Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 240 / Friday, December 14, 2018 / Notices 64381 

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 84547 

(Nov. 7, 2018), 83 FR 56890. 

4 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2). 

5 Id. 

6 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(31). 

recordkeeping provisions of the 

Commission’s transfer agent rules. 

Pursuant to Rule 17Ad–4(b), if the 

Commission or the Office of the 

Comptroller of the Currency (‘‘OCC’’) is 

the appropriate regulatory agency 

(‘‘ARA’’) for an exempt transfer agent, 

that transfer agent is required to prepare 

and maintain in its possession a notice 

certifying that it is exempt from certain 

performance standards and 

recordkeeping and record retention 

provisions of the Commission’s transfer 

agent rules. This notice need not be 

filed with the Commission or OCC. If 

the Board of Governors of the Federal 

Reserve System (‘‘Fed’’) or the Federal 

Deposit Insurance Corporation (‘‘FDIC’’) 

is the transfer agent’s ARA, that transfer 

agent must prepare a notice and file it 

with the Fed or FDIC. 

Rule 17Ad–4(c) sets forth the 

conditions under which a registered 

transfer agent loses its exempt status. 

Once the conditions for exemption no 

longer exist, the transfer agent, to keep 

the ARA apprised of its current status, 

must prepare, and file if the ARA for the 

transfer agent is the Fed or the FDIC, a 

notice of loss of exempt status under 

paragraph (c). The transfer agent then 

cannot claim exempt status under Rule 

17Ad–4(b) again until it remains subject 

to the minimum performance standards 

for non-exempt transfer agents for six 

consecutive months. 

ARAs use the information contained 

in the notices required by Rules 17Ad– 

4(b) and 17Ad–4(c) to determine 

whether a registered transfer agent 

qualifies for the exemption, to 

determine when a registered transfer 

agent no longer qualifies for the 

exemption, and to determine the extent 

to which that transfer agent is subject to 

regulation. 

The Commission estimates that 

approximately 10 registered transfer 

agents each year prepare or file notices 

in compliance with Rules 17Ad–4(b) 

and 17Ad–4(c). The Commission 

estimates that each such registered 

transfer agent spends approximately 1.5 

hours to prepare or file such notices for 

an aggregate total annual burden of 15 

hours (1.5 hours times 10 transfer 

agents). The Commission staff estimates 

that compliance staff work at registered 

transfer agents results in an internal cost 

of compliance, at an estimated hourly 

wage of $283, of $424.5 per year per 

transfer agent (1.5 hours × $283 per hour 

= $424.5 per year). Therefore, the 

aggregate annual internal cost of 

compliance for the approximate 10 

transfer agents annually preparing or 

filing notices pursuant to Rules 17Ad– 

4(b) and 17Ad–4(c) is approximately 

$4,245 ($424.5 × 10 = $4,245). 

This rule does not involve the 

collection of confidential information. 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, and a person is not required to 

respond to, a collection of information 

under the PRA unless it displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. 

The public may view background 

documentation for this information 

collection at the following website: 

www.reginfo.gov. 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 email to: 

Lindsay.M.Abate@omb.eop.gov; and (ii) 

Charles Riddle, Acting Director/Chief 

Information Officer, Securities and 

Exchange Commission, c/o Candace 

Kenner, 100 F Street NE, Washington, 

DC 20549, or by sending an email to: 

PRA_Mailbox@sec.gov. Comments must 

be submitted to OMB within 30 days of 

this notice. 

Dated: December 10, 2018. 

Eduardo A. Aleman, 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2018–27090 Filed 12–13–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–84772; File No. SR– 

NYSEArca–2018–77] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE 

Arca, Inc.; Notice of Designation of a 

Longer Period for Commission Action 

on Proposed Rule Change To Amend 

Rule 7.44–E, the Exchange’s Retail 

Liquidity Program 

December 10, 2018. 

On October 26, 2018, NYSE Arca, Inc. 

(‘‘NYSE Arca’’ or ‘‘Exchange’’) filed 

with the Securities and Exchange 

Commission (‘‘Commission’’), pursuant 

to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities 

Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 

19b–4 thereunder,2 a proposed rule 

change to amend Exchange Rule 7.44– 

E, which sets forth the Exchange’s Retail 

Liquidity Program. The proposed rule 

change was published for comment in 

the Federal Register on November 14, 

2018.3 The Commission has received no 

comment letters on the proposed rule 

change. 

Section 19(b)(2) of the Act 4 provides 

that within 45 days of the publication of 

notice of the filing of a proposed rule 

change, or within such longer period up 

to 90 days as the Commission may 

designate if it finds such longer period 

to be appropriate and publishes its 

reasons for so finding, or as to which the 

self-regulatory organization consents, 

the Commission shall either approve the 

proposed rule change, disapprove the 

proposed rule change, or institute 

proceedings to determine whether the 

proposed rule change should be 

disapproved. The 45th day after 

publication of the notice for this 

proposed rule change is December 29, 

2018. The Commission is extending this 

45-day time period. 

The Commission finds it appropriate 

to designate a longer period within 

which to take action on the proposed 

rule change so that it has sufficient time 

to consider this proposed rule change. 

Accordingly, the Commission, pursuant 

to Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,5

designates February 12, 2019, as the 

date by which the Commission shall 

either approve or disapprove, or 

institute proceedings to determine 

whether to disapprove, the proposed 

rule change (File No. SR–NYSEArca– 

2018–77). 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.6

Eduardo A. Aleman, 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2018–27082 Filed 12–13–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[SEC File No. 270–641, OMB Control No. 

3235–0685] 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

Upon Written Request, Copies Available 

From: U.S. Securities and Exchange 

Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 

100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 

20549–2736. 

Extension: 

Rules 3a68–2 and 3a68–4(c) 

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 (‘‘SEC’’) has 

submitted to the Office of Management 

and Budget (‘‘OMB’’) a request for 

approval of extension of the previously 


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