Agency Information Collection Activities; Request for Public Comment

Primary source

Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.

Published

July 11, 2025

Issuing agencies

Labor DepartmentEmployee Benefits Security Administration

Abstract

The Department of Labor (the Department), in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, provides the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and continuing collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's information collection requirements and provides the requested data in the desired format. The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is soliciting comments on the proposed extension of the information collection requests (ICRs) contained in the documents described below. A copy of the ICRs may be obtained by contacting the office listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. ICRs also are available at reginfo.gov (http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain).

Full Text

<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 131 (Friday, July 11, 2025)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 131 (Friday, July 11, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30984-30988]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-12909]

=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employee Benefits Security Administration

Agency Information Collection Activities; Request for Public
Comment

AGENCY: Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), Department of
Labor.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (the Department), in accordance with
the Paperwork Reduction Act, provides the general public and Federal
agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and continuing
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's
information collection requirements and provides the requested data in
the desired format. The Employee Benefits Security Administration
(EBSA) is soliciting comments on the proposed extension of the
information collection requests (ICRs) contained in the documents
described below. A copy of the ICRs may be obtained by contacting the
office listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. ICRs also are
available at <a href="http://reginfo.gov">reginfo.gov</a> (<a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain">http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain</a>).

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office shown in the
ADDRESSES section on or before September 9, 2025.

[[Page 30985]]

ADDRESSES: U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Office of Research and Analysis, Attention: PRA
Officer, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Room N-5718, Washington, DC 20210,
or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#cbaea9b8aae5a4bbb98bafa4a7e5aca4bd"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="89ecebfae8a7e6f9fbc9ede6e5a7eee6ff">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Current Actions

This notice requests public comment on the Department's request for
extension of the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval of
ICRs contained in the rules and prohibited transaction exemptions
described below. This action is not related to any pending rulemakings
and the Department is not proposing any changes to the existing ICRs at
this time. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not
required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a
valid OMB control number. A summary of the ICRs and the burden
estimates follows:
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Class Exemption for Certain Transactions Involving Purchase
of Securities where Issuer May Use Proceeds to Reduce or Retire
Indebtedness to Parties in Interest (PTE 1980-83).
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0064.
Affected Public: Private sector, Businesses or other for-profits.
Respondents: 25.
Responses: 25.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 15.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $0.
Description:
Class exemption PTE 80-83, granted on November 4, 1980, allows
employee benefit plans to purchase securities, which may aid the issuer
of the securities to reduce or retire indebtedness to a party in
interest to the plan. Entities who rely on the exemption are mainly
banks that purchase, on behalf of employee benefit plans, securities
issued by a corporation indebted to the bank that is a party in
interest to the plan.
The principal requirements of the exemption are that the securities
must be sold as part of a public offering, the price paid for the
securities must not be in excess of the original offering price, and
the plan fiduciary must maintain records of the transactions for six
years and make the records available for inspection to specified
interested persons (including the Department and the Internal Revenue
Service). This exemption also provides relief from the prohibited
transaction provisions of Section 4975 of the Internal Revenue Code
(the Code). The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR
under OMB Control No. 1210-0064. The current approval is scheduled to
expire on January 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Petition for Finding under the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act Section 3(40).
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0119.
Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 10.
Responses: 10.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 370.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $87.
Description:
The term ``multiple employer welfare arrangement'' (MEWA) is
defined in Section 3(40) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act
of 1974 (ERISA) as an employee welfare benefit plan or any other
arrangement which is established or maintained for the purpose of
offering or providing [welfare plan benefits] to the employees of two
or more employers, (including one or more self-employed individuals),
or their beneficiaries, except that such term does not include any such
plan or other arrangement which is established or maintained under or
pursuant to one or more agreements which the Secretary of Labor (the
Secretary) finds to be collective bargaining agreements. Under Section
514(b)(6) of ERISA, an employee welfare benefit plan that is a MEWA is
generally subject to state insurance law. The Department's regulation
at 29 CFR 2510.3-40 sets forth criteria for determining when an
employee welfare benefit plan is established or maintained under or
pursuant to collective bargaining agreements for purposes of section
3(40) of ERISA. The Department's regulations at 29 CFR part 2570,
subpart H set forth procedures for administrative hearings to obtain a
determination by the Secretary as to whether a particular entity is an
employee welfare benefit plan established or maintained under or
pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements for purposes
of section 3(40) of ERISA.
To initiate adjudicatory proceedings, an entity is required to file
a petition for a determination under Section 3(40) of ERISA with an
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ). The petition must identify the parties,
describe the basis on which the petition is being filed and the entity
in question, provide evidence that the entity satisfies the criteria to
be an employee welfare benefit plan, and include affidavits as to both
the competency of the affiant to testify and the facts that allegedly
establish the entity as a plan established under or pursuant to
agreements that the Secretary finds to be a collective bargaining
agreement. The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR
under OMB Control No. 1210-0119. The current approval is scheduled to
expire on January 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Notice Requirements of the Health Care Continuation Coverage
Provisions.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0123.
Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 1,981,055.
Responses: 26,890,373.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 490,857.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance):
$16,403,128.
Description:
The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA)
provides that under certain circumstances participants and
beneficiaries of group health plans that satisfy the definition of
``qualified beneficiaries'' under COBRA may elect to continue group
health coverage temporarily following events known as ``qualifying
events'' that would otherwise result in loss of coverage.
Under the regulatory guidelines, plan administrators are required
to distribute notices: a general notice to be distributed to all
participants in group health plans subject to COBRA; an employer notice
that must be completed by the employer upon the occurrence of a
qualifying event; a notice and election form to be sent to a
participant upon the occurrence of a qualifying event that might cause
the participant to lose group health coverage; an employee notice that
may be completed by a qualified beneficiary upon the occurrence of
certain qualifying events such as divorce or disability; and, two other
notices, one of early termination and the other a notice of
unavailability. Also included in the ICR are two model notices that the
Department believes will help reduce costs for service providers in
preparing and delivering

[[Page 30986]]

notices to comply with the regulations. The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under OMB Control No. 1210-0123. The
current approval is scheduled to expire on January 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Statutory Exemption for Cross-Trading of Securities.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0130.
Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 271.
Responses: 2,439.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2,832.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $15,854.
Description:
The Statutory Exemption for Cross-Trading of Securities regulation
(29 CFR 2550.408b-19) implements the content requirements for the
written cross-trading policies and procedures required under section
408(b)(19)(H) of ERISA, as added by section 611(g) of the Pension
Protection Act of 2006, Public Law 109-280 (the PPA). Section 611(g)(1)
of the PPA created a statutory exemption, added to section 408(b) of
ERISA as subsection 408(b)(19), that exempts from the prohibitions of
sections 406(a)(1)(A) and 406(b)(2) of ERISA those cross-trading
transactions involving the purchase and sale of a security between an
account holding assets of a pension plan and any other account managed
by the same investment manager, provided that certain conditions are
satisfied.
On October 7, 2008, the Department issued final regulations
regarding cross-trading policies and procedures (73 FR 58450). The
regulation provides that the policies and procedures for cross-trading
under the statutory exemption must meet certain content requirements.
The statutory exemption requires, as a condition to exemptive
relief, that an investment manager's policies and procedures regarding
cross-trading be provided in advance to the fiduciary of any plan that
is considering agreeing to allow its assets to be managed under the
investment manager's cross-trading program. The investment manager is
also required, under the statutory exemption, to designate a compliance
officer responsible for periodically reviewing the investment manager's
cross-trading program to ensure compliance with the investment
manager's cross-trading written policies and procedures. The statutory
exemption requires the compliance officer to issue an annual report to
each plan fiduciary describing the steps performed during the course of
the review, the level of compliance, and any specific instances of
noncompliance. The exemption does not require any reporting or filing
with the Federal government. The Department has received approval from
OMB for this ICR under OMB Control No. 1210-0130. The current approval
is scheduled to expire on January 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Model Employer Children's Health Insurance Program Notice.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0137.
Affected Public: Private sector, Farms, Business or other for
profits, Not-for-profit institutions, State, Local, and Tribal
Governments.
Respondents: 6,440,781.
Responses: 215,756,871.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 751,554.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance):
$18,037,275.
Description:
On February 4, 2009, President Obama signed the Children's Health
Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA, Pub. L. 111-3).
Under ERISA section 701(f)(3)(B)(i)(I), Public Health Service Act (PHS)
section 2701(f)(3)(B)(i)(I), and section 9801(f)(3)(B)(i)(I) of the
Internal Revenue Code, as added by Children's Health Insurance Program
Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA), an employer that maintains a
group health plan in a State that provides medical assistance under a
State Medicaid plan under title XIX of the Social Security Act (SSA),
or child health assistance under a State child health plan under title
XXI of the SSA, in the form of premium assistance for the purchase of
coverage under a group health plan, is required to make certain
disclosures. Specifically, the employer is required to notify each
employee of potential opportunities currently available in the State in
which the employee resides for premium assistance under Medicaid and
CHIP for health coverage of the employee or the employee's dependents.
These notices are referred to as ``Employer CHIP Notices.''
ERISA section 701(f)(3)(B)(i)(II) requires the Department of Labor
to provide employers with model language for the Employer CHIP Notices
to enable them to timely comply with this requirement, which is
referred to as the ``Model Employer CHIP Notice.'' The model language
is required to include information on how an employee may contact the
State in which the employee resides for additional information
regarding potential opportunities for premium assistance, including how
to apply for such assistance. The Department has received approval from
OMB for this ICR under OMB Control No. 1210-0137. The current approval
is scheduled to expire on January 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Plan Asset Transactions Determined by In-House Asset
Managers under Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 96-23.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0145.
Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 20.
Responses: 20.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 940.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $400,000.
Description:
The Department granted PTE 96-23 (61 FR 15975), Class Exemption for
Plan Asset Transactions Determined by In-House Asset Managers. The
class exemption permits a plan to engage in transactions involving
various parties in interest if, among other requirements, the assets of
the plan are managed by an in-house asset manager (INHAM).
PTE 96-23 contains requirements for written guidelines between an
INHAM and a property manager that an INHAM has retained to act on its
behalf. The information collection requirements consist of the
requirements that the INHAM develop written policies and procedures
designed to assure compliance with the conditions of the exemption and
have an independent auditor conduct an annual INHAM exemption audit and
issue an audit report to each plan. The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under OMB Control No. 1210-0145. The
current approval is scheduled to expire on January 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption for Certain
Transactions Between Investment Companies and Employee Benefit Plans
(PTE 1977-4).
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0049.

[[Page 30987]]

Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 825.
Responses: 297,552.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 25,208.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $0.
Description:
PTE 77-4, which was originally granted on April 8, 1977, exempts
from the prohibited transaction restrictions the purchase and sale by
an employee benefit plan of shares of a registered, open-end investment
company (mutual fund) when the investment adviser for the mutual fund
is also a fiduciary of the plan and is not an employer of employees
covered by the plan. There are three disclosure requirements
incorporated within the class exemption. The first requirement is
intended to put the plan on notice of possible fees associated with the
redemption of open-end mutual fund shares. It requires disclosure of
any redemption fees in the investment company prospectus in effect both
at the time of purchase of such shares and at the time of such sale.
The class exemption permits a plan to pay a redemption fee on the sale,
by redemption, of open-end mutual fund shares only if the fee is paid
to the open-end mutual company and the above noted disclosure is made.
The second requirement is that, at the time of the covered
transaction, an independent fiduciary receive a copy of the current
prospectus issued by the investment company and full and detailed
written disclosure of the investment advisory fees and other fees
charged to or paid by the plan and the investment company, including
the nature and extent of any differential between the rates of such
fees, the reasons why the fiduciary/investment adviser may consider
such purchases to be appropriate for the plan, and whether there are
any limitations on the fiduciary/investment adviser with respect to
which plan assets may be invested in shares of the investment company
and, if so, the nature of such limitations. In advisory opinion 2013-
04A, the Department determined that, under the Securities and Exchange
Commission's 2009 revised disclosure provisions for mutual funds,\1\
delivery of a summary prospectus to an independent fiduciary satisfies
the prospectus distribution requirement solely for purposes of section
II(d) of PTE 77-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\1\ See 74 FR 4546 (January 26, 2009).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The third requirement is that the independent fiduciary be notified
of any changes in the fees and approves in writing the continuation of
the plan's purchases or sales and the continued holding of any
investment company shares acquired by the plan prior to the fee change
and still held by the plan. The Department has received approval from
OMB for this ICR under OMB Control No. 1210-0049. The current approval
is scheduled to expire on February 28, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Employee Retirement Income Security Act Summary Annual
Report Requirement.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0040.
Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 809,901.
Responses: 178,211,549.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 1,068,322.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance):
$18,423,119.
Description:
ERISA Section 104(b)(3) and the regulation published at 29 CFR
2520.104b-10 require, with certain exceptions, that administrators of
employee benefit plans furnish annually to each participant and certain
beneficiaries a summary annual report (SAR) meeting the requirements of
the statute and regulation. The regulation prescribes the content and
format of the SAR and the timing of its delivery. The SAR provides
current information about the plan and assists those who receive it in
understanding the plan's current financial operation and condition. It
also explains participants' and beneficiaries' rights to receive
further information on these issues. The Department has received
approval from OMB for this ICR under OMB Control No. 1210-0040. The
current approval is scheduled to expire on March 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Annual Information Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0110.
Affected Public: Private sector, Businesses or other for-profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 839,382.
Responses: 845,028.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2,872,410.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $0.
Description:
This information collection relates to section 104 of ERISA, which
requires administrators of employee benefit pension and welfare plans
(collectively referred to as employee benefit plans) to file returns or
reports annually with the federal government. The Form 5500 return/
reports are the principal source of information and data available to
the Department, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Pension Benefit
Guaranty Corporation (the Agencies) concerning the operation of
employee benefit plans. For this reason, the Form 5500 constitutes an
integral part of the Agencies' enforcement, research, and policy
formulation programs. The Department has received approval from OMB for
this ICR under OMB Control No. 1210-0110. The current approval is
scheduled to expire on March 31, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Employee Benefit Plan Claims Procedure Under the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0053.
Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits,
Not-for-profit institutions.
Respondents: 3,887,973.
Responses: 1,436,422,678.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 28,981,362.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance):
$262,290,654.
Description:
In November 2000, the Department issued a final regulation
establishing minimum claims procedure requirements that all employee
benefit plans under ERISA must meet in order to satisfy the
requirements of section 503 of ERISA. Section 505 of ERISA authorizes
the Secretary to prescribe regulations as appropriate or necessary to
carry out the provisions of Title I of ERISA. The regulation requires
plans to provide every claimant who is denied a claim with a written or
electronic notice that contains the specific reasons for denial, a
reference to the relevant plan provisions on which the denial is based,
a description of any additional information necessary to perfect the
claim, and a description of steps to be taken if the participant or
beneficiary wishes to appeal the denial. The regulation also requires
that any adverse decision upon review be in writing (including
electronic means) and include specific reasons for the

[[Page 30988]]

decision, as well as references to relevant plan provisions. The
Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under OMB
Control No. 1210-0053. The current approval is scheduled to expire on
April 30, 2026.
Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of
Labor.
Title: Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 1992-6: Sale of
Individual Life Insurance or Annuity Contracts by an Employee Benefit
Plan.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection of
information.
OMB Number: 1210-0063.
Affected Public: Private sector, Business or other for profits.
Respondents: 11,401.
Responses: 11,401.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2,280.
Estimated Total Burden Cost (Operating and Maintenance): $7,753.
Description:
PTE 92-6 exempts from the prohibited transaction restrictions the
sale of individual life insurance or annuity contracts held by an
employee benefit plan to: (1) plan participants insured under such
contracts; (2) a relative of such participant who is the beneficiaries
under the contract, (3) an employer any of whose employees are covered
by the plan; (4) another employee benefit plan; (5) plan participants
who are owner-employees (as defined in section 401(c)(3) of the Code),
or shareholder-employees (as defined in section 1379 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1954 as in effect on the day before the enactment of
the Subchapter S Revision Act of 1982), or (6) trusts established by or
for the benefit of plan participants (1) or (2), provided certain
conditions set forth in the class exemption are met. With respect to
sales of the policy to the employer, a relative of the insured, a
trust, or another plan, the participant insured under the policy is
first informed of the proposed sale and is given the opportunity to
purchase such contract from the plan, and delivers a written document
to the plan stating that he or she elects not to purchase the policy
and consents to the sale by the plan of such policy to such employer,
relative, trust or other plan.
The Department has received approval from OMB for this ICR under
OMB Control No. 1210-0063. The current approval is scheduled to expire
on May 31, 2026.

II. Focus of Comments

The Department is particularly interested in comments that:
<bullet> Evaluate whether the collections of information are
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
<bullet> Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the
collections of information, including the validity of the methodology
and assumptions used;
<bullet> Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
<bullet> Minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., by
permitting electronic submissions of responses.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the ICR for OMB approval of the information
collection; they will also become a matter of public record.

Signed at Washington, DC, this 7th day of July 2025.
Janet Dhillon,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Employee Benefits Security Administration,
U.S. Department of Labor.
[FR Doc. 2025-12909 Filed 7-10-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-29-P

</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>

View on FederalRegister.gov →Plain-text source

Indexed from Federal Register on July 11, 2025.

This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.