Pioneer Diversified High Income Trust, et al.; Notice of Application, 54601-54605 [E9-25422]
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 203 / Thursday, October 22, 2009 / Notices
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
[Disaster Declaration #11888 and #11889]
Georgia Disaster Number GA–00028
AGENCY: U.S. Small Business
Administration.
ACTION: Amendment 3.
SUMMARY: This is an amendment of the
Presidential declaration of a major
disaster for Public Assistance Only for
the State of Georgia (FEMA–1858–DR),
dated 09/26/2009.
Incident: Severe Storms and Flooding.
Incident Period: 09/18/2009 through
10/08/2009.
Effective Date: 10/08/2009.
Physical Loan Application Deadline
Date: 11/25/2009.
Economic Injury (EIDL) Loan
Application Deadline Date: 06/28/2010.
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 Georgia,
dated 09/26/2009, is hereby amended to
establish the incident period for this
disaster as beginning 09/18/2009 and
continuing through 10/08/2009.
All other information in the original
declaration remains unchanged.
James E. Rivera,
Acting Associate Administrator for Disaster
Assistance.
[FR Doc. E9–25417 Filed 10–21–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8025–01–P
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
[Disaster Declaration #11886 and #11887]
Georgia Disaster Number GA–00027
dcolon on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES
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 Georgia
(FEMA—1858—DR), dated 09/24/2009.
Incident: Severe Storms and Flooding.
Incident Period: 09/18/2009 and
continuing through 10/08/2009.
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(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
Numbers 59002 and 59008)
James E. Rivera,
Acting Associate Administrator for Disaster
Assistance.
[FR Doc. E9–25418 Filed 10–21–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8025–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Investment Company Act Release No.
28947; File No. 812–13432–02]
Pioneer Diversified High Income Trust,
et al.; Notice of Application
October 16, 2009.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
Numbers 59002 and 59008)
VerDate Nov<24>2008
Effective Date: 10/08/2009.
Physical Loan Application Deadline
Date: 11/23/2009.
EIDL Loan Application Deadline Date:
06/24/2010.
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 Georgia,
dated 09/24/2009 is hereby amended to
establish the incident period for this
disaster as beginning 09/18/2009 and
continuing through 10/08/2009.
All other information in the original
declaration remains unchanged.
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange
Commission (‘‘Commission’’).
ACTION: Notice of application under
section 6(c) of the Investment Company
Act of 1940 (‘‘Act’’) for an exemption
from section 19(b) of the Act and rule
19b–1 under the Act.
SUMMARY OF APPLICATION: Applicants
request an order to permit certain
closed-end investment companies to
make periodic distributions of long-term
capital gains with respect to their
outstanding common stock as frequently
as monthly in any one taxable year, and
as frequently as distributions are
specified by or in accordance with the
terms of any outstanding preferred stock
that such investment companies may
issue.
APPLICANTS: Pioneer Diversified High
Income Trust, Pioneer Floating Rate
Trust, Pioneer High Income Trust
(collectively, the ‘‘Current Funds’’) and
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54601
Pioneer Investment Management, Inc.
(‘‘PIM’’).
DATES: Filing Dates: The application was
filed on October 2, 2007 and amended
on October 31, 2008, June 4, 2009 and
October 14, 2009.
HEARING OR NOTIFICATION OF HEARING: An
order granting the application will be
issued unless the Commission orders a
hearing. Interested persons may request
a hearing by writing to the
Commission’s Secretary and serving
applicants with a copy of the request,
personally or by mail. Hearing requests
should be received by the Commission
by 5:30 p.m. on November 9, 2009 and
should be accompanied by proof of
service on applicants, 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 who wish to be
notified of a hearing may request
notification by writing to the
Commission’s Secretary.
ADDRESSES: Secretary, Securities and
Exchange Commission, 100 F Street,
NE., Washington, DC 20549–1090;
Applicants, PIM, 60 State Street, Boston,
Massachusetts 02109–1820.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Laura J. Riegel, Senior Counsel, at (202)
551–6873, or Marilyn Mann, Branch
Chief, at (202) 551–6821 (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 via the Commission’s
Web site by searching for the file
number, or for an applicant using the
Company name box, at https://
www.sec.gov/search/search.htm, or by
calling (202) 551–8090.
Applicants’ Representations
1. Each Current Fund is a registered
closed-end management investment
company organized as a Delaware
statutory trust. Each Current Fund
(other than Pioneer Diversified High
Income Trust) has outstanding one class
of common stock and three series of
preferred stock. Pioneer Diversified
High Income Trust has outstanding one
class of common stock. Applicants
believe that the shareholders of the
Current Funds may prefer an investment
vehicle that provides regular/monthly
distributions and a steady cash flow
through a fixed distribution policy.
Applicants request that the order apply
to any registered closed-end investment
company that in the future is advised by
PIM (including any successor in
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interest) 1 or by an entity controlling,
controlled by, or under common control
(within the meaning of section 2(a)(9) of
the Act) with PIM (any such entity or
PIM, the ‘‘Investment Adviser’’) (such
investment companies, the ‘‘Future
Funds,’’ and together with the Current
Funds, the ‘‘Funds’’).2
2. PIM is registered as an investment
adviser under the Investment Advisers
Act of 1940. PIM is an indirect whollyowned subsidiary of UniCredit S.p.A, an
Italian banking company and global
services organization.
3. Applicants represent that prior to
relying on the requested order, the
board of trustees (the ‘‘Board’’) of a
Fund, including a majority of the Board
members who are not ‘‘interested
persons’’ of such Fund as defined in
section 2(a)(19) of the Act (the
‘‘Independent Trustees’’), shall have
requested and considered, and the
Investment Adviser shall have provided,
information regarding the purpose and
terms of a proposed distribution policy,
the likely effects of such distribution
policy on the Fund’s long-term total
return (in relation to market price and
net asset value (‘‘NAV’’) per common
share) and the relationship between the
Fund’s distribution rate on its common
shares under the distribution policy and
the Fund’s total return (in relation to
NAV per share). Applicants state that
the Independent Trustees of each Fund
also shall have considered what
conflicts of interest the Investment
Adviser and the affiliated persons of the
Investment Adviser and each Fund
might have with respect to the adoption
or implementation of such distribution
policy. Applicants further state that
after considering such information the
Board, including the Independent
Trustees, of each Fund shall approve a
distribution policy with respect to each
Fund’s common shares (a ‘‘Plan’’) and
shall determine that Plan is consistent
with the relevant Fund’s investment
objectives and in the best interests of
such Fund’s common shareholders.
4. Applicants state that the purpose of
each Plan would be to permit a Fund to
distribute, over the course of each year,
through periodic distributions as nearly
equal as practicable and any required
special distributions, an amount closely
approximating the total taxable income
1 A successor in interest is limited to entities that
result from a reorganization into another
jurisdiction or a change in the type of business
organization.
2 All existing registered closed-end investment
companies that currently intend to rely on the
requested order are named as applicants. Any
Future Fund that relies on the order in the future
will comply with the terms and conditions of the
order.
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of the Fund during such year and, if so
determined by its Board, all or a portion
of the returns of capital paid by
portfolio companies to the Fund during
such year. Applicants represent that the
Fund would distribute to its common
shareholders a fixed monthly percentage
of the market price of the Fund’s
common shares at a particular point in
time or a fixed monthly percentage of
NAV at particular time or a fixed
monthly amount under the Plan, any of
which percentage or amount may be
adjusted from time to time. Applicants
state that the minimum annual
distribution rate with respect to a
Fund’s common shares under each Plan
would be independent of the Fund’s
performance during any particular
period but would be expected to
correlate with the Fund’s performance
over time. Applicants explain that each
distribution on the common stock
would be at the stated rate then in
effect, except for extraordinary
distributions and potential increases or
decreases in the final distribution
periods in light of the Fund’s
performance for the entire calendar year
and to enable the Fund to comply with
the distribution requirements of
subchapter M of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 (the ‘‘Code’’) for the
calendar year. Applicants expect that
over time the distributions with respect
to a Fund’s common shares would
correlate with that Fund’s total return
plus, if applicable, distributions of
capital received from such Fund’s
portfolio companies.
5. Applicants represent that, prior to
the implementation of a Plan, the Board
of each Fund shall adopt policies and
procedures under rule 38a–1 under the
Act that are reasonably designed to
ensure that all notices sent to
shareholders with distributions under
the Plan (each, a ‘‘19(a) Notice’’) include
the disclosure required by rule 19a–1
and by condition 2(a) below, and that all
other written communications by a
Fund or its agents regarding
distributions under the Plan include the
disclosure required by condition 3(a)
below. Applicants state that the Board
of each Fund also will adopt policies
and procedures that require the Fund to
keep records that demonstrate the
Fund’s compliance with all of the terms
and conditions of the requested order
and that are necessary for each Fund to
form the basis for, or demonstrate the
calculation of, the amounts disclosed in
its 19(a) Notices.
Applicants’ Legal Analysis
1. Section 19(b) generally makes it
unlawful for any registered investment
company to make long-term capital
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gains distributions more than once each
year. Rule 19b–1 limits the number of
capital gains dividends, as defined in
section 852(b)(3)(C) of the Code
(‘‘distributions’’), that a fund may make
with respect to any one taxable year to
one, plus a supplemental ‘‘clean up’’
distribution made pursuant to section
855 of the Code not exceeding 10% of
the total amount distributed for the year,
plus one additional capital gain
dividend made in whole or in part to
avoid the excise tax under section 4982
of the Code.
2. Section 6(c) provides that the
Commission may, by order upon
application, conditionally or
unconditionally exempt any person,
security, or transaction, or any class or
classes of persons, securities or
transactions, from any provision of the
Act or of any rule under the Act, if and
to the extent that the exemption is
necessary or appropriate in the public
interest and consistent with the
protection of investors and the purposes
fairly intended by the policy and
provisions of the Act.
3. Applicants state that one of the
concerns underlying section 19(b) and
rule 19b–1 is that shareholders might be
unable to distinguish between regular
distributions of capital gains and
dividends from investment income.
Applicants state, however, that rule
19a–1 effectively addresses this concern
by requiring that a separate statement
showing the sources of a distribution
(e.g., estimated net income, net shortterm capital gains, net long-term capital
gains and/or return of capital)
accompany any distributions (or the
confirmation of the reinvestment of
distributions) estimated to be sourced in
part from capital gains or capital.
Applicants state that the same
information is included in each Current
Fund’s annual report to shareholders
and on its IRS Form 1099–DIV, which
is sent to each common and preferred
shareholder who received distributions
during a particular year.
4. Applicants further state that each
Fund will make the additional
disclosures required by the conditions
set forth below, and each of them will
adopt compliance policies and
procedures in accordance with rule 38a1 to ensure that all required notices and
disclosures are sent to shareholders.
Applicants argue that by providing the
information required by section 19(a)
and rule 19a–1, the Plan, and the
compliance policies and procedures in
accordance with rule 38–1, each Fund
will ensure that the Fund’s shareholders
are provided sufficient information to
understand that their periodic
distributions are not tied to the Fund’s
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net investment income (which for this
purpose is the Fund’s taxable income
other than from capital gains) and
realized capital gains to date, and may
not represent yield or investment return.
Applicants also state that compliance
with each Fund’s compliance
procedures and condition 3 set forth
below will ensure that prospective
shareholders and third parties are
provided with the same information.
Accordingly, applicants assert that
continuing to subject the Funds to
section 19(b) and rule 19b–1 would
afford shareholders no extra protection.
5. Applicants note that section 19(b)
and rule 19b-1 also were intended to
prevent certain improper sales practices
including, in particular, the practice of
urging an investor to purchase shares of
a fund on the basis of an upcoming
capital gains dividend (‘‘selling the
dividend’’), where the dividend would
result in an immediate corresponding
reduction in NAV and would be in
effect a taxable return of the investor’s
capital. Applicants assert that the
‘‘selling the dividend’’ concern should
not apply to closed-end investment
companies, such as the Funds, which do
not continuously distribute shares.
According to applicants, if the
underlying concern extends to
secondary market purchases of shares of
closed-end funds that are subject to a
large upcoming capital gains
distribution, adoption of a periodic
distribution plan actually helps
minimize the concern by avoiding,
through periodic distributions, any
buildup of large end-of-the-year
distributions.
6. Applicants also note that common
shares of closed-end funds often trade in
the marketplace at a discount to the
funds’ NAV. Applicants believe that this
discount may be reduced for the Funds
if they are permitted to pay relatively
frequent dividends on their common
shares at a consistent rate, whether or
not those dividends contain an element
of capital gain.
7. Applicants assert that the
application of rule 19b–1 to a Plan
actually could have an undesirable
influence on portfolio management
decisions. Applicants state that, in the
absence of an exemption from rule 19b–
1, the implementation of a periodic
distribution plan imposes pressure on
management (i) not to realize any net
long-term capital gains until the point in
the year that the fund can pay all of its
remaining distributions in accordance
with rule 19b–1, and (ii) not to realize
any long-term capital gains during any
particular year in excess of the amount
of the aggregate pay-out for the year
(since as a practical matter excess gains
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must be distributed and accordingly
would not be available to satisfy pay-out
requirements in following years),
notwithstanding that purely investment
considerations might favor realization of
long-term gains at different times or in
different amounts. Applicants thus
assert that the limitation on the number
of capital gains distributions that a fund
may make with respect to any one year
imposed by rule 19b–1, may prevent the
efficient operation of a periodic
distribution plan whenever that fund’s
realized net long-term capital gains in
any year exceed the total of the periodic
distributions that may include such
capital gains under the rule.
8. In addition, applicants assert that
rule 19b–1 may cause fixed regular
periodic distributions under a periodic
distribution plan to be funded with
returns of capital 3 (to the extent net
investment income and realized shortterm capital gains are insufficient to
fund the distribution), even though
realized net long-term capital gains
otherwise could be available. To
distribute all of a Fund’s long-term
capital gains within the limits in rule
19b–1, a Fund may be required to make
total distributions in excess of the
annual amount called for by its Plan, or
to retain and pay taxes on the excess
amount. Applicants thus assert that the
requested order would minimize these
effects of rule 19b–1 by enabling the
Funds to realize long-term capital gains
as often as investment considerations
dictate without fear of violating rule
19b–1.
9. Applicants state that Revenue
Ruling 89–81 under the Code requires
that a fund that has both common stock
and preferred stock outstanding
designate the types of income, e.g.,
investment income and capital gains, in
the same proportion as the total
distributions distributed to each class
for the tax year. To satisfy the
proportionate designation requirements
of Revenue Ruling 89–81, whenever a
fund has realized a long-term capital
gain with respect to a given tax year, the
fund must designate the required
proportionate share of such capital gain
to be included in common and preferred
stock dividends. Applicants state that
although rule 19b–1 allows a fund some
flexibility with respect to the frequency
of capital gains distributions, a fund
might use all of the exceptions available
under the rule for a tax year and still
need to distribute additional capital
gains allocated to the preferred stock to
comply with Revenue Ruling 89–81.
3 Returns of capital as used in the application
means return of capital for financial accounting
purposes and not for tax accounting purposes.
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10. Applicants assert that the
potential abuses addressed by section
19(b) and rule 19b-1 do not arise with
respect to preferred stock issued by a
closed-end fund. Applicants assert that
such distributions are fixed or
determined in periodic auctions by
reference to short-term interest rates
rather than by reference to performance
of the issuer and Revenue Ruling 89–81
determines the proportion of such
distributions that are comprised of the
long-term capital gains.
11. Applicants also submit that the
‘‘selling the dividend’’ concern is not
applicable to preferred stock, which
entitles a holder to no more than a
periodic dividend at a fixed rate or the
rate determined by the market, and, like
a debt security, is priced based upon its
liquidation value, dividend rate, credit
quality, and frequency of payment.
Applicants state that investors buy
preferred shares for the purpose of
receiving payments at the frequency
bargained for, and do not expect the
liquidation value of their shares to
change.
12. Applicants request an order under
section 6(c) granting an exemption from
section 19(b) and rule 19b–1 to permit
each Fund to make periodic capital
gains dividends (as defined in section
852(b)(3)(C) of the Code) as often as
monthly in any one taxable year in
respect of its common shares and as
often as specified by or determined in
accordance with the terms thereof in
respect of its preferred shares.
Applicants’ Conditions
Applicants agree that any order
granting the requested relief will be
subject to the following conditions:
1. Compliance Review and Reporting
The Fund’s chief compliance officer
will: (a) Report to the Fund’s Board, no
less frequently than once every three
months or at the next regularly
scheduled quarterly Board meeting,
whether (i) the Fund and its Investment
Adviser have complied with the
conditions to the order, and (ii) a
Material Compliance Matter, as defined
in rule 38a–1(e)(2) under the Act, has
occurred with respect to compliance
with such conditions; and (b) review the
adequacy of the policies and procedures
adopted by the Board no less frequently
than annually.
2. Disclosures to Fund Shareholders
(a) Each 19(a) Notice disseminated to
the holders of the Fund’s common
shares, in addition to the information
required by section 19(a) and rule 19a–
1:
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(i) Will provide, in a tabular or
graphical format:
(1) The amount of the distribution, on
a per share basis, together with the
amounts of such distribution amount,
on a per share basis and as a percentage
of such distribution amount, from
estimated: (A) Net investment income;
(B) net realized short-term capital gains;
(C) net realized long-term capital gains;
and (D) return of capital or other capital
source;
(2) The fiscal year-to-date cumulative
amount of distributions, on a per share
basis, together with the amounts of such
cumulative amount, on a per share basis
and as a percentage of such cumulative
amount of distributions, from estimated:
(A) Net investment income; (B) net
realized short-term capital gains; (C) net
realized long-term capital gains; and (D)
return of capital or other capital source;
(3) The average annual total return in
relation to the change in NAV for the 5year period (or, if the Fund’s history of
operations is less than five years, the
time period commencing immediately
following the Fund’s first public
offering) ending on the last day of the
month ended immediately prior to the
most recent distribution record date
compared to the current fiscal period’s
annualized distribution rate expressed
as a percentage of NAV as of the last day
of the month prior to the most recent
distribution record date; and
(4) The cumulative total return in
relation to the change in NAV from the
last completed fiscal year to the last day
of the month prior to the most recent
distribution record date compared to the
fiscal year-to-date cumulative
distribution rate expressed as a
percentage of NAV as of the last day of
the month prior to the most recent
distribution record date.
Such disclosure shall be made in a type
size at least as large and as prominent
as the estimate of the sources of the
current distribution; and
(ii) Will include the following
disclosure:
(1) ‘‘You should not draw any
conclusions about the Fund’s
investment performance from the
amount of this distribution or from the
terms of the Fund’s Plan’’;
(2) ‘‘The Fund estimates that it has
distributed more than its income and
net realized capital gains; therefore, a
portion of your distribution may be a
return of capital. A return of capital may
occur, for example, when some or all of
the money that you invested in the
Fund is paid back to you. A return of
capital distribution does not necessarily
reflect the Fund’s investment
performance and should not be
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confused with ‘yield’ or ‘income’ ’’; 4
and
(3) ‘‘The amounts and sources of
distributions reported in this 19(a)
Notice are only estimates and are not
being provided for tax reporting
purposes. The actual amounts and
sources of the amounts for tax reporting
purposes will depend upon the Fund’s
investment experience during the
remainder of its fiscal year and may be
subject to changes based on tax
regulations. The Fund will send you a
Form 1099–DIV for the calendar year
that will tell you how to report these
distributions for Federal income tax
purposes.’’
Such disclosure shall be made in a type
size at least as large as and as prominent
as any other information in the 19(a)
Notice and placed on the same page in
close proximity to the amount and the
sources of the distribution;
(b) On the inside front cover of each
report to shareholders under rule 30e–
1 under the Act, the Fund will:
(i) Describe the terms of the Plan
(including the fixed amount or fixed
percentage of the distributions and the
frequency of the distributions);
(ii) Include the disclosure required by
condition 2(a)(ii)(1) above;
(iii) State, if applicable, that the Plan
provides that the Board may amend or
terminate the Plan at any time without
prior notice to Fund shareholders; and
(iv) Describe any reasonably
foreseeable circumstances that might
cause the Fund to terminate the Plan
and any reasonably foreseeable
consequences of such termination; and
(c) Each report provided to
shareholders under rule 30e–1 under
the Act and each prospectus filed with
the Commission on Form N–2 under the
Act, will provide the Fund’s total return
in relation to changes in NAV in the
financial highlights table and in any
discussion about the Fund’s total return.
3. Disclosure to Shareholders,
Prospective Shareholders and Third
Parties
(a) The Fund will include the
information contained in the relevant
19(a) Notice, including the disclosure
required by condition 2(a)(ii) above, in
any written communication (other than
a communication on Form 1099) about
the Plan or distributions under the Plan
by the Fund, or agents that the Fund has
authorized to make such
communication on the Fund’s behalf, to
any Fund common shareholder,
4 The disclosure in this condition 2(a)(ii)(2) will
be included only if the current distribution or the
fiscal year-to-date cumulative distributions are
estimated to include a return of capital.
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prospective common shareholder or
third-party information provider;
(b) The Fund will issue,
contemporaneously with the issuance of
any 19(a) Notice, a press release
containing the information in the 19(a)
Notice and will file with the
Commission the information contained
in such 19(a) Notice, including the
disclosure required by condition 2(a)(ii)
above, as an exhibit to its next filed
Form N–CSR; and
(c) The Fund will post prominently a
statement on its (or the Investment
Adviser’s) Web site containing the
information in each 19(a) Notice,
including the disclosure required by
condition 2(a)(ii) above, and will
maintain such information on such Web
site for at least 24 months.
4. Delivery of 19(a) Notices to Beneficial
Owners
If a broker, dealer, bank or other
person (‘‘financial intermediary’’) holds
common stock issued by the Fund in
nominee name, or otherwise, on behalf
of a beneficial owner, the Fund: (a) Will
request that the financial intermediary,
or its agent, forward the 19(a) Notice to
all beneficial owners of the Fund’s
shares held through such financial
intermediary; (b) will provide, in a
timely manner, to the financial
intermediary, or its agent, enough
copies of the 19(a) Notice assembled in
the form and at the place that the
financial intermediary, or its agent,
reasonably requests to facilitate the
financial intermediary’s sending of the
19(a) Notice to each beneficial owner of
the Fund’s shares; and (c) upon the
request of any financial intermediary, or
its agent, that receives copies of the
19(a) Notice, will pay the financial
intermediary, or its agent, the
reasonable expenses of sending the 19(a)
Notice to such beneficial owners.
5. Additional Board Determinations for
Funds Whose Shares Trade at a
Premium
If:
(a) The Fund’s common shares have
traded on the stock exchange that they
primarily trade on at the time in
question at an average premium to NAV
equal to or greater than 10%, as
determined on the basis of the average
of the discount or premium to NAV of
the Fund’s common shares as of the
close of each trading day over a 12-week
rolling period (each such 12-week
rolling period ending on the last trading
day of each week); and
(b) The Fund’s annualized
distribution rate for such 12-week
rolling period, expressed as a percentage
of NAV as of the ending date of such 12-
E:\FR\FM\22OCN1.SGM
22OCN1
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 203 / Thursday, October 22, 2009 / Notices
dcolon on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES
week rolling period, is greater than the
Fund’s average annual total return in
relation to the change in NAV over the
2-year period ending on the last day of
such 12-week rolling period;
then:
(i) At the earlier of the next regularly
scheduled meeting or within four
months of the last day of such 12-week
rolling period, the Board including a
majority of the Independent Trustees:
(1) Will request and evaluate, and the
Investment Adviser will furnish, such
information as may be reasonably
necessary to make an informed
determination of whether the Plan
should be continued or continued after
amendment;
(2) Will determine whether
continuation, or continuation after
amendment, of the Plan is consistent
with the Fund’s investment objective(s)
and policies and is in the best interests
of the Fund and its shareholders, after
considering the information in
condition 5(b)(i)(1) above; including,
without limitation:
(A) Whether the Plan is
accomplishing its purpose(s);
(B) The reasonably foreseeable
material effects of the Plan on the
Fund’s long-term total return in relation
to the market price and NAV of the
Fund’s common shares; and
(C) The Fund’s current distribution
rate, as described in condition 5(b)
above, compared with the Fund’s
average annual taxable income or total
return over the 2-year period, as
described in condition 5(b), or such
longer period as the Board deems
appropriate; and
(3) Based upon that determination,
will approve or disapprove the
continuation, or continuation after
amendment, of the Plan; and
(ii) The Board will record the
information considered by it, including
its consideration of the factors listed in
condition 5(b)(i)(2) above, and the basis
for its approval or disapproval of the
continuation, or continuation after
amendment, of the Plan in its meeting
minutes, which must be made and
preserved for a period of not less than
six years from the date of such meeting,
the first two years in an easily accessible
place.
6. Public Offerings
The Fund will not make a public
offering of the Fund’s common shares
other than:
(a) A rights offering below NAV to
holders of the Fund’s common shares;
(b) An offering in connection with a
dividend reinvestment plan, merger,
consolidation, acquisition, spin-off or
reorganization of the Fund; or
VerDate Nov<24>2008
15:13 Oct 21, 2009
Jkt 220001
(c) An offering other than an offering
described in conditions 6(a) and 6(b)
above, provided that, with respect to
such other offering:
(i) The Fund’s annualized distribution
rate for the six months ending on the
last day of the month ended
immediately prior to the most recent
distribution record date,5 expressed as a
percentage of NAV per share as of such
date, is no more than 1 percentage point
greater than the Fund’s average annual
total return for the 5-year period ending
on such date; 6 and
(ii) The transmittal letter
accompanying any registration
statement filed with the Commission in
connection with such offering discloses
that the Fund has received an order
under section 19(b) to permit it to make
periodic distributions of long-term
capital gains with respect to its common
stock as frequently as twelve times each
year, and as frequently as distributions
are specified by or determined in
accordance with the terms of any
outstanding preferred stock as such
Fund may issue.
7. Amendments to Rule 19b–1
The requested order will expire on the
effective date of any amendment to rule
19b–1 that provides relief permitting
certain closed-end investment
companies to make periodic
distributions of long-term capital gains
with respect to their outstanding
common stock as frequently as twelve
times each year.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Investment Management, under delegated
authority.
Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9–25422 Filed 10–21–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P
5 If the Fund has been in operation for less than
six months, the measured period will begin
immediately following the Fund’s first public
offering.
6 If the Fund has been in operation for less than
five years, the measured period will begin
immediately following the Fund’s first public
offering.
PO 00000
Frm 00071
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
54605
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–60826; File No. SR–BX–
2009–062]
Self-Regulatory Organizations;
NASDAQ OMX BX; Notice of Filing and
Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed
Rule Change To Amend Rule 7015
Governing Access Services To Add an
Additional Service and Related Fee,
and To Make a Technical Change
October 14, 2009.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2
notice is hereby given that on October
5, 2009, NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc. (‘‘BX’’)
filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (‘‘Commission’’) the
proposed rule change as described in
Items I and II below, which Items have
been prepared by BX. The Commission
is publishing this notice to solicit
comments on the proposed rule from
interested persons.
I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Terms of Substance of
the Proposed Rule Change
BX proposes to amend Rule 7015 to
make a new service, TradeInfo BX,
available to members and charge a
related fee. The text of the proposed rule
change is below. Proposed new
language is italicized and proposed
deletions are in brackets.
7015. Access Services
The following charges are assessed by
the Exchange for ports to establish
connectivity to the NASDAQ OMX BX
Equities Market, as well as ports to
receive data from the NASDAQ OMX
BX Equities Market:
• $400 per month for each port pair,
other than Multicast ITCH® data feed
pairs, for which the fee is $1000 per
month. [Additional OUCH port pairs
beyond 15 are at no cost for the months
of May, June and July 2009. For August
2009, OUCH port pairs beyond 15 will
be assessed a pro rata charge on the
basis of the number of trading days
during the month during which the antiinternalization functionality introduced
by Equity Rule 4757(a)(3) is available to
market participants.]
• Internet Ports: An additional $200
per month for each Internet port that
requires additional bandwidth.
• TradeInfo BX is available to
Members for a fee of $95 per user per
month.
*
*
*
*
*
1 15
2 17
E:\FR\FM\22OCN1.SGM
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
CFR 240.19b–4.
22OCN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 203 (Thursday, October 22, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54601-54605]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-25422]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Investment Company Act Release No. 28947; File No. 812-13432-02]
Pioneer Diversified High Income Trust, et al.; Notice of
Application
October 16, 2009.
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'').
ACTION: Notice of application under section 6(c) of the Investment
Company Act of 1940 (``Act'') for an exemption from section 19(b) of
the Act and rule 19b-1 under the Act.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Summary of Application: Applicants request an order to permit certain
closed-end investment companies to make periodic distributions of long-
term capital gains with respect to their outstanding common stock as
frequently as monthly in any one taxable year, and as frequently as
distributions are specified by or in accordance with the terms of any
outstanding preferred stock that such investment companies may issue.
Applicants: Pioneer Diversified High Income Trust, Pioneer Floating
Rate Trust, Pioneer High Income Trust (collectively, the ``Current
Funds'') and Pioneer Investment Management, Inc. (``PIM'').
DATES: Filing Dates: The application was filed on October 2, 2007 and
amended on October 31, 2008, June 4, 2009 and October 14, 2009.
Hearing or Notification of Hearing: An order granting the application
will be issued unless the Commission orders a hearing. Interested
persons may request a hearing by writing to the Commission's Secretary
and serving applicants with a copy of the request, personally or by
mail. Hearing requests should be received by the Commission by 5:30
p.m. on November 9, 2009 and should be accompanied by proof of service
on applicants, 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 who wish to be notified of a hearing may request
notification by writing to the Commission's Secretary.
ADDRESSES: Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street,
NE., Washington, DC 20549-1090; Applicants, PIM, 60 State Street,
Boston, Massachusetts 02109-1820.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura J. Riegel, Senior Counsel, at
(202) 551-6873, or Marilyn Mann, Branch Chief, at (202) 551-6821
(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 via the
Commission's Web site by searching for the file number, or for an
applicant using the Company name box, at https://www.sec.gov/search/search.htm, or by calling (202) 551-8090.
Applicants' Representations
1. Each Current Fund is a registered closed-end management
investment company organized as a Delaware statutory trust. Each
Current Fund (other than Pioneer Diversified High Income Trust) has
outstanding one class of common stock and three series of preferred
stock. Pioneer Diversified High Income Trust has outstanding one class
of common stock. Applicants believe that the shareholders of the
Current Funds may prefer an investment vehicle that provides regular/
monthly distributions and a steady cash flow through a fixed
distribution policy. Applicants request that the order apply to any
registered closed-end investment company that in the future is advised
by PIM (including any successor in
[[Page 54602]]
interest) \1\ or by an entity controlling, controlled by, or under
common control (within the meaning of section 2(a)(9) of the Act) with
PIM (any such entity or PIM, the ``Investment Adviser'') (such
investment companies, the ``Future Funds,'' and together with the
Current Funds, the ``Funds'').\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ A successor in interest is limited to entities that result
from a reorganization into another jurisdiction or a change in the
type of business organization.
\2\ All existing registered closed-end investment companies that
currently intend to rely on the requested order are named as
applicants. Any Future Fund that relies on the order in the future
will comply with the terms and conditions of the order.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. PIM is registered as an investment adviser under the Investment
Advisers Act of 1940. PIM is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of
UniCredit S.p.A, an Italian banking company and global services
organization.
3. Applicants represent that prior to relying on the requested
order, the board of trustees (the ``Board'') of a Fund, including a
majority of the Board members who are not ``interested persons'' of
such Fund as defined in section 2(a)(19) of the Act (the ``Independent
Trustees''), shall have requested and considered, and the Investment
Adviser shall have provided, information regarding the purpose and
terms of a proposed distribution policy, the likely effects of such
distribution policy on the Fund's long-term total return (in relation
to market price and net asset value (``NAV'') per common share) and the
relationship between the Fund's distribution rate on its common shares
under the distribution policy and the Fund's total return (in relation
to NAV per share). Applicants state that the Independent Trustees of
each Fund also shall have considered what conflicts of interest the
Investment Adviser and the affiliated persons of the Investment Adviser
and each Fund might have with respect to the adoption or implementation
of such distribution policy. Applicants further state that after
considering such information the Board, including the Independent
Trustees, of each Fund shall approve a distribution policy with respect
to each Fund's common shares (a ``Plan'') and shall determine that Plan
is consistent with the relevant Fund's investment objectives and in the
best interests of such Fund's common shareholders.
4. Applicants state that the purpose of each Plan would be to
permit a Fund to distribute, over the course of each year, through
periodic distributions as nearly equal as practicable and any required
special distributions, an amount closely approximating the total
taxable income of the Fund during such year and, if so determined by
its Board, all or a portion of the returns of capital paid by portfolio
companies to the Fund during such year. Applicants represent that the
Fund would distribute to its common shareholders a fixed monthly
percentage of the market price of the Fund's common shares at a
particular point in time or a fixed monthly percentage of NAV at
particular time or a fixed monthly amount under the Plan, any of which
percentage or amount may be adjusted from time to time. Applicants
state that the minimum annual distribution rate with respect to a
Fund's common shares under each Plan would be independent of the Fund's
performance during any particular period but would be expected to
correlate with the Fund's performance over time. Applicants explain
that each distribution on the common stock would be at the stated rate
then in effect, except for extraordinary distributions and potential
increases or decreases in the final distribution periods in light of
the Fund's performance for the entire calendar year and to enable the
Fund to comply with the distribution requirements of subchapter M of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the ``Code'') for the calendar year.
Applicants expect that over time the distributions with respect to a
Fund's common shares would correlate with that Fund's total return
plus, if applicable, distributions of capital received from such Fund's
portfolio companies.
5. Applicants represent that, prior to the implementation of a
Plan, the Board of each Fund shall adopt policies and procedures under
rule 38a-1 under the Act that are reasonably designed to ensure that
all notices sent to shareholders with distributions under the Plan
(each, a ``19(a) Notice'') include the disclosure required by rule 19a-
1 and by condition 2(a) below, and that all other written
communications by a Fund or its agents regarding distributions under
the Plan include the disclosure required by condition 3(a) below.
Applicants state that the Board of each Fund also will adopt policies
and procedures that require the Fund to keep records that demonstrate
the Fund's compliance with all of the terms and conditions of the
requested order and that are necessary for each Fund to form the basis
for, or demonstrate the calculation of, the amounts disclosed in its
19(a) Notices.
Applicants' Legal Analysis
1. Section 19(b) generally makes it unlawful for any registered
investment company to make long-term capital gains distributions more
than once each year. Rule 19b-1 limits the number of capital gains
dividends, as defined in section 852(b)(3)(C) of the Code
(``distributions''), that a fund may make with respect to any one
taxable year to one, plus a supplemental ``clean up'' distribution made
pursuant to section 855 of the Code not exceeding 10% of the total
amount distributed for the year, plus one additional capital gain
dividend made in whole or in part to avoid the excise tax under section
4982 of the Code.
2. Section 6(c) provides that the Commission may, by order upon
application, conditionally or unconditionally exempt any person,
security, or transaction, or any class or classes of persons,
securities or transactions, from any provision of the Act or of any
rule under the Act, if and to the extent that the exemption is
necessary or appropriate in the public interest and consistent with the
protection of investors and the purposes fairly intended by the policy
and provisions of the Act.
3. Applicants state that one of the concerns underlying section
19(b) and rule 19b-1 is that shareholders might be unable to
distinguish between regular distributions of capital gains and
dividends from investment income. Applicants state, however, that rule
19a-1 effectively addresses this concern by requiring that a separate
statement showing the sources of a distribution (e.g., estimated net
income, net short-term capital gains, net long-term capital gains and/
or return of capital) accompany any distributions (or the confirmation
of the reinvestment of distributions) estimated to be sourced in part
from capital gains or capital. Applicants state that the same
information is included in each Current Fund's annual report to
shareholders and on its IRS Form 1099-DIV, which is sent to each common
and preferred shareholder who received distributions during a
particular year.
4. Applicants further state that each Fund will make the additional
disclosures required by the conditions set forth below, and each of
them will adopt compliance policies and procedures in accordance with
rule 38a-1 to ensure that all required notices and disclosures are sent
to shareholders. Applicants argue that by providing the information
required by section 19(a) and rule 19a-1, the Plan, and the compliance
policies and procedures in accordance with rule 38-1, each Fund will
ensure that the Fund's shareholders are provided sufficient information
to understand that their periodic distributions are not tied to the
Fund's
[[Page 54603]]
net investment income (which for this purpose is the Fund's taxable
income other than from capital gains) and realized capital gains to
date, and may not represent yield or investment return. Applicants also
state that compliance with each Fund's compliance procedures and
condition 3 set forth below will ensure that prospective shareholders
and third parties are provided with the same information. Accordingly,
applicants assert that continuing to subject the Funds to section 19(b)
and rule 19b-1 would afford shareholders no extra protection.
5. Applicants note that section 19(b) and rule 19b-1 also were
intended to prevent certain improper sales practices including, in
particular, the practice of urging an investor to purchase shares of a
fund on the basis of an upcoming capital gains dividend (``selling the
dividend''), where the dividend would result in an immediate
corresponding reduction in NAV and would be in effect a taxable return
of the investor's capital. Applicants assert that the ``selling the
dividend'' concern should not apply to closed-end investment companies,
such as the Funds, which do not continuously distribute shares.
According to applicants, if the underlying concern extends to secondary
market purchases of shares of closed-end funds that are subject to a
large upcoming capital gains distribution, adoption of a periodic
distribution plan actually helps minimize the concern by avoiding,
through periodic distributions, any buildup of large end-of-the-year
distributions.
6. Applicants also note that common shares of closed-end funds
often trade in the marketplace at a discount to the funds' NAV.
Applicants believe that this discount may be reduced for the Funds if
they are permitted to pay relatively frequent dividends on their common
shares at a consistent rate, whether or not those dividends contain an
element of capital gain.
7. Applicants assert that the application of rule 19b-1 to a Plan
actually could have an undesirable influence on portfolio management
decisions. Applicants state that, in the absence of an exemption from
rule 19b-1, the implementation of a periodic distribution plan imposes
pressure on management (i) not to realize any net long-term capital
gains until the point in the year that the fund can pay all of its
remaining distributions in accordance with rule 19b-1, and (ii) not to
realize any long-term capital gains during any particular year in
excess of the amount of the aggregate pay-out for the year (since as a
practical matter excess gains must be distributed and accordingly would
not be available to satisfy pay-out requirements in following years),
notwithstanding that purely investment considerations might favor
realization of long-term gains at different times or in different
amounts. Applicants thus assert that the limitation on the number of
capital gains distributions that a fund may make with respect to any
one year imposed by rule 19b-1, may prevent the efficient operation of
a periodic distribution plan whenever that fund's realized net long-
term capital gains in any year exceed the total of the periodic
distributions that may include such capital gains under the rule.
8. In addition, applicants assert that rule 19b-1 may cause fixed
regular periodic distributions under a periodic distribution plan to be
funded with returns of capital \3\ (to the extent net investment income
and realized short-term capital gains are insufficient to fund the
distribution), even though realized net long-term capital gains
otherwise could be available. To distribute all of a Fund's long-term
capital gains within the limits in rule 19b-1, a Fund may be required
to make total distributions in excess of the annual amount called for
by its Plan, or to retain and pay taxes on the excess amount.
Applicants thus assert that the requested order would minimize these
effects of rule 19b-1 by enabling the Funds to realize long-term
capital gains as often as investment considerations dictate without
fear of violating rule 19b-1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ Returns of capital as used in the application means return
of capital for financial accounting purposes and not for tax
accounting purposes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. Applicants state that Revenue Ruling 89-81 under the Code
requires that a fund that has both common stock and preferred stock
outstanding designate the types of income, e.g., investment income and
capital gains, in the same proportion as the total distributions
distributed to each class for the tax year. To satisfy the
proportionate designation requirements of Revenue Ruling 89-81,
whenever a fund has realized a long-term capital gain with respect to a
given tax year, the fund must designate the required proportionate
share of such capital gain to be included in common and preferred stock
dividends. Applicants state that although rule 19b-1 allows a fund some
flexibility with respect to the frequency of capital gains
distributions, a fund might use all of the exceptions available under
the rule for a tax year and still need to distribute additional capital
gains allocated to the preferred stock to comply with Revenue Ruling
89-81.
10. Applicants assert that the potential abuses addressed by
section 19(b) and rule 19b-1 do not arise with respect to preferred
stock issued by a closed-end fund. Applicants assert that such
distributions are fixed or determined in periodic auctions by reference
to short-term interest rates rather than by reference to performance of
the issuer and Revenue Ruling 89-81 determines the proportion of such
distributions that are comprised of the long-term capital gains.
11. Applicants also submit that the ``selling the dividend''
concern is not applicable to preferred stock, which entitles a holder
to no more than a periodic dividend at a fixed rate or the rate
determined by the market, and, like a debt security, is priced based
upon its liquidation value, dividend rate, credit quality, and
frequency of payment. Applicants state that investors buy preferred
shares for the purpose of receiving payments at the frequency bargained
for, and do not expect the liquidation value of their shares to change.
12. Applicants request an order under section 6(c) granting an
exemption from section 19(b) and rule 19b-1 to permit each Fund to make
periodic capital gains dividends (as defined in section 852(b)(3)(C) of
the Code) as often as monthly in any one taxable year in respect of its
common shares and as often as specified by or determined in accordance
with the terms thereof in respect of its preferred shares.
Applicants' Conditions
Applicants agree that any order granting the requested relief will
be subject to the following conditions:
1. Compliance Review and Reporting
The Fund's chief compliance officer will: (a) Report to the Fund's
Board, no less frequently than once every three months or at the next
regularly scheduled quarterly Board meeting, whether (i) the Fund and
its Investment Adviser have complied with the conditions to the order,
and (ii) a Material Compliance Matter, as defined in rule 38a-1(e)(2)
under the Act, has occurred with respect to compliance with such
conditions; and (b) review the adequacy of the policies and procedures
adopted by the Board no less frequently than annually.
2. Disclosures to Fund Shareholders
(a) Each 19(a) Notice disseminated to the holders of the Fund's
common shares, in addition to the information required by section 19(a)
and rule 19a-1:
[[Page 54604]]
(i) Will provide, in a tabular or graphical format:
(1) The amount of the distribution, on a per share basis, together
with the amounts of such distribution amount, on a per share basis and
as a percentage of such distribution amount, from estimated: (A) Net
investment income; (B) net realized short-term capital gains; (C) net
realized long-term capital gains; and (D) return of capital or other
capital source;
(2) The fiscal year-to-date cumulative amount of distributions, on
a per share basis, together with the amounts of such cumulative amount,
on a per share basis and as a percentage of such cumulative amount of
distributions, from estimated: (A) Net investment income; (B) net
realized short-term capital gains; (C) net realized long-term capital
gains; and (D) return of capital or other capital source;
(3) The average annual total return in relation to the change in
NAV for the 5-year period (or, if the Fund's history of operations is
less than five years, the time period commencing immediately following
the Fund's first public offering) ending on the last day of the month
ended immediately prior to the most recent distribution record date
compared to the current fiscal period's annualized distribution rate
expressed as a percentage of NAV as of the last day of the month prior
to the most recent distribution record date; and
(4) The cumulative total return in relation to the change in NAV
from the last completed fiscal year to the last day of the month prior
to the most recent distribution record date compared to the fiscal
year-to-date cumulative distribution rate expressed as a percentage of
NAV as of the last day of the month prior to the most recent
distribution record date.
Such disclosure shall be made in a type size at least as large and as
prominent as the estimate of the sources of the current distribution;
and
(ii) Will include the following disclosure:
(1) ``You should not draw any conclusions about the Fund's
investment performance from the amount of this distribution or from the
terms of the Fund's Plan'';
(2) ``The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its
income and net realized capital gains; therefore, a portion of your
distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur,
for example, when some or all of the money that you invested in the
Fund is paid back to you. A return of capital distribution does not
necessarily reflect the Fund's investment performance and should not be
confused with `yield' or `income' ''; \4\ and
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ The disclosure in this condition 2(a)(ii)(2) will be
included only if the current distribution or the fiscal year-to-date
cumulative distributions are estimated to include a return of
capital.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(3) ``The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this
19(a) Notice are only estimates and are not being provided for tax
reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for
tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund's investment
experience during the remainder of its fiscal year and may be subject
to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will send you a Form
1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report these
distributions for Federal income tax purposes.''
Such disclosure shall be made in a type size at least as large as and
as prominent as any other information in the 19(a) Notice and placed on
the same page in close proximity to the amount and the sources of the
distribution;
(b) On the inside front cover of each report to shareholders under
rule 30e-1 under the Act, the Fund will:
(i) Describe the terms of the Plan (including the fixed amount or
fixed percentage of the distributions and the frequency of the
distributions);
(ii) Include the disclosure required by condition 2(a)(ii)(1)
above;
(iii) State, if applicable, that the Plan provides that the Board
may amend or terminate the Plan at any time without prior notice to
Fund shareholders; and
(iv) Describe any reasonably foreseeable circumstances that might
cause the Fund to terminate the Plan and any reasonably foreseeable
consequences of such termination; and
(c) Each report provided to shareholders under rule 30e-1 under the
Act and each prospectus filed with the Commission on Form N-2 under the
Act, will provide the Fund's total return in relation to changes in NAV
in the financial highlights table and in any discussion about the
Fund's total return.
3. Disclosure to Shareholders, Prospective Shareholders and Third
Parties
(a) The Fund will include the information contained in the relevant
19(a) Notice, including the disclosure required by condition 2(a)(ii)
above, in any written communication (other than a communication on Form
1099) about the Plan or distributions under the Plan by the Fund, or
agents that the Fund has authorized to make such communication on the
Fund's behalf, to any Fund common shareholder, prospective common
shareholder or third-party information provider;
(b) The Fund will issue, contemporaneously with the issuance of any
19(a) Notice, a press release containing the information in the 19(a)
Notice and will file with the Commission the information contained in
such 19(a) Notice, including the disclosure required by condition
2(a)(ii) above, as an exhibit to its next filed Form N-CSR; and
(c) The Fund will post prominently a statement on its (or the
Investment Adviser's) Web site containing the information in each 19(a)
Notice, including the disclosure required by condition 2(a)(ii) above,
and will maintain such information on such Web site for at least 24
months.
4. Delivery of 19(a) Notices to Beneficial Owners
If a broker, dealer, bank or other person (``financial
intermediary'') holds common stock issued by the Fund in nominee name,
or otherwise, on behalf of a beneficial owner, the Fund: (a) Will
request that the financial intermediary, or its agent, forward the
19(a) Notice to all beneficial owners of the Fund's shares held through
such financial intermediary; (b) will provide, in a timely manner, to
the financial intermediary, or its agent, enough copies of the 19(a)
Notice assembled in the form and at the place that the financial
intermediary, or its agent, reasonably requests to facilitate the
financial intermediary's sending of the 19(a) Notice to each beneficial
owner of the Fund's shares; and (c) upon the request of any financial
intermediary, or its agent, that receives copies of the 19(a) Notice,
will pay the financial intermediary, or its agent, the reasonable
expenses of sending the 19(a) Notice to such beneficial owners.
5. Additional Board Determinations for Funds Whose Shares Trade at a
Premium
If:
(a) The Fund's common shares have traded on the stock exchange that
they primarily trade on at the time in question at an average premium
to NAV equal to or greater than 10%, as determined on the basis of the
average of the discount or premium to NAV of the Fund's common shares
as of the close of each trading day over a 12-week rolling period (each
such 12-week rolling period ending on the last trading day of each
week); and
(b) The Fund's annualized distribution rate for such 12-week
rolling period, expressed as a percentage of NAV as of the ending date
of such 12-
[[Page 54605]]
week rolling period, is greater than the Fund's average annual total
return in relation to the change in NAV over the 2-year period ending
on the last day of such 12-week rolling period;
then:
(i) At the earlier of the next regularly scheduled meeting or
within four months of the last day of such 12-week rolling period, the
Board including a majority of the Independent Trustees:
(1) Will request and evaluate, and the Investment Adviser will
furnish, such information as may be reasonably necessary to make an
informed determination of whether the Plan should be continued or
continued after amendment;
(2) Will determine whether continuation, or continuation after
amendment, of the Plan is consistent with the Fund's investment
objective(s) and policies and is in the best interests of the Fund and
its shareholders, after considering the information in condition
5(b)(i)(1) above; including, without limitation:
(A) Whether the Plan is accomplishing its purpose(s);
(B) The reasonably foreseeable material effects of the Plan on the
Fund's long-term total return in relation to the market price and NAV
of the Fund's common shares; and
(C) The Fund's current distribution rate, as described in condition
5(b) above, compared with the Fund's average annual taxable income or
total return over the 2-year period, as described in condition 5(b), or
such longer period as the Board deems appropriate; and
(3) Based upon that determination, will approve or disapprove the
continuation, or continuation after amendment, of the Plan; and
(ii) The Board will record the information considered by it,
including its consideration of the factors listed in condition
5(b)(i)(2) above, and the basis for its approval or disapproval of the
continuation, or continuation after amendment, of the Plan in its
meeting minutes, which must be made and preserved for a period of not
less than six years from the date of such meeting, the first two years
in an easily accessible place.
6. Public Offerings
The Fund will not make a public offering of the Fund's common
shares other than:
(a) A rights offering below NAV to holders of the Fund's common
shares;
(b) An offering in connection with a dividend reinvestment plan,
merger, consolidation, acquisition, spin-off or reorganization of the
Fund; or
(c) An offering other than an offering described in conditions 6(a)
and 6(b) above, provided that, with respect to such other offering:
(i) The Fund's annualized distribution rate for the six months
ending on the last day of the month ended immediately prior to the most
recent distribution record date,\5\ expressed as a percentage of NAV
per share as of such date, is no more than 1 percentage point greater
than the Fund's average annual total return for the 5-year period
ending on such date; \6\ and
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\5\ If the Fund has been in operation for less than six months,
the measured period will begin immediately following the Fund's
first public offering.
\6\ If the Fund has been in operation for less than five years,
the measured period will begin immediately following the Fund's
first public offering.
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(ii) The transmittal letter accompanying any registration statement
filed with the Commission in connection with such offering discloses
that the Fund has received an order under section 19(b) to permit it to
make periodic distributions of long-term capital gains with respect to
its common stock as frequently as twelve times each year, and as
frequently as distributions are specified by or determined in
accordance with the terms of any outstanding preferred stock as such
Fund may issue.
7. Amendments to Rule 19b-1
The requested order will expire on the effective date of any
amendment to rule 19b-1 that provides relief permitting certain closed-
end investment companies to make periodic distributions of long-term
capital gains with respect to their outstanding common stock as
frequently as twelve times each year.
For the Commission, by the Division of Investment Management,
under delegated authority.
Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-25422 Filed 10-21-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P