Document ID: SEC-2016-0287-0001
Agency: sec
Document Type: Notice
Title: Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals
Posted Date: 2016-02-22T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 34 (Monday, February 22, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8796-8797]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-03516]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Submission for OMB Review; 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:
    Rule 17a-25.
    SEC File No. 270-482, OMB Control No. 3235-0540.

    Notice is hereby given that pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et. seq.) (``PRA''), the Securities and 
Exchange Commission (``Commission'') has submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (``OMB'') a request for approval of extension of 
the existing collection of information provided for in Rule 17a-25 (17 
CFR 204.17a-25) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 
78a et seq.).
    Paragraph (a)(1) of Rule 17a-25 requires registered broker-dealers 
to electronically submit securities transaction information, including 
identifiers for prime brokerage arrangements, average price accounts, 
and depository institutions, in a standardized format when requested by 
the Commission staff. In addition, Paragraph (a)(3)(c) of Rule 17a-25 
requires broker-dealers to submit, and keep current, contact person 
information for electronic blue sheets (``EBS'') requests. The 
Commission uses the information for enforcement inquiries or 
investigations and trading reconstructions, as well as for inspections 
and examinations.
    The Commission estimates that it sends approximately 7,697 
electronic blue sheet requests per year to clearing broker-dealers that 
in turn submit an average 124,912 responses.\1\ It is

[[Page 8797]]

estimated that each broker-dealer that responds electronically will 
take 8 minutes, and each broker-dealer that responds manually will take 
1\1/2\ hours to prepare and submit the securities trading data 
requested by the Commission. The annual aggregate hour burden for 
electronic and manual response firms is estimated to be 8,114 (59,958 x 
8 / 60 = 7,994 hours) + (80 x 1.5 = 120 hours), respectively.\2\ In 
addition, the Commission estimates that it will request 8 broker-
dealers to supply the contact information identified in Rule 17a-25(c) 
and estimates the total aggregate burden hours to be 2. Thus, the 
annual aggregate burden for all respondents to the collection of 
information requirements of Rule 17a-25 is estimated at 8,116 hours 
(7,994 + 120 + 2).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ A single EBS request has a unique number assigned to each 
request (e.g. ``0900001''). However, the number of broker-dealer 
responses generated from one EBS request can range from one to 
several thousand. EBS requests are sent directly to clearing firms, 
as the clearing firm is the repository for trading data for 
securities transactions information provided by itself and 
correspondent firms. Clearing brokers respond for themselves and 
other firms they clear for. There were 124,912 responses during the 
25 month period for an average of 4,996.5 responses per month or an 
average of 59,958 annual responses.
    \2\ Few of respondents submit manual EBS responses. The small 
percentage of respondents that submit manual responses do so by 
hand, via email, spreadsheet, disk, or other electronic media. Thus, 
the number of manual submissions (80) has minimal effect on the 
total annual burden hours.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 Web site: 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: 
Shagufta_Ahmed@comb.eop.gov; and (ii) Pamela Dyson, Director/Chief 
Information Officer, Securities and Exchange Commission, c/o Remi 
Pavlik-Simon, 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: February 16, 2016.
Brent J. Fields,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-03516 Filed 2-19-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P