Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation July 2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The FDIC, as part of its obligations under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the renewal of the existing information collection described below (OMB Control No. 3064-0092).

The FDIC is issuing this request for information (RFI) as part of its FDiTech initiative to promote the efficient and effective adoption of technology at FDIC-supervised banks and savings associations (financial institutions), particularly at community banks, and to facilitate the supervision of technology usage at these institutions without increasing costs or regulatory burden. The FDIC is committed to increasing transparency, improving supervisory and regulatory efficiency, supporting innovation in banking, and providing opportunities for public feedback. This RFI seeks input on whether a standard-setting and voluntary-certification program could be established to support financial institutions' efforts to implement models and manage model risk by certifying or assessing certain aspects of the models themselves, and to conduct due diligence of third-party providers of technology and other services by certifying or assessing certain aspects of the third-party providers' operations or condition. The FDIC is especially interested in information on models and technology services developed and provided by financial technology companies, sometimes referred to as ``fintechs.''

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the OCC, the Board, and the FDIC (the ``agencies'') may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), of which the agencies are members, has approved the agencies' publication for public comment of a proposal to revise and extend the Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income (Call Reports) (FFIEC 031, FFIEC 041, and FFIEC 051) and Regulatory Capital Reporting for Institutions Subject to the Advanced Capital Adequacy Framework (FFIEC 101), which are currently approved collections of information. The FFIEC has also approved the Board's publication for public comment, on behalf of the agencies, of a proposal to revise and extend the Report of Assets and Liabilities of U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks (FFIEC 002) and the Report of Assets and Liabilities of a Non-U.S. Branch that is Managed or Controlled by a U.S. Branch or Agency of a Foreign (Non-U.S.) Bank (FFIEC 002S), which also are currently approved collections of information. The agencies are requesting comment on revisions to the Call Reports, FFIEC 101, and FFIEC 002 related to interim final rules and a final rule issued in response to disruptions related to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) that revise the agencies' capital rule, the Board's regulations on reserve requirements and insider loans, and the FDIC's assessments regulations as well as certain sections of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) for which the agencies received emergency approvals from OMB. In addition, the agencies are proposing changes to the Call Report and the FFIEC 002 related to U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Further, the agencies are proposing revisions to the Call Report to reflect the expiration of the temporary exception for estimated disclosures on international remittance transfers and certain amendments to the Remittance Rule recently finalized by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau), which is a member of the FFIEC.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, notice is hereby given of a meeting of the FDIC Advisory Committee on Community Banking. The Advisory Committee will provide advice and recommendations on a broad range of policy issues that have particular impact on small community banks throughout the United States and the local communities they serve, with a focus on rural areas. The meeting is open to the public. Out of an abundance of caution related to current and potential coronavirus developments, the public's means to observe this Community Banking Advisory Committee meeting will be via a Webcast live on the internet. In addition, the meeting will be recorded and subsequently made available on-demand approximately two weeks after the event. To view the live event, visit https://fdic.windrosemedia.com. To view the recording, visit https://fdic.windrosemedia.com/ index.php?category=Community+Banking+Advisory+Committee. Observers requiring auxiliary aids (e.g., sign language interpretation) for this meeting should call 703-562-2404 (Voice) or 703-649-4354 (Video Phone) to make necessary arrangements.

The FDIC proposes to amend its application requirements for the establishment and relocation of branches and offices so that such applications would no longer require statements regarding the compliance of such proposals with the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA) and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). In connection with an ongoing and comprehensive review of the FDIC's existing regulations and guidance to identify rules or guidance that may be outdated, duplicative, or inconsistent, and after a careful analysis of applicable law, staff has concluded that continued consideration of the NHPA and the NEPA in the review of applications for the establishment of a branch and applications for the relocation of a branch or main office is not required under law and, therefore, consideration of these statutes during the processing of these applications is an unnecessary regulatory requirement for insured state nonmember banks and insured branches of foreign banks. Accordingly, the FDIC proposes to amend its regulations to remove NHPA and NEPA requirements embedded in its branch application procedures, and to rescind its statements of policy regarding the NHPA and the NEPA, consistent with branch application procedures for national banks and insured state member banks supervised by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. These statements of policy respectively provide guidance regarding the FDIC's consideration of the NHPA and the NEPA in the context of the FDIC's review of applications for deposit insurance for de novo institutions, the establishment of branches, and relocation domestic branches or main offices.

The OCC, Board, FDIC, FCA, and NCUA (collectively, the Agencies) propose to reorganize, revise, and expand the Interagency Questions and Answers Regarding Flood Insurance and solicit comment on all aspects of the amendments. To help lenders meet their responsibilities under Federal flood insurance law and to increase public understanding of their flood insurance regulations, the Agencies have prepared proposed new and revised guidance addressing the most frequently asked questions and answers about flood insurance. Significant topics addressed by the proposed revisions include the effect of major amendments to flood insurance laws with regard to the escrow of flood insurance premiums, the detached structure exemption, and force-placement procedures.

The OCC, Board, FDIC, FCA, and FHFA (each an Agency and, collectively, the Agencies) are adopting and inviting comment on an interim final rule amending the Agencies' regulations that require swap dealers, security-based swap dealers, major swap participants, and major security-based swap participants under the Agencies' respective jurisdictions to exchange margin with their counterparties for swaps that are not centrally cleared (non-cleared swaps) (Swap Margin Rule). Under the Swap Margin Rule, as amended, initial margin requirements will take effect under a phased compliance schedule spanning from 2016 through 2020, and in a final rule published elsewhere in today's issue of the Federal Register, the Agencies have extended the phase-in period to 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Agencies are extending by one year the phases 5 and 6 implementation deadlines for initial margin requirements from September 1, 2020, to September 1, 2021 (for phase 5) and from September 1, 2021, to September 1, 2022 (for phase 6). The Agencies' objective is to give covered swap entities additional time to meet their initial margin requirements under the rule so as not to hamper any efforts underway to address exigent circumstances caused by COVID-19.