[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 176 (Wednesday, September 15, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51397-51398]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19820]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Investment Company Act Release No. 34373; File No. 812-15230]


High Income Securities Fund

September 9, 2021.
AGENCY:  Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'').

ACTION:  Notice.

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    Notice of an application under section 6(c) of the Investment 
Company Act of 1940 (``Act'') for an exemption from section 19(b) of 
the Act and rule 19b-1 under the Act to permit a registered closed-end 
investment company to make periodic distributions of long-term capital 
gains more frequently than permitted by section 19(b) or rule 19b-1.
    Applicant: High Income Securities Fund, a Massachusetts business 
trust that is an internally managed registered closed-end diversified 
management investment company (the ``Fund'' or the ``Applicant'').\1\
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    \1\ Applicants request that the order also apply to any 
successor in interest to the Fund. A successor in interest is 
limited to entities that result from a reorganization into another 
jurisdiction or a change in the type of business organization.
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    Filing Dates: The application was filed on May 13, 2021, and 
amended on July 7, 2021.
    Hearing or Notification of Hearing: An order granting the requested 
relief will be issued unless the Commission orders a hearing. 
Interested persons may request a hearing by emailing the Commission's 
Secretary at Secretarys-Office@sec.gov and serving applicants with a 
copy of the request by email. Hearing requests should be received by 
the Commission by 5:30 p.m. on October 4, 2021, and should be 
accompanied by proof of service on applicants, in the form of an 
affidavit or, for lawyers, a certificate of service. Pursuant to rule 
0-5 under the Act, hearing requests should state the nature of the 
writer's interest, any facts bearing upon the desirability of a hearing 
on the matter, the reason for the request, and the issues contested. 
Persons who wish to be notified of a hearing may request notification 
by emailing the Commission's Secretary at Secretarys-Office@sec.gov.

ADDRESSES: The Commission: Secretarys-Office@sec.gov. Applicants: c/o 
Thomas R. Westle, Esq., Blank Rome LLP, twestle@blankrome.com.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Deepak T. Pai, Senior Counsel, at 
(202) 551-6876 or Trace W. Rakestraw,

[[Page 51398]]

Branch Chief, at (202) 551-6825 (Division of Investment Management, 
Chief Counsel's Office).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  The following is a summary of the 
application. The complete application may be obtained via the 
Commission's website by searching for the file number, or for an 
applicant using the Company name box, at http://www.sec.gov/search/search.htm, or by calling (202) 551-8090.
    Summary of the Application:
    1. Section 19(b) of the Act generally makes it unlawful for any 
registered investment company to make long-term capital gains 
distributions more than once every twelve months. Rule 19b-1 under the 
Act limits to one the number of capital gain dividends, as defined in 
section 852(b)(3)(C) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (``Code,'' 
and such dividends, ``distributions''), that a registered investment 
company may make with respect to any one taxable year, plus a 
supplemental distribution made pursuant to section 855 of the Code not 
exceeding 10% of the total amount distributed for the year, plus one 
additional capital gain dividend made in whole or in part to avoid the 
excise tax under section 4982 of the Code.
    2. Applicant believes that investors in certain closed-end funds 
may prefer an investment vehicle that provides regular current income 
through a fixed distribution policy (``Distribution Policy''). 
Applicant proposes that the Fund be permitted to adopt a Distribution 
Policy, pursuant to which the Fund would distribute periodically to its 
shareholders a fixed percentage of the market price of the Fund's 
common shares at a particular point in time or a fixed percentage of 
net asset value (``NAV'') at a particular time or a fixed amount per 
share of common shares, any of which may be adjusted from time to time.
    3. Applicant requests an order under section 6(c) of the Act 
granting an exemption from section 19(b) of the Act and rule 19b-1 to 
permit a Fund to distribute periodic capital gain dividends (as defined 
in section 852(b)(3)(C) of the Code) as frequently as twelve times in 
any one taxable year in respect of its common shares (and as often as 
specified by, or determined in accordance with the terms of, any 
preferred shares issued by the Fund).\2\ Section 6(c) of the Act 
provides, in relevant part, that the Commission may exempt any person 
or transaction from any provision of the Act to the extent that such 
exemption is necessary or appropriate in the public interest and 
consistent with the protection of investors and the purposes fairly 
intended by the policy and provisions of the Act.
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    \2\ Although the Fund does not currently intend to issue 
preferred shares, the board may authorize the issuance of preferred 
shares in the future.
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    4. Applicant states that any order granting the requested relief 
will be subject to the terms and conditions stated in the application, 
which generally are designed to address the concerns underlying section 
19(b) and rule 19b-1, including concerns about proper disclosures and 
shareholders' understanding of the source(s) of a Fund's distributions 
and concerns about improper sales practices. Among other things, such 
terms and conditions require that (1) the board of trustees of the Fund 
(the ``Board'') request and evaluate, and the Fund will furnish, such 
information as may be reasonably necessary to make an informed 
determination of whether to adopt the proposed Distribution Policy and 
that the Board periodically review the amount of the distributions in 
light of the investment experience of the Fund, and (2) that the Fund's 
shareholders receive appropriate disclosures concerning the 
distributions.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Investment Management, 
under delegated authority.
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-19820 Filed 9-14-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


