Agency Information Collection Activities: Announcement of Temporary Approval by the Board Under Delegated Authority and Submission to OMB

AGENCY:

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

ACTION:

Temporary approval of information collection, request for comment.

SUMMARY:

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) has temporarily revised the Reporting and Disclosure Requirements Associated with Emergency Lending, pursuant to the authority delegated to the Board by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before May 3, 2021.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by FR A, by any of the following methods:

• Agency Website: https://www.federalreserve.gov/. Follow the instructions for submitting comments at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx.
• Email: regs.comments@federalreserve.gov. Include the OMB number in the subject line of the message.
• Fax: (202) 452-3819 or (202) 452-3102.
• Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20551.

All public comments are available from the Board's website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx as submitted, unless modified for technical reasons or to remove personally identifiable information at the commenter's request. Accordingly, comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact information. Public comments may also be viewed electronically or in paper in Room 146, 1709 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006, between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. For security reasons, the Board requires that visitors make an appointment to inspect comments. You may do so by calling (202) 452-3684. Upon arrival, visitors will be required to present valid government-issued photo identification and to submit to security screening in order to inspect and photocopy comments.

Additionally, commenters may send a copy of their comments to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Desk Officer—Shagufta Ahmed—Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503, or by fax to (202) 395-6974.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer—Nuha Elmaghrabi—Office of the Chief Data Officer, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551, (202) 452-3829.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

On June 15, 1984, OMB delegated to the Board authority under the PRA to approve and assign OMB control numbers to collections of information conducted or sponsored by the Board. In exercising this delegated authority, the Board is directed to take every reasonable step to solicit comment. In determining whether to approve a collection of information, the Board will consider all comments received from the public and other agencies. Pursuant to its delegated authority, the Board may temporarily approve a revision to a collection of information, without providing opportunity for public comment, if the Board determines that a change in an existing collection must be instituted quickly and that public participation in the approval process would defeat the purpose of the collection or substantially interfere with the Board's ability to perform its statutory obligation.

As discussed below, the Board has made certain temporary revisions to the FR A information collection. The Board's delegated authority requires that the Board, after temporarily approving a collection, publish a notice soliciting public comment. Therefore, the Board is also inviting comment on a proposal to extend the FR A information collection for three years, with these revisions.

A copy of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) OMB submission, including the reporting form and instructions, supporting statement, and other documentation will be available at https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. These documents will also be made available on the Board's public website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/reportforms/review.aspx or may be requested from the agency clearance officer, whose name appears above.

Request for Comment on Information Collection Proposal

The Board invites public comment on the following information collection, which is being reviewed under authority delegated by the OMB under the PRA. Comments are invited on the following:

a. Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the Board's functions, including whether the information has practical utility;

b. The accuracy of the Board's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection, 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 information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology; and

e. Estimates of capital or startup costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.

At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the Board should modify the proposal.

Approval Under OMB Delegated Authority of the Temporary Revision of the Following Information Collection

Report title: Reporting and Disclosure Requirements Associated with Emergency Lending Under Section 13(3).

Agency form number: FR A.

OMB control number: 7100-0373.

Frequency: Event-generated.

Respondents: Entities or persons borrowing under an emergency lending program or facility established pursuant to section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act.

Estimated number of respondents: FR A-1: 4,914; FR A-2: 3,073; FR A-3: 12,150; FR A-4: 5.

Estimated average hours per response: FR A-1: 8; FR A-2: 40; FR A-3, Lender per-loan certifications: 2; FR A-3, Borrower certifications: 8; FR A-4: 1.

Estimated annual burden hours: 257,305.

General description of report: The Board's Regulation A (12 CFR part 201) establishes policies and procedures with respect to emergency lending under section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act, as required by sections 1101 and 1103 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Regulation A requires that borrowers make two certifications in order to participate in any emergency lending authorized under section 13(3). These certifications, designated in this information collection as FR A-1, include that the borrowers are not insolvent and that they cannot obtain adequate credit accommodation.

In addition to these certifications, the Board may establish additional certification requirements for an individual emergency lending facility. The second part of the FR A information collection, the FR A-2, pertains to reporting requirements associated with individual facilities that are related to requirements of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). The third part of FR A, designated as the FR A-3, pertains to reporting requirements specific to the Main Street Expanded Loan Facility, the Main Street New Loan Facility, the Main Street Priority Loan Facility, the Nonprofit Organization Expanded Loan Facility, and the Nonprofit Organization New Loan Facility (collectively, the “Main Street Lending Program”). The fourth part of FR A, designated as the FR A-4, pertains to a disclosure requirement for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) borrowers seeking to reduce the calculation of existing outstanding and undrawn available debt to participate in the Main Street Lending Program.

Legal authorization and confidentiality: The FR A is authorized pursuant to section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act, which sets out requirements for emergency lending. The obligation to respond is required to obtain a benefit.

The information collected under the FR A may be kept confidential under exemption 4 of the Freedom of Information Act, which protects commercial or financial information obtained from a person that is privileged or confidential.

Current actions: The Board is revising the FR A information collection to address information collection requirements related to borrowers under the Main Street Lending Program, who participate in the PPP. Participating borrowers seeking to reduce the calculation of “existing outstanding and undrawn available debt” for purposes of determining the maximum allowable loan amount under the Main Street Lending Program must provide its eligible lender either with the Small Business Administration form it has already completed and submitted to its PPP lender (which may be the same lender), or must complete and submit a Board form to its Main Street lender during the Main Street loan underwriting process, as applicable. The FR A respondent counts for all parts of the information collection are being revised to reflect updated estimates of lender participation in the Main Street Lending Program.

Detailed Discussion of Public Comments: On March 2, 2020, the Board published a notice in the Federal Register (85 FR 12295) requesting public comment for 60 days on the extension, without revision, of the FR A. One comment was received; it did not address aspects of the information collection as described in 5 CFR 1320.8(d). On May 15, 2020, following the temporary approval of a first set of revisions to the FR A, the Board published a Federal Register notice (85 FR 29447) requesting public comment for 60 days on those temporary revisions. On June 4, 2020, following the temporary approval of a second set of revisions to the FR A, the Board published a Federal Register notice (85 FR 34448) requesting public comment for 60 days on those temporary revisions. On August 21, 2020, following the temporary approval of a third set of revisions to the FR A, the Board published a Federal Register notice (85 FR 51715) requesting public comment for 60 days on those temporary revisions. Comments in response to all of those requests for comment are expected to be considered, along with any comments received in response to this request for comment.