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 May 24, 2004:

Closed Meetings will be held on Tuesday, May 25, 2004, at 11 a.m., Wednesday, May 26, 2004, at 12 p.m., and Thursday, May 27, 2004, at 2 p.m. An Open Meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 26, 2004, at 10 a.m.

Commissioners, Counsel to the Commissioners, the Secretary to the Commission, and recording secretaries will attend the Closed Meetings. 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)(3), (5), (7), (9), and (10) and 17 CFR 200.402(a)(3), (5), (7), 9(ii), and (10), permit consideration of the scheduled matters at the Closed Meeting.

Commissioner Campos, as duty officer, voted to consider the items listed for the closed meetings in closed sessions.

The subject matter of the Closed Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, May 25, 2004 will be:

Formal order of investigation;

Institution and settlement of injunctive actions; and

Institution and settlement of administrative proceedings of an enforcement nature.

The subject matter of the Open Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 26, 2004 will be:

1. The Commission will consider whether to adopt amendments to Form N-1A under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Investment Company Act of 1940 that would require an open-end management investment company to provide enhanced prospectus disclosure regarding breakpoint discounts on front-end sales loads.

For further information, please contact Christian L. Broadbent at (202) 942-0721.

2. The Commission will consider whether to adopt new rule 204A-1 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (“Advisers Act”). The rule would require investment advisers to adopt codes of ethics that would set forth standards of conduct for advisory personnel and address conflicts that arise from personal trading by advisory personnel. The Commission will also consider whether to adopt related amendments to Advisers Act rule 204-2, Advisers Act Form ADV, and rule 17j-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940.

For further information, please contact Robert Tuleya at (202) 942-0719.

3. The Commission will consider whether to propose a new rule under Section 17A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”) that would prohibit registered transfer agents from effecting any transfer of an equity securities registered under Section 12 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act where transfer of such security to or from securities intermediaries is restricted or prohibited. The term “securities intermediary” would be defined in the rule as a clearing agency registered under Section 17A of the Exchange Act or a person, including a bank, broker, or dealer, that in the ordinary course of its business maintains securities accounts for others. For purposes of the proposed rule, the term “equity securities” excludes securities issued by partnerships, as defined in § 229.901(b) of Regulation S-K, as well as any other equity security the Commission may exempt.

For further information, please contact Jerry Carpenter or Susan Petersen, at (202) 942-4187.

4. The Commission will hear oral argument on appeals by Clarke T. Blizzard and the Division of Enforcement from the decision of an administrative law judge. Blizzard was formerly a senior vice president and managing director of Shawmut Investment Advisers, Inc. (“Shawmut”). Rudolph Abel, formerly Shawmut's president and chief investment officer, opposes the Division's petition for review.

The law judge found that Blizzard willfully aided and abetted and caused violations of Section 206(1) and 206(2) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 by Shawmut. The law judge found that charges that Abel aided and abetted violations of those provisions were unproven because no primary violations by Shawmut were established during the period that Abel was employed at Shawmut. The law judge ordered Blizzard to cease and desist from committing or causing any violations or future violations of Section 206 of the Advisers Act; to disgorge commissions in the amount of $548,233, plus pre-judgment interest; to pay a civil money penalty of $100,000; and to be suspended for 90 days from association with an investment adviser.

Among the issues likely to be argued are:

1. Whether Shawmut committed the alleged primary violation on which aiding and abetting liability by Blizzard and Abel may be premised.

2. Whether Blizzard and Abel committed the alleged aiding-and-abetting violations.

3. If respondents committed violations, whether sanctions should be imposed in the public interest.

The subject matter of the Closed Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 26, 2004, will be:

Post-argument discussion.

The subject matter of the Closed Meeting scheduled for Thursday, May 27, 2004, will be:

Formal order of investigation;

Institution and settlement of injunctive actions;

Institution and settlement of administrative proceedings of an enforcement nature; and an adjudicatory matter.

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.