[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 96 (Thursday, May 18, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26740-26741]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-12183]



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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration
[Prohibited Transaction Exemption 95-36; Exemption Application No. D-
09798, et al.]


Grant of Individual Exemptions; Amended Profit Sharing Plan and 
Trust of Walker Products Co., Inc., et al.

AGENCY: Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Grant of individual exemptions.

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SUMMARY: This document contains exemptions issued by the Department of 
Labor (the Department) 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).
    Notices were published in the Federal Register of the pendency 
before the Department of proposals to grant such exemptions. The 
notices set forth a summary of facts and representations contained in 
each application for exemption and referred interested persons to the 
respective applications for a complete statement of the facts and 
representations. The applications have been available for public 
inspection at the Department in Washington, DC. The notices also 
invited interested persons to submit comments on the requested 
exemptions to the Department. In addition the notices stated that any 
interested person might submit a written request that a public hearing 
be held (where appropriate). The applicants have represented that they 
have complied with the requirements of the notification to interested 
persons. No public comments and no requests for a hearing, unless 
otherwise stated, were received by the Department.
    The notices of proposed exemption were issued and the exemptions 
are being granted solely by the Department because, effective December 
31, 1978, section 102 of Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1978 (43 FR 
47713, October 17, 1978) transferred the authority of the Secretary of 
the Treasury to issue exemptions of the type proposed to the Secretary 
of Labor.

Statutory Findings

    In accordance with section 408(a) of the Act and/or section 
4975(c)(2) of the Code and the procedures set forth in 29 CFR part 
2570, subpart B (55 FR 32836, 32847, August 10, 1990) and based upon 
the entire record, the Department makes the following findings:

    (a) The exemptions are administratively feasible;
    (b) They are in the interests of the plans and their 
participants and beneficiaries; and
    (c) They are protective of the rights of the participants and 
beneficiaries of the plans.

Amended Profit Sharing Plan and Trust of Walker Products Co., Inc. (the 
P/S Plan)

Located in Lincoln, Kansas
[Prohibited Transaction Exemption 95-36; Exemption App. No. D-09798]

Exemption

    The restrictions of sections 406(a), 406(b)(1) and (b)(2) of the 
Act and the sanctions resulting from the application of section 4975 of 
the Code, by reason of section 4975(c)(1) (A) through (E) of the Code, 
shall not apply to the sale of certain farm land (the Land) by the P/S 
Plan to Mr. Lloyd Walker, a 33\1/3\% shareholder of the P/S Plan 
sponsor and a party in interest with respect to the P/S Plan, provided 
that the following conditions are satisfied:
    (1) The sale will be a one-time cash transaction;
    (2) The P/S Plan will receive the fair market value of the Land as 
determined at the time of the sale by an independent, qualified 
appraiser;
    (3) The P/S Plan will pay no expenses associated with the sale; and
    (4) The terms of this transaction are at least as favorable to the 
P/S Plan as an arms-length transaction between unrelated parties.
    For a complete statement of the facts and representations 
supporting the Department's decision to grant this exemption refer to 
the notice of proposed exemption published on March 20, 1995 at 60 FR 
14792/14793.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ekaterina A. Uzlyan of the Department, 
telephone (202) 219-8883. (This is not a toll-free number.)
The Travelers Separate Account ``R'' (SAR)

Located in Hartford, Connecticut
[Prohibited Transaction Exemption 95-37; App. No. D-09827]

Exemption

    The restrictions of sections 406(a), 406(b)(1) and 406(b)(2) of the 
Act and [[Page 26741]] the sanctions resulting from the application of 
section 4975 of the Code, by reason of section 4975(c)(1) (A) through 
(E) of the Code, shall not apply to the past lease (the Lease) of space 
in an office building located in Cedar Knolls, New Jersey (the 
Building) from December 22, 1993 until June 24, 1994 by SAR to The 
Travelers Insurance Company (Travelers), a party in interest with 
respect to employee benefit plans invested in SAR, provided that the 
following conditions were satisfied:
    (a) All terms and conditions of the Lease were at least as 
favorable to SAR as those which SAR could have obtained in an arm's-
length transaction with an unrelated party at the time the Lease was 
executed;
    (b) The rent paid by Travelers to SAR under the Lease was not less 
than the fair market rental value of the office space;
    (c) LaSalle Partners (LaSalle), acting as a qualified, independent 
fiduciary for SAR during the time that the Building was owned by SAR, 
reviewed all terms and conditions of the Lease prior to the 
transaction, as well as any subsequent modifications to the Lease, and 
determined that such terms and conditions would be in the best 
interests of SAR at the time of the transaction;
    (d) LaSalle represented the interests of SAR for all purposes under 
the Lease as a qualified, independent fiduciary for SAR, monitored the 
performance of the parties under the terms and conditions of the Lease, 
and took whatever action was necessary to safeguard the interests of 
SAR with respect to the Lease during the time that the Building was 
part of SAR's portfolio; and
    (e) Travelers pays to all of SAR's contractholders, upon final 
liquidation of the properties held by SAR, amounts necessary to 
reimburse SAR for expenses incurred in connection with the tenant 
improvements made to the office space leased to Travelers prior to the 
sale of the Building (i.e., $1,363,581), as well as all other amounts 
required to be paid to SAR's contractholders, pursuant to the terms of 
the Settlement Agreement arising from The Travelers Insurance Company 
v. Allied-Signal, Inc. Master Pension Trust, et al. (Civil No. H-90-
870-AHN, USDC D Conn).

EFFECTIVE DATE: This exemption is effective for the period from 
December 22, 1993 until June 24, 1994.
    For a more complete statement of the facts and representations 
supporting the Department's decision to grant this exemption, refer to 
the notice of proposed exemption (the Proposal) published on January 
18, 1995, at 60 FR 3662.

NOTICE TO INTERESTED PERSONS: The applicant represents that some of the 
employee benefit plans invested in SAR did not receive notice of the 
pendency of the proposed exemption within the time period specified in 
the Proposal. The applicant states that these plans were subsequently 
provided with a separate notice and a copy of the Proposal on or before 
March 17, 1995. Such plans were advised by the applicant in the 
separate notice that they had until April 17, 1995 to comment and/or 
request a hearing on the Proposal. No comments or hearing requests were 
received by the Department.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. E.F. Williams of the Department, 
telephone (202) 219-8194. (This is not a toll-free number.)
Law Offices of Bryson and Berman, P.A. Employees' Pension Plan and 
Trust (Pension Plan) and Law Offices of Bryson and Berman, P. A. 
Employees' Profit Sharing Plan and Trust (P/S Plan, collectively; the 
Plans)

Located in Miami, Florida
[Prohibited Transaction Exemption 95-38; Exemption App. Nos. D-09884 
and D-09885]

Exemption

    The restrictions of sections 406(a), 406(b)(1) and (b)(2) of the 
Act and the sanctions resulting from the application of section 4975 of 
the Code, by reason of section 4975(c)(1)(A) through (E) of the Code, 
shall not apply to the sale by the two individual accounts (the 
Accounts) in the Plans of Rodney W. Bryson of two adjacent parcels of 
vacant land (Lots 3 and 4, collectively; the Lots) to Mr. Rodney Bryson 
(Mr. Bryson), a trustee of the Plans and a party in interest with 
respect to the Plans; provided that the following conditions are 
satisfied:
    (a) The sale will be a one-time cash transaction;
    (b) The Accounts in this transaction will receive the current fair 
market value of the Lots established at the time of the sale by an 
independent qualified appraiser;
    (c) The Accounts will pay no expenses associated with the sale; and
    (d) The terms of this transaction are at least as favorable to the 
Accounts as an arms-length transaction between unrelated parties.
    For a complete statement of the facts and representations 
supporting the Department's decision to grant this exemption refer to 
the notice of proposed exemption published on March 13, 1995 at 60 FR 
13472/13473.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ekaterina A. Uzlyan of the Department, 
telephone (202) 219-8883. (This is not a toll-free number.)

General Information

    The attention of interested persons is directed to the following:
    (1) The fact that a transaction is the subject of an exemption 
under section 408(a) of the Act and/or section 4975(c)(2) of the Code 
does not relieve a fiduciary or other party in interest or disqualified 
person from certain other provisions to which the exemptions does not 
apply and the general fiduciary responsibility provisions of section 
404 of the Act, which among other things require a fiduciary to 
discharge his duties respecting the plan solely in the interest of the 
participants and beneficiaries of the plan and in a prudent fashion in 
accordance with section 404(a)(1)(B) of the Act; nor does it affect the 
requirement of section 401(a) of the Code that the plan must operate 
for the exclusive benefit of the employees of the employer maintaining 
the plan and their beneficiaries;
    (2) These exemptions are supplemental to and not in derogation of, 
any other provisions of the Act and/or the Code, including statutory or 
administrative exemptions and transactional rules. Furthermore, the 
fact that a transaction is subject to an administrative or statutory 
exemption is not dispositive of whether the transaction is in fact a 
prohibited transaction; and
    (3) The availability of these exemptions is subject to the express 
condition that the material facts and representations contained in each 
application are true and complete and accurately describe all material 
terms of the transaction which is the subject of the exemption. In the 
case of continuing exemption transactions, if any of the material facts 
or representations described in the application change after the 
exemption is granted, the exemption will cease to apply as of the date 
of such change. In the event of any such change, application for a new 
exemption may be made to the Department.

    Signed at Washington, D.C., this 12th day of May, 1995.
Ivan Strasfeld,
Director of Exemption Determinations, Pension and Welfare Benefits 
Administration, Department of Labor.
[FR Doc. 95-12183 Filed 5-17-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-29-P