[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 28 (Friday, February 12, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9406-9410]
[FR Doc No: 2021-02857]

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

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-91078; File No. SR-CboeEDGX-2021-009]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc.; Notice
of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change
Relating To Amend the Fee Schedule

February 8, 2021.
    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 February 1, 2021, Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc. (the ``Exchange'' or
``EDGX'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II,
and III below, which Items have been prepared by the Exchange. The
Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the
proposed rule change from interested persons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change

    Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc. (the ``Exchange'' or ``EDGX'') is filing
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'') a proposed
rule change to amend the fee schedule. The text of the proposed rule
change is provided in Exhibit 5.
    The text of the proposed rule change is also available on the
Exchange's website (http://markets.cboe.com/us/options/regulation/rule_filings/edgx/), at the Exchange's Office of the Secretary, and at
the Commission's Public Reference Room.

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

1. Purpose
    The Exchange proposes to amend its fee schedule applicable to its
equities trading platform (``EDGX Equities'') by amending its Add/
Remove Volume Tiers, effective February 1, 2021.
    The Exchange first notes that it operates in a highly competitive
market in which market participants can readily direct order flow to
competing venues if they deem fee levels at a particular venue to be
excessive or incentives to be insufficient. More specifically, the
Exchange is only one of 16 registered equities exchanges, as well as a
number of alternative trading systems and other off-exchange venues
that do not have similar self-regulatory responsibilities under the
Exchange Act, to which market participants may direct their order flow.
Based on publicly available information,\3\ no single registered
equities exchange has more than 16% of the market share. Thus, in such
a low-concentrated and highly competitive market, no single equities
exchange possesses significant pricing power in the execution of order
flow. The Exchange in particular operates a ``Maker-Taker'' model
whereby it pays credits to members that provide liquidity and assesses
fees to those that remove liquidity. The Exchange's fee schedule sets
forth the standard rebates and rates applied per share for orders that
provide and remove liquidity, respectively. Currently, for orders
priced at or above $1.00, the Exchange provides a standard rebate of
$0.0016 per share for orders that add liquidity and assesses a fee of
$0.0027 per share for orders that remove liquidity. For orders priced
below $1.00, the Exchange [sic] a standard rebate of $0.00009 per share
for orders that add liquidity and assesses a fee of 0.30% of Dollar
Value for orders that remove liquidity. Additionally, in response to
the competitive environment, the Exchange also offers tiered pricing
which provides Members opportunities to qualify for higher rebates or
reduced fees where certain volume criteria and thresholds are met.
Tiered pricing provides an incremental incentive for Members to strive
for higher tier levels, which provides increasingly higher benefits or
discounts for satisfying increasingly more stringent criteria.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ See Cboe Global Markets, U.S. Equities Market Volume
Summary, Month-to-Date (January 25, 2021), available at https://markets.cboe.com/us/equities/market_statistics/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Currently, the Exchange provides for certain Add/Remove Volume
Tiers under footnote 1 of the Fee Schedule. More specifically, the Add/
Remove Volume Tiers provide for seven different volume tiers that offer
enhanced rebates on Members' orders yielding fee codes ``B'' \4\, ``V''
\5\, ``Y'' \6\, ``3'' \7\ and ``4'' \8\, where a Member reaches certain
volume-based criteria offered in each tier. Two of these tiers are
``Growth Tiers'', which are designed to encourage growth in order flow
by providing specific criteria in which Members must increase their
relative liquidity each month over a predetermined baseline. Growth
Tier 2, for example, provides an enhanced rebate of $0.0027 on
qualifying orders (i.e., B, V, Y, 3 and 4) where a Member has a Retail
Step-Up Add TCV \9\ (i.e., yielding fee code ZA) \10\ from May 2020
that is greater than or equal to 0.10%. The Exchange now proposes to
amend Growth Tier 2 to provide an increased enhanced rebated of $0.0030
on qualifying orders where a Member: (1) Has a Step-Up Add TCV from
January 2021 greater than or equal to 0.10%; (2) adds an ADV \11\
greater than or equal to 0.50% of the TCV; and (3) removes an ADV of
greater than or equal to 0.80% of the TCV.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ Appended to orders that add liquidity to EDGX (Tape B) and
offers a rebate of $0.0016 per share.
    \5\ Appended to orders that add liquidity to EDGX (Tape A) and
offers a rebate of $0.0016 per share.
    \6\ Appended to orders that add liquidity to EDGX (Tape C) and
offers a rebate of $0.0016 per share.
    \7\ Appended to orders that add liquidity to EDGX pre and post
market (Tape A or C) and offers a rebate of $0.0016 per share.
    \8\ Appended to orders that add liquidity to EDGX pre and post
market (Tape B) and offers a rebate of $0.0016 per share.
    \9\ ``Step-Up Add TCV'' means ADAV as a percentage of TCV in the
relevant baseline month subtracted from current ADAV as a percentage
of TCV. ``TCV'' means total consolidated volume calculated as the
volume reported by all exchanges and trade reporting facilities to a
consolidated transaction reporting plan for the month for which the
fees apply. ``ADAV'' means ADAV means average daily added volume
calculated as the number of shares added per day. ADAV is calculated
on a monthly basis.
    \10\ Appended to Retail Orders that add liquidity to EDGX and
offers a rebate of $0.0032 per share.
    \11\ ``ADV'' means average daily volume calculated as the number
of shares added to, removed from, or routed by, the Exchange, or any
combination or subset thereof, per day. ADV is calculated on a
monthly basis.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Additionally, under the Add/Remove Volume Tiers in footnote 1 of
the Fee Schedule, the Exchange also provides for three Non-Displayed
Add Volume Tiers, which offer enhanced rebates on Members' orders
yielding fee codes ``DM'' \12\, ``HA'' \13\, ``MM'' \14\ and ``RP''
\15\ where a Member reaches certain required volume-based criteria
offered in each tier. For example, Non-Displayed Add Volume Tier 3
provides an enhanced rebated of $0.0025 on qualifying orders (i.e., DM,
HA, MM and RP) where a Member has an ADAV \16\ of greater than or equal
to 0.10% of TCV for Non-Displayed orders that yield fee codes DM, HA,
HI, MM or RP. The Exchange now proposes to add a new Non-Displayed
tier, specifically, a Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier, which provides an
enhanced rebate of $0.0025 where a Member: (1) Has a Step-Up Add TCV
from January 2021 greater than or equal to 0.10%; (2) adds an ADV
greater than or equal to 0.50% of the TCV; and (3) removes an ADV of
greater than or equal to 0.80% of the TCV.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \12\ Appended to orders that add liquidity using MidPoint
Discretionary order within discretionary range and are provided a
rebate of $0.00100.
    \13\ Appended to non-displayed orders that add liquidity and are
provided a rebate of $0.00100.
    \14\ Appended to non-displayed orders that add liquidity using
Mid-Point Peg and are provided a rebate of $0.00100.
    \15\ Appended to non-displayed orders that add liquidity using
Supplemental Peg and are provided a rebate of $0.00100.
    \16\ ``ADAV'' means ADAV means average daily added volume
calculated as the number of shares added per day. ADAV is calculated
on a monthly basis.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Growth Tier 2, as amended, and the new Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier,
both of which offer the same three-pronged criteria, are designed to
incentivize overall order flow, particularly by offering enhanced
rebates for both displayed (i.e., B, V, Y, 3 and 4) and non-displayed
(DM, HA, MM and RP) orders if a Member meets the different,
incrementally more difficult criteria as amended in Growth Tier 2 or
the additional opportunity as provided in the proposed Non-Displayed
Step-Up Tier. Specifically the proposed criteria will encourage a
Member to: (1) Grow in overall order flow (by providing criteria in
which a Member must increase relative overall order flow, not just
retail order flow, each month over baseline liquidity in January 2021);
(2) increase

liquidity adding volume; and (3) increase in liquidity removing volume,
in order to receive the proposed enhanced rebates. Overall, the
proposed criteria and enhanced rebates provide an additional
opportunity for Members to submit more order flow inclusive of all
orders, liquidity adding Members on the Exchange to contribute to a
deeper, more liquid market, and liquidity executing Members on the
Exchange to increase transactions and take execution opportunities
provided by such increased liquidity, together providing for overall
enhanced price discovery and price improvement opportunities on the
Exchange. As such, increased overall order flow benefits all Members by
contributing towards a robust and well-balanced market ecosystem.
2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent
with the objectives of Section 6 of the Act,\17\ in general, and
furthers the objectives of Section 6(b)(4),\18\ in particular, as it is
designed to provide for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues,
fees and other charges among its Members, issuers and other persons
using its facilities. The Exchange also believes that the proposed rule
change is consistent with the objectives of Section 6(b)(5) \19\
requirements that the rules of an exchange be designed to prevent
fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just and
equitable principles of trade, to foster cooperation and coordination
with persons engaged in regulating, clearing, settling, processing
information with respect to, and facilitating transactions in
securities, to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a
free and open market and a national market system, and, in general, to
protect investors and the public interest, and, particularly, is not
designed to permit unfair discrimination between customers, issuers,
brokers, or dealers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \17\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
    \18\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
    \19\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.(b)(5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As described above, the Exchange operates in a highly competitive
market in which market participants can readily direct order flow to
competing venues if they deem fee levels at a particular venue to be
excessive or incentives to be insufficient. The proposed rule change
reflects a competitive pricing structure designed to incentivize market
participants to direct their order flow to the Exchange, which the
Exchange believes would enhance market quality to the benefit of all
Members. In particular, the Exchange believes the proposed changes to
Growth Tier 2 and the proposed new Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier are
reasonable because they either amend an existing opportunity or provide
an additional opportunity for Members to receive an enhanced rebate on
qualifying orders by means of overall order flow, including both
liquidity adding and removing orders. The Exchange notes that relative
volume-based incentives and discounts have been widely adopted by
exchanges,\20\ including the Exchange,\21\ and are reasonable,
equitable and non-discriminatory because they are open to all members
on an equal basis and provide additional benefits or discounts that are
reasonably related to (i) the value to an exchange's market quality and
(ii) associated higher levels of market activity, such as higher levels
of liquidity provision and/or growth patterns. Additionally, as noted
above, the Exchange operates in a highly competitive market. The
Exchange is only one of several equity venues to which market
participants may direct their order flow, and it represents a small
percentage of the overall market. It is also only one of several maker-
taker exchanges. Competing equity exchanges offer similar tiered
pricing structures to that of the Exchange, including schedules of
rebates and fees that apply based upon members achieving certain volume
and/or growth thresholds. These competing pricing schedules, moreover,
are presently comparable to those that the Exchange provides, including
the pricing of comparable tiers.\22\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \20\ See e.g., Nasdaq PSX Price List [sic], Rebate to Add
Displayed Liquidity (Per Share Executed), and Rebate to Add Other
Non-Displayed Liquidity, which provide rebates to members for adding
displayed and non-displayed liquidity over certain thresholds of TCV
ranging between $0.00075 and $0.00305, available at http://nasdaqtrader.com/Trader.aspx?id=PriceListTrading2; and Cboe BZX U.S.
Equities Exchange Fee Schedule, Footnote 1, Add Volume Tiers, which
provides similar incentives for displayed and non-displayed
liquidity and offers rebates ranging between $0.0018 and $0.0031.
    \21\ See generally, Cboe EDGX U.S. Equities Exchange Fee
Schedule, Footnote 1, Add Volume Tiers [sic].
    \22\ See supra note 20.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Moreover, the Exchange believes the two proposed tiers are a
reasonable means to encourage overall growth in Members' overall order
flow to the Exchange and to incentivize Members to continue to provide
liquidity adding and liquidity removing to the Exchange by offering
them a different or additional opportunity than those opportunities
currently under the Add/Remove Volume Tiers to receive an enhanced
rebate on qualifying orders. The Exchange believes that the proposed
tiers, each based on a Member's overall growth in all order flow and
their liquidity adding and removing orders, will generally benefit all
market participants by incentivizing continuous liquidity and thus,
deeper more liquid markets as well as increased execution
opportunities. Indeed, the Exchange notes that greater add volume order
flow may provide for deeper, more liquid markets and execution
opportunities, and greater remove volume order flow may increase
transactions on the Exchange, which the Exchange believes incentivizes
liquidity providers to submit additional liquidity and execution
opportunities, thus, providing an overall increase in price discovery
and transparency on the Exchange.
    Further, the Exchange believes that the proposed rule changes are
reasonable as they do not represent a significant departure from the
current criteria or enhanced rebates currently offered in the Fee
Schedule. First, the Exchange believes that modifying existing criteria
in Growth Tier 2 is reasonably designed to be incrementally more
difficult to achieve than the current criteria and therefore is
commensurate with the proposed increased enhanced rebate. The Exchange
also believes that the proposed criteria and enhanced rebate remains in
line with the incremental increase in difficulty from Growth Tier 1.
Growth Tier 1 may be met if a Member: (1) Adds an ADV greater than or
equal to 0.20% of the TCV; and (2) has a Step-Up Add TCV from March
2019 of greater than or equal to 0.10%., whereas proposed Growth Tier 2
provides for an additional prong of criteria, as well as modestly
increased percentages of ADV over TCV, that a Member must meet to
receive an enhanced rebate. Second, the Exchange believes that the
proposed criteria in the new Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier is of
comparable difficulty to the criteria in Non-Displayed Add Volume Tier
3, which offers the same enhanced rebate for the same qualifying orders
if a Member has an ADAV greater than or equal to 0.10% of TCV for Non-
Displayed orders that yield fee codes DM, HA, HI, MM or RP. The
Exchange notes that the sum of Non-Displayed orders only as an add-
volume (ADAV) percentage presents a more narrow, thus comparable in
difficulty, type of order flow that a Member must submit to achieve the
criteria in Non-Displayed Add Volume Tier 3, and therefore, the
proposed enhanced rebate offered under the Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier
is commensurate with the same enhanced

rebate offered under Non-Displayed Add Volume Tier 3.
    The Exchange believes that the proposal represents an equitable
allocation of fees and rebates and is not unfairly discriminatory
because all Members will continue to be eligible for Growth Tier 2, as
amended, and all Members will be eligible for proposed Non-Displayed
Step-Up Tier. All Members will have the opportunity to meet the two
tiers' criteria and will receive the proposed corresponding enhanced
rebates for their respective qualifying orders if they meet such
criteria. Without having a view of activity on other markets and off-
exchange venues, the Exchange has no way of knowing whether this
proposed rule change would definitely result in any Members qualifying
for the proposed tiers. While the Exchange has no way of predicting
with certainty how the proposed tier will impact Member activity, the
Exchange anticipates that at least three Members will be able to
compete for and reach the proposed criteria in Growth Tier 2 and the
Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier. The Exchange anticipates that multiple
Member types will compete to reach the proposed tiers, broker-dealers
and liquidity providers, each providing distinct types of order flow to
the Exchange to the benefit of all market participants. The Exchange
also notes that proposed tiers will not adversely impact any Member's
pricing or ability to qualify for other reduced fee or enhanced rebate
tiers. Should a Member not meet the proposed criteria under either of
the proposed tiers, the Member will merely not receive that
corresponding enhanced rebate. Furthermore, the proposed enhanced
rebates in Growth Tier 2 and the Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier will each
automatically and uniformly apply to all Members' qualifying orders for
all Members that meet the required criteria under the proposed tiers.

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

    The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule changes will
impose any burden on competition not necessary or appropriate in
furtherance of the purposes of the Act. Rather, as discussed above, the
Exchange believes that the proposed change would encourage the
submission of additional order flow to a public exchange, thereby
promoting market depth, execution incentives and enhanced execution
opportunities, as well as price discovery and transparency for all
Members. As a result, the Exchange believes that the proposed change
furthers the Commission's goal in adopting Regulation NMS of fostering
competition among orders, which promotes ``more efficient pricing of
individual stocks for all types of orders, large and small.''
    The Exchange believes the proposed rule change does not impose any
burden on intramarket competition that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. Particularly, the proposed
change applies to all Members equally in that all Members are eligible
for the proposed Growth Tier and Non-Displayed Step-Up Tier, have a
reasonable opportunity to meet the tiers' criteria and will all
automatically and uniformly receive the corresponding enhanced rebate
on their respective qualifying orders if such criteria is met.
Additionally, the proposed tiers are designed to attract additional
overall order flow to the Exchange. The Exchange believes that the
amended and additional tier criteria would incentivize market
participants to grow their overall order flow submitted to the
Exchange, both liquidity adding and removing order flow, bringing with
it improved price transparency. The Exchange believes greater overall
order flow and pricing transparency benefits all market participants on
the Exchange by providing more trading opportunities, enhancing market
quality, and continuing to encourage Members to send orders, thereby
contributing towards a robust and well-balanced market ecosystem, which
benefits all market participants.
    The Exchange believes the proposed rule change does not impose any
burden on intermarket competition that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. As previously discussed, the
Exchange operates in a highly competitive market. Members have numerous
alternative venues that they may participate on and direct their order
flow, including 15 other equities exchanges and off-exchange venues and
alternative trading systems. Additionally, the Exchange represents a
small percentage of the overall market. Based on publicly available
information, no single equities exchange has more than 16% of the
market share. Therefore, no exchange possesses significant pricing
power in the execution of order flow. Indeed, participants can readily
choose to send their orders to other exchange and off-exchange venues
if they deem fee levels at those other venues to be more favorable.
Moreover, the Commission has repeatedly expressed its preference for
competition over regulatory intervention in determining prices,
products, and services in the securities markets. Specifically, in
Regulation NMS, the Commission highlighted the importance of market
forces in determining prices and SRO revenues and, also, recognized
that current regulation of the market system ``has been remarkably
successful in promoting market competition in its broader forms that
are most important to investors and listed companies.'' The fact that
this market is competitive has also long been recognized by the courts.
In NetCoalition v. Securities and Exchange Commission, the D.C. Circuit
stated as follows: ``[n]o one disputes that competition for order flow
is `fierce.' . . . As the SEC explained, `[i]n the U.S. national market
system, buyers and sellers of securities, and the broker-dealers that
act as their order-routing agents, have a wide range of choices of
where to route orders for execution'; [and] `no exchange can afford to
take its market share percentages for granted' because `no exchange
possesses a monopoly, regulatory or otherwise, in the execution of
order flow from broker dealers'. . . .''. Accordingly, the Exchange
does not believe its proposed fee change imposes any burden on
competition that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the
purposes of the Act.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

    The Exchange neither solicited nor received comments on the
proposed rule change.

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

    The foregoing rule change has become effective pursuant to Section
19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \23\ and paragraph (f) of Rule 19b-4 \24\
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. If the Commission
takes such action, the Commission will institute proceedings to
determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or
disapproved.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \23\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \24\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f).

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

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 Number SR-CboeEDGX-2021-009 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-CboeEDGX-2021-009. 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 website (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 website 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 the filing also will be available for inspection
and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. All comments
received will be posted without change. Persons submitting comments are
cautioned that we do not redact or edit personal identifying
information from comment submissions. You should submit only
information that you wish to make available publicly. All submissions
should refer to File Number SR-CboeEDGX-2021-009 and should be
submitted on or before March 5, 2021.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \25\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\25\
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-02857 Filed 2-11-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 136 (Tuesday, July 18, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32905-32906]
[FR Doc No: 2017-14968]

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

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Proposed Collection; 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 203-2 and Form ADV-W; SEC File No. 270-40, OMB Control No.
3235-0313

    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'') is soliciting comments on the collection of
information summarized below. The Commission plans to submit this
existing collection of information to the Office of Management and
Budget for extension and approval.
    The title for the collection of information is ``Rule 203-2 (17 CFR
275.203-2) and Form ADV-W (17 CFR 279.2) under the Investment Advisers
Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80b).'' Rule 203-2 under the Investment Advisers
Act of 1940 establishes procedures for an investment adviser to
withdraw its registration or pending registration with the Commission.
Rule 203-2 requires every person withdrawing from investment adviser
registration with the Commission to file Form ADV-W electronically on
the Investment Adviser Registration Depository (``IARD''). The purpose
of the information collection is to notify the Commission and the
public when an investment adviser withdraws its pending or approved SEC
registration. Typically, an investment adviser files a Form ADV-W when
it ceases doing business or when it is ineligible to remain registered
with the Commission.
    The respondents to the collection of information are all investment
advisers that are registered with the Commission or have applications
pending for registration. The Commission has estimated that compliance
with the

requirement to complete Form ADV-W imposes a total burden of
approximately 0.75 hours (45 minutes) for an adviser filing for full
withdrawal and approximately 0.25 hours (15 minutes) for an adviser
filing for partial withdrawal. Based on historical filings, the
Commission estimates that there are approximately 741 respondents
annually filing for full withdrawal and approximately 130 respondents
annually filing for partial withdrawal. Based on these estimates, the
total estimated annual burden would be 588 hours ((741 respondents x
.75 hours) + (130 respondents x .25 hours)).
    Rule 203-2 and Form ADV-W do not require recordkeeping or records
retention. The collection of information requirements under the rule
and form are mandatory. The information collected pursuant to the rule
and Form ADV-W are filings with the Commission. These filings are not
kept confidential. 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.
    Written comments are invited on: (a) Whether the documentation of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information will have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the
collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility,
and clarity of the information collected; and (d) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information on respondents, including
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of
information technology. Consideration will be given to comments and
suggestions submitted in writing within 60 days of this publication.
    Please direct your written comments to Pamela Dyson, Director/Chief
Information Officer, Securities and Exchange Commission, C/O Remi
Pavlik-Simon, 100 F Street NE., Washington, DC 20549; or send an email
to<EMAIL_ADDRESS>
    Dated: July 11, 2017.
Jill M. Peterson,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-14968 Filed 7-17-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 244 (Thursday, December 21, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 88288-88289]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28030]

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

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 73

[Docket No. FAA-2023-2371; Airspace Docket No. 22-ANM-42]
RIN 2120-AA66

Establishment of Restricted Area R-4601 in the Vicinity of
Townsend, MT

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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

SUMMARY: This action proposes to establish restricted area R-4601 in
the vicinity of Townsend, MT. The new restricted area would provide the
Montana Army National Guard (MTARNG) and the 40th Helicopter Squadron
with the ability to conduct aerial gunnery training.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 5, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Send comments identified by FAA Docket No. FAA-2023-2371 and
Airspace Docket No. 22-ANM-42 using any of the following methods:
    * Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov and follow
the online instructions for sending your comments electronically.
    * Mail: Send comments to Docket Operations, M-30; U.S. Department
of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Room W12-140, West
Building Ground Floor, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    * Hand Delivery or Courier: Take comments to Docket Operations in
Room W12-140 of the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
    * Fax: Fax comments to Docket Operations at<PHONE_NUMBER>.
    Docket: Background documents or comments received may be read at
www.regulations.gov at any time. Follow the online instructions for
accessing the docket or go to the Docket Operations in Room W12-140 of
the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE,
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven Roff, Rules and Regulations
Group, Office of Policy, Federal Aviation Administration, 800
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267-
8783.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority for This Rulemaking

    The FAA's authority to issue rules regarding aviation safety is
found in title 49 of the United States Code. Subtitle I, section 106
describes the authority of the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII,
Aviation Programs, describes in more detail the scope of the agency's
authority. This rulemaking is promulgated under the authority described
in subtitle VII, part A, subpart I, section 40103. Under that section,
the FAA is charged with prescribing regulations to assign the use of
the airspace necessary to ensure the safety of aircraft and the
efficient use of airspace. This regulation is within the scope of that
authority as it would establish restricted area airspace over the
MTARNG Limestone Hills Training Area near Townsend, MT.

Comments Invited

    The FAA invites interested persons to participate in this
rulemaking by submitting written comments, data, or views. Comments are
specifically invited on the overall regulatory, aeronautical, economic,
environmental, and energy-related aspects of the proposal. The most
helpful comments reference a specific portion of the proposal, explain
the reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. To
ensure the docket does not contain duplicate comments, commenters
should submit only one time if comments are filed electronically, or
commenters should send only one copy of written comments if comments
are filed in writing.
    The FAA will file in the docket all comments it receives, as well
as a report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA
personnel concerning this proposed rulemaking. Before acting on this
proposal, the FAA will consider all comments it receives on or before
the closing date for comments. The FAA will consider comments filed
after the comment period has closed if it is possible to do so without
incurring expense or delay. The FAA may change this proposal in light
of the comments it receives.
    Privacy: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments
from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts
these comments, without edit, including any personal

information the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as
described in the system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can
be reviewed at www.dot.gov/privacy.

Availability of Rulemaking Documents

    An electronic copy of this document may be downloaded through the
internet at www.regulations.gov. Recently published rulemaking
documents can also be accessed through the FAA's web page at
www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/airspace_amendments/.
    You may review the public docket containing the proposal, any
comments received and any final disposition in person in the Dockets
Operations office (see ADDRESSES section for address, phone number, and
hours of operations). An informal docket may also be examined during
normal business hours at the office of the Western Service Center,
Operations Support Group, Federal Aviation Administration, 2200 South
216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198.

Background

    The MTARNG submitted a proposal to the FAA to establish a new
restricted area, R-4601, over the Limestone Hills Training Area (LHTA)
near Townsend, MT, to support aerial gunnery training requirements.
Currently, the LHTA consists of multiple surface-to-surface live-fire
weapons ranges that are contained within a Controlled Firing Area
(CFA); however aerial gunnery live-fire is not authorized within a CFA.
Hazardous activities, such as aerial gunnery, are required to be
contained within a restricted area. Restricted areas are designated
pursuant to 14 CFR part 73 rulemaking procedures to contain activities
that may present a hazard to nonparticipating aircraft.
    The proposed restricted area would provide a training capability to
the MTARNG in preparation for combat deployments and also the 40th
Helicopter Squadron located at Malmstrom Air Force Base (AFB) in
support of security operations.
    The United States Air Force's Global Strike Command (AFGSC) is
tasked to provide armed helicopters in support of Malmstrom AFB missile
field security operations. These helicopter units require an aerial
gunnery range within one flight duty period (FDP) of their permanent
bases to effectively and efficiently qualify and remain proficient in
aerial gunnery operations. The LHTA is the only existing facility
within one FDP with the possibility to support this training
requirement. LHTA is located approximately 75 nautical miles from
Malmstrom AFB.
    The MTARNG aviation rotary wing assets would utilize the proposed
restricted area to conduct day and night aerial gunnery training on an
annual basis at a minimum, to increase and maintain their operational
readiness. The MTARNG aviation units would schedule the proposed
restricted area for approximately 40 training events (20 days, 20
nights) per year with each training event lasting over a six-hour
period of time.
    The 40th Helicopter Squadron is tasked with ensuring strategic
security for Malmstrom AFB by providing flexible, rapid-response
helicopter airlift and security support to the 341st Missile Wing. The
40th Helicopter Squadron would schedule the proposed restricted area
for approximately 60 aerial training events (30 days, 30 nights) per
year with each training event lasting over a four-to-six-hour period of
time.
    The use of the proposed restricted area could vary due to weather,
unit requirements, or scheduling conflicts.

The Proposal

    The FAA is proposing an amendment to 14 CFR part 73 to establish R-
4601 over the Limestone Hills Training Area in the vicinity of
Townsend, MT. This action would be used to contain hazardous aerial
gunnery activities. The proposed restricted area is described below.
    R-4601: The proposed restricted area would extend upward from the
surface of the ground to 9,000 Mean Sea Level (MSL). The restricted
area would be located approximately four miles west of the Townsend
Airport, MT (8U8) and extend approximately eight miles to the
southwest. The restricted area would be activated by a Notice to Air
Missions (NOTAM) to inform nonparticipants when the proposed restricted
area is active. During periods when the restricted area airspace is not
needed by the using agency for its designated purpose, the airspace
will be returned to the controlling agency for access by other National
Airspace System users. The controlling agency for this proposed
restricted area would be the Salt Lake City Air Route Traffic Control
Center.

Regulatory Notices and Analyses

    The FAA has determined that this proposed regulation only involves
an established body of technical regulations for which frequent and
routine amendments are necessary to keep them operationally current.
It, therefore: (1) is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under
Executive Order 12866; (2) is not a ``significant rule'' under DOT
Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034; February 26, 1979);
and (3) does not warrant preparation of a regulatory evaluation as the
anticipated impact is so minimal. Since this is a routine matter that
will only affect air traffic procedures and air navigation, it is
certified that this proposed rule, when promulgated, will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities
under the criteria of the Regulatory Flexibility Act.

Environmental Review

    This proposal will be subject to an environmental analysis in
accordance with FAA Order 1050.1F, ``Environmental Impacts: Policies
and Procedures'' prior to any FAA final regulatory action.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 73

    Airspace, Prohibited areas, Restricted areas.

The Proposed Amendment

    In consideration of the foregoing, the Federal Aviation
Administration proposes to amend 14 CFR part 73 as follows:

PART 73--SPECIAL USE AIRSPACE

0
1. The authority citation for 14 CFR part 73 continues to read as
follows:

    Authority:  49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g); 40103, 40113, 40120; E.O.
10854, 24 FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959-1963 Comp., p. 389.

Sec.  73.46  Montana (MT) [New]

0
2. Section 73.46 is amended as follows:

R-4601 Townsend, MT [New]

    Boundaries. Beginning at lat. 46[deg]19'12'' N, long.
111[deg]38'00'' W; to lat. 46[deg]20'10'' N, long. 111[deg]34'00''
W; to lat. 46[deg]17'30'' N, long. 111[deg]32'10'' W; to lat.
46[deg]13'30'' N, long. 111[deg]32'10'' W; to lat. 46[deg]13'30'' N,
long. 111[deg]38'00'' W; to the point of beginning.
    Designated altitudes. Surface to 9,000 feet MSL.
    Time of designation. By NOTAM.
    Controlling agency. FAA, Salt Lake City ARTCC.
    Using agency. U.S. Army, Montana Army National Guard, Joint
Forces Headquarters, Fort Harrison, MT.
* * * * *

    Issued in Washington, DC, on December 15, 2023.
Brian Konie,
Acting Manager, Rules and Regulations Group.
[FR Doc. 2023-28030 Filed 12-20-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P