EMERGENCY Emergency Securities Response Act of 2004.15 USC 78a note.SECURITIES RESPONSE ACT OF 2004.

SEC. 7803. EMERGENCY SECURITIES RESPONSE ACT OF 2004.(a) Short Title.—This section may be cited as the “Emergency Securities Response Act of 2004”.(b) Extension of Emergency Order Authority of the Securities and Exchange Commission.—118 STAT. 3862(1) Extension of authority.—Section 12(k)(2) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78l(k)(2)) is amended to read as follows:“(2) Emergency orders.—“(A) In general.—The Commission, in an emergency, may by order summarily take such action to alter, supplement, suspend, or impose requirements or restrictions with respect to any matter or action subject to regulation by the Commission or a self-regulatory organization under the securities laws, as the Commission determines is necessary in the public interest and for the protection of investors—“(i) to maintain or restore fair and orderly securities markets (other than markets in exempted securities);“(ii) to ensure prompt, accurate, and safe clearance and settlement of transactions in securities (other than exempted securities); or“(iii) to reduce, eliminate, or prevent the substantial disruption by the emergency of—“(I) securities markets (other than markets in exempted securities), investment companies, or any other significant portion or segment of such markets; or “(II) the transmission or processing of securities transactions (other than transactions in exempted securities).“(B) Effective period.—An order of the Commission under this paragraph shall continue in effect for the period specified by the Commission, and may be extended. Except as provided in subparagraph (C), an order of the Commission under this paragraph may not continue in effect for more than 10 business days, including extensions.“(C) Extension.—An order of the Commission under this paragraph may be extended to continue in effect for more than 10 business days if, at the time of the extension, the Commission finds that the emergency still exists and determines that the continuation of the order beyond 10 business days is necessary in the public interest and for the protection of investors to attain an objective described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of subparagraph (A). In no event shall an order of the Commission under this paragraph continue in effect for more than 30 calendar days.“(D) Security futures.—If the actions described in subparagraph (A) involve a security futures product, the Commission shall consult with and consider the views of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. “(E) Exemption.—In exercising its authority under this paragraph, the Commission shall not be required to comply with the provisions of—“(i) section 19(c); or“(ii) section 553 of title 5, United States Code.”.(c) Consultation; Definition of Emergency.—Section 12(k)(6) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78l(k)(6)) is amended to read as follows:“(6) Consultation.—Prior to taking any action described in paragraph (1)(B), the Commission shall consult with and 118 STAT. 3863 consider the views of the Secretary of the Treasury, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, unless such consultation is impracticable in light of the emergency.“(7) Definitions.—For purposes of this subsection—“(A) the term ‘emergency’ means—“(i) a major market disturbance characterized by or constituting—“(I) sudden and excessive fluctuations of securities prices generally, or a substantial threat thereof, that threaten fair and orderly markets; or“(II) a substantial disruption of the safe or efficient operation of the national system for clearance and settlement of transactions in securities, or a substantial threat thereof; or“(ii) a major disturbance that substantially disrupts, or threatens to substantially disrupt—“(I) the functioning of securities markets, investment companies, or any other significant portion or segment of the securities markets; or“(II) the transmission or processing of securities transactions; and“(B) notwithstanding section 3(a)(47), the term ‘securities laws’ does not include the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935.”.(d) Parallel Authority of the Secretary of the Treasury With Respect to Government Securities.—Section 15C of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78o–5) is amended by adding at the end the following:“(h) Emergency Authority.—The Secretary may, by order, take any action with respect to a matter or action subject to regulation by the Secretary under this section, or the rules of the Secretary under this section, involving a government security or a market therein (or significant portion or segment of that market), that the Commission may take under section 12(k)(2) with respect to transactions in securities (other than exempted securities) or a market therein (or significant portion or segment of that market).”.(e) Joint Report on Implementation of Financial System Resilience Recommendations.—(1) Report required.—Not later than April 30, 2006, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Securities and Exchange Commission shall prepare and submit to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a joint report on the efforts of the private sector to implement the Interagency Paper on Sound Practices to Strengthen the Resilience of the U.S. Financial System.(2) Contents of report.—The report required by paragraph (1) shall—(A) examine the efforts to date of private sector financial services firms covered by the Interagency Paper to implement enhanced business continuity plans;(B) examine the extent to which the implementation of such business continuity plans has been done in a geographically dispersed manner, including an analysis of the 118 STAT. 3864 extent to which such firms have located their main and backup facilities in separate electrical networks, in different watersheds, in independent transportation systems, and using separate telecommunications centers, and the cost and technological implications of further dispersal; (C) examine the need to cover a larger range of private sector financial services firms that play significant roles in critical financial markets than those covered by the Interagency Paper; and (D) recommend legislative and regulatory changes that will—(i) expedite the effective implementation of the Interagency Paper by all covered financial services entities; and(ii) optimize the effective implementation of business continuity planning by the financial services industry.(3) Confidentiality.—Any information provided to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Comptroller of the Currency, or the Securities and Exchange Commission for the purposes of the preparation and submission of the report required by paragraph (1) shall be treated as privileged and confidential. For purposes of section 552 of title 5, United States Code, this subsection shall be considered a statute described in subsection (b)(3)(B) of that section 552.(4) Definition.—As used in this subsection, the terms “Interagency Paper on Sound Practices to Strengthen the Resilience of the U.S. Financial System” and “Interagency Paper” mean the interagency paper prepared by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Securities and Exchange Commission that was announced in the Federal Register on April 8, 2003.