Agency Information Collection Activities; Request for Public Comment, 58312-58316 [2023-18276]
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58312
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 164 / Friday, August 25, 2023 / Notices
Director of the Office of National Drug
Control Policy, Chief Executive Officer
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Presentations and discussion of agency
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Members of the public who wish to
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Tuesday September 12th, 2023. Should
issues arise with online registration, or
to register by email, the public should
contact Maegen Barnes, Senior Program
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Registration for this is also found online
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ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Julie Herr,
Designated Federal Official, Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2023–18348 Filed 8–24–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–18–P
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employee Benefits Security
Administration
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Request for Public
Comment
Employee Benefits Security
Administration (EBSA), Department of
Labor.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The Department of Labor (the
Department), in accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act, provides the
general public and Federal agencies
with an opportunity to comment on
proposed and continuing collections of
information. This helps the Department
assess the impact of its information
collection requirements and minimize
the public’s reporting burden. It also
helps the public understand the
Department’s information collection
requirements and provide the requested
data in the desired format. The
Employee Benefits Security
Administration (EBSA) is soliciting
comments on the proposed extension of
the information collection requests
(ICRs) contained in the documents
described below. A copy of the ICRs
may be obtained by contacting the office
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this
notice. ICRs also are available at
reginfo.gov (https://www.reginfo.gov/
public/do/PRAMain).
DATES: Written comments must be
submitted to the office shown in the
ADDRESSES section on or before October
24, 2023.
ADDRESSES: James Butikofer,
Department of Labor, Employee Benefits
Security Administration, 200
Constitution Avenue NW, Room N–
5718, Washington, DC 20210, or
ebsa.opr@dol.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY:
I. Current Actions
This notice requests public comment
on the Department’s request for
extension of the Office of Management
and Budget’s (OMB) approval of ICRs
contained in the rules and prohibited
transaction exemptions described
below. The Department is not proposing
any changes to the existing ICRs at this
time. An agency may not conduct or
sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, an information collection
unless it displays a valid OMB control
number. A summary of the ICRs and the
burden estimates follows:
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
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Title: Suspension of Pension Benefits
Pursuant to Regulations 29 CFR
2530.203–3.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0048.
Affected Public: Businesses or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 39,457.
Responses: 171,221.
Estimated Total Burden Hours:
132,639.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $48,524.
Description: Section 203(a)(3)(B) of
the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) governs
the circumstances under which pension
plans may suspend pension benefit
payments to retirees who return to work
or to participants who continue to work
beyond normal retirement age. This
section sets forth the circumstances and
conditions under which such benefit
payments may be suspended. In order
for a plan to suspend benefits pursuant
to the regulation, it must notify the
affected retiree or participant during the
first calendar month or payroll period in
which the plan withholds payment that
benefits are suspended. Requests for
such reviews may be considered in
accordance with the claims procedure
adopted by the plan pursuant to section
503 of the Act and applicable
regulations. The notice must include the
specific reasons for such suspension, a
general description of the plan
provisions authorizing the suspension, a
copy of the relevant plan provisions,
and a statement indicating where the
applicable regulations may be found,
i.e., 29 CFR 2530.203–3. In addition, the
suspension notification must inform the
retiree or participant of the plan’s
procedure for affording a review of the
suspension of benefits.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0048. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction
Exemption 1981–8, Class Exemption
Covering Certain Short-Term
Investment.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0061.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit
institutions, Businesses, or other forprofits.
Respondents: 95,170.
Responses: 413,320.
Estimated Total Burden Hours:
103,330.
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 164 / Friday, August 25, 2023 / Notices
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $114,109.
Description: PTE 81–8 permits the
investment of plan assets that involve
the purchase or other acquisition,
holding, sale, exchange, or redemption
by or on behalf of an employee benefits
plan in certain types of short-term
investments. PTE 81–8 covers five types
of short-term investments: banker’s
acceptances, commercial paper,
repurchase agreements, certificates of
deposit, and bank securities. Without
the exemption, certain aspects of these
transactions might be prohibited by
ERISA section 406. In order to grant an
exemption under ERISA section 408 and
Code section 4975(c)(2), the Department
must determine that the exemption is:
administratively feasible, in the
interests of the plan and its participants
and beneficiaries, and protective of the
rights of participants and beneficiaries
of such plan.
The Department requires minimal
information collection pertaining to the
affected transactions and two basic
disclosure requirements. Both
disclosure requirements affect only the
portion of the exemption dealing with
repurchase agreements. The first
requirement calls for the repurchase
agreements between the seller and the
plan to be in writing. The second
requirement obliges the seller of such
repurchase agreements to furnish the
plan with the most recent available
audited statement of its financial
condition as well as its most recent
available unaudited statement at the
time of the sale and as the statements
are issued. The seller must also
represent, either in the repurchase
agreement or prior to each repurchase
agreement transaction, that as of the
time the transaction is negotiated, there
has been no material adverse change in
the seller’s financial condition since the
date the last financial statement was
furnished that has not been disclosed to
the plan fiduciary with whom the
written agreement is made.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0061. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction
Exemption 1996–62, Class Exemption to
Permit Certain Authorized Transactions
Between Plans and Parties in Interest.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0098.
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Affected Public: Not-for-profit
institutions, Businesses, or other forprofits.
Respondents: 7.
Responses: 3,515.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 88.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $30,156.
Description: PTE 96–62 provides
accelerated approval of an exemption
permitting a plan to engage in a
transaction which might otherwise be
prohibited following a demonstration to
the Department that the transaction is
substantially similar to either
transactions described in at least two
prior individual exemptions granted by
the Department and that provided relief
from the same restriction(s) within the
60-month period ending on the date of
the filing of the written submission; or
one individual exemption that was
granted by the Department, and
provided relief from the same
restriction(s), within 120-month period
ending on the date of filing of the
written submission and at least one
transaction that has received final
authorization pursuant to PTE 96–62
within a 60-month period ending on the
date of the filing of the written
submission. In addition, there must be
little, if any, risk of abuse or loss to a
plan’s participants and beneficiaries as
a result of the transaction. An applicant
for an exemption must submit the
necessary documentation as described
in the class exemption to the
Department for the Department to make
an informed determination regarding an
application for accelerated approval.
Following tentative authorization, the
applicant must provide written notice to
interested persons in a manner that is
reasonably calculated to result in the
receipt of such notice by interested
persons, to ensure that participants and
beneficiaries are informed of the
application for an exemption and the
date of the expiration of the comment
period and have an opportunity to
comment.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0098. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction
Exemption 98–54, Class Exemption
Relating to Certain Employee Benefit
Plan Foreign Exchange Transactions
Executed Pursuant to Standing
Instructions.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0111.
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Affected Public: Businesses or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 35.
Responses: 420,000.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 4,200.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $0.
Description: PTE 98–54 permits
employee benefit plans to engage in
foreign exchange transactions with
banks or broker-dealers which are
trustees, custodians, fiduciaries, or other
parties in interest with respect to such
plans pursuant to a standing instruction.
The exemption’s conditions contain the
following information collection
requirements: (1) the bank or brokerdealer maintains at all times written
policies and procedures regarding the
handling of foreign exchange
transactions for plans with respect to
which the bank or broker-dealer is a
trustee, custodian, fiduciary or other
party in interest or disqualified person
which assure that the person acting for
the bank or broker-dealer knows that
they are dealing with a plan, a partial
copy of which prior to the execution of
certain transactions is provided to the
plan’s independent fiduciary; (2) the
covered transaction is performed under
a written authorization executed in
advance by the fiduciary of the plan
whose assets are involved in the
transaction, which plan fiduciary is
independent of the bank or brokerdealer engaging in the covered
transaction or any foreign affiliate
thereof; (3) the bank or broker-dealer
engaging in the covered transaction
furnishes to the independent fiduciary a
written confirmation statement with
respect to each covered transaction not
more than five business days after
execution of the transactions; and (4)
recordkeeping requirements.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0111. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction
Exemption 2020–02, Improving
Investment Advice for Workers &
Retirees Prohibited Transaction
Exemption.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0163.
Affected Public: Individuals or
Households.
Respondents: 11,782.
Responses: 1,755,959.
Estimated Total Burden Hours:
401,251.
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Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $92,063.
Description: PTE 2020–02 permits
investment advice fiduciaries (i.e.,
registered IAs, BDs, banks, and
insurance companies) to receive
compensation and engage in principal
transactions that would otherwise
violate the prohibited transaction
provisions of ERISA and the Code. The
prohibited transaction provisions of
ERISA and the Code generally prohibit
fiduciaries with respect to employee
benefit plans (Plans) and individual
retirement accounts and annuities
(IRAs) from engaging in self-dealing and
receiving compensation from third
parties in connection with transactions
involving the Plans and IRAs, and from
purchasing and selling investments with
the Plans and IRAs when the fiduciaries
are acting on behalf of their own
accounts (principal transactions).
To qualify for the exemption,
investment advice fiduciaries are
required to comply with the following
information collection requirements: (1)
make disclosures to inform retirement
investors of their fiduciary status,
services offered, and material conflicts
of interest; (2) establish, maintain, and
enforce written policies and procedures
designed to ensure that they and their
investment professionals comply with
the Impartial Conduct Standards; (3)
document the specific reasons for any
rollover recommendation and show that
the rollover is in the best interest of the
retirement investor and provide the
documentation to the retirement
investor; (4) conduct an annual
retrospective review that is reasonably
designed to prevent violations of the
PTE’s Impartial Conduct Standards and
the institution’s own policies and
procedures and provide a written report
that is certified by a senior executive
officer; and (5) maintain records so that
parties relying on an exemption can
demonstrate, and the Department can
verify, compliance with the conditions
of the exemption. Investment advice
fiduciaries may choose to self-correct
certain violations if, among other things,
the financial institution notifies the
Department of Labor and the person(s)
responsible for conducting the
retrospective review.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0163. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on February 29, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Delinquent Filer Voluntary
Compliance Program.
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Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0089.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit
institutions, Businesses or other forprofits.
Respondents: 10,350.
Responses: 10,350.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 518.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $778,718.
Description: Under Title I of ERISA,
the administrator of each welfare plan
and each pension plan, unless otherwise
exempt, is required to file an annual
report with the Secretary containing the
information set forth in section 103 of
ERISA. The statutory annual reporting
requirements under Titles I and IV of
ERISA, as well as the Internal Revenue
Code (the Code), are satisfied generally
by filing the appropriate annual return/
report (the Form 5500).
On April 27, 1995, the Department
implemented the Delinquent Filer
Voluntary Compliance Program (the
DFVC Program) in an effort to encourage
annual reporting compliance. Under the
DFVC Program, administrators
otherwise subject to the assessment of
higher civil penalties are permitted to
pay reduced civil penalties for
voluntarily complying with the annual
reporting requirements under Title I of
ERISA.
The only information collection
requirement included in the DFVC
Program is the requirement of providing
data necessary to identify the plan along
with the penalty payment. This data is
the only means by which each penalty
payment is associated with the relevant
plan. With respect to most pension
plans and welfare plans, the
requirement is satisfied by sending,
along with the penalty payment, a copy
of the delinquent annual report (without
attachments or schedules) which is filed
with the Department at a different
address under the EFAST system. In the
event that the plan administrator files
the delinquent annual report using a
1998 or prior plan year form, a paper
copy of only the first page of the Form
5500 or Form 5500–C, as applicable,
should be submitted along with the
penalty payment.
Certain pension plans for highly
compensated employees, commonly
called ‘‘top hat’’ plans, and
apprenticeship plans may file a onetime statement in lieu of annual reports.
With respect to such plans, information
collection requirements of the DFVC
Program are satisfied by sending a
completed first page of an annual report
form along with the penalty payment.
The one-time statements are required to
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be sent to a different address within the
Department. The DFVC Program is
designed to allow the processing of all
penalty payments at a single location
within the Department.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0089. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on March 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Request for Assistance from the
Department of Labor, Employee Benefits
Security Administration.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0146.
Affected Public: Individuals or
Households.
Respondents: 5,582.
Responses: 5,582.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2,791.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $0.
Description: The Department of
Labor’s Employee Benefits Security
Administration (EBSA) maintains a
program designed to provide education
and technical assistance to participants
and beneficiaries as well as to
employers, plan sponsors, and service
providers related to their health and
retirement plan benefits. EBSA assists
participants in understanding their
rights, responsibilities, and benefits
under employee benefit law and
intervenes informally on their behalf
with the plan sponsor in order to assist
them in obtaining the health and
retirement benefits to which they may
have been inappropriately denied,
which can avert the necessity for a
formal investigation or a civil action.
EBSA maintains a toll-free telephone
number through which inquirers can
reach Benefits Advisors in ten Regional
Offices. EBSA has also made a request
for assistance form available on its
website for those wishing to obtain
assistance in this manner. Contact with
EBSA is entirely voluntary.
The collection of information is an
intake form for assistance requests from
the public. This information includes
the plan type, broad categories of
problem type, contact information for
responsible parties, and a mechanism
for the inquirer to attach relevant
documents. Summary data from the
existing intake form has also been used,
in accordance with section 513 of
ERISA, to respond to requests for
information regarding employee benefit
plans from members of Congress and
governmental oversight entities, and to
inform the policy formulation process.
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The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0146. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on March 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Alternative Method of
Compliance for Certain Simplified
Employee Pensions.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0034.
Affected Public: Businesses or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 35,560.
Responses: 67,930.
Estimated Total Burden Hours:
21,227.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $3,223.
Description: Section 110 of ERISA
relieves sponsors of certain Simplified
Employee Pensions (SEPs) from ERISA’s
Title I reporting and disclosure
requirements by prescribing an
alternative method of compliance.
These SEPs are, for purposes of this
information collection, referred to as
‘‘non-model SEPs’’ because they
exclude those SEPs which are created
through use of Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) Form 5305–SEP, and those SEPs in
which the employer influences the
employees as to their choice of IRAs to
which employer contributions will be
made, and that also prohibit
withdrawals by participants.
This information collection
requirement generally requires timely
written disclosure to employees eligible
to participate in non-model SEPs,
including specific information
concerning: participation requirements;
allocation formulas for employer
contributions; designated contact
persons for further information; and, for
employer recommended IRAs, specific
terms of the IRAs such as rates of return
and any restrictions on withdrawals.
Moreover, general information is
required that provides a clear
explanation of: the operation of the nonmodel SEP; participation requirements
and any withdrawal restrictions; and the
tax treatment of the SEP-related IRA.
Furthermore, statements must be
provided that inform participants of:
any other IRAs under the non-model
SEP other than that to which employer
contributions are made; any options
regarding rollovers and contributions to
other IRAs; descriptions of IRS
disclosure requirements to participants
and information regarding social
security integration (if applicable); and
timely notification of any amendments
to the terms of the non-model SEP.
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The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0034. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on April 30, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Procedures Governing the Filing
and Processing of Prohibited
Transaction Exemption Applications
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0060.
Affected Public: Businesses or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 20.
Responses: 4,899.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 632.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $551,422.
Description: ERISA sections 406 and
407 and Code section 4975(e) prohibit
various transactions between a plan and
certain related parties and certain
transactions by a plan fiduciary unless
a statutory or administrative exemption
applies to the transaction. The
Department has authority under
Reorganization Plan No. 4, pursuant to
section 408 of ERISA and section
4975(c)(2) of the Code to grant either
individual or class exemptions. In order
to grant an exemption under ERISA
section 408 and Code section 4975(c)
(2), the Department must determine that
the exemption is: administratively
feasible, in the interests of the plan and
its participants and beneficiaries, and
protective of the rights of participants
and beneficiaries.
In order to make such a
determination, the Department requires
full disclosure of information regarding
all aspects of the proposed transaction,
and the parties and the assets involved.
Sections 2570.34 and 2570.35 of the
exemption procedure regulation
describe the information that must be
supplied by the applicant, such as:
identifying information (name, type of
plan, EIN number, etc.); an estimate of
the number of plan participants; a
detailed description of the exemption
transaction and the parties for which an
exemption is requested; a statement
regarding which section of ERISA is
thought to be violated and whether
transaction(s) involved have already
been entered into; a statement of
whether the transaction is customary in
the industry; a statement of the hardship
or economic loss, if any, which would
result if the exemption were denied; a
statement explaining why the proposed
exemption would be administratively
feasible, in the interests of the plan and
protective of the rights of plan
participants and beneficiaries; and
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several other statements. In addition,
the applicant must certify that the
information supplied is accurate and
complete.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0060. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on April 30, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Investment Advice Participants
and Beneficiaries.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0134.
Affected Public: Businesses or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 11,396.
Responses: 23,033,030.
Estimated Total Burden Hours:
2,423,391.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance):
$318,912,816.
Description: Under ERISA, providing
‘‘investment advice’’ is a fiduciary act.
A fiduciary who advises participants
about plan investment opportunities
that pay the adviser fees or commissions
may be subject to liability under the
Employee Retirement Income Security
Act of 1974 (ERISA) prohibited
transaction rules. The Pension
Protection Act of 2006 (Pub. L. 109–280)
amended the ERISA and the Internal
Revenue Code (Code) to include a
statutory exemption for providing
investment advice to participants and
beneficiaries in self-directed defined
contribution individual account ERISAcovered plans (Plans) and beneficiaries
of individual retirement accounts,
individual retirement annuities, Archer
MSAs, health savings accounts and
Coverdell education savings accounts
(collectively IRAs) described in the
Code. The statutory exemption provides
relief from the prohibited transaction
provisions of ERISA, and the parallel
provisions of the Code.
The information collections that are
conditions of the regulation include,
third-party disclosures, recordkeeping,
and audit requirements. With one
exception, the regulation does not
require any reporting or filing with the
Federal government, but the designated
records must be made available upon
request. The exception is the
requirement that the fiduciary adviser is
required under certain circumstances to
forward the audit report which is also
a required disclosure under the
regulation to the Department.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0134. The
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current approval is scheduled to expire
on April 30, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Department of Labor.
Title: Furnishing Documents to the
Secretary of Labor on Request Under
Employee Retirement Income Security
Act Section 104(a)(6).
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210–0112.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit
institutions, Businesses or other forprofits.
Respondents: 893.
Responses: 893.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 41.
Estimated Total Burden Cost
(Operating and Maintenance): $721.
Description: Prior to the enactment of
the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 (Pub. L.
105–34, August 5, 1997) (TRA ‘97),
section 104(a) of the Employee
Retirement Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)
required administrators of employee
benefit plans automatically to file the
plan’s summary plan description (SPD)
and any summaries of material
modification (SMMs) with the Secretary
of the Department of Labor (the
Department). TRA ‘97 eliminated the
requirement that these documents be
filed automatically with the
Department, but added ERISA section
104(a)(6), requiring a plan administrator
to furnish documents related to an
employee benefit plan to the
Department upon request. The
requirement that administrators furnish
the Department requested plan
documents other than SPDs and SMMs
was part of section 104(a) prior to
enactment of TRA ’97; that requirement
was moved by TRA ’97 to section
104(a)(6) and consolidated with the new
furnishing requirement pertaining to
SPDs and SMMs.
Pursuant to the regulation, the
Department requests documents under
section 104(a)(6) when a participant or
beneficiary has previously requested the
documents directly from the plan
administrator and the administrator has
failed or refused to provide them. The
Department therefore uses the requested
information to respond to participants’
requests to the Department for
documents that the participants were
unable to obtain from their plan
administrators.
The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210–0112. The
current approval is scheduled to expire
on June 30, 2024.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:23 Aug 24, 2023
Jkt 259001
II. Focus of Comments
The Department is particularly
interested in comments that:
• Evaluate whether the collections of
information are necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
agency, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
• Evaluate the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of the collections of
information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
• Enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and
• Minimize the burden of the
collection of information on those who
are to respond, including through the
use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other
technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology,
e.g., by permitting electronic
submissions of responses.
Comments submitted in response to
this notice will be summarized and/or
included in the ICR for OMB approval
of the information collection; they will
also become a matter of public record.
Signed at Washington, DC, this 18th day of
August 2023.
Lisa M. Gomez,
Assistant Secretary, Employee Benefits
Security Administration, U.S. Department of
Labor.
[FR Doc. 2023–18276 Filed 8–24–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P
OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND
BUDGET
Statistical Policy Directive No. 3:
Compilation, Release, and Evaluation
of Principal Federal Economic
Indicators—Proposal To Change
Timing of Public Comments by
Employees of the Executive Branch
Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs, Office of
Management and Budget, Executive
Office of the President.
ACTION: Notice of solicitation of
comments.
AGENCY:
The Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) issues a request for
public comments on a proposal to
modify one provision within Statistical
Policy Directive No. 3: Compilation,
Release, and Evaluation of Principal
Federal Economic Indicators (Directive
No. 3). The procedures in Directive No.
3, published in 1985, were designed to
ensure equitable, policy-neutral, and
timely release and dissemination of
Principal Federal Economic Indicators
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00083
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
(PFEIs). The goals of Directive No. 3
remain sound; this Notice proposes
updates to procedures consistent with
these goals to reflect advances in
communication technologies and
methods. In particular, OMB proposes
to modify the provision, ‘‘employees of
the Executive Branch shall not comment
publicly on the data until at least one
hour after the official release time,’’ by
replacing ‘‘one hour’’ with ‘‘thirty
minutes.’’ This proposed change would
reduce the delay after official release
time before commentary from
employees of the Executive Branch.
Additional discussion of the request for
public comment may be found in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section
below.
DATES: To ensure consideration of
comments on this notice, they must be
received no later than October 24, 2023.
Because of delays in the receipt of
regular mail related to security
screening, respondents are encouraged
to send comments electronically (see
ADDRESSES, below).
ADDRESSES: Submit comments through
www.regulations.gov—a Federal EGovernment website that allows the
public to find, review, and submit
comments on documents that agencies
have published in the Federal Register
and that are open for comment. Enter
‘‘OMB–2023–0016’’ (in quotes) in the
Comment or Submission search box,
click Go, and follow the instructions for
submitting comments. Comments
received by the date specified above
will be included as part of the official
record.
Privacy Notice: Information submitted
in response to this RFI will be
maintained in the OMB Public Input
System of Records, OMB/INPUT/01 88
FR 20913. OMB generally makes
comments received from members of the
public available for public viewing on
the Federal Rulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov. As such,
commenters should not include
information that they do not wish to
make publicly available, including
information of a confidential nature,
such as sensitive personal information
or proprietary information. Please note
that if you submit your email address,
it will be automatically captured and
included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public docket; however,
www.regulations.gov does include the
option of commenting anonymously.
For more detail about how OMB may
maintain and disclose submitted
information, please review the System
of Records Notice at 88 FR 20913.
Electronic Availability: This notice is
available on the internet on the OMB
E:\FR\FM\25AUN1.SGM
25AUN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 164 (Friday, August 25, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58312-58316]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-18276]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employee Benefits Security Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities; Request for Public
Comment
AGENCY: Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), Department of
Labor.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (the Department), in accordance with
the Paperwork Reduction Act, provides the general public and Federal
agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and continuing
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's
information collection requirements and provide the requested data in
the desired format. The Employee Benefits Security Administration
(EBSA) is soliciting comments on the proposed extension of the
information collection requests (ICRs) contained in the documents
described below. A copy of the ICRs may be obtained by contacting the
office listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. ICRs also are
available at reginfo.gov (https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain).
DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office shown in the
ADDRESSES section on or before October 24, 2023.
ADDRESSES: James Butikofer, Department of Labor, Employee Benefits
Security Administration, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Room N-5718,
Washington, DC 20210, or [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Current Actions
This notice requests public comment on the Department's request for
extension of the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval of
ICRs contained in the rules and prohibited transaction exemptions
described below. The Department is not proposing any changes to the
existing ICRs at this time. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a
person is not required to respond to, an information collection unless
it displays a valid OMB control number. A summary of the ICRs and the
burden estimates follows:
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Suspension of Pension Benefits Pursuant to Regulations 29
CFR 2530.203-3.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0048.
Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.
Respondents: 39,457.
Responses: 171,221.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 132,639.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $48,524.
Description: Section 203(a)(3)(B) of the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) governs the circumstances under which
pension plans may suspend pension benefit payments to retirees who
return to work or to participants who continue to work beyond normal
retirement age. This section sets forth the circumstances and
conditions under which such benefit payments may be suspended. In order
for a plan to suspend benefits pursuant to the regulation, it must
notify the affected retiree or participant during the first calendar
month or payroll period in which the plan withholds payment that
benefits are suspended. Requests for such reviews may be considered in
accordance with the claims procedure adopted by the plan pursuant to
section 503 of the Act and applicable regulations. The notice must
include the specific reasons for such suspension, a general description
of the plan provisions authorizing the suspension, a copy of the
relevant plan provisions, and a statement indicating where the
applicable regulations may be found, i.e., 29 CFR 2530.203-3. In
addition, the suspension notification must inform the retiree or
participant of the plan's procedure for affording a review of the
suspension of benefits.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0048. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction Exemption 1981-8, Class Exemption
Covering Certain Short-Term Investment.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0061.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit institutions, Businesses, or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 95,170.
Responses: 413,320.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 103,330.
[[Page 58313]]
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $114,109.
Description: PTE 81-8 permits the investment of plan assets that
involve the purchase or other acquisition, holding, sale, exchange, or
redemption by or on behalf of an employee benefits plan in certain
types of short-term investments. PTE 81-8 covers five types of short-
term investments: banker's acceptances, commercial paper, repurchase
agreements, certificates of deposit, and bank securities. Without the
exemption, certain aspects of these transactions might be prohibited by
ERISA section 406. In order to grant an exemption under ERISA section
408 and Code section 4975(c)(2), the Department must determine that the
exemption is: administratively feasible, in the interests of the plan
and its participants and beneficiaries, and protective of the rights of
participants and beneficiaries of such plan.
The Department requires minimal information collection pertaining
to the affected transactions and two basic disclosure requirements.
Both disclosure requirements affect only the portion of the exemption
dealing with repurchase agreements. The first requirement calls for the
repurchase agreements between the seller and the plan to be in writing.
The second requirement obliges the seller of such repurchase agreements
to furnish the plan with the most recent available audited statement of
its financial condition as well as its most recent available unaudited
statement at the time of the sale and as the statements are issued. The
seller must also represent, either in the repurchase agreement or prior
to each repurchase agreement transaction, that as of the time the
transaction is negotiated, there has been no material adverse change in
the seller's financial condition since the date the last financial
statement was furnished that has not been disclosed to the plan
fiduciary with whom the written agreement is made.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0061. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction Exemption 1996-62, Class Exemption to
Permit Certain Authorized Transactions Between Plans and Parties in
Interest.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0098.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit institutions, Businesses, or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 7.
Responses: 3,515.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 88.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $30,156.
Description: PTE 96-62 provides accelerated approval of an
exemption permitting a plan to engage in a transaction which might
otherwise be prohibited following a demonstration to the Department
that the transaction is substantially similar to either transactions
described in at least two prior individual exemptions granted by the
Department and that provided relief from the same restriction(s) within
the 60-month period ending on the date of the filing of the written
submission; or one individual exemption that was granted by the
Department, and provided relief from the same restriction(s), within
120-month period ending on the date of filing of the written submission
and at least one transaction that has received final authorization
pursuant to PTE 96-62 within a 60-month period ending on the date of
the filing of the written submission. In addition, there must be
little, if any, risk of abuse or loss to a plan's participants and
beneficiaries as a result of the transaction. An applicant for an
exemption must submit the necessary documentation as described in the
class exemption to the Department for the Department to make an
informed determination regarding an application for accelerated
approval. Following tentative authorization, the applicant must provide
written notice to interested persons in a manner that is reasonably
calculated to result in the receipt of such notice by interested
persons, to ensure that participants and beneficiaries are informed of
the application for an exemption and the date of the expiration of the
comment period and have an opportunity to comment.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0098. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction Exemption 98-54, Class Exemption
Relating to Certain Employee Benefit Plan Foreign Exchange Transactions
Executed Pursuant to Standing Instructions.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0111.
Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.
Respondents: 35.
Responses: 420,000.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 4,200.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $0.
Description: PTE 98-54 permits employee benefit plans to engage in
foreign exchange transactions with banks or broker-dealers which are
trustees, custodians, fiduciaries, or other parties in interest with
respect to such plans pursuant to a standing instruction. The
exemption's conditions contain the following information collection
requirements: (1) the bank or broker-dealer maintains at all times
written policies and procedures regarding the handling of foreign
exchange transactions for plans with respect to which the bank or
broker-dealer is a trustee, custodian, fiduciary or other party in
interest or disqualified person which assure that the person acting for
the bank or broker-dealer knows that they are dealing with a plan, a
partial copy of which prior to the execution of certain transactions is
provided to the plan's independent fiduciary; (2) the covered
transaction is performed under a written authorization executed in
advance by the fiduciary of the plan whose assets are involved in the
transaction, which plan fiduciary is independent of the bank or broker-
dealer engaging in the covered transaction or any foreign affiliate
thereof; (3) the bank or broker-dealer engaging in the covered
transaction furnishes to the independent fiduciary a written
confirmation statement with respect to each covered transaction not
more than five business days after execution of the transactions; and
(4) recordkeeping requirements.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0111. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on January 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02, Improving
Investment Advice for Workers & Retirees Prohibited Transaction
Exemption.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0163.
Affected Public: Individuals or Households.
Respondents: 11,782.
Responses: 1,755,959.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 401,251.
[[Page 58314]]
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $92,063.
Description: PTE 2020-02 permits investment advice fiduciaries
(i.e., registered IAs, BDs, banks, and insurance companies) to receive
compensation and engage in principal transactions that would otherwise
violate the prohibited transaction provisions of ERISA and the Code.
The prohibited transaction provisions of ERISA and the Code generally
prohibit fiduciaries with respect to employee benefit plans (Plans) and
individual retirement accounts and annuities (IRAs) from engaging in
self-dealing and receiving compensation from third parties in
connection with transactions involving the Plans and IRAs, and from
purchasing and selling investments with the Plans and IRAs when the
fiduciaries are acting on behalf of their own accounts (principal
transactions).
To qualify for the exemption, investment advice fiduciaries are
required to comply with the following information collection
requirements: (1) make disclosures to inform retirement investors of
their fiduciary status, services offered, and material conflicts of
interest; (2) establish, maintain, and enforce written policies and
procedures designed to ensure that they and their investment
professionals comply with the Impartial Conduct Standards; (3) document
the specific reasons for any rollover recommendation and show that the
rollover is in the best interest of the retirement investor and provide
the documentation to the retirement investor; (4) conduct an annual
retrospective review that is reasonably designed to prevent violations
of the PTE's Impartial Conduct Standards and the institution's own
policies and procedures and provide a written report that is certified
by a senior executive officer; and (5) maintain records so that parties
relying on an exemption can demonstrate, and the Department can verify,
compliance with the conditions of the exemption. Investment advice
fiduciaries may choose to self-correct certain violations if, among
other things, the financial institution notifies the Department of
Labor and the person(s) responsible for conducting the retrospective
review.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0163. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on February 29, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0089.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit institutions, Businesses or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 10,350.
Responses: 10,350.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 518.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $778,718.
Description: Under Title I of ERISA, the administrator of each
welfare plan and each pension plan, unless otherwise exempt, is
required to file an annual report with the Secretary containing the
information set forth in section 103 of ERISA. The statutory annual
reporting requirements under Titles I and IV of ERISA, as well as the
Internal Revenue Code (the Code), are satisfied generally by filing the
appropriate annual return/report (the Form 5500).
On April 27, 1995, the Department implemented the Delinquent Filer
Voluntary Compliance Program (the DFVC Program) in an effort to
encourage annual reporting compliance. Under the DFVC Program,
administrators otherwise subject to the assessment of higher civil
penalties are permitted to pay reduced civil penalties for voluntarily
complying with the annual reporting requirements under Title I of
ERISA.
The only information collection requirement included in the DFVC
Program is the requirement of providing data necessary to identify the
plan along with the penalty payment. This data is the only means by
which each penalty payment is associated with the relevant plan. With
respect to most pension plans and welfare plans, the requirement is
satisfied by sending, along with the penalty payment, a copy of the
delinquent annual report (without attachments or schedules) which is
filed with the Department at a different address under the EFAST
system. In the event that the plan administrator files the delinquent
annual report using a 1998 or prior plan year form, a paper copy of
only the first page of the Form 5500 or Form 5500-C, as applicable,
should be submitted along with the penalty payment.
Certain pension plans for highly compensated employees, commonly
called ``top hat'' plans, and apprenticeship plans may file a one-time
statement in lieu of annual reports. With respect to such plans,
information collection requirements of the DFVC Program are satisfied
by sending a completed first page of an annual report form along with
the penalty payment. The one-time statements are required to be sent to
a different address within the Department. The DFVC Program is designed
to allow the processing of all penalty payments at a single location
within the Department.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0089. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on March 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Request for Assistance from the Department of Labor,
Employee Benefits Security Administration.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0146.
Affected Public: Individuals or Households.
Respondents: 5,582.
Responses: 5,582.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2,791.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $0.
Description: The Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security
Administration (EBSA) maintains a program designed to provide education
and technical assistance to participants and beneficiaries as well as
to employers, plan sponsors, and service providers related to their
health and retirement plan benefits. EBSA assists participants in
understanding their rights, responsibilities, and benefits under
employee benefit law and intervenes informally on their behalf with the
plan sponsor in order to assist them in obtaining the health and
retirement benefits to which they may have been inappropriately denied,
which can avert the necessity for a formal investigation or a civil
action. EBSA maintains a toll-free telephone number through which
inquirers can reach Benefits Advisors in ten Regional Offices. EBSA has
also made a request for assistance form available on its website for
those wishing to obtain assistance in this manner. Contact with EBSA is
entirely voluntary.
The collection of information is an intake form for assistance
requests from the public. This information includes the plan type,
broad categories of problem type, contact information for responsible
parties, and a mechanism for the inquirer to attach relevant documents.
Summary data from the existing intake form has also been used, in
accordance with section 513 of ERISA, to respond to requests for
information regarding employee benefit plans from members of Congress
and governmental oversight entities, and to inform the policy
formulation process.
[[Page 58315]]
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0146. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on March 31, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Alternative Method of Compliance for Certain Simplified
Employee Pensions.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0034.
Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.
Respondents: 35,560.
Responses: 67,930.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 21,227.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $3,223.
Description: Section 110 of ERISA relieves sponsors of certain
Simplified Employee Pensions (SEPs) from ERISA's Title I reporting and
disclosure requirements by prescribing an alternative method of
compliance. These SEPs are, for purposes of this information
collection, referred to as ``non-model SEPs'' because they exclude
those SEPs which are created through use of Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) Form 5305-SEP, and those SEPs in which the employer influences
the employees as to their choice of IRAs to which employer
contributions will be made, and that also prohibit withdrawals by
participants.
This information collection requirement generally requires timely
written disclosure to employees eligible to participate in non-model
SEPs, including specific information concerning: participation
requirements; allocation formulas for employer contributions;
designated contact persons for further information; and, for employer
recommended IRAs, specific terms of the IRAs such as rates of return
and any restrictions on withdrawals. Moreover, general information is
required that provides a clear explanation of: the operation of the
non-model SEP; participation requirements and any withdrawal
restrictions; and the tax treatment of the SEP-related IRA.
Furthermore, statements must be provided that inform participants of:
any other IRAs under the non-model SEP other than that to which
employer contributions are made; any options regarding rollovers and
contributions to other IRAs; descriptions of IRS disclosure
requirements to participants and information regarding social security
integration (if applicable); and timely notification of any amendments
to the terms of the non-model SEP.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0034. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on April 30, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Procedures Governing the Filing and Processing of Prohibited
Transaction Exemption Applications
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0060.
Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.
Respondents: 20.
Responses: 4,899.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 632.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $551,422.
Description: ERISA sections 406 and 407 and Code section 4975(e)
prohibit various transactions between a plan and certain related
parties and certain transactions by a plan fiduciary unless a statutory
or administrative exemption applies to the transaction. The Department
has authority under Reorganization Plan No. 4, pursuant to section 408
of ERISA and section 4975(c)(2) of the Code to grant either individual
or class exemptions. In order to grant an exemption under ERISA section
408 and Code section 4975(c) (2), the Department must determine that
the exemption is: administratively feasible, in the interests of the
plan and its participants and beneficiaries, and protective of the
rights of participants and beneficiaries.
In order to make such a determination, the Department requires full
disclosure of information regarding all aspects of the proposed
transaction, and the parties and the assets involved. Sections 2570.34
and 2570.35 of the exemption procedure regulation describe the
information that must be supplied by the applicant, such as:
identifying information (name, type of plan, EIN number, etc.); an
estimate of the number of plan participants; a detailed description of
the exemption transaction and the parties for which an exemption is
requested; a statement regarding which section of ERISA is thought to
be violated and whether transaction(s) involved have already been
entered into; a statement of whether the transaction is customary in
the industry; a statement of the hardship or economic loss, if any,
which would result if the exemption were denied; a statement explaining
why the proposed exemption would be administratively feasible, in the
interests of the plan and protective of the rights of plan participants
and beneficiaries; and several other statements. In addition, the
applicant must certify that the information supplied is accurate and
complete.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0060. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on April 30, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Investment Advice Participants and Beneficiaries.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0134.
Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.
Respondents: 11,396.
Responses: 23,033,030.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2,423,391.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance):
$318,912,816.
Description: Under ERISA, providing ``investment advice'' is a
fiduciary act. A fiduciary who advises participants about plan
investment opportunities that pay the adviser fees or commissions may
be subject to liability under the Employee Retirement Income Security
Act of 1974 (ERISA) prohibited transaction rules. The Pension
Protection Act of 2006 (Pub. L. 109-280) amended the ERISA and the
Internal Revenue Code (Code) to include a statutory exemption for
providing investment advice to participants and beneficiaries in self-
directed defined contribution individual account ERISA-covered plans
(Plans) and beneficiaries of individual retirement accounts, individual
retirement annuities, Archer MSAs, health savings accounts and
Coverdell education savings accounts (collectively IRAs) described in
the Code. The statutory exemption provides relief from the prohibited
transaction provisions of ERISA, and the parallel provisions of the
Code.
The information collections that are conditions of the regulation
include, third-party disclosures, recordkeeping, and audit
requirements. With one exception, the regulation does not require any
reporting or filing with the Federal government, but the designated
records must be made available upon request. The exception is the
requirement that the fiduciary adviser is required under certain
circumstances to forward the audit report which is also a required
disclosure under the regulation to the Department.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0134. The
[[Page 58316]]
current approval is scheduled to expire on April 30, 2024.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Furnishing Documents to the Secretary of Labor on Request
Under Employee Retirement Income Security Act Section 104(a)(6).
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0112.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit institutions, Businesses or other
for-profits.
Respondents: 893.
Responses: 893.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 41.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $721.
Description: Prior to the enactment of the Taxpayer Relief Act of
1997 (Pub. L. 105-34, August 5, 1997) (TRA `97), section 104(a) of the
Employee Retirement Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) required
administrators of employee benefit plans automatically to file the
plan's summary plan description (SPD) and any summaries of material
modification (SMMs) with the Secretary of the Department of Labor (the
Department). TRA `97 eliminated the requirement that these documents be
filed automatically with the Department, but added ERISA section
104(a)(6), requiring a plan administrator to furnish documents related
to an employee benefit plan to the Department upon request. The
requirement that administrators furnish the Department requested plan
documents other than SPDs and SMMs was part of section 104(a) prior to
enactment of TRA '97; that requirement was moved by TRA '97 to section
104(a)(6) and consolidated with the new furnishing requirement
pertaining to SPDs and SMMs.
Pursuant to the regulation, the Department requests documents under
section 104(a)(6) when a participant or beneficiary has previously
requested the documents directly from the plan administrator and the
administrator has failed or refused to provide them. The Department
therefore uses the requested information to respond to participants'
requests to the Department for documents that the participants were
unable to obtain from their plan administrators.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0112. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on June 30, 2024.
II. Focus of Comments
The Department is particularly interested in comments that:
Evaluate whether the collections of information are
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the
collections of information, including the validity of the methodology
and assumptions used;
Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
Minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., by
permitting electronic submissions of responses.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the ICR for OMB approval of the information
collection; they will also become a matter of public record.
Signed at Washington, DC, this 18th day of August 2023.
Lisa M. Gomez,
Assistant Secretary, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S.
Department of Labor.
[FR Doc. 2023-18276 Filed 8-24-23; 8:45 am]
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