Options Price Reporting Authority; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Amendment To Adopt a Revised Form “Third Party Billing Agreement”, 13316-13317 [E7-5086]

Download as PDF 13316 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 54 / Wednesday, March 21, 2007 / Notices SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request Upon written request, copies available from: Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of Filing and Information Services, Washington, DC 20549. Extension: Rule 17Ad–16; SEC File No. 270– 363; OMB Control No. 3235–0413. jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES Notice is hereby given that pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘Commission’’) has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget a request for extension of the previously approved collection of information discussed below. • Rule 17Ad–16: Notice of Assumption or Termination of Transfer Agent Services Rule 17Ad–16 (17 CFR 240.17Ad–16) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78a et seq.), requires a registered transfer agent to provide written notice to the appropriate qualified registered securities depository when assuming or terminating transfer agent services on behalf of an issuer or when changing its name or address. In addition, transfer agents that provide such notice shall maintain such notice for a period of at least two years in an easily accessible place. This rule addresses the problem of certificate transfer delays caused by transfer requests that are directed to the wrong transfer agent or the wrong address. We estimate that the transfer agent industry submits 600 Rule 17Ad–16 notices to appropriate qualified registered securities depositories. The staff estimates that the average amount of time necessary to create and submit each notice is approximately 15 minutes per notice. Accordingly, the estimated total industry burden is 150 hours per year (15 minutes multiplied by 600 notices filed annually). Because the information needed by transfer agents to properly notify the appropriate registered securities depository is readily available to them and the report is simple and straightforward, the cost is minimal. The average cost to prepare and send a notice is approximately $7.50 (15 minutes at $30 per hour). This yields an industry-wide cost estimate of $4,500 (600 notices multiplied by $7.50 per notice). The retention period for the recordkeeping requirements under Rule 17Ad-16 is two years for both the VerDate Aug<31>2005 17:08 Mar 20, 2007 Jkt 211001 clearing agencies and transfer agents. The recordkeeping requirement under Rule 17Ad-16 is mandatory to ensure accurate securityholder records, prompt and efficient clearance and settlement of securities transactions, and to assist the Commission and other regulatory agencies with monitoring transfer agents and ensuring compliance with the rule. This rule does not involve the collection of confidential information. Please note that an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid control number. Comments should be directed to (i) Desk Officer for the Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Room 10102, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503 or by sending an e-mail to: David_Rostker@omb.eop.gov; and (ii) R. Corey Booth, Director/Chief Information Officer, Securities and Exchange Commission, c/o Shirley Martinson, 6432 General Green Way, Alexandria, VA 22312 or send an e-mail to: PRA_Mailbox@sec.gov. Comments must be submitted to OMB within 30 days of this notice. Dated: March 15, 2007. Florence E. Harmon, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. E7–5136 Filed 3–20–07; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 8010–01–P SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Sunshine Act Meeting FEDERAL REGISTER CITATION OF PREVIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT: [To be Published]. STATUS: PLACE: Closed Meeting. 100 F Street, NE., Washington, DC. DATE AND TIME OF PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED MEETING: Wednesday, March 21, 2007 at 2 p.m. Time Change. The Closed Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, March 21, 2007 at 2 p.m. has been changed to Wednesday, March 21, 2007 at 1 p.m. At times, changes in Commission priorities require alterations in the scheduling of meeting items. For further information and to ascertain what, if any, matters have been added, deleted or postponed, please contact the Office of the Secretary at (202) 551–5400. Frm 00081 BILLING CODE 8010–01–P SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [Release No. 34–55454; File No. SR–OPRA– 2007–01] Options Price Reporting Authority; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Amendment To Adopt a Revised Form ‘‘Third Party Billing Agreement’’ March 13, 2007. Pursuant to Section 11A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 608 thereunder,2 notice is hereby given that on February 23, 2007 the Options Price Reporting Authority (‘‘OPRA’’) submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘Commission’’) an amendment to the Plan for Reporting of Consolidated Options Last Sale Reports and Quotation Information (‘‘OPRA Plan’’).3 The proposed OPRA Plan amendment would adopt a revised form ‘‘Third Party Billing Agreement.’’ I. Description and Purpose of the Amendment OPRA states that the purpose of the proposed amendment is to adopt a revised form ‘‘Third Party Billing Agreement’’ for use by a Professional Subscriber that has entered into a Professional Subscriber Agreement (‘‘PSA’’) with OPRA and that wishes to agree with a third party (‘‘Third Party Payor’’) that the Third Party Payor will be responsible for payment of OPRA’s charges with respect to receipt by the Professional Subscriber of OPRA Information. The revised form includes language that is intended to make it easier for a Professional Subscriber and Third Party Payor to conclude, in an appropriate 1 15 U.S.C. 78k–1. CFR 242.608. 3 The OPRA Plan is a national market system plan approved by the Commission pursuant to Section 11A of the Act and Rule 608 thereunder (formerly Rule 11Aa3–2). See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 17638 (March 18, 1981), 22 SEC Docket 484 (March 31, 1981). The full text of the OPRA Plan is available at https://www.opradata.com. The OPRA Plan provides for the collection and dissemination of last sale and quotation information on options that are traded on the participant exchanges. The six participants to the OPRA Plan are the American Stock Exchange LLC, the Boston Stock Exchange, Inc., the Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated, the International Securities Exchange, Inc., the NYSE Arca, Inc., and the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc. 2 17 CHANGE IN THE MEETING: PO 00000 Dated: March 16, 2007. Florence E. Harmon, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. E7–5131 Filed 3–20–07; 8:45 am] Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\21MRN1.SGM 21MRN1 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 54 / Wednesday, March 21, 2007 / Notices situation, that payment of OPRA’s fees by the Third Party Payor is eligible for the safe harbor under Section 28(e) of the Act.4 In particular, the revised form states expressly that OPRA will waive a Professional Subscriber’s obligation under its PSA to pay OPRA’s fees in consideration for the agreement of the Third Party Payor to pay fees directly to OPRA for the Professional Subscriber’s receipt of OPRA Information. II. Implementation of the OPRA Plan Amendment Pursuant to paragraphs (b)(3) of Rule 608 under the Act,5 OPRA designates this amendment as concerned solely with the administration of the OPRA Plan and/or as involving solely technical or ministerial matters, thereby qualifying for effectiveness upon filing. OPRA states that it will begin to use the proposed revised form ‘‘Third Party Billing Agreement’’ upon filing with the Commission. However, OPRA states that these revised documents would be used only on a prospective basis. Existing Professional Subscribers and Third Party Payors that are parties to existing payment arrangements would not be required to execute the revised form. However, upon the request from a Professional Subscriber and Third Party Payor, OPRA will execute the revised form with respect to their existing payment arrangement if the Third Party Payor is current in its payments. The Commission may summarily abrogate the amendment within sixty days of its filing and require refiling and approval of the amendment by Commission order pursuant to Rule 608(b)(2) under the Act 6 if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors and the maintenance of fair and orderly markets, to remove impediments to, and perfect the mechanisms of, a national market system, or otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES III. Solicitation of Comments Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed OPRA Plan amendment is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: • Send an e-mail to rulecomments@sec.gov. Please include File No. SR–OPRA–2007–01 on the subject line. Paper Comments • Send paper comments in triplicate to Nancy M. Morris, Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE., Washington, DC 20549–1090. All submissions should refer to File Number SR–OPRA–2007–01. This file number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used. To help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on the Commission’s Internet Web site (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all written statements with respect to the proposed plan amendment that are filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to the proposed plan amendment between the Commission and any person, other than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for inspection and copying in the Commission’s Public Reference Room. Copies of such filing also will be available for inspection and copying at the principal office of OPRA. All comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number SR–OPRA–2007–01 and should be submitted on or before April 11, 2007. For the Commission, by the Division of Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated authority.7 Florence E. Harmon, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. E7–5086 Filed 3–20–07; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 8010–01–P Electronic Comments • Use the Commission’s Internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml); or 4 15 U.S.C. 78bb. CFR 242.608(b)(3). 6 17 CFR 242.608(b)(2). 5 17 VerDate Aug<31>2005 17:08 Mar 20, 2007 7 17 Jkt 211001 PO 00000 SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [Release No. 34–55455; File No. SR–OPRA– 2007–02] Options Price Reporting Authority; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Amendment To Revise OPRA’s Fee Schedule and its ‘‘Policies With Respect to DeviceBased Fees’’ March 13, 2007. Pursuant to Section 11A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 608 thereunder,2 notice is hereby given that on February 23, 2007 the Options Price Reporting Authority (‘‘OPRA’’) submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘Commission’’) an amendment to the Plan for Reporting of Consolidated Options Last Sale Reports and Quotation Information (‘‘OPRA Plan’’).3 Specifically, OPRA proposes to revise its Fee Schedule and its ‘‘Policies with Respect to Device-Based Fees.’’ I. Description and Purpose of the Amendment A. Changes in the Fee Schedule OPRA states that the purpose of the proposed amendment to its Fee Schedule is to eliminate language that became obsolete on January 1, 2007, and to provide a simplified and unified presentation of its Fee Schedule. None of the proposed revisions would change the amount of any of OPRA’s fees. Since January 1, 2007, OPRA has had in place a single $20.00 ‘‘per device’’ fee for its Basic Service (consisting of all OPRA Information except Information with respect to foreign currency options) and a single $5.00 per device fee for its FCO Service (consisting of OPRA Information with respect to foreign currency options).4 As a result, 1 15 U.S.C. 78k–1. CFR 242.608. 3 The OPRA Plan is a national market system plan approved by the Commission pursuant to Section 11A of the Act and Rule 608 thereunder (formerly Rule 11Aa3–2). See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 17638 (March 18, 1981), 22 S.E.C. Docket 484 (March 31, 1981). The full text of the OPRA Plan is available at https:// www.opradata.com. The OPRA Plan provides for the collection and dissemination of last sale and quotation information on options that are traded on the participant exchanges. The six participants to the OPRA Plan are the American Stock Exchange LLC, the Boston Stock Exchange, Inc., the Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated, the International Securities Exchange, Inc., the NYSE Arca, Inc., and the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc. 4 The device-based fees that became effective on January 1, 2007 were first proposed in File No. SR– OPRA–2004–01, which became effective upon filing 2 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(29). Frm 00082 Fmt 4703 13317 Continued Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\21MRN1.SGM 21MRN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 54 (Wednesday, March 21, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13316-13317]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-5086]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-55454; File No. SR-OPRA-2007-01]


Options Price Reporting Authority; Notice of Filing and Immediate 
Effectiveness of Proposed Amendment To Adopt a Revised Form ``Third 
Party Billing Agreement''

March 13, 2007.
    Pursuant to Section 11A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act'') \1\ and Rule 608 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on February 23, 2007 the Options Price Reporting Authority (``OPRA'') 
submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'') an 
amendment to the Plan for Reporting of Consolidated Options Last Sale 
Reports and Quotation Information (``OPRA Plan'').\3\ The proposed OPRA 
Plan amendment would adopt a revised form ``Third Party Billing 
Agreement.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78k-1.
    \2\ 17 CFR 242.608.
    \3\ The OPRA Plan is a national market system plan approved by 
the Commission pursuant to Section 11A of the Act and Rule 608 
thereunder (formerly Rule 11Aa3-2). See Securities Exchange Act 
Release No. 17638 (March 18, 1981), 22 SEC Docket 484 (March 31, 
1981). The full text of the OPRA Plan is available at https://
www.opradata.com.
    The OPRA Plan provides for the collection and dissemination of 
last sale and quotation information on options that are traded on 
the participant exchanges. The six participants to the OPRA Plan are 
the American Stock Exchange LLC, the Boston Stock Exchange, Inc., 
the Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated, the International 
Securities Exchange, Inc., the NYSE Arca, Inc., and the Philadelphia 
Stock Exchange, Inc.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

I. Description and Purpose of the Amendment

    OPRA states that the purpose of the proposed amendment is to adopt 
a revised form ``Third Party Billing Agreement'' for use by a 
Professional Subscriber that has entered into a Professional Subscriber 
Agreement (``PSA'') with OPRA and that wishes to agree with a third 
party (``Third Party Payor'') that the Third Party Payor will be 
responsible for payment of OPRA's charges with respect to receipt by 
the Professional Subscriber of OPRA Information.
    The revised form includes language that is intended to make it 
easier for a Professional Subscriber and Third Party Payor to conclude, 
in an appropriate

[[Page 13317]]

situation, that payment of OPRA's fees by the Third Party Payor is 
eligible for the safe harbor under Section 28(e) of the Act.\4\ In 
particular, the revised form states expressly that OPRA will waive a 
Professional Subscriber's obligation under its PSA to pay OPRA's fees 
in consideration for the agreement of the Third Party Payor to pay fees 
directly to OPRA for the Professional Subscriber's receipt of OPRA 
Information.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78bb.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

II. Implementation of the OPRA Plan Amendment

    Pursuant to paragraphs (b)(3) of Rule 608 under the Act,\5\ OPRA 
designates this amendment as concerned solely with the administration 
of the OPRA Plan and/or as involving solely technical or ministerial 
matters, thereby qualifying for effectiveness upon filing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ 17 CFR 242.608(b)(3).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    OPRA states that it will begin to use the proposed revised form 
``Third Party Billing Agreement'' upon filing with the Commission. 
However, OPRA states that these revised documents would be used only on 
a prospective basis. Existing Professional Subscribers and Third Party 
Payors that are parties to existing payment arrangements would not be 
required to execute the revised form. However, upon the request from a 
Professional Subscriber and Third Party Payor, OPRA will execute the 
revised form with respect to their existing payment arrangement if the 
Third Party Payor is current in its payments.
    The Commission may summarily abrogate the amendment within sixty 
days of its filing and require refiling and approval of the amendment 
by Commission order pursuant to Rule 608(b)(2) under the Act \6\ if it 
appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or appropriate 
in the public interest, for the protection of investors and the 
maintenance of fair and orderly markets, to remove impediments to, and 
perfect the mechanisms of, a national market system, or otherwise in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \6\ 17 CFR 242.608(b)(2).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

III. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and 
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed OPRA 
Plan amendment is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by 
any of the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (https://
www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an e-mail to rule-comments@sec.gov. Please include 
File No. SR-OPRA-2007-01 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Nancy M. Morris, 
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20549-1090.
    All submissions should refer to File Number SR-OPRA-2007-01. This 
file number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used. 
To help the Commission process and review your comments more 
efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all 
comments on the Commission's Internet Web site (https://www.sec.gov/
rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, 
all written statements with respect to the proposed plan amendment that 
are filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating 
to the proposed plan amendment between the Commission and any person, 
other than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance 
with the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for inspection 
and copying in the Commission's Public Reference Room. Copies of such 
filing also will be available for inspection and copying at the 
principal office of OPRA. All comments received will be posted without 
change; the Commission does not edit personal identifying information 
from submissions. You should submit only information that you wish to 
make available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number 
SR-OPRA-2007-01 and should be submitted on or before April 11, 2007.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Market Regulation, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \7\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(29).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E7-5086 Filed 3-20-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-P
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