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,
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 35 / Friday, February 21, 1997 / Notices 8059

Warburg, Pincus Counsellors, Inc.

advised that, in its view open-ending

applicant, either by having it remain a

stand-alone fund or by merger would

not be economically viable and

accordingly not in the best interest of

shareholders.

3. At a duly constituted Board

meeting held on November 4, 1996, the

Board resolved to liquidate all of

applicant’s assets and distribute on

November 22, 1996 all of the proceeds

of such liquidation, in the form of cash,

less an amount provided for debts and

liabilities of applicant, to shareholders

of record as of November 21, 1996. In

approving such action, the Board

considered a number of factors,

including possible tax consequences to

shareholders, the relatively small size of

applicant’s assets, the likelihood of

redemption requests following

conversion of applicant to an open-end

fund, the resulting high expense ratio of

the Fund, and the improbability that

sales of applicant’s shares could be

increased to raise applicant’s assets to a

more economically viable level.

4. On October 30, 1996, all issued and

unredeemed Preferred Shares of

applicant were redeemed in full in

accordance with the Articles of

Incorporation. As of November 21, 1996,

there were 2,729,862.351 Common

Shares of applicant outstanding, having

an aggregate net asset value of

$53,632,507 and a per share net asset

value of $19.65. Applicant had no other

classes of securities outstanding. On

November 22, 1996 applicant’s assets

were liquidated and distributed to its

Common shareholders.

5. In connection with its liquidation,

applicant incurred expenses of

approximately $23,000, consisting of

auditing and legal expenses. These

expenses were borne by applicant.

6. As of the date of the filing of the

application, applicant has no

shareholders, liabilities, or assets.

Applicant is not a party to any litigation

or administrative proceeding.

7. Applicant is not now engaged, nor

does it propose to engage, in any

business activities other than those

necessary for the winding-up of its

affairs.

8. Applicant intends to terminate its

existence under the laws of the State of

Maryland.

For the SEC, by the Division of Investment

Management, under delegated authority.

Margaret H. McFarland,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–4240 Filed 2–20–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

[Investment Company Act Release No.

22509]

Kansas Farm Bureau Life Variable

Account; 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: Kansas Farm Bureau Life

Variable Account.

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 February 3, 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, 2627 KFB Plaza, Manhattan,

Kansas 66503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Diane L. Titus, Paralegal Specialist, at

(202) 942–0584, or H. R. Hallock, Jr.,

Special Counsel, at (202) 942–0564

(Division or 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.

Applicants Representations

1. Applicant is a registered unit

investment trust under the Act. On

March 1, 1988, applicant filed a

notification of registration on Form N–

8A pursuant to section 8(a) of the Act,

and a registration statement on Form N–

8B–2 pursuant to section 8(b) of the Act.

On the same date, applicant filed a

registration statement on Form S–6

under the Securities Act of 1933.

Applicant’s registration statement was

never declared effective and no public

offering ever commenced.

2. Applicant has no security holders,

debts, liabilities or assets. Applicant is

not a party to any litigation or

administrative proceeding. Applicant is

not now engaged, nor does it propose to

engage, in any business activities other

than those necessary for the winding-up

of its affairs.

For the SEC, by the Division of Investment

Management, under delegated authority.

Margaret H. McFarland,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–4241 Filed 2–20–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

[Release No. 35–26668]

Filings Under the Public Utility Holding

Company Act of 1935, as Amended

(‘‘Act’’)

February 14, 1997.

Notice is hereby given that the

following filing(s) has/have been made

with the Commission pursuant to

provisions of the Act and rules

promulgated thereunder. All interested

persons are referred to the application(s)

and/or declaration(s) for complete

statements of the proposed

transaction(s) summarized below. The

application(s) and/or declaration(s) and

any amendments thereto is/are available

for public inspection through the

Commission’s Office of Public

Reference.

Interested persons wishing to

comment or request a hearing on the

application(s) and/or declaration(s)

should submit their views in writing by

March 10, 1997, to the Secretary,

Securities and Exchange Commission,

Washington, D.C. 20549, and serve a

copy on the relevant applicant(s) and/or

declarant(s) at the address(es) specified

below. Proof of service (by affidavit or,

in case of an attorney at law, by

certificate) should be filed with the

request. Any request for hearing shall

identify specifically the issues of fact or

law that are disputed. A person who so

requests will be notified of any hearing,

if ordered, and will receive a copy of

any notice or order issued in the matter.

After said date, the application(s) and/

or declaration(s), as filed or as amended,

may be granted and/or permitted to

become effective.

Northeast Utilities, et a1. (70–8507)

Northeast Utilities (‘‘NU’’), 174 Brush

Hill Avenue, West Springfield,

Massachusetts 01089, a registered

holding company, and its wholly owned

subsidiaries, Charter Oak Energy, Inc.