Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation

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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of Thrift Supervision

NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Public Workshop on Financial Privacy Notices

AGENCIES: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC); Board of
Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board); Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC); Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS);
National Credit Union Administration (NCUA); Federal Trade Commission
(FTC); Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC); and Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC).

ACTION: Joint Notice Announcing Public Workshop and Requesting Public
Comment.

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SUMMARY: The OCC, Board, FDIC, OTS, NCUA, FTC, CFTC, and SEC (``the
Agencies'') are planning to host a joint public workshop to educate the
Agencies and the public about how financial institutions can provide
consumers with effective notice of their privacy policies and practices
as required by Title V of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, 15 U.S.C. 6801 et
seq. (the ``GLB Act'' or ``Act'').

DATES: The workshop will be held on Tuesday, December 4, 2001, from
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Federal Trade Commission, 600
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580.
Pre-registration: The event is open to the public and there is no
fee for attendance. However, attendees are strongly encouraged to pre-
register, as seating will be limited. To pre-register, please email
your name and affiliation by November 16, 2001, to glbworkshop@ftc.gov.
Requests to participate as a panelist: As discussed below, written
requests to participate as a panelist in the workshop must be filed on
or before October 15, 2001. Persons filing requests to participate as a
panelist will be notified on or before November 16, 2001, if they have
been selected to participate.
Written comments: Whether or not selected to participate, persons
may submit written comments on the Questions to be Addressed at the
workshop. Such comments must be filed on or before January 4, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and requests to participate as a panelist
in the workshop should be submitted to: Secretary, Federal Trade
Commission, Room 159, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC
20580. Alternatively, they may be emailed to glbworkshop@ftc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Toby Milgrom Levin, Division of
Advertising Practices, 202-326-3224, or Julie Brof, Division of
Financial Practices, 202-326-3224. Both of the above staff can be
reached by mail at: Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue,
NW., Washington, DC 20580.
Interested parties may also contact the following staff at the
Agencies:
OCC: Amy Friend, Assistant Chief Counsel, 202-874-5200
Board: Ky Tran-Trong, Attorney, Division of Consumer and Community
Affairs, 202-452-3667
FDIC: Stacy Messett, Review Examiner, Division of Compliance and
Consumer Affairs, 202-942-3406
OTS: Cindy Baltierra, Program Analyst, 202-906-6540
NCUA: Mary Rupp, Staff Attorney, Office of General Counsel, 703-
518-6553
CFTC: Nancy Yanofsky, Assistant Chief Counsel, Division of Economic
Analysis, 202-418-5260
SEC: Penelope Saltzman, Senior Counsel, Office of Regulatory
Policy, Division of Investment Management, 202-942-0690

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background and Workshop Goals

The GLB Act (Pub. L. No. 106-102) was signed into law on November
12, 1999. Subtitle A of Title V of the Act, captioned ``Disclosure of
Nonpublic Personal Information,'' limits the instances in which a
financial institution may disclose nonpublic personal information about
a consumer to nonaffiliated third parties, and requires a financial
institution to disclose to all of its customers the institution's
privacy policies and

[[Page 49743]]

practices with respect to information sharing with both affiliates and
nonaffiliated third parties.\1\ With certain exceptions, the Act also
prohibits a financial institution from disclosing nonpublic personal
information about a consumer to nonaffiliated third parties if the
consumer opts out of the disclosure.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C. 6801 et seq. The implementing regulations are set
forth at 12 CFR part 40 (OCC); 12 CFR part 216 (Board); 12 CFR part
332 (FDIC); 12 CFR part 573 (OTS); 12 CFR part 716 (NCUA); 16 CFR
part 313 (FTC); and 17 CFR part 248 (SEC).
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The Act directed each of the Agencies to adopt regulations
implementing these provisions.\2\ Compliance with those regulations was
required not later than July 1, 2001.\3\ Each Agency's final rule
requires that financial institutions provide clear, conspicuous, and
accurate notice of their privacy policies and practices to their
customers. Each rule also specifies the general content (but not the
particular language) to be included in the notices and provides sample
clauses designed to illustrate the appropriate level of detail.
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\2\ Persons or entities subject to the jurisdiction of the CFTC
were initially excluded from the coverage of the GLB Act. 15 U.S.C.
6809(3)(B). That was changed by the Commodity Futures Modernization
Act of 2000, which made the CFTC a federal functional regulator
under the GLB Act, and required it to promulgate privacy regulations
for certain persons or entities subject to its jurisdiction. 7
U.S.C. 7b-2. The CFTC's implementing regulations are set forth at 17
CFR part 160.
\3\ The compliance date for the CFTC's final privacy rule is
March 31, 2002. 17 CFR 160.18.
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Some consumer and privacy advocates and others have expressed
concerns about the adequacy of a number of privacy notices provided
thus far, stating, for example, that the notices are confusing and/or
misleading and that the opt-out disclosures are hard to find. At the
same time, some financial institutions, which are implementing these
rules for the first time, have sought additional guidance from the
Agencies about the form and content of their notices. The Agencies
therefore believe that it would be useful to provide a public forum to
discuss strategies for providing effective notices. The workshop will
bring together financial institutions, consumer and privacy groups,
experts on readability and consumer communication, and others to
discuss the issues through moderated panel discussions. The Agencies
anticipate that the workshop will provide a greater understanding of
the challenges financial institutions face in developing effective
notices under the Act and may also be a vehicle for developing consumer
and business education materials about GLB notice issues.

Registration Information

Form and Availability of Comments

The Agencies request that interested parties submit written
comments on the above questions to facilitate greater understanding of
the issues. Of particular interest are any studies, surveys, research,
or other empirical data related to these questions. Comments should
indicate the number(s) of the specific question(s) being answered,
provide responses to questions in numerical order, and use a new page
for each question answered. Comments should be captioned ``GLB Act
Notice Workshop--Comment, P014814,'' and must be filed on or before
January 4, 2002.
Parties sending written comments should submit an original and two
copies of each document. To enable prompt review and public access,
paper submissions should include a version on diskette in PDF, ASCII,
WordPerfect, or Microsoft Word format. Diskettes should be labeled with
the name of the party, and the name and version of the word processing
program used to create the document. Alternatively, comments may be
emailed to glbworkshop@ftc.gov, and a link to this site will appear on the 
website of each of the participating Agencies.

Requests To Participate as a Panelist in the Workshop

Those parties who wish to participate as panelists in the workshop
must notify the FTC in writing of their interest in participating on or
before October 15, 2001, either by mail to the Secretary of the FTC or
by email to glbworkshop@ftc.gov. Requests to 
participate as a panelist should be captioned ``GLB Act Notice 
Workshop--Request to Participate, P014814.'' Parties are asked to 
include in their requests a statement setting forth their expertise in or 
knowledge of the issues on which the workshop will focus and their contact 
information, including a telephone number, facsimile number, and email address
(if available), to enable the Agencies to notify them if they are selected. An original
and two copies of each document should be submitted. Panelists will be
notified on or before November 16, 2001 whether they have been
selected.
Using the following criteria, Agency staff will select a limited
number of panelists to participate in the workshop. The number of
parties selected will not be so large as to inhibit effective
discussion among them.
1. The party has expertise in or knowledge of the issues that are
the focus of the workshop.

[[Page 49744]]

2. The party's participation would promote a balance of interests
being represented at the workshop.
3. The party has been designated by one or more interested parties
(who timely file requests to participate) as a party who shares group
interests with the designator(s).
In addition, there will be time during the workshop for those not
serving as panelists to ask questions.

Dated: September 14, 2001.
John D. Hawke, Jr.,
Comptroller of the Currency.
By order of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System, September 21, 2001.
Jennifer J. Johnson,
Secretary of the Board.
Dated at Washington, DC this 18th day of September 2001.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Robert E. Feldman,
Executive Secretary.

Dated: September 13, 2001.
By the Office of Thrift Supervision.
Ellen Seidman,
Director.
By the National Credit Union Administration Board on September
5th, 2001.
Becky Baker,
Secretary of the Board.
By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary of the Commission.
Issued in Washington, DC, on this 5th day of September 2001 by
the Commission.
Catherine D. Dixon,
Assistant Secretary, Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
By the Commission.
Dated: September 21, 2001.
Margaret H. McFarland,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 01-24260 Filed 9-27-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P