[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 30 (Tuesday, February 14, 2012)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 8094-8095]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-3312]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
17 CFR Part 200
[Release No. 34-66355]
Reporting Line for the Commission's Inspector General
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'') is
amending its rules to conform them to amendments made to the Inspector
General Act of 1978 that require the Commission's Inspector General to
report to and be under the general supervision of the full Commission.
DATES: Effective Date: February 14, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Beth Sullivan, Counsel, Office of
the Inspector General, at (202) 551-6039, Securities and Exchange
Commission, 100 F Street NE., Washington, DC 20549.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Discussion
Section 8G(d)(1) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (``IG Act'')
\1\ provides: ``Each Inspector General shall report to and be under the
general supervision of the head of the designated Federal entity, but
shall not report to, or be subject to supervision by, any other officer
or employee of such designated Federal entity.'' Prior to the Dodd-
Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (``Dodd-Frank
Act''),\2\ section 8G(a)(4) of the IG Act defined the ``head of the
designated Federal entity'' to mean, unless specifically designated by
statute, the chief policymaking officer or board of the designated
Federal entity as identified in a list published annually by the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB''). OMB's annual
lists identified the ``Chairperson'' as the head of the SEC. Section
989B of the Dodd-Frank Act amended the IG Act to provide that the
``head of the designated Federal entity'' with a board or commission
(such as the SEC) means ``the board or commission of the designated
Federal entity * * * .'' Accordingly, the Inspector General must now
report to, and be under the general supervision of, the full
Commission.
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\1\ Public Law 95-452; 92 Stat. 1101 (1978), as amended.
\2\ Public Law 111-203; 124 Stat. 1376 (2010).
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These amendments conform the Commission's rules that address the
reporting line of the Commission's Inspector General to the amendments
made by the Dodd-Frank Act to the IG Act by replacing references to the
``Chairman'' in these rules with references to the ``Commission''.
II. Related Matters
A. Administrative Procedure Act and Other Administrative Laws
The Commission has determined that these amendments to its rules
relate solely to the agency's organization, procedure, or practice.
Accordingly, the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act
regarding notice of proposed rulemaking and opportunity for public
participation are not applicable.\3\ The Regulatory Flexibility Act,
therefore, does not apply.\4\ Because these rules relate solely to the
agency's organization, procedure, or practice and do not substantially
affect the rights or obligations of non-agency parties, they are not
subject to the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act.\5\
Finally, these amendments do not contain any collection of information
requirements as defined by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, as
amended.\6\
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\3\ 5 U.S.C. 553(b).
\4\ 5 U.S.C. 601-612.
\5\ 5 U.S.C. 804.
\6\ 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520.
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B. Cost-Benefit Analysis
The Commission is sensitive to the costs and benefits imposed by
its rules. The amendments adopted today are procedural in nature and
will produce the benefit of conforming the Commission's rules to
amendments made to the IG Act that require the Commission's Inspector
General to report to and be under the general supervision of the full
Commission. The Commission also believes that these amendments will not
impose any costs on non-agency parties, or that if there are any such
costs, they are negligible.
C. Consideration of Burden on Competition
Section 23(a)(2) of the Exchange Act requires the Commission, in
making rules pursuant to any provision of the Exchange Act, to consider
among other
[[Page 8095]]
matters the impact any such rule would have on competition. The
Commission does not believe that the amendments that the Commission is
adopting today will have any impact on competition.
Statutory Authority: The amendments to the Commission's rules
are adopted pursuant to 15 U.S.C. 77s, 78d, 78d-1, 78d-2, 78w, 78mm,
80a-37, 80b-11, and 7202; 5 U.S.C. App. (Inspector General Act of
1978) Sec. 8G; and Sec. 989B of Pub. L. 111-203 (2010).
List of Subjects in 17 CFR Part 200
Administrative practice and procedure, Authority delegations
(Government agencies), Organization and functions (Government
agencies).
Text of Amendments
In accordance with the preamble, the Commission hereby amends Title
17, Chapter II of the Code of Federal Regulations as follows:
PART 200--ORGANIZATION; CONDUCT AND ETHICS; AND INFORMATION AND
REQUESTS
Subpart A--Organization and Program Management
0
1. The authority citation for Part 200, Subpart A, is amended by adding
the following citation, in numerical order, to read as follows:
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 77o, 77s, 77sss, 78d, 78d-1, 78d-2, 78w,
78ll(d), 78mm, 80a-37, 80b-11, and 7202, unless otherwise noted.
Section 200.16a is also issued under Sec. 989B of Pub. L. 111-
203 (2010), 124 Stat. 1376; and 5 U.S.C. App. (Inspector General Act
of 1978) Sec. 8G.
* * * * *
0
2. Sec. 200.16a is amended by removing the word ``Chairman'' and
adding in its place the word ``Commission'' in paragraphs (b) and (c)
wherever it appears.
Dated: February 8, 2012.
By the Commission.
Elizabeth M. Murphy,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2012-3312 Filed 2-13-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P