Title 17

SECTION 270.30e-1

270.30e-1 Reports to stockholders of management companies.

§ 270.30e-1 Reports to stockholders of management companies.

(a) Every registered management company shall transmit to each stockholder of record, at least semi-annually, a report containing the information required to be included in such reports by the company's registration statement form under the 1940 Act, except that the initial report of a newly registered company shall be made as of a date not later than the close of the fiscal year or half-year occurring on or after the date on which the company's notification of registration under the 1940 Act is filed with the Commission.

(b) If any matter was submitted during the period covered by the shareholder report to a vote of shareholders, through the solicitation of proxies or otherwise, furnish the following information:

(1) The date of the meeting and whether it was an annual or special meeting.

(2) If the meeting involved the election of directors, the name of each director elected at the meeting and the name of each other director whose term of office as a director continued after the meeting.

(3) A brief description of each matter voted upon at the meeting and the number of votes cast for, against or withheld, as well as the number of abstentions and broker non-votes as to each such matter, including a separate tabulation with respect to each matter or nominee for office.

Instruction.

The solicitation of any authorization or consent (other than a proxy to vote at a shareholders' meeting) with respect to any matter shall be deemed a submission of such matter to a vote of shareholders within the meaning of this paragraph (b).

(d) An open-end company may transmit a copy of its currently effective prospectus or Statement of Additional Information, or both, under the Securities Act, in place of any report required to be transmitted to shareholders by this section, provided that the prospectus or Statement of Additional Information, or both, include all the information that would otherwise be required to be contained in the report by this section. Such prospectus or Statement of Additional Information, or both, shall be transmitted within 60 days after the close of the period for which the report is being made.

(e) The period of time within which any report prescribed by this rule shall be transmitted may be extended by the Commission upon written request showing good cause therefor. Section 270.0-5 shall not apply to such requests.

(f)(1) A company will be considered to have transmitted a report to shareholders who share an address if:

(i) The company transmits a report to the shared address;

(ii) The company addresses the report to the shareholders as a group (for example, “ABC Fund [or Corporation] Shareholders,” “Jane Doe and Household,” “The Smith Family”) or to each of the shareholders individually (for example, “John Doe and Richard Jones”); and

(iii) The shareholders consent in writing to delivery of one report.

(2) The company need not obtain written consent from a shareholder under paragraph (f)(1)(iii) of this section if all of the following conditions are met:

(i) The shareholder has the same last name as the other shareholders, or the company reasonably believes that the shareholders are members of the same family;

(ii) The company has transmitted a notice to the shareholder at least 60 days before the company begins to rely on this section concerning transmission of reports to that shareholder. The notice must be a separate written statement and:

(A) State that only one report will be delivered to the shared address unless the company receives contrary instructions;

(B) Include a toll-free telephone number or be accompanied by a reply form that is pre-addressed with postage provided, that the shareholder can use to notify the company that he or she wishes to receive a separate report;

(D) Explain how a shareholder can revoke consent;

(E) State that the company will begin sending individual copies to a shareholder within 30 days after the company receives revocation of the shareholder's consent; and

(F) Contain the following prominent statement, or similar clear and understandable statement, in bold-face type: “Important Notice Regarding Delivery of Shareholder Documents”. This statement also must appear on the envelope in which the notice is delivered. Alternatively, if the notice is delivered separately from other communications to investors, this statement may appear either on the notice or on the envelope in which the notice is delivered;

Note to paragraph (f)(2)(ii):

The notice should be written in plain English. See § 230.421(d)(2) of this chapter for a discussion of plain English principles.

(iii) The company has not received the reply form or other notification indicating that the shareholder wishes to continue to receive an individual copy of the report, within 60 days after the company sent the notice; and

(iv) The company transmits the report to a post office box or to a residential street address. The company can assume a street address is a residence unless it has information that indicates it is a business.

(3) At least once a year, the company must explain to shareholders who have consented under paragraph (f)(1)(iii) or paragraph (f)(2) of this section how they can revoke their consent. The explanation must be reasonably designed to reach these investors. If a shareholder, orally or in writing, revokes consent to delivery of one report to a shared address, the company must begin sending individual copies to that shareholder within 30 days after the company receives the revocation.

(4) For purposes of this section, address means a street address, a post office box number, an electronic mail address, a facsimile telephone number, or other similar destination to which paper or electronic documents are transmitted, unless otherwise provided in this section. If the company has reason to believe that the address is a street address of a multi-unit building, the address must include the unit number.

[46 FR 36126, July 14, 1981, as amended at 48 FR 37940, Aug. 22, 1983; 48 FR 44477, Sept. 29, 1983; 50 FR 26160, June 25, 1985; 57 FR 56836, Dec. 1, 1992; 59 FR 52700, Oct. 19, 1994; 61 FR 24657, May 15, 1996; 64 FR 62547, Nov. 16, 1999. Redesignated and amended at 66 FR 3759, Jan. 16, 2001]