The Commission is adopting a new rule under the Investment Company Act of 1940 to permit certain registered open-end management investment companies (``mutual funds'') to impose contingent deferred sales loads (``CDSLs''). A CDSL is a sales charge that is paid at redemption; its amount declines over several years until it reaches zero. The adoption of the rule is intended to allow mutual funds to offer investors the choice of an additional form of sales load without applying to the Commission for exemptive relief.