Agencies and Commissions September 19, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (Agency) is amending the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) regulations to provide additional means to verify that an amount is eligible for rollover to the TSP as authorized by the Treasury Regulations interpreting I.R.C. 401(a)(31), to provide that the procedures applicable to an employee who was misclassified as either CSRS or FERS and the retirement system is corrected to FICA also apply to an employee who elects retroactive non-appropriated fund retirement coverage, and to provide that it will authenticate records in a manner consistent with Federal law and regulations. The Agency is also amending the TSP regulations to provide that it will allow a non-spouse beneficiary to transfer a death benefit payment to an inherited IRA as authorized by the Pension Protection Act of 2006, to provide that a bankruptcy court now lacks jurisdiction over a TSP loan as provided in the Bankruptcy Abuse and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, and to eliminate examples of general and special powers of attorney (some of which are no longer acceptable to the Agency) and, instead, direct participants to a sample form at the TSP Web site.

Following receipt on September 6, 2007 of a request from the United States Trade Representative (USTR) under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332 (g)), the Commission instituted investigation No. 332-493, Advice Concerning Possible Modifications to the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences, 2007 Review of Additions and Removals.

In Release No. 33-8831, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a concept release on allowing U.S. issuers to prepare financial statements in accordance with international financial reporting standards which appeared in the Federal Register of August 14, 2007 (72 FR 45599). The Commission is issuing this correction to change the incorrect web addresses listed in the concept release.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announces a meeting of the Planetary Science Subcommittee of the NASA Advisory Council (NAC). This Subcommittee reports to the Science Committee of the NAC. The Meeting will be held for the purpose of soliciting from the scientific community and other persons scientific and technical information relevant to program planning.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is issuing final regulations to amend the criteria under which OPM may grant dual compensation (salary offset) waivers on a case-by-case basis, or delegate waiver authority to agencies. The intended effect of these regulations is to more closely mirror the statutory authority and ensure that the Director and her designee(s) possess the full degree of discretion afforded by the statute in making particular decisions.