[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 5 (Monday, January 8, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 984-986]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-00100]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Information 
Collection; Comment Request; Information Collection for Qualitative 
Research on Consumer Trust in Banking and Bank Supervision

AGENCY:  Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Treasury.

ACTION:  Notice and request for comment.

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SUMMARY:  The OCC, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork 
and respondent burden, invites comment on a continuing information 
collection as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). In 
accordance with the requirements of the PRA, the OCC may not conduct or 
sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an 
information collection unless it displays a currently valid Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The OCC is soliciting 
comment concerning a proposed new information collection titled, 
``Information Collection for Qualitative Research on Consumer Trust in 
Banking and Bank Supervision.''

DATES:  Comments must be received by March 8, 2024.

ADDRESSES:  Commenters are encouraged to submit comments by email, if 
possible. You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
    <bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4b3b392a22252d240b242828653f392e2a38652c243d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="28585a4941464e4768474b4b065c5a4d495b064f475e">[email protected]</span></a>.
    <bullet> Mail: Chief Counsel's Office, Attention: Comment 
Processing, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Attention: 1557-
NEW, 400 7th Street SW, Suite 3E-218, Washington, DC 20219.
    <bullet> Hand Delivery/Courier: 400 7th Street SW, Suite 3E-218, 
Washington, DC 20219.
    <bullet> Fax: (571) 293-4835.
    Instructions: You must include ``OCC'' as the agency name and 
``1557-NEW'' in your comment. In general, the OCC will publish comments 
on www.reginfo.gov without change, including any business or personal 
information provided, such as name and address information, email 
addresses, or phone numbers. Comments received,

[[Page 985]]

including attachments and other supporting materials, are part of the 
public record and subject to public disclosure. Do not include any 
information in your comment or supporting materials that you consider 
confidential or inappropriate for public disclosure.
    Following the close of this notice's 60-day comment period, the OCC 
will publish a second notice with a 30-day comment period. You may 
review comments and other related materials that pertain to this 
information collection beginning on the date of publication of the 
second notice for this collection by the method set forth below.
    <bullet> Viewing Comments Electronically: Go to www.reginfo.gov. 
Hover over the ``Information Collection Review'' tab and click on 
``Information Collection Review'' from the drop-down menu. From the 
``Currently under Review'' drop-down menu, select ``Department of 
Treasury'' and then click ``submit.'' This information collection can 
be located by searching OMB control number ``1557-NEW'' or 
``Information Collection for Qualitative Research on Consumer Trust in 
Banking and Bank Supervision.'' Upon finding the appropriate 
information collection, click on the related ``ICR Reference Number.'' 
On the next screen, select ``View Supporting Statement and Other 
Documents'' and then click on the link to any comment listed at the 
bottom of the screen.
    <bullet> For assistance in navigating www.reginfo.gov, please 
contact the Regulatory Information Service Center at (202) 482-7340.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shaquita Merritt, Clearance Officer, 
(202) 649-5490, Chief Counsel's Office, Office of the Comptroller of 
the Currency, 400 7th Street SW, Washington, DC 20219. If you are deaf, 
hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to 
access telecommunications relay services.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), 
Federal agencies must obtain approval from the OMB for each collection 
of information that they conduct or sponsor. ``Collection of 
information'' is defined in 44 U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 1320.3(c) to 
include agency requests or requirements that members of the public 
submit reports, keep records, or provide information to a third party. 
Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of title 44 generally requires Federal agencies 
to provide a 60-day notice in the Federal Register concerning each 
proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension 
of an existing collection of information, before submitting the 
collection to OMB for approval. To comply with this requirement, the 
OCC is publishing notice of the proposed new collection of information 
set forth in this document.
    Title: Information Collection for Qualitative Research on Consumer 
Trust in Banking and Bank Supervision.
    OMB Control No.: 1557-NEW.
    Type of Review: Regular.
    Affected Public: Consumers and financial service providers.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 230.
    Estimated Average Time per Response: 1.5 hours.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 345 hours.
    Description: The OCC plans to conduct a series of focus group/
interview discussions to obtain an in-depth understanding of consumers' 
relationship with and attitudes toward banks, and other non-bank firms 
providing financial services or products (e.g., payday lenders, check 
cashers, fintechs providing retail banking services). The results from 
the focus group/interview discussions will: (i) inform the development 
of the survey instrument on consumer trust in banking and bank 
supervision and (ii) be used to produce a qualitative research report 
that shed insights into the meaning and role of consumer trust in 
banking and what factors and/or which banking products have the 
greatest impact on consumer trust in, and decisions on banking.
    While the key elements of trust are established in academic 
research, it is unclear how trust should be measured from a consumer 
perspective. It is also unclear whether, and to what extent, trust 
impacts financial decision making. Trust in a specific bank, in banks 
generally, and in the banking system as a whole may be distinctively 
different, even if interrelated. Moreover, the components that 
influence and the meaning of trust in each of these may differ. 
Consumers may understand trust to mean that they expect an institution 
to treat them fairly, to help them during economic hardships, to 
protect their savings, or to function in a reliable and predictable 
manner (or any combination of these). Such perceptions may differ 
across individuals, across different financial services and products, 
and/or across different types of financial institutions. Moreover, 
perceptions may be based on personal experiences, media reports, 
personal expectations, or how well someone understands how the U.S. 
banking system works. Moreover, decisions to bank with a specific 
financial service provider may not necessarily reflect greater trust in 
that institution. Rather, it may reflect convenience or cost 
considerations that may be unrelated to trust. Conversely, lack of 
participation in the banking system may not necessarily reflect lower 
levels of trust in banks or the banking system. Rather, it may reflect 
cultural norms or a mismatch of supply and demand that may be unrelated 
to trust.
    To ensure that the quantitative survey instrument accurately 
measures trust in banking and its role in banking choices, the OCC will 
recruit individuals from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds/conditions 
to participate in focus groups/interviews to help identify the specific 
types of financial services where trust is highly influential in a 
consumers' decision to bank, the sources of (dis)trust, reasons 
consumers may choose a particular financial institution, and whether 
they have different perceptions of trust across different types of 
financial institutions. Such discussions will help the OCC refine the 
quantitative survey to help ensure that the results reflect an accurate 
understanding of consumers' trust and its role in banking.
    Additionally, the OCC may engage with industry stakeholders to 
understand the meaning and role of consumer trust in banking, as 
perceived by the industry stakeholders. From these industry stakeholder 
discussions, the OCC may gain additional insight in the approaches and 
lessons learned from the industry regarding the strategies to maintain 
or build consumer trust.
    The discussion with stakeholders about their own experiences of 
establishing trust with consumers will enable us to identify any other 
additional perspectives and the reasons behind the level of consumer 
trust in banking.
    Participation in this information collection will be voluntary and 
confidential and conducted in-person, by phone, or using other methods, 
such as virtual technology. The OCC estimates that the focus groups are 
expected to average 90 minutes with an estimated 345 annualized burden 
hours to 230 respondents (1.5 hours per participant, including intake 
form x 230 participants). Travel time, if any, is excluded from the 
estimated hours of burden. Comments submitted in response to this 
notice will be summarized and included in the request for OMB approval. 
All comments will become a matter of public record. Comments are 
invited on: (a) Whether the collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the OCC, including

[[Page 986]]

whether the information has practical utility; (b) The accuracy of the 
OCC's estimate of the burden of the collection of information; (c) Ways 
to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; (d) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection on 
respondents, including through the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology; and (e) Estimates 
of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and 
purchase of services to provide information.

Theodore J. Dowd,
Deputy Chief Counsel, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
[FR Doc. 2024-00100 Filed 1-5-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-33-P


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