Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 35 / Friday, February 21, 1997 / Notices 8057

PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY

CORPORATION

Request for Comment on Proposed

Collection of Information Under the

Paperwork Reduction Act; Locating

and Paying Participants

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of intention to request

OMB approval.

SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation intends to request that the

Office of Management and Budget

approve a collection of information

under the Paperwork Reduction Act.

The purpose of the information

collection is to enable the PBGC to pay

benefits to participants and beneficiaries

in plans covered by the PBGC insurance

program.

ADDRESSES: All written comments

should be addressed to: Office of

General Counsel, Pension Benefit

Guaranty Corporation, Suite 340, 1200 K

St. NW., Washington, D. C. 20005. The

comments will be available for public

inspection at the PBGC

Communications and Public Affairs

Department, Suite 240, 1200 K Street,

NW., Washington, DC 20005, between

the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. A copy

of the proposed collection can be

obtained, without charge, by writing to

the PBGC the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Marc L. Jordan, Attorney, Office of the

General Counsel, Suite 340, 1200 K

Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005,

202–326–4026 (202–326–4179 for TTY

and TDD). (These are not toll-free

numbers.) A copy of the proposed

collection can be obtained, without

charge, by writing to the PBGC at the

above address.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The PBGC

intends to request OMB approval of a

collection of information needed to pay

participants and beneficiaries who may

be entitled to pension benefits under a

defined benefit plan that has

terminated. The collection consists of

information participants and

beneficiaries are asked to provide in

connection with an application for

benefits. In addition, in some instances,

as part of a search for participants and

beneficiaries who may be entitled to

benefits, the PBGC requests individuals

to provide identifying information that

the individual would provide as part of

an initial contact with the PBGC. All

requested information is needed to

enable the PBGC to determine benefit

entitlements and to make appropriate

payments.

The PBGC estimates that it will

request that 62,720 individuals submit

applications for benefits and that the

associated burden is 30,360 hours (an

average of slightly less than 30 minutes

per individual). The PBGC further

estimates that 5,000 individuals will

provide the PBGC with identifying

information as part of an initial contact

and that the associated burden is 1,250

hours (15 minutes per individual).

Thus, the total estimated burden

associated with this collection of

information is 36,610 hours.

The PBGC solicits comments to:

(i) 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;

(ii) 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;

(iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and

clarity of the information to be

collected; and

(iv) Minimize the burden of the

collection of information on those who

are to respond, including through the

use of appropriate automated,

electronic, mechanical, or other

technological collection techniques or

other forms of information technology,

e.g., permitting electronic submission of

responses.

Issued at Washington, D.C., this 18th day

of February, 1997.

Martin Slate,

Executive Director, Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation.

[FR Doc. 97–4344 Filed 2–20–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7708–01–P

Agency Information Collection

Activities; Submission for OMB

Review; Comment Request; Qualified

Domestic Relations Orders Submitted

to the PBGC

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation has requested that the

Office of Management and Budget

(‘‘OMB’’) extend the approval for a

collection of information under the

Paperwork Reduction Act. The

information collection relates to model

forms contained in a PBGC booklet

(‘‘Divorce Orders & PBGC’’) providing

guidance on how to submit a proper

qualified domestic relations order to the

PBGC. The effect of this notice is to

advise the public of, and to solicit

public comment to OMB on, the

extension of approval of this collection

of information.

DATE: All comments must be submitted

to OMB by March 24, 1997.

ADDRESSES: All written comments

should be addressed to: Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs,

OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for the

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation,

725 17th Street, NW., Room 10235,

Washington, DC 20503. A copy of the

request for approval may be obtained by

writing to the PBGC Communications

and Public Affairs Department, suite

240, 1200 K Street, NW., Washington,

DC 20005, or by visiting that office

between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Copies of the booklet, ‘‘Divorce Orders

& PBGC,’’ may be obtained by calling

PBGC’s Customer Service Center at 1–

800–400–PBGC or writing to the PBGC

QDRO Coordinator, P.O. Box 19153,

Washington, DC 20036–0153. The

booklet also is available from the PBGC

Homepage on the World Wide Web, at

http://www.pbgc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

James L. Beller, Attorney, Office of the

General Counsel, Suite 340, 1200 K

Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005,

202–326–4020, ext. 3865 (202–326–4179

for TTY and TDD). (These are not tollfree numbers.)

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION: The

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44

U.S.C. Chapter 35) establishes policies

and procedures for controlling the

paperwork burdens imposed by Federal

agencies on the public. The Act vests

the OMB with regulatory responsibility

over these burdens, and OMB has

promulgated rules on the clearance of

collections of information by Federal

agencies.

On September 10, 1996, the PBGC

published a notice (61 FR 47774) of its

request for approval, on an emergency

basis, of a new collection of information

relating to guidance on the submission

of qualified domestic relations orders

(‘‘QDROs’’) to the PBGC. OMB approved

the collection of information with an

expiration date of March 31, 1997. On

November 25, 1996, the PBGC

published a notice (61 FR 59917)

informing the public of its intention to

seek a three-year extension of the

approval of this collection of

information and soliciting comments.

No comments were received.

The PBGC is a federal agency that

insures the benefits of nearly 42 million

working men and women in about

55,000 private-sector defined benefit

pension plans. A defined benefit

pension plan that does not have enough
8058 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 35 / Friday, February 21, 1997 / Notices

1The Articles of Incorporation of applicant

authorize applicant to issue 36,000,000 shares of

capital stock divided into 6,000,000 Preferred

Shares (par value $0.01 per share) (‘‘Preferred

Shares’’) and 30,000,000 Common Shares (par value

$.01 per share) (‘‘Common Shares’’) with varying

rights attached thereto. The Articles of

Incorporation of applicant also provide that all

issued and outstanding Preferred Shares of

applicant must be redeemed 10 years after the date

of the initial issuance of such shares, which date

was October 30, 1986.

money to pay benefits may be

terminated if the employer responsible

for the plan faces severe financial

difficulty, such as bankruptcy, and is

unable to maintain the plan. In such an

event, the PBGC becomes trustee of the

plan and pays benefits, subject to legal

limits, to plan participants and

beneficiaries.

The benefits of a pension plan

participant generally may not be

assigned or alienated. Title I of ERISA

provides an exception for domestic

relations orders that relate to child

support, alimony payments, or marital

property rights of an alternate payee (a

spouse, former spouse, child, or other

dependent of a plan participant). The

exception applies only if the domestic

relations order meets specific legal

requirements that make it a QDRO. The

PBGC reviews submitted domestic

relations orders to determine whether

the order is qualified before paying

benefits to an alternate payee.

The PBGC receives many inquiries on

the requirements for QDROs. Many

domestic relations orders, both in draft

and final form, do not meet the

applicable requirements. The PBGC

works with practitioners on a case-bycase basis to ensure that their orders are

amended to meet applicable

requirements. This process is timeconsuming for practitioners and for the

PBGC.

To simplify the process, the PBGC has

included model QDROs and

accompanying guidance in a booklet,

‘‘Divorce Orders & PBGC,’’ that

attorneys and other professionals who

are preparing QDROs for plans trusteed

by the PBGC may submit to the PBGC

after receiving court approval. These

models and the guidance are intended

to assist parties by making it easier to

comply with ERISA’s QDRO

requirements in plans trusteed by the

PBGC.

The requirements for submitting a

QDRO are established by statute. The

model QDROs and accompanying

guidance do not create any additional

requirements and will result in a

reduction of the statutory burden. The

PBGC estimates that it will receive 333

QDROs each year from prospective

alternate payees; that the average

burden of preparing a QDRO with the

assistance of the guidance and model

QDROs in PBGC’s booklet will be 1⁄4

hour of the alternate payee’s time and

$400 in professional fees if the alternate

payee hires an attorney or other

professional to prepare the QDRO, or 10

hours of the alternate payee’s time if the

alternate payee prepares the QDRO

without hiring an attorney or other

professional; and that the total annual

burden will be 113 hours and $132,000.

Issued at Washington, DC., this 14th day of

February 1997.

Martin Slate,

Executive Director, Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation.

[FR Doc. 97–4306 Filed 2–20–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4163–19–P

POSTAL RATE COMMISSION

Sunshine Act Meeting; Notice of

Commission Visits

February 19, 1997.

Notice is hereby given that members

of the Postal Rate Commission and

certain advisory staff members will visit

the facilities of the following businesses

to observe their operations:

R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co. Levittown

Distribution Facility, Levittown,

Pennsylvania on March 5, 1997.

R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co. Lancaster

East Division (printing plant) and R.R.

Donnelley & Sons Co. Lancaster

Fulfillment Services, Lancaster,

Pennsylvania on March 6, 1997.

Reports of these visits will be placed

on file in the Commission’s Docket

Room. For further information contact

Margaret P. Crenshaw, Secretary of the

Commission at 202–789–6840.

Margaret P. Crenshaw,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–4533 Filed 2–19–97; 3:57 pm]

BILLING CODE 7710–FW–P

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Investment Company Act Release No.

22510; 811–4784]

Counsellors Tandem Securities Fund,

Inc.; Notice of Application

February 13, 1997.

AGENCY: Securities and Exchange

Commission (‘‘SEC’’).

ACTION: Notice of application for

deregistration under the Investment

Company Act of 1940 (the ‘‘Act’’).

APPLICANT: Counsellors Tandem

Securities Fund, Inc. (formerly

Counselors Dual Purpose Utility Fund,

Inc.).

RELEVANT ACT SECTION: Section 8(f).

SUMMARY OF APPLICATION: Applicant

requests an order declaring that it has

ceased to be an investment company.

FILING DATE: The application was filed

on January 28, 1997.

HEARING OR NOTIFICATION OF HEARING: An

order granting the application will be

issued unless the SEC orders a hearing.

Interested persons may request a

hearing by writing to the SEC’s

Secretary and serving applicant with a

copy of the request, personally or by

mail. Hearing requests should be

received by the SEC by 5:30 p.m. on

March 10, 1997, and should be

accompanied by proof of service on the

applicant, in the form of an affidavit or,

for lawyers, a certificate of service.

Hearing requests should state the nature

of the writer’s interest, the reason for the

request, and the issues contested.

Persons may request notification of a

hearing by writing to the SEC’s

Secretary.

ADDRESSES: Secretary, SEC, 450 Fifth

Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549.

Applicant, 466 Lexington Avenue, New

York, New York 10017–3147.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Diane L. Titus, Paralegal Specialist, at

(202) 942–0584, or Mary Kay Frech,

Branch Chief, at (202) 942–0564

(Division of Investment Management,

Office of Investment Company

Regulation).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

following is a summary of the

application. The complete application

may be obtained for a fee from the SEC’s

Public Reference Branch.

Applicant’s Representations

1. Applicant is a closed-end,

diversified management investment

company organized as a Maryland

corporation.1 On July 31, 1986 applicant

registered as an investment company

under the Act. On that same date,

applicant filed a registration statement

on Form N–2 under section 8(b) of the

Act and the Securities Act of 1933. The

registration statement became effective

on October 23, 1986 and the initial

public offering began thereafter.

2. On July 22, 1996, without taking

formal action, applicant’s Board of

Directors discussed various options

effectuating the terms of applicant’s

Articles of Incorporation, which

required that on or prior to December

31, 1996, applicant must either (1)

liquidate, or (2) call a special meeting of

shareholders to consider converting to

open-end status. Applicant’s adviser,