(a) General. Pending the issuance of permanent regulations under
section 8478 of the Federal Employees' Retirement System Act of 1986
(FERSA), any fiduciary with respect to the Thrift Savings Fund (Fund)
established under FERSA or any person who handles funds or other
property of the Fund, shall be deemed to be in compliance with the
bonding requirements of section 8478 of FERSA if he or she is bonded in
compliance with the temporary bonding regulations under section 412 of
the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) set forth in
part 2580 of title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(b) Application of ERISA temporary bonding rules. For purposes of
this section:
(1) Any reference to section 13 of the Welfare and Pension Plans
Disclosure Act, as amended (WPPDA), or any section thereof in the ERISA
temporary bonding regulations shall be deemed to refer to section 8478
of FERSA or the corresponding subsection thereof;
(2) Where the particular phrases set forth in FERSA are not
identical to the phrases in the WPPDA, ERISA or the ERISA temporary
bonding regulations, the phrases appearing in FERSA shall be substituted
by operation of law; and
(3) Where the phrases are identical but the meaning is different,
the meaning given such phrases by FERSA shall govern. For example, the
phrase ``every administrator, officer and employee of any employee
welfare benefit plan or of any employee pension benefit plan subject to
this Act who handles funds or other property of such plan'' which
appears in the WPPDA and in the ERISA temporary bonding regulations
shall be construed to mean, for purposes of this section, ``each
fiduciary and each person who handles funds or property of the Thrift
Savings Fund,'' which is the term appearing in section 8478 of FERSA;
the terms ``employee benefit plan'' and ``plan'' which appear in the
ERISA temporary bonding regulations shall be construed to mean, for
purposes of this section, ``Thrift Savings Fund''; and the term
``reporting year of the plan'' which appears in the ERISA temporary
bonding regulations shall be construed to mean, for purposes of this
section, ``fiscal year of the Thrift Savings Fund.''
(c) Effectiveness. This section is effective until the earlier of
the date of issuance by the Secretary of Labor of permanent regulations
under section 8478 of FERSA or December 31, 1989.
[52 FR 35866, Sept. 23, 1987]
