Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Hizballah Financial Sanctions Regulations-Report on Closure by U.S. Financial Institutions of Correspondent Accounts and Payable-Through Accounts
Notice published June 9, 2016 · 81 FR 37239
- Document number
- FR Doc. 2016-13668
- Type
- Notice
- Published
- June 9, 2016
- Citation
- 81 FR 37239 (pages 37,239–37,240)
- Action
- Notice and request for comments.
- Dates
- Written comments must be submitted on or before August 8, 2016 to be assured of consideration.
- Official sources
- PDF (govinfo.gov) · federalregister.gov
Summary
The Federal Register's summaryThe Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other federal agencies to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)) (PRA). Currently, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) within the Department of the Treasury is soliciting comments concerning OFAC's Hizballah Financial Sanctions Regulations Report on Closure by U.S. Financial Institutions of Correspondent Accounts and Payable-Through Accounts.
Text
As the Government Publishing Office publishes it. Pages OFAC printed as images (in recent notices, the lists of names) are in the official PDF.
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 111 (Thursday, June 9, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37239-37240]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-13668]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of Foreign Assets Control
Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Hizballah Financial
Sanctions Regulations--Report on Closure by U.S. Financial Institutions
of Correspondent Accounts and Payable-Through Accounts
AGENCY: Office of Foreign Assets Control, Treasury.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing
effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general
public and other federal agencies to comment on proposed and/or
continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A))
(PRA). Currently, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) within
the Department of the Treasury is soliciting comments concerning OFAC's
Hizballah Financial Sanctions Regulations Report on Closure by U.S.
Financial Institutions of Correspondent Accounts and Payable-Through
Accounts.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before August 8, 2016
to be assured of consideration.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions on the Web site for submitting comments.
Fax: Attn: Request for Comments (Hizballah Financial Sanctions
Regulations--Report on Closure by U.S. Financial Institutions of
Correspondent Accounts and Payable-Through Accounts) 202-622-1657.
Mail: Attn: Request for Comments (Hizballah Financial Sanctions
Regulations--Report on Closure by U.S. Financial Institutions of
Correspondent Accounts and Payable-Through Accounts), Office of Foreign
Assets Control, Department of the Treasury, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW., Freedman's Bank Building, Washington, DC 20220.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name
and the Federal Register Doc. number that appears at the end of this
document. Comments received will be made available to the public via
regulations.gov or upon request, without change and including any
personal information provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Department of the Treasury's
Office of Foreign Assets Control: Assistant Director for Licensing,
tel.: 202-622-2480, Assistant Director for Regulatory Affairs, tel.:
202-622-4855, Assistant Director for Sanctions Compliance & Evaluation,
tel.: 202-622-2490; or the Department of the Treasury's Office of the
Chief Counsel (Foreign Assets Control), Office of the General Counsel,
tel.: 202-622-2410.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Hizballah Financial Sanctions Regulations--Report on Closure
by U.S. Financial Institutions of Correspondent Accounts and Payable-
Through Accounts.
OMB Number: 1505-0255.
Abstract: Pursuant to the Hizballah Financial Sanctions
Regulations, 31 CFR part 566 (the Regulations), the Secretary of the
Treasury may, among other things, prohibit a U.S. financial institution
from opening or maintaining a correspondent account or a payable-
through account in the United States for a foreign financial
institution that the Secretary has determined has engaged in certain
activities involving Hizballah and whose name is added to the Hizballah
Financial Sanctions Regulations List (HFSR List) on OFAC's Web site
(www.treasury.gov/ofac). Section 566.504 of the Regulations authorizes
certain transactions related to the winding down and closing of such a
correspondent account or payable-through account. Section 566.506(b)
includes a reporting requirement pursuant to which a U.S. financial
institution that maintained such an account must file a report with
OFAC that provides full details on the closing of each such account
within 30 days of the closure of the account. This collection of
information assists in verifying that U.S. financial institutions are
complying with prohibitions on maintaining correspondent accounts or
payable-through accounts for foreign financial institutions listed on
the HFSR List. The reports will be reviewed by the U.S. Department of
the Treasury and may be used for compliance and enforcement purposes by
the agency.
[[Page 37240]]
Current Actions: There are no changes being made to the collection
at this time.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Affected Public: U.S. financial institutions operating
correspondent or payable-through accounts for foreign financial
institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents: Because this collection of
information is a report that must be filed by U.S. financial
institutions closing correspondent or payable-through accounts for a
foreign financial institution pursuant to section 566.504 after OFAC
adds the name of the foreign financial institution to the HFSR List,
OFAC cannot predict the number of respondents for the section
566.504(b) reporting requirement at this time. From the date this
reporting requirement was implemented pursuant to the Regulations
(April 15, 2016) through June 9, 2016, OFAC did not add the name of any
foreign financial institution to the HFSR List, and the number of
respondents to this collection was therefore zero. For future PRA
submissions, OFAC will continue to report retrospectively on the number
of respondents during the previous reporting period.
Estimated Time per Respondent: 2 hours per response.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: Because the section 566.504(b)
reporting requirement applies to those U.S. financial institutions that
operate correspondent or payable-through accounts for a foreign
financial institution whose name is added to the HFSR List, OFAC cannot
predict the response rate for the section 566.504(b) reporting
requirement at this time. For future PRA submissions, OFAC will report
retrospectively on the response rate during the previous reporting
period.
The following paragraph applies to all of the collections of
information covered by this notice:
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required
to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of
information displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records
relating to a collection of information must be retained for five
years.
Request for Comments
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the request for OMB approval. All comments will
become a matter of public record. Comments are invited on: (a) Whether
the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance
of the functions of the agency, including whether the information has
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the
burden of the collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; (d) 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; and (e) estimates of capital or start-
up costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services
to provide information.
Andrea Gacki,
Acting Director, Office of Foreign Assets Control.
[FR Doc. 2016-13668 Filed 6-8-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-AL-P