Agencies and Commissions November 13, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

To address extraordinary market conditions limiting credit availability for small businesses, SBA is issuing an interim final rule to make adjustments on an emergency basis to certain of its regulations in order to make the secondary market for loans guaranteed under section 7(a) of the Small Business Act (7(a) loans) more efficient with regard to loan pricing and the formation of secondary market loan pools. Specifically, the interim final rule will permanently add an additional base rate of LIBOR for lenders to use when pricing 7(a) loans, and will allow for secondary market loan pools to be formed with weighted average coupon rates. This interim final rule is necessary to help ensure continued availability of capital to small businesses and to improve liquidity in and efficiency of the secondary market.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the GSA will be submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve a new information collection requirement regarding reporting personal tangible property. A request for public comments was published at 72 FR 64648, November 16, 2007. Comments were received. GSA, on behalf of the Grants Policy Committee proposes to issue a new standard form, the Tangible Personal Property Report (SF-XXXX). We anticipate this being the final notice before the form and instructions are finalized. The general public and Federal agencies are invited to comment on the proposed final form. To view the form, go to OMB's main Web page at https://www.OMB.gov and click on the ``Grants Management,'' then ``Forms'' then Proposed Government-Wide Standard Grants Reporting Forms Links. Public comments are particularly invited on: Whether this collection of information is necessary and whether it will have practical utility; whether our estimate of the public burden of this collection of information is accurate, and based on valid assumptions and methodology; and ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected.

This is an amendment of the Presidential declaration of a major disaster for the State of Illinois (FEMA-1800-DR), dated 10/03/ 2008. Incident: Severe storms and flooding. Incident Period: 09/13/2008 through 10/05/2008. Effective Date: 11/03/2008. Physical Loan Application Deadline Date: 12/02/2008. EIDL Loan Application Deadline Date: 07/03/2009.

This is an amendment of the Presidential declaration of a major disaster for the State of Louisiana (FEMA-1786-DR), dated 09/02/2008. Incident: Hurricane Gustav. Incident Period: 09/01/2008 through 09/11/2008. Effective Date: 10/22/2008. Physical Loan Application Deadline Date: 12/03/2008. EIDL Loan Application Deadline Date: 06/02/2009.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463, as amended), notice is hereby given that the following meetings of Humanities Panels will be held at the Old Post Office, 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20506.

The information collection requirements described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA''). The FTC is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through January 31, 2012, the current PRA clearance for information sought through compulsory process orders to a combined ten or more of the largest cigarette manufacturers and smokeless tobacco manufacturers in order to obtain from them information including, among other things, their sales and marketing expenditures. The current clearance expires on January 31, 2009.

In 1996, the FDIC published General Counsel's Opinion No. 8 (``GC8''). Through that opinion, the Legal Division of the FDIC sought to clarify the meaning of the term ``deposit'' as that term relates to funds underlying stored value cards. Subsequently, the banking industry developed new types of stored value products with the result that GC8 is obsolete. For this reason, the Legal Division has decided to replace GC8. Under the new GC8, all funds underlying stored value products will be treated as ``deposits'' if they have been placed at an insured depository institution. As a result, all such funds will be subject to FDIC assessments. Also, all such funds will be insured up to the insurance limit. Whether the funds are insurable to the holders of the access mechanisms, as opposed to the distributor of the access mechanisms, will depend upon the satisfaction of the FDIC's standard requirements for obtaining ``pass-through'' insurance coverage. This treatment of the funds underlying stored value products does not differ from the treatment set forth in a proposed rule published by the FDIC in August of 2005. See 70 FR 45571 (August 8, 2005). The new GC8 will provide guidance to the public about the insurance coverage of funds underlying nontraditional access mechanisms. Also, the new GC8 will promote accuracy and consistency by insured depository institutions in reporting ``deposits'' for inclusion in an institution's assessment base.