[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 74 (Tuesday, April 18, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19440-19441]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-9522]



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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Rel. No. IC-20996; 811-7298]


SAFECO Washington State Municipal Bond Fund, Inc.; Notice of 
Application

April 12, 1995.
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission (``SEC'').

ACTION: Notice of Application for Deregistration under the Investment 
Company Act of 1940 (the ``Act'').

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APPLICANT: SAFECO Washington State Municipal Bond Fund, Inc.

RELEVANT ACT SECTION: Section 8(f).

SUMMARY OF APPLICATION: Applicant requests an order declaring that it 
has ceased to be an investment company under the Act.

FILING DATE: The application was filed on March 31, 1995.

[[Page 19441]] HEARING OR NOTIFICATION OF HEARING: An order granting 
the application will be issued unless the SEC orders a hearing. 
Interested persons may request a hearing by writing to the SEC's 
Secretary and serving applicant with a copy of the request, personally 
or by mail. Hearing requests should be received by the SEC by 5:30 p.m. 
on May 8, 1995, and should be accompanied by proof of service on 
applicant, in the form of an affidavit or, for lawyers, a certificate 
of service. Hearing requests should state the nature of the writer's 
interest, the reason for the request, and the issues contested. Persons 
may request notification of a hearing by writing to the SEC's 
Secretary.

ADDRESSES: Secretary, SEC, 450 5th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20549. 
Applicant, SAFECO Plaza, Seattle, WA 98185.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Felice R. Foundos, Staff Attorney, (202) 942-0571, or Robert A. 
Robertson, Branch Chief, (202) 942-0564 (Division of Investment 
Management, Office of Investment Company Regulation).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following is a summary of the 
application. The complete application may be obtained for a fee at the 
SEC's Public Reference Branch.

Applicant's Representations

    1. Applicant is an open-end management investment company organized 
as a corporation under the laws of the State of Washington. On 
September 4, 1990, applicant registered under the Act as an investment 
company and filed a registration statement under the Securities Act of 
1933 to register its shares. The registration statement became 
effective on March 18, 1993 and the initial public offering of its 
shares commenced on that date.
    2. On May 6, 1993, applicant's board of directors approved a plan 
of reorganization (the ``Plan'') between applicant and SAFECO Tax-
Exempt Bond Trust (the ``Trust'') on behalf of its series, SAFECO 
Washington State Municipal Bond Fund (the ``Acquiring Fund'').\1\ The 
Trust is an investment company organized under the laws of Delaware.

    \1\Applicant's board of directors determined that the Plan was 
in the best interests of applicant and that the interests of 
applicant's existing shareholders would not be diluted as a result 
of effecting the transactions.
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    3. By moving its assets from a Washington corporation to a Delaware 
trust, applicant expects its shareholders to benefit from the adoption 
of new methods of operations and employment of new technologies that 
are expected to reduce costs. For example, Washington corporations are 
required to hold annual meetings, whereas a series of the Trust has no 
such requirement. Further, Delaware trusts generally have greater 
flexibility than Washington corporations to respond to future 
contingencies, allowing such trusts to operate under the most advanced 
and cost efficient form of organization. For example, Delaware law 
authorizes electronic or telephonic communications between a Delaware 
trust and its shareholders. In addition, as one of several series of 
the Trust, applicant's shareholders should enjoy certain expense 
savings through economies of scale that would not be available to a 
stand-alone entity.
    4. On May 7, 1993, applicant filed proxy materials with the SEC 
relating to the proposed reorganization and afterwards distributed such 
proxy materials to its shareholders. Applicant's shareholders approved 
the reorganization at a meeting held on August 5, 1993.
    5. Pursuant to the Plan, applicant transferred all of its assets 
and liabilities to the Acquiring Fund on September 30, 1993, in 
exchange for shares of the Acquiring Fund. The exchange was based on 
the relative net asset value of applicant and the Acquiring Fund. 
Immediately thereafter, applicant distributed pro rata to its 
shareholders the Acquiring Fund shares it received in the 
reorganization. No brokerage commissions were incurred in this 
reorganization.
    6. The total expenses incurred in connection with the 
reorganization, consisting of legal fees, accounting fees, and printing 
and mailing costs of proxy materials, were $120. Applicant's former 
investment adviser, SAFECO Asset Management Company, paid these 
expenses.
    7. As of the date of the application, applicant had no assets, 
debts or liabilities, and was not a party to any litigation or 
administrative proceeding.
    8. Applicant has filed a certificate of dissolution with the State 
of Washington on October 1, 1993.
    9. Applicant is neither engaged in nor proposes to engage in any 
business activities other than those necessary for the winding up of 
its affairs.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Investment Management, 
under delegated authority.
Margaret H. McFarland,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-9522 Filed 4-17-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-M