Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 107 / Monday, June 4, 2001 / Notices 30031

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.

For copies of this proposal, contact

Mary Beth Smith-Toomey on (202) 606–

8358, or E-mail to mbtoomey@opm.gov

DATES: Comments on this proposal

should be received on or before July 5,

2001.

ADDRESSES: Send or deliver comments

to—

Ronald W. Melton, Chief, Operations

Support Division, Retirement and

Insurance Service, U.S. Office of

Personnel Management, 1900 E Street,

NW, Room 3349A, Washington, DC

20415

and

Joseph Lackey, OPM Desk Officer,

Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget, New Executive Office

Building, NW, Room 10235,

Washington, DC 20503.

FOR INFORMATION REGARDING

ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATION—CONTACT:

Donna G. Lease, Team Leader, Forms

Analysis and Design, Budget and

Administrative Services Division, (202)

606–0623.

Office of Personnel Management.

Steven R. Cohen,

Acting Director.

[FR Doc. 01–13919 Filed 6–1–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6325–50–P

POSTAL SERVICE BOARD OF

GOVERNORS

Sunshine Act Meeting: Notification of

Item Added to Meeting Agenda

DATE OF MEETING: June 4, 2001.

STATUS: Closed.

PREVIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT: 66 FR 28764,

May 24, 2001.

ADDITION: Postal Rate Commission

Opinion and Recommended Decision in

Docket No. MC2001–1, Experimental

Presorted Priority Mail Rate Categories.

By paper vote on May 29 and 30, 2001,

the Board of Governors of the United

States Postal Service voted unanimously

to add this item to the agenda of its

closed meeting and that no earlier

announcement was possible. The

General Counsel of the United States

Postal Service has certified that in her

opinion discussion of this item may be

properly closed to public observation

under the Government in the Sunshine

Act.

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.

[FR Doc. 01–14132 Filed 5–31–01; 3:15 pm]

BILLING CODE 7710–12–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: Request for Internet Services.

The RRB is establishing a Person

Identification Number (PIN)/Password

system that will allow RRB applicants,

annuitants and other customers to

conduct business with the agency

electronically. As part of that system,

the RRB will collect and use

information needed to establish a

Password Request Code (PRC) with the

RRB. Once a PRC is established, the

RRB will collect information from users

to establish a unique PIN/Password that

will allow access to all RRB Internet

based applications. To receive a PRC,

the RRB will request that the following

information be provided in all cases:

The name of the railroad employee, the

railroad employee’s Social Security

Number, their date of birth and their

mailing address. In addition, spouses of

railroad employees requesting their own

PRC’s will also be required to provide

their full name, social security number,

date of birth and mailing address if

difference from the railroad employee.

Optional information will include their

internet E-mail address and day time

telephone number. The information

provided will be matched against

records of the railroad employee

maintained by the RRB. If the

information is verified, the request will

be approved and the RRB will mail a

PRC to the requestor. If the information

does not match, the requestor will be

advised to contact the nearest RRB field

office to resolve any discrepancy. After

obtaining a PRC from the RRB, the

requestor can apply for a PIN/Password

online. Once the PIN/Password has been

established, the requestor will have

access to all RRB Internet based

applications.

The RRB estimates that approximately

5000 requests for PRC’s and PIN/

Passwords will be received annually.

Completion is voluntary, however, the

RRB will be unable to provide a PRC or

allow a requestor to establish a PIN/

Password (thereby denying system

access), if the requests are not

completed. We estimate that it will take

about 5 minutes per response to secure

a PRC and about 1.5 minutes to

establish a PIN/Password.

Additional Information or Comments

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. 01–13937 Filed 6–1–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7905–01–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Release No. 34–44354; File No. SR–Amex–

2001–25]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice

of Filing of Proposed Rule Change by

the American Stock Exchange LLC

Relating to Generic Listing Standards

for Portfolio Depository Receipts and

Index Fund Shares

May 25, 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 than on May 3,

2001, the American Stock Exchange LLC

(‘‘Amex’’ or ‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the

Securities and Exchange Commission

30032 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 107 / Monday, June 4, 2001 / Notices

3 17 CFR 240.19b–4(e).

4 17 CFR 240.19b–4(e).

5 17 CFR 240.19b–4(c)(1).

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

7See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 40761

(December 8, 1998), 63 FR 70952 (December 22,

1998).

8See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 42787

(May 15, 2000), 65 FR 33598 (May 24, 2000).

9 17 CFR 240.19b–4(e).

10 17 CFR 240.19b–4(e).

11Under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue

Code, for a fund to qualify as a regulated investment

company, the securities of a single issuer can

account for no more than 25 percent of a fund’s

total assets, and at least 50 percent of a fund’s total

assets must be comprised of cash (including

government securities) and securities of single

issuers whose securities account for less than 5

percent of such fund’s total assets.

12 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).

(‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule

change as described in Items I, II, and

III below, which Items have been

prepared by the Exchange. 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

The Amex proposes to amend Amex

Rule 1000, Commentary .03 and Rule

1000A, Commentary .02 regarding

generic listing standards for Portfolio

Depositary Receipts (‘‘PDRs’’) and Index

Fund Shares. Below is the text of the

proposed rule change. Text in brackets

indicates material to be deleted, and text

in italics indicates material to be added.

* * * * *

Portfolio Depositary Receipts

Rule 1000 No change.

* * * * *

Commentary

* * * * *

.03 The Exchange may approve a series of

Portfolio Depositary Receipts for listing and

trading pursuant to Rule 19b–4(e) under the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 provided

each of the following criteria is satisfied:

(a) Eligibility Criteria for Index

Components. Upon the initial listing of a

series of Portfolio Depositary Receipts on the

Exchange, the component stocks of an index

or portfolio underlying such series of

Portfolio Depositary Receipts shall meet the

following criteria:

(1) No change

(2) No change

(3) The most heavily weighted component

stock cannot exceed [25%] 30% of the weight

of the index or portfolio, and the five most

heavily weighted component stocks cannot

exceed 65% of the weight of the index or

portfolio.

No further change.

* * * * *

Index Fund Shares

Rule 1000A

* * * * *

Commentary

* * * * *

.02 The Exchange may approve a series of

Index Fund Shares for listing pursuant to

Rule 19b–4(e) under the Securities Exchange

Act of 1934 provided each of the following

criteria is satisfied:

(a) Eligibility Criteria for Index

Components. Upon the intital listing of a

series of Index Fund Shares, each component

of an index or portfolio underlying a series

of Index Fund Shares shall meet the

following criteria:

(1) No change.

(2) No change.

(3) The most heavily weighted component

stock cannot exceed [25%] 30% of the weight

of the index or portfolio, and the five most

heavily weighted component stocks cannot

exceed 65% of the weight of the index or

portfolio.

No further change.

* * * * *

II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement of the Purpose of, and

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule

Change

In its filing with the Commission, the

Amex included statements concerning

the purpose of and 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. The Amex has

prepared summaries, set forth in

Sections A, B, and C below, 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

Amex Rule 1000, Commentary .03

and Rule 1000A, Commentary .02

provide generic listing standards for

PDRs and Index Fund Shares,

respectively, to permit listing and

trading of these securities pursuant to

Rule 19b–4(e) under the Act.3 Rule 19b–

4(e) 4 provides that the listing and

trading of a new derivative securities

product by a self-regulatory organization

shall not be deemed a proposed rule

change, pursuant to paragraph (c)(1) of

Rule 19b–4,5 if the Commission has

approved, pursuant to section 19(b) of

the Act,6 the self-regulatory

organization’s trading rules, procedures

and listing standards for the product

class that would include the new

derivative securities product, and the

self-regulatory organization has a

surveillance program for the product

class.7 The Commission has approved

Rule 1000, Commentary .02 and Rule

1000A, Commentary .03.8

These generic listing standards are

intended to ensure that a substantial

portion of the weight of an index or

portfolio is accounted for by stocks with

substantial market capitalization and

trading volume. Rule 1000, Commentary

.03 and Rule 1000A, Commentary .02

provide that, upon the initial listing of

a series of PDRs or Index Fund Shares

under rule 19b–4(e),9 component stocks

that in the aggregate account for at least

90 percent of the weight of the index or

portfolio must have a minimum market

value of at least $75 million. In

addition, the component stocks in the

index must have a minimum monthly

trading volume during each of the last

six months of at least 250,000 shares for

stocks representing at least 90 percent of

the weight of the index or portfolio.

Currently, Rule 1000, Commentary

.03(a)93), and Rule 1000A, Commentary

.02(a)(3) provide that the most heavily

weighted component stock in an

underlying index cannot exceed 25

percent of the weight of the index or

portfolio, and the five most heavily

weighted component stocks cannot

exceed 65 percent of the weight of the

index or portfolio. The Exchange

proposes to increase from 25 percent to

30 percent the permissible weight of the

most heavily weighted component stock

in an underlying index. The Exchange is

not amending the existing requirement

that the five most heavily weighted

stocks cannot exceed 65 percent of the

weight of the index or portfolio. This

change will provide additional

flexibility to unit investment trusts or

mutual funds to be listed pursuant to

Rule 19b–4(e) 10 in structuring their

products and will help reduce possible

concerns associated with a single stock

exceeding the 25 percent threshold

immediately prior to initial listing and

trading due to a spike in the price of the

most heavily weighted index stock. The

Exchange notes that, notwithstanding

this change, unit investment trusts

(including PDRs) and mutual funds

(including Index Fund Shares) are

subject to Internal Revenue Code

Subchapter M requirements applicable

to regulated investment companies. In

order to maintain regulated investment

company status, these entities would be

required to rebalance their portfolios

quarterly to avoid any one stock

exceeding a 25 percent weighting in the

trust’s or fund’s portfolio.11

2. Statutory Basis

The proposed rule change is

consistent with section 6(b) of the Act 12

in general, and furthers the objective of

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 107 / Monday, June 4, 2001 / Notices 30033

13 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5)

14 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.

3Securities Exchange Act Release No. 41995

(October 8, 1999), 64 FR 56547 (October 20, 1999).

section 6(b)(5) of the Act 13 in particular,

in that it is designed to prevent

fraudulent and manipulative acts and

practices, to promote just and equitable

principles of trade, to foster cooperation

and coordination with persons engaged

in facilitating transactions in securities,

to remove impediments to and perfect

the mechanism of a free and open

market and a national market system, to

protect investors and the public interest

and is not designed to permit unfair

discrimination between customers,

issuers, brokers, or dealers.

B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement on Burden on Competition

The Exchange does not believe that

the proposed rule change will impose

any burden on competition.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement on Comments on the

Proposed Rule Change Received From

Members, Participants or Others

No written comments were solicited

or received with respect to the proposed

rule change.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the

Proposed Rule Change and Timing for

Commission Action

Within 35 days of the date of

publication of this notice in the Federal

Register or within such longer period (i)

as the Commission may designate up to

90 days of such date if it finds such

longer period to be appropriate and

publishes its reasons for so finding or

(ii) as to which the Exchange consents,

the Commission will:

(A) By order approve such proposed

rule change, or

(B) Institute proceedings to determine

whether the proposed rule change

should be disapproved.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

Interested persons are invited to

submit written data, views and

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 office of the Amex. All

submissions should refer to File No.

SR–Amex–2001–25 and should be

submitted by June 25, 2001.

For the Commission, by the Division of

Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated

authority.14

Margaret H. McFarland,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 01–13883 Filed 6–1–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE

COMMISSION

[Release No. 34–44356; File No. SR–CBOE–

00–56]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice

of Filing of Proposed Rule Change by

the Chicago Board Options Exchange,

Inc.; To Amend Its Rules To Allow for

Certain Orders Entered Through the

Exchange’s Order Routing System To

Automatically Trade Against Orders in

the Exchange’s Customer Limit Order

Book

May 25, 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 November

13, 2000, the Chicago Board Options

Exchange, Inc. (‘‘CBOE’’ or ‘‘Exchange’’)

filed with the Securities and Exchange

Commission (‘‘Commission’’) the

proposed rule change as described in

Items I, II, and III below, which Items

have been prepared by the CBOE. 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

The CBOE proposes to amend its rules

to provide for certain orders entered

through the Exchange’s Order Routing

System (‘‘ORS’’) to automatically trade

against orders in the Exchange’s

customer limit order book. Below is the

text of the proposed rule change.

Proposed new language is in italics.

* * * * *

Chicago Board Options Exchange,

Incorporated

Rules

* * * * *

Chapter VI—Doing Business on the

Exchange Floor

Rule 6.8.B. Automatic ORS Order

Execution Against Booked Orders

(a) When the best bid or offer on the

Exchange’s book constitutes the best bid or

offer on the Exchange, any marketable public

customer order routed through the

Exchange’s Order Routing System (‘‘ORS’’)

will be automatically executed against the

book up to the size of the booked order(s)

establishing the best bid or offer on the

Exchange to the extent such execution is not

a price inferior to the current best bid or offer

in any other market. Any remaining balance

of the marketable public customer ORS order

shall be rerouted through ORS and handled

in accordance with all applicable Exchange

rules and policies.

(b) The appropriate Floor Procedure

Committee (‘‘FPC’’) may determine which

option classes will be subject to paragraph (a)

of this Rule.

(c) In unusual market conditions, two Floor

Officials, the FPC Chairman, or the

Chairman’s designee may exempt an option

class from paragraph (a) of this Rule.

* * * * *

II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement of the Purpose of, and

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule

Change

In its filing with the Commission, the

CBOE included statements concerning

the purpose of and 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. The CBOE has

prepared summaries, set forth in

sections A, B, and C below, of the most

significant parts of such statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement of the Purpose of, and

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule

Change

1. Purpose

On December 1, 1998, the

Commission approved a CBOE rule

change establishing the Exchange’s

Automated Book Priority System

(‘‘ABP’’).3 ABP allows an order entered

into the Exchange’s Retail Automatic

Execution System (‘‘RAES’’) to trade

directly with an order on the Exchange’s

customer limit order book in those cases

where the best bid (offer) on the

Exchange’s book is equal to the

prevailing market bid (offer). ABP has