Employee Contribution Election and Contribution Allocations; Correction of Administrative Errors; Availability of Records; Death Benefits; Loan Program; Thrift Savings Plan, 44982-44984 [E7-15635]
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44982
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
Vol. 72, No. 154
Friday, August 10, 2007
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
FEDERAL RETIREMENT THRIFT
INVESTMENT BOARD
5 CFR Parts 1600, 1605, 1631, 1651,
1655 and 1690
Employee Contribution Election and
Contribution Allocations; Correction of
Administrative Errors; Availability of
Records; Death Benefits; Loan
Program; Thrift Savings Plan
Federal Retirement Thrift
Investment Board.
ACTION: Proposed rules with request for
comments.
AGENCY:
The Federal Retirement Thrift
Investment Board (Agency) proposes to
amend its regulations to reflect the
requirements stated in the Treasury
Regulations interpreting I.R.C.
401(a)(31) to provide additional means
to verify that an amount is eligible for
rollover to the TSP.
The Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to clarify that the procedures
applicable to an employee who was
misclassified as either CSRS or FERS
also apply to an employee who elects
retroactive non-appropriated fund
(NAF) retirement coverage.
The Agency proposes to add a rule
regarding the production and
authentication of records. The Agency
would authenticate records in a manner
consistent with Federal law and
regulations.
The Agency proposes to amend its
death benefit payment regulations in
order to allow a non-spouse beneficiary
to transfer a death benefit payment to an
inherited IRA as authorized by the
Pension Protection Act.
The Agency proposes to amend its
loan regulations to reflect the changes
brought by the Bankruptcy Abuse and
Consumer Protection Act of 2005.
Specifically, the amendments would
reflect that a bankruptcy court now
lacks jurisdiction over a TSP loan.
The Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to clarify its power of
attorney regulations by eliminating
examples of general and special powers
yshivers on PROD1PC62 with PROPOSALS
SUMMARY:
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of attorney, some of which would no
longer be acceptable to the Agency, and
directing participants to a sample form
at https://www.tsp.gov.
DATES: Comments must be received on
or before September 10, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to
Thomas K. Emswiler, General Counsel,
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment
Board, 1250 H Street, NW., Washington,
DC 20005. The Agency’s Fax number is
(202) 942–1676.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Megan Graziano on (202) 942–1644.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Agency administers the TSP, which was
established by the Federal Employees’
Retirement System Act of 1986
(FERSA), Public Law 99–335, 100 Stat.
514. The TSP provisions of FERSA are
codified, as amended, largely at 5 U.S.C.
8351 and 8401–79. The TSP is a taxdeferred retirement savings plan for
Federal civilian employees and
members of the uniformed services. The
TSP is similar to cash or deferred
arrangements established for privatesector employees under section 401(k)
of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C.
401(k)).
Employee Contribution Election and
Contribution Allocations
The Agency proposes to amend its
regulations regarding eligible rollover
distributions to the TSP. In particular,
since Treasury regulations only require
that the Agency receive sufficient
evidence to reasonably conclude that a
contribution is a valid rollover
contribution, the Agency no longer
requires a plan administrator or trustee
to certify such distributions.
Further, when a participant completes
a rollover, IRS rules require that the
rollover be completed within 60 days of
the date the participant received the
distribution. Therefore, Agency practice
is to have the participant certify the date
the distribution was received. Agency
regulations, however, require the
financial institution to certify the date of
the distribution. This date is irrelevant
to a rollover that is completed by a
participant.
In addition, the Agency can conduct
additional verification in the event that
the date certified varies significantly
from the date on the check. Therefore,
the Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to delete the requirement
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that a financial institution certify the
date of distribution.
Correction of Administrative Errors
The Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to clarify that the procedures
applicable to a participant misclassified
as either FERS or CSRS and the
retirement coverage is corrected to FICA
only, also apply to an employee who
elects retroactive NAF coverage. These
procedures will ensure that the
employee either is refunded all
contributions made by the employee or
maintains ownership of all
contributions that the TSP’s record
keeping system is unable to refund to
the employee and that will continue to
inure to the employee’s benefit. The
agency contributions that forfeit to the
TSP will benefit all TSP participants
because they will be used to offset the
TSP’s administrative expenses.
Availability of Records
The Agency proposes to add a section
to its regulations regarding production
and disclosure of records, and
specifically, in relation to certification
and authentication of records. The
Agency frequently receives subpoenas
directing it to authenticate Agency
documents for use in state court
proceedings. Often, these subpoenas
request that such documents be
authenticated in accordance with state
court procedures and receive
notarization. The Agency lacks the
expertise to comply with the procedures
of the individual 50 states and
attempting to do so would result in a
misallocation of TSP resources.
Furthermore, it is not necessary for the
Agency to comply with state court
procedures in order for Agency
documents to be admissible in a state
court proceeding.
Section 1733(b) of title 28, United
States Code, provides that ‘‘[p]roperly
authenticated copies or transcripts of
any books, records, papers or
documents of any department or agency
of the United States shall be admitted in
evidence equally with the originals
thereof.’’ In order to properly
authenticate Agency documents, the
records custodian or other qualified
individual shall attach a written
declaration that complies with current
Federal Rules of Evidence. Documents
so authenticated shall be admitted in
evidence equally with the originals
thereof. See 28 U.S.C. 1733(b).
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 154 / Friday, August 10, 2007 / Proposed Rules
Therefore, this regulation prescribes
procedures for the Agency to
authenticate documents so that the
documents will be admissible in all
state court proceedings. These
procedures shall be the exclusive means
of authenticating Agency documents.
Death Benefits
regulation on state, local, and tribal
governments and the private sector have
been assessed. This regulation will not
compel the expenditure in any one year
of $100 million or more by state, local,
and tribal governments, in the aggregate,
or by the private sector. Therefore, a
statement under § 1532 is not required.
The Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to reflect changes in its
death benefit payment process brought
by the Pension Protection Act (PPA) of
2006. The PPA allows non-spouse
beneficiaries to transfer all or part of
their benefits payable from a qualified
retirement plan or government plan to
an inherited IRA. As a result, the
Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to allow a non-spouse
beneficiary to transfer all or part of his
or her death benefit payment from the
TSP to an inherited IRA.
Submission to Congress and the
General Accounting Office
Loan Program
Government employees, Pensions,
Retirement.
The Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to reflect changes in
bankruptcy law. Due to the Bankruptcy
Abuse Prevention and Consumer
Protection Act of 2005 (Pub. L. 109–8),
a bankruptcy court lacks jurisdiction
over a TSP loan under both chapter 7
and chapter 13 procedures. To reflect
this change, language mentioning the
possibility of a bankruptcy court
stopping TSP loan payments under a
chapter 13 bankruptcy procedure would
be removed.
Thrift Savings Plan
The Agency proposes to amend its
regulations to simplify the regulations’
description of acceptable general and
special powers of attorney. By
eliminating the noncomprehensive list
of examples provided in the regulations,
the agency hopes participants will use
the regulations’ thorough definitions as
well as overview material and sample
forms provided at https://www.tsp.gov to
secure a proper power of attorney.
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 810(a)(1)(A), the
Agency submitted a report containing
this rule and other required information
to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
Representatives, and the Comptroller
General of the United States before
publication of this rule in the Federal
Register. This rule is not a major rule as
defined at 5 U.S.C. 814(2).
List of Subjects
5 CFR Parts 1600, 1690
5 CFR Parts 1605, 1651
Claims, Government employees,
Pensions, Retirement.
5 CFR Part 1631
Courts, Freedom of information,
Government employees.
5 CFR Part 1655
Credit, Government employees,
Pensions, Retirement.
Thomas K. Emswiler,
General Counsel, Federal Retirement Thrift
Investment Board.
For the reasons set forth in the
preamble, the Agency proposes to
amend 5 CFR chapter VI as follows:
PART 1600—EMPLOYEE
CONTRIBUTION ELECTIONS AND
CONTRIBUTION
44983
contribution is a valid rollover
contribution. By way of example,
sufficient evidence to conclude a
contribution is a valid rollover
contribution includes a copy of the
plan’s determination letter, a letter or
other statement from the plan indicating
that it is an eligible retirement plan, a
check indicating that the contribution is
a direct rollover or a tax notice from the
plan to the participant indicating that
the participant could receive a rollover
from the plan.
(b) * * *
(2) The administrator or trustee must
either complete the appropriate section
of the form and forward the completed
form and the distribution to the TSP
record keeper or the Agency must
receive sufficient evidence from which
to reasonably conclude that a
contribution is a valid rollover
contribution. By way of example,
sufficient evidence to conclude a
contribution is a valid rollover
contribution includes a copy of the
plan’s determination letter, a letter or
other statement from the plan indicating
that it is an eligible retirement plan, a
check indicating that the contribution is
a direct rollover or a tax notice from the
plan to the participant indicating that
the participant could receive a rollover
from the plan.
*
*
*
*
*
PART 1605—CORRECTION OF
ADMINISTRATIVE ERRORS
3. The authority citation for part 1605
is revised to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8351, 8432a, and
8474(b)(5)(5) and (c)(1). Subpart B also issued
under section 1043(b) of Pub. Law 104–106,
110 Stat. 186 and sec. 7202(m)(2) of Pub. Law
101–508, 104 Stat. 1388.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8351, 8432(a),
8432(b)(1)(A), 8432(j), 8474(b)(5) and (c)(1).
§ 1605.14 Misclassified retirement system
coverage.
I certify that these regulations will not
have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities.
They will affect only employees of the
Federal Government.
2. Amend § 1600.32 by removing the
second sentence of paragraph (a) and
adding two sentences in its place, and
revising paragraph (b)(2) to read as
follows:
Paperwork Reduction Act
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1. The authority citation for part 1600
continues to read as follows:
4. Section 1605.14 is amended by
revising the third sentence of paragraph
(a)(1), revising paragraph (c)(2) and
adding paragraph (e) to read as follows:
§ 1600.32 Methods for transferring eligible
rollover distribution to TSP.
(a) * * *
(1) * * * If the participant requests a
refund of employee contributions, the
employing agency must submit a
negative adjustment record to remove
these funds under the procedure
described in § 1605.12.
(c) * * *
(2) Employer contributions in the
account are subject to the rules in
paragraph (a)(2) of this section.
*
*
*
*
*
(e) The provisions of paragraph (c) of
this section shall apply to any TSP
contributions relating to a period for
which an employee elects retroactive
I certify that these regulations do not
require additional reporting under the
criteria of the Paperwork Reduction Act.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of
1995
Pursuant to the Unfunded Mandates
Reform Act of 1995, 2 U.S.C. 602, 632,
653, 1501–1571, the effects of this
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*
*
*
*
*
(a) * * * The administrator or trustee
must either complete the appropriate
section of the form and forward the
completed form and the distribution to
the TSP record keeper or the Agency
must receive sufficient evidence from
which to reasonably conclude that a
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 154 / Friday, August 10, 2007 / Proposed Rules
Nonappropriated Fund retirement
coverage.
the end of paragraph (a)(6), and
paragraph (a)(7) is removed.
PART 1631—AVAILABILITY OF
RECORDS
PART 1690—THRIFT SAVINGS PLANS
5. The authority citation for part 1631
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552.
6. Add § 1631.34 to read as follows:
§ 1631.34 Certification and authentication
of records.
(a) Upon request, the records
custodian or other qualified individual
shall authenticate copies of books,
records, papers, writings, and
documents by attaching a written
declaration that complies with current
Federal Rules of Evidence. No seal or
notarization shall be required. Copies of
any books, records, papers, or other
documents in the Federal Retirement
Thrift Investment Board shall be
admitted in evidence equally with the
originals thereof when authenticated in
this manner.
(b) Fees for copying and certification
are set forth in 5 CFR 1630.16.
PART 1651—DEATH BENEFITS
12. The authority citation for part
1690 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8474.
13. Amend § 1690.12 by revising the
second sentence in paragraph (b) and
the third sentence in paragraph (c) to
read as follows:
§ 1690.12
Power of attorney.
*
*
*
*
*
(b) * * * Additional information
regarding general powers of attorney can
be accessed at https://www.tsp.gov.
(c) * * * Additional information
regarding special powers of attorney, as
well as a sample form, can be accessed
at https://www.tsp.gov.
[FR Doc. E7–15635 Filed 8–9–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6760–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 959
7. The authority citation for part 1651
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8424(d), 8432(j),
8433(e), 8435(c)(2), 8474(b)(5) and 8474(c)(1).
[Docket Nos. AO–322–A4; AMS–2006–0079;
FV06–959–1]
8. In § 1651.14, redesignate
paragraphs (g) and (h) as paragraphs (h)
and (i), and add new paragraph (g) to
read as follows:
Onions Grown in South Texas;
Secretary’s Decision and Referendum
Order on Proposed Amendments to
Marketing Agreement No. 143 and
Order No. 959
§ 1651.14
AGENCY:
How payment is made.
*
*
*
*
*
(g) Payment to inherited IRA on
behalf of a non-spouse beneficiary. If
payment is to an inherited IRA on
behalf of a non-spouse beneficiary, the
check will be made payable to the
account. Information pertaining to the
inherited IRA must be submitted by the
IRA trustee.
*
*
*
*
*
PART 1655—LOAN PROGRAM
9. The authority citation for part 1655
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8433(g), 8439(a)(3) and
8474.
yshivers on PROD1PC62 with PROPOSALS
§ 1655.14
[Amended]
10. In § 1655.14, the third sentence of
paragraph (a) is removed.
§ 1655.15
[Amended]
11. In § 1655.15 ‘‘or’’ is added to the
end of paragraph (a)(5), a period
replaces the semicolon at the end of
paragraph (a)(6), ‘‘or’’ is removed from
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Agricultural Marketing Service,
USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule and referendum
order.
SUMMARY: This decision proposes
amending the marketing agreement and
order (order) for onions grown in South
Texas, and provides growers with the
opportunity to vote in a referendum to
determine if they favor the changes. The
amendments are based on those
proposed by the South Texas Onion
Committee (committee), which is
responsible for local administration of
the order. The amendments include:
Adding authority to the order to
establish supplemental assessment rates
on specified containers of onions;
authorizing interest and late payment
charges on assessments not paid within
a prescribed time period; and
authorizing the committee to engage in
marketing promotion and paid
advertising activities. Two additional
amendments were proposed by the
Department of Agriculture (USDA):
Requiring that a continuance
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Sfmt 4702
referendum be conducted every six
years to determine grower support for
the order; and, limiting the number of
consecutive terms of office a member
can serve on the committee. The
proposed amendments are intended to
improve the operation and functioning
of the South Texas onion marketing
order program.
DATES: The referendum will be
conducted from September 10 through
September 28, 2007. The representative
period for the purpose of the
referendum is August 1, 2006 through
July 31, 2007.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Martin Engeler, Marketing Order
Administration Branch, Fruit and
Vegetable Programs, Agricultural
Marketing Service, USDA, 2202
Monterey Street, #102–B, Fresno, CA
93721; telephone: (559) 487–5110, Fax:
(559) 487–5906, E-mail:
Martin.Engeler@usda.gov; or Kathleen
M. Finn, Marketing Order
Administration Branch, Fruit and
Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, 1400
Independence Avenue, SW., Stop 0237,
Washington, DC 20250–0237;
Telephone: (202) 720–2491, Fax: (202)
720–8938, E-mail:
Kathy.Finn@usda.gov.
Small businesses may request
information on this proceeding by
contacting Jay Guerber, Marketing Order
Administration Branch, Fruit and
Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, 1400
Independence Avenue, SW., Stop 0237,
Washington, DC 20250–0237; telephone:
(202) 720–2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, Email: Jay.Guerber@usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Prior
documents in this proceeding include a
Notice of Hearing issued on May 23,
2006, and published in the May 30,
2006, issue of the Federal Register (71
FR 30629), and a Recommended
Decision issued on March 29, 2007 and
published in the April 6, 2007 issue of
the Federal Register (72 FR 17037).
This action is governed by the
provisions of sections 556 and 557 of
title 5 of the United States Code and is
therefore excluded from the
requirements of Executive Order 12866.
Preliminary Statement
The proposed amendments are based
on the record of a public hearing held
on June 15, 2006, in Mission, Texas. The
hearing was held to consider the
proposed amendment of Marketing
Agreement No. 143 and Order No. 959
regulating the handling of onions grown
in South Texas. The hearing was held
pursuant to the provisions of the
Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act
of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601 et
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 154 (Friday, August 10, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 44982-44984]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-15635]
========================================================================
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 154 / Friday, August 10, 2007 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 44982]]
FEDERAL RETIREMENT THRIFT INVESTMENT BOARD
5 CFR Parts 1600, 1605, 1631, 1651, 1655 and 1690
Employee Contribution Election and Contribution Allocations;
Correction of Administrative Errors; Availability of Records; Death
Benefits; Loan Program; Thrift Savings Plan
AGENCY: Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board.
ACTION: Proposed rules with request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (Agency)
proposes to amend its regulations to reflect the requirements stated in
the Treasury Regulations interpreting I.R.C. 401(a)(31) to provide
additional means to verify that an amount is eligible for rollover to
the TSP.
The Agency proposes to amend its regulations to clarify that the
procedures applicable to an employee who was misclassified as either
CSRS or FERS also apply to an employee who elects retroactive non-
appropriated fund (NAF) retirement coverage.
The Agency proposes to add a rule regarding the production and
authentication of records. The Agency would authenticate records in a
manner consistent with Federal law and regulations.
The Agency proposes to amend its death benefit payment regulations
in order to allow a non-spouse beneficiary to transfer a death benefit
payment to an inherited IRA as authorized by the Pension Protection
Act.
The Agency proposes to amend its loan regulations to reflect the
changes brought by the Bankruptcy Abuse and Consumer Protection Act of
2005. Specifically, the amendments would reflect that a bankruptcy
court now lacks jurisdiction over a TSP loan.
The Agency proposes to amend its regulations to clarify its power
of attorney regulations by eliminating examples of general and special
powers of attorney, some of which would no longer be acceptable to the
Agency, and directing participants to a sample form at https://
www.tsp.gov.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 10, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to Thomas K. Emswiler, General Counsel,
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, 1250 H Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20005. The Agency's Fax number is (202) 942-1676.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Megan Graziano on (202) 942-1644.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Agency administers the TSP, which was
established by the Federal Employees' Retirement System Act of 1986
(FERSA), Public Law 99-335, 100 Stat. 514. The TSP provisions of FERSA
are codified, as amended, largely at 5 U.S.C. 8351 and 8401-79. The TSP
is a tax-deferred retirement savings plan for Federal civilian
employees and members of the uniformed services. The TSP is similar to
cash or deferred arrangements established for private-sector employees
under section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 401(k)).
Employee Contribution Election and Contribution Allocations
The Agency proposes to amend its regulations regarding eligible
rollover distributions to the TSP. In particular, since Treasury
regulations only require that the Agency receive sufficient evidence to
reasonably conclude that a contribution is a valid rollover
contribution, the Agency no longer requires a plan administrator or
trustee to certify such distributions.
Further, when a participant completes a rollover, IRS rules require
that the rollover be completed within 60 days of the date the
participant received the distribution. Therefore, Agency practice is to
have the participant certify the date the distribution was received.
Agency regulations, however, require the financial institution to
certify the date of the distribution. This date is irrelevant to a
rollover that is completed by a participant.
In addition, the Agency can conduct additional verification in the
event that the date certified varies significantly from the date on the
check. Therefore, the Agency proposes to amend its regulations to
delete the requirement that a financial institution certify the date of
distribution.
Correction of Administrative Errors
The Agency proposes to amend its regulations to clarify that the
procedures applicable to a participant misclassified as either FERS or
CSRS and the retirement coverage is corrected to FICA only, also apply
to an employee who elects retroactive NAF coverage. These procedures
will ensure that the employee either is refunded all contributions made
by the employee or maintains ownership of all contributions that the
TSP's record keeping system is unable to refund to the employee and
that will continue to inure to the employee's benefit. The agency
contributions that forfeit to the TSP will benefit all TSP participants
because they will be used to offset the TSP's administrative expenses.
Availability of Records
The Agency proposes to add a section to its regulations regarding
production and disclosure of records, and specifically, in relation to
certification and authentication of records. The Agency frequently
receives subpoenas directing it to authenticate Agency documents for
use in state court proceedings. Often, these subpoenas request that
such documents be authenticated in accordance with state court
procedures and receive notarization. The Agency lacks the expertise to
comply with the procedures of the individual 50 states and attempting
to do so would result in a misallocation of TSP resources. Furthermore,
it is not necessary for the Agency to comply with state court
procedures in order for Agency documents to be admissible in a state
court proceeding.
Section 1733(b) of title 28, United States Code, provides that
``[p]roperly authenticated copies or transcripts of any books, records,
papers or documents of any department or agency of the United States
shall be admitted in evidence equally with the originals thereof.'' In
order to properly authenticate Agency documents, the records custodian
or other qualified individual shall attach a written declaration that
complies with current Federal Rules of Evidence. Documents so
authenticated shall be admitted in evidence equally with the originals
thereof. See 28 U.S.C. 1733(b).
[[Page 44983]]
Therefore, this regulation prescribes procedures for the Agency to
authenticate documents so that the documents will be admissible in all
state court proceedings. These procedures shall be the exclusive means
of authenticating Agency documents.
Death Benefits
The Agency proposes to amend its regulations to reflect changes in
its death benefit payment process brought by the Pension Protection Act
(PPA) of 2006. The PPA allows non-spouse beneficiaries to transfer all
or part of their benefits payable from a qualified retirement plan or
government plan to an inherited IRA. As a result, the Agency proposes
to amend its regulations to allow a non-spouse beneficiary to transfer
all or part of his or her death benefit payment from the TSP to an
inherited IRA.
Loan Program
The Agency proposes to amend its regulations to reflect changes in
bankruptcy law. Due to the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer
Protection Act of 2005 (Pub. L. 109-8), a bankruptcy court lacks
jurisdiction over a TSP loan under both chapter 7 and chapter 13
procedures. To reflect this change, language mentioning the possibility
of a bankruptcy court stopping TSP loan payments under a chapter 13
bankruptcy procedure would be removed.
Thrift Savings Plan
The Agency proposes to amend its regulations to simplify the
regulations' description of acceptable general and special powers of
attorney. By eliminating the noncomprehensive list of examples provided
in the regulations, the agency hopes participants will use the
regulations' thorough definitions as well as overview material and
sample forms provided at https://www.tsp.gov to secure a proper power of
attorney.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
I certify that these regulations will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. They will
affect only employees of the Federal Government.
Paperwork Reduction Act
I certify that these regulations do not require additional
reporting under the criteria of the Paperwork Reduction Act.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
Pursuant to the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995, 2 U.S.C. 602,
632, 653, 1501-1571, the effects of this regulation on state, local,
and tribal governments and the private sector have been assessed. This
regulation will not compel the expenditure in any one year of $100
million or more by state, local, and tribal governments, in the
aggregate, or by the private sector. Therefore, a statement under Sec.
1532 is not required.
Submission to Congress and the General Accounting Office
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 810(a)(1)(A), the Agency submitted a report
containing this rule and other required information to the U.S. Senate,
the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the
United States before publication of this rule in the Federal Register.
This rule is not a major rule as defined at 5 U.S.C. 814(2).
List of Subjects
5 CFR Parts 1600, 1690
Government employees, Pensions, Retirement.
5 CFR Parts 1605, 1651
Claims, Government employees, Pensions, Retirement.
5 CFR Part 1631
Courts, Freedom of information, Government employees.
5 CFR Part 1655
Credit, Government employees, Pensions, Retirement.
Thomas K. Emswiler,
General Counsel, Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Agency proposes to
amend 5 CFR chapter VI as follows:
PART 1600--EMPLOYEE CONTRIBUTION ELECTIONS AND CONTRIBUTION
1. The authority citation for part 1600 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8351, 8432(a), 8432(b)(1)(A), 8432(j),
8474(b)(5) and (c)(1).
2. Amend Sec. 1600.32 by removing the second sentence of paragraph
(a) and adding two sentences in its place, and revising paragraph
(b)(2) to read as follows:
Sec. 1600.32 Methods for transferring eligible rollover distribution
to TSP.
* * * * *
(a) * * * The administrator or trustee must either complete the
appropriate section of the form and forward the completed form and the
distribution to the TSP record keeper or the Agency must receive
sufficient evidence from which to reasonably conclude that a
contribution is a valid rollover contribution. By way of example,
sufficient evidence to conclude a contribution is a valid rollover
contribution includes a copy of the plan's determination letter, a
letter or other statement from the plan indicating that it is an
eligible retirement plan, a check indicating that the contribution is a
direct rollover or a tax notice from the plan to the participant
indicating that the participant could receive a rollover from the plan.
(b) * * *
(2) The administrator or trustee must either complete the
appropriate section of the form and forward the completed form and the
distribution to the TSP record keeper or the Agency must receive
sufficient evidence from which to reasonably conclude that a
contribution is a valid rollover contribution. By way of example,
sufficient evidence to conclude a contribution is a valid rollover
contribution includes a copy of the plan's determination letter, a
letter or other statement from the plan indicating that it is an
eligible retirement plan, a check indicating that the contribution is a
direct rollover or a tax notice from the plan to the participant
indicating that the participant could receive a rollover from the plan.
* * * * *
PART 1605--CORRECTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE ERRORS
3. The authority citation for part 1605 is revised to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8351, 8432a, and 8474(b)(5)(5) and (c)(1).
Subpart B also issued under section 1043(b) of Pub. Law 104-106, 110
Stat. 186 and sec. 7202(m)(2) of Pub. Law 101-508, 104 Stat. 1388.
4. Section 1605.14 is amended by revising the third sentence of
paragraph (a)(1), revising paragraph (c)(2) and adding paragraph (e) to
read as follows:
Sec. 1605.14 Misclassified retirement system coverage.
(a) * * *
(1) * * * If the participant requests a refund of employee
contributions, the employing agency must submit a negative adjustment
record to remove these funds under the procedure described in Sec.
1605.12.
(c) * * *
(2) Employer contributions in the account are subject to the rules
in paragraph (a)(2) of this section.
* * * * *
(e) The provisions of paragraph (c) of this section shall apply to
any TSP contributions relating to a period for which an employee elects
retroactive
[[Page 44984]]
Nonappropriated Fund retirement coverage.
PART 1631--AVAILABILITY OF RECORDS
5. The authority citation for part 1631 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552.
6. Add Sec. 1631.34 to read as follows:
Sec. 1631.34 Certification and authentication of records.
(a) Upon request, the records custodian or other qualified
individual shall authenticate copies of books, records, papers,
writings, and documents by attaching a written declaration that
complies with current Federal Rules of Evidence. No seal or
notarization shall be required. Copies of any books, records, papers,
or other documents in the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board
shall be admitted in evidence equally with the originals thereof when
authenticated in this manner.
(b) Fees for copying and certification are set forth in 5 CFR
1630.16.
PART 1651--DEATH BENEFITS
7. The authority citation for part 1651 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8424(d), 8432(j), 8433(e), 8435(c)(2),
8474(b)(5) and 8474(c)(1).
8. In Sec. 1651.14, redesignate paragraphs (g) and (h) as
paragraphs (h) and (i), and add new paragraph (g) to read as follows:
Sec. 1651.14 How payment is made.
* * * * *
(g) Payment to inherited IRA on behalf of a non-spouse beneficiary.
If payment is to an inherited IRA on behalf of a non-spouse
beneficiary, the check will be made payable to the account. Information
pertaining to the inherited IRA must be submitted by the IRA trustee.
* * * * *
PART 1655--LOAN PROGRAM
9. The authority citation for part 1655 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8433(g), 8439(a)(3) and 8474.
Sec. 1655.14 [Amended]
10. In Sec. 1655.14, the third sentence of paragraph (a) is
removed.
Sec. 1655.15 [Amended]
11. In Sec. 1655.15 ``or'' is added to the end of paragraph
(a)(5), a period replaces the semicolon at the end of paragraph (a)(6),
``or'' is removed from the end of paragraph (a)(6), and paragraph
(a)(7) is removed.
PART 1690--THRIFT SAVINGS PLANS
12. The authority citation for part 1690 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8474.
13. Amend Sec. 1690.12 by revising the second sentence in
paragraph (b) and the third sentence in paragraph (c) to read as
follows:
Sec. 1690.12 Power of attorney.
* * * * *
(b) * * * Additional information regarding general powers of
attorney can be accessed at https://www.tsp.gov.
(c) * * * Additional information regarding special powers of
attorney, as well as a sample form, can be accessed at https://
www.tsp.gov.
[FR Doc. E7-15635 Filed 8-9-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6760-01-P
