2021-18698. Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Upon Written Request, Copies Available From: Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-2736.

Extension: Rule 6c-7

Notice is hereby given that, pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) is soliciting comments on the collection of information summarized below. The Commission plans to submit this existing collection of information to the Office of Management and Budget for extension and approval.

Rule 6c-7 (17 CFR 270.6c-7) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-1 et seq.) (“1940 Act”) provides exemption from certain provisions of Sections 22(e) and 27 of the 1940 Act for registered separate accounts offering variable annuity contracts to certain employees of Texas institutions of higher education participating in the Texas Optional Retirement Program. There are approximately 142 registrants governed by Rule 6c-7. The burden of compliance with Rule 6c-7, in connection with the registrants obtaining from a purchaser, prior to or at the time of purchase, a signed document acknowledging the restrictions on redeem ability imposed by Texas law, is estimated to be approximately 3 minutes of professional time per response for each of approximately 6,500 purchasers annually (at an estimated $72 per hour),^[1] for a total annual burden of 325 hours (at a total annual cost of $23,400).

The estimate of average burden hours is made solely for the purposes of the Paperwork Reduction Act, and is not derived from a comprehensive or even a representative survey or study of the costs of Commission rules or forms. The Commission does not include in the estimate of average burden hours the time preparing registration statements and sales literature disclosure regarding the restrictions on redeem ability imposed by Texas law. The estimate of burden hours for completing the relevant registration statements are reported on the separate PRA submissions for those statements. (See the separate PRA submissions for Form N-3 (17 CFR 274.11b) and Form N-4 (17 CFR 274.11c).)

The Commission requests written comments on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted in writing within 60 days of this publication.

Please direct your written comments to David Bottom, Director/Chief Information Officer, Securities and Exchange Commission, C/O Cynthia Roscoe, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549; or send an email to: [e-mail].

Dated: August 25, 2021.

Jill M. Peterson,

Assistant Secretary.

Footnotes

1.  $72/hour figure for a Compliance Clerk is based on the Commission's estimates concerning the allocation of burden hours and the relevant wage rates from the Commission's consultations with industry representatives and on salary information for the securities industry compiled by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association's Office Salaries in the Securities Industry 2013. The estimated wage figures are modified by Commission staff to account for an 1800-hour work-year and multiplied by 2.93 to account for bonuses, firm size, employee benefits, overhead, and adjusted to account for the effects of inflation. See Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, Report on Management & Professional Earnings in the Securities Industry 2013.