Thrift Supervision Office – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) regulations, at 12 CFR 551.150(a), currently require certain officers and employees of savings associations to file reports of their personal securities transactions with the savings association within ten business days after the end of each calendar quarter. In this interim final rule, OTS is amending 12 CFR 551.150(a) to provide that such reports must be filed no later than 30 calendar days after the end of each calendar quarter. As a result of this amendment, the time period for officers and employees of savings associations to file the report will be consistent with the time period for persons in similar positions at investment companies to file such reports under regulations promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The proposed information collection requirement described below has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. OTS is soliciting public comments on the proposal.

OTS is adopting an interim final rule implementing section 710(a) of the Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act of 2006, which added a new section 19(e) to the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDIA). Section 19(e) of the FDIA prohibits any person who has been convicted of any criminal offense involving dishonesty or a breach of trust, or money laundering or has agreed to enter into a pretrial diversion or similar program in connection with a prosecution for such an offense from holding certain positions with respect to a savings and loan holding company (SLHC). The interim final rule describes the actions that are prohibited under the new statute and describes procedures for applying for an OTS order granting a case-by-case exemption. The rule also provides two regulatory exemptions: An exemption for certain SLHC employees whose activities and responsibilities are limited solely to agriculture, forestry, retail merchandising, manufacturing, or public utilities operations, and a temporary exemption for certain persons who held positions with respect to a SLHC as of the date of enactment of section 19(e) of the FDIA.

In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, the Department of the Treasury, Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS), gives notice of proposed alternations to six Privacy Act systems of records, as follows: OTS .002Correspondence/ Correspondence Tracking; OTS .003Consumer Complaints; OTS .006 Employee Locator File; OTS .008Employee Training Database; OTS .011 Positions/Budget; OTS .012Payroll/Personnel Systems & Payroll Records.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

Changes in the environment in which depository institutions and their holding companies operate have had a substantial impact on the way they are managed and necessitate changes in the way they are supervised. OTS supervises a diverse population of holding companies ranging from non-complex companies with limited activities to large, internationally active conglomerates that engage in a variety of activities. OTS has a well-established program for meeting its statutory responsibilities with respect to savings and loan holding companies (SLHCs or holding companies) and the thrift industry. Holding company supervision is an integral part of this oversight program, and OTS routinely takes steps to enhance its risk-focused supervision of holding companies. While OTS has emphasized risk management in its supervisory processes for SLHCs of all sizes and complexities, this emphasis is not readily apparent in the primary components of the current SLHC supervisory rating system, CORE (Capital, Organizational Structure, Relationship, and Earnings). Therefore, OTS is considering making changes to the component descriptions and rating scale used to evaluate the condition of SLHCs. All SLHCs are assigned a rating, although the degree of supervisory scrutiny varies based on a risk-focused evaluation of their size, complexity, business activities, and risk exposures. OTS is committed to maintaining a common CORE component framework and a rating system that is flexible and applies to all SLHCs. After reviewing public comments, OTS intends to make any necessary changes to the proposal and adopt a final SLHC rating system.

In this final rule, OTS is changing its Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations in four areas to reestablish uniformity between its regulations and those of the other federal banking agencies. OTS is making these revisions to its CRA rule to promote consistency and help facilitate objective evaluations of CRA performance across the banking and thrift industries. Consistent standards will allow the public to make more effective comparisons of bank and thrift CRA performance. Additionally, OTS is incorporating changes that reinforce CRA objectives consistent with the ongoing performance of savings associations in meeting the financial services needs of the communities they serve. To advance these objectives OTS is aligning its CRA rule with the rule adopted by the banking agencies by: (1) Eliminating the option of alternative weights for lending, investment, and service under the large, retail savings association test; (2) defining small savings associations with between $250 million and $1 billion in assets as ``intermediate small savings associations'' and establishing a new community development test for them; (3) indexing the asset threshold for small and intermediate small savings associations annually based on changes to the Consumer Price Index (CPI); and (4) clarifying the impact on a savings association's CRA rating if OTS finds evidence of discrimination or other illegal credit practices.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

The proposed information collection requirement described below has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. OTS is soliciting public comments on the proposal.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

OTS is issuing final guidance: Concentrations in Commercial Real Estate (CRE) Lending, Sound Risk Management Practices (guidance). OTS developed this Guidance to clarify that institutions actively engaged in CRE lending should assess their concentration risk and implement appropriate risk management policies and procedures to identify, monitor, manage, and control their concentration risks.

In this notice of proposed rulemaking (proposal), OTS is proposing changes to its Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations in four areas to reestablish uniformity between its regulations and those of the other Federal banking agencies. OTS is proposing revisions to its CRA rule to promote consistency and help facilitate objective evaluations of CRA performance across the banking and thrift industries. Consistent standards could allow the public to make more effective comparisons of bank and thrift CRA performance. To advance these objectives OTS is proposing to align its CRA rule with the rule adopted by the banking agencies by: (1) Eliminating the option of alternative weights for lending, investment, and service under the large, retail savings association test; (2) defining small savings associations with between $250 million and $1 billion in assets as ``intermediate small savings associations'' and establishing a new community development test for them; (3) indexing the asset threshold for small and intermediate small savings associations annually based on changes to the Consumer Price Index (CPI); and (4) clarifying the impact on a savings association's CRA rating if OTS finds evidence of discrimination or other illegal credit practices.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

This notice revises OTS guidance relating to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA).

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

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 continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. Today, the Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury solicits comments on proposed changes to the Thrift Financial Report (TFR), Schedule SCConsolidated Statement of Condition, Schedule SOConsolidated Statement of Operations, Schedule LDLoan Data, Schedule CFConsolidated Cash Flow Information, Schedule SISupplemental Information, Schedule SQ Consolidated Supplemental Questions, and Schedule HCThrift Holding Company. The proposed changes are to become effective with the March 31, 2007, report. At the end of the comment period, OTS will analyze the comments and recommendations received to determine if it should modify the proposed revisions prior to giving its final approval. OTS will then submit the revisions to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval.

A savings association must obtain OTS approval (or non- objection) before it may include subordinated debt securities or mandatorily redeemable preferred stock in supplementary (tier 2) capital. OTS rules at 12 CFR 563.81 set forth application and notice procedures, requirements that securities must meet in order to be included in supplementary capital, and conditions for OTS approval (or non-objection), and also address other matters. OTS is proposing to update this rule. The proposed rule would delete several unnecessary or outdated requirements and would conform certain provisions, such as maturity period requirements and purchaser restrictions, to the rules issued by the other federal banking agencies. In addition, the proposed rule would reconcile conflicting rules, add appropriate statutory cross-references, and rewrite the rule in plain language.