Rules and Regulations. Notice and request for comments

Agency: Office of Foreign Assets Control, Treasury
Action: Notice and request for comments
Citation: FR Doc. 2012-15495

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)). Currently, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) within the Department of the Treasury is soliciting comments concerning OFAC's Iranian 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 27, 2012 to be assured of consideration.

Supplementary Information

Title: Iranian Financial Sanctions Regulations Report on Closure by U.S. Financial Institutions of Correspondent Accounts and Payable-Through Accounts. OMB Control Number: 1505-0243. Abstract: Section 561.504(b) of the Iranian Financial Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR Part 561 (the “IFSR”), specifies that a U.S. financial institution that maintained a correspondent account or payable-through account for a foreign financial institution whose name is added to the Part 561 List on OFAC's Web site ( www.treasury.gov/ofac ) as subject to a prohibition on the maintaining of such accounts 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 Part 561 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. 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 when OFAC adds the name of a foreign financial institution to the Part 561 List, OFAC cannot predict the number of respondents for the section 561.504(b) reporting requirement at this time. From the date this reporting requirement was added to the IFSR (February 27, 2012) through June 14, 2012, OFAC did not add the name of a foreign financial institution to the Part 561 List, and the number of respondents to this collection was therefore zero. For future 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 561.504(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 Part 561 List, OFAC cannot predict the response rate for the section 561.504(b) reporting requirement at this time. For future 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 Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) control number. 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. Dated: June 20, 2012. Dawn D. Wolfgang, Treasury PRA Clearance Officer. [FR Doc. 2012-15495 Filed 6-25-12; 8:45 am]