18254 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 63 / Friday, April 1, 2011 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Proposed Information Collection 

Request (ICR) for the Family Medical 

Leave Act (FMLA) Employee and 

Employer Surveys; Comment Request 

AGENCY: Wage and Hour Division, 

Labor. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor 

(Department or DOL), as part of its 

continuing effort to reduce paperwork 

and respondent burden, conducts a 

preclearance consultation program to 

provide the general public and Federal 

agencies with an opportunity to 

comment on proposed and/or 

continuing collections of information in 

accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 

U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This program 

helps to ensure that required data can be 

provided in the desired format, 

reporting burden (time and financial 

resources) is minimized, collection 

instruments are clearly understood, and 

the impact of collection requirements on 

respondents can be properly assessed. 

The Department is soliciting comments 

concerning its proposal to collect 

information on employees’ and 

employers’ experience with family and 

medical leave under the Family Medical 

Leave Act. A copy of the proposed ICR 

can be obtained by contacting the office 

listed below in the addressee section of 

this notice. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received by the office listed in the 

addressee section below on or before 

May 31, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

identified by [RIN or some other 

identifier] by either one of the following 

methods: E-mail 

WHDPRAComments@dol.gov; Mail, 

Hand Delivery, Courier: Division of 

Regulations, Legislation, and 

Interpretation, Wage and Hour, U.S. 

Department of Labor, Room S–3502, 200 

Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 

DC 20210. 

Instructions: Please submit one copy 

of your comments by only one method. 

All submissions received must include 

the agency name and [RIN or some other 

identifier] identified above for this 

information collection. Because we 

continue to experience delays in 

receiving mail in the Washington, DC 

area, commenters are strongly 

encouraged to transmit their comments 

electronically via e-mail or to submit 

them by mail early. Comments, 

including any personal information 

provided, become a matter of public 

record. They will be summarized and/ 

or included in the request for OMB 

approval of the information collection 

request. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Mary Ziegler, Director, Division of 

Regulations, Legislation, and 

Interpretation, Wage and Hour, U.S. 

Department of Labor, Room S–3502, 200 

Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 

DC 20210; telephone (202) 693–0406 

(this is not a toll free number). Copies 

of this notice may be obtained in 

alternative formats (Large print, Braille, 

Audio Tape, or Disc), upon request by 

calling (202) 693–0023 (this is not a tollfree number). TTY/TTD callers may dial 

toll-free (877) 889–5627 to obtain 

information or to request materials in 

alternative formats. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background: Given changes in 

economic conditions and the Family 

and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) 

regulations since the 2000 employee 

and employer surveys, the Wage and 

Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. 

Department of Labor needs to collect 

new information on the use and need of 

FMLA leave in order to update DOL’s 

understanding of leave-taking behavior 

and to close current data gaps remaining 

from the previous surveys. To better 

understand both employees’ and 

employers’ experience with FMLA, two 

new surveys will be conducted to 

collect information about the need for 

and the experience with family and 

medical leave from employees’ and 

employers’ perspectives. This study will 

help the Department by providing 

information on current workplace 

policies and practices related to family 

and medical leave. An in-depth analysis 

of private sector FMLA policies allows 

WHD to determine how those policies 

affect the work-life balance of workers 

and the productivity and work flow of 

employers. The study enables DOL to 

shape future regulatory options, craft 

interpretive guidance (such as plainlanguage fact sheets), develop 

compliance programs (employer 

outreach and investigation policies), 

and establish regulatory priorities based 

on sound, current data rather than on 

outdated data or anecdotal information. 

Finally, the study provides a data set by 

which DOL can evaluate the effect on 

employer compliance of a range of 

FMLA activities—regulatory, 

educational, investigative, and legal—on 

employer compliance. 

Two previous FMLA surveys have 

been conducted. The first FMLA study, 

in which workers and employers were 

surveyed to learn about family and 

medical leave policies and their effect 

on workers and their employers, was 

conducted in 1995 by the bipartisan 

Commission on Family and Medical 

Leave. The final report on this survey, 

titled ‘‘A Workable Balance: Report to 

Congress on Family and Medical Leave 

Policies,’’ is available online at http:// 

www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/1995Report/ 

family.htm. The second study was 

conducted in 2000 by Westat at the 

request of the Department. The Westat 

study updated the 1995 data by 

administering employee and employer 

surveys similar to the 1995 surveys. The 

second study entitled ‘‘Balancing the 

Needs of Families and Employers: 

Family and Medical Leave Surveys, 

2000 Update’’ is available on the 

Department’s website at http:// 

www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/toc.htm. An 

additional source of information came 

from the Department’s Request for 

Information (RFI) issued on December 1, 

2006. The RFI asked the public to 

comment on their experiences with, and 

observations of, the Department’s 

administration of the law and the 

effectiveness of the regulations. The 

qualitative data obtained provided a 

detailed anecdotal picture of the 

workings of the FMLA. 

The period for conducting this study 

is expected to last no later than January 

14, 2012. 

II. Desired Focus of Comments: 

Currently, the Department of Labor is 

soliciting comments concerning the 

above data collection for the FMLA 

Employee and Employer Surveys. 

Comments are requested which: 

* Evaluate whether the proposed 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

functions of the agency, including 

whether the information will have 

practical utility; 

* Evaluate the accuracy of the agency’s 

estimate of the burden of the 

proposed collection of information, 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; 

* Enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and 

* Minimize the burden of the 

information collection on those who 

are to respond, including the use of 

appropriate automated, electronic, 

mechanical, or other technological 

collection techniques or other forms 

of information technology, e.g., 

permitting electronic submissions of 

responses. 

III. Current Actions: At this time, the 

Department is requesting clearance for 

an employer and employee survey 

focusing on the Family Medical Leave 

Act of 1993. 

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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 63 / Friday, April 1, 2011 / Notices 18255 

1Section 102 of the Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 

1978, 5 U.S.C. App. at 214 (2000 ed.), generally 

transferred the authority of the Secretary of the 

Treasury to issue administrative exemptions under 

section 4975(c)(2) of the Code to the Secretary of 

Labor. 

For purposes of this exemption, references to 

specific provisions of Title I of the Act, unless 

otherwise specified, refer also to the corresponding 

provisions of the Code. 

Type of review: New information 

collection request. 

OMB Number: None. 

Affected Public: Private sector, public 

sector, individuals, and households. 

For the FMLA Employee survey: 

Frequency: Once. 

Total Responses: 3,000 respondents. 

Average Time per Response: 26 

minutes. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 1,292 

hours. 

Total Burden Cost: $0. 

For the FMLA Employer Survey: 

Frequency: Once. 

Total Responses: 1800 firms. 

Average Time per Response: 36 

minutes. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2164 

hours. 

Total Burden Cost: $0. 

Note that, due to rounding, the 

numbers for the totals may differ from 

the sum of the component numbers. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this request will be summarized and/or 

included in the request for Office of 

Management and Budget approval; they 

will also become a matter of public 

record. 

Signed at Washington, DC, this 23rd day of 

March 2011. 

Mary Ziegler, 

Director, Division of Regulations, Legislation, 

and Interpretation. 

[FR Doc. 2011–7345 Filed 3–28–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–27–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Employee Benefits Security 

Administration 

[Application Number D–11221] 

ZRIN 1210–ZA09 

Amendment to Prohibited Transaction 

Exemption (PTE) 96–23 for Plan Asset 

Transactions Determined by In-House 

Asset Managers 

AGENCY: Employee Benefits Security 

Administration, Labor. 

ACTION: Adoption of amendment to PTE 

96–23. 

SUMMARY: This document amends PTE 

96–23, a class exemption that permits 

various transactions involving employee 

benefit plans whose assets are managed 

by in-house asset managers (INHAMs), 

provided the conditions of the 

exemption are met. The amendment 

affects participants and beneficiaries of 

employee benefit plans, the sponsoring 

employers of such plans, INHAMs, and 

other persons engaging in the described 

transactions. 

DATES: The amendment is effective 

April 1, 2011, unless specified 

otherwise. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Chris Motta, Office of Exemption 

Determinations, Employee Benefits 

Security Administration, U.S. 

Department of Labor, Room N–5700, 

200 Constitution Avenue NW., 

Washington DC 20210, (202) 693–8540 

(not a toll-free number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 

14, 2010, a notice was published in the 

Federal Register (75 FR 33642) of the 

pendency before the Department of 

Labor (the Department) of a proposed 

amendment to PTE 96–23 (61 FR 15975, 

April 10, 1996). PTE 96–23 provides an 

exemption from certain restrictions of 

sections 406 and 407(a) of ERISA, and 

from certain taxes imposed by section 

4975(a) and (b) of the Code, by reason 

of section 4975(c)(1) of the Code. The 

Department proposed the amendment 

on its own motion, pursuant to section 

408(a) of ERISA and section 4975(c)(2) 

of the Code, and in accordance with the 

procedures set forth in 29 CFR part 

2570, subpart B (55 FR 32836, 32847, 

August 10, 1990).1

Description of the Proposed 

Amendment 

In the Notice published on June 14, 

2010, the Department proposed to 

amend PTE 96–23 in several respects, 

including: Expanding the definition of 

INHAM to include a subsidiary that is 

80% or more owned by the employer or 

parent company; broadening the scope 

of Part I(e) of the class exemption to 

permit transactions with a ‘‘co-joint 

venturer’’ if the joint venture 

relationship is the entity’s sole 

relationship to the employer (or if the 

co-joint venturer is both a joint venturer 

and a service provider); and extending 

relief to certain existing leases with an 

employer or an affiliate resulting from 

the plan’s acquisition of the underlying 

office or commercial space. In the 

Notice, the Department further proposed 

to: Increase the 5% ownership threshold 

for related persons (the ‘‘related’’ to test) 

to 10%, and increase the amount of 

assets that must be managed by an 

INHAM, from $50 million to $85 

million. 

In the Notice, the Department also 

offered several clarifications. The 

Department explained that PTE 96–23: 

provides relief for an INHAM to act on 

behalf of its own plan; does not allow 

an INHAM to direct a QPAM to 

negotiate specific terms of a deal that 

has already been generally agreed upon 

by the INHAM or an employer; and may 

be available for a continuing transaction 

(e.g., a loan or lease), notwithstanding a 

failure to satisfy one or more of the 

conditions of the exemption after the 

transaction is entered into. The Notice 

also amends the exemption in 

accordance with the Department’s views 

and expectations regarding the class 

exemption’s audit and written report 

requirements. For a more complete 

discussion of the changes made to the 

original exemption, see the notice of 

pendency. 

The notice of pendency gave 

interested persons sixty days (the 

comment period) to comment on the 

proposed amendment. While the 

Department did not receive any formal 

comments within the comment period, 

the Department was informally 

contacted and informed that some 

INHAMs may benefit to the extent the 

changes proposed for Part I(e) are made 

retroactive to the original effective date 

of PTE 96–23 (i.e., April 10, 1996). The 

Department, after having concluded that 

the amendment to Part I(e) is 

sufficiently protective of plans on a 

prospective basis, believes that such 

conclusion is similarly applicable to a 

decision in favor of amending Part I(e) 

on a retroactive basis. 

Accordingly, the Department has 

determined to make the amendment to 

Part I(e) retroactive to April 10, 1996. As 

noted above, the proposed amendment 

sets forth the Department’s views and 

expectations regarding the exemption 

audit and written report. Among other 

things, section I(h) of the class 

exemption now requires that the 

exemption audit and written report 

must be completed within six months 

following the end of the year to which 

the audit relates. To remove any 

uncertainty regarding the completion 

date of the first exemption audit and 

written report performed after the 

adoption of this amendment, the 

Department has determined to make the 

amended section I(h) effective as of 

December 31, 2011. Accordingly, for an 

INHAM that operates on a calendar year 

basis, the exemption audit and written 

report attributable to the INHAM’s 2011 

calendar year must be completed by 

June 30, 2012. Where an INHAM 

operates on a fiscal year basis, and such 

fiscal year begins after January 1, 2011 

(e.g. April 1, 2011), the exemption audit 

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