Procedures for Monitoring Bank Secrecy Act Compliance

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of Thrift Supervision

Procedures for Monitoring Bank Secrecy Act Compliance

AGENCY:

Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS), Treasury.

ACTION:

Notice and request for comment.

SUMMARY:

The proposed information collection request (ICR) 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.

DATES:

Submit written comments on or before May 14, 2010. A copy of this ICR, with applicable supporting documentation, can be obtained from RegInfo.gov at

http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.

ADDRESSES:

Send comments, referring to the collection by title of the proposal or by OMB approval number, to OMB and OTS at these addresses: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Desk Officer for OTS, U.S. Office of Management and Budget, 725—17th Street, NW., Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, or by fax to (202) 395-6974; and Information Collection Comments, Chief Counsel's Office, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552, by fax to (202) 906-6518, or by e-mail to

infocollection.comments@ots.treas.gov.

OTS will post comments and the related index on the OTS Internet Site at

www.ots.treas.gov.

In addition, interested persons may inspect comments at the Public Reading Room, 1700 G Street, NW., by appointment. To make an appointment, call (202) 906-5922, send an e-mail to

public.info@ots.treas.gov,

or send a facsimile transmission to (202) 906-7755.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For further information or to obtain a copy of the submission to OMB, please contact Ira L. Mills at,

ira.mills@ots.treas.gov

(202) 906-6531, or facsimile number (202) 906-6518, Regulations and Legislation Division, Chief Counsel's Office, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

OTS may not conduct or sponsor an information collection, and respondents are not required to respond to an information collection, unless the information collection displays a currently valid OMB control number. As part of the approval process, we invite comments on the following information collection.

Title of Proposal:

Procedures for Monitoring Bank Secrecy Act.

OMB Number:

1550-0041.

Form Number:

N/A.

Regulation requirement:

12 CFR Parts 563.177 and 563.180.

Description:

In 1970, Congress passed the Currency and Foreign Transactions Report Act commonly known as the `Bank Secrecy Act' (“BSA”). The Money Laundering Control Act of 1986 further augmented the BSA's effectiveness by adding interrelated sections 8(s) and 21 to the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, which applies to savings associations. Specifically, Section 1359 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, Public Law 99-570 (“Act”), required the former Federal Home Loan Bank Board (“FHLBB”) to prescribe regulations requiring regulated institutions to establish and maintain procedures reasonably designed to assure and monitor compliance with the BSA and the U.S. Department of Treasury regulation 31 CFR part 103. The Office of Thrift Supervision (“OTS”) is charged with the responsibility to examine savings association procedures periodically to ensure their effectiveness; OTS is therefore subject to the Act.

See

12 CFR 563.177 and 563.180. The requirement that savings associations establish written BSA compliance procedures is a one-time event, but revisions to those procedures must occur as deemed necessary.

OTS examiners review the written procedures during examinations in order to ensure the implementation of adequate systems for complying with the BSA and its implementing regulations.

Type of Review:

Extension of a currently approved collection.

Affected Public:

Business or other for-profit.

Estimated Number of Respondents:

765.

Estimated Burden Hours per Response:

40 hours.

Estimated Frequency of Response:

Annually.

Estimated Total Burden:

30,600 hours.

Clearance Officer:

Ira L. Mills, (202) 906-6531, Office of Thrift Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552.

Dated: April 8, 2010.

Ira L. Mills,

Paperwork Clearance Officer, Office of Chief Counsel, Office of Thrift Supervision.

[FR Doc. 2010-8471 Filed 4-13-10; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6720-01-P