On January 28, 2020, the Federal Register published an FTC notice with the latest annual adjustments to the statutory thresholds under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (15 U.S.C. § 18a) (HSR). Once the new thresholds come into effect, the HSR size-of-the-transaction threshold will increase from $90 million to $94 million. The revised HSR thresholds will apply for transactions that close on or after February 27, 2020.
On January 21, 2020, the Federal Register also published an FTC notice with the latest annual adjustments to the statutory thresholds under Section 8 of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. § 19). The revised Section 8 thresholds are effective immediately.
Size-of-the-Transaction Test
(Original: $50 Million; New as of February 27, 2020: $94 Million)
The 2000 HSR amendments raised the size-of-the-transaction test to $50 million. This figure is currently $90 million, based upon the 2019 annual adjustment. On February 27, 2020, however, it will increase to $94 million. Accordingly, for transactions that close on or after February 27, 2020, no HSR filing will be required unless the acquisition will result in the acquiring person holding an aggregate total amount of voting securities, non-corporate interests, and/or assets of the acquired person in excess of $94 million.
Size-of-the-Parties Test
(Original: $10 Million/$100 Million; New as of February 27, 2020: $18.8 Million/$188 Million)
Under the new adjustments, acquisitions valued above $376 million will be reportable regardless of the size of the parties, and acquisitions valued at greater than $94 million, but less than or equal to $376 million, will only be reportable if the size-of-the-parties test is met. The revised thresholds adjust the size-of-the-parties test so that it (typically) will be met if either the acquiring or acquired person has annual net sales or total assets of $188 million or more, and the other person has annual net sales or total assets of $18.8 million or more.
議決権付証券の取得に関する届出基準
議決権付証券の取得については、取得者は5つの選択肢の中から適用される最高通知基準額を届け出る。発行体の議決権付証券の50％以上を取得する場合が最高基準額となるが、それ未満のレベルでは、議決権付証券における少数持分の取得を報告するための4つの異なる段階が設けられている。 例えば、通知基準額は、同一発行体における追加議決権付証券の取得が新たなHSR届出を必要とするか否かを決定する要因となり得る。新たな通知基準額は、低い順に以下の通りとなる：
- An aggregate total amount of voting securities valued at greater than $94 million, but less than $188 million
- An aggregate total amount of voting securities valued at $188 million or greater, but less than $940.1 million
- An aggregate total amount of voting securities valued at $940.1 million or greater
- Twenty-five percent of an issuer’s outstanding voting securities, if valued at greater than $1,880.2 million
- Fifty percent of an issuer’s outstanding voting securities, if valued at greater than $94 million
出願手数料の閾値
The filing fee amounts are not changing; in fact, the HSR filing fee amounts have not been adjusted in more than a decade. However, the thresholds for the application of the fees are increasing, meaning that for transactions on the margin, the cost of making an HSR filing is going down.
- For transactions where the aggregate amount of assets, non-corporate interests, and voting securities to be held as a result of the acquisition will be more than $94 million, but less than $188 million, the filing fee will be $45,000.
- For transactions where the aggregate amount of assets, non-corporate interests, and voting securities to be held as a result of the acquisition will be $188 million or more, but less than $940.1 million, the filing fee will be $125,000.
- For transactions where the aggregate amount of assets, non-corporate interests, and voting securities to be held as a result of the acquisition will be $940.1 million or more, the filing fee will be $280,000.
以前の取引規模のしきい値
HSRフォーム項目8における過去の資産取得開示の目的、およびHSRに基づく過去の届出不履行の可能性を分析する目的では、過去の取得時点において適用されていた基準額を確認することが依然として必要である。2000年のHSR改正以降の取引規模基準額は以下の通りである：
- 2001年2月1日現在で5000万ドル
- 2005年3月2日現在で5310万ドル
- 2006年2月17日現在で5670万ドル
- 2007年2月21日現在で5,980万ドル
- 2008年2月28日現在で6310万ドル
- 2009年2月12日現在で6520万ドル
- 2010年2月22日現在で6340万ドル
- 2011年2月24日現在で6600万ドル
- 2012年2月27日現在で6820万ドル
- 2013年2月11日現在で7090万ドル
- 2014年2月24日現在で7590万ドル
- 2015年2月20日現在で7630万ドル
- 2016年2月25日現在で7820万ドル
- 2017年2月27日現在で8,080万ドル
- 2018年2月28日現在で8440万ドル
- 2019年4月3日現在で9000万ドル
- $94.0 million as of February 27, 2020
Most, although not all, of the dollar amounts in the HSR rules will be adjusted upward based upon the threshold indexing discussed above. It remains important for parties to be very careful in determining if a threshold is met given that the process can be very complex, the rules are highly technical, and failure to comply with HSR can result in significant civil penalties. Incidentally, the maximum civil penalty was recently increased to up to $43,280 for each day of noncompliance.
Interlocking Directorates Thresholds
(Original: $10 Million; New as of January 21, 2020: $38,204,000)
Finally, in a separate Federal Register notice, the Federal Trade Commission updated the jurisdictional threshold for interlocking directorates under Section 8 of the Clayton Act. Section 8 prohibits, subject to certain exceptions, persons from serving as an officer or director of two competing corporations (a practice known as “interlocking”), provided that each corporation has “capital, surplus, and undivided profits” above the statutory threshold. The 1990 amendments to Section 8 set this threshold at $10 million, but based on the latest annual adjustment, the threshold has been increased to $38,204,000.
Section 8 also has three safe harbor exceptions. One exception states that Section 8 does not apply if the competitive sales of either interlocked corporation are less than $1 million in 1989 dollars, as adjusted annually. This safe harbor has adjusted to $3,820,400 based on the new thresholds.
