Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 32 / Tuesday, February 18, 1997 / Notices 7275

*The Affiliated Funds and the Third Party Funds

are collectively referred to herein as the Funds.

there were no expenses incurred by the

Plans or its participants or beneficiaries

from the Offering and the resulting

transactions; and (e) if no instructions

were received by the Plans trustee, the

Rights were sold.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

C.E. Beaver of the Department,

telephone (202) 219–8881. (This is not

a toll-free number.)

General Information

The attention of interested persons is

directed to the following:

(1) The fact that a transaction is the

subject of an exemption under section

408(a) of the Act and/or section

4975(c)(2) of the Code does not relieve

a fiduciary or other party in interest of

disqualified person from certain other

provisions of the Act and/or the Code,

including any prohibited transaction

provisions to which the exemption does

not apply and the general fiduciary

responsibility provisions of section 404

of the Act, which among other things

require a fiduciary to discharge his

duties respecting the plan solely in the

interest of the participants and

beneficiaries of the plan and in a

prudent fashion in accordance with

section 404(a)(1)(b) of the act; nor does

it affect the requirement of section

401(a) of the Code that the plan must

operate for the exclusive benefit of the

employees of the employer maintaining

the plan and their beneficiaries;

(2) Before an exemption may be

granted under section 408(a) of the Act

and/or section 4975(c)(2) of the Code,

the Department must find that the

exemption is administratively feasible,

in the interests of the plan and of its

participants and beneficiaries and

protective of the rights of participants

and beneficiaries of the plan;

(3) The proposed exemptions, if

granted, will be supplemental to, and

not in derogation of, any other

provisions of the Act and/or the Code,

including statutory or administrative

exemptions and transitional rules.

Furthermore, the fact that a transaction

is subject to an administrative or

statutory exemption is not dispositive of

whether the transaction is in fact a

prohibited transaction; and

(4) The proposed exemptions, if

granted, will be subject to the express

condition that the material facts and

representations contained in each

application are true and complete and

accurately describe all material terms of

the transaction which is the subject of

the exemption. In the case of continuing

exemption transactions, if any of the

material facts or representations

described in the application change

after the exemption is granted, the

exemption will cease to apply as of the

date of such change. In the event of any

such change, application for a new

exemption may be made to the

Department.

Signed at Washington, DC, this 12th day of

February, 1997.

Ivan Strasfeld,

Director of Exemption Determinations,

Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration,

U.S. Department of Labor.

[FR Doc. 97–3837 Filed 2–14–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–29–P

[Prohibited Transaction Exemption 97–12;

Exemption Application No. D–10014, et al.]

Grant of Individual Exemptions; Wells

Fargo Bank, N.A. (Wells Fargo), et al.

AGENCY: Pension and Welfare Benefits

Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Grant of individual exemptions.

SUMMARY: This document contains

exemptions issued by the Department of

Labor (the Department) from certain of

the prohibited transaction restrictions of

the Employee Retirement Income

Security Act of 1974 (the Act) and/or

the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the

Code).

Notices were published in the Federal

Register of the pendency before the

Department of proposals to grant such

exemptions. The notices set forth a

summary of facts and representations

contained in each application for

exemption and referred interested

persons to the respective applications

for a complete statement of the facts and

representations. The applications have

been available for public inspection at

the Department in Washington, D.C. The

notices also invited interested persons

to submit comments on the requested

exemptions to the Department. In

addition the notices stated that any

interested person might submit a

written request that a public hearing be

held (where appropriate). The

applicants have represented that they

have complied with the requirements of

the notification to interested persons.

No public comments and no requests for

a hearing, unless otherwise stated, were

received by the Department.

The notices of proposed exemption

were issued and the exemptions are

being granted solely by the Department

because, effective December 31, 1978,

section 102 of Reorganization Plan No.

4 of 1978 (43 FR 47713, October 17,

1978) transferred the authority of the

Secretary of the Treasury to issue

exemptions of the type proposed to the

Secretary of Labor.

Statutory Findings

In accordance with section 408(a) of

the Act and/or section 4975(c)(2) of the

Code and the procedures set forth in 29

CFR Part 2570, Subpart B (55 FR 32836,

32847, August 10, 1990) and based upon

the entire record, the Department makes

the following findings:

(a) The exemptions are

administratively feasible;

(b) They are in the interests of the

plans and their participants and

beneficiaries; and

(c) They are protective of the rights of

the participants and beneficiaries of the

plans.

Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (Wells Fargo)

Located in San Francisco, CA

[Prohibited Transaction Exemption (PTE) 97–

12; Exemption Application No. D–10014]

Exemption

Section I. Covered Transactions

The restrictions of section 406(a) of

the Act and the sanctions resulting from

the application of section 4975 of the

Code, by reason of section 4975(c)(1)(A)

through (D) of the Code, shall not apply,

effective October 1, 1995, to the

purchase or redemption of shares by an

employee benefit plan (the Plan), in

certain mutual funds that are either

affiliated with Wells Fargo (the

Affiliated Funds) or are unaffiliated

with Wells Fargo (the Third Party

Funds)*, in connection with the

participation by the Plan in the Wells

Fargo Portfolio Advisor Program (the

Portfolio Advisor Program).

In addition, the restrictions of section

406(b) of the Act and the sanctions

resulting from the application of section

4975 of the Code, by reason of section

4975(c)(1) (E) and (F) of the Code, shall

not apply, effective October 1, 1995, to

the provision, by Wells Fargo, of asset

allocation services to an independent

fiduciary of a participating Plan (the

Independent Fiduciary) or to a

participant (the Directing Participant) of

a Plan covered under the provisions of

section 404(c) of the Act (the Section

404(c) Plan) which may result in the

selection of portfolios by the

Independent Fiduciary or the Directing

Participant in the Portfolio Advisor

Program for the investment of Plan

assets.

This exemption is subject to the

conditions set forth below in Section II.

Section II. General Conditions

(a) The participation by each Plan in

the Portfolio Advisor Program is
7276 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 32 / Tuesday, February 18, 1997 / Notices

approved by an Independent Fiduciary

or Directing Participant, in the case of

a Section 404(c) Plan, and, with the

exception of Wells Fargo master and

prototype plans, no Plan investing

therein is sponsored or maintained by

Wells Fargo and/or its affiliates with

respect to their own employees.

(b) As to each Plan, the total fees that

are paid to Wells Fargo and its affiliates

constitute no more than reasonable

compensation for the services provided.

(c) With the exception of distributionrelated fees pursuant to Rule 12b–1 (the

12b–1 Fees) of the Investment Company

Act of 1940 which are offset, no Plan

pays a fee or commission by reason of

the acquisition or redemption of shares

in the Funds.

(d) The terms of each purchase or

redemption of shares in the Funds

remain at least as favorable to an

investing Plan as those obtainable in an

arm’s length transaction with an

unrelated party.

(e) Wells Fargo provides written

documentation to each Plan’s

Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant of its recommendations or

evaluations with respect to the

Affiliated Funds or the Third Party

Funds based upon objective criteria.

(f) Any recommendation or evaluation

made by Wells Fargo to an Independent

Fiduciary or Directing Participant is

implemented only at the express

direction of such Independent Fiduciary

or Directing Participant.

(g) The quarterly fee that is paid by a

Plan to Wells Fargo and its affiliates for

asset allocation and related services (the

Outside Fee) rendered to such Plan

under the Portfolio Advisor Program is

offset by all gross investment

management fees (the Advisory Fees)

and administrative fees (the

Administrative Fees) received from the

Affiliated Funds by Wells Fargo, its

affiliates, its former affiliates and

unrelated parties, including all 12b–1

Fees and Administrative Fees that are

paid by the Affiliated Funds to Stephens

Inc. and all 12b–1 Fees that Wells Fargo

receives from the Third Party Funds,

such that the sum of the offset and the

net Outside Fee will always equal the

Outside Fee and the selection of

Affiliated or Third Party Funds will

always be revenue-neutral.

(h) With respect to its participation in

the Portfolio Advisor Program, prior to

purchasing shares in the Affiliated

Funds and the Third Party Funds,

(1) Each Independent Fiduciary

receives the following written or oral

disclosures from Wells Fargo:

(A) A brochure describing the

Portfolio Advisor Program; a Portfolio

Advisor Program Account Agreement; a

description of the allocation models (the

Allocation Models); and a reference

guide/disclosure statement providing

details about the Portfolio Advisor

Program, the fees charged thereunder,

the procedures for establishing, making

additions to and withdrawing from

Portfolio Advisor Program Accounts

(the Accounts); and other related

information.

(B) A risk tolerance and goal analysis

questionnaire (the Questionnaire).

(C) Copies of applicable prospectuses

(the Prospectuses) for the Funds

discussing the investment objectives of

the Funds; the policies employed to

achieve these objectives; the corporate

affiliation existing between Wells Fargo

and its affiliates; the compensation paid

to such entities; disclosures relating to

rebalancing and reallocating Allocation

Models; and information explaining the

risks attendant to investing in the

Affiliated Funds or the Third Party

Funds.

(D) Upon written or oral request to

Wells Fargo, a Statement of Additional

Information supplementing the

applicable Prospectus, which describes

the types of securities and other

instruments in which the Funds may

invest, the investment policies and

strategies that the Funds may utilize,

including a description of the risks.

(E) A copy of the agreement between

the Plan and Wells Fargo relating to

such Plan’s participation in the Portfolio

Advisor Program.

(F) A written recommendation of a

specific Allocation Model together with

a copy of the Questionnaire and

response.

(G) Upon written request to Wells

Fargo, a copy of its investment advisory

agreement and sub-advisory agreement

pertaining to the Affiliated Funds as

well as its distribution agreement

pertaining to the Third Party Funds.

(H) Copies of the proposed exemption

and grant notice describing the

exemptive relief provided herein.

(I) Written disclosures of Wells

Fargo’s affiliation or nonaffiliation with

the parties who act as sponsors,

distributors, administrators, investment

advisers and sub-advisers, custodians

and transfer agents of the Third Party

Funds and the Affiliated Funds; and

(2) In the case of a Section 404(c)

Plan,

(A) Wells Fargo provides each

Directing Participant or Independent

Fiduciary (for dissemination to the

Directing Participant) with copies of the

documents described above in

paragraphs (h)(1) (A)–(I); and,

(B) In addition to the written

disclosures, an explanation will be

provided to the Independent Fiduciary,

upon request, by a Wells Fargo

representative (the Wells Fargo

Representative) regarding the services

offered under the Portfolio Advisor

Program, including the operation and

objectives of the Funds. Such

information will be given to either the

Independent Fiduciary or the Directing

Participant.

(3) If accepted as an investor in the

Portfolio Advisor Program, an

Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant is required to acknowledge,

in writing, to Wells Fargo, prior to

purchasing shares of the Funds that

such Independent Fiduciary or

Directing Participant has received

copies of the documents described in

paragraph (h)(1) of this Section II.

(4) With respect to a Title I Plan that

does not permit participant-directed

investments as contemplated under

section 404(c) of the Act, written

acknowledgement of the receipt of such

documents is provided by the

Independent Fiduciary (i.e., the Plan

administrator, trustee, investment

manager or named fiduciary, as the

recordholder of shares of the Funds.)

Such Independent Fiduciary will be

required to represent in writing to Wells

Fargo that such fiduciary is—

(A) Independent of Wells Fargo and

its affiliates;

(B) Capable of making independent

decisions regarding the investment of

Plan assets;

(C) Knowledgeable with respect to the

Plan in administrative matters and

funding matters related thereto; and

(D) Able to make an informed

decision concerning participation in the

Portfolio Advisor Program.

(5) With respect to a Section 404(c)

Plan or a Plan that is covered under

Title II of the Act, the Directing

Participant or the Independent

Fiduciary is required to acknowledge, in

writing, receipt of such documents and

represent to Wells Fargo that such

individual is—

(A) Independent of Wells Fargo and

its affiliates;

(B) Knowledgeable with respect to the

Plan in administrative matters and

funding matters related thereto; and,

(C) Able to make an informed

decision concerning participation in the

Portfolio Advisor Program.

(i) Subsequent to its participation in

the Portfolio Advisor Program, each

Independent Fiduciary receives the

following written or oral disclosures

from Wells Fargo with respect to

ongoing participation in the Portfolio

Advisor Program:

(1) Written confirmations of each

purchase or redemption transaction

involving shares of an Affiliated Fund
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 32 / Tuesday, February 18, 1997 / Notices 7277

or a Third Party Fund (including

transactions resulting from the

realignment of assets caused by a

change in the Allocation Model’s

investment mix and from periodic

rebalancing of Account assets).

(2) Telephone quotations of such

Independent Fiduciary’s Plan Account

balance.

(3) A periodic, but not less frequently

than quarterly, statement of Account

specifying the net asset value of the

Plan’s assets in such Account, a

summary of purchase, sale and

exchange activity and dividends

received or reinvested and a summary of

cumulative realized gains and/or losses.

(4) Semiannual and annual reports

that include financial statements for the

Affiliated Funds and the Third Party

Funds as well as the fees paid to Wells

Fargo and its affiliates.

(5) A quarterly newsletter or other

report pertaining to the applicable

Allocation Model which describes the

Allocation Model’s performance during

the preceding quarter, market

conditions and economic outlook and, if

applicable, prospective changes in

Affiliated Fund and Third Party Fund

allocations for the Allocation Model and

the reasons therefor.

(6) At least annually, a written or oral

inquiry from Wells Fargo to ascertain

whether the information provided on

the Questionnaire is still accurate and to

determine if such information should be

updated.

(7) At least annually, a termination

form (the Termination Form) as

described below in Section II(l) and (m).

(j) In the case of a Section 404(c) Plan,

the Independent Fiduciary will decide

whether the information described in

Section II(i) above is to be distributed

by Wells Fargo to the Directing

Participants of such Plan or whether the

Independent Fiduciary will receive this

information and then provide it to the

Directing Participants.

(k) If authorized in writing by the

Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant, the Plan is automatically

rebalanced on a periodic basis by Wells

Fargo to the Allocation Model

previously prescribed by the

Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant, if one or more Fund

allocations deviates from the Allocation

Model prescribed by the Independent

Fiduciary or Directing Participant.

(l) In rebalancing a Plan,

(1) Wells Fargo is bound by the

Allocation Model and is limited in the

degree of change that it can make to an

Allocation Model’s investment mix.

(2) Wells Fargo is authorized to make

changes in the mix of asset classes in a

Plan Account within a range of 0–15

percent (plus or minus) for Stock and

Bond Fund investments and within a

range of 0–30 percent (plus or minus)

for Money Market Fund investments

without obtaining the prior written

approval of the Independent Fiduciary

or Directing Participant.

(3) Wells Fargo may not change the

asset mix outside the authorized limits

unless it provides the Independent

Fiduciary or Directing Participant with

30 days’ advance written notice of the

proposed change and gives the

Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant time to elect not to have the

change made.

(4) Wells Fargo may not divide a Fund

sub-class unless it provides 30 days’

advance written notice to the

Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant of the proposed change and

gives such individual the opportunity to

object to the change.

(5) Wells Fargo may not replace a

Third Party Fund with an Affiliated

Fund.

(m) Although an Independent

Fiduciary or Directing Participant may

withdraw from the Portfolio Advisor

Program at any time, Wells Fargo will

provide such Independent Fiduciary or

Directing Participant with the

Termination Form, at least annually, but

in all cases where Wells Fargo changes

the asset mix outside of the current

Allocation Model, when a Fund subclass is to be divided, when Wells Fargo

determines that it is in the best interest

of the Plan or to use a Third Party Fund

instead of an Affiliated Fund and

whenever the Outside Fee is increased.

Wells Fargo will provide such written

notice to the Independent Fiduciary or

Directing Participant at least 30 days

prior to the implementation of the

change.

(n) The instructions for the

Termination Form must—

(1) State that the authorization is

terminable at will by the Independent

Fiduciary or Directing Participant,

without penalty to such, upon receipt

by Wells Fargo of written notice from

the Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant; and

(2) Explain that any of the proposed

changes noted above in paragraph (m) of

this Section, will go into effect if the

Independent Fiduciary or Directing

Participant does not elect to withdraw

by the effective date.

(o) Wells Fargo maintains, for a period

of six years, the records necessary to

enable the persons described in

paragraph (p) of this Section II to

determine whether the conditions of

this exemption have been met, except

that—

(1) A prohibited transaction will not

be considered to have occurred if, due

to circumstances beyond the control of

Wells Fargo and/or its affiliates, the

records are lost or destroyed prior to the

end of the six year period; and

(2) No party in interest other than

Wells Fargo shall be subject to the civil

penalty that may be assessed under

section 502(i) of the Act, or to the taxes

imposed by section 4975(a) and (b) of

the Code, if the records are not

maintained, or are not available for

examination as required by paragraph

(p) of this Section II below.

(p)(1) Except as provided in section

(p)(2) of this paragraph and

notwithstanding any provisions of

subsections (a)(2) and (b) of section 504

of the Act, the records referred to in

paragraph (o) of this Section II are

unconditionally available at their

customary location during normal

business hours by:

(A) Any duly authorized employee or

representative of the Department, the

Internal Revenue Service or the

Securities and Exchange Commission;

(B) Any fiduciary of a participating

Plan or any duly authorized

representative of such fiduciary;

(C) Any contributing employer to any

participating Plan or any duly

authorized employee representative of

such employer; and

(D) Any participant or beneficiary of

any participating Plan, or any duly

authorized representative of such

participant or beneficiary.

(p)(2) None of the persons described

above in paragraphs (p)(1)(B)–(p)(1)(D)

of this paragraph (p) are authorized to

examine the trade secrets of Wells Fargo

or commercial or financial information

which is privileged or confidential.

Section III. Definitions

For purposes of this exemption:

(a) The term ‘‘Wells Fargo’’ means

Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and any affiliate

of Wells Fargo, as defined in paragraph

(b) of this Section III.

(b) An ‘‘affiliate’’ of Wells Fargo

includes——

(1) Any person directly or indirectly

through one or more intermediaries,

controlling, controlled by, or under

common control with Wells Fargo.

(2) Any officer, director or partner in

such person, and

(3) Any corporation or partnership of

which such person is an officer, director

or a 5 percent partner or owner.

(c) The term ‘‘control’’ means the

power to exercise a controlling

influence over the management or

policies of a person other than an

individual.

(d) The term ‘‘Plan or Plans’’ include

Keogh plans (Keogh Plans), cash or
7278 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 32 / Tuesday, February 18, 1997 / Notices

deferred compensation plans (e.g., Plans

qualified under section 401(k) of the

Code), profit sharing plans, pension and

stock bonus plans, individual retirement

accounts (IRAs), salary reduction

simplified employee pension plans

(SARSEPs), simplified employee

pension plans (SEP–IRAs), custodial

account plans as described in section

403(b) of the Code (Section 403(b)

Plans), savings incentive match plans

for employees (SIMPLEs), and, in the

case of a Section 404(c) Plan, the

individual account of a Directing

Participant.

(e) The term ‘‘Independent Fiduciary’’

means a Plan fiduciary which is

independent of Wells Fargo and its

affiliates and is either——

(1) A Plan administrator, trustee,

investment manager or named fiduciary,

as the recordholder of shares of the

Funds of a Section 404(c) Plan;

(2) An individual covered by a Keogh

Plan which invests in shares of the

Funds;

(3) An individual covered under a

self-directed IRA, SEP–IRA or SARSEP,

SIMPLE or Section 403(b) Plan which

invests in shares of the Funds;

(4) An employee, officer or director of

Wells Fargo and/or its affiliates covered

by an IRA, a SEP–IRA or a SARSEP not

subject to Title I of the Act; or

(5) A Plan administrator, trustee,

investment manager or named fiduciary

responsible for investment decisions in

the case of a Title I Plan that does not

permit individual direction as

contemplated by Section 404(c) of the

Act.

(f) The term ‘‘Directing Participant’’ is

a participant in a Plan, such as a Section

404(c) Plan, who is permitted under the

terms of the Plan to direct, and who

elects to so direct the investment of the

assets of his or her account in such Plan.

For a more complete statement of the

facts and representations supporting the

Department’s decision to grant this

exemption, refer to the notice of

proposed exemption (the Notice) on

December 3, 1996 at 61 FR 64150.

Written Comments

The Department received one written

comment with respect to the Notice.

The comment was submitted by Wells

Fargo and is intended to clarify the

Notice in the following areas:

(1) Inclusion of Master and Prototype

Plans in the Portfolio Advisor Program.

Section II(a) of the General Conditions

states, in part, that no Plan investing in

the Portfolio Advisor Program may be

sponsored or maintained by Wells Fargo

and/or its affiliates. Wells Fargo wishes

to clarify that this exclusion does not

preclude the participation in the

Portfolio Advisor Program by a master

or prototype Plan sponsored by Wells

Fargo and/or its affiliates. Rather, Wells

Fargo points out that the exclusion is

limited to Plans sponsored by Wells

Fargo and its affiliates with respect to

their own employees.

(2) Substitution of Term ‘‘Wells Fargo

Representative’’ for ‘‘Wells Fargo

Personal Financial Officer.’’ Section

II(H)(2)(B) of the General Conditions

states that a Wells Fargo Personal

Financial Officer (the Personal Financial

Officer) will provide an explanation of

the services offered under the Portfolio

Advisor Program, including the

operation and objectives of the Funds to

an Independent Fiduciary or the

Directing Participant of a Section 404(c)

Plan, upon request. Wells Fargo requests

that the term ‘‘Personal Financial

Officer’’ be deleted and that the term

‘‘Wells Fargo Representative’’ be

substituted for that term because the

title ‘‘Personal Financial Officer’’ has

been changed. In addition, Wells Fargo

requests that the term ‘‘Wells Fargo

Representative’’ be substituted

throughout the Notice, particularly at

pages 64155 and 64157.

(3) Distribution of the Termination

Form. Section II(m) of the General

Conditions requires, in part, that Wells

Fargo provide an Independent Fiduciary

or a Directing Participant with a

Termination Form, at least annually,

during the first quarter of each calendar

year. Wells Fargo requests that this

condition be revised to require annual

distribution of the Termination Form

without any requirement that the

Termination Form be delivered during

the first calendar quarter of each year.

Wells Fargo states that the condition

would then be consistent with

Representation 27 of the Notice which

contains no reference to distribution of

the Termination Form within the first

quarter of each calendar year.

(4) Definition of the Term ‘‘Plan or

Plans.’’ Section III(d) of the Definitions

covers the types of Plans that may invest

in the Portfolio Advisor Program. Wells

Fargo requests that the term include

Section 403(b) Plans as well as

SIMPLEs. In addition, Wells Fargo

wishes to clarify that the term ‘‘cash or

deferred compensation plans’’ includes

Plans qualified under Section 401(k) of

the Code.

(5) Acronym for Wells Fargo

Institutional Trust Company N.A.

(WFITC). In Representations 3 and 7 of

the Summary of Facts and

Representations of the Notice, Wells

Fargo notes that the letters ‘‘I’’ and ‘‘T’’

of the acronym ‘‘WFITC’’ have been

transposed and should read ‘‘WFITC’’

instead of ‘‘WFTIC.’’

(6) Description of the Portfolio

Advisor Program. The first sentence of

Footnote 9 of the Summary of Facts and

Representations of the Notice states that

for any Allocation Model, not more than

30 percent of an investor’s assets can be

placed in the Money Market Funds.

Wells Fargo points out that this

sentence is only applicable to the

sample Allocation Model shown in

Table 4 of the Notice but it is

inapplicable to other Allocation Models

which may hold more than 30 percent

of their assets in Money Market Funds.

Accordingly, Wells Fargo requests that

this sentence be deleted and states that

the remaining text is accurate.

Thus, after giving full consideration to

the entire record, including the written

comment, the Department has made the

aforementioned changes to the Notice.

In addition, the Department has decided

to grant the exemption subject to the

modifications or clarifications described

above. The comment letter has been

included as part of the public record of

the exemption application. The

complete application file, as well as all

supplemental submissions received by

the Department, is made available for

public inspection in the Public

Documents Room of the Pension and

Welfare Benefits Administration, Room

N–5638, U.S. Department of Labor, 200

Constitution Avenue, N.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20210.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

Jan D. Broady of the Department,

telephone (202) 219–8881. (This is not

a toll-free number.)

GE Capital Investment Advisors, Inc.

Located in New York, New York

[Prohibited Transaction Exemption 97–13;

Exemption Application No. D–10318]

Exemption

GE Capital Investment Advisors, Inc.

(GECIA) and GECIA Holdings, Inc.

(Holdings) shall not be precluded from

functioning as a ‘‘qualified professional

asset manager’’ pursuant to Prohibited

Transaction Class Exemption 84–14

(PTE 84–14, 49 FR 9494, March 13,

1984) solely because of a failure to

satisfy section I(g) of PTE 84–14, as a

result of General Electric Company’s

ownership interest in them, including

any of their subsidiaries or successors

which provides investment advisory,

management or related services and is

registered under the Securities and

Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or

the Investment Advisors Act of 1940, as

amended; provided the following

conditions are satisfied:

(A) This exemption is not applicable

to any affiliation by GECIA or Holdings

with any person or entity convicted of
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 32 / Tuesday, February 18, 1997 / Notices 7279

any of the felonies described in part I(g)

of PTE 84–14, other than General

Electric Company; and

(B) This exemption is not applicable

with respect to any convictions of

General Electric Company for felonies

described in part I(g) of PTE 84–14 other

than those involved in the G.E. Felonies,

described in the Notice of Proposed

Exemption.

For a more complete statement of the

facts and representations supporting

this exemption, refer to the notice of

proposed exemption published on

November 25, 1996 at 61 FR 59912.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This exemption is

effective as of January 29, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

Ronald Willett of the Department,

telephone (202) 219–8881. (This is not

a toll-free number.)

Givens 401(k) Savings and Retirement

Plan (the Plan) Located in Chesapeake,

VA

[Prohibited Transaction Exemption 97–14;

Exemption Application No. D–10364]

Exemption

The restrictions of sections 406(a),

406(b)(1) and (b)(2) of the Act and the

sanctions resulting from the application

of section 4975 of the Code, by reason

of section 4975(c)(1)(A) through (E) of

the Code, shall not apply to the

purchase from the Plan of the Plan’s

interest in a group annuity contract (the

GAC Interest) by Givens, Incorporated, a

sponsor of the Plan; provided the

following conditions are satisfied:

(a) The sale is a one-time transaction

for cash;

(b) The Plan suffers no loss nor incurs

any expense in connection with the

sale; and

(c) The Plan receives a purchase price

of no less than the fair market value of

the GAC Interest as of the date of the

sale.

For a more complete statement of the

facts and representations supporting

this exemption, refer to the notice of

proposed exemption published on

December 17, 1996 at 61 FR 66331.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

Ronald Willett of the Department,

telephone (202) 219–8881. (This is not

a toll-free number.)

General Information

The attention of interested persons is

directed to the following:

(1) The fact that a transaction is the

subject of an exemption under section

408(a) of the Act and/or section

4975(c)(2) of the Code does not relieve

a fiduciary or other party in interest or

disqualified person from certain other

provisions to which the exemptions

does not apply and the general fiduciary

responsibility provisions of section 404

of the Act, which among other things

require a fiduciary to discharge his

duties respecting the plan solely in the

interest of the participants and

beneficiaries of the plan and in a

prudent fashion in accordance with

section 404(a)(1)(B) of the Act; nor does

it affect the requirement of section

401(a) of the Code that the plan must

operate for the exclusive benefit of the

employees of the employer maintaining

the plan and their beneficiaries;

(2) These exemptions are

supplemental to and not in derogation

of, any other provisions of the Act and/

or the Code, including statutory or

administrative exemptions and

transactional rules. Furthermore, the

fact that a transaction is subject to an

administrative or statutory exemption is

not dispositive of whether the

transaction is in fact a prohibited

transaction; and

(3) The availability of these

exemptions is subject to the express

condition that the material facts and

representations contained in each

application are true and complete and

accurately describe all material terms of

the transaction which is the subject of

the exemption. In the case of continuing

exemption transactions, if any of the

material facts or representations

described in the application change

after the exemption is granted, the

exemption will cease to apply as of the

date of such change. In the event of any

such change, application for a new

exemption may be made to the

Department.

Signed at Washington, D.C., this 12th day

of February, 1997.

Ivan Strasfeld,

Director of Exemption Determinations,

Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration,

U.S. Department of Labor.

[FR Doc. 97–3838 Filed 2–14–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–29–P

NATIONAL CAPITAL PLANNING

COMMISSION

Environmental Impact Statement;

Public Meeting; Availability

Washington, D.C. Convention Center,

Construction and Operation

AGENCY: National Capital Planning

Commission.

SUMMARY: The National Capital Planning

Commission (Commission) announces

the availability of a Draft Environmental

Impact Statement (DEIS) prepared by

the Commission and the District of

Columbia Government as part of the

requirements for Commission

consideration of a proposed Urban

Renewal Plan modification and site and

building plans for the proposed

construction and operation of a

Convention Center in Downtown

Washington, D.C. The DEIS analyzes

impacts on land use, the environment,

transportation and historic and cultural

resources as well as socio-economic

impacts of three proposed alternatives.

These alternatives include: (1) The

Mount Vernon Square site (bounded by

K, 7th, 9th and N Streets, NW.); (2)

Northeast No. 1 (generally between First

Street, NE. and the railroad track); and

(3) a No Action Alternative which

would result in no new construction.

In addition, a public meeting will be

held to elicit public comments on the

DEIS prior to the issuance of a final EIS.

That meeting will also serve as part of

the public consultation process required

by the National Historic Preservation

Act.

DATES: The public meeting will be held

on Tuesday, March 18, 1997 at the D.C.

Convention Center at 900 9th St. NW.,

beginning at 7:30 p.m. Parties interested

in speaking at that time, should contact

the Commission at (202) 482–7200.

Speakers will be recognized in the order

that they call. In addition, individuals

may sign up to speak at the door.

All written comments on issues

regarding the environmental review of

the proposed Convention Center must

be postmarked by March 31, 1997 and

sent to the National Capital Planning

Commission, 801 Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., Suite 301, Washington, D.C.

20576. Attention: Maurice Foushee,

Community Planner, Phone (202) 482–

7240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Please contact Ms. Sandra H. Shapiro,

General Counsel at (202) 482–7223.

Sandra H. Shapiro,

General Counsel, National Capital Planning

Commission.

[FR Doc. 97–3822 Filed 2–14–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7502–02–M

NUCLEAR REGULATORY

COMMISSION

[Docket No. 40–3453–MLA; ASLBP No. 97–

723–02–MLA]

Atlas Corporation; Designation of

Presiding Officer

Pursuant to delegation by the

Commission dated December 29, 1972,

published in the Federal Register, 37

F.R. 28710 (1972), and Sections 2.105,

2.700, 2.702, 2.714, 2.714a, 2.717 and