66036 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 244 / Wednesday, December 20, 1995 / Proposed Rules

1The Secretary of Labor has authority to issue

regulations relating to section 4975 of the Internal

Revenue Code pursuant to section 102 of

Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1978. 5 U.S.C. App.

165. For the sake of clarity, the remainder of the

preamble refers only to Title I of ERISA. However,

these references apply to the corresponding

provisions of section 4975 of the Code as well.

2The Department has taken the position that

elective contributions to an employee benefit plan,

whether made pursuant to a salary reduction

agreement or otherwise, constitute amounts paid to

or withheld by an employer (i.e., participant

contributions) within the scope of § 2510.3–102,

without regard to the treatment of such

contributions under the Internal Revenue Code. See

53 FR 29660 (Aug. 8, 1988).

3ERISA § 403(b) contains a number of exceptions

to the trust requirement for certain types of assets,

including assets which consist of insurance

contracts, and for certain types of plans. In

addition, the Secretary has issued a technical

release, T.R. 92–01, which provides that, with

respect to certain welfare plans (e.g., cafeteria

plans), the Department will not assert a violation of

the trust or certain reporting requirements in any

enforcement proceeding, or assess a civil penalty

for certain reporting violations, involving such

plans solely because of a failure to hold participant

contributions in trust. 57 FR 23272 (June 2, 1992),

58 FR 45359 (Aug. 27, 1993).

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Pension and Welfare Benefits

Administration

29 CFR Part 2510

RIN 1210–AA53

Proposed Regulation Relating to

Definition of Plan Assets; Participant

Contributions

AGENCY: Pension and Welfare Benefits

Administration, Department of Labor.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

SUMMARY: This document contains a

proposed regulation revising the

definition of when certain monies

which a participant pays to, or has

withheld by, an employer for

contribution to an employee benefit

plan are ‘‘plan assets’’ for purposes of

Title I of the Employee Retirement

Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)

and the related prohibited transaction

provisions of the Internal Revenue Code

(the Code). This regulation will provide

guidance to employers that sponsor

contributory plans, including plans

complying with section 401(k) of the

Internal Revenue Code, as well as

fiduciaries, participants, and

beneficiaries of such plans.

DATES: Written comments and requests

to testify concerning the proposed

regulation must be received by February

5, 1996. The Department has scheduled

a public hearing on this proposal on

January 24, 1995, and, if necessary, on

January 25, 1995. The hearing will begin

at 10:00 am on both days.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are

invited to submit written comments and

requests to testify concerning this

proposed regulation to: Pension and

Welfare Benefits Administration, Room

N–5669, U.S. Department of Labor, 200

Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington,

DC 20210. Attention: Proposed

Participant Contribution Regulation. All

submissions will be open to public

inspection at the Public Documents

Room, Pension and Welfare Benefits

Administration, U.S. Department of

Labor, Room N–5638, 200 Constitution

Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20210.

Written comments may also be sent by

the Internet to the following address:

hinz@access.digex.net. The hearing on

this proposal will be held in Room N–

3437A, Constitution Ave., N.W.,

Washington, DC 20210.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rudy Nuissl, Office of Regulations and

Interpretations, Pension and Welfare

Benefits Administration, U.S.

Department of Labor, Washington, DC

(202) 219–7461; or William W. Taylor,

Plan Benefits Security Division, Office

of the Solicitor, U.S. Department of

Labor, Washington, DC (202) 219–9141.

These are not toll-free numbers.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 1988,

the Department of Labor (the

Department) published a final

regulation defining when certain monies

that a participant pays to, or has

withheld by, an employer for

contribution to a plan are ‘‘plan assets’’

for purposes of Title I of ERISA and the

related prohibited transaction

provisions of the Code.1 53 FR 17628

(May 17, 1988). The final regulation

provided that the assets of the plan

include amounts (other than union

dues) that a participant or beneficiary

pays to an employer, or amounts that a

participant has withheld from his or her

wages by an employer, for contribution

to the plan as of the earliest date on

which such contributions can

reasonably be segregated from the

employer’s general assets, but in no

event to exceed 90 days from the date

on which such amounts are received by

the employer (in the case of amounts

that a participant or beneficiary pays to

an employer) or 90 days from the date

on which such amounts would

otherwise have been payable to the

participant in cash (in the case of

amounts withheld by an employer from

a participant’s wages).2 This final rule

was based on a record developed with

respect to a proposed regulation

published in 1979. 44 FR 50363 (August

28, 1979).

Except as provided in ERISA § 403(b),

plan assets are required to be held in

trust by one or more trustees.3 ERISA

§ 403(a), 29 U.S.C. 1103(a). In addition,

ERISA’s fiduciary responsibility

provisions apply to the management of

plan assets. Among other things, these

provisions make clear that the assets of

a plan may not inure to the benefit of

any employer and shall be held for the

exclusive purpose of providing benefits

to participants in the plan and their

beneficiaries, and defraying reasonable

expenses of administering the plan.

ERISA §§ 403–404, 29 U.S.C. 1103–

1104. They also prohibit a broad array

of transactions involving plan assets.

ERISA §§ 406–408, 29 U.S.C. 1106–

1108. Employers who fail to transmit

promptly participant contributions, and

plan fiduciaries who fail to collect those

amounts in a timely manner, will

violate the requirement that plan assets

be held in trust; in addition, such

employers and fiduciaries may be

engaging in prohibited transactions.

As was noted in the preamble to the

final regulation published in 1988, the

Department of Justice takes the position

that, under 18 U.S.C. 664, the

embezzlement, conversion, abstraction,

or stealing of ‘‘any of the moneys, funds,

securities, premiums, credits, property,

or other assets of any employee welfare

benefit plan or employee pension

benefit plan, or any fund connected

therewith’’ is a criminal offense, and

that under such language, criminal

prosecution may go forward in

situations in which the participant

contributions is not a plan asset for

purposes of Title I of ERISA. The final

regulation defined when participant

contributions become ‘‘plan assets’’ only

for the purposes of Title I of ERISA and

the related prohibited transaction excise

tax provisions of the Code. The

Department reiterates that this

regulation may not be relied upon to bar

criminal prosecutions pursuant to 18

U.S.C. 664.

Similarly, the Department wishes to

reemphasize its view, expressed in the

preamble to the final regulation, that in

circumstances in which the employer

clearly converts participant

contributions to its own use, such

amounts are considered ‘‘segregated,’’

and thus will be ‘‘plan assets’’.

The Need for a Proposed Regulation

Although the Department believes

that, in the vast majority of contributory

employee benefit plans, participant

contributions are handled with

integrity, recent investigations

conducted by the Department have

revealed numerous violations related to

employers’ delay in transmitting or

failing to transmit to employee benefit

plans amounts that a participant or

beneficiary pays to an employer, or
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 244 / Wednesday, December 20, 1995 / Proposed Rules 66037

4 In the Spring of 1995 PWBA began a project to

investigate misuse of employee contributions to

employee benefit plans and in particular in 401(k)

plans. As of October 31, 1995 there were 417

employee contribution investigations open and 130

cases were closed during the year. More than $3.7

million has been recovered through voluntary

compliance in situations where employee

contributions were not placed in trust for

participants.

5Of the 130 closed employee contribution cases,

44, or 33.8 percent of closed cases, resulted in

findings of violations of ERISA’s fiduciary

provisions. This compares to a finding of fiduciary

violations in 12 percent of all other closed cases in

FY 95.

6See also IRS Publication 15 (Cat. No. 10000W)

Circular E, Employer’s Tax Guide (Rev. January

1995) and IRS Notice 931 (Rev. October 1995).

7The Department recognizes that mistakes may

occur in the processing of participant contributions.

It is the Department’s view that ERISA does not

prevent the return of any mistaken contributions

nor the ability to make correcting contributions

after the mistakes are discovered. See ERISA

§ 403(c), 29 U.S.C. 11103(c).

amounts that employers withhold from

participants’ wages, for contribution to

the plans. Evidence uncovered in

ongoing investigations indicates that

such delays are not uncommon.4 The

above described recent enforcement

activities focused on participant

contribution indicate a significantly

higher frequency of violations for such

investigations than the Department

encounters in general.5

In addition, the Department,

responding to requests for technical

assistance from employers and

participants, has received information

that many employers who receive

participant contributions are under the

misimpression that the current

regulation permits a delay of up to 90

days in segregating such contributions,

even if the participant contributions can

reasonably be segregated much sooner.

The Department has also received

similar information from a variety of

other sources. Such delays deprive

participants of earnings on their

contributions and increase the risk to

participants and their beneficiaries that

their contributions will be lost due to

the employer’s insolvency or

misappropriation by the employer.

In order to better protect the security

of participant contributions to employee

benefit plans, the Department believes

that the final regulation published in

1988 must be revised. It is important to

clarify that participant contributions

become plan assets as soon as they can

reasonably be segregated from the

employer’s general assets. In addition,

the Department believes that the 90-day

maximum period under 1988 regulation

is too long, given the abuses that have

been uncovered by the Department’s

investigations, and improvements in

cash management and payroll

processing practices since the final

regulation was adopted.

The Proposed Regulation

This document contains a proposal to

revise the regulation at 29 CFR 2510.3–

102 by changing the maximum period

during which participant contributions

to an employee benefit may be treated

as other than ‘‘plan assets’’. Under the

current regulation, the maximum period

is 90 days from the date on which the

participant contributions are received

by the employer (for amounts that

participants or beneficiaries pay to the

employer) or would otherwise have

been payable to the participants in cash

(for amounts that the employer

withholds from the participants’ wages).

Under the proposed rule, the

maximum period for an employer to

transmit participant contributions to the

plan would be the same number of days

as the period in which the employer is

required to deposit withheld income

taxes and employment taxes under rules

promulgated by the Internal Revenue

Service (IRS). The currently applicable

rules are codified at 26 CFR 31.6302–1.6

In general, these rules require employers

who have reported more than $50,000 of

withheld income taxes and employment

taxes for a prior 12-month ‘‘lookback’’

period (defined as ‘‘semi-weekly

depositors’’) to make tax deposits to a

Federal Reserve Bank or authorized

financial institution within a few days

of withholding from wages. Employers

who have reported $50,000 or less of

withheld income taxes and employment

taxes in the lookback period are defined

as ‘‘monthly depositors’’ and must make

such deposits on or before the 15th day

of the month following the month in

which the employees’ wages are paid.

In addition, the IRS regulations reflect

the statutory requirement that an

employer who has accumulated on any

day $100,000 in withheld income taxes

and employment taxes must deposit

such taxes by the next banking day. 26

U.S.C. 6302(g). If an employer

accumulates less than a $500 tax

liability during a calendar quarter, no

deposits are required; the tax is paid

with the filing of the tax return for the

quarter.7 The Department solicits

comments on the appropriateness of

including these two special rules to the

general tax deposit rules in the IRS

regulation.

The proposed rule would require

employers who cannot reasonably

segregate participant contributions at an

earlier date to treat such amounts as

plan assets within the same time frame

that the employer is required to

segregate and deposit withheld income

taxes and employment taxes. The

following table illustrates the basic time

periods specified in the IRS regulations:

Type of depositor Date withheld Date deposit due

Semi-Weekly Depositor (more than $50,000 of

Federal Income, Social Security and Medicare taxes (collectively, employment taxes)

reported for 12-month period ending last

June 30).

Wednesday, Thursday, and/or Friday ..............

Saturday, Sunday, Monday and/or Tuesday ....

Following Wednesday.

Following Friday.

Monthly Depositor ($50,000 or less of employment taxes reported for 12-month period

ending on the previous June 30).

In any day during a calendar month ................ By the 15th of the following calendar month.

Either semi-weekly or monthly depositor, if

$100,000 or more in employment taxes are

accumulated on any date.

Not relevant ...................................................... Next banking day after the $100,000 in employment taxes was accumulated.

For example, a semi-weekly depositor

that pays its employees on Wednesday,

December 13, is required to deposit

withheld income taxes and employment

taxes by the following Wednesday

(December 20). Under the proposed

rule, any participant contributions

withheld on December 13 would

become plan assets as soon as they

could reasonably be segregated from the

employer’s general assets, but no later

than December 20. Participant

contributions that are paid separately by

employees or former employees to the

employer would be subject to the same

time frames. For example, if a semiweekly depositor receives a

participant’s payment on Monday,
66038 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 244 / Wednesday, December 20, 1995 / Proposed Rules

8The Department understands that most

employers who sponsor section 401(k) plans are

‘‘semi-weekly depositors’’ under the IRS rules.

December 18, the payment amount

would become plan assets as soon as

they could reasonably be segregated

from the employer’s general assets, but

no later than the following Friday,

December 22.

Because the IRS tax deposit rules are

generally applicable to employers, the

Department expects that employers who

sponsor contributory employee benefit

plans are familiar with and have

systems in place to comply with the IRS

requirements.8 Thus, the Department

believes that applying these same rules

in determining when the maximum

period beyond which participant

contributions must be treated as plan

assets should not result in serious

inconvenience or expense for such

employers. The Department believes

that currently available cash

management and payroll processing

technology allows the segregation of

participant contributions within the

maximum period proposed in this

document. Furthermore, the final

regulation published in 1988 requires

that participant contributions be treated

as plan assets as soon as they can

reasonably be segregated from the

employer’s general assets. As a result,

this proposed change will not be

material for many employers who have

complied with the final regulation

published in 1988. The Department

recognizes that some employers

perceive difficulties in the transfer of

participant contributions to the plan

that they do not have in the deposit of

federal employment taxes. The

Department solicits comments as to any

specific burdens and associated costs of

this kind. The Department also requests

comments on the transition period

needed for employers and service

providers, especially small businesses,

to make changes in practices that may

be necessary to comply with the

proposal if it is adopted.

Although the proposed rule would

not change the requirement that

participant contributions be treated as

plan assets at the earliest date they can

reasonably be segregated from the

employer’s general assets, changing the

regulations to provide for an outer limit

that conforms to IRS requirements will

allow the Department and plan

participants to more quickly and easily

determine that a violation has occurred.

This will assist the Department in its

increased monitoring and enforcement

in this area, as it reduces the room for

argument as to how rapidly participant

contributions must be segregated from

the employer’s general assets. In

addition, changing the ninety-day limit

for treating participant contributions as

other than ‘‘plan assets’’ reduces the risk

of loss that exists when employers

improperly hold participant

contributions in their general assets for

the maximum period rather than

segregating them from the employer’s

general assets at the earliest reasonable

date.

The proposed rule does not include

an alternative proposal for a maximum

period based on a fixed period of days

(such as 15 days), but the Department

may consider adopting such a rule in

place of the rule described above if

adopting the IRS tax deposit rules as the

maximum period for segregating

participant contributions would place

an undue burden on plan sponsors.

Commenters may wish to address the

advantages or disadvantages of using a

fixed period of days or some other

formulation for a maximum period

when they provide comments on the

proposed rule.

The Department also welcomes

comments on the advisability of other

measures that it might consider to

address the problem of delays in

transmitting participant contributions to

plans, such as, for example,

requirements for more frequent

disclosure to participants of participant

contributions and account balances by

the plan.

This document also modifies the

language in section 2510.3–102 to

emphasize that the assets of a plan

include participant contributions as of

the earliest date on which such

contributions can reasonably be

segregated from the employer’s general

assets. Although this modification

would not change the effect of the

existing regulation, the Department

expects that the proposed new language

will reduce the likelihood that

employers will incorrectly believe that

the maximum period in the proposed

rule is a safe harbor and that they may

delay the segregation of participant

contributions up to the maximum

period.

Effective Date of Regulation

Pursuant to the requirements of the

Administrative Procedure Act at 5

U.S.C. 553(b), the Department is

publishing this notice of proposed

rulemaking for notice and comment and

will promulgate this rule in final form

subsequent to such comment period.

The Department expects to issue a final

rule 45 days following the close of the

comment period. The Department has

determined to propose that the final rule

will be effective 60 days after its

publication, which the Department

believes will allow sufficient time for an

appropriate transition to the new

maximum periods. The Department

solicits comments regarding the

appropriate effective date for the final

regulation.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

The Department has determined that

this regulation would not have a

significant economic impact on small

plans or other small entities. The

regulation would describe when

contributions made by a participant of

a plan subject to ERISA or to the related

prohibited transaction excise tax

provisions of the Internal Revenue Code

must be transmitted to the plan by an

employer withholding the

contributions. The Department solicits

comments on whether the proposal is

likely to have a significant economic

impact on small entities. The

Department also requests comments

from small entities regarding what, if

any, special problems they anticipate

they may encounter if the proposal were

to be adopted, and what changes, if any,

could be made to minimize these

problems.

Executive Order 12866

Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR

51735, Oct. 4, 1993), the Department

must determine whether the regulatory

action is ‘‘significant’’ and therefore

subject to review by the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) and the

requirements of the Executive Order.

Under section 3(f), the order defines a

‘‘significant regulatory action’’ as an

action that is likely to result in, among

other things, a rule raising novel policy

issues arising out of the President’s

priorities.

Pursuant to the terms of the Executive

Order, the Department has determined

that this regulatory action is a

‘‘significant regulatory action’’ as that

term is used in Executive Order 12866

because the action would raise novel

policy issues arising out of the

President’s priorities. Thus, the

Department believes this notice is

‘‘significant,’’ and subject to OMB

review on that basis. The Department

also solicits comments on potential

economic effects of this proposed rule

in the context of Executive Order 12866,

and any evidence with respect to

whether or not this proposed rule may

be ‘‘economically significant’’.

Paperwork Reduction Act

The regulation being issued here is

not subject to the requirements of the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44

U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) because it does not
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 244 / Wednesday, December 20, 1995 / Proposed Rules 66039

contain an ‘‘information collection

request’’ as defined in 44 U.S.C.

3502(11).

Statutory Authority

The proposed regulation would be

adopted pursuant to the authority

contained in section 505 of ERISA (Pub.

L. 93–406, 88 Stat. 894; 29 U.S.C. 1135)

and section 102 of Reorganization Plan

No. 4 of 1978 (43 FR 47713, October 17,

1978), effective December 31, 1978 (44

FR 1065, January 3, 1979), 3 CFR 1978

Comp. 332, and under Secretary of

Labor’s Order No. 1–87, 52 FR 13139

(Apr. 21, 1987).

List of Subjects in 29 CFR Part 2510

Employee benefit plans, Employee

Retirement Income Security Act,

Pensions, Plan assets.

PART 2510—[AMENDED]

1. The authority for Part 2510 is

revised to read:

Authority: Secs. 3(2), 111(c), 505, Pub. L.

93–406, 88 Stat. 852, 894 (29 U.S.C. 1002(2),

1031, 1135); Secretary of Labor’s Order No.

27–74, 1–86 (51 FR 3521, January 28, 1986),

1–87 (52 FR 13139, April 21, 1987), and

Labor Management Services Administration

Order No. 2–6.

Section 2510.3–40 is also issued under sec.

3(40), Pub. L. 97–473, 96 Stat. 2611, 2612 (29

U.S.C. 1002(40)).

Section 2510.3–101 is also issued under

sec. 102 of Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1978

(43 FR 47713, October 17, 1978), effective

December 31, 1978 (44 FR 1065, January 3,

1978), 3 CFR 1978 Comp. 332 and sec.

11018(d) of Pub. L. 99–272, 100 Stat. 82.

Section 2510.3–102 is also issued under

sec. 102 of Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1978

(43 FR 47713, October 17, 1978), effective

December 31, 1978 (44 FR 1065, January 3,

1978), 3 CFR 1978 Comp. 332.

2. Section 2510.3–102 is revised to read as

follows:

2510.3–102 Definition of ‘‘plan assets’’—

participant contributions.

(a) General rule. For purposes of

Subtitle A and Parts 1 and 4 of Subtitle

B of Title I of ERISA and section 4975

of the Internal Revenue Code only (but

without any implication for and may

not be relied upon to bar criminal

prosecutions under 18 U.S.C. 664), the

assets of the plan include amounts

(other than union dues) that a

participant or beneficiary pays to an

employer, or amounts that a participant

has withheld from his wages by an

employer, for contribution to the plan as

of the earliest date on which such

contributions can reasonably be

segregated from the employer’s general

assets.

(b) Maximum time period. In no event

shall the date determined pursuant to

paragraph (a) of this section occur later

than the end of period of time during

which the employer is required to make

federal tax deposits for withheld income

taxes and taxes under the Federal

Insurance Contributions Act under

regulations issued at 26 CFR 31.6302–1,

measured from the date on which such

amounts are received by the employer

(in the case of amounts that a

participant or beneficiary pays to an

employer) or the date on which such

amounts would otherwise have been

payable to the participant in cash (in the

case of amounts withheld by an

employer from a participant’s wages).

(c) Examples. The requirements of

this section are illustrated by the

following examples:

(1) Employer W is a small company

with a small number of employees at a

single payroll location. W maintains a

plan under section 401(k) of the Internal

Revenue Code in which all of its

employees participate. W’s practice is to

issue a single check to the trust that is

maintained under the plan in the

amount of the total withheld employee

contributions within two days of the

date on which the employees are paid.

Under applicable Internal Revenue

Service federal tax deposit rules, W is a

‘‘monthly depositor’’ as defined at 26

CFR 31.6302–1(c)(1). Under these rules

W must deposit withheld federal

income taxes and employment taxes no

later than the 15th of the month

following the month in which the

relevant wages are paid. In view of the

relatively small number of employees

and the fact that they are paid from a

single location, W could reasonably be

expected to transmit participant

contributions to a trust within two days

after the employee’s wages are paid.

Therefore, the assets of W’s 401(k) plan

include the participant contributions

attributable to any pay period as of the

date two days from the close of such

period, even though IRS federal tax

deposit rules allow W substantially

more time in which to make tax

deposits.

(2) Employer X is a large national

corporation which sponsors a section

401(k) plan. X has several payroll

centers and uses an outside payroll

processing service to pay employee

wages and process deductions. Each

payroll center has a different pay

period. Each center maintains separate

accounts on its books for purposes of

accounting for that center’s payroll

deductions and provides the outside

payroll processor the data necessary to

prepare employee paychecks and

process deductions. The payroll

processing service has adopted a

procedure under which it issues the

employees’ paychecks when due and

deducts all payroll taxes and elective

employee deductions. It deposits

withheld income and employment

payroll taxes within the time frame

specified by 26 CFR 31.6302–1 and

forwards a computer data tape

representing the total payroll

deductions for each employee, for a

month’s worth of pay periods, to a

centralized location in X, where the data

tape is checked for accuracy. A single

check representing the aggregate

participant contributions for the month

is issued to the plan by the employer.

X believes that this procedure, which

takes 7 days after receipt of the date tape

to complete, permits segregation of

participant contributions at the earliest

practicable time and avoids mistakes in

the allocation of contribution amounts

for each participant. X, however, is a

‘‘semi-weekly depositor’’ under the

Internal Revenue Service’s Federal

Deposit Rules and makes Federal tax

deposits within the time frames, set

forth in those IRS rules. Under

paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section,

the assets of the plan include the

participant contributions as soon as X

could reasonably be expected to

segregate the contributions from its

general assets, but in no event later than

the date on which the employer would

be required to deposit withheld income

taxes and employment taxes under 26

CFR 31.6302–1. The participant

contributions become plan assets no

later than end of the time period within

which X is required to deposit withheld

income taxes and employment taxes.

(3) Employer Y is medium-sized

company which maintains a selfinsured contributory group health plan.

Several former employees have elected,

pursuant to the provisions of ERISA

§ 602, 29 U.S.C. 1162, to pay Y for

continuation of their coverage under the

plan. Y is a semi-weekly depositor of

withheld Federal income taxes and

employment taxes. Under paragraphs (a)

and (b) of this section, the assets of the

plan include the former employees’

payments as soon as Y could reasonably

be expected to segregate the payments

from its general assets, but in no event

later than the date on which Y would be

required to deposit the payment

amounts if the payments were withheld

from Federal income taxes or

employment taxes. A former employee’s

payment received on a Monday would

have become plan assets no later than

the following Friday.

(d) Effective date. This section is

effective 60 days after date of

publication of final regulation.
66040 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 244 / Wednesday, December 20, 1995 / Proposed Rules

Signed at Washington, DC, this 14th day of

December 1995.

Alan D. Lebowitz,

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Program

Operations, Pension and Welfare Benefits

Administration, U.S. Department of Labor.

[FR Doc. 95–30782 Filed 12–19–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–29–M