[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 120 (Wednesday, June 23, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35842-35843]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-15093]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employee Benefits Security Administration
Proposed Extension of Information Collection Request Submitted
for Public Comment; Proposed Extension of Information Collection;
Comment Request; Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 85-68--To
Permit Employee Benefit Plans To Invest in Customer Notes of Employers
AGENCY: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of Labor.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (the Department), in accordance with
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA 95) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)),
provides the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to
comment on proposed and continuing collections of information. This
helps the Department assess the impact of its information collection
requirements and minimize
[[Page 35843]]
the reporting burden on the public and helps the public understand the
Department's information collection requirements and provide the
requested data in the desired format. Currently, the Employee Benefits
Security Administration is soliciting comments on the proposed
extension of the information collection provisions of Prohibited
Transaction Class Exemption 85-68. A copy of the information collection
request (ICR) may be obtained by contacting the office listed in the
ADDRESSES section of this notice.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office shown in the
ADDRESSES section on or before August 23, 2010.
ADDRESSES: G. Christopher Cosby, Department of Labor, Employee Benefits
Security Administration, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC
20210, (202) 693-8410, FAX (202) 693-4745 (these are not toll-free
numbers).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Pursuant to section 408 of ERISA, the Department has authority to
grant an exemption from the prohibitions of sections 406 and 407(a) if
it can determine that the exemption is administratively feasible, in
the interest of participants and beneficiaries, and protective of the
rights of participants and beneficiaries of the plan. Prohibited
Transaction Class Exemption 85-68 describes the conditions under which
a plan is permitted to acquire customer notes accepted by an employer
of employees covered by the plan in the ordinary course of the
employer's primary business activity. The exemption covers sales as
well as contributions of customer notes by an employer to its plan.
Specifically, the exemption requires that the employer provide a
written guarantee to repurchase a note which becomes more than 60 days
delinquent, that such notes be secured by a perfected security interest
in the property financed by the note, and that the collateral be
insured. The exemption requires records pertaining to the transaction
to be maintained for a period of six years for the purpose of ensuring
that the transactions are protective of the rights of participants and
beneficiaries. This recordkeeping requirement constitutes an
information collection within the meaning of the PRA, for which the
Department has obtained approval from the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) under OMB Control No. 1210-0094. The OMB approval is
currently scheduled to expire on August 31, 2010.
II. Current Actions
This notice requests public comment pertaining to the Department's
request for extension of OMB approval of the information collection
contained in PTE 85-68. After considering comments received in response
to this notice, the Department intends to submit an ICR to OMB for
continuing approval. No change to the existing ICR is proposed or made
at this time. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not
required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a
valid OMB control number. A summary of the ICR and the current burden
estimates follows:
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 85-68.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0094.
Affected Public: Individuals or households; Business or other for-
profit; Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 325.
Frequency: On Occasion.
Responses: 325.
Estimated Hour Burden: 1 hour.
Estimated Total Burden Cost: $0.
III. Focus of Comments
The Department of Labor (Department) is particularly interested in
comments that:
Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
Minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., by
permitting electronic submissions of responses.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the ICR for OMB approval of the extension of the
information collection; they will also become a matter of public
record.
Dated: June 16, 2010.
Joseph S. Piacentini,
Director, Office of Policy and Research, Employee Benefits Security
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2010-15093 Filed 6-22-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-29-P