Federal Register / Vol. 51. No. 35 / Friday. February 21. 1986 / Notices SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS: Database Administrator, Office of Examinations and Supervision. Federal Home Loan Bank Board, 1700 G Street, NW., Washington, DC 20552 NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES: This system will be exempt from notification and record-access requirements and requirements that an individual be permitted to contest its content under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2) because it contains investigatory material compiled for law enforcement purposes. RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES: See Notification procedures. CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES: RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES: This system will be exempt under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2) from the requirement that the sources of records used in the system be published, because it contains investigatory material compiled for law enforcement purposes. By the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. Nadine Y. Pena. Acting Secretary. [FR Doc. 86-3816 Filed 2-20-86: 8:45 am) BILLING CODE 6725-01 FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION Agreement(s) Filed The Federal Maritime Commission hereby gives notice of the filing of the following agreement(s) pursuant to section 5 of the Shipping Act of 1984. Interested parties may inspect and obtain a copy of each agreement at the Washington, DC Office of the Federal Maritime Commission, 1100 L Street, NW., Room 10325. Interested parties may submit comments on each agreement to the Secretary, Federal Maritime Commission, Washington, DC 20573. within 10 days after the date of the Federal Register in which this notice appears. The requirements for comments are found in § 572.603 of Title 46 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Interested persons should consult this section before communicating with the Commission regarding a pending agreement. Agreement No.: 225-010887. Title: General Agency Agreement between Hanjin Container Lines, Ltd. and Sea-Land Service, Inc. Parties: Hanjin Container Lines, Ltd. (Hanjin) and Sea-Land Service, Inc. (Sea-Land). Synopsis: The proposed agreement would permit Sea-Land to act on behalf of Hanjin as its general agent at the Port of Elizabeth, New Jersey for the carriage of cargo between ports and points in the Far East, and the United States. The parties have requested a shortened review period. Dated: February 18, 1986. By Order of the Federal Maritime John Robert Ewers, [FR Doc. 86-3845 Filed 2-20-86; 8:45 am) BILLING CODE 6730-01-M FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM Agency Forms Under OMB Review On June 15, 1984, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) delegated to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) its approval authority under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980, as per 5 CFR 1320.9. "to approve of and assign OMB control numbers to collection of information requests and requirements conducted or sponsored by the Board under conditions set forth in 5 CFR 1320.8." Board-approved collections of information will be incorporated into the 6317 official OMB inventory of currently approved collections of information. A copy of the SF 83 and supporting statement and the approved collection of information instrument(s) will be placed into OMB's public docket files. The following forms, which are being handled under this delegated authority. have received initial Board approval and are hereby published for comment. At the end of the comment period. the proposed information collection, along with an analysis of comments and recommendations received, will be submitted to the Board for final approval under OMB delegated authority. DATE: Comments must be received within fifteen working days of the date of publication in the Federal Register. ADDRESS: Comments, which should refer to the OMB Docket number (or Agency form number in the case of a new information collection that has not yet been assigned an OMB number). should be addressed to Mr. William W. Wiles. Secretary, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th and C Streets, NW., Washington, DC 20551. or delivered to room B-2223 between 8:45 a.m. and 5:15 p.m. Comments received may be inspected in room B-1122 between 8:45 a.m. and 5:15 p.m., except as provided in § 261.8(a) of the Board's Rules Regarding Availability of Information, 12 CFR 261.6(a). A copy of the comments may also be submitted to the OMB desk officer for the Board: Robert Neal, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 3208. Washington, DC 20503. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A copy of the proposed form. the request for clearance (SF 83), supporting statement, instructions, and other documents that will be placed into OMB's public docket files once approved may be requested from the agency clearance officer, whose name appears below: Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer, Martha Bethea, Division of Research and Statistics, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551 (202-452-3822). Proposal to approve under OMB delegated authority the extension with revisions of the following report: 1. Report title: Survey of Terms of Bank Lending (STBL) Agency form number: FR 2028A, 2028A- OMB Docket number: 7100-0061 Reporters: Commercial banks As you know, the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban On March 5, 1985, the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions Supervision, Regulation and Insurance invited then Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Enforcement and Operations John M. Walker, Jr., and James D. Harmon, Jr., Executive Director of the President's Commission on Organized Crime, to brief the members of the Subcommittee on the state of compliance with the Act, on the efforts the Department of the Treasury was engaged in to enforce the Act, and on suggestions for changes in the law to enhance the Government's ability to carry out the Act. The briefing was very helpful to the members of the Subcommittee. The briefing was followed in April by this Subcommittee's extensive investigations of the failure of the Bank of Boston and other Massachusetts banks to comply with the reporting requirements of the Act, as well as the institutional failure of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency relative to their responsibilities under this law. The Subcommittee intends to continue its review of the Act, examine suggested legislative changes, further inquire about the state of compliance by financial institutions, and possibly to conduct oversight hearings on the enforcement efforts that your Department and the banking regulators have undertaken since the Subcommittee's initiative last March. In that regard, the Subcommittee would appreciate a comprehensive written report updating the activities and initiatives the Department and, specifically, the Office of Enforcement and Operations, have undertaken to see that -2 financial institutions are complying with all provisions of the Bank Secrecy Act. The Subcommittee would be most interested in hearing what additional manpower and other resources the Department has allocated to this effort. The report should be submitted to the Subcommittee no later than February 10, 1986. The Secretary has asked me to respond to your letter dated January 14, 1986, which requested a written report concerning the activities of the Office of Enforcement and Operations to promote the compliance of financial institutions with the provisions of the Bank Secrecy Act (the Act). Since March 5, 1985, when former Assistant Secretary Walker testified before the Subcommittee, the Office of the Assistant Secretary (Enforcement and Operations) has substantially increased its efforts to improve compliance with the Act. There has been an increased commitment of staff resources in the office itself, as well as by the IRS. In addition, bank supervisors and other agencies that have compliance responsibilities have focused their attention on the Act. This increased commitment has permitted us to make regulatory changes, shift administrative responsibilities, draft procedural changes, and place greater emphasis on the identification of violations and the settlement of related civil liabilities. In July, 1985, the Treasury Department established the Office of Financial Enforcement to assist in implementing and administering the Bank Secrecy Act regulations. The establishment of this office provided a focal point for Bank Secrecy Act related activity within the Treasury Department and acknowledged the increasing importance of the Act in Treasury's law enforcement efforts. The office has broad responsibilities for the compliance activities of all agencies that have been delegated responsibilities under the Act, including the Federal bank supervisory agencies, the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, the National Credit Union Administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Internal Revenue Service, and the U.S. Customs Service. The Office of Financial Enforcement is currently staffed with an Acting Director, a Bank Secrecy Act Compliance Specialist, an Acting Data Systems Specialist, and two secretarial staff members. This represents an increase in staffing for the Bank Secrecy Act area since -2 March, 1985 of 150%. In addition, the Office of the General Counsel has provided the equivalent of more than one fulltime staff attorney to provide assistance with drafting regulations and legislative proposals, reviewing potential civil penalty cases, and other legal work relating to the Act. The increased emphasis within the Office of Enforcement and Operations has not been limited to the staff level. The former Assistant Secretary and the Deputy Assistant Secretary (Enforcement) have made the Bank Secrecy Act a high priority issue. During 1985, they made trips to Hong Kong, Panama, and Switzerland in order to meet with foreign officials and bankers to promote international cooperation in combatting the money laundering activities that often involve violations of the Act. Both officials accepted a number of invitations to speak to bankers and legal groups on money laundering and the enforcement of the Bank Secrecy Act. As a result, in part, of the hearings which the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions Supervision, Regulation and Insurance held in April, 1985, concerning the Bank of Boston violations, an unexpectedly large number of major domestic banks have been identified as having violated the Bank Secrecy Act. The side effects of this unanticipated development included a very unusual increase in the number of currency transaction reports filed and the emergence of many violations that appear to warrant civil penalties. The number of filings increased from about 700,000 in 1984 to an estimated 1,700,000+ in 1985, which included a substantial number of reports of transactions that occurred in prior years. There have been approximately 136 banks identified as possible violators. If, however, the subsidiaries of holding companies are grouped by holding company, the number is much smaller, about 66. While the Office of Financial Enforcement has been monitoring the processing and computerization of the huge increase in currency transaction reports, the IRS has felt the major impact of the increased workload. Although the IRS has been attempting to keep up with the increase by allocating additional resources, there currently is a backlog, which together with the normal work-in-process inventory amounts to more than 900,000 reports. As of February 10, twelve banks or holding companies have entered into civil settlements with the Treasury Department and have paid almost $10 million. A list of these entities and copies of the twelve settlement agreements are enclosed. |