This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
Proposed Rules Federal Register
2852
Vol. 69, No. 13
Wednesday, January 21, 2004
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Natural Resources Conservation
Service
7 CFR Part 1469
Conservation Security Program
AGENCY: Natural Resources
Conservation Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of
meetings; correction.
SUMMARY: This document corrects the
summary information to a notice of
meetings associated with its
Conservation Security Program (CSP)
proposed rule published in the Federal
Register on January 14, 2004. This
document changes the date that the
Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) will accept comments to its
proposed rule from March 1, 2004, to
March 2, 2004. This change clarifies that
the public comment closing date for the
CSP proposed rule is March 2, 2004, as
published in the Federal Register on
January 2, 2004.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Diane Heard, Office of the Deputy Chief
for Programs, telephone: (202) 720–
3587; fax: (202) 720–6559; email:
diane.heard@usda.gov.
Correction
In FR Doc. 04–728, in the issue of
January 14, 2004, make the following
correction to the SUMMARY. On page
2083, in the third column, in the fifth
and sixth lines, correct ‘‘March 1, 2004’’
to read ‘‘March 2, 2004’’.
Dated: January 14, 2004.
Helen V. Huntington,
Federal Register Liaison, Natural Resources
Conservation Service.
[FR Doc. 04–1122 Filed 1–20–04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–16–M
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency
12 CFR Chap. I
[Docket No. 004–05]
BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
12 CFR Chap. II
[Docket No. R–1180]
FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE
CORPORATION
12 CFR Chap. III
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of Thrift Supervision
12 CFR Chap. V
[No. 2003–67]
Request for Burden Reduction
Recommendations; Consumer
Protection: Lending-Related Rules;
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 in rules we have
categorized as Consumer Protection:
Lending-Related Rules, consistent with
our statutory obligations. 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; the cost of compliance
associated with reporting,
recordkeeping, and disclosure
requirements, particularly on small
institutions; whether any regulatory
requirements are inconsistent or
redundant; and whether any regulations
are unclear.
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
the Congress.
DATES: Written comments must be
received no later than April 20, 2004.
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 upon receipt. 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 may submit comments,
identified by Docket Number 04–05, by
any of the following methods:
• E-mail:
regs.comments@occ.treas.gov. Include
Docket Number 04–05 in the subject
line of the message.
• Fax: (202) 874–4448.
• Mail: Public Information Room,
Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency, 250 E Street, SW., Mailstop
1–5, Washington, DC 20219.
Public Inspection: You may inspect
and photocopy comments at the Public
Information Room. You can make an
appointment to inspect the comments
by calling (202) 874–5043.
Board: You may submit comments,
identified by Docket Number R–1180,
by any of the following methods:
• E-mail:
regs.comments@federalreserve.gov.
VerDate jul<14>2003 09:27 Jan 19, 2004 Jkt 203001 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\21JAP1.SGM 21JAP1
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
Proposed Rules Federal Register
2852
Vol. 69, No. 13
Wednesday, January 21, 2004
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Natural Resources Conservation
Service
7 CFR Part 1469
Conservation Security Program
AGENCY: Natural Resources
Conservation Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of
meetings; correction.
SUMMARY: This document corrects the
summary information to a notice of
meetings associated with its
Conservation Security Program (CSP)
proposed rule published in the Federal
Register on January 14, 2004. This
document changes the date that the
Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) will accept comments to its
proposed rule from March 1, 2004, to
March 2, 2004. This change clarifies that
the public comment closing date for the
CSP proposed rule is March 2, 2004, as
published in the Federal Register on
January 2, 2004.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Diane Heard, Office of the Deputy Chief
for Programs, telephone: (202) 720–
3587; fax: (202) 720–6559; email:
diane.heard@usda.gov.
Correction
In FR Doc. 04–728, in the issue of
January 14, 2004, make the following
correction to the SUMMARY. On page
2083, in the third column, in the fifth
and sixth lines, correct ‘‘March 1, 2004’’
to read ‘‘March 2, 2004’’.
Dated: January 14, 2004.
Helen V. Huntington,
Federal Register Liaison, Natural Resources
Conservation Service.
[FR Doc. 04–1122 Filed 1–20–04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–16–M
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency
12 CFR Chap. I
[Docket No. 004–05]
BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
12 CFR Chap. II
[Docket No. R–1180]
FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE
CORPORATION
12 CFR Chap. III
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of Thrift Supervision
12 CFR Chap. V
[No. 2003–67]
Request for Burden Reduction
Recommendations; Consumer
Protection: Lending-Related Rules;
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 in rules we have
categorized as Consumer Protection:
Lending-Related Rules, consistent with
our statutory obligations. 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; the cost of compliance
associated with reporting,
recordkeeping, and disclosure
requirements, particularly on small
institutions; whether any regulatory
requirements are inconsistent or
redundant; and whether any regulations
are unclear.
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
the Congress.
DATES: Written comments must be
received no later than April 20, 2004.
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 upon receipt. 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 may submit comments,
identified by Docket Number 04–05, by
any of the following methods:
• E-mail:
regs.comments@occ.treas.gov. Include
Docket Number 04–05 in the subject
line of the message.
• Fax: (202) 874–4448.
• Mail: Public Information Room,
Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency, 250 E Street, SW., Mailstop
1–5, Washington, DC 20219.
Public Inspection: You may inspect
and photocopy comments at the Public
Information Room. You can make an
appointment to inspect the comments
by calling (202) 874–5043.
Board: You may submit comments,
identified by Docket Number R–1180,
by any of the following methods:
• E-mail:
regs.comments@federalreserve.gov.
VerDate jul<14>2003 09:27 Jan 19, 2004 Jkt 203001 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\21JAP1.SGM 21JAP1
2853Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 13 / Wednesday, January 21, 2004 / Proposed Rules
1 The National Credit Union Administration has
participated in planning the EGRPRA review but
has issued, and will issue, requests for comment
separately.
2 Public Law 104–208, Sept. 30, 1996, 12 U.S.C.
3311.
3 The citation for our first Federal Register notice
is 68 FR 35589. You can view it at our Web site
http://www.EGRPRA.gov by clicking on ‘‘Federal
Register Notices.’’
Include Docket Number R–1180, in the
subject line of the message.
• Mail: Ms. Jennifer J. Johnson,
Secretary, Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington,
DC 20551.
• Fax: (202) 452–3819 or (202) 452–
3102.
Public Inspection: You may inspect
and photocopy comments in Room MP–
500 of the Martin Building between 9
a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays in
accordance with the Board’s Rules
Regarding Availability of Information,
12 CFR part 261.
FDIC: You may submit comments,
identified as EGRPRA burden reduction
comments, by any of the following
methods:
• http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/
law/federal/propose.html
• E-mail: comments@fdic.gov.
Include ‘‘EGRPRA burden reduction
comment’’ in the subject line of the
message.
• Mail: Robert E. Feldman, Executive
Secretary, Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation, 550 17th Street, NW.,
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. 2003–67,’’ by any of
the following methods:
• E-Mail:
regs.comments@ots.treas.gov. Include
‘‘No. 2003–67’’ 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. 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.)
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
OCC:
• Mark Tenhundfeld, Assistant
Director, Legislative and Regulatory
Activities Division, (202) 874–5090.
• Lee Walzer, Counsel, Legislative
and Regulatory Activities Division,
(202) 874–5090.
Board:
• Patricia A. Robinson, Managing
Senior 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.
• Arleen Lustig, Supervisory
Financial Analyst, Division of Banking
Supervision and Regulation, (202) 452–
5259.
• For users of Telecommunications
Device for the Deaf (TDD) only, contact
(202) 263–4869.
FDIC:
• Claude A. Rollin, Special Assistant
to the Vice Chairman, (202) 898–8741.
• Steven D. Fritts, Associate Director,
Division of Supervision and Consumer
Protection, (202) 898–3723.
• Ruth R. Amberg, Senior Counsel,
Legal Division, (202) 898–3736.
• Thomas Nixon, Counsel, Legal
Division, (202) 898–8766.
OTS:
• Robyn Dennis, Manager, Thrift
Policy, Supervision Policy, (202) 906–
5751.
• Karen Osterloh, Special Counsel,
Regulations and Legislation Division,
Chief Counsel’s Office, (202) 906–6639.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The Agencies are asking for your
comments and suggestions on ways in
which the Agencies can reduce
regulatory burdens consistent with our
statutory obligations. Today, we request
your input to help us identify which
Consumer Protection Lending-Related
rules are outdated, unnecessary, or
unduly burdensome. The rules in this
category are listed 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.
The rest of this notice will discuss the
essential elements of our EGRPRA
review project, some suggestions we
received on carrying it out, and today’s
request for comment.
II. Agencies’ Proposed and Current
Plan
A. The EGRPRA Review Requirements
and the Agencies’ 1 Proposed Plan
This current request for comment is
part of the review required by section
2222 of EGRPRA.2 We described the
EGRPRA review’s requirements in our
initial notice of the EGRPRA project
published in the June 16, 2003, Federal
Register.3 As part of our review, we ask
for comments not only on burden
imposed by individual regulatory
requirements, but also on the
cumulative effect of the rules.
The EGRPRA review required us to
categorize our rules by type. Our June
16, 2003 Federal Register publication
placed our rules into 12 categories. The
categories are:
1. Applications and Reporting;
2. Banking Operations;
3. Capital;
4. Community Reinvestment Act;
5. Consumer Protection;
6. Directors, Officers and Employees;
7. International Operations;
8. Money Laundering;
9. Powers and Activities;
10. Rules of Procedure;
11. Safety and Soundness;
12. Securities.
To spread the work of commenting on
and reviewing the categories of rules
over a reasonable period of time, we
proposed to publish one or more
categories of rules approximately every
six months between 2003 and 2006 and
provide a 90-day comment period for
each publication. We asked for
comment on all aspects of our plan,
including: the categories, the rules in
each category, and the order in which
we should review the categories.
Because the Agencies were eager to
begin reducing unnecessary burden
where appropriate, our initial notice
also published three categories of rules
for comment (Applications and
Reporting, Powers and Activities, and
International Operations). All our
covered categories of rules must be
published for comment and reviewed by
the end of September, 2006.
The EGRPRA review then requires the
Agencies to: (1) Publish a summary of
the comments we received, identifying
and discussing the significant issues
VerDate jul<14>2003 09:43 Jan 19, 2004 Jkt 203001 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\21JAP1.SGM 21JAP1
1 The National Credit Union Administration has
participated in planning the EGRPRA review but
has issued, and will issue, requests for comment
separately.
2 Public Law 104–208, Sept. 30, 1996, 12 U.S.C.
3311.
3 The citation for our first Federal Register notice
is 68 FR 35589. You can view it at our Web site
http://www.EGRPRA.gov by clicking on ‘‘Federal
Register Notices.’’
Include Docket Number R–1180, in the
subject line of the message.
• Mail: Ms. Jennifer J. Johnson,
Secretary, Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington,
DC 20551.
• Fax: (202) 452–3819 or (202) 452–
3102.
Public Inspection: You may inspect
and photocopy comments in Room MP–
500 of the Martin Building between 9
a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays in
accordance with the Board’s Rules
Regarding Availability of Information,
12 CFR part 261.
FDIC: You may submit comments,
identified as EGRPRA burden reduction
comments, by any of the following
methods:
• http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/
law/federal/propose.html
• E-mail: comments@fdic.gov.
Include ‘‘EGRPRA burden reduction
comment’’ in the subject line of the
message.
• Mail: Robert E. Feldman, Executive
Secretary, Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation, 550 17th Street, NW.,
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. 2003–67,’’ by any of
the following methods:
• E-Mail:
regs.comments@ots.treas.gov. Include
‘‘No. 2003–67’’ 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. 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.)
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
OCC:
• Mark Tenhundfeld, Assistant
Director, Legislative and Regulatory
Activities Division, (202) 874–5090.
• Lee Walzer, Counsel, Legislative
and Regulatory Activities Division,
(202) 874–5090.
Board:
• Patricia A. Robinson, Managing
Senior 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.
• Arleen Lustig, Supervisory
Financial Analyst, Division of Banking
Supervision and Regulation, (202) 452–
5259.
• For users of Telecommunications
Device for the Deaf (TDD) only, contact
(202) 263–4869.
FDIC:
• Claude A. Rollin, Special Assistant
to the Vice Chairman, (202) 898–8741.
• Steven D. Fritts, Associate Director,
Division of Supervision and Consumer
Protection, (202) 898–3723.
• Ruth R. Amberg, Senior Counsel,
Legal Division, (202) 898–3736.
• Thomas Nixon, Counsel, Legal
Division, (202) 898–8766.
OTS:
• Robyn Dennis, Manager, Thrift
Policy, Supervision Policy, (202) 906–
5751.
• Karen Osterloh, Special Counsel,
Regulations and Legislation Division,
Chief Counsel’s Office, (202) 906–6639.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The Agencies are asking for your
comments and suggestions on ways in
which the Agencies can reduce
regulatory burdens consistent with our
statutory obligations. Today, we request
your input to help us identify which
Consumer Protection Lending-Related
rules are outdated, unnecessary, or
unduly burdensome. The rules in this
category are listed 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.
The rest of this notice will discuss the
essential elements of our EGRPRA
review project, some suggestions we
received on carrying it out, and today’s
request for comment.
II. Agencies’ Proposed and Current
Plan
A. The EGRPRA Review Requirements
and the Agencies’ 1 Proposed Plan
This current request for comment is
part of the review required by section
2222 of EGRPRA.2 We described the
EGRPRA review’s requirements in our
initial notice of the EGRPRA project
published in the June 16, 2003, Federal
Register.3 As part of our review, we ask
for comments not only on burden
imposed by individual regulatory
requirements, but also on the
cumulative effect of the rules.
The EGRPRA review required us to
categorize our rules by type. Our June
16, 2003 Federal Register publication
placed our rules into 12 categories. The
categories are:
1. Applications and Reporting;
2. Banking Operations;
3. Capital;
4. Community Reinvestment Act;
5. Consumer Protection;
6. Directors, Officers and Employees;
7. International Operations;
8. Money Laundering;
9. Powers and Activities;
10. Rules of Procedure;
11. Safety and Soundness;
12. Securities.
To spread the work of commenting on
and reviewing the categories of rules
over a reasonable period of time, we
proposed to publish one or more
categories of rules approximately every
six months between 2003 and 2006 and
provide a 90-day comment period for
each publication. We asked for
comment on all aspects of our plan,
including: the categories, the rules in
each category, and the order in which
we should review the categories.
Because the Agencies were eager to
begin reducing unnecessary burden
where appropriate, our initial notice
also published three categories of rules
for comment (Applications and
Reporting, Powers and Activities, and
International Operations). All our
covered categories of rules must be
published for comment and reviewed by
the end of September, 2006.
The EGRPRA review then requires the
Agencies to: (1) Publish a summary of
the comments we received, identifying
and discussing the significant issues
VerDate jul<14>2003 09:43 Jan 19, 2004 Jkt 203001 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\21JAP1.SGM 21JAP1