[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 20, 2012)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 16170]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-6606]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of Foreign Assets Control

31 CFR Part 560


Iranian Transactions Regulations

AGENCY: Office of Foreign Assets Control, Treasury.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets 
Control is amending the Iranian Transactions Regulations to redefine 
the term entity owned or controlled by the Government of Iran to 
substantially conform to the definition in the amended Iranian 
Financial Sanctions Regulations.

DATES: Effective: March 20, 2012.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Assistant Director for Sanctions 
Compliance & Evaluation, tel.: 202/622-2490, Assistant Director for 
Licensing, tel.: 202/622-2480, Assistant Director for Policy, tel.: 
202/622-4855, Office of Foreign Assets Control, or Chief Counsel 
(Foreign Assets Control), tel.: 202/622-2410, Office of the General 
Counsel, Department of the Treasury (not toll free numbers).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic and Facsimile Availability

    This document and additional information concerning OFAC are 
available from OFAC's Web site (www.treas.gov/ofac). Certain general 
information pertaining to OFAC's sanctions programs also is available 
via facsimile through a 24-hour fax-on-demand service, tel.: 202/622-
0077.

Background

    By a separate rulemaking, the Department of the Treasury's Office 
of Foreign Assets Control (``OFAC'') has amended the Iranian Financial 
Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 561 (the ``IFSR''), and reissued 
them in their entirety, to implement section 1245(d) of the National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012. In the amended IFSR, 
OFAC defined the term entity owned or controlled by the Government of 
Iran in a way that differs slightly from the definition of the term in 
the Iranian Transactions Regulations, 31 CFR part 560 (the ``ITR''). To 
ensure that the term entity owned or controlled by the Government of 
Iran is defined consistently in these Iran sanctions programs, OFAC 
also is amending the ITR to more closely conform the definition in 
section 560.313 of the ITR to the one in section 561.322 of the IFSR. 
OFAC intends to issue more thorough amendments to the ITR to implement 
Executive Order 13599 of February 5, 2012 (``Blocking Property of the 
Government of Iran and Iranian Financial Institutions'')(``E.O. 
13599''), at a later date. See 77 FR 7660 (Feb. 13, 2012), for a Notice 
containing additional information on E.O. 13599 and OFAC general and 
specific licenses set forth in or issued pursuant to the ITR.

Public Participation

    Because the ITR involve a foreign affairs function, the provisions 
of Executive Order 12866 and the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 
553) requiring notice of proposed rulemaking, opportunity for public 
participation, and delay in effective date are inapplicable. Because no 
notice of proposed rulemaking is required for this rule, the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601-612) does not apply.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The collections of information related to the ITR are contained in 
31 CFR part 501 (the ``Reporting, Procedures and Penalties 
Regulations''). Pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3507), those collections of information have been approved by 
the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1505-0164. An 
agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to 
respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of 
information displays a valid control number.

List of Subjects in 31 CFR Part 560

    Administrative practice and procedure, Banks, Banking, Brokers, 
Foreign Trade, Investments, Loans, Securities, Iran.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Department of the 
Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control amends 31 CFR part 560 as 
follows:

PART 560--IRANIAN TRANSACTIONS REGULATIONS

0
1. The authority citation to part 560 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 3 U.S.C. 301; 18 U.S.C. 2339B, 2332d; 22 U.S.C. 
2349aa-9; 22 U.S.C. 7201-7211; 31 U.S.C. 321(b); 50 U.S.C. 1601-
1651, 1701-1706; Pub. L. 101-410, 104 Stat. 890 (28 U.S.C. 2461 
note); Pub. L. 110-96, 121 Stat. 1011 (50 U.S.C. 1705 note); Pub. L. 
111-195, 124 Stat. 1312 (22 U.S.C. 8501-8551); E.O. 12613, 52 FR 
41940, 3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p. 256; E.O. 12957, 60 FR 14615, 3 CFR, 
1995 Comp., p. 332; E.O. 12959, 60 FR 24757, 3 CFR, 1995 Comp., p. 
356; E.O. 13059, 62 FR 44531, 3 CFR, 1997 Comp., p. 217.

Subpart C--General Definitions

0
2. Revise Sec.  560.313 to read as follows:


Sec.  560.313  Entity owned or controlled by the Government of Iran.

    The term entity owned or controlled by the Government of Iran 
includes any corporation, partnership, association, or other entity in 
which the Government of Iran owns a 50 percent or greater interest or a 
controlling interest, and any entity which is otherwise controlled by 
that government.

    Dated: March 9, 2012.
Adam J. Szubin,
Director, Office of Foreign Assets Control.
[FR Doc. 2012-6606 Filed 3-19-12; 8:45 am]
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