[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 81 (Friday, April 26, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20846-20847]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-10385]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION


Sunshine Act; Meetings

    Notice is hereby given, pursuant to the provisions of the 
Government in the Sunshine Act, Public Law 94-409, that the Securities 
and Exchange Commission will hold the following meetings during the 
week of April 29, 2002:

    An open meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 30, 2002, in Room 
6600, at 10 a.m., and a closed meeting will be held on Wednesday, 
May 1, 2002, at 10 a.m.

    Commissioners, Counsel to the Commissioners, the Secretary to the 
Commission, and recording secretaries will attend the closed meeting. 
Certain staff members who have an interest in the matters may also be 
present.
    The General Counsel of the Commission, or his designee, has 
certified that, in his opinion, one or more of the exemptions set forth 
in 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(5), (7), (9)(B), and (10) and 17 CFR 200.402(a)(5), 
(7), (9)(ii) and

[[Page 20847]]

(10), permit consideration of the scheduled matters at the closed 
meeting.
    The subject matter of the open meeting scheduled for Tuesday, April 
30, 2002, will be:
    1. The Commission will consider proposing rules that would require 
companies to discuss ``critical accounting estimates'' in their 
``Management's Discussion and Analysis'' (MD&A) section of annual 
reports, registrations statements, proxy and information statements. 
Quarterly updates to disclose material changes would be required under 
the proposals. The proposed disclosure is designed to provide 
additional key information about a company's financial statements to 
enhance investors' understanding of a company's financial condition and 
to provide information about the quality of, and potential variability 
of, a company's earnings. The proposed amendments reflect the changes 
to MD&A rules that the Commission announced its intention to propose in 
Press Release 2002-22 on February 13, 2002.
    2. The Commission will consider a recommendation to issue an 
exemptive order under Section 36 of the Exchange Act, which would 
permit broker-dealers to pledge a wider range of collateral when 
entering into borrowing transactions governed by paragraph (b)(3) of 
Rule 15c3-3. The provisions in this paragraph apply when broker-dealers 
borrow fully paid and excess margin securities from customers. The 
conditions for such borrowings include the requirement that broker-
dealers provide customers with full collateral consisting of certain 
specified financial instruments or cash. The order would expand the 
types of collateral that could be provided, subject to certain 
conditions in addition to those required in the Rule.
    The Commission also will consider a recommendation to delegate its 
authority to issue such orders regarding permissible collateral to the 
Director of the Division of Market Regulation.
    3. The Commission will consider a proposal to amend Rule 31-1 under 
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to clarify how to calculate 
assessments that are required to be paid by national securities 
exchanges and national securities associations pursuant to Section 
31(d) of the Exchange Act for security futures transactions. The 
proposed amendments to Rule 31-1 also would provide guidance on how to 
calculate fees that are required to be paid by national securities 
exchanges and national securities associations pursuant to Sections 
31(b) and (c) of the Exchange Act, respectively, for sales of 
securities that result from the physical settlement of security 
futures.
    4. The Commission will consider a recommendation to propose 
amendments to Rules 10f-3, 12d3-1, 17a-6, 17d-1, and 17e-1 and new Rule 
17a-10 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. The proposed 
amendments to Rules 17a-6 and 17d-1 would expand the current exemptions 
for investment companies to enter into principal transactions and joint 
arrangements with portfolio companies that are affiliated with an 
investment company because the investment company controls the 
portfolio company, or owns more than five percent of the portfolio's 
voting securities. The proposed amendments to Rules 10f-3, 12d3-1, and 
17e-1 and new Rule 17a-10 would permit investment companies and their 
affiliated subadvisers to enter into a variety of transactions together 
without first obtaining an exemptive order from the Commission.
    The Commission also will consider whether to adopt amendments to 
Rule 10f-3 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Rule 10f-3 permits 
investment companies to purchase certain securities in an underwriting 
in which an affiliated underwriter is participating. The amendments to 
Rule 10f-3 would include government securities among the types of 
securities that investment companies may purchase under the rule.
    5. The Commission will consider whether to amend its rules to 
delegate authority to the Secretary of the Commission to enter orders 
instituting previously authorized administrative proceedings based on 
the entry of an injunction or a criminal conviction.
    Because the open meeting will be held in Room 6600, there will be 
limited seating available. Additional seating will be provided in Room 
1C50, where there will be a simultaneous telecast of the meeting. The 
meeting also will be audio webcast live at www.sec.gov/news/openmeetings.shtml.
    The subject matter of the closed meeting scheduled for Wednesday, 
May 1, 2002, will be: institution and settlement of injunctive actions; 
and institution and settlement of administrative proceedings of an 
enforcement nature.
    At times, changes in Commission priorities require alterations in 
the scheduling of meeting items. For further information and to 
ascertain what, if any, matters have been added, deleted or postponed, 
please contact: The Office of the Secretary at (202) 942-7070.

    Dated: April 23, 2002.
Margaret H. McFarland,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-10385 Filed 4-23-02; 4:10 pm]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-P