Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 223 / Tuesday, November 21, 2023 / Notices 81165 

11See supra note 3. 

12 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(iii). 

13 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). In addition, Rule 19b– 

4(f)(6) requires a self-regulatory organization to give 

the Commission written notice of its intent to file 

the proposed rule change at least five business days 

prior to the date of filing of the proposed rule 

change, or such shorter time as designated by the 

Commission. The Exchange has satisfied this 

requirement. 14 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

the proposed amendments do not 

impose any intra-market or inter-market 

burdens on competition because the 

amendments conform BX’s rules with 

the adopted rule amendments to shorten 

the standard settlement cycle for most 

broker-dealer transactions from T+2 to 

T+1.11 Specifically, the proposed 

amendments include changes to rules 

that specifically establish the settlement 

cycle as well as rules that establish time 

frames based on settlement dates, 

including for certain post-settlement 

rights and obligations. 

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 

Because the foregoing proposed rule 

change does not: (i) significantly affect 

the protection of investors or the public 

interest; (ii) impose any significant 

burden on competition; and (iii) become 

operative for 30 days from the date on 

which it was filed, or such shorter time 

as the Commission may designate, it has 

become effective pursuant to Section 

19(b)(3)(A)(iii) of the Act 12 and 

subparagraph (f)(6) of Rule 19b–4 

thereunder.13

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 shall institute proceedings 

to determine whether the proposed rule 

should be approved or disapproved. 

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 (https://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml); or 

• Send an email to rule-comments@

sec.gov. Please include file number SR– 

BX–2023–028 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–2023–028. 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 (https://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 

a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing also 

will be available for inspection and 

copying at the principal office of the 

Exchange. Do not include personal 

identifiable information in submissions; 

you should submit only information 

that you wish to make available 

publicly. We may redact in part or 

withhold entirely from publication 

submitted material that is obscene or 

subject to copyright protection. All 

submissions should refer to file number 

SR–BX–2023–028 and should be 

submitted on or before December 12, 

2023. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.14

Sherry R. Haywood, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2023–25671 Filed 11–20–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[SEC File No. 270–385, OMB Control No. 

3235–0441] 

Proposed Collection; Comment 

Request; Extension: Rule 18f–3 

Upon Written Request, Copies Available 

From: Securities and Exchange 

Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 

100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 

20549–2736 

Notice is hereby given that, pursuant 

to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) (‘‘Paperwork 

Reduction Act’’), the Securities and 

Exchange Commission (the 

‘‘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 (‘‘OMB’’) for 

extension and approval. 

Rule 18f–3 (17 CFR 270.18f–3) under 

the Investment Company Act of 1940 

(15 U.S.C. 80a–1 et seq.) exempts from 

sections 18(f)(1) and 18(f)(i), a fund that 

issues multiple classes of shares 

representing interests in the same 

portfolio of securities (a ‘‘multiple class 

fund’’) if the fund satisfies the 

conditions of the rule. In general, each 

class must differ in its arrangement for 

shareholder services or distribution or 

both, must pay the related expenses of 

that different arrangement, and must 

satisfy certain voting rights provisions. 

The rule includes one requirement for 

the collection of information. A 

multiple class fund must prepare, and 

fund directors must approve, a written 

plan setting forth the separate 

arrangement and expense allocation of 

each class, and any related conversion 

features or exchange privileges (‘‘rule 

18f–3 plan’’). Approval of the plan must 

occur before the fund issues any shares 

of multiple classes and whenever the 

fund materially amends the plan. In 

approving the plan, the fund board, 

including a majority of the independent 

directors, must determine that the plan 

is in the best interests of each class and 

the fund as a whole. 

The requirement that the fund 

prepare, and directors approve, a 

written rule 18f–3 plan is intended to 

ensure that the fund compiles 

information relevant to the fairness of 

the separate arrangement and expense 

allocation for each class, and that 

directors review and approve the 

information. Without a blueprint that 

highlights material differences among 

classes, directors might not perceive 

potential conflicts of interests when 


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81166 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 223 / Tuesday, November 21, 2023 / Notices 

1 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. 1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

they determine whether the plan is in 

the best interests of each class and the 

fund. In addition, the plan may be 

useful to Commission staff in reviewing 

the fund’s compliance with the rule. 

The following estimates of average 

burden hours are made solely for 

purposes of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995 1 and are not derived from 

a comprehensive or even representative 

survey or study of the cost of 

Commission rules and forms. 

Compliance with the information 

collection requirements of rule 18f–3 is 

necessary to obtain the benefit of the 

rule’s exemption. Responses to the 

collection of information requirements 

will not be kept confidential. 

TABLE 1—RULE 18f–3 PRA ESTIMATES

Internal annual burden Wage rate 1 Internal time costs 

ESTIMATES FOR RULE 18F–3 

Prepare and approve a written 18f–3 plan 2 .... 6 hours 3.

Average number of responses annually per 

registrant.

0.5 responses 3.

Total number of hours per registrant per year 4 3 hours 3 ................................. $484 (in-house attorney) ........

$4,770 (fund board of directors) 6.

$936,056 (in-house attorney). 

$4,612,590 (board of directors).7

Total number of registrants .............................. 967 4.

Total annual hour burden .......................... 2,901 hours 5 .......................... ................................................. $5,548,646.8

Notes: 

1. The Commission’s estimates of the relevant wage rates are based on salary information for the securities industry compiled by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association’s Office Salaries in the Securities Industry 2013. The estimated figures are modified by firm size, 

employee benefits, overhead, and adjusted to account for the effects of inflation. See Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, Report on Management & Professional Earnings in the Securities Industry 2013. 

2. The Commission estimates that each registrant prepares and approves a rule 18f–3 plan every two years when issuing a new fund fund or 

class or amending a plan (or that 484 of all 967 registrants prepare and approve a plan each year). 

3. This estimate assumes that each response will take 6 hours, requiring 3 hours per registrant per year (0.5 responses per registrant × 6 

hours per response = 3 hours per registrant). 

4. The Commission estimates that there are approximately 6,733 multiple class funds offered by 967 registrants. 

5. 967 registrants × 3 hours = 2,901 hours. 

6. The estimate for the cost of board time as a whole is derived from estimates made by the staff regarding typical board size and compensation that is based on information received from fund representatives and publicly available sources. The $4,770 per hour estimate for a fund 

board of directors was last adjusted for inflation through 2019, and assumes an average of 9 board members per board. 

7. This estimate assumes that two-thirds (1,934) of the internal hours are spent by in-house attorneys to prepare the plan (1,934 hours × $484 

estimated hourly rate = $936,056 per year) and that one-third (967) are spent by the fund’s board of directors to approve the plan (967 hours × 

$4,770 per hour = $4,612,590). 

8. $936,056 + $4,612,590 = $5,548,646. 

Written comments are invited on: (a) 

whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

Commission, including whether the 

information shall have practical utility; 

(b) the accuracy of the Commission’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 

by January 22, 2024. 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, and a person is not required to 

respond to, a collection of information 

under the PRA unless it displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. 

Please direct your written comments 

to: David Bottom, Acting Director/Chief 

Information Officer, Securities and 

Exchange Commission, c/o John 

Pezzullo, 100 F Street NE, Washington, 

DC 20549 or send an email to: PRA_

Mailbox@sec.gov. 

Dated: November 16, 2023. 

Sherry R. Haywood, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2023–25724 Filed 11–20–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–98934; File No. SR– 

NASDAQ–2023–044] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; The 

Nasdaq Stock Market LLC; Notice of 

Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of 

Proposed Rule Change To Amend The 

Nasdaq Options Market LLC Pricing 

Schedule at Options 7, Section 2 

November 15, 2023. 

Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the 

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 

(‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2

notice is hereby given that on November 

1, 2023, The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC 

(‘‘Nasdaq’’ or ‘‘Exchange’’) 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 Exchange. 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 Exchange proposes to amend The 

Nasdaq Options Market LLC (‘‘NOM’’) 

Pricing Schedule at Options 7, Section 

2. 

The text of the proposed rule change 

is available on the Exchange’s website at 

https://listingcenter.nasdaq.com/ 

rulebook/nasdaq/rules, at the principal 

office of the Exchange, and at the 

Commission’s Public Reference Room. 


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