SEC, NRC, USDA, and ED File Procedural Actions Across Meetings, Paperwork Reviews

SEC Closed Meeting and Rule 498 Collection Review

The Securities and Exchange Commission scheduled a closed meeting for 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, to be held via remote means and/or at Commission headquarters at 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549. The General Counsel of the Commission, or her designee, certified that one or more exemptions set forth in 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(3), (5), (6), (7), (8), 9(B) and (10) and 17 CFR 200.402(a)(3), (a)(5), (a)(6), (a)(7), (a)(8), (a)(9)(ii) and (a)(10) permit consideration of the scheduled matters at the closed meeting. The agenda covers institution and settlement of injunctive actions; institution and settlement of administrative proceedings; resolution of litigation claims; and other matters relating to examinations and enforcement proceedings. The Commission notes that changes in Commission priorities may require alterations in scheduling of agenda items that may consist of adjudicatory, examination, litigation, or regulatory matters.

Separately, the SEC is soliciting public comments on an extension of the information collection under Rule 498 (17 CFR 230.498) of the Securities Act of 1933. Rule 498 permits open-end management investment companies to satisfy their prospectus delivery obligations by sending investors a summary prospectus and making the statutory prospectus available on a website; upon an investor's request, funds are also required to send the statutory prospectus. The Commission explains that the purpose of rule 498 is to enable a fund to provide investors with a Summary Prospectus containing key information necessary to evaluate an investment in the fund, and that unlike many other federal information collections, this collection is primarily for the use and benefit of investors. The Commission estimates that approximately 11,699 funds are using a Summary Prospectus. The Commission estimates the annual hourly burden per fund at 0.5 hours for compilation of cover page information and approximately 1 hour for website posting compliance, for a total of 1.5 hours per fund per year, yielding a total annual hour burden of approximately 17,549 hours. The Commission estimates the annual cost burden at approximately $23,380 per fund, for a total annual cost burden of approximately $273,522,620. Use of the Summary Prospectus is voluntary under rule 498, but the rule's requirements regarding provision of the statutory prospectus upon investor request are mandatory for funds that elect to send a Summary Prospectus in reliance on the rule.

NRC Affirmation Session on Licensing Exemptions and Intervention Petition

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission held a public Affirmation Session via teleconference on Thursday, October 1, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., covering two tentative agenda items: a Direct Final Rule on Exemptions from Material Licensing, and an appeal in the matter of Constellation Energy Generation, LLC (Christopher M. Crane Clean Energy Center) concerning Appeal of LBP-26-6, a ruling on an intervention petition. The Commission determined by a vote of 5-0 on September 29 and September 30, 2026, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b(e)(1) and 10 CFR 9.107, that these items be affirmed with less than one week notice to the public. The NRC noted that the schedule for Commission meetings is subject to change on short notice.

USDA SBIR/STTR Lifecycle Certification Form

The Department of Agriculture, through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), submitted an information collection to OMB for review under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, concerning the SBIR/STTR Programs' Funding Agreement Certification form (OMB Control Number: 0524-0052). NIFA explains that it uses the form to ensure small business concerns (SBCs) meet specific eligibility requirements for a Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer award; the form asks applicants to certify a series of ten statements to ensure the grantee is complying with specific program requirements during the life of the funding agreement. If an SBC is majority-owned by venture capital companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms, it is required to complete an additional eight-question form. The document notes that in 2026, the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act reauthorized the SBIR and STTR programs through September 30, 2031. The collection describes 180 respondents, with responses occurring on occasion, and a total burden of 93 hours. Comments received by November 2, 2026 will be considered.

Education Department Extends Career Pathway Program Collection

The Department of Education is proposing an extension without change of the currently approved information collection for the Eligible Career Pathway Program (OMB Control Number: 1845-0175). The Department explains that Section 668.157, under the authority of Section 484 of the Higher Education Act, specifies documentation requirements for eligible career pathway programs for submission by institutions to the Department for approval as a Title IV eligible program. According to the notice, enrollment in an eligible career pathways program is one of the three Ability to Benefit alternatives that an individual who is not a high school graduate could fulfill to receive Title IV, HEA, Federal student aid. The collection covers State, Local, and Tribal Governments and the Private Sector, with a total estimated number of annual responses of 5,000 and total estimated annual burden hours of 50,000.

What to Watch

• November 2, 2026: Deadline for public comments on the USDA/NIFA SBIR/STTR Funding Agreement Certification form OMB review; comments submitted to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
• November 2, 2026: Deadline for public comments on the Education Department's extension of the Eligible Career Pathway Program information collection (OMB Control Number: 1845-0175).

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