Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 68 / Tuesday, April 10, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 17795 

access to Government information and 

services, and for other purposes. 

As noted in the initial regulatory 

flexibility analysis, USDA has not 

identified any relevant Federal rules 

that duplicate, overlap or conflict with 

this final rule. 

In addition, the Committee’s meeting 

was widely publicized throughout the 

Washington potato industry and all 

interested persons were invited to 

attend and participate in Committee 

deliberations on all issues. Like all 

Committee meetings, the February 9, 

2006, meeting was a public meeting and 

all entities, both large and small, were 

able to express views on this issue. 

A proposed rule concerning this 

action was published in the Federal 

Register on January 16, 2007 (72 FR 

1685). Copies of the rule were sent to all 

Committee members and were made 

available for all attendees at the 

February 7, 2007, Committee meeting. 

Finally, the rule was made available 

through the Internet by USDA and the 

Office of the Federal Register. A 60-day 

comment period ending March 19, 2007, 

was provided to allow interested 

persons to respond to the proposal. No 

comments were received. 

A small business guide on complying 

with fruit, vegetable, and specialty crop 

marketing agreements and orders may 

be viewed at: http://www.ams.usda.gov/ 

fv/moab.html. Any questions about the 

compliance guide should be sent to Jay 

Guerber at the previously mentioned 

address in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section. 

After consideration of all relevant 

matter presented, including the 

information and recommendation 

submitted by the Committee and other 

available information, it is hereby found 

that this rule, as hereinafter set forth, 

will tend to effectuate the declared 

policy of the Act. 

It is further found that good cause 

exists for not postponing the effective 

date of this rule until 30 days after 

publication in the Federal Register (5 

U.S.C. 553) because the Committee 

needs adequate time to conduct 

nominations and a mail vote to elect 

new Committee members and alternates 

prior to the fiscal period beginning on 

July 1, 2007. Further, Committee 

members and alternates are aware of 

this rule, which was recommended at a 

public meeting. Also, a 60-day comment 

period was provided for in the proposed 

rule. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 946 

Marketing agreements, Potatoes, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

■ For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, 7 CFR part 946 is amended as 

follows: 

PART 946—IRISH POTATOES GROWN 

IN WASHINGTON 

■ 1. The authority citation for 7 CFR 

part 946 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–674. 

■ 2. Section 946.103 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 946.103 Reestablishment of districts. 

Pursuant to § 946.22, on and after July 

1, 2007, the following districts are 

reestablished: 

(a) District No. 1—the counties of 

Douglas, Chelan, Okanogan, Grant, 

Adams, Ferry, Stevens, Pend Oreille, 

Spokane, Whitman, and Lincoln. 

(b) District No. 2—the counties of 

Kittitas, Yakima, Klickitat, Benton, 

Franklin, Walla Walla, Columbia, 

Garfield, and Asotin. 

(c) District No. 3—all of the remaining 

counties in the State of Washington, not 

included in Districts No. 1 and No. 2 of 

this paragraph. 

■ 3. Section 946.104 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 946.104 Reestablishment and 

reapportionment of committee. 

(a) Pursuant to § 946.22, on and after 

July 1, 2007, the State of Washington 

Potato Committee consisting of nine 

members, of whom six shall be 

producers and three shall be handlers, 

is hereby reestablished. For each 

member of the committee there shall be 

an alternate who shall have the same 

qualifications as the member. 

(b) Pursuant to § 946.22, on and after 

July 1, 2007, membership representation 

of the State of Washington Potato 

Committee shall be reapportioned 

among the districts of the production 

area so as to provide that each of the 

three districts as defined in § 946.103 

are represented by two producer 

members and one handler member and 

their respective alternates. 

Dated: April 5, 2007. 

Lloyd C. Day, 

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 07–1794 Filed 4–6–07; 12:20 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

9 CFR Parts 105 and 115 

[Docket No. 02–107–2] 

RIN 0579–AC29 

Viruses, Serums, Toxins, and 

Analogous Products; Suspension, 

Revocation, or Termination of 

Biological Licenses or Permits; 

Inspections 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: We are amending the VirusSerum-Toxin Act regulations to specify 

the actions to be taken by veterinary 

biologics licensees and permittees upon 

receipt of notice from the Animal and 

Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

to stop the preparation, distribution, 

sale, barter, exchange, shipment, or 

importation of any worthless, 

contaminated, dangerous, harmful, or 

unsatisfactory veterinary biological 

product. After receiving notice from 

APHIS, licensees and permittees must 

notify each wholesaler, dealer, jobber, 

consignee, or other recipient known to 

have any such product in their 

possession to stop the preparation, 

distribution, sale, barter, exchange, 

shipment, or importation of such 

product. In addition, licensees and 

permittees must provide a complete 

accounting of the remaining inventory 

of affected serials or subserials of such 

product in the current possession of 

known wholesalers, dealers, jobbers, 

consignees, or other known recipients 

and provide written documentation 

concerning the required notification(s) 

as directed by the Administrator of 

APHIS. These changes are necessary in 

order to clarify the regulations, provide 

for the most expeditious means of 

disseminating stop distribution and sale 

notices, and to mitigate the risk that any 

worthless, contaminated, dangerous, 

harmful, or unsatisfactory veterinary 

biological product may cause harm to 

animals, the public health, or to the 

environment. 

DATES: Effective Date: May 10, 2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Albert P. Morgan, Chief of Operational 

Support, Center for Veterinary 

Biologics, Licensing and Policy 

Development, VS, APHIS, 4700 River 

Road Unit 148, Riverdale, MD 20737–

1231, (301) 734–8245. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 


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17796 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 68 / Tuesday, April 10, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

Background 

Parts 105 and 115 of the Virus-SerumToxin Act regulations (9 CFR parts 105 

and 115, referred to below as the 

regulations) provide, respectively, for 

the suspension, revocation, or 

termination of biological licenses or 

permits and for the inspection of 

veterinary biologics establishments and 

veterinary biological products. These 

regulations also contain provisions that 

address the actions to be taken by the 

manufacturer or importer, and any 

jobbers, wholesalers, dealers, or other 

persons known to have veterinary 

biologics in their possession, upon their 

receipt of notice from the Animal and 

Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

to stop the preparation, distribution, 

sale, barter, exchange, shipment, or 

importation of worthless, contaminated, 

dangerous, harmful, or unsatisfactory 

veterinary biological product. 

Section 105.3 of the regulations 

provides, in relevant part, that APHIS 

may notify a licensee or permittee to 

stop the preparation, sale, barter, 

exchange, shipment, or importation of 

any veterinary biological product if at 

any time it appears that such product 

may be dangerous in the treatment of 

domestic animals or unsatisfactory 

according to applicable Standard 

Requirements. 

Similarly, § 115.2 provides, in 

relevant part, that if as a result of any 

inspection it appears that any veterinary 

biological product is worthless, 

contaminated, dangerous, or harmful, 

the Secretary will give notice of that 

finding to the manufacturer or importer 

and to any jobbers, wholesalers, dealers, 

or other persons known to have any of 

such product in their possession. After 

receiving such notice, no person may 

sell, barter, or exchange any such 

product in any place under the 

jurisdiction of the United States or ship 

or deliver for shipment any such 

product in or from any State, Territory, 

or the District of Columbia. 

Typically, before stop distribution 

and sale notifications provided for by 

§§ 105.3 and 115.2 can be given, APHIS 

must obtain from the licensees and 

permittees (manufacturers or importers) 

the names and addresses of the 

wholesalers, dealers, jobbers, 

consignees, or other persons known to 

have any of such unsatisfactory product 

in their possession. Any delay in 

obtaining the names and addresses of 

persons in possession of biological 

products subject to a stop distribution 

and sale notification increases the risk 

that such product may cause harm to 

animals, the public health, or to the 

environment. We believe that it is 

prudent to use the most expeditious 

means available to notify wholesalers, 

dealers, jobbers, foreign consignees, or 

other persons concerning the stop 

distribution and sale action. 

On April 9, 2003, we published in the 

Federal Register (68 FR 17327–17330, 

Docket No. 02–107–1) a proposal to 

amend the regulations to require 

veterinary biologics licensees and 

permittees (instead of APHIS) to: (1) 

Notify wholesalers, dealers, jobbers, or 

other persons concerning APHISdirected stop distribution and sale 

notifications pertaining to worthless, 

contaminated, dangerous, harmful, or 

unsatisfactory veterinary biological 

product; (2) account for any remaining 

quantity of such product in the current 

possession of persons involved in the 

distribution or sale of said product; and 

(3) to provide written documentation 

concerning the required notifications as 

directed by the Administrator of APHIS. 

We solicited comments concerning 

our proposal for 60 days ending June 9, 

2003. We received one comment by that 

date, from a trade association 

representing veterinary biologics 

manufacturers. We carefully considered 

this comment before we reached a 

decision concerning our proposal. The 

comment is discussed below. 

The commenter stated that the 

proposed rule could be subject to 

multiple interpretations and would 

require licensees and permittees to be 

accountable for activities beyond their 

ability to control, and requested 

clarification regarding the proposed 

provisions that would require licensees 

and permittees to account for the 

quantity for each serial or subserial of 

unsatisfactory product at each location 

in the distribution channel (i.e., the 

provisions of proposed §§ 105.3(c)(3) 

and 115.2(b)(3)). The commenter 

inquired as to whether this meant 

accounting only for the quantity of 

product shipped from the manufacturer 

directly to primary (presumably, 

known) distributors (wholesalers, etc.) 

or, in addition, accounting for product 

shipped from primary distributors to 

secondary and/or tertiary recipients 

who may not be known to the 

manufacturer or importer. 

In proposed §§ 105.3(c)(2) and 

115.2(b)(2), we specified that stop sale 

notifications should be issued to all 

wholesalers, jobbers, dealers, foreign 

consignees, or other persons known to 

have the product in their possession. 

However, we agree that the wording of 

proposed §§ 105.3(c)(3) and 115.2(b)(3) 

could be interpreted as requiring 

licensees and permittees to account for 

product in the possession of persons 

that are not known to the manufacturer 

or importer. To clarify those provisions, 

we have amended §§ 105.3(c)(3) and 

115.2(b)(3) in this final rule to refer to 

accounting for the quantity of product at 

each location known to the 

manufacturer or importer. As amended, 

§§ 105.3(c)(3) and 115.2(b)(3) now read: 

‘‘Account for the remaining quantity of 

each serial(s) or subserial(s) of any such 

veterinary biological product at each 

location in the distribution channel 

known to the manufacturer or 

importer.’’

The commenter also inquired as to the 

meaning of ‘‘immediately’’ as used in 

§§ 105.3(c)(2) and 115.2(b)(2) of the 

proposed rule, and identified several 

situations where ‘‘rapid notification’’

may not be in the best interest of the 

consumer or manufacturer. 

The purpose of the typical stop 

distribution and sale action is to 

mitigate the possibility that any 

worthless, dangerous, harmful, or 

unsatisfactory veterinary biological 

product may cause harm to animals, the 

public health, or to the environment. 

We realize that a hasty decision may not 

be in the best interest of the health of 

animals or the manufacturer, and would 

exercise great caution before issuing a 

stop distribution and sale notification. 

However, we believe that stop 

distribution and sale notifications 

should be carried out as expeditiously 

as possible once the determination has 

been made that suspension of 

distribution and sale of the product is 

the best means to limit harm to animals, 

the public health, or the environment. 

To clarify the meaning of 

‘‘immediately,’’ we have amended 

§§ 105.3(c)(2) and 115.2(b)(2) in this 

final rule to read as follows: 

‘‘Immediately, but no later than 2 days, 

send stop distribution and sale 

notifications to any wholesalers, 

jobbers, dealers, foreign consignees, or 

other persons known to have any such 

veterinary biological product in their 

possession, which instruct them to stop 

preparation, distribution, sale, barter, 

exchange, shipment, or importation of 

any such veterinary biological product. 

All such notifications shall be 

documented in writing by the licensee 

or permittee.’’

The commenter agreed with the 

estimate of burden in the proposed 

rule’s Paperwork Reduction Act section 

of 1.7666 hours per response for 

respondents affected by stop 

distribution and sale notifications, 

provided that such notifications are 

only applicable to ‘‘parties that are a 

single business transaction away from 

the licensee or permittee’’ (i.e., known 

to the manufacturer or importer). 

However, the commenter opined that 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 68 / Tuesday, April 10, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 17797 

1.7666 hours per response may be an 

underestimate for firms that market 

directly to veterinarians, or if such 

notifications must ‘‘include all 

participants in each distribution chain,’’

(i.e., known and unknown participants). 

Regarding the commenter’s concern 

that notification must include all 

participants in each distribution chain, 

APHIS has amended §§ 105.3(c)(3) and 

115.2(b)(3) in this final rule to specify 

that licensees and permittees are only 

required to notify wholesalers, jobbers, 

dealers, foreign consignees, or other 

persons known to be in possession of 

product subject to the stop distribution 

and sale action. In addition, APHIS 

believes that available technological 

tools such as electronic mail, facsimile, 

and the telephone help lower the 

burden of notification in all cases, 

including for those who market directly 

to veterinarians. Given these facts, 

APHIS believes that the estimated 

burden of 1.7666 hours per response 

stated in the proposed rule is not 

unreasonable. 

Therefore, for the reasons given in the 

proposed rule and in this document, we 

are adopting the proposed rule as a final 

rule, with the changes discussed in this 

document. 

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

This rule has been determined to be 

not significant for purposes of Executive 

Order 12866, and, therefore, has not 

been reviewed by the Office of 

Management and Budget. 

We are amending §§ 105.3 and 115.2 

of our regulations under the VirusSerum-Toxin Act concerning actions 

that veterinary biologics licensees and 

permittees must take after receiving 

notice from APHIS to stop distribution 

and sale of a serial(s) or subserial(s) of 

veterinary biological product that is 

found to be unsatisfactory according to 

applicable standard requirements, or if 

it appears that such product is 

worthless, contaminated, dangerous, or 

harmful. Licensees and permittees are 

required to notify wholesalers, jobbers, 

dealers, foreign consignees, or other 

persons known to be in possession of 

such product immediately, but no later 

than 2 days after being contacted by 

APHIS, to stop further distribution and 

sale of such serial(s) or subserial(s) 

pending further instructions. This final 

rule also requires veterinary biologics 

licensees and permittees to document, 

in writing, their communications with 

wholesalers, jobbers, dealers, foreign 

consignees, or other persons concerning 

such stop distribution and sale 

notifications; determine the remaining 

inventory of such product in the current 

possession of such wholesalers, jobbers, 

dealers, consignees, or other persons; 

and, as directed by the Administrator, 

submit reports of all such notifications 

to APHIS. 

The primary effect of this rule will be 

to provide for the most expeditious 

means of disseminating information 

concerning stop distribution and sale 

notices pertaining to veterinary 

biological product found unsatisfactory 

according to applicable standard 

requirements, and to mitigate the risk 

that such unsatisfactory veterinary 

biological product may cause harm to 

animals, the public health, or the 

environment. The rule also clarifies the 

regulations with regard to whom 

licensees and permittees should contact 

concerning stop distribution and sale 

notification, and what information 

APHIS may require to be reported 

concerning such notification. 

There are approximately 125 

veterinary biologics establishments, 

including permittees, that may be 

affected by this rule. According to the 

standards of the Small Business 

Administration, most veterinary 

biologics establishments would be 

classified as small entities. 

It is anticipated that no undue 

recordkeeping burden will be added to 

licensees and permittees since §§ 116.2 

and 116.5 of the regulations currently 

require the maintenance of detailed 

disposition records and the submission 

of reports concerning each biological 

product that is prepared and/or 

shipped. We further anticipate that the 

only economic effects that may result 

from this amendment to the regulations 

would be related to the costs incurred 

by licensees and permittees in 

connection with the notification process 

itself. This final rule does not specify 

the means by which licensees and 

permittees are required to give 

notification, only that notification be 

given immediately, but no later than 2 

days of receipt of the stop distribution 

and sale notification from APHIS. We 

expect that licensees and permittees 

would use electronic mail, telephone, 

and facsimile to notify wholesalers, 

jobbers, dealers, consignees, or other 

persons known to be in possession of 

the product. These methods are 

inexpensive, so the actual costs of 

transmitting notifications required by 

this amendment would be minimal. The 

amendment will benefit manufacturers 

of veterinary biologics by clarifying the 

actions they must take should they 

receive notification from APHIS 

concerning a serial(s) or subserial(s) of 

biological product found to be 

unsatisfactory according to applicable 

standard requirements. 

Under these circumstances, the 

Administrator of the Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service has 

determined that this action will not 

have a significant economic impact on 

a substantial number of small entities. 

Executive Order 12372 

This program/activity is listed in the 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

under No. 10.025 and is subject to 

Executive Order 12372, which requires 

intergovernmental consultation with 

State and local officials. (See 7 CFR part 

3015, subpart V.) 

Executive Order 12988 

This final rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. It is not intended to 

have retroactive effect. This rule will 

not preempt any State or local laws, 

regulations, or policies, unless they 

present an irreconcilable conflict with 

this rule. The Virus-Serum-Toxin Act 

does not provide administrative 

procedures which must be exhausted 

prior to a judicial challenge to the 

provisions of this rule. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 

et seq.), the information collection or 

recordkeeping requirements included in 

this rule have been approved by the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) under OMB control number 

0579–0318. 

E-Government Act Compliance 

The Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service is committed to 

compliance with the E-Government Act 

to promote the use of the Internet and 

other information technologies, to 

provide increased opportunities for 

citizen access to Government 

information and services, and for other 

purposes. For information pertinent to 

E-Government Act compliance related 

to this rule, please contact Mrs. Celeste 

Sickles, APHIS’ Information Collection 

Coordinator, at (301) 734–7477. 

List of Subjects 

9 CFR Part 105 

Animal biologics, Exports, Imports, 

Labeling, Packaging and containers, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

9 CFR Part 115 

Animal biologics, Exports, Imports, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

■ Accordingly, we are amending 9 CFR 

parts 105 and 115 as follows: 


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17798 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 68 / Tuesday, April 10, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

PART 105—SUSPENSION, 

REVOCATION, OR TERMINATION OF 

BIOLOGICAL LICENSES OR PERMITS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 105 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 21 U.S.C. 151–159; 7 CFR 2.22, 

2.80, and 371.4. 

■ 2. Section 105.3 is amended by adding 

a new paragraph (c) and an OMB control 

number citation to read as follows: 

§ 105.3 Notices re: worthless, 

contaminated, dangerous, or harmful 

biological products. 

* * * * * 

(c) When notified to stop distribution 

and sale of a serial or subserial of a 

veterinary biological product under the 

provisions of paragraph (a) or (b) of this 

section, veterinary biologics licensees or 

permittees shall: 

(1) Stop the preparation, distribution, 

sale, barter, exchange, shipment, or 

importation of the affected serial(s) or 

subserial(s) of any veterinary biological 

product pending further instructions 

from APHIS. 

(2) Immediately, but no later than 2 

days, send stop distribution and sale 

notifications to any wholesalers, 

jobbers, dealers, foreign consignees, or 

other persons known to have any such 

veterinary biological product in their 

possession, which instruct them to stop 

the preparation, distribution, sale, 

barter, exchange, shipment, or 

importation of any such veterinary 

biological product. All notifications 

shall be documented in writing by the 

licensee or permittee. 

(3) Account for the remaining 

quantity of each serial(s) or subserial(s) 

of any such veterinary biological 

product at each location in the 

distribution channel known to the 

manufacturer (licensee) or importer 

(permittee). 

(4) When required by the 

Administrator, submit complete and 

accurate reports of all notifications 

concerning stop distribution and sale 

actions to the Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service pursuant to § 116.5 

of this subchapter. 

(Approved by the Office of Management and 

Budget under control number 0579–0318.) 

PART 115—INSPECTIONS 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 115 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 21 U.S.C. 151–159; 7 CFR 2.22, 

2.80, and 371.4. 

■ 4. Section 115.2 is revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 115.2 Inspections of biological products. 

(a) Any biological product, the 

container of which bears a United States 

veterinary license number or a United 

States veterinary permit number or 

other mark required by these 

regulations, may be inspected at any 

time or place. If, as a result of such 

inspection, it appears that any such 

product is worthless, contaminated, 

dangerous, or harmful, the Secretary 

shall give notice to stop distribution and 

sale to the manufacturer (licensee) or 

importer (permittee) and may proceed 

against such product pursuant to the 

provisions of part 118 of this 

subchapter. 

(b) When notified to stop distribution 

and sale of a serial or subserial of a 

veterinary biological product by the 

Secretary, veterinary biologics licensees 

or permittees shall: 

(1) Stop the preparation, distribution, 

sale, barter, exchange, shipment, or 

importation of the affected serial(s) or 

subserial(s) of any such veterinary 

biological product pending further 

instructions from APHIS. 

(2) Immediately, but no later than 2 

days, send stop distribution and sale 

notifications to any jobbers, 

wholesalers, dealers, foreign consignees, 

or other persons known to have any 

such veterinary biological product in 

their possession, which instruct them to 

stop the preparation, distribution, sale, 

barter, exchange, shipment, or 

importation of any such veterinary 

biological product. All notifications 

shall be documented in writing by the 

licensee or permittee. 

(3) Account for the remaining 

quantity of each serial(s) or subserial(s) 

of any such veterinary biological 

product at each location in the 

distribution channel known to the 

manufacturer (licensee) or importer 

(permittee). 

(4) When required by the 

Administrator, submit complete and 

accurate reports of all notifications 

concerning stop distribution and sale 

actions to the Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service pursuant to § 116.5 

of this subchapter. 

(c) Unless and until the Secretary 

shall otherwise direct, no persons so 

notified shall thereafter sell, barter, or 

exchange any such product in any place 

under the jurisdiction of the United 

States or ship or deliver for shipment 

any such product in or from any State, 

Territory, or the District of Columbia. 

However, failure to receive such notice 

shall not excuse any person from 

compliance with the Virus-Serum-Toxin 

Act. (Approved by the Office of 

Management and Budget under control 

number 0579–0318). 

Done in Washington, DC, this 4th day of 

April 2007. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–6700 Filed 4–9–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Office of the Comptroller of the 

Currency 

12 CFR Part 4 

[Docket ID OCC–2007–0007] 

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM 

12 CFR Parts 208 and 211 

[Docket No. R–1279] 

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE 

CORPORATION 

12 CFR Parts 337 and 347 

RIN 3064–AD17 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Office of Thrift Supervision 

12 CFR Part 563 

[Docket ID OTS–2007–0006] 

Expanded Examination Cycle for 

Certain Small Insured Depository 

Institutions and U.S. Branches and 

Agencies of Foreign Banks 

AGENCIES: Office of the Comptroller of 

the Currency (OCC); Board of Governors 

of the Federal Reserve System (Board); 

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 

(FDIC); and Office of Thrift Supervision 

(OTS), Treasury. 

ACTION: Interim rules with request for 

comment. 

SUMMARY: The OCC, Board, FDIC, and 

OTS (collectively, the Agencies) are 

jointly issuing and requesting public 

comment on these interim rules to 

implement the Financial Services 

Regulatory Relief Act of 2006 (FSRRA) 

and related legislation (collectively the 

Examination Amendments). The 

Examination Amendments permit 

insured depository institutions 

(institutions) that have up to $500 

million in total assets, and that meet 

certain other criteria, to qualify for an 

18-month (rather than 12-month) on-site 

examination cycle. Prior to enactment of 

FSRRA, only institutions with less than 

$250 million in total assets were eligible 

for an 18-month on-site examination 


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