2428 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 10 / Thursday, January 15, 1998 / Notices

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

Proposed Collection; Comment

Request

Upon written request, copies available

from: Securities and Exchange

Commission, Office of Filings and

Information Services, 450 Fifth Street,

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

Extension:

Rule 15g–9, SEC File No. 270–325, OMB

Control No. 3235–0385.

Notice is hereby given that pursuant

to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

(44 U.S.C. §§ 3501 et seq.), the

Securities and Exchange Commission

(‘‘Commission’’) is soliciting comment

on the collection of information

described below. The Commission plans

to submit this existing collection of

information to the Office of

Management and Budget for extension

and approval.

• Rule 15g–9, Sales Practice

Requirements for Certain Low-Priced

Securities

Section 15(c)(2) of the Securities

Exchange Act of 1934 (the ‘‘Exchange

Act’’) authorizes the Commission to

promulgate rules that prescribe means

reasonably designed to prevent

fraudulent, deceptive, or manipulative

practices in connection with over-thecounter (‘‘OTC’’) securities transactions.

Pursuant to this authority, the

Commission in 1989 adopted Rule 15a–

6 (the ‘‘Rule’’), which was subsequently

redesignated as Rule 15g–9, 17 CFR

240.15g–9. The Rule requires brokerdealers to produce a written suitability

determination for, and to obtain a

written customer agreement to, certain

recommended transactions in lowpriced stocks that are not registered on

a national securities exchange or

authorized for trading on NASDAQ, and

whose issuers do not meet certain

minimum financial standards. The Rule

is intended to prevent the

indiscriminate use by broker-dealers of

fraudulent, high pressure telephone

sales campaigns to sell low-priced

securities to unsophisticated customers.

The staff estimates that approximately

270 broker-dealers incur an average

burden of 78 hours per year to comply

with this rule. Thus, the total burden

hours to comply with the Rule is

estimated at 21,060 hours (270 × 78).

Written comments are invited on: (a)

whether the proposed collection of

information is necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the

agency, including whether the

information shall have practical utility;

(b) the accuracy of the agency’s

estimates of the burden of the proposed

collection of information; (c) ways to

enhance the quality, utility, and clarity

of the information on respondents; and

(d) ways to minimize the burden of the

collection of information on

respondents, including through the use

of automated collection techniques or

other forms of information technology.

Consideration will be given to

comments and suggestions submitted in

writing on or before March 16, 1998.

Please direct your comments to

Michael E. Bartell, Associate Executive

Director, Office of Information

Technology, Securities and Exchange

Commission, 450 Fifth Street, N.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20549.

Dated: January 8, 1998.

Jonathan G. Katz,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 98–1037 Filed 1–14–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Rel. No. IC–22995; File No. 812–10794]

Goldman, Sachs & Co. et al.; Notice of

Application

January 8, 1998.

AGENCY: Securities and Exchange

Commission (‘‘SEC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’).

ACTION: Notice of application for an

order under Section 6(c) of the

Investment Company Act of 1940 (the

‘‘Act’’) granting relief from the

provisions of Sections 9(a), 13(a), 15(a)

and 15(b) of the Act and Rules 6e–

2(b)(15) and 6e–3(T)(b)(15) thereunder.

SUMMARY OF APPLICATION: Applicants

seek exemptive relief to the extent

necessary to permit life insurance

company separate accounts supporting

variable life insurance contracts (and

their insurance company depositors) to

invest in shares of the Goldman Sachs

Variable Insurance Trust or a ‘‘future

trust,’’ as defined below (together, the

‘‘Trust’’), when the following other

types of investors also hold shares of the

Trust: (1) A variable life insurance

(‘‘VLI’’) account of a life insurance

company that is not an affiliated person

of the insurance company depositor of

any VLI account, (2) the Trust’s

investment adviser (representing seed

money investments in the Trust), (3) a

life insurance company separate

account supporting variable annuity

contracts (a ‘‘VA account’’), and/or (4) a

qualified pension or retirement plan. As

used herein, a ‘‘future trust’’ is any

investment company (or investment

portfolio or series thereof), other than

the Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance

Trust, designed to be sold to VLI

accounts and to which Applicants or

their affiliates may in the future serve as

investment advisers, investment subadvisers, investment managers,

administrators, principal underwriters

or sponsors.

APPLICANTS: Goldman, Sachs & Co.

(‘‘Goldman Sachs’’), on behalf of itself

and its operating division Goldman

Sachs Asset Management (‘‘GSAM’’),

Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance

Trust, and Goldman Sachs Asset

Management International (‘‘GSAMI’’).

FILING DATE: The application was filed

on September 23, 1997 and amended on

December 18, 1997.

HEARING OR NOTIFICATION OF HEARING: An

order granting the application will be

issued unless the Commission orders a

hearing. Interested persons may request

a hearing on this application by writing

to the Secretary of the SEC and serving

Applicants with a copy of the request,

in person or by mail. Hearing requests

must be received by the Commission by

5:30 p.m. on January 30, 1998, and must

be accompanied by proof of service on

the Applicants in the form of an

affidavit or, for lawyers, a certificate of

service. Hearing requests should state

the nature of the requester’s interest, the

reason for the request and the issues

contested. Persons who wish to be

notified of a hearing may request

notification by writing to the Secretary

of the SEC.

ADDRESSES: Secretary, Securities and

Exchange Commission, 450 Fifth Street,

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

Applicants, c/o Michael J. Richman,

Goldman, Sachs & Co., 85 Broad Street,

New York, New York 10004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Keith E. Carpenter, Senior Counsel, or

Kevin M. Kirchoff, Branch Chief, Office

of Insurance Products, Division of

Investment Management, at (202) 942–

0670.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

following is a summary of the

application; the complete application is

available for a fee from the SEC’s Public

Reference Branch, 450 5th Street, N.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20549 (tel. (202) 942–

8090).

Applicants’ Representations

1. Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance

Trust is a business trust organized under

the laws of Delaware on September 16,

1997. It is registered under the Act as an

open-end management investment

company and is a series investment

company as defined by Rule 18f–2

under the Act. It is currently comprised

of nine investment portfolios. It issues

a separate series of shares of beneficial