This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

27908

Vol. 60, No. 102

Friday, May 26, 1995

FEDERAL RETIREMENT THRIFT

INVESTMENT BOARD

5 CFR Part 1601

Participant Choices of Investment

Funds

AGENCY: Federal Retirement Thrift

Investment Board.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: The Executive Director of the

Federal Retirement Thrift Investment

Board (Board) is publishing proposed

amendments to interim regulations on

participants’ choices of Thrift Savings

Plan (TSP) investment funds. The

proposed amendments, to subparts A

and C of 5 CFR Part 1601, reflect

changes in the methods by which TSP

participants may request interfund

transfers, including use of an automated

voice response system to make, change,

or cancel interfund transfer requests.

The proposed amendments also remove

the investment and interfund transfer

restrictions on accounts of participants

who withdraw their accounts in one or

more equal payments. Finally, the

proposed amendments increase the

number of interfund transfers permitted

per year from four (4) to twelve (12). No

amendments are proposed to subpart B.

DATES: Comments must be received on

or before June 26, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to:

David L. Hutner, (202) 942–1661.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Interim

rules governing participants’ choices of

investment funds were originally

published in the Federal Register on

March 29, 1990, as an amendment to

title 5 of the Code of Federal

Regulations, adding Part 1601,

Participants’ Choice of Investment

Funds. Revised interim rules were

published in the Federal Register on

January 7, 1991, primarily to implement

section 3 of the Thrift Savings Plan

Technical Amendments Act of 1990

(TSPTAA), which removed investment

restrictions that had been in place prior

to the effective date of the TSPTAA. On

December 28, 1994, the Board published

a proposed rule in the Federal Register

(59 FR 66796) setting forth changes in

the procedures by which TSP

participants may make, change, or

cancel interfund transfer requests. The

Board did not receive any comments on

the proposed regulations. However, the

December 28, 1994, proposed

amendments to the interim rules are

being withdrawn and replaced by these

proposed amendments.

The present proposed rules, when

adopted, will amend the interim rules

by making changes to the procedures by

which TSP participants may make,

change, or cancel interfund transfer

requests. The primary change in the

procedures involves the availability of

the automated voice response system,

known as the ‘‘ThriftLine,’’ for

participants to make interfund transfer

requests over the telephone. The

ThriftLine provides services to

participants in addition to enabling

them to make interfund transfer

requests, but those other functions are

not addressed in these regulations.

These proposed regulations also address

two policy changes which have been

adopted by the Board since the

publication of the previous proposed

amendments. The present proposed

rules will amend the interim rules by

removing the investment and interfund

transfer restrictions on accounts of

participants who withdraw their

accounts in one or more equal

payments. Such participants were

previously required to invest their entire

accounts in the G Fund. Finally, the

proposed amendments will amend the

interim rules by increasing the number

of interfund transfers permitted per year

from four (4) to twelve (12).

Section-by-Section Analysis

Subpart A

The proposed rule amends § 1601.1,

which contains the definitions

applicable to Part 1601, by revising one

definition and adding three new ones.

The definition of ‘‘Interfund transfer

request’’ has been amended to reflect

that properly completing and submitting

to the TSP recordkeeper an Interfund

Transfer Request (Form TSP–30) is no

longer the exclusive method to request

an interfund transfer. A request may

also be made by proper entry of the

transaction on the automated ThriftLine.

Definitions of ‘‘Board’’ (the Federal

Retirement Thrift Investment Board),

‘‘Acknowledgment of Risk,’’ and

‘‘ThriftLine’’ have been added. Under 5

U.S.C. 8439(d), all participants who

invest in the Common Stock Index

Investment Fund (C Fund) or the Fixed

Income Investment Fund (F Fund) must

sign an acknowledgment that the

investment is made at the participant’s

own risk and that the participant is not

protected against losses on the

investment or guaranteed a return on

the investment. Under § 1601.5 (as

amended by the proposed rule), the

procedures for satisfying the

requirements of 5 U.S.C. 8439(d) have

been changed.

Instructions for use of the ThriftLine

to make interfund transfer requests on

the telephone will be widely available

to all TSP participants.

Subpart B

Subpart B is unchanged by the

proposed amendment.

Subpart C

The proposed amendments will

remove § 1601.4(c) which requires that

the account balance of a participant who

withdraws his or her account balance in

one or more equal payments be invested

entirely in the G Fund. This change will

allow a participant who receives equal

payments to invest the remaining

account balance in any of the TSP

investment funds in which to invest the

portion of the account that is remaining

and to make interfund transfers under

the same rules applicable to other TSP

participants. The remainder of § 1601.4

is unchanged by the proposed

amendment.

Proposed § 1601.5 sets forth the

methods by which interfund transfer

requests can be made. Section 1601.5(a)

contains the general rules that interfund

transfer requests may now be made

either by submission of a properly

completed Form TSP–30 or by entry of

the transaction on the ThriftLine.

Section 1601.5(a) also states explicitly

that Forms TSP–30 generated prior to

October 1990 cannot be used to make

interfund transfer requests. Such forms

can be readily identified because they

were preprinted with participants’

names and addresses, described

restrictions on the amounts that could

be invested in the C Fund and F Fund,

and specified a particular effective date

for the interfund transfer. Similarly,

Form TSP–30–S, which was designed

for use only by certain FERS
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 102 / Friday, May 26, 1995 / Proposed Rules 27909

participants to make interfund transfers

effective as of the end of December

1990, cannot be used to make interfund

transfer requests.

Section 1601.5(b) retains the rule that

interfund transfer requests must include

designations of percentages to be

invested in each of the TSP investment

funds in multiples of 5 percent that total

100 percent. This requirement applies

regardless of whether the interfund

transfer request is entered on the

ThriftLine or is submitted on Form

TSP–30. Section 1601.5 also retains

from the previous rule the admonition

that an interfund transfer request does

not affect future contributions made by

a participant. If a participant wishes to

change the allocation of future

contributions among the investment

funds, that can only be accomplished by

submission to his or her employing

agency of a properly completed Election

Form (TSP–1) during a TSP Open

Season. The rules for submission of

Election Forms are set forth in Subpart

B, which is unchanged by the

amendments.

Section 1601.5(c) retains the previous

rule that percentages elected by the

participant are applied to the account

balance as of the effective date of the

interfund transfer, which is established

as provided in § 1601.6. The percentages

are applied to the account in the same

manner, whether submitted on Form

TSP–30 or entered on the ThriftLine.

Section 1601.5(d) contains significant

changes to the procedures governing the

acknowledgment of risk required by 5

U.S.C. 8439(d). Under the previous rule,

all participants requesting an interfund

transfer were required to sign the

acknowledgment of risk section on

Form TSP–30 each time the form was

submitted, unless the request was for

investment of 100% of the account

balance in the Government Securities

Investment Fund (G Fund). The

proposed rule is premised on a

determination that each participant

should only be required to acknowledge

investment risk once. To date,

participants who have invested any

portion of their accounts in the C Fund

or the F Fund at any time must have

already signed an acknowledgment of

risk, either on Form TSP–1 or on Form

TSP–30, since those are the only two

methods by which money could have

been invested in the C Fund or F Fund.

Accordingly, all participants whose

account records indicate that they have

invested in the C Fund or F Fund

(regardless of whether they currently

have money in those funds) are deemed

to have satisfied the requirements of 5

U.S.C. 8439(d), and are permitted to use

the ThriftLine to request interfund

transfers without further

acknowledgment of investment risk.

Participants who have never invested in

the C Fund or F Fund, and therefore

have never been required to sign an

acknowledgment of risk, will not be

permitted to make interfund transfers on

the ThriftLine until the TSP

recordkeeper receives a signed

acknowledgment of risk form from

them. An Acknowledgment or Risk For

ThriftLine Interfund Transfers (Form

TSP–32) has been created for this

purpose. The proposed rule treats

participants who may continue to make

their interfund transfer requests on

paper, using Form TSP–30, consistently

with those who use the ThirftLine.

Since it is only necessary to

acknowledge investment risk once,

participants who use Form TSP–30 and

fail to sign the acknowledgment of risk

section will no longer have their forms

rejected if they have previously invested

any portion of their TSP account in the

C Fund or F Fund, or if the TSP

recordkeeper has received a properly

completed Form TSP–32. Form TSP–30

has been amended to delete the

statement that all forms requesting

investment in the C Fund or F Fund will

be rejected if the acknowledgment of

risk section of the form is not signed.

The proposed rule retains the

requirement that the form itself (as

opposed to the acknowledgment of risk

section) must be signed and dated in all

cases.

It is anticipated that some participants

may continue to sign the

acknowledgment of risk section even

though they have already invested in

the C Fund and/or F Fund and therefore

do not need to sign again. This is not an

area of concern to the Board, however,

because the superfluous signature does

not impose a significant burden on

participants. Any participant who

submits Form TSP–30 requesting

investment in the C Fund or F Fund and

is uncertain as to whether he or she has

ever invested in those funds should sign

the acknowledgment of risk section of

the form to eliminate the possibility that

the form will be rejected for lack of an

acknowledgment of risk. For purposes

of determining whether participants’

interfund transfer requests should be

processed, the TSP recordkeeping

system will identify whether a

participant has ever invested in the C

Fund or F Fund, even if the participant

subsequently transferred his or her

entire account to the G Fund.

Section 1601.5(e) of the proposed

rule, which addresses only use of Form

TSP–30, remains virtually unchanged in

substance from the previous rule, except

that paragraph (2) has been amended to

reflect the rules set forth in § 1601.5(d).

The other changes to this section are

designed to consolidate the language for

ease of reading rather than to make

substantive changes to the procedures

for processing interfund transfer

requests. In particular, the language ‘‘or

otherwise is not properly completed in

accordance with the instructions on the

form’’ in proposed § 1601.5(e)(1) is a

substitute for several of the specific

bases for rejection of forms that were

included in the previous rule. Since the

instructions on Form TSP–30 include

requirements that had been reflected in

separate paragraphs of the previous rule,

those paragraphs have been eliminated

to avoid redundancy.

Section 1601.5(f) has not been

changed in substance.

Section 1601.6 of the proposed rule

governs the timing and effective dates of

interfund transfers. The proposed rule

sets forth the order of precedence with

respect to multiple transfer requests and

cancellations using the ThriftLine and/

or Form TSP–30. Although the proposed

rule permits interaction between entry

of transactions on the ThriftLine and on

paper (i.e., by Form TSP–30 or written

cancellations), the Board notes that the

rules governing that interaction are, in

some cases, complex; therefore,

participants are encouraged to avoid, if

possible, mixing the two methods. The

ThriftLine provides the most

expeditious and certain method of

entering all transactions, because it

eliminates any delays caused by mail

delivery and processing of documents.

Section 1601.6(a) of the proposal

allows participants to make up to twelve

interfund transfers per calendar year

rather than the four interfund transfers

per calendar year that were previously

allowed.

Section 1601.6(b) contains the general

rule governing the date on which an

interfund transfer will be made

effective, based on the date of receipt of

the interfund transfer request. In the

case of a request made on the

ThriftLine, the date of receipt is the date

the transaction is entered on the

ThriftLine. In the case of a request made

by Form TSP–30, the date of receipt is

the date the form is delivered to the TSP

recordkeeper. Apart from the fact that

interfund transfer requests may now be

received by two methods, the general

rule adopted by this rule is identical to

the previous rule: requests received on

or before the 15th of a month (or next

business day if the 15th is not a

business day) are effective as of the end

of the month of receipt; requests

received after the 15th of a month are

effective as of the end of the month

following receipt.
27910 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 102 / Friday, May 26, 1995 / Proposed Rules

Section 1601.6(c) sets forth the rules

governing receipt of more than one

interfund transfer request during the

same one-month period after the 15th of

one month (or next business day) and

on or before the 15th of the next month.

The basic rule, set forth in

§ 1601.6(c)(1), is that the request with

the latest date of signature (if Form

TSP–30 is used) or entry (if the

ThriftLine is used) controls. Thus, if a

properly completed Form TSP–30 was

dated June 17 and received by NFC on

June 25, and another interfund transfer

request was entered on the ThriftLine

on June 23, the ThriftLine transaction

would supersede the request on Form

TSP–30, because the June 23 ThriftLine

transaction was later than the June 17

signature on the Form TSP–30.

The rules are based on the

presumption that, when a participant

enters a new transfer on the ThriftLine,

he or she intends to supersede a form

that was mailed on an earlier date. The

rules also presume that a participant

intends a later ThriftLine entry to

supersede an earlier one. Similarly,

where a Form TSP–30 is dated one day

and another Form TSP–30 is dated on

a subsequent day, it is presumed that

the participant intends to override the

earlier dated form, regardless of the

order in which the forms may be

received by the TSP recordkeeper,

because that order can be affected by the

uncertainties of mail delivery.

Therefore, under the proposed rules,

the date of receipt of Form TSP–30

determines only the effective date for

the interfund transfer that is requested.

A Form TSP–30 dated June 8 and

received by the TSP recordkeeper on

June 12 cannot be superseded by a

subsequent form dated June 13 but not

received by the recordkeeper until June

17. The former will be processed as of

the end of June; the latter as of the end

of July. If participants using Form TSP–

30 wish to control the month end for

which a transfer is to be made effective,

it is their responsibility to ensure that

the form is actually delivered to NFC

during the proper one-month period.

This can be accomplished in most cases

by allowing sufficient time to

accommodate potential mail delays or

by using overnight mail (or other

guaranteed forms of delivery).

Participants can also control the

effective date of their interfund transfers

by using the ThriftLine rather than Form

TSP–30, because the ThriftLine

provides immediate acceptance of

properly entered interfund transfer

requests.

Section 1601.6(c)(2) of the proposal

provides more detailed rules governing

receipt of multiple interfund transfer

requests having the same date. Section

1601.6(c)(2)(i) provides that, as between

a ThriftLine request and a Form TSP–30

dated the same day, the ThriftLine entry

will be made effective. Thus, the

ThriftLine entry will supersede a Form

TSP–30 dated the same day.

Section 1601.6(c)(2)(ii) provides that

as between two transactions entered the

same day on the ThriftLine, the one

entered later in the day supersedes the

earlier request.

Finally § 1601.6(c)(2)(iii) provides

that if more than one Form TSP–30 has

the same date signed, then all shall be

rejected, unless they contain an

identical percentage allocation among

the investment funds, in which case that

allocation will be accepted. Unlike

interfund transfer requests entered on

the ThriftLine, where Forms TSP–30

bear the same date but different

allocation elections, the Board has no

way to determine which form represents

the participant’s latest request. What is

most important to participants is that

there be uniform rules that can be

consistently applied in cases involving

multiple interfund transfer requests.

The proposed rule accomplishes that

purpose.

Section 1601.6(c)(3) sets forth the

rules for determining the date of an

interfund transfer request. Under

§ 1601.6(c)(3)(i), if made on the

ThriftLine, the date of the interfund

transfer request is the date of the

telephone entry of the transaction.

Under § 1601.6(c)(3)(ii), if the interfund

transfer request is made on Form TSP–

30, the date of the request is the

signature date entered on the form by

the participant. As previously

discussed, the date of receipt of the form

is not the date of the request; the receipt

date controls only the effective date for

which the form is deemed to be a

request. Finally, under

§ 1601.6(c)(3)(iii), the date on which a

transaction is entered on the ThriftLine

is determined by application of Central

Time. For example, a transaction

entered at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time on

the 16th of a month will be considered

a transaction entered on the 15th,

because it was 11:15 p.m. Central Time

when the transaction occurred.

Conversely, a transaction entered at

11:15 p.m. Pacific Time on the 15th, is

entered at 1:15 a.m. Central Time and

will therefore be considered a

transaction entered on the 16th. The

determination of the date on which a

ThriftLine transaction was requested

may be important for two purposes: (1)

to determine whether the request was

made by the applicable l5th of the

month cutoff date, and (2) to determine

whether the request supersedes or

cancels another request.

Section 1601.6(d) of the proposed rule

governs cancellation of interfund

transfer requests. Under § 1601.6(d)(1), a

signed and dated cancellation letter

containing the required information

must be received by the same cutoff date

(15th of the month or next business day

if the 15th is not a business day) that

applies to receipt of an interfund

transfer request that is to be effective as

of the end of the month for which the

transfer to be canceled is pending. For

example, a letter to cancel a pending

interfund transfer that is to be made

effective as of the end of June must be

received by June 15 (nor next business

day). A cancellation letter will not

cancel a transfer request with a date

after the date of the cancellation letter.

If a cancellation letter does not state

unambiguously the specific interfund

transfer request to be canceled, it will

cancel any earlier dated interfund

transfer request that is pending for the

applicable effective date. If the letter

does state unambiguously the interfund

transfer request to be canceled, then

only that request will be canceled by the

letter.

The TSP recordkeeper will compare

multiple interfund transfer requests to

determine which is the controlling

request prior to determining the effect of

a written cancellation. For example,

assume there are two interfund transfer

requests received prior to June 15, one

dated June 3 and one dated June 5. The

June 5 request supersedes the June 3

request. If there is a cancellation letter

dated June 10 (and received by June 15)

specifying cancellation of the June 5

request, then no interfund transfer

would be processed, because the June 3

request would be superseded and the

June 5 request would be canceled. On

the other hand, if the June 10 letter

specified cancellation of the June 3

request, then the June 5 request would

be processed, because it would not be

superseded by the earlier June 3 request

nor would it be canceled by the June 10

cancellation letter that specified

cancellation of the June 3 request.

The last sentence of § 1601.6(d)(1)

governs the rare situation where the

written cancellation bears the same date

as an interfund transfer request. A

different rule applies depending upon

whether the interfund transfer request

was submitted on Form TSP–30 or

entered on the ThriftLine. In the former

case, it is presumed that the

cancellation letter was intended to

cancel a Form TSP–30 dated the same

day. In the latter case, with one

exception, the ThriftLine entry is

presumed to supersede the cancellation
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 102 / Friday, May 26, 1995 / Proposed Rules 27911

letter, which may have been an attempt

to cancel another Form TSP–30 that was

received for a prior effective date or that

has not yet been received or entered into

the TSP system. The only exception is

where the written cancellation

specifically states that it is intended to

cancel the ThriftLine entry of the same

date; in that situation, the cancellation

letter will be effective to cancel the

ThriftLine request of the same date.

Under § 1601.6(d)(2), cancellation

entered on the ThriftLine before the

relevant 15th of the month cutoff date

will cancel a pending interfund transfer

request that had been entered

previously on the ThriftLine. An

interfund transfer request made using

Form TSP–30 can be canceled using the

ThriftLine only if it has been entered

into the TSP recordkeeping system and

is, therefore, at the time the cancellation

is entered on the ThriftLine, a pending

transfer. In that regard, participants are

cautioned that in many cases Forms

TSP–30 are not entered into the TSP

recordkeeping system until after the

15th cutoff, even if they are received

before that cutoff. If that is the case,

then the participant cannot use the

ThriftLine to cancel an interfund

transfer request that was submitted on

Form TSP–30. For that reason,

participants who prefer to make

interfund transfer requests by use of

Form TSP–30 are encouraged to cancel

only in writing. The Board will not be

responsible for a participant’s inability

to cancel a Form TSP–30 by use of the

ThriftLine. Participants are encouraged

to use, in any one interfund transfer

period, only one method to make,

change, or cancel interfund transfer

requests.

Section 1601.7 is unchanged by the

proposed amendment.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

I certify that these regulations will not

have a significant economic impact on

a substantial number of small entities.

Paperwork Reduction Act

I certify that these regulations do not

require additional reporting under the

criteria of the Paperwork Reduction Act

of 1980.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 1601

Employee benefit plans, Government

employees, Retirement, Pensions.

Dated: May 11, 1995.

John J. O’Meara,

Executive Director (Acting), Federal

Retirement Thrift Investment Board.

For the reasons set out in the

preamble, Part 1601 of chapter VI of title

5 of the Code of Federal Regulations is

proposed to be amended as set forth

below:

PART 1601—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for Part 1601

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8351, 8438, 8474(b)(5)

and (c)(1).

2. Section 1601.1 is amended by

revising the definition ‘‘Interfund

Transfer Request’’ and adding in

alphabetical order definitions of

‘‘Acknowledgment of Risk’’, ‘‘Board’’,

and ‘‘ThriftLine’’, to read as follows:

§ 1601.1 Definitions.

* * * * *

Acknowledgment of Risk means an

acknowledgment that any investment in

the C Fund or the F Fund is made at the

participant’s risk, that the participant is

not protected by the United States

Government or the Board against any

loss on the investment, and that neither

the United States Government nor the

Board guarantees any return on the

investment.

* * * * *

Board means the Federal Retirement

Thrift Investment Board.

* * * * *

Interfund transfer request means

submission of a properly completed

Interfund Transfer Request (Form TSP–

30) or proper entry of an interfund

transfer through use of the ThriftLine.

* * * * *

ThriftLine means the automated voice

response system by which TSP

participants may, among other things,

make interfund transfer requests by

telephone.

* * * * *

3. Section 1601.4 is amended by

removing paragraph (c).

4. Section 1601.5 is revised to read as

follows:

§ 1601.5 Methods of requesting an

interfund transfer.

(a) To make an interfund transfer,

participants may either submit to the

TSP recordkeeper a properly completed

Interfund Transfer Request (Form TSP–

30), or may enter the interfund transfer

request over the telephone by using the

ThriftLine. Forms TSP–30 generated

prior to October 1990, which were

preprinted with a participant’s name

and address, described restrictions on

the amounts which could be invested in

the C Fund and the F Fund, and

specified an effective date for the

interfund transfer, are obsolete forms.

They will be rejected by the TSP

recordkeeper if submitted to make an

interfund transfer request. Similarly,

Form TSP–30–S, which was designed

for use only by certain FERS

participants to make interfund transfers

effective as of the end of December

1990, are obsolete forms which will be

rejected by the TSP recordkeeper if

submitted to make an interfund transfer

request.

(b) To make an interfund transfer

request, a participant must designate the

percentages of his or her account

balance that are to be invested in the C

Fund, the F Fund, and/or the G Fund.

The percentages selected by the

participant must be in multiples of 5

percent and must total 100 percent. An

interfund transfer request has no effect

on contributions made by a participant

after the effective date of the interfund

transfer (as determined in accordance

with § 1601.6); such subsequent

contributions will continue to be

allocated among the investment funds

in accordance with the participant’s

election under subpart B of this part.

(c) The percentages elected by the

participant will be applied to the

participant’s account balance

attributable to each source of

contributions as of the effective date of

the interfund transfer, as determined in

accordance with § 1601.6.

(d) Participants who have at any time

in the past invested any portion of their

TSP accounts in the C Fund or the F

Fund are eligible to make interfund

transfer requests using the ThriftLine

since they must, at some previous time,

have submitted an Acknowledgment of

Risk; such participants need not, if

using Form TSP–30 to make a written

interfund transfer request, complete the

section of the form that contains the

acknowledgment of risk. Participants

who have not at any time in the past

invested any portion of their TSP

accounts in the C Fund or the F Fund

are not eligible to make interfund

transfers using the ThriftLine until a

properly completed Acknowledgment of

Risk for ThriftLine Interfund Transfer

(Form TSP–32) has been received by the

TSP recordkeeper. Participants who

have not at any time in the past invested

any portion of their TSP accounts in the

C Fund or the F Fund must complete

the Acknowledgment of Risk section of

Form TSP–30 if they make a written

interfund transfer request, unless a

properly completed Form TSP–32 has

been received by the TSP recordkeeper.

(e) An Interfund Transfer Request

(Form TSP–30) that has been submitted

to the TSP recordkeeper will not be

processed and will have no effect, if:

(1) it is not signed and dated, or

otherwise is not properly completed in

accordance with the instructions on the

form; or
27912 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 102 / Friday, May 26, 1995 / Proposed Rules

(2) in the case of a participant who

has not previously invested any portion

of his or her TSP account in the C Fund

or the F Fund and for whom a properly

completed Form TSP–32 has not been

received by the TSP recordkeeper, the

acknowledgment of risk section of the

Form TSP–30 is not signed; or

(3) the participant is not otherwise

eligible to make an interfund transfer

(e.g., because he or she is scheduled for

a withdrawal of the entire account

balance).

(f) If a Form TSP–30 is rejected, the

form will have no effect. The participant

will be provided with a brief written

statement of the reason the form was

rejected.

5. Section 1601.6 is revised to read as

follows:

§ 1601.6 Timing and effective dates of

interfund transfers.

(a) Annual Limit. A participant may

have twelve interfund transfers made

effective during any calendar year, one

in each calendar month.

(b) Effective dates. Interfund transfer

requests received by the TSP

recordkeeper (whether by Form TSP–30

or on the ThriftLine) on or before the

15th day of a month (or, if the 15th day

is not a business day, by the next

business day) shall be effective as of the

end of the month during which the

interfund transfer request was received.

Interfund transfer requests received by

the TSP recordkeeper after the 15th day

of a month (or, if applicable, by the next

business day) will be effective as of the

end of the month following the month

during which the interfund transfer

request was received. Account balances

that are reallocated among the

investment funds effective as of the end

of any month will reflect the effects of

all other account activity posted to the

account effective during or as of the end

of that month.

(c) Multiple interfund transfer

requests.

(1) If two or more properly completed

interfund transfer requests with

different dates (as determined by

paragraph (c)(3) of this section) are

received for the same participant after

the 15th day of one month (or, if

applicable, after the next business day),

but on or before the 15th day of the next

month (or, if applicable, the next

business day), the interfund transfer

request with the latest date (as

determined by paragraph (c)(3) of this

section) will be made effective and the

earlier interfund transfer request(s) will

be superseded.

(2) If two or more properly completed

interfund transfer requests with the

same dates are received for the same

participant after the 15th day of one

month (or, if applicable, after the next

business day), but on or before the 15th

day of the next month (or, if applicable,

the next business day), the following

rules shall apply:

(i) If one or more of the interfund

transfer requests was submitted using

the ThriftLine and one or more was

made on Form TSP–30, the request(s)

made on the ThriftLine will supersede

the request(s) made on Form TSP–30;

(ii) If more than one of the interfund

transfer requests were made on the

ThriftLine, the request entered at the

latest time of day will supersede the

earlier request(s); and

(iii) If more than one of the interfund

transfer requests were submitted using

Form TSP–30, all such forms will be

rejected, unless they all contain

identical percentage allocations among

the TSP investment funds, in which

case one will be accepted.

(3) For purposes of determining the

date of an interfund transfer request:

(i) The date of an interfund transfer

request made on the ThriftLine is the

date of its telephone entry;

(ii) The date of an interfund transfer

request made on Form TSP–30 is the

signature date set forth on the form by

the participant; and

(iii) Central time will be used for

determining the date on which a

transaction is entered on the ThriftLine.

(d) Cancellation of interfund transfer

requests. Interfund transfer requests

may be canceled either in writing or by

entering the cancellation on the

ThriftLine.

(1) Cancellation by letter. A

participant may cancel an interfund

transfer request by submitting a letter to

the TSP recordkeeper requesting

cancellation. To be accepted, the

cancellation letter must be signed and

dated and must contain the participant’s

name, Social Security number, and date

of birth. To be effective, the cancellation

letter must be received on or before the

15th day of the month as of the end of

which the interfund transfer is to be

effective (or, if applicable, by the next

business day). Unless the letter states

unambiguously the specific interfund

transfer request it seeks to cancel, the

written cancellation will apply to any

interfund transfer request with a date (as

determined under paragraph (c)(3) of

this section) before the date of the

cancellation letter. If the date of a

cancellation letter is the same as the

date of an interfund transfer request and

the request was made on Form TSP–30,

the Form TSP–30 will be canceled; if

the request was made on the ThriftLine

it will only be canceled if the written

cancellation specifies the date of the

ThriftLine request to be canceled.

(2) Cancellation on the ThriftLine.

(i) An interfund transfer request may

also be canceled by entering the

cancellation on the ThriftLine on or

before the 15th day of the month (or, if

applicable, the next business day) as of

the end of which the interfund transfer

is to be effective. A cancellation entered

on the ThriftLine will apply to a

pending interfund transfer request

entered on the ThriftLine before the

entry of the cancellation. A cancellation

entered on the ThriftLine can only

apply to interfund transfer requests

submitted on Forms TSP–30 that were:

(A) Dated on or before the date of the

cancellation; and

(B) Received and entered into the TSP

recordkeeping system before the

cancellation is attempted on the

ThriftLine.

(ii) The Board cannot guarantee that

the TSP recordkeeper will enter Forms

TSP–30 into the TSP recordkeeping

system before the 15th day of the

month, regardless of the date the Form

TSP–30 may have been received. Thus,

participants cannot rely on the

ThriftLine to cancel an interfund

transfer request that was submitted on

Form TSP–30, and participants are

discouraged from attempting to do so.

The Board is not responsible for any

consequences of a participant’s inability

to cancel on the ThriftLine an interfund

transfer request submitted on Form

TSP–30.

[FR Doc. 95–12942 Filed 5–25–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6760–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 29

[Docket No. TB–95–12]

Tobacco Inspection; Standards

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: The Department is proposing

to revise the regulations for flue-cured

tobacco to add a special factor to

identify lots of tobacco that contain 25

percent of an adjacent stalk position.

This rule will encourage producers to

offer a more desirable product for

market by separating stalk positions.

DATES: Comments are due on or before

June 26, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to John P.

Duncan III, Director, Tobacco Division,