30 Day Notice

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 36 / Thursday, February 25, 2021 / Notices
Dated: February 23, 2021.
Vanessa A. Countryman,
Secretary.

information collection by selecting
‘‘Currently under 30-day Review—Open
for Public Comments’’ or by using the
search function. Written comments and
recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent
within 30 days of publication of this
notice to (i) www.reginfo.gov/public/do/
PRAMain and (ii) David Bottom,
Director/Chief Information Officer,
Securities and Exchange Commission,
c/o Cynthia Roscoe, 100 F Street NE,
Washington, DC 20549, or by sending an
email to: PRA_Mailbox@sec.gov.

[FR Doc. 2021–04049 Filed 2–23–21; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[SEC File No. 270–118, OMB Control No.
3235–0095]

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 236

Notice is hereby given that, pursuant
to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Securities
and Exchange Commission
(‘‘Commission’’) has submitted to the
Office of Management and Budget this
request for extension of the previously
approved collection of information
discussed below.
Rule 236 (17 CFR 230.236) under the
Securities Act of 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77a et
seq.) (‘‘Securities Act’’) provides an
exemption from registration under the
Securities Act for the offering of shares
of stock or similar securities to provide
funds to be distributed to security
holders in lieu of fractional shares, scrip
certificates or order forms, in
connection with a stock dividend, stock
split, reverse stock split, conversion,
merger or similar transaction. Issuers
wishing to rely upon the exemption are
required to furnish specified
information to the Commission at least
10 days prior to the offering. The
information is needed to provide notice
that the issuer is relying on the
exemption. Public companies are the
likely respondents. All information
provided to the Commission is available
to the public for review upon request.
Approximately 10 respondents file the
information required by Rule 236 at an
estimated 1.5 hours per response for a
total annual reporting burden of 15
hours (1.5 hours per response × 10
responses).
An agency may not conduct or
sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, a collection of information
unless it displays a currently valid
control number.
The public may view background
documentation for this information
collection at the following website:
www.reginfo.gov. Find this particular

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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’’) is soliciting comments
on the collection of information
summarized below. The Commission
plans to submit an extension for this
current collection of information to the
Office of Management and Budget for
approval.
In Release No. 34–64545,1 the
Commission adopted rules (‘‘Rules’’)
and forms to implement Section 21F of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
entitled ‘‘Securities Whistleblower
Incentives and Protection,’’ which was
created by Section 922 of the DoddFrank Wall Street Reform and Consumer
Protection Act (‘‘Dodd-Frank Act’’).2
The Rules describe the whistleblower
program that the Commission has
established pursuant to the Dodd-Frank

Act which requires the Commission to
pay an award, subject to certain
limitations and conditions, to
whistleblowers who voluntarily provide
the Commission with original
information about a violation of the
federal securities laws that leads to the
successful enforcement of a covered
judicial or administrative action, or of a
related action. The Rules define certain
terms critical to the operation of the
whistleblower program, outline the
procedures for applying for awards and
the Commission’s procedures for
making decisions on claims, and
generally explain the scope of the
whistleblower program to the public
and to potential whistleblowers.
Form TCR is a form submitted by
whistleblowers who wish to provide
information to the Commission and its
staff regarding potential violations of the
securities laws. Form TCR is required
for submission of information under the
Rules. The Commission estimates that it
takes a whistleblower, on average, one
and one-half hours to complete Form
TCR. Based on the receipt of an average
of approximately 560 annual Form TCR
submissions for the past three fiscal
years, the Commission estimates that
the annual reporting burden of Form
TCR is 840 hours.
Form WB–APP is a form that is
submitted by whistleblowers filing a
claim for a whistleblower award. Form
WB–APP is required for application for
an award under the Rules. On December
4, 2020, the Commission approved an
updated version of the WB–APP in
conjunction with its newly amended
rules. The updated WB–APP removes
the requirement for the filer to submit
their Social Security Number and
modified the order of the questions on
the form. No substantive changes were
made to the WB–APP. The Commission
estimates that it takes a whistleblower,
on average, two hours to complete Form
WB–APP. The completion time depends
largely on the complexity of the alleged
violation and the amount of information
the whistleblower possesses in support
of his or her application for an award.
Based on the receipt of an average of
approximately 215 3 annual Form WB–
APP submissions for the past six fiscal
years, the Commission estimates that
the annual reporting burden of Form
WB–APP is 430 hours.
Estimated annual reporting burden =
1,270 hours.

1 Implementation of the Whistleblower Provisions
of Section 21F of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, Release No. 34–64545; File No. S7–33–10
(adopted May 25, 2011).
2 Public Law 111–203, 922(a), 124 Stat 1841
(2010).

3 This figure does not include Form WB–APP
submissions which were facially deficient,
subsequently withdrawn, or submitted by
individuals who have been barred by the
Commission from participation in the
whistleblower program.

Dated: February 22, 2021.
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021–03884 Filed 2–24–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[SEC File No. 270–625, OMB Control No.
3235–0686]

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:
Form TCR and Form WB–APP—
Implementing the Whistleblower
Provisions of Section 21F of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934

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