or unduly burdensome. We list these rules, which are in
the Capital and Community Reinvestment Act categories, 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 sixth and final 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

[[Page 289]]

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; our second notice on January 21, 2004, at 69 FR
2852; our third notice on July 20, 2004, at 69 FR 43347; our fouroth
ntoice on February 3, 2005, at 70 FR 5571; and our fifth notice on
August 11, 2005, at 70 FR 46779. 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 comment 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 and analyzing whether legislative
change is required to reduce burden.
    The first publication and review cycle under EGRPRA must be
completed by September 2006. The regulatory response and report to
Congress will occur after the publication cycle is finished.
    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.

    With this notice, we have requested public comment regarding
possible burden reduction in all 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. Our July 20, 2004, notice requested comment on
Consumer Protection: Account/Deposit Relationships and Miscellaneous
Consumer Rules. Our February 3, 2005 notice requested comment on three
categories: Money Laundering, Safety and Soundness, and Securities. Our
August 11, 2005 notice requested comment on three categories: Banking
Operations; Directors, Officers and Employees; and Rules of Procedure.
    Additionally, an EGRPRA request for comment was included in the
recent joint advance notice of proposed rulemaking regarding Risk-Based
Capital Guidelines; Capital Adequacy Guidelines; and Capital
Maintenance: Domestic Capital Modifications.\3\ As a result, a request
for comment on those regulations is not duplicated here. In addition,
the regulations implementing the Community Reinvestment Act are not
included in this notice and request for comment because, during the
past two years, the Agencies solicited comment on burden reduction
measures for the CRA regulations and received voluminous comments in
response.\4\ The Agencies have adopted final rules revising the CRA
regulations, mindful of the comments related to burden reduction.\5\
Today, we request comment on rules regarding Prompt Corrective Action
and the Disclosure and Reporting of CRA-Related Agreements, which are
in the Capital and Community Reinvestment Act categories,
respectively--the regulations on which burden reduction comments have
not yet been sought.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ 70 FR 61068, 61071 (Oct. 20, 2005).
    \4\ See 66 FR 37602 (July 19, 2001) (Joint Advance Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking); 69 FR 5729 (Feb. 6, 2004) (Joint Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking); 69 FR 51611 (Aug. 20, 2004) (FDIC Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking); 69 FR 56175 (Sept. 20, 2004) (FDIC extension
of comment period for proposed rule); 69 FR 68257 (Nov. 24, 2004)
(OTS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking); and 70 FR 12148 (Mar. 11, 2005)
(OCC, FRB and FDIC Notice of Proposed Rulemaking).
    \5\ See 69 FR 51155 (Aug. 18, 2004) (OTS Final Rule); 70 FR
10023 (Mar. 2, 2005) (OTS Final Rule); and 70 FR 44256 (Aug. 2,
2005) (OCC, FRB and FDIC Final Rule).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In addition to soliciting written comments, we held banker outreach
meetings in Orlando, St. Louis, Denver, San Francisco, New York,
Nashville, Seattle, Chicago, Phoenix and New Orleans. Approximately 450
bankers attended these meetings. The Agencies have also held outreach
meetings with over 100 participants from consumer and community groups
to obtain their input on regulatory burden reduction. These meetings
were held in San Francisco, Chicago, Washington, DC and Arlington,
Virginia. In addition, the Agencies held joint outreach meetings
including bankers as well as consumer and community groups in
Washington, DC, Los Angeles and Kansas City. 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, about 560
to the second notice, over 100 to the third notice, 123 to the fourth
notice and 29 to the fifth notice. The Agencies appreciate the response
to our notices and outreach meetings. The written comments and remarks
at the meetings came from individuals, banks, savings associations,
holding companies, industry trade groups, and consumer and community
groups. Many comments contained multiple suggestions for regulatory
reform. 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.
    In addition, Congress has considered various legislative proposals
to reduce burden on the financial services industry. In 2004 and 2005,
representatives of the Agencies and industry leaders testified before
congressional committees about these legislative reform proposals and
other ideas for reducing burden on the financial services industry. We
will continue to post information about legislative and regulatory
reform efforts on our Web site.

II. Request for Comment on Prompt Corrective Action and the Disclosure
and Reporting of CRA-Related Agreements

    Today we are asking the public to identify ways in which the rules
pertaining to Prompt Corrective Action and the Disclosure and Reporting
of CRA-Related Agreements (which are part of the Capital and Community
Reinvestment Act categories) may be outdated, unnecessary, or unduly
burdensome. The chart at the end of this notice sets forth the
regulations about which we seek comment.
    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 or
needs revision? (3) Do changes in the financial products and services
offered to consumers and businesses 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

[[Page 290]]

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). Are there appropriate ways to 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.

Rules for Which We Are Requesting Comment Now
[Capital and the Community Reinvestment Act]