[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 129 (Friday, July 5, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40525-40527]
[FR Doc No: 2013-16086]

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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-69894; File No. SR-NSCC-2013-805]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; National Securities Clearing
Corporation; Notice of No Objection to Advance Notice Filing To Require
That All Locked-in Trade Data Submitted to It for Trade Recording Be
Submitted in Real-Time

June 28, 2013.

I. Introduction

    On April 30, 2013, National Securities Clearing Corporation
(``NSCC'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(``Commission'') advance notice SR-NSCC-2013-805 (``Advance Notice'')
pursuant to Section 806(e) of Title VIII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street
Reform and Consumer Protection Act (``Dodd-Frank Act''),\1\ entitled
the Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Supervision Act of 2010
(``Clearing Supervision Act'' or ``Title VIII'') and Rule 19b-4(n) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (``Exchange Act''). On May 14,
2013, NSCC filed with the Commission Amendment No. 1 to the Advance
Notice.\2\ The Advance Notice was published in the Federal Register on
June 11, 2013.\3\ The Commission received one comment letter to the
proposed rule change.\4\ This publication serves as notice of no
objection to the Advance Notice.
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    \1\ Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act,
Public Law 111-203, 124 Stat. 1376 (2010).
    \2\ In Amendment No. 1, NSCC corrected a typographical error in
the text of its Rules & Procedures (``Rules'') related to the
Advance Notice.
    \3\ Release No. 34-69699 (June 5, 2013), 78 FR 35076 (June 11,
2013). NSCC also filed a proposed rule change pursuant to Section
19(b)(1) of the Exchange Act on April 30, 2013 seeking Commission
approval to permit NSCC to change its rules to reflect the proposed
change described herein. The Commission, through delegated
authority, published notice of the proposed rule change on May 14,
2013. Release No. 34-69571 (May 14, 2013), 78 FR 29408 (May 20,
2013).
    \4\ Comment letter from Kermit Kubitz (``Kubitz'') dated June
10, 2013, http://www.sec.gov/comments/sr-nscc-2013-05/nscc201305.shtml. Kubitz supports the proposed rule change's
requirement ``to submit trades without any pre-processing . . .''
and believes that, ``any cost associated with submitting higher
volumes of data from limiting pre-netting is small compared to the
risks and costs of inaccurate data which might result from
submission of other than accurate trade data.'' The Commission
considers all public comments received on the proposed rule change
as comments to the Advance Notice.
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II. Analysis

    NSCC filed the Advance Notice to require that all locked-in trade
data submitted to NSCC for trade recording

be submitted in real-time,\5\ and to prohibit pre-netting \6\ and other
practices that prevent real-time trade submission, as discussed below.
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    \5\ The term ``real-time,'' when used with respect to trade
submission, will be defined in Procedure XIII (Definitions) of
NSCC's Rules as the submission of such data on a trade-by-trade
basis promptly after trade execution, in any format and by any
communication method acceptable to NSCC.
    \6\ According to NSCC, any pre-netting practices include: (i)
``Summarization'' (i.e., a technique in which the clearing broker
nets all trades in a single CUSIP by the same correspondent broker
into fewer submitted trades); (ii) ``compression'' (i.e., a
technique to combine submissions of data for multiple trades to the
point where the identity of the party actually responsible for the
trades is masked); (iii) netting; and (iv) any other practice that
combines two or more trades prior to their submission to NSCC
(collectively, ``Pre-netting'').
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Proposal Overview

    According to NSCC, the majority of all transactions processed at
NSCC are submitted on a locked-in basis by self-regulatory
organizations (``SRO'') (including national and regional exchanges and
marketplaces), and Qualified Special Representatives (``QSR'').\7\
Currently, NSCC data reveals that almost all exchanges \8\ and some
QSRs submit trades executed on their respective markets in real-time,
representing approximately 91% of the locked-in trades submitted to
NSCC today. The rule change will require that all locked-in trades
submitted for trade recording by SROs and QSRs be submitted to NSCC in
real-time.\9\
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    \7\ QSRs are NSCC members (``Members'') that either (i) operate
an automated execution system where they are always the contra side
of every trade, (ii) are the parent or affiliate of an entity
operating such an automated system, where they are the contra side
of every trade, or (iii) clear for a broker-dealer that operates
such a system and the subscribers to the system acknowledge the
clearing Member's role in the clearance and settlement of these
trades.
    \8\ One executing market with very low trade volume does not yet
submit trades in real-time.
    \9\ Files submitted to NSCC by The Options Clearing Corporation
(``OCC'') relating to option exercises and assignments (Procedure
III, Section D--Settlement of Option Exercises and Assignments) will
not be required to be submitted in real-time. OCC's process of
assigning option assignments is and will continue to be an end-of-
day process.
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    NSCC will also prohibit Pre-netting practices that preclude real-
time trade submission. NSCC states that typically, Pre-netting is done
on a bilateral basis between a QSR and its customer, both NSCC Members.
According to NSCC, Pre-netting practices disrupt NSCC's ability to
accurately monitor market and credit risks as they evolve during the
trading day. Therefore, NSCC will prohibit Pre-netting activity on the
part of entities submitting original trade data on a locked-in
basis.\10\ The rules of NSCC's affiliate Fixed Income Clearing
Corporation (``FICC'') currently prohibit such activity, and this rule
change will align NSCC's trade submission rules with those of FICC.\11\
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    \10\ Trades executed in the normal course of business between a
Member that clears for other broker-dealers, and its correspondent,
or between correspondents of the Member, which correspondent(s) is
not itself a Member and settles such obligations through such
clearing Member (i.e., ``internalized trades'') are not required to
be submitted to NSCC and shall not be considered to violate the Pre-
netting prohibition.
    \11\ See, e.g., GSD Rule 11 (Netting System), Section 3 (``All
trade data required to be submitted to the Corporation under this
Section must be submitted on a trade-by-trade basis with the
original terms of the trades unaltered. A Member or any of its
Affiliates may not engage in the Pre-Netting of Trades prior to
their submission to the Corporation in contravention of this
section. In addition, a Member or any of its Affiliates may not
engage in any practice designed to contravene the prohibition
against the Pre-Netting of Trades.''), http://dtcc.com/legal/rules_proc/FICC-Government_Security_Division_Rulebook.pdf. See also
Order Granting Approval of a Proposed Rule Change Relating to Trade
Submission Requirements and Pre-Netting, Release No. 34-51908 (June
22, 2005), 70 FR 37450 (June 29, 2005).
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    Further, NSCC does not expect the rule changes to impact trade
volumes significantly. According to NSCC, the majority of trades are
currently being submitted to NSCC in real-time on a trade-by-trade
basis, and NSCC is operationally capable of managing trade volumes that
are multiple times larger than the historical peak volumes.
    In the wake of recent industry disruptions, industry participants
have been focused on developing controls to address the risks that
arise from technology issues. A comment letter submitted to the
Commission in advance of its Technology and Trading Roundtable, held in
October 2012, and signed by a number of industry participants including
SROs, broker-dealers, and buy-side firms, supported this rule change as
a crucial component of the industry controls that could increase market
transparency and ultimately mitigate risks associated with high-
frequency trading and related technology.\12\
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    \12\ See Market Technology Roundtable Comment Letter dated Sept.
28, 2012, available at http://www.sec.gov/comments/4-652/4652-17.pdf.
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Implementation Timeframe

    NSCC will advise Members of the implementation date of the rule
change through issuance of an NSCC Important Notice. The rule change
will not be implemented earlier than seven (7) months from the date of
Commission approval.

III. Discussion

    Although Title VIII does not specify a standard of review for an
Advance Notice, the stated purpose of Title VIII is instructive.\13\
The stated purpose of Title VIII is to mitigate systemic risk in the
financial system and promote financial stability by, among other
things, promoting uniform risk management standards for systemically-
important financial market utilities (``FMU'') and providing an
enhanced role for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
(``Federal Reserve'') in the supervision of risk management standards
for systemically-important FMUs.\14\
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    \13\ 12 U.S.C. 5461(b).
    \14\ Id.
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    Section 805(a)(2) of the Clearing Supervision Act \15\ authorizes
the Commission to prescribe risk management standards for the payment,
clearing, and settlement activities of designated clearing entities and
financial institutions engaged in designated activities for which it is
the supervisory agency or the appropriate financial regulator. Section
805(b) of the Clearing Supervision Act \16\ states that the objectives
and principles for the risk management standards prescribed under
Section 805(a) shall be to:
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    \15\ 12 U.S.C. 5464(a)(2).
    \16\ 12 U.S.C. 5464(b).
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     promote robust risk management;
     promote safety and soundness;
     reduce systemic risks; and
     support the stability of the broader financial system.
    The Commission adopted risk management standards under Section
805(a)(2) of the Clearing Supervision Act on October 22, 2012
(``Clearing Agency Standards'').\17\ The Clearing Agency Standards
became effective on January 2, 2013 and require clearing agencies that
perform central counterparty (``CCP'') services to establish,
implement, maintain, and enforce written policies and procedures that
are reasonably designed to meet certain minimum requirements for their
operations and risk management practices on an ongoing basis.\18\ As
such, it is appropriate for the Commission to review Advance Notices
against these risk management standards that the Commission promulgated
under Section 805(a) and the objectives and principles of these

risk management standards as described in Section 805(b).
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    \17\ Release No. 34-68080 (Oct. 22, 2012), 77 FR 66219 (Nov. 2,
2012).
    \18\ The Clearing Agency Standards are substantially similar to
the risk management standards established by the Board of Governors
governing the operations of designated FMUs that are not clearing
entities and financial institutions engaged in designated activities
for which the Commission or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
is the Supervisory Agency. See Financial Market Utilities, 77 FR
45907 (Aug. 2, 2012).
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    Consistent with Section 805(a), the Commission believes NSCC's
proposal promotes robust risk management, as well as the safety and
soundness of NSCC's operations, while reducing systemic risks and
supporting the stability of the broader financial system. As discussed
above, the rule change will allow NSCC to mitigate the operational risk
that results from locked-in trade data not being submitted to NSCC in
real-time.
    Commission Rule 17Ad-22(d)(4) regarding identification and
mitigation of operational risk,\19\ adopted as part of the Clearing
Agency Standards,\20\ requires clearing agencies to establish,
implement, maintain and enforce written policies and procedures
reasonably designed to: ``[i]dentify sources of operational risk and
minimize them through the development of appropriate systems, controls,
and procedures . . . .'' \21\ The Commission believes that the receipt
of locked-in trade data on a real-time basis will permit NSCC's risk
management processes to monitor trades closer to trade execution on an
intra-day basis and identify and manage any issues relating to
excessive risk exposure earlier on a closer to real-time basis, thereby
potentially minimizing a source of operational risk.
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    \19\ 17 CFR 240.17Ad-22(d)(4).
    \20\ Release No. 34-68080 (Oct. 22, 2012), 77 FR 66219 (Nov. 2,
2012).
    \21\ 17 CFR 240.17Ad-22(d)(4).
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IV. Conclusion

    It is therefore noticed, pursuant to Section 806(e)(1)(I) of the
Clearing Supervision Act,\22\ that the Commission does not object to
the proposed rule change described in the Advance Notice (File No. SR-
NSCC-2013-805) and that NSCC be and hereby is authorized to implement
the proposed rule change as of the date of this notice or the date of
the ``Order Approving Proposed Rule Change to Require that All Locked-
in Trade Data Submitted to It for Trade Recording be Submitted in Real-
time,'' \23\ whichever is later.
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    \22\ 12 U.S.C. 5465(e)(1)(I).
    \23\ Release No. 34-69890 (June 28, 2013).

    By the Commission.
Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-16086 Filed 7-3-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 184 (Thursday, September 22, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65352-65353]
[FR Doc No: 2016-22846]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2015-0341; FRL-9951-84-OAR]

Notice of Availability of Three Updated Chapters in the
Environmental Protection Agency's Air Pollution Control Cost Manual

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability and public comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing notice
that three chapters of the current EPA Air Pollution Control Cost
Manual (Control Cost Manual) have been updated. The EPA is requesting
comment on Section 1, Chapter 2, ``Cost Estimation: Concepts and
Methodology''; Section 3.1, Chapter 1, ``Refrigerated Condensers''; and
Section 3.2, Chapter 2, ``Incinerators/Oxidizers.''

DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 21, 2016. Please
refer to SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for additional information on
submitting comments on the provided data.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2015-0341, to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or withdrawn. The
EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not
submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential
Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must
be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered
the official comment and should include discussion of all points you
wish to make. The EPA will generally not consider comments or comment
contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the Web,
Cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission
methods, the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or
multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective
comments, please visit http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry Sorrels, Health and
Environmental Impacts Division, C439-02, Environmental Protection
Agency, 109 T.W. Alexander Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709;
telephone number:<PHONE_NUMBER>; fax number:<PHONE_NUMBER>; email
address<EMAIL_ADDRESS>
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  The EPA is requesting comment on the
specific Control Cost Manual chapters included in this NODA.

I. General Information

A. What should I consider as I prepare my comments for the EPA?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to the EPA
through www.regulations.gov or email. Clearly mark the part or all of
the information that you claim to be CBI. For CBI information in a disk
or CD-ROM that you mail to the EPA docket office, mark the outside of
the disk or CD-ROM as CBI and then identify electronically within the
disk or CD-ROM the specific information that is claimed as CBI. In
addition to one complete version of the comment that includes
information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that does not contain
the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion in the
public docket. Information so marked will not be disclosed except in
accordance with procedures set forth in 40 Code of Federal Regulations
(CFR) part 2.
    2. Tips for Preparing your Comments. When submitting comments,
remember to:
     Identify the notification by docket number and other
identifying information (subject heading, Federal Register date and
page number).
     Follow directions--The agency may ask you to respond to
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a CFR part or
section number.
     Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives
and substitute language/data for your requested changes.
     Describe any assumptions and provide any technical
information and/or data that you used.
     If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how
you arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be
reproduced.
     Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns, and
suggest alternatives.
     Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the
use of profanity or personal threats.
     Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period
deadline identified.

II. Information Available for Public Comment

    The EPA is requesting comment on three updated chapters of the EPA
Air Pollution Control Cost Manual. The Control Cost Manual contains
individual chapters on control measures, including data and equations
to aid users in estimating capital costs for installation and annual
costs for operation and maintenance of these measures. The Control Cost
Manual is used by the EPA for estimating the impacts of rulemakings,
and serves as a basis for sources to estimate costs of controls that
are Best Available Control Technology under the New Source Review
Program, and Best Available Retrofit Technology under the Regional Haze
Program and for other programs.

    The three updated Control Cost Manual chapters are: Section 1,
Chapter 2, Cost Estimation: Concepts and Methodology; Section 3.1,
Chapter 1, Refrigerated Condensers; and Section 3.2, Chapter 2,
Incinerators/Oxidizers. Section 3.2, Chapter 2, ''Incinerators'' will
now include oxidizers, for this type of control device is commonly used
for destruction of volatile organic compounds (VOC) emissions, which is
the primary function of incinerators. These three revised Control Cost
Manual chapters can be found in the docket for the Control Cost Manual
update (Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2015-0341). The current Control Cost
Manual version (sixth edition) is available at https://www3.epa.gov/ttn/ecas/cost_manual.html, and was last updated in 2003. The
Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 requested that the EPA begin
development of a seventh edition of the Control Cost Manual. The EPA
has met with state, local, and tribal officials to discuss plans for
the Control Cost Manual update as called for under the Consolidated
Appropriations Act of 2014. The EPA has met with other groups as well
at their request. The EPA recently updated the selective non-catalytic
reduction (SNCR) and selective catalytic reduction (SCR) chapters
(Section 4, Chapters 1 and 2) which were made available to the public
in May 2016 (81 FR 38702, June 14, 2016).
    To help focus review of the three chapters, Cost Estimation:
Concepts and Methodology (Section 1, Chapter 2,); Refrigerated
Condensers (Section 3.1, Chapter 1); and Incinerators/Oxidizers
(Section 3.2, Chapter 2), we offer the following list of questions that
the EPA is particularly interested in addressing in the updated
chapters. Commenters are welcome to address any aspects of these
chapters. Please provide supporting data for responses to these
questions and other aspects of the chapters.
    For the Cost Estimation: Concepts and Methodology chapter:
    (1) Is the cost methodology included in this chapter consistent
with best practices for cost estimation of pollution control equipment
installation, operation and maintenance?
    (2) Is the use of the equivalent uniform annual cost method
appropriate for estimating costs for pollution control devices,
particularly end-of-pipe controls?
    (3) Are the cost items included in the definition of capital cost
or total capital investment valid? Are the cost items included in the
definition of annual costs valid?
    For the Refrigerated Condensers chapter:
    (1) What is a reasonable estimate of equipment life (defined as
design or operational life) for this control measure?
    (2) Is the description of refrigerated condensers complete, up to
date, and accurate, particularly with regard to control of VOC?
    (3) Are the cost correlations, factors, and equations for
refrigerated condensers accurate? If not, how should they be revised?
    (4) Are the estimates of VOC destruction efficiency for
refrigerated condensers accurate?
    (5) Is the discussion on the effect of fouling on refrigerated
condensers accurate?
    For the Incinerators/Oxidizers chapter:
    (1) What is a reasonable estimate of equipment life (defined as
design or operational life) for this control measure?
    (2) Is the description of incinerator technologies complete, up to
date, and accurate? For oxidizers?
    (3) Are the cost correlations, factors, and equations for
incinerators and oxidizers accurate? If not, how should they be
revised?
    (4) Are the estimates of incinerators VOC destruction efficiency
accurate? For oxidizers?

    Dated: September 8, 2016.
Stephen Page,
Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards.
[FR Doc. 2016-22846 Filed 9-21-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 118 (Thursday, June 19, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35194-35196]
[FR Doc No: 2014-14314]

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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-72386; File No. SR-BX-2014-031]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc.; Notice of
Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Amend the
Fee Schedule Under Exchange Rule 7018(a) With Respect to Transactions
in Securities Priced at $1 per Share or More

June 13, 2014.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(the ``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given
that on June 6, 2014, NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc. (``BX'' or ``Exchange'')
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'') the
proposed rule change as described in Items I, II, and III below, which
Items have been prepared by the self-regulatory organization. The
Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the
proposed rule change from interested persons.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change

    The Exchange proposes to amend the fee schedule under Exchange Rule
7018(a) with respect to transactions in securities priced at $1 per
share or more.
    The text of the proposed rule change is also available on the
Exchange's Web site at http://nasdaqomxbx.cchwallstreet.com, at the
principal office of the Exchange, and at the Commission's Public
Reference Room.

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements
concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in
Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in
sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such
statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The Exchange is proposing three changes to its fees and rebates
applicable to transactions in securities priced at $1 or more under BX
Rule 7018(a).
    First, the Exchange proposes to increase for all members the credit
for an order that executes against a midpoint pegged order from $0 to
$0.0003 per share executed. Next, the Exchange proposes to create a new
fee tier for members that add 3.5 million or more shares (but less than
5 million shares) of non-displayed liquidity per day of $0.0024 per
share executed.
    The Exchange also proposes to lower one of the parameters for a
member with (i) shares of liquidity provided and (ii) total shares of
liquidity accessed and provided in all securities through one or more
of its NASDAQ OMX BX Equities System market participant identifiers
(``MPIDs'') that represent more than 0.35% (proposed to be lowered to
0.30%) and 0.45%, respectively, of consolidated volume \3\
(``Consolidated Volume'') during the month.
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    \3\ Consolidated Volume is the consolidated volume reported to
all consolidated transaction reporting plans by all exchanges and
trade reporting facilities. See BX Rule 7018(a)(1).
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    The Exchange believes that the proposed price cut for taking
midpoint liquidity will encourage firms to access more resting midpoint
liquidity before routing to other destinations for price improvement
opportunities. Additionally, the Exchange believes that the proposed
new tier for non-displayed liquidity will encourage additional
liquidity adding activity from non-display participants. Also, relaxing
the standard to qualify as Qualified Market Maker (``QMM'') (Tier 1)
will enable more firms to be able to avail themselves of the more
advantageous QMM credits and overall pricing.
2. Statutory Basis
    BX believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the
provisions of Section 6 of the Act,\4\ in general, and Sections 6(b)(4)
and (b)(5) of the Act,\5\ in particular, because it provides for the
equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and other charges among
members and issuers and other persons using any facility or system that
the Exchange operates or controls, and it does not unfairly
discriminate between customers, issuers, brokers or dealers.
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    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4), (5).
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    The proposed rule changes, in part, are reflective of the
Exchange's ongoing efforts to use rebates and discounted execution fees
to attract orders that the Exchange believes will improve market
quality. Generally, the Exchange seeks to provide members with
discounts that they deem helpful, and to eliminate those that they do
not. By offering a credit for members that take liquidity at the
midpoint and by offering reduced execution fees for members that add a
certain level of non-displayed shares per day, the Exchange believes it
will be able to further promote these goals by providing better
targeted incentives for market participants. Also, relaxing the
standard to qualify as QMM (Tier 1) will enable more firms to be able
to avail themselves of the more advantageous QMM credits and overall
pricing. Each of the proposed changes is a pro-competitive price
reduction designed to enhance the Exchange's position in the
marketplace and broaden the execution opportunities for BX members.
    Furthermore, the proposed rule changes are consistent with
statutory requirements, as the proposed rule changes discussed herein
are not unfairly discriminatory, do not place an unnecessary burden on
competition, and represent an equitable allocation of fees for the
reasons set forth below.
    The proposed credit increase of $0 to $0.0003 per share executed
for orders that execute against a midpoint pegged order is consistent
with an equitable allocation of fees and is not unfairly discriminatory
because this rebate applies uniformly across all members. The Exchange
believes that this credit will incentivize members to execute against
midpoint liquidity and this, in turn, will lead to an increase in price
improvement liquidity and price improvement generally benefits the
investing public. Also, it is reasonable and equitable because it
reflects the availability of what is in effect a price reduction for
all members that execute against a midpoint pegged order.
    Additionally, the proposed rule change to create a new tier for
members that add 3.5 million or more shares (but less than 5 million
shares) of non-displayed liquidity per day of $0.0024 per share
executed is consistent with an equitable allocation of fees and is not
unfairly discriminatory because the Exchange believes that this new
tier will incentivize members to add more non-displayed shares and
this, in turn, will lead to an increase in price improvement liquidity
and price improvement generally benefits the investing public and BX
members have an equal opportunity to avail themselves of this tier
should they desire to do so. It is reasonable in that it affects
similarly situated members in the same way and because it encourages
additional liquidity adding activity from participants that want to add
non-displayed liquidity.
    Also, the proposed rule change to relax the standard to qualify as
QMM (Tier 1) by modifying one of the parameters for a member with (i)
shares of liquidity provided and (ii) total shares of liquidity
accessed and provided in all securities through one or more of its
NASDAQ OMX BX Equities MPIDs that represent more than 0.35% (proposed
to be lowered to 0.30%) and 0.45%, respectively, of Consolidated Volume
during the month is consistent with an equitable allocation of fees and
is not unfairly discriminatory because the Exchange believes that this
will enable more firms to be able to avail themselves of the more
advantageous QMM credits and overall pricing should they wish to pursue
this opportunity to reduce trading costs, and because the opportunity
will apply uniformly across all members. It is reasonable in that it
affects similarly situated firms in the same way and because it
encourages firms to take advantage of the more advantageous QMM credits
and overall pricing.
    The proposed pricing changes are, in part, reflective of BX's
ongoing efforts to use responsive pricing to attract orders that BX
believes will improve market quality.
    Finally, BX notes that it operates in a highly competitive market
in which market participants can easily and readily favor competing
venues if they deem fee levels at a particular venue to be excessive or
rebate opportunities to be insufficient. In such an environment, BX
must continually adjust its fees or rebates to remain competitive with
other exchanges. BX believes that the proposed rule changes reflect
this very competitive environment because the proposed rule changes are
designed to ensure that the charges and credits for participation on BX
reflect its desire to attract order flow that improves the market for
all participants.

B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule changes will
result in any burden on competition that is not necessary or
appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act, as amended.\6\
BX notes that it operates in a highly competitive market in which
market

participants can readily favor over 40 different competing exchanges
and alternative trading systems if they deem fee levels at a particular
venue to be excessive, or rebate opportunities available at other
venues to be more favorable. In such an environment, BX must
continually adjust its fees to remain competitive with other exchanges.
Because competitors are free to modify their own fees in response, and
because market participants may readily adjust their order routing
practices, BX believes that the degree to which fee changes in this
market may impose any burden on competition is extremely limited. In
this instance, the increase to the credit for an order that executes
against a midpoint pegged order and the new tier for members that add
3.5 million or more shares (but less than 5 million shares) of non-
displayed liquidity per day, plus the easing of the standards to
qualify as QMM (Tier 1) enhances the Exchange's competitiveness by
introducing a credit for some and reducing fees for others. Moreover,
because there are numerous competitive alternatives to the use of the
Exchange, it is likely that BX will lose market share as a result of
the changes if they are unattractive to market participants.
Accordingly, BX does not believe that the proposed rule changes will
impair the ability of members or competing order execution venues to
maintain their competitive standing in the financial markets.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(8).
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C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants or Others

    No written comments were either solicited or received.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action

    The foregoing change has become effective pursuant to Section
19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \7\ and paragraph (f) of Rule 19b-4 \8\
thereunder. At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed
rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
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    \7\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \8\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f).
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IV. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an email to<EMAIL_ADDRESS>Please include
File No. SR-BX-2014-031 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE., Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-BX-2014-031. This file
number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To help
the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently,
please use only one method.
    The Commission will post all comments on the Commission's Internet
Web site (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the
submission, all subsequent amendments, all written statements with
respect to the proposed rule change that are filed with the Commission,
and all written communications relating to the proposed rule change
between the Commission and any person, other than those that may be
withheld from the public in accordance with the provisions of 5 U.S.C.
552, will be available for Web site viewing and printing in the
Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE., Washington, DC
20549, on official business days between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and
3:00 p.m. Copies of such filing also will be available for inspection
and copying at the principal offices of the Exchange. All comments
received will be posted without change; the Commission does not edit
personal identifying information from submissions. You should submit
only information that you wish to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File Number SR-BX-2014-031, and should be
submitted on or before July 10, 2014.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\9\
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    \9\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-14314 Filed 6-18-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 204 (Tuesday, October 24, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 49166-49167]
[FR Doc No: 2017-22943]

=======================================================================
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R03-OAR-2017-0342; FRL-9969-82-Region 3]

Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans;
Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania's Adoption of Control Techniques Guidelines
for Automobile and Light-Duty Truck Assembly Coatings

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposes to approve
the

state implementation plan (SIP) revision submitted by the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania (the Commonwealth) for the purpose of adopting EPA's
control technique guidelines (CTG) for automobile and light-duty truck
assembly coatings. In the Final Rules section of this issue of the
Federal Register, EPA is approving the Commonwealth's SIP submittal as
a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views
this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no adverse
comments. A more detailed description of the Commonwealth's submittal
and EPA's evaluation is included in a technical support document (TSD)
prepared in support of this rulemaking action. A copy of the TSD is
available, upon request, from the EPA Regional Office listed in the
ADDRESSES section of this document or is also available electronically
within the Docket for this rulemaking action. If no adverse comments
are received in response to this action, no further activity is
contemplated. If EPA receives adverse comments, the direct final rule
will be withdrawn and all public comments received will be addressed in
a subsequent final rule based on this proposed rule. EPA will not
institute a second comment period. Any parties interested in commenting
on this action should do so at this time.

DATES: Comments must be received in writing by November 24, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R03-
OAR-2017-0342 at http://www.regulations.gov, or via email to
[email protected]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov,
follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted,
comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. For either
manner of submission, the EPA may publish any comment received to its
public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you
consider to be confidential business information (CBI) or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written
comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and
should include discussion of all points you wish to make. EPA will
generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of
the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing
system). For additional submission methods, please contact the person
identified in the ``For Further Information Contact'' section. For the
full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia
submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please
visit http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joseph Schulingkamp,<PHONE_NUMBER>,
or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For further information, please see the
information provided in the direct final action, with the same title,
that is located in the ``Rules and Regulations'' section of this issue
of the Federal Register publication. Please note that if EPA receives
adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of this rule and
if that provision may be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA
may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are not the
subject of an adverse comment.

    Dated: September 26, 2017.
Cecil Rodrigues,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. 2017-22943 Filed 10-23-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P