Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 185 / Friday, September 22, 2000 / Notices 57409

1The Financing Order limited Utility Money Pool

borrowing to annual outstanding amounts of $150

million for IES and $72 million for IPC.

2Alliant Energy Resources, Inc. (‘‘AER’’), a

subsidiary nonutility holding company of Alliant

Energy, maintains a separate commercial paper

program and bank credit facilities totaling $600

million to fund a separate nonutility money pool

(‘‘Nonutility Money Pool’’) maintained for the

benefit of Alliant Energy’s direct and indirect

nonutility subsidiaries other than Services. As

noted in the Financing Order, AER’s financing

arrangements are exempt from Commission review

under rule 52(b). Similarly, borrowings by members

of the Nonutility Money Pool also are exempt under

rule 52(b).

PLACE: San Diego, California, at the San

Diego Marriott Hotel, 333 West Harbor

Drive, in the Marina Ballroom D.

STATUS: October 2 (Closed); October 3

(Open).

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED: Monday,

October 2—9 a.m. (Closed)

1. Finance Performance.

2. Fiscal Year 2001 Integrated Financial Plan.

3. Establish/Deploy Process.

4. Fiscal Year 2001 Economic Value Added

(EVA) Variable Pay Program.

5. EEO Settlement Authority.

6. Personnel Matters.

7. Compensation Issues.

Tuesday, October 3—8:30 a.m. (Open)

1. Minutes of the Previous Meeting, August

28–29, 2000.

2. Remarks of the Postmaster General and

CEO.

3. Board of Governors Calendar Year 2001

Meeting Schedule.

4. Office of the Governors FY 2001 Budget.

5. Preliminary FY 2002 Appropriation

Request.

6. Capital Investments.

a. Champaign, Illinois, Processing and

Distribution Facility Expansion.

b. Stamford, Connecticut–New Springdale

Station Additional Funding.

7. Report on the San Diego District.

8. Tentative Agenda for the November 13–14,

2000, meeting in Washington, DC.

CONTACT PERSON FOR MORE INFORMATION:

David G. Hunter, Secretary of the Board,

U.S. Postal Service, 475 L’Enfant Plaza,

SW., Washington, DC 20260–1000.

Telephone (202) 268–4800.

David G. Hunter,

Secretary.

Tentative Agenda

Monday Session, October 2—9 a.m.

(Closed)—San Diego Marriott in Marina

Ballroom D

1. Financial Performance. (Mr. Richard

Strasser)

2. Fiscal Year 2001 Integrated Financial Plan.

(Mr. Richard Strasser)

3. Establish/Deploy Process. (Mr. Patrick

Donahoe)

4. Fiscal Year 2001 EVA Variable Pay

Program. (Ms. Yvonne Maguire)

5. Overview of the Sales Organization. (Ms.

Gail Sonnenberg)

6. Briefing on Advertising. (Mr. Allen Kane)

7. EEO Settlement Authority. (Ms. Mary

Anne Gibbons)

8. Personnel Matters.

9. Compensation Issues.

Tuesday Session, October 3—8:30 a.m.

(Open)—San Diego Marriott in Marina

Ballroom D

1. Minutes of the Previous Meeting, August

28–29, 2000.

2. Remarks of the Postmaster General and

CEO. (Mr. William Henderson)

3. Board of Governors Calendar Year 2001

Budget. (Chairman Dyhrkopp)

4. Office of the Governors FY 2001 Budget.

(Chairman Dyhrkopp)

5. Preliminary FY 2002 Appropriation

Request. (Mr. Richard Strasser)

6. Capital Investments.

a. Champaign, Illinois, Processing and

Distribution Facility Expansion. (Mr.

Danny Jackson)

b. Stamford, Connecticut—New Springdale

Station Additional Funding. (Ms. Diane

Van Loozen)

7. Report on the San Diego District.

8. Tentative Agenda for the November 13–14,

2000, meeting in Washington, DC

[FR Doc. 00–24589 Filed 9–20–00; 3:07 pm]

BILLING CODE 7710–12–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Release No. 35–27230]

Filings Under the Public Utility Holding

Company Act of 1935, as Amended

(‘‘Act’’)

September 15, 2000.

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 under the Act. 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 amendment(s) is/are available for

public inspection through the

Commission’s Branch 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

October 10, 2000, to the Secretary,

Securities and Exchange Commission,

Washington, DC 20549–0609, 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 the case of an attorney at

law, by certificate) should be filed with

the request. Any request for hearing

should identify specifically the issues of

facts 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 October 10, 2000, the

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

filed or as amended, may be granted

and/or permitted to become effective.

Alliant Energy Corporation, et al. (70–

9317)

Alliant Energy Corporation (‘‘Alliant

Energy’’) (formerly, Interstate Energy

Corporation), a registered holding

company, and its service company

subsidiary, Alliant Energy Corporate

Services, Inc. (‘‘Services’’), both located

at 222 West Washington Avenue,

Madison, Wisconsin 53703; and two of

its public utility subsidiary companies,

IES Utilities, Inc. (‘‘IES’’), Alliant Energy

Tower, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401 and

Interstate Power Company (‘‘IPC’’), 1000

Main Street S.E., P.O. Box 769,

Dubuque, Iowa 52004 (together,

‘‘Applicants’’), have filed a posteffective amendment under sections

6(a), 7, 9(a), 10, 12(b), 32 and 33 of the

Act and rules 43, 45, and 53 under the

Act to their application-declaration

previously filed under the Act.

By order dated December 18, 1998

(HCAR No. 26956) (‘‘Financing Order’’),

the Commission authorized, among

other things, Alliant Energy to issue and

sell from time to time through December

31, 2000, commercial paper and/or

notes at market based rates (‘‘ShortTerm Debt’’) in an aggregate principal

amount at any time outstanding of up to

$750 million. The Financing Order

authorized Alliant Energy to use $450

million of the proceeds of the ShortTerm Debt to fund its utility subsidiary

money pool (‘‘Utility Money Pool’’), and

to use up to $300 million of the

remaining Short-Term Debt to fund

investments in ‘‘exempt wholesale

generators’’ (‘‘EWGs’’) and ‘‘foreign

utility companies’’ (‘‘FUCOs’’), as those

terms are defined in sections 32 and 33

of the Act. In addition, the Financing

Order authorized Alliant Energy’s

operating company subsidiaries, IES

and IPC, to make borrowings under and

invest surplus funds in the Utility

Money Pool.1 Finally, the Financing

Order authorized Alliant Energy to enter

into guarantees, obtain letters of credit,

enter into expense agreements or

otherwise provide credit support

(‘‘Guarantees’’) for its nonutility

subsidiaries in an aggregate amount not

to exceed $600 million outstanding at

any one time.2

The Applicants now request that the

Commission modify certain aspects of

the Financing Order and extend the

authorization period from December 31,

2000 to June 30, 2004 (‘‘Authorization

Period’’). Specifically, Alliant Energy

57410 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 185 / Friday, September 22, 2000 / Notices

3Alliant Energy represents that all EWG and

FUCO investments will comply with rule 53(a)

under the Act.

4Alliant Energy’s other utility subsidiary,

Wisconsin Power & Light Company and Services

are members of the Utility Money Pool, but their

borrowings are exempt from Commission review

under rules 52 (a) and (b), respectively.

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.

3See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 42834

(May 26, 2000), 65 FR 36183 (June 7, 2000).

proposes to increase from $750 million

to $1 billion the aggregate amount of

this type of Short-Term Debt it may

have outstanding at any one time.

Further, Alliant Energy requests the

Commission to authorize the use of

proceeds from the Short-Term Debt to

fund the Utility Money Pool in an

aggregate principal amount outstanding

at any one time that will not exceed

$475 million in 2001 and $525 million

for the remainder of the Authorization

Period. Alliant Energy also requests that

the Commission eliminate the separate

$300 million limitation on the use of

Short-Term Debt proceeds to make

interim investments in EWGs and

FUCOs.3 Finally, IES and IPC propose,

through the Authorization Period, to

borrow from Alliant Energy and each

other, and to lend to each other, all

under the Utility Money Pool, in

outstanding principal amounts of up to

$150 million for IES and $100 million

for IPC.4

The Applicants state that all other

terms, conditions, limitations and

reporting obligations contained in the

Financing Order will apply to the

proposed transactions. Services will

continue to administer the Utility and

Nonutility Money Pools under the

existing terms of the money pool

agreements, as previously approved by

the Commission.

For the Commission by the Division of

Investment Management, pursuant to

delegated authority.

Margaret H. McFarland,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 00–24349 Filed 9–21–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

Sunshine Act Meeting

Notice is hereby given, pursuant to

the provisions of the Government in the

Sunshine Act, Pub. L. 94–409, that the

Securities and Exchange Commission

will hold the following meetings during

the week of September 25, 2000.

Closed meetings will be held on

Wednesday, September 27, 2000 at

11:00 a.m. and Thursday, September 28,

2000 at 3:00 p.m. An open meeting will

be held on Thursday, September 28,

2000 at 2:00 p.m. in Room 1C30.

Commissioners, Counsel to the

Commissioners, the Secretary to the

Commission, and recording secretaries

will attend the closed meetings. Certain

staff member who have an interest in

the matters may also be present.

The General Counsel of the

Commission, or his designee, has

certified that, in his opinion, one or

more of the exemptions set forth in 5

U.S.C. 552b(c)(4), (8), (9)(A) and (10)

and 17 CFR 200.402(a)(4), (8), (9)(A) and

(10), permit consideration for the

scheduled matters at the closed meeting.

The subject matters of the closed

meeting scheduled Wednesday,

September 27, 2000 will be:

Institution and settlement of

injunctive actions; and

Institution and settlement of

administrative proceedings and

enforcement nature.

The subject matter of the open

meeting scheduled for Thursday,

September 28, 2000 will be:

The Commission will hear oral

argument on an appeal by the Division

of Enforcement and the Office of the

Chief Accountant from an initial

decision of an administrative law judge

in the matter of KPMG Peat Marwick

LLP (‘‘Peat Marwick’’).

This case involves allegations that

certain circumstances impaired Peat

Marwick’s independence from an audit

client, Porta Systems Corp. (‘‘PORTA’’).

The law judge found that only one of

these circumstances—Peat Marwick’s

loan to PORTA’s president—impaired

Peat Marwick’s independence. Because

generally accepted auditing standards

(GAAS) require that auditors be

independent from audit clients, the law

judge concluded that Peat Marwick

violated the requirement in Rule 2–02 of

Regulation S–X that an accountant’s

report accurately ‘‘state whether the

audit was made in accordance’’ with

GAAS. The law judge also concluded

that, because Peat Marwick was not

independent at the time it certified

financial statements filed by PORTA as

part of its 1995 annual report, Peat

Marwick caused PORTA to violate

Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange

Act of 1934 and Rule 13a–1 thereunder.

The law judge did not conclude,

however, that Peat Marwick had

engaged in improper professional

conduct within the meaning of Rule

102(e) of the Commission’s Rules of

Practice. The law judge dismissed the

proceeding insofar as it alleged that Peat

Marwick engaged in improper

professional conduct under Rule 102(e)

and denied the Division’s request for

entry of a cease and desist order against

Peat Marwick under Section 21C of the

Exchange Act.

Among the issues likely to be argued

are the following:

1. Whether Peat Marwick’s loan to

PORTA’s president was the only

independence impairing circumstance

involved in this case;

2. Whether Peat Marwick acted

recklessly with respect to any

independence impairing circumstances

involved in this case; and

3. Whether, and what, sanctions are

appropriate remedies in this case.

For further information, contact Rada

L. Potts at (202) 942–0961.

The subject matter of the closed

meeting scheduled for Thursday,

September 28, 2000 will be:

Post argument discussion

At times, changes in Commission

priorities require alterations in the

scheduling of meeting items. For further

information and to ascertain what, if

any, matters have been added, deleted

or postponed, please contact:

The Office of the Secretary at (202)

942–7070.

Dated: September 20, 2000.

Jonathan G. Katz,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 00–24590 Filed 9–20–00; 3:48 pm]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Release No. 34–43284; File No. SR–Amex–

00–07]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Order

Approving Proposed Rule Change by

the American Stock Exchange LLC

Relating to the Amendment of Rule 126

on a Pilot Program Basis

September 12, 2000.

I. Introduction

On February 3, 2000, the American

Stock Exchange LLC (‘‘Amex’’ or

‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities

and Exchange Commission

(‘‘Commission’’), pursuant to section

19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act

of 1934,1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2 a

proposed rule change to implement a

six month pilot program for processing

electronically transmitted orders for

equities traded on the Exchange

(‘‘eQPrioritysm’’). The proposed rule

change was published for comment in

the Federal Register on June 7, 2000. 3

No comments were received on the