[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 56 (Thursday, March 23, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 17466-17467]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-05522]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employee Benefits Security Administration

29 CFR Part 2550

[Application No. D-12022]
Z-RIN 1210 ZA07


Reopening Comment Period for the Proposed Amendment to Prohibited 
Transaction Class Exemption 84-14 (the QPAM Exemption)

AGENCY: Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of 
Labor.

ACTION: Notice of proposed amendment to class exemption; reopening of 
comment period.

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SUMMARY: As discussed in the DATES section below, the Department of 
Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is announcing 
that it is reopening the comment period for the proposed amendment to 
prohibited transaction class exemption 84-14 (the QPAM Exemption).

DATES: The public comment period for the proposed amendment to the 
class exemption published on July 27, 2022, at 87 FR 45204, will reopen 
on the date of publication of this notice and close on April 6, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Please submit all written comments to the Office of 
Exemption Determinations through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
www.regulations.gov at Docket ID number: EBSA-2022-0008.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Scott Hesse, Office of Exemption 
Determinations, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. 
Department of Labor. Telephone: (202) 693-8546 (this is not a toll-free 
number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department published a proposed 
amendment to prohibited transaction class exemption 84-14 (the Proposed 
QPAM Exemption Amendment) on July 27, 2022, with a 60-day comment 
period that was set to expire on September 26, 2022.\1\ The Department 
received two letters requesting an extension of the comment period 
after the Department published the Proposed QPAM Exemption 
Amendment.\2\ After carefully considering the extension request, the 
Department extended the initial comment period for an additional 15 
days until October 11, 2022 in a Federal Register Notice published on 
September 9, 2022 \3\ and received 31 comment letters.
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    \1\ 87 FR 45204.
    \2\ See Public Comment #1 from American Bankers Association et 
al. and Public Comment #2 from American Retirement Association. The 
extension requests can be accessed here: https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/EBSA/laws-and-regulations/rules-and-regulations/public-comments/1210-ZA07/.
    \3\ 87 FR 54715.
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    In that same Federal Register notice of September 9, 2022, the 
Department announced on its own motion that it would hold a virtual 
public hearing on November 17, 2022 (and if necessary, on November 18, 
2022), to provide an opportunity for all interested parties to testify 
on material information and issues regarding the Proposed QPAM 
Amendment.\4\ The Department received 13 requests to testify at the 
hearing. The notice also indicated the Department would: (1) reopen the 
public comment period from the hearing date until approximately 14 days 
after the Department publishes the hearing transcript on EBSA's 
website; and (2) publish a Federal Register notice announcing that it 
has posted the hearing transcript to EBSA's website and providing the 
date the reopened comment period closes.
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    \4\ Id.
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    The Department held the virtual public hearing on November 17, 2022 
and reopened the comment period on the hearing date.\5\ The reopened 
comment period in connection with the hearing closed on January 6, 
2023, and the Department received 150 additional comments. The hearing 
transcript may be accessed here: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/
laws-and-regulations/

[[Page 17467]]

rules-and-regulations/public-comments/1210-ZA07.
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    \5\ The hearing did not continue on November 18, 2022, because 
the Department was able to schedule all witnesses that requested to 
testify on one day.
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    The Department understands that at least one interested party may 
have additional information to provide the Department that was not 
submitted by the comment deadline of January 6, 2023. Therefore, the 
Department is reopening the comment period to provide an opportunity 
for all interested parties to submit additional information. The 
Department encourages interested parties to submit comments on the 
proposed amendment before the additional reopened comment period closes 
on April 6, 2023. All written comments should be identified by Z-RIN 
1210 ZA07 and sent to the Office of Exemption Determinations through 
the Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov at Docket 
ID number: EBSA-2022-0008. Please follow the instructions for 
submitting comments.
    All comments on the proposed amendment and requests to testify at 
the hearing are available to the public without charge online at 
https://www.regulations.gov at Docket ID number: EBSA-2022-0008 and 
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/laws-and-regulations/rules-and-regulations/public-comments/1210-ZA07. They also are available for 
public inspection in EBSA's Public Disclosure Room, U.S. Department of 
Labor, Room N-1513, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20210.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 13th day of March, 2023.
Lisa M. Gomez,
Assistant Secretary, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. 
Department of Labor.
[FR Doc. 2023-05522 Filed 3-22-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-29-P