Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 73 /Thursday, April 16, 1998 / Notices 18945

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

2See letter from Adam W. Gurwitz, Vice

President, Legal and Corporate Secretary, CSE, to

Continued

entitled to receive Supplementary

Medical Insurance program coverage

under a state buy-in agreement in states

in which they reside. Completion of

Form RL–380–F is voluntary. One

response is received from each

respondent.

RRB Form RL–380–F is being revised

to include language required by the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

Minor editorial changes are also being

proposed. The completion time for

Form RL–380–F is estimated at 10

minutes per response. The RRB

estimates that approximately 600

responses are received annually.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To

request more information or to obtain a

copy of the information collection

justification, forms, and/or supporting

material, please call the RRB Clearance

Officer at (312) 751–3363. Comments

regarding the information collection

should be addressed to Ronald J.

Hodapp, Railroad Retirement Board, 844

North Rush Street, Chicago, Illinois

60611–2092. Written comments should

be received within 60 days of this

notice.

Chuck Mierzwa,

Clearance Officer.

[FR Doc. 98–10106 Filed 4–15–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7905–01–M

RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD

Proposed Collection; Comment

Request

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

which provides opportunity for public

comment on new or revised data

collections, the Railroad Retirement

Board (RRB) will publish periodic

summaries of proposed data collections.

Comments are Invited on

(a) Whether the proposed information

collection is necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the

agency, including whether the

information has practical utility; (b) the

accuracy of the RRB’s estimate of the

burden of the collection of the

information; (c) ways to enhance the

quality, utility, and clarity of the

information to be collected; and (d)

ways to minimize the burden related to

the collection of information on

respondents, including the use of

automated collection techniques or

other forms of information technology.

Title and Purpose of Information

Collection

Pay Rate Report; OMB 3220–0097

Under Section 2(a) of the Railroad

Unemployment Insurance Act, the daily

benefit rate for unemployment and

sickness benefits depends on the

claimant’s last daily rate of pay in the

base year. The procedures pertaining to

the use of a claimant’s daily pay rate in

determining the daily benefit rate are

prescribed in 20 CFR 330.

The RRB utilities form UI–1e, Request

for Pay Rate Information, to obtain

information from a claimant about their

last railroad employer and pay rate,

when it is not available from other RRB

records. Form UI–1e also explains the

possibility of receiving a higher daily

benefit rate if a claimant reports their

daily rate of pay for railroad work in the

base year. Completion is required to

obtain or retain benefits. One response

is requested of each respondent.

The RRB proposes to revise Form UI–

1e to add language required by the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. Nonburden impacting reformatting and

editorial changes are also proposed. The

completion time for Form UI–1e is

estimated at 5 minutes per response.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To

request more information or to obtain a

copy of the information collection

justification, forms, and/or supporting

material, please call the RRB Clearance

Officer at (312) 751–3363. Comments

regarding the information collection

should be addressed to Ronald J.

Hodapp, Railroad Retirement Board, 844

N. Rush Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611–

2092. Written comments should be

received within 60 days of this notice.

Chuck Mierzwa,

Clearance Officer.

[FR Doc. 98–10112 Filed 4–15–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7905–01–M

RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD

Agency Forms Submitted for OMB

Review

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44

U.S.C. Chapter 35), the Railroad

Retirement Board (RRB) has submitted

the following proposal(s) for the

collection of information to the Office of

Management and Budget for review and

approval.

SUMMARY OF PROPOSAL(S):

(1) Collection title: Supplement to

Claim of Person Outside the United

States.

(2) Form(s) submitted: G–45.

(3) OMB Number: 3220–0155.

(4) Expiration date of current OMB

clearance: 6/30/1998.

(5) Type of request: Extension of a

currently approved collection.

(6) Respondents: Individuals or

households.

(7) Estimated annual number of

respondents: 100.

(8) Total annual responses: 100.

(9) Total annual reporting hours: 17.

(10) Collection description: Under

Public Law 98–21, the Tier I or the

overall minimum portion of an annuity

and Medicare benefits payable under

the Railroad Retirement Act to certain

beneficiaries living outside the United

States may be withheld. The collection

obtains the information needed by the

Railroad Retirement Board to implement

the benefit withholding provisions of

P.L. 98–21.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR COMMENTS:

Copies of the form and supporting

documents can be obtained from Chuck

Mierzwa, the agency clearance officer

(312–751–3363). Comments regarding

the information collection should be

addressed to Ronald J. Hodapp, Railroad

Retirement Board, 844 North Rush

Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611–2092 and

the OMB reviewer, Laura Oliven (202–

395–7316), Office of Management and

Budget, Room 10230, New Executive

Office Building, Washington, D.C.

20503.

Chuck Mierzwa,

Clearance Officer.

[FR Doc. 98–10116 Filed 4–15–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7905–01–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Release No. 34–39847; File No. SR–CSE–

97–13]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Order

Approving Proposed Rule Change and

Amendment No. 1 by the Cincinnati

Stock Exchange, Inc. Relating to

Market Order Exposure Requirements

April 10, 1998.

I. Introduction

On November 13, 1997, the Cincinnati

Stock Exchange, Inc. (‘‘CSE’’ or

‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities

and Exchange Commission (‘‘

Commission’’) pursuant to Section

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

of 1934 (‘‘Act’’),1 a proposed rule

change which was subsequently

amended on February 25, 1998.2 The
18946 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 73 /Thursday, April 16, 1998 / Notices

Richard Strasser, Assistant Director, Division of

Market Regulation, Commission, dated February 25,

1998.

3Securities Exchange Act Release No. 39720

(March 4, 1998), 63 FR 11942 (March 11, 1998).

4 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).

5 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).

6 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).

7 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).

proposed rule change relating to market

order exposure requirements was

published for comment in the Federal

Register on March 11, 1998.3 No

comments were received on the

proposal. For the reasons discussed

below, the Commission is approving the

proposed rule change as amended.

II. Description of the Proposal

The CSE is proposing to amend its

Rule 11.9(u), Interpretation .01,

concerning customer market order

exposure requirements. Currently,

under Interpretation .01, with certain

exceptions, when the spread between

the national best bid and offer is greater

than the minimum price variation, a

member must either immediately

execute a market order at an improved

price or expose that order on the

exchange for a minimum of thirty

seconds in an attempt to improve the

price. The Exchange has determined,

based on its experience with specialists

quoting and trading in finer increments

(i.e., 1⁄16 point), that exposing a market

order for thirty seconds creates

additional risks to the specialists. The

Exchange therefore proposed to require

members, when the spread between the

national best bid and offer is greater

than the minimum price variation, to

either immediately execute a market

order at an improved price or expose the

market order on the Exchange for a

minimum of fifteen seconds (rather than

the current thirty seconds) in an attempt

to improve the price. The Exchange

believes that a fifteen second exposure

strikes a balance between the risks to

specialists and the need to provide

customers a meaningful opportunity for

price improvement.

III. Discussion

The Commission believes that the

proposed rule change is consistent with

the Act and the rules and regulations

thereunder applicable to a national

securities exchange, and, in particular

with Section 6(b)(5),4 which requires

that the rules of an exchange be

designed, among other things, to

promote just and equitable principles of

trade, to remove impediments to and

perfect the mechanism of a free and

open market and a national market

system, and, in general, to protect

investors and the public interest.

The Commission believes that,

although the Exchange is reducing the

amount of time a specialist must expose

an order for price improvement from

thirty seconds to fifteen seconds, the

proposal nevertheless benefits investors

by mandating that they receive price

improvement opportunities. The

Commission believes that providing

investors an opportunity for price

improvement facilitates order

interaction and enhances the execution

of customer orders, which is consistent

with Section 6(b)(5) of the Act.

IV. Conclusion

For the foregoing reasons, the

Commission believes that the proposed

rule change is consistent with the Act

and the rules and regulations

thereunder applicable to a national

securities exchange. In addition, in

approving this rule, the Commission

notes that it has also considered the

proposed rule’s impact on efficiency,

competition, and capital formation.5

It is therefore, ordered, pursuant to

Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,6 that the

proposed rule change (SR–CSE–97–13)

be, and hereby is, approved.

For the Commission, by the Division of

Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated

authority.7

Margaret H. McFarland,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 98–10045 Filed 4–15–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

Retirement Research Consortium

Request for Applications (RFA)

(Program Announcement No. SSA–

ORES–98–1)

AGENCY: The Office of Research,

Evaluation, and Statistics (ORES) of the

Social Security Administration (SSA).

ACTION: Request for applications for a

cooperative agreement to establish a

Retirement Research Consortium (RRC).

SUMMARY: As currently legislated, the

Old-Age and Survivors Insurance

(OASI) and Disability Insurance trust

funds are projected by the Social

Security Board of Trustees to be

insufficient by the year 2029 to pay all

benefits. Seventy-five percent of the

funds needed will be available but there

will be a shortfall of about twenty-five

percent of the funds needed to pay

benefits under present law. The manner

by which the Nation will react to or

avoid this shortfall is arguably the most

important policy decision of this

decade. As authorized under Section

1110 of the Social Security Act, SSA

announces the solicitation of

applications for a cooperative agreement

to create an RRC in order to inform the

public and policymakers about policy

alternatives and their consequences.

Initially, the Consortium will be

composed of two, university-based,

multi-disciplinary Centers. The Centers

will have a combined annual budget of

$2.5 million for the first year and $2

million for subsequent years. SSA

expects to fund these Centers for a

period of 5 years, contingent on an

annual review process and continued

funding availability.

Purpose

This announcement seeks

applications in support of the RRC that

will serve as a national resource

fostering high quality research,

communication, and education. The

Consortium’s program purpose is to

benefit the public through four tasks:

(1) Research and evaluation. The RRC

will be expected to plan, initiate, and

maintain a research program of high

caliber. There will be special emphasis

on retirement income policy and the

protection of low-income workers and

their families from economic loss due to

retirement, death, or disability as well

as issues related to long-range solvency.

The RRC will also describe and evaluate

retirement policies with an emphasis on

OASI-related programs.

(2) Dissemination. The RRC will

develop resources to inform the

academic community, policymakers,

and the public on issues concerning

retirement policy and economic security

during retirement.

(3) Training and education. The RRC

will develop a professional training

program including, but not limited to,

graduate and postgraduate education;

intramural exchanges; and formal

instruction of policymakers which

focuses on the issues of retirement

policy.

(4) Facilitation of data usage. The

RRC will facilitate research using SSA

administrative data.

DATES: The closing date for submitting

applications under this announcement

is July 15, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To

request an application kit, and for

general (nonprogrammatic) information

regarding the announcement or

application package contact: E. Joe

Smith, Grants Management Officer,

SSA, Office of Acquisition and Grants,

Grants Management Team, 1–E–4

Gwynn Oak Building, 1710 Gwynn Oak

Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland 21207–

5279. The fax number is (410) 966–