Federal Register / Vol. 68, No. 135 / Tuesday, July 15, 2003 / Notices 41851

basic information from qualified 

individuals recommended by the arts 

community; arts organizations; 

Members of Congress; the general 

public; local, state, and regional arts 

organizations; Endowment staff; and 

others.

Murray Welsh, 

Director, Administrative Services, National 

Endowment for the Arts.

[FR Doc. 03–17784 Filed 7–14–03; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7536–01–M

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

[Docket No. 40–7580–MLA–2; ASLBP No. 

03–813–04–MLA] 

Fansteel, Inc.; Designation of 

Presiding Officer 

Pursuant to delegation by the 

Commission, see 37 Fed. Reg. 28,710 

(Dec. 29, 1972), and the Commission’s 

regulations, see 10 CFR 2.1201, 2.1207, 

notice is hereby given that (1) a single 

member of the Atomic Safety and 

Licensing Board Panel is designated as 

Presiding Officer to rule on petitions for 

leave to intervene and/or requests for 

hearing; and (2) upon making the 

requisite findings in accordance with 10 

CFR 2.1205(h), the Presiding Officer 

will conduct an adjudicatory hearing in 

the following proceeding: Fansteel, Inc., 

Muskogee, Oklahoma (Materials License 

Amendment). 

The hearing will be conducted 

pursuant to 10 CFR part 2, subpart L, of 

the Commission’s Regulations, 

‘‘Informal Hearing Procedures for 

Adjudications in Materials and Operator 

Licensing Proceedings.’’ This 

proceeding concerns a request for 

hearing submitted on June 16, 2003, by 

the Attorney General of the State of 

Oklahoma in response to the asserted 

request of Fansteel, Inc., to amend its 10 

CFR part 40 source material license to 

allow decommissioning of its facility 

located in Muskogee, Oklahoma. 

The Presiding Officer in this 

proceeding is Administrative Judge G. 

Paul Bollwerk, III. All correspondence, 

documents, and other materials shall be 

filed with Judge Bollwerk in accordance 

with 10 CFR 2.1203. His address is: G. 

Paul Bollwerk, III, Administrative Judge, 

Presiding Officer, Atomic Safety and 

Licensing Board Panel, U.S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, Washington, 

DC 20555–0001.

Issued at Rockville, Maryland, this 9th day 

of July 2003. 

G. Paul Bollwerk, III, 

Chief Administrative Judge, Atomic Safety 

and Licensing Board Panel.

[FR Doc. 03–17847 Filed 7–14–03; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

Sunshine Act Meeting

DATES: Weeks of July 14, 21, 28, August 

4, 11, 18, 2003.

PLACE: Commissioners’ Conference 

Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

Maryland.

STATUS: Public and Closed.

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED: 

Week of July 14, 2003

Thursday, July 17, 2003

12:30 p.m.—Discussion of Management 

Issues (Closed-Ex.2) 

Week of July 21, 2003—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of July 21, 2003. 

Week of July 28, 2003—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of July 28, 2003. 

Week of August 4, 2003—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of August 4, 2003. 

Week of August 11, 2003—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of August 11, 2003. 

Week of August 18, 2003—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of August 18, 2003.

* The schedule for Commission meetings is 

subject to change on short notice. To verify 

the status of meetings call (recording)—(301) 

415–1292. Contact person for more 

information: David Louis Gamberoni (301) 

415–1651.

* * * * *

The NRC Commission Meeting 

Schedule can be found on the Internet 

at: http://www.nrc.gov/what-we-do/

policy-making/schedule.html.

* * * * *

This notice is distributed by mail to 

several hundred subscribers; if you no 

longer wish to receive it, or would like 

to be added to the distribution, please 

contact the Office of the Secretary, 

Washington, DC 20555 (301–415–1969). 

In addition, distribution of this meeting 

notice over the Internet system is 

available. If you are interested in 

receiving this Commission meeting 

schedule electronically, please send an 

electronic message to dkw@nrc.gov.

Dated: July 10, 2003. 

Sandy Joosten, 

Executive Assistant, Office of the Secretary.

[FR Doc. 03–17939 Filed 7–11–03; 11:10 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–M

PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY 

CORPORATION 

Required Interest Rate Assumption for 

Determining Variable-Rate Premium; 

Interest on Late Premium Payments; 

Interest on Underpayments and 

Overpayments of Single-Employer 

Plan Termination Liability and 

Multiemployer Withdrawal Liability; 

Interest Assumptions for 

Multiemployer Plan Valuations 

Following Mass Withdrawal

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty 

Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of interest rates and 

assumptions. 

SUMMARY: This notice informs the public 

of the interest rates and assumptions to 

be used under certain Pension Benefit 

Guaranty Corporation regulations. These 

rates and assumptions are published 

elsewhere (or can be derived from rates 

published elsewhere), but are collected 

and published in this notice for the 

convenience of the public. Interest rates 

are also published on the PBGC’s Web 

site (http://www.pbgc.gov).

DATES: The required interest rate for 

determining the variable-rate premium 

under part 4006 applies to premium 

payment years beginning in July 2003. 

The interest assumptions for performing 

multiemployer plan valuations 

following mass withdrawal under part 

4281 apply to valuation dates occurring 

in August 2003. The interest rates for 

late premium payments under part 4007 

and for underpayments and 

overpayments of single-employer plan 

termination liability under part 4062 

and multiemployer withdrawal liability 

under part 4219 apply to interest 

accruing during the third quarter (July 

through September) of 2003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Harold J. Ashner, Assistant General 

Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, 

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 

1200 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 

20005, 202–326–4024. (TTY/TDD users 

may call the Federal relay service tollfree at 1–800–877–8339 and ask to be 

connected to 202–326–4024.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

41852 Federal Register / Vol. 68, No. 135 / Tuesday, July 15, 2003 / Notices 

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.

Variable-Rate Premiums 

Section 4006(a)(3)(E)(iii)(II) of the 

Employee Retirement Income Security 

Act of 1974 (ERISA) and 4006.4(b)(1) of 

the PBGC’s regulation on Premium 

Rates (29 CFR part 4006) prescribe use 

of an assumed interest rate (the 

‘‘required interest rate’’) in determining 

a single-employer plan’s variable-rate 

premium. The required interest rate is 

the ‘‘applicable percentage’’ (currently 

100 percent) of the annual yield on 30-

year Treasury securities for the month 

preceding the beginning of the plan year 

for which premiums are being paid (the 

‘‘premium payment year’’). (Although 

the Treasury Department has ceased 

issuing 30-year securities, the Internal 

Revenue Service announces a surrogate 

yield figure each month—based on the 

30-year Treasury bond maturing in 

February 2031—which the PBGC uses to 

determine the required interest rate.) 

The required interest rate to be used 

in determining variable-rate premiums 

for premium payment years beginning 

in July 2003 is 4.37 percent. 

The following table lists the required 

interest rates to be used in determining 

variable-rate premiums for premium 

payment years beginning between 

August 2002 and July 2003.

For premium payment years beginning in—

The

required

interest

rate is—

August 2002 ................................. 5.39

September 2002 ........................... 5.08

October 2002 ................................ 4.76

November 2002 ............................ 4.93

December 2002 ............................ 4.96

January 2003 ................................ 4.92

February 2003 .............................. 4.94

March 2003 ................................... 4.81

April 2003 ..................................... 4.80

May 2003 ...................................... 4.90

June 2003 ..................................... 4.53

July 2003 ...................................... 4.37

Late Premium Payments; 

Underpayments and Overpayments of 

Single-Employer Plan Termination 

Liability 

Section 4007(b) of ERISA and 

4007.7(a) of the PBGC’s regulation on 

Payment of Premiums (29 CFR part 

4007) require the payment of interest on 

late premium payments at the rate 

established under section 6601 of the 

Internal Revenue Code. Similarly, 

4062.7 of the PBGC’s regulation on 

Liability for Termination of SingleEmployer Plans (29 CFR part 4062) 

requires that interest be charged or 

credited at the section 6601 rate on 

underpayments and overpayments of 

employer liability under section 4062 of 

ERISA. The section 6601 rate is 

established periodically (currently 

quarterly) by the Internal Revenue 

Service. The rate applicable to the third 

quarter (July through September) of 

2003, as announced by the IRS, is 5 

percent.

The following table lists the late 

payment interest rates for premiums and 

employer liability for the specified time 

periods:

From— Through— Interest rate 

(percent) 

7/1/96 ................ 3/31/98 9

4/1/98 ................ 12/31/98 8

1/1/99 ................ 3/31/99 7

4/1/99 ................ 3/31/00 8

4/1/00 ................ 3/31/01 9

4/1/01 ................ 6/30/01 8

7/1/01 ................ 12/31/01 7

1/1/02 ................ 12/31/02 6

1/1/03 ................ 9/30/03 5

Underpayments and Overpayments of 

Multiemployer Withdrawal Liability 

Section 4219.32(b) of the PBGC’s 

regulation on Notice, Collection, and 

Redetermination of Withdrawal 

Liability (29 CFR part 4219) specifies 

the rate at which a multiemployer plan 

is to charge or credit interest on 

underpayments and overpayments of 

withdrawal liability under section 4219 

of ERISA unless an applicable plan 

provision provides otherwise. For 

interest accruing during any calendar 

quarter, the specified rate is the average 

quoted prime rate on short-term 

commercial loans for the fifteenth day 

(or the next business day if the fifteenth 

day is not a business day) of the month 

preceding the beginning of the quarter, 

as reported by the Board of Governors 

of the Federal Reserve System in 

Statistical Release H.15 (‘‘Selected 

Interest Rates’’). The rate for the third 

quarter (July through September) of 

2003 (i.e., the rate reported for June 16, 

2003) is 4.25 percent. 

The following table lists the 

withdrawal liability underpayment and 

overpayment interest rates for the 

specified time periods:

From— Through— Interest rate

(percent) 

7/1/97 ................ 12/31/98 8.50

1/1/99 ................ 9/30/99 7.75

10/1/99 .............. 12/31/99 8.25

1/1/00 ................ 3/31/00 8.50

4/1/00 ................ 6/30/00 8.75

7/1/00 ................ 3/31/01 9.50

4/1/01 ................ 6/30/01 8.50

7/1/01 ................ 9/30/01 7.00

10/1/01 .............. 12/31/01 6.50

1/1/02 ................ 12/31/02 4.75

1/1/03 ................ 9/30/03 4.25

Multiemployer Plan Valuations 

Following Mass Withdrawal 

The PBGC’s regulation on Duties of 

Plan Sponsor Following Mass 

Withdrawal (29 CFR part 4281) 

prescribes the use of interest 

assumptions under the PBGC’s 

regulation on Allocation of Assets in 

Single-Employer Plans (29 CFR part 

4044). The interest assumptions 

applicable to valuation dates in August 

2003 under part 4044 are contained in 

an amendment to part 4044 published 

elsewhere in today’s Federal Register. 

Tables showing the assumptions 

applicable to prior periods are codified 

in appendix B to 29 CFR part 4044.

Issued in Washington, DC, on this 9th day 

of July, 2003. 

Joseph H. Grant, 

Deputy Executive Director and Chief 

Operating Officer, Pension Benefit Guaranty 

Corporation.

[FR Doc. 03–17844 Filed 7–14–03; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7708–01–P

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–48140; File No. SR–MSRB–

2003–06] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice 

of Filing of Proposed Rule Change by 

the Municipal Securities Rulemaking 

Board To Amend Rule A–14, on Annual 

Fees 

July 8, 2003. 

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 July 3, 

2003 the Municipal Securities 

Rulemaking Board (‘‘Board’’ or 

‘‘MSRB’’) filed with the Securities and 

Exchange Commission (‘‘SEC’’ or 

‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule 

change as described in Items I, II, and 

III below, which Items have been 

prepared by the Board. The Commission 

is publishing this notice to solicit 

comments on the proposed rule change 

from interested persons.

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Terms of Substance of 

the Proposed Rule Change 

The MSRB is proposing to amend 

Rule A–14, which provides for an 

annual fee paid by dealers to the MSRB. 

The MSRB requests the MSRB requests 

that the proposed rule change become 

effective prior to the beginning of the 

Board’s fiscal year of 2004 (October 1,