[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 205 (Wednesday, October 23, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63205-63206]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-24735]
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FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY
[No. 2013-N-13]
Proposed Collection; Comment Request
AGENCY: Federal Housing Finance Agency.
ACTION: 30-day Notice of Submission of Information Collection for
Approval from the Office of Management and Budget.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is seeking
public comments concerning the information collection known as
``Members of the Banks,'' which has been assigned control number 2590-
0003 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). FHFA will submit the
information collection to OMB for review and approval of a three-year
extension of the control number, which is due to expire on October 31,
2013.
DATES: Interested persons may submit comments on or before November 22,
2013.
Comments: Submit comments to the Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget, Attention:
Desk Officer for the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Washington, DC
20503, Fax: 202-395-6974, Email: [email protected]. Please
also submit comments to FHFA using any one of the following methods:
Email: [email protected]. Please include Proposed
Collection; Comment Request: ``Members of the Banks, (No. 2013-N-13)''
in the subject line of the message.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. If you submit your
comment to the Federal eRulemaking Portal, please also send it by email
to FHFA at [email protected] to ensure timely receipt by the agency.
Mail/Hand Delivery: Federal Housing Finance Agency, Eighth
Floor, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC 20024, ATTENTION: Public
Comments/Proposed Collection; Comment Request: ``Members of the Banks,
(No. 2013-N-13).''
We will post all public comments we receive without change,
including any personal information you provide, such as your name,
address, email address, and telephone number, on the FHFA Web site at
http://www.fhfa.gov. In addition, copies of all comments received will
be available for examination by the public on business days between the
hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., at the Federal Housing Finance Agency,
Eighth Floor, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC 20024. To make an
appointment to inspect comments, please call the Office of General
Counsel at 202-649-3804.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jonathan F. Curtis, Financial Analyst,
Division of Federal Home Loan Bank Regulation, at 202-649-3321 (not a
toll free number), [email protected], or by regular mail at the
Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC
20024. The telephone number for the Telecommunications Device for the
Deaf is 800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
A. Need For and Use of the Information Collection
Section 4 of the Federal Home Loan Bank Act (Bank Act) establishes
the eligibility requirements an institution must meet in order to
become a member of a Federal Home Loan Bank (Bank).\1\ FHFA's Bank
membership regulation, located at 12 CFR part 1263, implements
[[Page 63206]]
section 4 of the Bank Act by providing uniform requirements an
applicant must meet to be approved for Bank membership and review
criteria a Bank must apply to determine if an applicant satisfies the
statutory and regulatory membership eligibility requirements, and by
specifying the information and materials an institution must submit as
part of its application.\2\ Although the membership regulation
authorizes the Banks to approve or deny applications for membership, it
also provides institutions that have been denied membership in a Bank
the option of appealing the decision to FHFA.\3\ The membership
regulation also addresses the requirements for withdrawal from Bank
membership and for the transfer of an institution's membership from one
Bank to another.\4\
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\1\ See 12 U.S.C. 1424.
\2\ See 12 CFR part 1263.
\3\ See 12 CFR 1263.5.
\4\ See 12 CFR 1263.26; 1263.18(d), (e).
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This information collection may require four different types of
submissions by Bank members or by institutions wishing to become a Bank
member: (I) Applications for membership and supporting materials; (II)
notices of appeal to FHFA by institutions that have been denied
membership by a Bank; (III) requests to withdraw from Bank membership;
and (IV) applications for transfer of membership to a different Bank
and supporting materials. The information collection is necessary to
enable a Bank to determine whether prospective and current Bank
members, or transferring members of other Banks, satisfy the statutory
and regulatory requirements to be certified initially and maintain
their status as members eligible to obtain Bank advances. The
collection is also necessary to inform a Bank of when to initiate the
withdrawal process where a member so desires. On appeals, FHFA uses the
information collection to determine whether to uphold or overrule a
Bank's decision to deny Bank membership to an applicant.
The OMB control number for the information collection is 2590-0003,
which is due to expire on October 31, 2013. The likely respondents are
institutions that want to be certified as or are members of a Bank
seeking continued certification.
B. Burden Estimate
FHFA has analyzed the cost and hour burden for the four facets of
the information collection: (I) membership application process; (II)
appeal of membership denial; (III) membership withdrawals, and (IV)
transfer of membership to another Bank district. The estimate for the
total annual hour burden for all respondents is 2,261 hours. The
estimate for the total annual cost burden is $175,613. These estimates
are based on the following:
I. Membership Application
FHFA estimates the total annual average number of applicants at
157, with 1 response per applicant. The estimate for the average hours
per application is 11.7 hours. The estimate for the annual hour burden
for applicants is 1,837 hours (157 applicants x 1 response per
applicant x 11.7 hours per response). The estimate for the total annual
cost burden to applicants for the membership application process is
$135,365.
II. Appeal of Membership Denial
FHFA estimates the total annual average number of appellants at 1,
with 1 response per appellant. The estimate for the average hours per
application for appeal is 10 hours. The estimate for the annual hour
burden for appellants is 10 hours (10 appellants x 1 response per
appellant x 10 hours per response). The estimate for the total annual
cost burden to applicants for the appeal of membership denial process
is $950.
III. Withdrawals From Membership
FHFA estimates the total annual average number of membership
withdrawals at 275, with 1 response per applicant. The estimate for the
average hours per application is 1.5 hours. The estimate for the annual
hour burden for applicants is 413 hours (275 withdrawals x 1 response
per applicant x 1.5 hours per response). The estimate for the total
annual cost burden to members for withdrawals from membership is
$39,188.
IV. Transfer of Membership
FHFA estimates the total annual average number of membership
transfer requests at 1, with 1 response per applicant. The estimate for
the average hours per application is 1.5 hours. The estimate for the
annual hour burden for applicants is 1.5 hours (1 transfer x 1 response
per applicant x 1.5 hours per response). The estimate for the total
annual cost burden to member respondents of the transfer of membership
process is $110.
C. Comment Request
In accordance with the requirements of 5 CFR 1320.8(d), FHFA
published a request for public comments regarding this information
collection in the Federal Register on July 1, 2013. See 78 FR 39293
(July 1, 2013). The 60-day comment period closed on August 30, 2013. No
public comments were received.
FHFA requests written comments on the following: (1) Whether the
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of
FHFA functions, including whether the information has practical
utility; (2) the accuracy of the FHFA's estimates of the burdens of the
collection of information; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility,
and clarity of the information collected; and (4) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information on respondents, including
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.
Dated: September 30, 2013.
Kevin Winkler,
Chief Information Officer, Federal Housing Finance Agency.
[FR Doc. 2013-24735 Filed 10-22-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8070-01-P