85828 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 29, 2020 / Notices 

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3The term ‘‘ETP Holder’’ refers to a sole 

proprietorship, partnership, corporation, limited 

liability company or other organization in good 

standing that has been issued an ETP. An ETP 

Holder must be a registered broker or dealer 

pursuant to Section 15 of the Act. See Rule 1.1(o). 

The term ‘‘ETP’’ refers to an Equity Trading Permit 

issued by the Exchange for effecting approved 

securities transactions on the Exchange’s Trading 

Facilities. See Rule 1.1(n). The term ‘‘OTP Holder’’ 

refers to a natural person, in good standing, who 

has been issued an OTP. An OTP Holder must be 

a registered broker or dealer pursuant to Section 15 

of the Act. Under the Exchange’s rules, an OTP 

Holder has the status as a ‘‘member’’ of the 

Exchange as that term is defined in Section 3 of the 

Act. See Rule 1.1(nn). The term ‘‘OTP’’ refers to an 

Options Trading Permit issued by the Exchange for 

effecting approved securities transactions on the 

Exchange’s Trading Facilities. See Rule 1.1(mm). 

The term ‘‘OTP Firm’’ refers to a sole 

proprietorship, partnership, corporation, limited 

liability company or other organization in good 

standing who holds an OTP or upon whom an 

individual OTP Holder has conferred trading 

privileges on the Exchange’s Trading Facilities 

pursuant to and in compliance with Exchange rules. 

An OTP Firm must be a registered broker or dealer 

pursuant to Section 15 of the Act. See Rule 1.1(oo). 

4 If NYSE Arca seeks to provide additional 

temporary relief from the rule requirements 

identified in this proposed rule change beyond 

April 30, 2021, NYSE Arca will submit a separate 

rule filing to further extend the temporary extension 

of time. 

5See Exchange Act Release No. 90617 (December 

9, 2020), 85 FR 81258 (December 15, 2020) (SR– 

FINRA–2020–043) (the ‘‘FINRA Filing’’). The 

Exchange notes that the FINRA Filing also provides 

temporary relief to individuals registered with 

FINRA as Operations Professionals under FINRA 

Rule 1220. The Exchange does not have a 

registration category for Operations Professionals 

and therefore, the Exchange is not proposing to 

adopt that aspect of the FINRA Filing. 

6See https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/keytopics/covid-19/faq#qe. 7At the outset of the COVID–19 pandemic, all 

FINRA qualification examinations were 

administered at test centers operated by Prometric. 

Based on the health and welfare concerns resulting 

from COVID–19, in March Prometric closed all of 

its test centers in the United States and Canada and 

began to slowly reopen some of them at limited 

capacity in May. Currently, Prometric has resumed 

testing in many of its United States and Canada test 

centers, at either full or limited occupancy, based 

on local and government mandates. 

8NYSE Arca Rule 2.1210.03 is the corresponding 

rule to FINRA Rule 1210.04. 

9FINRA Rule 1210.04 (Requirements for 

Registered Persons Functioning as Principals for a 

Limited Period) allows a member firm to designate 

certain individuals to function in a principal 

capacity for 120 calendar days before having to pass 

an appropriate principal qualification examination. 

NYSE Arca Rule 2.1210.03 provides the same 

allowance to Members. 

10See Exchange Act Release No. 90113 (October 

7, 2020), 85 FR 65110 (October 14, 2020) (Notice 

of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of SR– 

NYSEARCA–2020–87). 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–90760; File No. SR– 

NYSEARCA–2020–112] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE 

Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing and 

Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed 

Rule Change To Extend the Effective 

Date in Commentary .10 Under NYSE 

Arca Rule 2.1210 

December 21, 2020. 

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

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’ 

or ‘‘Exchange Act’’) 1 and Rule 19b–4 

thereunder,2 notice is hereby given that 

on December 15, 2020, NYSE Arca, Inc. 

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

with the Securities and Exchange 

Commission (‘‘SEC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’) 

the proposed rule change as described 

in Items I and II below, which Items 

have been prepared by the Exchange. 

The Commission is publishing this 

notice to solicit comments on the 

proposed rule change from interested 

persons. 

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Terms of Substance of 

the Proposed Rule Change 

The Exchange proposes a rule change 

to extend the effective date in 

Commentary .10 (Temporary Extension 

of the Limited Period for Registered 

Persons to Function as Principals) under 

NYSE Arca Rule 2.1210 (Registration 

Requirements) applicable to Equity 

Trading Permit (‘‘ETP’’) Holders, 

Options Trading Permit (‘‘OTP’’) 

Holders and OTP Firms, from December 

31, 2020 to April 30, 2021. The 

proposed rule change is available on the 

Exchange’s website at www.nyse.com, at 

the principal office of the Exchange, and 

at the Commission’s Public Reference 

Room. 

II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Purpose of, and 

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule 

Change 

In its filing with the Commission, the 

self-regulatory organization included 

statements concerning the purpose of, 

and basis for, the proposed rule change 

and discussed any comments it received 

on the proposed rule change. The text 

of those statements may be examined at 

the places specified in Item IV below. 

The Exchange has prepared summaries, 

set forth in sections A, B, and C below, 

of the most significant parts of such 

statements. 

A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Purpose of, and 

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule 

Change 

1. Purpose 

The Exchange proposes to extend the 

effective date in Commentary .10 

(Temporary Extension of the Limited 

Period for Registered Persons to 

Function as Principals) under NYSE 

Arca Rule 2.1210 (Registration 

Requirements) applicable to ETP 

Holders, OTP Holders and OTP Firms 

(collectively, ‘‘Members’’),3 from 

December 31, 2020 to April 30, 2021. 

The proposed rule change would extend 

the 120-day period that certain 

individuals can function as a principal 

without having successfully passed an 

appropriate qualification examination 

through April 30, 2021,4 and would 

apply only to those individuals who 

were designated to function as a 

principal prior to January 1, 2021. This 

proposed rule change is based on a 

filing recently submitted by the 

Financial Regulatory Authority, Inc. 

(‘‘FINRA’’) 5 and is intended to 

harmonize the Exchange’s registration 

rules with those of FINRA so as to 

promote uniform standards across the 

securities industry. 

The COVID–19 pandemic is an 

unpredictable, exogenous event that has 

resulted in unavoidable disruptions to 

the securities industry and impacted 

member firms, regulators, investors and 

other stakeholders. In response to 

COVID–19, earlier this year FINRA 

began providing temporary relief by way 

of frequently asked questions 

(‘‘FAQs’’) 6 to address disruptions to the 

administration of FINRA qualification 

examinations caused by the pandemic 

that have significantly limited the 

ability of individuals to sit for 

examinations due to Prometric test 

center capacity issues.7

FINRA published the first FAQ on 

March 20, 2020, providing that 

individuals who were designated to 

function as principals under FINRA 

Rule 1210.04 8 prior to February 2, 2020, 

would be given until May 31, 2020, to 

pass the appropriate principal 

qualification examination.9 On May 19, 

2020, FINRA extended the relief to pass 

the appropriate examination until June 

30, 2020. On June 29, 2020, FINRA 

again extended the temporary relief 

providing that individuals who were 

designated to function as principals 

under FINRA Rule 1210.04 prior to May 

4, 2020, would be given until August 31, 

2020, to pass the appropriate principal 

qualification examination. 

On September 25, 2020, NYSE Arca 

filed with the Commission a proposed 

rule change for immediate effectiveness 

to extend the temporary relief provided 

via the FAQ by adopting temporary 

Commentary .10 (Temporary Extension 

of the Limited Period for Registered 

Persons to Function as Principals) under 

NYSE Arca Rule 2.1210 (Registration 

Requirements).10 Pursuant to this rule 


KHAMMOND on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 29, 2020 / Notices 85829 

11See, e.g., Meryl Kornfield, Jacqueline Dupree, 

Marisa Iati, Paulina Villegas, Siobhan O’Grady and 

Hamza Shaban, New daily coronavirus cases in U.S. 

rise to 145,000, latest all-time high, Wash. Post, 

November 11, 2020, https://

www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/11/11/ 

coronavirus-covid-live-updates-us/. 12 Information about the continued impact of 

COVID–19 on FINRA-administered examinations is 

available at https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/ 

key-topics/covid-19/exams. 

13 Information from Prometric about its safety 

practices and the impact of COVID–19 on its 

operations is available at https://

www.prometric.com/corona-virus-update. See also 

supra note 12. 

14Earlier this year, an online test delivery service 

was launched for candidates seeking to take 

qualification examination remotely. Only certain 

qualification examinations are available online. See 

supra note 12. FINRA is considering making 

additional qualification examinations available 

remotely on a limited basis. 

15See, e.g., Centers for Disease Control and 

Prevention, How to Protect Yourself & Others, 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/ 

prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html. 

16 15 U.S.C. 78f(b). 

17 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5). 

filing, individuals who were designated 

prior to September 3, 2020, to function 

as a principal under NYSE Arca Rule 

2.1210.10 have until December 31, 2020, 

to pass the appropriate qualification 

examination. 

The COVID–19 conditions 

necessitating the extension of relief 

provided in the FAQ and SR– 

NYSEARCA–2020–87 persist and in fact 

appear to be worsening.11 One of the 

impacts of COVID–19 continues to be 

serious interruptions in the 

administration of FINRA qualification 

examinations at Prometric test centers 

and the limited ability of individuals to 

sit for the examinations.12 Although 

Prometric has been reopening its test 

centers, Prometric’s safety practices 

mean that currently not all test centers 

are open, some of the open test centers 

are at limited capacity, and some open 

test centers are delivering only certain 

examinations that have been deemed 

essential by the local government.13

Furthermore, Prometric has had to close 

some reopened test centers due to 

incidents of COVID–19 cases. The initial 

nationwide closure in March along with 

the inability to fully reopen all 

Prometric test centers due to COVID–19 

have led to a significant backlog of 

individuals who are waiting to sit for 

FINRA examinations that are not 

available online, including the General 

Securities Principal Exam (Series 24).14

In addition, firms are continuing to 

experience operational challenges with 

much of their personnel working from 

home due to shelter-in-place orders, 

restrictions on businesses and social 

activity imposed in various states, and 

adherence to other social distancing 

guidelines consistent with the 

recommendations of public health 

officials.15 As a result, firms continue to 

face potentially significant disruptions 

to their normal business operations that 

may include a limitation of in-person 

activities and staff absenteeism as a 

result of the health and welfare 

concerns stemming from COVID–19. 

Such potential disruptions may be 

further exacerbated and may even affect 

client services if firms cannot continue 

to keep principal positions filled as they 

may have difficulty finding other 

qualified individuals to transition into 

these roles or may need to reallocate 

employee time and resources away from 

other critical responsibilities at the firm. 

These ongoing, extenuating 

circumstances make it impracticable for 

Members to ensure that the individuals 

whom they have designated to function 

in a principal capacity, as set forth in 

NYSE Arca Rule 2.1210.03, are able to 

successfully sit for and pass an 

appropriate qualification examination 

within the 120-calendar day period 

required under the rule, or to find other 

qualified staff to fill this position. The 

ongoing circumstances also require 

individuals to be exposed to the health 

risks associated with taking an inperson examination, because the 

General Securities Principal 

examination is not available online. 

Therefore, NYSE Arca is proposing to 

extend the effective date of the 

temporary relief provided through SR– 

NYSEARCA–2020–87 until April 30, 

2021. The proposed rule change would 

apply only to those individuals who 

were designated to function as a 

principal prior to January 1, 2021. Any 

individuals designated to function as a 

principal on or after January 1, 2021, 

would need to successfully pass an 

appropriate qualification examination 

within 120 days. 

NYSE Arca believes that this 

proposed continued extension of time is 

tailored to address the needs and 

constraints on a Member’s operations 

during the COVID–19 pandemic, 

without significantly compromising 

critical investor protection. The 

proposed extension of time will help to 

minimize the impact of COVID–19 on 

Members by providing continued 

flexibility so that Members can ensure 

that principal positions remain filled. 

The potential risks from the proposed 

extension of the 120-day period are 

mitigated by the Member’s continued 

requirement to supervise the activities 

of these designated individuals and 

ensure compliance with federal 

securities laws and regulations, as well 

as NYSE Arca rules. 

2. Statutory Basis 

The proposed rule change is 

consistent with Section 6(b) of the 

Act,16 in general, and furthers the 

objectives of Section 6(b)(5),17 in 

particular, because it is designed to 

prevent fraudulent and manipulative 

acts and practices, to promote just and 

equitable principles of trade, to foster 

cooperation and coordination with 

persons engaged in facilitating 

transactions in securities, to remove 

impediments to, and perfect the 

mechanism of, a free and open market 

and a national market system and, in 

general, to protect investors and the 

public interest. 

The proposed rule change is intended 

to minimize the impact of COVID–19 on 

Member operations by extending the 

120-day period certain individuals may 

function as a principal without having 

successfully passed an appropriate 

qualification examination under NYSE 

Arca Rule 2.1210.03 until April 30, 

2021. The proposed rule change does 

not relieve Members from maintaining, 

under the circumstances, a reasonably 

designed system to supervise the 

activities of their associated persons to 

achieve compliance with applicable 

securities laws and regulations, and 

with applicable NYSE Arca rules that 

directly serve investor protection. In a 

time when faced with unique challenges 

resulting from the COVID–19 pandemic, 

NYSE Arca believes that the proposed 

rule change is a sensible 

accommodation that will continue to 

afford Members the ability to ensure 

that critical positions are filled and 

client services maintained, while 

continuing to serve and promote the 

protection of investors and the public 

interest in this unique environment. 

B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement on Burden on Competition 

The Exchange does not believe that 

the proposed rule change will impose 

any burden on competition that is not 

necessary or appropriate in furtherance 

of the purposes of the Act. As set forth 

in SR–NYSEARCA–2020–87, the 

proposed rule change is intended solely 

to extend temporary relief necessitated 

by the continued impacts of the COVID– 

19 pandemic and the related health and 

safety risks of conducting in-person 

activities. In its filing, FINRA notes that 

the proposed rule change is necessary to 

temporarily rebalance the attendant 

benefits and costs of the obligations 

under FINRA Rule 1210 in response to 

the impacts of the COVID–19 pandemic 

that would otherwise result if the 

temporary amendments were to expire 


KHAMMOND on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
85830 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 29, 2020 / Notices 

18See FINRA Filing, 85 FR at 81260. 

19 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). 

20 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). In addition, Rule 19b– 

4(f)(6)(iii) requires a self-regulatory organization to 

give the Commission written notice of its intent to 

file the proposed rule change, along with a brief 

description and text of the proposed rule change, 

at least five business days prior to the date of filing 

of the proposed rule change, or such shorter time 

as designated by the Commission. The Exchange 

has satisfied this requirement. 

21See supra note 15. 22See supra notes 12 and 13. The Exchange states 

that Prometric has also had to close some reopened 

test centers due to incidents of COVID–19 cases. 23See supra note 14. FINRA is considering 

making additional qualification examinations 

available remotely on a limited basis. 24The Exchange states that Members remain 

subject to the continued requirement to supervise 

the activities of these designated individuals and 

ensure compliance with federal securities laws and 

regulations, as well as NYSE Arca rules. 25See supra note 4. 26As noted above by NYSE Arca, this proposal is 

an extension of temporary relief provided in a prior 

filing where NYSE Arca also requested and the 

Commission granted a waiver of the 30-day 

operative delay. See supra note 10, 85 FR at 65112. 27For purposes only of waiving the 30-day 

operative delay, the Commission has considered the 

proposed rule change’s impact on efficiency, 

competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 

78c(f). 

on December 31, 2020.18 The Exchange 

accordingly incorporates FINRA’s 

abbreviated economic impact 

assessment by reference. 

C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement on Comments on the 

Proposed Rule Change Received From 

Members, Participants, or Others 

No written comments were solicited 

or received with respect to the proposed 

rule change. 

III. Date of Effectiveness of the 

Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 

Commission Action 

Because the foregoing proposed rule 

change does not: (i) Significantly affect 

the protection of investors or the public 

interest; (ii) impose any significant 

burden on competition; and (iii) become 

operative for 30 days from the date on 

which it was filed, or such shorter time 

as the Commission may designate, it has 

become effective pursuant to Section 

19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 19 and Rule 19b– 

4(f)(6) thereunder.20

A proposed rule change filed under 

Rule 19b–4(f)(6) normally does not 

become operative for 30 days after the 

date of filing. However, pursuant to 

Rule 19b–4(f)(6)(iii), the Commission 

may designate a shorter time if such 

action is consistent with the protection 

of investors and the public interest. The 

Exchange has asked the Commission to 

waive the 30-day operative delay so that 

the proposed rule change may become 

operative immediately upon filing. As 

noted above, the Exchange stated that 

the proposed extension of time will help 

minimize the impact of the COVID–19 

outbreak on Members’ operations by 

allowing them to keep principal 

positions filled and minimizing 

disruptions to client services and other 

critical responsibilities. The Exchange 

further stated that the ongoing 

extenuating circumstances of the 

COVID–19 pandemic make it 

impractical to ensure that individuals 

designated to act in these capacities are 

able to take and pass the appropriate 

qualification examination during the 

120-calendar day period required under 

the rules. The Exchange also explained 

that shelter-in-place orders, 

quarantining, restrictions on business 

and social activity and adherence to 

social distancing guidelines consistent 

with the recommendations of public 

officials remain in place in various 

states.21 In addition, the Exchange 

observed that, following a nationwide 

closure of all test centers earlier in the 

year, some test centers have re-opened, 

but are operating at limited capacity or 

are only delivering certain examinations 

that have been deemed essential by the 

local government.22 Although, as the 

Exchange noted, FINRA has launched 

an online test delivery service to help 

address this backlog, the General 

Securities Principal (Series 24) 

Examination is not available online.23

Nevertheless, the Exchange explained 

that the proposed rule change will 

provide needed flexibility to ensure that 

these positions remain filled and is 

tailored to address the constraints on 

Members’ operations during the 

COVID–19 pandemic without 

significantly compromising critical 

investor protection.24

The Commission observes that the 

Exchange’s proposal, like the FINRA 

Filing, provides only an extension to 

temporary relief from the requirement to 

pass certain qualification examinations 

within the 120-day period in the rules. 

As proposed, this relief would extend 

the 120-day period that certain 

individuals can function as principals 

through April 30, 2021. If a further 

extension of temporary relief from the 

rule requirements identified in this 

proposal beyond April 30, 2021 is 

required, the Exchange noted that it may 

submit a separate rule filing to extend 

the effectiveness of the temporary relief 

under these rules.25 For these reasons, 

the Commission believes that waiver of 

the 30-day operative delay is consistent 

with the protection of investors and the 

public interest.26 Accordingly, the 

Commission hereby waives the 30-day 

operative delay and designates the 

proposal operative upon filing.27

At any time within 60 days of the 

filing of the proposed rule change, the 

Commission summarily may 

temporarily suspend such rule change if 

it appears to the Commission that such 

action is necessary or appropriate in the 

public interest, for the protection of 

investors, or otherwise in furtherance of 

the purposes of the Act. If the 

Commission takes such action, the 

Commission shall institute proceedings 

to determine whether the proposed rule 

should be approved or disapproved. 

IV. Solicitation of Comments 

Interested persons are invited to 

submit written data, views and 

arguments concerning the foregoing, 

including whether the proposed rule 

change is consistent with the Act. 

Comments may be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

Electronic Comments 

• Use the Commission’s internet 

comment form (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml); or 

• Send an email to rule-comments@

sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– 

NYSEARCA–2020–112 on the subject 

line. 

Paper Comments 

• Send paper comments in triplicate 

to Secretary, Securities and Exchange 

Commission, 100 F Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20549–1090. 

All submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–NYSEARCA–2020–112. 

This file number should be included on 

the subject line if email is used. To help 

the Commission process and review 

your comments more efficiently, please 

use only one method. The Commission 

will post all comments on the 

Commission’s internet website (http://

www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of 

the submission, all subsequent 

amendments, all written statements 

with respect to the proposed rule 

change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be 

available for website viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20549, on official 

business days between the hours of 

10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of such 

filing also will be available for 

inspection and copying at the principal 

office of the Exchange. All comments 

received will be posted without change. 

Persons submitting comments are 


KHAMMOND on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 29, 2020 / Notices 85831 

28 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

cautioned that we do not redact or edit 

personal identifying information from 

comment submissions. You should 

submit only information that you wish 

to make available publicly. All 

submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–NYSEARCA–2020–112 and 

should be submitted on or before 

January 19, 2021. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.28

J. Matthew DeLesDernier, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2020–28659 Filed 12–28–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

Proposed Collection; Comment 

Request 

Upon Written Request, Copies Available 

From: Securities and Exchange 

Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 

100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 

20549–2736 

Extension: 

Form 2–E, Report pursuant to rule 609 of 

Regulation E, SEC File No. 270–222, 

OMB Control No. 3235–0233 

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 (the 

‘‘Commission’’) is soliciting comments 

on the collection of information 

summarized below. The Commission 

plans to submit this existing collection 

of information to the Office of 

Management and Budget (‘‘OMB’’) for 

extension and approval. 

Rule 609 (17 CFR 230.609) under the 

Securities Act of 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77a et 

seq.) requires small business investment 

companies and business development 

companies that have engaged in 

offerings of securities that are exempt 

from registration pursuant to Regulation 

E under the Securities Act of 1933 (17 

CFR 230.601 to 610a) to report semiannually on Form 2–E (17 CFR 239.201) 

the progress of the offering. The form 

solicits information such as the dates an 

offering commenced and was completed 

(if completed), the number of shares 

sold and still being offered, amounts 

received in the offering, and expenses 

and underwriting discounts incurred in 

the offering. The information provided 

on Form 2–E assists the staff in 

monitoring the progress of the offering 

and in determining whether the offering 

has stayed within the limits set for an 

offering exempt under Regulation E. 

The Commission estimates that, on 

average, approximately one respondent 

submits a Form 2–E filing each year. 

The Commission further estimates that 

this information collection imposes an 

annual burden of four hours and 

imposes an annual external cost burden 

of zero. 

The collection of information under 

Form 2–E is mandatory. The 

information provided by the form will 

not be kept confidential. An agency may 

not conduct or sponsor, and a person is 

not required to respond to, a collection 

of information unless it displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. 

Written comments are invited on: (a) 

Whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

agency, including whether the 

information will have practical utility; 

(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate 

of the burden of the collection of 

information; (c) ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected; and (d) ways to 

minimize the burden of the collection of 

information on respondents, including 

through the use of automated collection 

techniques or other forms of information 

technology. Consideration will be given 

to comments and suggestions submitted 

in writing within 60 days of this 

publication. 

Please direct your written comments 

to David Bottom, Director/Chief 

Information Officer, Securities and 

Exchange Commission, c/o Cynthia 

Roscoe, 100 F Street NE, Washington, 

DC 20549; or send an email to: PRA_

Mailbox@sec.gov. 

Dated: December 22, 2020. 

Eduardo A. Aleman, 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2020–28769 Filed 12–28–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE 

Notice of Product Exclusion 

Extensions and Additional 

Modifications: China’s Acts, Policies, 

and Practices Related to Technology 

Transfer, Intellectual Property, and 

Innovation 

AGENCY: Office of the United States 

Trade Representative (USTR). 

ACTION: Notice of product exclusion 

extensions and additional 

modifications. 

SUMMARY: In prior notices, the U.S. 

Trade Representative modified the 

action in the Section 301 investigation 

of China’s acts, policies, and practices 

related to technology transfer, 

intellectual property, and innovation by 

excluding from additional duties certain 

medical-care products needed to 

address the COVID–19 outbreak. On 

March 25, 2020, the U.S. Trade 

Representative sought public comment 

on additional modifications in this 

investigation in order to address 

COVID–19. This notice announces the 

U.S. Trade Representative’s 

determination to extend certain product 

exclusions and to make further 

modifications to remove Section 301 

duties from additional medical-care 

products to address COVID–19. 

DATES: The product exclusion 

extensions announced in this notice 

will extend the exclusions through 

March 31, 2021. The modifications to 

exclude additional products will apply 

as of January 1, 2021 until March 31, 

2021. U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection will issue instructions on 

entry guidance and implementation. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

general questions about this notice, 

contact Associate General Counsel 

Philip Butler, Assistant General 

Counsels Benjamin Allen or Susie Park 

Hodge, or Director of Industrial Goods 

Justin Hoffmann at (202) 395–5725. For 

specific questions on customs 

classification or implementation of the 

product exclusions identified in the 

Annexes to this notice, contact 

traderemedy@cbp.dhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Background 

At the direction of the President, the 

U.S. Trade Representative imposed 

additional duties on products of China 

in order to obtain the elimination of the 

unfair and damaging acts, policies, and 

practices identified in this investigation. 

These additional duties were imposed 

in four tranches. See 83 FR 28719 (June 

20, 2018), 83 FR 40823 (August 16, 

2018), 83 FR 47974 (September 21, 

2018), as modified by 83 FR 49153 

(September 28, 2018), and 84 FR 43304 

(August 20, 2019), as modified by 84 FR 

69447 and 85 FR 3741. 

For each tranche, the U.S. Trade 

Representative established a process by 

which U.S. stakeholders could request 

the exclusion of particular products 

subject to the action. Additionally, the 

U.S. Trade Representative later 

established a process by which U.S. 

stakeholders could request the 

extension of particular exclusions. 

Throughout the exclusion process, 

USTR assessed medical necessity in 

granting exclusions, consistent with its 

published criteria. In addition, the U.S. 


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