FR2046_20200226_omb

Supporting Statement for the
Selected Balance Sheet Items for Discount Window Borrowers
(FR 2046; OMB No. 7100-0289)
Summary
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), under authority
delegated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), has extended for three years, with
revision, the Selected Balance Sheet Items for Discount Window Borrowers (FR 2046; OMB
No. 7100-0289). The balance sheet data collected on the FR 2046 report from certain institutions
that borrow from the discount window are used to monitor discount window borrowing. The
Board’s Regulation A - Extensions of Credit by Federal Reserve Banks (12 CFR Part 201)
requires that Reserve Banks review balance sheet data in determining whether to extend credit
and to help ascertain whether undue use is made of such credit. The FR 2046 report is primarily
used to assess appropriate use of seasonal credit. Certain depository institutions that borrow from
the discount window report on the FR 2046 certain balance sheet data for a period that
encompasses the dates of borrowing.
The Board revised the FR 2046 to update data element definitions to account for the
introduction of the Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income for a Bank with Domestic
Offices Only and Total Assets Less than $5 Billion (FFIEC 051; OMB No. 7100-0036) reporting
form. In addition, the face of the FR 2046 report will be updated to (1) reflect all of the legal
statutes that authorize the collection of the report, (2) indicate that the report is “authorized” (not
required) by law, and (3) clarify that, if the report is requested under the Freedom of Information
Act, the report will be treated as confidential unless the borrower’s identity has already been
disclosed pursuant to the two year lag provided under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and
Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act).1
The current estimated total annual burden for the FR 2046 is 376 hours, and is unaffected
by the adopted revisions. The draft form and instructions are available on the Board’s public
website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/reportforms/review.aspx.
Background and Justification
The Board’s Regulation A establishes rules under which Federal Reserve Banks may
extend credit to depository institutions and defines three basic lending programs: primary credit,
secondary credit, and seasonal credit.2 Primary credit is designed as a back-up funding source to
assist depository institutions in meeting very short-term needs (usually overnight). Since such
credit is provided at an above-market rate and ordinarily is available to generally sound
depository institutions, there is little or no administrative burden on the borrower or the Reserve
1

12 U.S.C. § 248(s).
Regulation A also defines “Emergency credit for others” under which in unusual and exigent circumstances, credit
may be extended to any participant in a program or facility with broad-based eligibility. Regulation A also defines a
temporary Term Auction Facility (TAF) in which depository institutions obtain discount window loans at an interest
rate that is determined as the result of an auction. Borrowers of these two types of credit are not required to file the
FR 2046.
2

Banks. Secondary credit is designed as a back-up funding source for depository institutions that
do not qualify for primary credit. Such credit may be provided to meet temporary funding needs
of an institution if such a credit extension would be consistent with the institution’s timely return
to a reliance on market funding sources, or if such credit would facilitate the orderly resolution
of serious financial difficulties of the borrowing institution. Unlike primary credit borrowers,
secondary credit borrowers are subject to a higher level of administration by the lending Reserve
Bank and therefore subject to a slightly higher interest rate. Seasonal credit is designed to assist
smaller institutions in meeting longer-term funding needs arising from regular intra-year patterns
in deposits and loans. Regulation A requires that Reserve Banks ensure that the borrower’s
funding need is truly seasonal in nature and that it will persist for at least four weeks.3 Seasonal
credit is provided at a market-related rate.
There are cases in which discount window borrowing might be considered inappropriate
and inconsistent with the Board’s Regulation A. For example, using the primary or secondary
credit programs as a primary funding source, or using seasonal credit to meet a non-seasonal
funding need, would be considered inappropriate. To guard against such situations, Regulation A
(12 CFR 201.3(c)(2)-(3)) requires Reserve Banks to consider the balance sheet information of
borrowers in determining whether to extend credit and to ensure that any credit provided is used
for an appropriate purpose. In 1998, the Subcommittee on Credit, Reserves, and Risk
Management (SCRRM) requested standardized data reporting for discount window monitoring
as part of its broader effort to promote greater uniformity across the Federal Reserve System in
the administration of the discount window.4 There had been considerable variation across the
twelve Federal Reserve Districts in the specific data elements collected, in the time periods for
which data were requested, and in the formats in which data were reported. The implementation
of the FR 2046 report standardized these aspects of data collection across Reserve Banks and, in
many cases, reduced reporting burden relative to that under the previous data reporting
procedures. The FR 2046 report and instructions have undergone a number of revisions since
1998.5
The FR 2046 report is primarily used to assess appropriate use of seasonal credit.
Although seasonal credit is provided at a market-related rate, borrowers may still find the rate
charged on seasonal credit attractive relative to the rates they would be charged for comparable
credit arrangements from market sources. Therefore, while borrowing at the discount window,
seasonal borrowers must agree to limit their net federal funds sales to an amount consistent with
their usual operating pattern.6 The information obtained on federal funds sold and purchased on
the FR 2046 is used by discount officers to assess whether a seasonal borrower’s position in the
federal funds market is consistent with normal operations.
Similarly, information on a seasonal borrower’s total assets, loans, securities and deposits
is used to monitor whether seasonal credit loans are being used for the program’s intended
3

12 CFR 201.4(c)(1).
This subcommittee is now known as SCRM (Subcommittee on Credit Risk Management). SCRM is a
subcommittee of the Conference of Presidents of the Federal Reserve Banks’ Committee on Credit and Risk
Management.
5
See 75 FR 33807 (June 15, 2010) (describing revisions being implemented); 78 FR 28846 (May 16, 2013)
(describing proposed revisions); and 78 FR 44952 (July 25, 2013) (implementing proposed revisions).
6
See S-Letter 2487, March 1985.
4

2

purpose. Total loans and total deposits are used in monitoring seasonal credit borrower’s net
funds availability (defined as total deposits less total loans) during the period of borrowing.
Historical data on net funds availability is a key variable used in establishing an institution’s
seasonal credit line. Discount officers monitor net funds availability during the period of
borrowing to ensure that an institution’s actual funding need during the year is consistent with its
seasonal credit line. Many seasonal credit borrowers, for example, exhibit a marked increase in
their loan portfolios over the first three quarters in each year reflecting increased agricultural
credit demands. Later in the year, loan demand at these banks subsides as farmers sell their crops
and repay their outstanding bank loans with the proceeds. Deviations from this typical pattern
might indicate that seasonal credit was being used inappropriately. For example, if a seasonal
borrower’s total loans increased only modestly during the year while its securities portfolio
expanded sharply, discount officers might contact the institution to verify whether it remained
eligible for the seasonal credit program.
Seasonal credit is typically extended over lengthy periods, and the borrower’s funding
need is expected to change slowly over the term of the borrowing. Therefore, Reserve Banks can
obtain an adequate picture of a borrower’s balance sheet trends by collecting only one day of
data per week. In cases where seasonal credit is extended to institutions in marginal financial
condition, increased monitoring of the borrower is required, and daily data may be collected at
the Reserve Bank’s discretion.
Secondary credit borrowers are not in generally sound condition and are subject to a
higher level of administration by the lending Reserve Bank. For example, if the loan is requested
for a reason other than to cover an unexpected overdraft, the borrower is not allowed to increase
its net exposure to other depository institutions—such as by selling federal funds—without
permission. The FR 2046 data are not routinely collected from secondary credit borrowers, as
adequate information on the need for funding and the reason for borrowing from the Federal
Reserve is usually available from other sources, such as direct contacts with banking regulators.
The FR 2046 report may be required if the Reserve Bank becomes concerned about the
frequency or size of the institution’s borrowing. Secondary credit is generally extended for one
day at a time; therefore, daily data are necessary to capture the borrower’s balance sheet trends. 7
Description of Information Collection
Table 1, below, lists the data items on the FR 2046 report. All data are reported for the
borrower’s domestic offices only and reported in thousands of dollars. The data elements include
the amounts of total securities, federal funds sold and securities purchased under agreements to

7

Primary credit borrowers are in generally sound financial condition and as noted above there is usually little or no
administrative burden on their borrowing, and the FR 2046 will usually not be collected from them. However, the
FR 2046 may be required from a primary credit borrower in very unusual circumstances, such as frequent borrowing
or if there is information to suggest that undue use is being made of the credit. In these cases, information on federal
funds sold and purchased (including resale and repurchase agreements, respectively) would be important in
identifying situations in which an institution might be attempting to substitute borrowing at the discount window for
its normal market sources of funding. In addition, information on total assets, loans, deposits, and securities could be
used to assess the borrower’s funding need or use of the credit. Because primary credit is extended for very short
terms, daily data are necessary to capture the borrower’s balance sheet trends.

3

resell, total loans, total assets, total deposits, and federal funds purchased and securities sold
under agreements to repurchase.
Seasonal credit borrowers must submit FR 2046 reports weekly for each two-week period
in which a borrowing is outstanding, and report daily data for Wednesdays only. Seasonal credit
borrowers that already report total securities, federal funds sold and resale agreements, total
loans, and total assets weekly on the Weekly Report of Selected Assets and Liabilities of
Domestically Chartered Commercial Banks and U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks
(FR 2644; OMB No. 7100-0075) or total deposits weekly on the Report of Transaction
Accounts, Other Deposits, and Vault Cash (FR 2900; OMB No. 7100-0087) or on the FR 2644
do not need to provide these data on the FR 2046.8
If requested by a Reserve Bank, primary or secondary credit borrowers report daily data
for the week requested. A primary or secondary credit borrower need not supply deposit data on
the FR 2046 report when it already files such information weekly on the FR 2900.

8

The FR 2644 and the FR 2900 employ somewhat different concepts of total deposits. Either concept is adequate
for the purpose of monitoring discount window borrowers.

4

Table 1 - Data Items on the FR 2046

Type of
Credit

Primary
or
Secondary

Data Elements

Qualifications

Definition Source*

Total securities

None

Call Report /
NCUA 5300

Federal funds sold and resale
agreements

None

Call Report

Total loans

All

None

Call Report /
NCUA 5300
Call Report /
NCUA 5300
FR 2900 or Call
Report / NCUA 5300

Total assets

None

Total deposits

When not reported
weekly on FR 2900

Federal funds purchased and
repurchase agreements
(exclude FRB borrowings)

None

Call Report

When not reported on
FR 2644
When not reported on
FR 2644
When not reported on
FR 2644
When not reported on
FR 2644
When not reported
weekly on FR 2900 or
FR 2644

Call Report /
NCUA 5300
Call Report

Total securities
Federal funds sold and resale
agreements
Total loans
Seasonal

Days of
Report
Period for
which Data
are Provided

Total assets

Wednesday
only
Wednesday
only
Wednesday
only
Wednesday
only

Total deposits

Wednesday
only

Federal funds purchased and
repurchase agreements
(exclude FRB borrowings)

Wednesday
only

FR 2644 or Call
Report / NCUA 5300
Call Report /
NCUA 5300
FR 2900 or Call
Report / NCUA 5300
Call Report

None

* source of definition:
Call Reports =

NCUA 5300 =
FR 2644 =
FR 2900 =

U.S. commercial bank Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income (FFIEC 031, FFIEC 041,
and FFIEC 051; OMB No. 7100-0036) or Report of Assets and Liabilities of U.S. Branches and
Agencies of Foreign Banks (FFIEC 002; OMB No. 7100-0032)
Statement of Financial Condition (NCUA 5300; OMB No. 3133-0004)
Weekly Report of Selected Assets and Liabilities of Domestically Chartered Commercial Banks
and U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks (FR 2644; OMB No. 7100-0075)
Report of Transaction Accounts, Other Deposits, and Vault Cash (FR 2900; OMB No.
7100-0087)

Data Content
In general, the definitions of data items reported on the FR 2046 correspond closely with
data definitions employed in the quarterly Call Reports (FFIEC 031, FFIEC 041, and
FFIEC 051) for each type of institution. Specifically, as shown in Table 2, below, the definitions
of the data items “total assets,” “total securities,” “total loans,” and “total deposits” correspond to
5

the relevant definitions of these data items in the quarterly Call Reports filed by each type of
institution.9
Most institutions that borrow at the discount window are banks and hence file the Call
Report. Thus, these definitions should be familiar to the vast majority of discount window
borrowers. Moreover, the Call Report definitions are adequate for discount window monitoring
purposes; they include federal funds purchased and sold on an overnight basis or rolled over
daily under a continuing contract and also include most overnight and term funding under
repurchase agreements. Thus, this definition includes instruments that are likely alternative
market sources of short-term funds for most discount window borrowers.
Table 2 - Definitions of Securities, Loans, Assets, and Deposits on the FR 2046

FR 2046
data item

Total
securities

U.S. commercial banks and others:

U.S. branches and agencies of
foreign banks:

Credit unions:

FFIEC 031

FFIEC 041

FFIEC 051

FFIEC 00210

NCUA 5300

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet,
Domestic office
portion of:
+ Held-tomaturity securities, item 2.a
+ Available-forsale securities,
item 2.b
+ Equity
securities with
readily
determinable
fair values not
held for trading,
item 2.c
+ Trading
assets, item 5

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet
+ Held-tomaturity securities, item 2.a
+ Available-forsale securities,
item 2.b
+ Equity
securities with
readily
determinable
fair values not
held for trading,
item 2.c
+ Trading
assets, item 5

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet
+ Held-tomaturity securities, item 2.a
+ Available-forsale securities,
item 2.b
+ Equity
securities with
readily
determinable fair
values not held
for trading, item
2.c
+ Trading assets,
item 5

Schedule RAL Assets and Liabilities,
Assets
+ U.S. Treasury securities,
item 1.b.(1)
+ U.S. government agency
obligations, item 1.b.(2)
+ Securities of foreign governments
and official institutions, item 1.c.(1),
Col. A minus Col. B
+ Mortgage-backed securities issued
or guaranteed by U.S. Govt.
agencies, item 1.c.(2)(a), Col. A
minus Col. B
+ Other mortgage-backed securities,
item 1.c.(2)(b), Col. A minus Col. B
+ Other asset-backed securities, Item
1.c.(3), Column A minus Column B
+ All other bonds, notes, debentures,
and corporate stock (including state
and local securities), Item 1.c.(4),
Column A minus Column B
+ Trading assets, U.S. Treasury and
Agency securities, item 1.f.(1), Col.
A minus Col. B

Statement of
Financial Condition,
Assets, Investments:
+Trading securities,
item 4, column E
+Available for sale
securities, item 5,
column E
+Held-to-maturity
securities, item 6,
column E

9

For U.S. branches and agencies of foreign banks that file a consolidated condition report, it is likely that discount
officers would request FR 2046 data for the particular branch that borrows.
10
Excluding transactions of the reporting institution’s own International Banking Facilities (IBFs) with nonrelated
parties and related depository institutions.

6

FR 2046
data item

U.S. commercial banks and others:
FFIEC 031

FFIEC 041

FFIEC 051

U.S. branches and agencies of
foreign banks:

Credit unions:

FFIEC 00210

NCUA 5300

+ Trading assets: Mortgage-backed
securities issued or guaranteed by
U.S. Govt. agencies, item 1.f.(2)(a),
Col. A minus Col. B
+ Trading assets: Other mortgagebacked securities, item 1.f.(2)(b),
Col. A minus Col. B
+ Trading assets: Other asset-backed
securities, item 1.f.(3), Col. A minus
Col. B
+ Trading assets: Other securities ,
item 1.f.(4), Col. A minus Col. B
+ Trading assets: Other trading
assets, item 1.f.(5), Col. A minus
Col. B
Total
loans

Schedule RC-C
Loans and Lease
Financing
Receivables,
Part I. Total
loans and leases
held for
investment and
held for sale,
Column B, item
12

Schedule RC-C
Loans and Lease
Financing
Receivables,
Part I. Total
loans and leases
held for
investment and
held for sale,
Column B, item
12

Schedule RC-C
Loans and Lease
Financing
Receivables,
Part I. Total
loans and leases
held for
investment and
held for sale,
item 12

Schedule RAL Assets and Liabilities,
Assets, Loans and leases held for
investment and held for sale, item
1.e, Col. A minus Col. B

Statement of
Financial Condition,
Assets, Investments,
Total Loans &
Leases, item 15,
amount

Total
assets

Schedule RC-H
Selected Balance Sheet Items
for Domestic
Offices
+ Net due from
own foreign
offices, Edge
and agreement
subsidiaries, and
IBFs, item 6
+ Total assets
(excludes net
due from own
foreign offices,
Edge and
agreement
subsidiaries, and
IBFs), item 8

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet,
Total Assets,
item 12

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet,
Total Assets,
item 12

Schedule RAL Assets and Liabilities,
Assets, Total Assets, item 3, Col. A
minus Col. B

Statement of
Financial Condition,
Assets, Total Assets,
item 23, amount

Total
deposits

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet,
Deposits in
domestic offices,
item 13.a

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet,
Deposits in
domestic
offices, item
13.a

Schedule RC
Balance Sheet,
Deposits in
domestic
offices,
item 13.a

Schedule RAL Assets and Liabilities,
Liabilities, Total deposits and credit
balances, item 4.a, Col. A minus
Col. B

Statement of
Financial Condition,
Liabilities,
Shares/Deposits,
Total shares and
deposits, item 18,
column C

7

Reporting Panel
Any depository institution that maintains reservable deposits is eligible to borrow at the
discount window. Approximately 11,500 depository institutions are eligible to borrow at the
discount window, including domestic insured commercial banks, insured savings banks, savings
and loan associations, insured credit unions, U.S. branches and agencies of foreign banks, and
others.11 However, in any given week only a relatively small number of depositories turn to the
discount window.12
As noted above, the FR 2046 report is usually not collected from primary credit
borrowers, and it is not routinely collected from secondary credit borrowers if necessary
information is available from other sources. The reporting panel consists almost entirely of
institutions that borrow seasonal credit. The number of seasonal credit borrowers in any given
week varies considerably over the year and has been less than 100 since 2007, even during peak
borrowing months.
Frequency
Reserve Banks collect weekly (Wednesday) data from seasonal credit borrowers using the
FR 2046 report. When borrowing seasonal credit, institutions must submit the FR 2046 for each
week during any maintenance period (i.e., a two-week reporting period that begins on a Thursday
and ends on a Wednesday) in which the institution had an outstanding seasonal credit loan on one
or more days. The data are typically collected after the fact in one-week increments. For example,
if an institution borrows on each day of a maintenance period, Reserve Banks collect FR 2046
data twice: once to obtain data for the first week of the reporting period and a second time to
obtain data for the second week of the reporting period. If an institution borrowed only during the
first week of the maintenance period (or only during the second week), FR 2046 data are still
collected for both weeks of that maintenance period. Reserve Banks indicate the dates for which
FR 2046 data are required. For a weekly FR 2900 respondent, this period coincides with its
reserve maintenance period. As mentioned previously, Reserve Banks may collect daily data from
seasonal borrowers in questionable financial condition—such collection is expected to occur only
in very unusual circumstances.
If requested by a Reserve Bank, primary and secondary credit borrowers would submit a
weekly report that covers the five business days of daily data for the week ending on Wednesday.
Adopted Revisions to the FR 2046
The Board revised the data item definitions in the instructions to the FR 2046 to include a
column comparing the definitions of the data items on the FR 2046 report to the definitions of the
parallel data items in the recently introduced FFIEC 051. In addition, prior Supporting Statements
for the FR 2046 report advised that, after an approximately two year lag, the Dodd-Frank Act
requires the identity of discount window borrowers to be disclosed and, therefore, the FR 2046
11

12 CFR 201.2.
From 2016 to 2018, the weekly number of primary credit borrowers ranged from 22 to 124, and the weekly
number of secondary credit borrowers ranged from 0 to 4.
12

8

report will no longer be treated as confidential once the identity of the borrower has been
disclosed. Accordingly, the face of the FR 2046 report will be corrected to reflect that the
FR 2046 report will be kept confidential for approximately two years under exemption 4 of the
Freedom of Information Act,13 but after it has been publicly disclosed that an institution borrowed
from the discount window during a specific time period, the institution’s FR 2046 report for that
time period will no longer be considered confidential. In addition, the face of the FR 2046 report
will be updated to include all of the applicable legal statutes14 and to indicate that the report is
authorized (but not required) by law.
Time Schedule for Information Collection
Depository institutions file the FR 2046 by the Wednesday following the end of the
reporting week. Generally, Reserve Banks receive the data via electronic transmission to the
discount window or statistics department.
Legal Status
The FR 2046 report is authorized pursuant to sections 4(8), 10B, and 19(b)(7) of the
Federal Reserve Act (FRA) (12 U.S.C. §§ 301, 347b, and 461(b)(7)), which authorize Federal
Reserve Banks to provide discounts or advances to a member bank or other depository institution
and to demand notes secured to the satisfaction of each Reserve Bank, and authorize the Board to
establish rules and regulations under which a Reserve Bank may extend such credit. Specifically,
section 4(8) of the FRA (12 U.S.C. § 301), requires each Reserve Bank to keep itself informed of
the general character and amount of the loans and investments of a depository institution “with a
view to ascertaining whether undue use is being made of bank credit,” and instructs that, “in
determining whether to grant or refuse advances, rediscounts, or other credit accommodations,
the Federal [R]eserve [B]ank shall give consideration to such information.” Section 4(8) of the
FRA also authorizes the Board to “prescribe regulations further defining . . . the conditions under
which discounts, advancements, and the accommodations may be extended to member banks.”
Section 10B of the FRA (12 U.S.C. § 347b), permits Federal Reserve Banks to make advances to
member banks “under rules and regulations prescribed by the Board.” Section 19(b)(7) of the
FRA (12 U.S.C. § 461(b)(7)), provides that any depository institutions that hold reservable
deposits are entitled to the same discount and borrowing privileges as member banks.
In addition, section 9(6) of the FRA (12 U.S.C. § 324), which requires state member
banks to file reports of condition and of the payment of dividends with the Federal Reserve, also
provides authority to collect balance sheet information from state member banks. Sections 2A
and 11 of the FRA, respectively, (12 U.S.C. §§ 225a and 248(a)(2) & (i)) as well as section
7(c)(2) of the International Banking Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. § 3105(c)(2)), authorize the Board to
collect balance sheet data from domestically chartered commercial banks and U.S. branches and
agencies of foreign banks. If requested by the lending Reserve Bank, a depository institution that
borrowed from the discount window must submit the FR 2046 report. Accordingly, the
13

5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(4).
Although additional legal statutes have been cited in prior Supporting Statements for the FR 2046 report, the
report itself only cites to 12 U.S.C. §§ 248(a)(2) & (i) and 347b. The face of the report will be revised to cite to all of
the legal statutes cited in the Legal Status section below.
14

9

obligation to respond is mandatory.
The Federal Reserve publishes aggregate data on discount window lending, which does
not identify individual borrowers. In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act requires the Board to publish
certain information on individual discount window borrowers and transactions (i.e., the identity
of the borrower, the amount that was borrowed, the interest rate, and the types and amounts of
collateral or assets pledged) after approximately a two year lag.15 The FR 2046 report is
considered confidential until the fact that the institution borrowed from the discount window is
disclosed. Until this point, the release of this report would cause substantial harm to the
competitive position of the institution from whom the information was obtained, because it
would reveal the fact of discount window borrowing, as only borrowers are required to file this
form. Thus, this information can be kept confidential under exemption 4 of the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(4)), which protects from disclosure “trade secrets
and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential.”
Once the fact that an institution borrowed from the discount window is disclosed, the FR 2046
report is no longer considered confidential in the event a FOIA request is received.
Consultation Outside the Agency
There has been no consultation outside the agency.
Public Comments
On July 19, 2019, the Board published an initial notice in the Federal Register
(84 FR 34890) requesting public comment for 60 days on the extension, with revision, of the
FR 2046. The comment period for this notice expired on September 17, 2019. The Board did not
receive any comments. On November 29, 2019, the Board published a final notice in the Federal
Register (84 FR 65814).
Estimates of Respondent Burden
As shown in the table below, the estimated total annual burden of the FR 2046 is 376
hours and is unaffected by the adopted revisions. Because the report is event-generated, it is not
possible to predict exactly how many reports will be filed in a given year. As a result, the
estimate of respondent burden is based on recent historical discount window borrowing
frequencies. As noted above, the FR 2046 data usually are not collected from primary credit
borrowers, and are not routinely collected from secondary credit borrowers if necessary
information is available from other sources. Therefore, only a nominal burden is expected for
these programs. The estimated number of respondents and annual frequency for the seasonal
credit program is based on borrowing activity in 2016 through 2018. The estimated average
hours per response of 0.75 hours for primary and secondary credit borrowers is attributed to the
collection of daily data. The estimated average hours per response of 0.25 hours for seasonal
credit borrowers is attributed to the collection of weekly (Wednesday) data. These reporting
requirements represent less than 1 percent of the Boards’s total paperwork burden.
15

See 12 U.S.C. § 248(s).

10

FR 2046
Primary and
Secondary Credit
Seasonal Credit
Seasonal Credit, borrower
in questionable financial
condition17
Total

Estimated
number of
respondents16

Annual
frequency

Estimated
average hours
per response

Estimated
annual burden
hours

1

1

0.75

1

83

18

0.25

374

1

1

0.75

1
376

The estimated total annual cost to the public for the FR 2046 is $21,658.18
Sensitive Questions
This collection of information contains no questions of a sensitive nature, as defined by
OMB guidelines.
Estimate of Cost to the Federal Reserve System
The ongoing annual cost of the FR 2046 is estimated to be $69,900, based on an estimate
of 20 minutes of staff time per filed report, plus 4 hours per Reserve Bank for biweekly
processing (including panel maintenance, report generation, and report analysis), at $40 per hour.
The data are not subject to extensive editing or other manipulation and are not submitted to the
Board of Governors.

16

Of these respondents, 83 are considered small entities as defined by the Small Business Administration (i.e.,
entities with less than $600 million in total assets), https://www.sba.gov/document/support--table-size-standards.
17
As noted above, in very unusual circumstances, a Reserve Bank may collect daily data on the FR 2046 from
seasonal credit borrowers in questionable financial condition.
18
Total cost to the public was estimated using the following formula: percent of staff time, multiplied by annual
burden hours, multiplied by hourly rates (30% Office & Administrative Support at $19, 45% Financial Managers at
$71, 15% Lawyers at $69, and 10% Chief Executives at $96). Hourly rates for each occupational group are the
(rounded) mean hourly wages from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS), Occupational Employment and Wages
May 2018, published March 29, 2019, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.t01.htm. Occupations are defined
using the BLS Standard Occupational Classification System, https://www.bls.gov/soc/.

11