Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 148 / Thursday, July 31, 2008 / Notices 44797 

21See Amex Company Guide Sections 502 and 

703 and NYSE Listed Company Manual Section 

401.02. 

22See NYSE Listed Company Manual Section 

102.06. 

23See id. 

24 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2). 

25 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2). 

26 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

As discussed above, the Commission 

received two comment letters on the 

proposal, one in favor and one in 

opposition. The Cadwalader Letter, 

while supporting the proposal, urges the 

Exchange to require SPACs to publicly 

disclose the record date for shareholders 

to vote on the business combination ten 

days prior to such date. The 

Commission notes that while exchanges 

have rules requiring listed issuers to 

notify the exchanges of their record date 

for shareholder meetings, there are no 

similar rules requiring listed issuers to 

notify the public of such record date in 

advance.21 Further, the Commission 

notes that Rule 419 under the Securities 

Act does not require blank check 

companies to publicly notify their 

shareholders of the record date for a 

shareholders vote. The Commission 

believes that any consideration of a 

public notice requirement of record 

dates should be conducted outside the 

context of a particular SRO rule filing. 

The NASAA Letter, as summarized 

above, opposes the proposal due to the 

historical abuses of blank check 

companies. The Exchange states that it 

would conduct a regulatory review of 

each SPAC that applies to list securities 

on the Exchange. Further, the Exchange 

states that it would evaluate the 

reputation of the SPAC’s sponsors and 

underwriters to determine whether 

initial listing is appropriate. Moreover, 

the Exchange amended the proposal to 

include conversion rights for public 

shareholders, should they vote against a 

business combination. The Commission 

believes that the additional investor 

protection standards, in addition to 

Nasdaq’s initial listing standards, 

should help to ensure that investors are 

adequately protected. 

V. Accelerated Approval 

The Commission finds good cause for 

approving the proposed rule change, as 

modified by Amendment No. 1, before 

the thirtieth day after the date of 

publication of notice of filing thereof in 

the Federal Register. In Amendment 

No. 1 the Exchange proposed to: (1) 

Amend the amount of gross proceeds 

that must be deposited from 100% to 

90%; (2) clarify the period in which the 

SPAC must complete one or more 

business combinations; and (3) require 

that all listed SPACs contain provisions 

allowing public shareholders to convert 

their shares into cash if they vote 

against a business combination. The 

Commission believes that Amendment 

No. 1 raises no new or novel regulatory 

issues. The Commission notes that the 

amendment to the amount of the deposit 

account is consistent with Rule 419 

under the Securities Act and NYSE 

initial listing standards for SPAC 

securities.22 The Exchange also clarified 

the time period in which SPACs must 

complete business combinations. 

Finally, the Commission notes that the 

public shareholder conversion right is 

consistent with the NYSE initial listing 

standards for SPAC securities and 

provides further investor protections for 

investors in SPAC securities.23 The 

Commission finds that the filing, as 

modified by Amendment No. 1, is 

consistent with the protection of 

investors and the public interest. 

Accordingly, the Commission finds 

good cause, consistent with section 

19(b)(2) of the Act,24 to approve the 

proposed rule change, as modified by 

Amendment No. 1, on an accelerated 

basis. 

VI. Solicitation of Comments 

Interested persons are invited to 

submit written data, views, and 

arguments concerning the foregoing, 

including whether the filing, as 

modified by Amendment No. 1, is 

consistent with the Act. Comments may 

be submitted by any of the following 

methods: 

Electronic Comments 

• Use the Commission’s Internet 

comment form (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml); or 

• Send an e-mail to rulecomments@sec.gov. Please include File 

Number SR–NASDAQ–2008–013 on the 

subject line. 

Paper Comments 

• Send paper comments in triplicate 

to Secretary, Securities and Exchange 

Commission, 100 F Street, NE., 

Washington, DC 20549–1090. 

All submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–NASDAQ–2008–013. This 

file number should be included on the 

subject line if e-mail is used. To help the 

Commission process and review your 

comments more efficiently, please use 

only one method. The Commission will 

post all comments on the Commission’s 

Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml). 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, 100 F Street, NE., Washington, 

DC 20549, on official business days 

between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. 

Copies of such filing also will be 

available for inspection and copying at 

the principal office of the Exchange. All 

comments received will be posted 

without change; the Commission does 

not edit personal identifying 

information from submissions. You 

should submit only information that 

you wish to make available publicly. All 

submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–NASDAQ–2008–013 and 

should be submitted on or before 

August 21, 2008. 

VII. Conclusion 

Based on the foregoing, the 

Commission finds the proposal is 

consistent with the requirements of the 

Act and should provide for the initial 

listing of securities of SPACs with 

baseline investor protection and other 

standards. 

It is therefore ordered, pursuant to 

section 19(b)(2) of the Act,25 that the 

proposed rule change, as modified by 

Amendment No. 1 (SR–NASDAQ–2008–

013) is hereby approved on an 

accelerated basis. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.26

Florence E. Harmon, 

Acting Secretary. 

[FR Doc. E8–17502 Filed 7–30–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8010–01–P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

[Disaster Declaration # 11308] 

Illinois Disaster Number IL–00016 

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business 

Administration. 

ACTION: Amendment 2. 

SUMMARY: This is an amendment of the 

Presidential declaration of a major 

disaster for Public Assistance Only for 

the State of Illinois (FEMA–1771–DR), 

dated 06/24/2008. 

Incident: Severe Storms and Flooding. 

Incident Period: 06/01/2008 and 

continuing. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
44798 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 148 / Thursday, July 31, 2008 / Notices 

Effective Date: 07/16/2008. 

Physical Loan Application Deadline 

Date: 08/25/2008. 

ADDRESSES: Submit completed loan 

applications to: U.S. Small Business 

Administration, Processing and 

Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport 

Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A. 

Escobar, Office of Disaster Assistance, 

U.S. Small Business Administration, 

409 3rd Street, SW., Suite 6050, 

Washington, DC 20416. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The notice 

of the President’s major disaster 

declaration for Private Non-Profit 

organizations in the State of Illinois, 

dated 06/24/2008, is hereby amended to 

include the following areas as adversely 

affected by the disaster. 

Primary Counties: 

Lake, Madison, Monroe, Randolph, 

Saint Clair. 

All other information in the original 

declaration remains unchanged. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Number 59008) 

Herbert L. Mitchell, 

Associate Administrator for Disaster 

Assistance. 

[FR Doc. E8–17547 Filed 7–30–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8025–01–P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

[Disaster Declaration #11310] 

Minnesota Disaster Number MN–00015 

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business 

Administration. 

ACTION: Amendment 2. 

SUMMARY: This is an amendment of the 

Presidential declaration of a major 

disaster for Public Assistance Only for 

the State of Minnesota (FEMA–1772–

DR), dated 06/25/2008. 

Incident: Severe Storms and Flooding. 

Incident Period: 06/07/2008 through 

06/12/2008. 

Effective Date: 07/16/2008. 

Physical Loan Application Deadline 

Date: 08/25/2008. 

ADDRESSES: Submit completed loan 

applications to: U.S. Small Business 

Administration, Processing and 

Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport 

Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A. 

Escobar, Office of Disaster Assistance, 

U.S. Small Business Administration, 

409 3rd Street, SW., Suite 6050, 

Washington, DC 20416. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The notice 

of the President’s major disaster 

declaration for Private Non-Profit 

organizations in the State of Minnesota, 

dated 06/25/2008, is hereby amended to 

include the following areas as adversely 

affected by the disaster. 

Primary Counties: 

Nobles. 

All other information in the original 

declaration remains unchanged. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Number 59008) 

Herbert L. Mitchell, 

Associate Administrator for Disaster 

Assistance. 

[FR Doc. E8–17546 Filed 7–30–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8025–01–P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

[Disaster Declaration #11311 and #11312] 

Missouri Disaster Number MO–00030 

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business 

Administration. 

ACTION: Amendment 3. 

SUMMARY: This is an amendment of the 

Presidential declaration of a major 

disaster for the State of Missouri 

(FEMA–1773–DR), dated 06/28/2008. 

Incident: Severe Storms and Flooding. 

Incident Period: 06/01/2008 and 

continuing through 07/18/2008. 

Effective Date: 07/18/2008. 

Physical Loan Application Deadline 

Date: 08/27/2008. 

EIDL Loan Application Deadline Date: 

03/30/2009. 

ADDRESSES: Submit completed loan 

applications to: U.S. Small Business 

Administration, Processing and 

Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport 

Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A. 

Escobar, Office of Disaster Assistance, 

U.S. Small Business Administration, 

409 3rd Street, SW., Suite 6050, 

Washington, DC 20416. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The notice 

of the President’s major disaster 

declaration for the State of Missouri, 

dated 06/28/2008 is hereby amended to 

establish the incident period for this 

disaster as beginning 06/01/2008 and 

continuing through 07/18/2008. 

All other information in the original 

declaration remains unchanged. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Numbers 59002 and 59008) 

Herbert L. Mitchell, 

Associate Administrator for Disaster 

Assistance. 

[FR Doc. E8–17538 Filed 7–30–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8025–01–P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

[Disaster Declaration #11309] 

Missouri Disaster Number MO–00029. 

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business 

Administration. 

ACTION: Amendment 2. 

SUMMARY: This is an amendment of the 

Presidential declaration of a major 

disaster for Public Assistance Only for 

the State of Missouri (FEMA–1773–DR), 

dated 06/25/2008. 

Incident: Severe Storms and Flooding. 

Incident Period: 06/01/2008 through 

07/18/2008. 

Effective Date: 07/18/2008. 

Physical Loan Application Deadline 

Date: 08/25/2008. 

ADDRESSES: Submit completed loan 

applications to: U.S. Small Business 

Administration, Processing and 

Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport 

Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A. 

Escobar, Office of Disaster Assistance, 

U.S. Small Business Administration, 

409 3rd Street, SW., Suite 6050, 

Washington, DC 20416. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The notice 

of the President’s major disaster 

declaration for Private Non-Profit 

organizations in the State of MISSOURI, 

dated 06/25/2008, is hereby amended to 

establish the incident period for this 

disaster as beginning 06/01/2008 and 

continuing through 07/18/2008. 

All other information in the original 

declaration remains unchanged. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Number 59008) 

Herbert L. Mitchell, 

Associate Administrator for Disaster 

Assistance. 

[FR Doc. E8–17548 Filed 7–30–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8025–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

[Public Notice 6305] 

Determination and Certification 

Related to Colombian Armed Forces 

Under Section 556 of the Foreign 

Operations, Export Financing, and 

Related Programs Appropriations Act, 

2006 (Pub. L. 109–102) as Carried 

Forward in the Revised Continuing 

Appropriations Resolution, 2007 (Pub. 

L. 110–5) and Section 649 of the 

Department of State, Foreign 

Operations, and Related Programs 

Appropriations Act, 2008 (Div. J, Pub. 

L. 110–161). 

Pursuant to the authority vested in the 

Secretary of State, including under 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES