22624 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 87 / Friday, May 4, 2001 / Notices

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.

3 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6).

4See Letter to Alden S. Adkins, Senior Vice

President and General Counsel, NASD Regulation,

Inc. from Belinda Blaine, Associate Director,

Division of Market Regulation, SEC, dated July 24,

2000.

certain financing activities related to

WGL Holdings and its subsidiaries,

including the establishment of a system

money pool (the ‘‘Money Pool’’). The

Prior Orders permitted the addition of

new subsidiaries as lenders to the

Money Pool; however, Commission

approval was required for the addition

of new borrowers. In addition, the Prior

Orders authorized WGL Holdings to

invest not more than $100 million

(‘‘Investment Limit’’) in existing or

newly formed, direct or indirect

nonutility subsidiaries that are engaged

in the business of providing financing

for purchases of energy-related

equipment, goods, or services

(‘‘Consumer Finance Subsidiaries’’).

In accordance with the Prior Orders,

WGL Holdings formed a new Consumer

Finance Subsidiary, Washington Gas

Credit Corp. (‘‘WGCC’’). Applicants now

request that the Commission authorize

WGCC’s participation in the Money

Pool as a borrower. Applicants state that

all the borrowings of WGCC will count

against the Investment Limit. Further,

Applicants state that the addition of

WGCC to the Money Pool requires no

changes to the terms and conditions of

the System Money Pool Agreement filed

as an exhibit to the applicationdeclaration in this matter.

Cascade Investment, L.L.C., and

William H. Gates III (70–9865)

Cascade Investment, L.L.C.

(‘‘Cascade’’), a limited liability company

formed under the laws of the State of

Washington, 2365 Carillon Point,

Kirkland, Washington 98033, and its

sole member, William H. Gates III, One

Microsoft Way, Redmond, Washington,

98033 (‘‘Mr. Gates,’’ and together with

Cascade, ‘‘Applicants’’), have filed an

application under sections 9(a)(2) and

10 of the Act.

Applicants request approval of their

acquisition of 5% or more, but less than

10%, of the outstanding voting

securities of Avista Corporation

(‘‘Avista’’), Otter Tail Power Company

(‘‘Otter Tail’’). and Public Service

Company of New Mexico (‘‘PSNM’’),

each of which is a ‘‘public-utility

company’’ as defined in section 2(a)(5)

of the Act. Applicants state that neither

is an ‘‘affiliate,’’ as defined in section

2(a)(11)(A) of the Act, of any other

public-utility company.

Mr. Gates is Chairman of the Board,

Chief Software Architect, and a major

shareholder of Microsoft Corporation,

which develops, manufactures, licenses

and supports software products for

business and person applications.

Applicants state that Cascade was

formed in 1995 to make and hold

certain investments for Mr. Gates, that

Cascade invests in and holds the

securities of numerous publicly and

privately held companies, and that

Cascade does not have any active

business operations of its own.

Cascade currently holds 2,887,500

shares (or approximately 6.12%) of the

outstanding common stock of Avista,

1,399,500 shares (or approximately

5.87%) of the outstanding common

stock of Otter Tail, and 2,344,500 shares

(or approximately 5.99%) of the

outstanding common stock of PSNM.

Applicants state that these shares were

purchased on the open market solely for

the purpose of investment, that they

have filed joint statements on Schedule

13G under the Securities Exchange Act

of 1934 with respect to each of these

three investments, and that neither

Cascade nor Gates has any management

arrangement with any of these

companies.

Avista, a Washington corporation,

provides electricity and natural gas

distribution and transmission services

in a 26,000 square mile area in eastern

Washington and northern Idaho with a

population of approximately 835,000

and natural gas distribution service in a

4,000 square mile area in northeast and

southwest Oregon and in the South Lake

Tahoe region of California with a

population of approximately 500,000.

At December 31, 1999, Avista provided

retail electric service to approximately

309,000 customers and retail natural gas

service to approximately 269,000

customers. Avista is subject to

regulation as to retail rates by the public

utilities commissions of Washington,

Idaho, Oregon, and California and as to

wholesale electric rates by the Federal

Energy Regulatory Commission

(‘‘FERC’’).

Otter Tail, a Minnesota corporation,

produces, transmits, distributes and

sells electric energy in a predominantly

agricultural area in western Minnesota,

eastern North Dakota and northeastern

South Dakota. The population in this

service area is approximately 230,000.

Otter Tail is subject to regulation as to

retail rates by the public utilities

commissions in Minnesota, North

Dakota and South Dakota and as to

wholesale electric rates by the FERC.

PSNM, a New Mexico corporation,

generates, transmits, distributes and

sells electricity and transmits,

distributes and sells natural gas in parts

of New Mexico, including the cities of

Albuquerque and Santa Fe. As of

December 31, 1999, PSNM provided

public utility service to approximately

361,000 retail electric customers and

426,000 retail gas customers. PSNM is

subject to regulation as to retail rates by

the New Mexico Public Regulation

Commission and as to wholesale electric

rates by the FERC.

For the Commission, by the Division of

Investment Management, pursuant to

delegated authority.

Margaret H. McFarland,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 01–11207 Filed 5–3–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Release No. 34–44228; File No. SR–NASD–

2001–26]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice

of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness

of Proposed Rule Change by the

National Association of Securities

Dealers, Inc. Relating to a Qualification

Examination for a New Limited

Registration Category: Limited

Representative-Private Securities

Offerings (Series 82)

April 27, 2001.

Pursuant to section 19(b)(1) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

(‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2

notice is hereby given that on April 3,

2001, the National Association of

Securities Dealers, Inc. (‘‘NASD’’ or

‘‘Association’’), through its whollyowned subsidiary, NASD Regulation,

Inc. (‘‘NASD Regulation’’), filed with the

Securities and Exchange Commission

(‘‘SEC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’) the proposed

rule change as described in Items I, II,

and III below, which Items have been

prepared by NASD Regulation. NASD

Regulation has designated the proposed

rule change as constituting a ‘‘noncontroversial’’ rule change under

paragraph (f)(6) of Rule 19b–4 under the

Act,3 which renders the proposal

effective upon receipt of this filing by

the Commission.4 The Commission is

publishing this notice to solicit

comments on the proposed rule change

from interested persons.

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement of the Terms of Substance of

the Proposed Rule Change

NASD Regulation is filing with the

Commission the examination

specifications and study outline for the

Limited Representative-Private

Securities Offerings (Series 82)

examination program. The Series 82

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 87 / Friday, May 4, 2001 / Notices 22625

5On November 28, 2000, the NASD, through its

wholly-owned subsidiary, NASD Regulation, filed

with the Commission SR–NASD–00–69, proposing

amendments to NASD Rule 1032 to create a new

limited registration category for private securities

offerings. NASD Regulation filed Amendment No.

1 to the proposed rule change on February 28, 2001.

Amendment No. 1 replaced the filing in its entirety.

See Release No. 34–44091 (March 21, 2001), 66 FR

16964 (March 28, 2001).

6 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999, Pub. L. No.

106–102, 113 Stat. 1338 (1999). 7 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6).

examination program is proposed in

connection with a proposed change to

NASD Rule 1032 5 to implement section

203 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of

1999 (‘‘GLBA’’),6 which requires the

NASD, as a registered securities

association, to create a new limited

registration category for any associated

person of a member whose investment

banking and securities business is

limited solely to affecting sales of

private securities offerings. NASD

Regulation is not proposing any textual

changes to the By-Laws, Schedules to

the By-Laws, or Rules of NASD

Regulation or the NASD.

A description of the Series 82

examination is included in a study

outline prepared by NASD Regulation.

Confidential information on the

examination is included in the

examination specifications, which have

been omitted from this filing and are

being submitted under separate cover to

the Secretary of the SEC pursuant to

Rule 24b–2 under the Act.

II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement of the Purpose of, and

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule

Change

In its filing with the Commission,

NASD Regulation included statements

concerning the purpose of an basis for

the proposed rule change and discussed

any comments it received on the

proposed rule change. The text of these

statements may be examined at the

places specified in Item IV below.

NASD Regulation has prepared

summaries, set forth in Sections (A), (B),

and (C) bleow, of the most significant

aspects of such statements.

(A) Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement of the Purpose of, and

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule

Change

(1) Purpose

The GLBA requires the creation of a

new limited registration category for

private securities offerings. More

specifically, Title II of the GLBA, which

becomes effective on May 12, 2001 (or

such later date on which Title II of

GLBA becomes effective), requires the

NASD, as a registered securities

association, to create a limited

registration category for any associated

person of a member whose investment

banking and securities business is

limited solely to effecting sales of

private securities offerings. Therefore,

pursuant to Section 15(A)(g)(3) of the

Act, which requires the NASD to

prescribe standards of training,

experience, and competence for persons

associated with NASD members, the

NASD has developed the proposed

Series 82 examination program to

establish that persons associated with

NASD members who are seeking to

register under the new limited

registration category for private

securities offerings have attained

specified levels of competence and

knowledge.

The proposed Series 82 Limited

Representative-Private Securities

Offerings examination will be an NASD

examination that qualifies an associated

person of a member, whose investment

banking and securities business is

limited solely to effecting sales of

private securities offerings, to effect

such sales. This examination tests a

candidate’s knowledge of securities

industry rules and regulations pertinent

to such products. The Series 82 will not

qualify a registered representative in

this category to effect sales of municipal

or government securities, equity

interests in or the debt of direct

participation programs (DPP securities),

or resales of or secondary market

transactions in private placement

securities. Persons seeking to effect the

aforementioned sales must register in

one or more of the other NASD limited

representative categories or as a General

Securities Registered Representative and

pass the appropriate qualification

examination(s).

A committee of industry

representatives, in conjunction with

NASD Regulation staff, developed the

series 82 study outline and

specifications. The examination will be

divided into four topical sections. The

topical sections and the number of

questions designated to each such

section are: Characteristics of Corporate

Securities (14); Regulation of the The

Market for Registered and Unregistered

Securities (45); Analyzing Corporate

Securities (15); and Handling Customer

Accounts and Industry Regulations (26).

The specifications for the Series 82

examination, which have been omitted

from this filing and are being submitted

under separate cover to the Secretary of

the SEC pursuant to Rule 24b–2 under

the Act, describe additional confidential

information regarding the examination.

The examination will be a 150

minutes, 100 multiple choice question

examination with 70% as the passing

score.

(2) Statutory Basis

NASD Regulation believes that the

proposed Series 82 examination

program is consistent with the

provisions of sections 15A(b)(6) and

15A(g)(3) of the Act, which authorize

the NASD to prescribe standards of

training, experience, and competence

for persons associated with NASD

members. The proposed Series 82

examination program also is necessary

to implement section 203 of the GLBA.

(B) Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement on Burden on Competition

NASD Regulation does not believe

that the proposed rule change will result

in any burden on competition that is not

necessary or appropriate in furtherance

of the purposes of the Act, as amended.

(C) Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement on Comments on the

Proposed Rule Change Received From

Members, Participants, or Others

Written comments were neither

solicited nor received.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the

Proposed Rule Change and Timing for

Commission Action

The proposed rule change has been

filed by the Association as a ‘‘noncontroversial’’ rule change under Rule

19b–4(f)(6) under the Act.7

Consequently, because the foregoing

proposed rule change: (1) Does not

significantly affect the protection of

investors or the public interest; (2) does

not impose any significant burden on

competition; and (3) does not become

operative until May 12, 2001 (or such

later date on which Title II of the GLBA

becomes effective), more than 30 days

after the date on which it was filed, and

NASD Regulation provided the

Commission with written notice of its

intent to file the proposed rule change

at least five days prior to the filing date,

it has become effective pursuant to

Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act and Rule

19b–4(f)(6) thereunder.

At any time within 60 days of this

filing, the Commission may summarily

abrogate this proposal if it appears to

the Commission that such action is

necessary or appropriate in the public

interest, for the protection of investors,

or otherwise in furtherance of the

purposes of the Act.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

Interested persons are invited to

submit written data, views, and

22626 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 87 / Friday, May 4, 2001 / Notices

8 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).

arguments concerning the foregoing,

including whether the proposed rule

change is consistent with the Act.

Persons making written submissions

should file six copies thereof with the

Secretary, Securities and Exchange

Commission, 450 Fifth Street, NW.,

Washington, DC 20549–0609. Copies of

the submission, all subsequent

amendments, all written statements

with respect to the proposed rule

change that are filed with the

Commission, and all written

communications relating to the

proposed rule change between the

Commission and any person, other than

those that may be withheld from the

public in accordance with the

provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be

available for inspection and copying in

the Commission’s Public Reference

Room. Copies of such filing will also be

available for inspection and copying at

the principal of the NASD. All

submissions should refer to the file

number in the caption above and should

be submitted by May 25, 2001.

For the Commission, by the Division of

Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated

authority.8

Margaret H. McFarland,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 01–11208 Filed 5–3–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

[Declaration of Disaster #3336]

State of Kansas

As a result of the President’s major

disaster declaration on April 27, 2001,

I find that Barton County in the State of

Kansas constitutes a disaster area due to

damages caused by severe storms and

tornadoes that occurred April 21, 2001

and continuing. Applications for loans

for physical damage as a result of this

disaster may be filed until the close of

business on June 26, 2001, and for loans

for economic injury until the close of

business on January 28, 2002 at the

address listed below or other locally

announced locations: U.S. Small

Business Administration, Disaster Area

3 Office, 4400 Amon Carter Blvd., Suite

102, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

In addition, applications for economic

injury loans from small businesses

located in the following contiguous

counties may be filed until the specified

date at the above location: Ellsworth,

Pawnee, Rice, Rush, Russell and

Stafford Counties in Kansas.

The interest rates are:

Percent

For Physical Damage:

Homeowners with credit

available elsewhere ........... 6.625

Homeowners without credit

available elsewhere ........... 3.312

Businesses with credit available elsewhere .................. 8.000

Businesses and non-profit organizations without credit

available elsewhere ........... 4.000

Others (including non-profit

organizations) with credit

available elsewhere ........... 7.125

For Economic Injury:

Businesses and small agricultural cooperatives without credit available elsewhere ................................. 4.000

The number assigned to this disaster

for physical damage is 333611 and for

economic injury the number is 9L5900.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Nos. 59002 and 59008.)

Dated: April 30, 2001.

Herbert L. Mitchell,

Associate Administrator for Disaster

Assistance.

[FR Doc. 01–11250 Filed 5–3–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8025–01–P

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

[Declaration of Disaster #3333]

State of Mississippi; (Amendment #1)

In accordance with a notice received

from the Federal Emergency

Management Agency, dated April 27,

2001, the above-numbered Declaration

is hereby amended to include Leake,

Neshoba and Pontotoc Counties in the

State of Mississippi as disaster areas

caused by flooding and severe storms

occurring between April 3–5, 2001.

In addition, applications for economic

injury loans from small businesses

located in Calhoun, Kemper, Lafayette,

Lauderdale, Newton and Scott Counties

in the State of Mississippi may be filed

until the specified date at the previously

designated location. Any counties

contiguous to the above named primary

counties and not listed here have been

previously declared.

All other information remains the

same, i.e., the deadline for filing

applications for physical damage is June

17, 2001 and for economic injury the

deadline is January 17, 2002.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Nos. 59002 and 59008.)

Dated: April 27, 2001.

James E. Rivera,

Acting Associate Administrator for Disaster

Assistance.

[FR Doc. 01–11248 Filed 5–3–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8025–01–P

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

[Declaration of Disaster #3334]

State of New York (And Contiguous

Counties in Pennsylvania)

Sullivan County and the contiguous

counties of Delaware, Orange and Ulster

in the State of New York; and Wayne

and Pike Counties in the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

constitute a disaster area due to

damages caused by flooding that

occurred on December 17, 2000.

Applications for loans for physical

damage as a result of this disaster may

be filed until the close of business on

June 26, 2001 and for economic injury

until the close of business on January

28, 2002 at the address listed below or

other locally announced locations: U.S.

Small Business Administration, Disaster

Area 1 Office, 360 Rainbow Blvd., South

3rd Floor, Niagara Falls, NY 14303.

The interest rates are:

Percent

For Physical Damage:

Homeowners with credit

available elsewhere ........... 7.000

Homeowners without credit

available elsewhere ........... 3.500

Businesses with credit available elsewhere .................. 8.000

Businesses and non-profit organizations without credit

available elsewhere ........... 4.000

Others (including non-profit

organizations) with credit

available elsewhere ........... 7.000

For Economic Injury:

Businesses and small agricultural cooperatives without credit available elsewhere ................................. 4.000

The numbers assigned to this disaster

for physical damage are 333406 for New

York and 333506 for Pennsylvania. For

economic injury, the numbers are

9L5300 for New York and 9L5400 for

Pennsylvania.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Nos. 59002 and 59008.)

Dated: April 27, 2001.

John Whitmore,

Acting Administrator.

[FR Doc. 01–11249 Filed 5–3–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8025–01–P