Department of Labor April 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Pursuant to section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (Pub. L. 92-463), as amended, and section 166(h)(4) of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) [29 U.S.C. 2911(h)(4)], notice is hereby given of the next meeting of the Native American Employment and Training Council as constituted under WIA. Time and Date: The meeting will begin at 2:45 p.m. Central Standard Time (CST) on Wednesday, May 17, 2006, and continue until 5 p.m. that day. The meeting will reconvene at 1:15 p.m. CST on Thursday, May 18, 2006, and adjourn at approximately 5 p.m. on that day. The period from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on May 18 will be reserved for participation and presentation by members of the public. The meeting will reconvene at 9 a.m. CST on Friday, May 19, 2006, and will adjourn at 12 p.m. Place: All sessions will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Tulsa, 100 East Second Street, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74103. Status: The meeting will be open to the public. Persons who need special accommodations should contact the Designated Federal Official (DFO), Ms. Athena Brown, at (202) 693-3737 by May 5, 2006. Matters to be Considered: The formal agenda will focus on the following topics: (1) Introduction of New/Reappointments to Council; (2) Strategic Planning for Economic Development; (3) Workgroup Reports; (4) White House Interagency Task Force and Building Workforce Capacity/ Education Workgroups; and (5) Training and Technical Assistance Regional Sessions.

This document contains notices of pendency before the Department of Labor (the Department) of proposed exemptions from certain of the prohibited transaction restrictions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (the Act) and/or the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the Code).

This document contains a final exemption from certain prohibited transaction restrictions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA or the Act) and from certain taxes imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code). The exemption permits a ``qualified termination administrator'' (QTA) of an individual account plan that has been abandoned by its sponsoring employer to select itself or an affiliate to provide services to the plan in connection with the termination of the plan, to pay itself or an affiliate fees for those services, and to pay itself for services provided prior to the plan's deemed termination. The exemption also permits a qualified termination administrator of an abandoned plan to: (1) Designate itself or an affiliate as the provider of an individual retirement plan or other account for the distribution of a participant or beneficiary who fails to make an election regarding the disposition of such benefits; (2) select a proprietary investment product as the initial investment for such plan or account; (3) provide a federally insured bank or savings association account for small distributions; and (4) pay itself or its affiliate fees in connection therewith. This exemption is being granted in connection with the Department's final regulation at 29 CFR 2578.1, relating to the Termination of Abandoned Individual Account Plans, the Department's final regulation at 29 CFR 2550.404a-3, relating to the Safe Harbor for Distributions From Terminated Individual Account Plans, and the Department's final regulation at 29 CFR 2520.103-13, relating to the Terminal Report for Abandoned Individual Account Plans, which are being published simultaneously in this issue of the Federal Register. The exemption will affect individual account plans, the participants and beneficiaries of such plans, certain plan service providers, and the fiduciaries of such plans.

OSHA seeks information about potential objections to public release of sampling data.

The Veterans' Employment and Training Service is posting availability of funds for the Non-Urban Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program.

The Veterans' Employment and Training Service is posting availability of funds for the New Grantee Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program.

The Department of Labor (DOL or the Department), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies an opportunity to comment on proposed and/ or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements can be properly assessed. Currently, DOL is soliciting comments concerning the proposed extension of the Customer Satisfaction Surveys and Conference Evaluations Generic Clearance. A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the individual listed below in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.

This Notice includes an updated and streamlined version of the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFC Program or the Program) under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. The VFC Program is designed to encourage the voluntary correction of fiduciary violations by permitting persons to avoid potential civil actions and civil penalties if they take steps to correct identified violations in a manner consistent with the Program. The Program included in this Notice reflects changes made in response to public comments received on the VFC Program modifications implemented in April 2005. The final Program includes additional transactions, reduced documentation requirements, a simplified application form, a checklist, and availability of an online calculator for determining the amount to be restored to plans. These changes serve to both encourage and facilitate the use of the Program as a means by which to correct covered fiduciary violations.