Public Approval of Tax-Exempt Private Activity Bonds, 45233-45241 [2017-20661]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules 552a; or the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, 25 U.S.C. 2716(a). Dated: September 19, 2017. Jonodev O. Chaudhuri, Chairman. Kathryn Isom-Clause, Vice Chair. E. Sequoyah Simermeyer, Associate Commissioner. [FR Doc. 2017–20635 Filed 9–27–17; 8:45 am] Paperwork Reduction Act BILLING CODE 7565–01–P DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service 26 CFR Parts 1 and 5f [REG–128841–07] RIN 1545–BG91 Public Approval of Tax-Exempt Private Activity Bonds Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury. ACTION: Withdrawal of notice of proposed rulemaking and notice of proposed rulemaking. AGENCY: This document contains proposed regulations to update and streamline the public approval requirement provided in section 147(f) of the Internal Revenue Code applicable to tax-exempt private activity bonds issued by State and local governments. The proposed regulations would update the existing regulations on the public approval requirement to reflect statutory changes, to streamline the public approval process, and to reduce burden on State and local governments that issue tax-exempt private activity bonds. This document also withdraws two previous notices of proposed rulemaking on this topic. The proposed regulations affect State and local governments that issue tax-exempt private activity bonds. DATES: Comments and requests for a public hearing must be received by December 27, 2017. ADDRESSES: Send submissions to CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG–128841–07), Room 5203, Internal Revenue Service, P.O. Box 7604, Ben Franklin Station, Washington, DC 20044. Submissions may be hand-delivered Monday through Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. to CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG–128841– 07), Courier’s Desk, Internal Revenue Service, 1111 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20224, or sent electronically via the Federal eRulemaking Portal at jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 www.regulations.gov (IRS REG–128841– 07). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Concerning the proposed regulations, Spence Hanemann at (202) 317–6980; concerning submissions of comments and requesting a hearing, Regina Johnson at (202) 317–6901 (not toll-free numbers). SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Jkt 241001 The collection of information contained in this notice of proposed rulemaking has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget for review under OMB Control Number 1545–2185 in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507(d)). The collection of information in this proposed regulation is the requirement in § 1.147(f)–1 that certain information be contained in a public notice or public approval and, consequently, disclosed to the public. This information is required to meet the statutory public approval requirement provided in section 147(f). The likely respondents are the governmental units required to approve an issue of private activity bonds under section 147(f). Estimated total annual burden: 2,600 hours. Estimated average annual burden per respondent: 1.3 Hours. Estimated number of respondents: 2,000. Estimated frequency of responses: Annual. Comments on the collection of information should be sent to the Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for the Department of the Treasury, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Washington, DC 20503, with copies to the Internal Revenue Service, Attn: IRS Reports Clearance Officer, SE:CAR:MP:T:T:SP, Washington, DC 20224. Comments on the collection of information should be received by November 27, 2017. Comments are specifically requested concerning: Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the IRS, including whether the information will have practical utility; The accuracy of the estimated burden associated with the proposed collection of information; How the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected may be enhanced; How the burden of complying with the proposed collection of information may be minimized, including through the application of automated collection PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 45233 techniques or other forms of information technology; and Estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid control number assigned by the Office of Management and Budget. Books or records relating to a collection of information must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any internal revenue law. Generally, tax returns and tax return information are confidential, as required by 26 U.S.C. 6103. Background This document contains proposed amendments to 26 CFR part 1 under section 147(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the Code) and 26 CFR part 5f under section 103(k) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (the 1954 Code). In the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982 (TEFRA), Public Law 97–248, 96 Stat. 324, Congress added section 103(k) to the 1954 Code to impose a public approval requirement on tax-exempt industrial development bonds. On May 11, 1983, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury Department) and the IRS published in the Federal Register (48 FR 21117) temporary regulations under section 103(k) of the 1954 Code (TD 7892) (the Existing Regulations). See § 5f.103–2. A notice of proposed rulemaking (LR–221–82) by crossreference to the temporary regulations was published in the Federal Register (48 FR 21166) on the same day. In the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (1986 Tax Act), Public Law 99–514, 100 Stat. 2085, Congress reorganized the taxexempt bond provisions and carried forward the public approval requirement of section 103(k) of the 1954 Code in expanded form in section 147(f) of the Code. In section 147(f), Congress extended the public approval requirement to apply to all types of taxexempt private activity bonds, as provided in section 141(e). The legislative history of the 1986 Tax Act indicates that ‘‘[t]he conferees intend that, to the extent not amended, all principles of present law continue to apply under the reorganized provisions.’’ H.R. Rep. No. 99–841, at II– 686 (1986) (Conf. Rep.). Thus, the Existing Regulations in § 5f.103–2 remain in effect. On September 9, 2008, the Treasury Department and the IRS published a E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 45234 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules notice of proposed rulemaking (REG– 128841–07) in the Federal Register (73 FR 52220) that proposed regulations to amend and supplement the Existing Regulations (the 2008 Proposed Regulations). The Treasury Department and the IRS received public comments on the 2008 Proposed Regulations and held a public hearing on January 26, 2009. As discussed more fully in the Explanation of Provisions section of this preamble, the Treasury Department and the IRS have decided to withdraw the 2008 Proposed Regulations in full and to propose new regulations. This document contains those new proposed regulations (the Proposed Regulations). Explanation of Provisions 1. Introduction In general, pursuant to section 103 of the Code, interest received by investors on eligible State and local bonds is taxexempt for Federal income tax purposes. Interest on private activity bonds qualifies for this tax-exempt treatment only if the bonds meet the requirements for ‘‘qualified bonds’’ as defined in section 141(e) and other applicable requirements provided in section 103. Section 141(e) of the Code requires, among other things, that qualified bonds meet the public approval requirement of section 147(f). The Proposed Regulations would update the Existing Regulations to address subsequent statutory changes and to streamline the public approval process. The Proposed Regulations provide greater flexibility to State and local governments with respect to the public approval process to reduce administrative burdens associated with the public approval requirement. The Proposed Regulations recognize advances in technology and electronic communication that may facilitate more streamlined procedures for providing reasonable public notice of a public hearing. jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS 2. The 2008 Proposed Regulations The 2008 Proposed Regulations proposed to update, clarify, and simplify discrete aspects of the Existing Regulations regarding the public approval requirement. The 2008 Proposed Regulations focused on the scope, information content, methods, and timing for the public approval process, and generally did not focus on the governmental entities from which public approval is required. Overall, the public comments on the 2008 Proposed Regulations were favorable. The Proposed Regulations generally incorporate the amendments proposed in the 2008 Proposed Regulations with VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 modifications in response to the public comments. One comment focused on the structure of the 2008 Proposed Regulations. The 2008 Proposed Regulations would have revised the Existing Regulations by amending existing rules and adding new rules. The 2008 Proposed Regulations further provided that the Existing Regulations would remain in effect to the extent not inconsistent with the final version of the 2008 Proposed Regulations. Commenters expressed concern about potential confusion over two distinct and partially inconsistent regulation sections governing the public approval requirement. The Treasury Department and the IRS understand this concern. Accordingly, the Proposed Regulations consolidate the guidance in the Existing Regulations and the 2008 Proposed Regulations, with modifications in response to the public comments and other recent developments, into new proposed guidance and provide a further opportunity for public comment. The Treasury Department and the IRS also received numerous comments regarding the level of specificity of information required to be contained in reasonable public notice of a public hearing or a public approval. Generally, the 2008 Proposed Regulations proposed to allow the issuer to provide streamlined information about projects to be financed, and the Existing Regulations require a greater level of specificity of information about such projects. The 2008 Proposed Regulations also proposed to afford issuers more flexibility regarding the effect of postissuance changes from the reasonably expected facts provided in the reasonable public notice or public approval. Commenters expressed differing views on whether these proposed amendments in the 2008 Proposed Regulations should be adopted. Commenters in favor of these amendments generally applauded the reduced burden that issuers would bear under the 2008 Proposed Regulations and suggested ways in which that burden could be reduced further. Commenters opposed to these amendments generally argued that reducing the amount of public information would limit the public’s ability to approve or oppose on an informed basis new private activity bonds and proposed projects to be financed. The legislative history of the public approval requirement emphasizes the importance of ‘‘a reasonable opportunity for persons with differing views on both issuance of the bonds and the location and nature of the proposed facility to be heard.’’ S. Rep. PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 No. 97–494, at 171 (1982). With respect to these proposed amendments, the Treasury Department and the IRS have determined that the information that would have been required by the 2008 Proposed Regulations is sufficient to permit the public to evaluate the merits of both the issuance of the bonds and the location and nature of the financed facility. Thus, the burden imposed by the Existing Regulations may be reduced as provided in the 2008 Proposed Regulations without significantly impairing the public’s consideration of new private activity bonds. Accordingly, the Proposed Regulations generally retain the streamlined information and post-issuance flexibility proposed in the 2008 Proposed Regulations and provide for additional post-issuance flexibility. (See section 6 of this Explanation of Provisions.) Commenters also provided differing views on the amendments in the 2008 Proposed Regulations that proposed changes to the procedures for providing reasonable public notice of a public hearing. The Existing Regulations generally permit an issuer to publicize notice by newspaper, radio, or television, and presume notice to be reasonable if published at least 14 days prior to the date of the public hearing. The 2008 Proposed Regulations proposed to expand the permitted methods of providing public notice to include notice by newspaper, radio, television, Web site, or other permitted methods of giving public notice under State law, and would have shortened the presumptively reasonable notice period to seven days in advance of the hearing. Commenters in favor of these amendments generally stated that the proposed amendments would ease the burden of providing the public notice. Commenters opposed to these amendments generally expressed concern that seven days’ notice of a public hearing would not provide the public sufficient time to make an informed decision and to make arrangements to be present at the hearing. The legislative history of TEFRA indicates that Congress expected notice to be published no fewer than 14 days before the scheduled date of the hearing. See S. Rep. No. 97–494, at 171 (1982). In response to these comments, the Proposed Regulations adopt and expand the permitted methods for giving notice of a public hearing that were proposed in the 2008 Proposed Regulations, but retain the 14-day notice period presumed reasonable under the Existing Regulations consistent with the expectations of Congress. E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules 3. Host Approval and Issuer Approval Section 147(f) generally requires that both the governmental unit that issues the bonds (or on behalf of which the bonds are issued) and a governmental unit with jurisdiction over the location of the financed project approve an issue of private activity bonds (and the approvals are referred to as the issuer approval and the host approval, respectively). The Proposed Regulations generally carry forward the rules on issuer approval and host approval from the Existing Regulations, with limited revisions to address statutory changes that affect the application of these rules to certain types of private activity bonds. Thus, for example, the Proposed Regulations include guidance to address subsequent statutory changes in section 147(f)(3) and (4) that added special provisions regarding the issuer approval and host approval requirements for certain financings involving airports, high-speed rail facilities, qualified scholarship funding corporations, and volunteer fire departments. The 1986 Tax Act extended the public approval requirement beyond the traditional, facility-focused industrial development bonds subject to the requirement under the 1954 Code to include certain special types of financings that are not facility-specific, including ‘‘qualified mortgage bonds’’ as defined in section 143(a), ‘‘qualified veterans’ mortgage bonds’’ as defined in section 143(b), ‘‘qualified student loan bonds’’ as defined in section 144(b), and ‘‘qualified 501(c)(3) bonds’’ as defined in section 145. For these types of bonds, obtaining a host approval may be impractical or unworkable. For example, for qualified mortgage bonds, the locations of many of the homes to be financed with qualified mortgage loans generally are unknown at the time of issuance of the bonds and thus it may be difficult to identify appropriate governmental units to provide host approval. Moreover, for qualified student loan bonds and for qualified 501(c)(3) bonds used to finance working capital expenditures, the application of the host approval requirement is unworkable because the assets and expenditures financed have no physical location. In recognition of the practical difficulties faced by issuers of these types of bonds under the Existing Regulations, the Proposed Regulations provide that no host approval is necessary for mortgage revenue bonds (defined as qualified mortgage bonds, qualified veterans’ mortgage bonds, and certain refundings of bonds issued to finance mortgages of owner-occupied residences under the law prior to VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 enactment of section 143), qualified student loan bonds, or qualified 501(c)(3) bonds used to finance working capital expenditures. 4. Reasonable Public Notice and Public Hearing The Existing Regulations generally provide that an applicable elected representative of the approving governmental unit may approve an issue following a public hearing for which there was reasonable public notice. The Existing Regulations provide guidance on permitted methods for giving reasonable public notice and holding public hearings. The Proposed Regulations would expand these methods to provide greater flexibility to State and local governments for providing reasonable public notice. The Existing Regulations provide generally that reasonable public notice must be published in a newspaper of general circulation available to residents of the relevant locality or announced by radio or television broadcast to those residents. The Proposed Regulations would expand the permitted methods of providing reasonable public notice to provide greater flexibility and to recognize advances in technology and electronic communications. Thus, the Proposed Regulations would allow reasonable public notice by newspaper publication, radio or television broadcast, postings on a governmental unit’s public Web site, or alternative methods permitted under a general State law for public notices for public hearings of a governmental unit. The Treasury Department and the IRS solicit comment on other possible methods of providing reasonable public notice to foster flexibility and to reduce administrative burdens. 5. Content of Reasonable Public Notice and Public Approval A. General Rules for Content of Reasonable Public Notice and Public Approval The Existing Regulations generally require that the reasonable public notice and the public approval contain the following information: A general, functional description of the type and use of the facility to be financed; the maximum aggregate face amount of the bonds to be issued for the facility; the initial owner, operator, or manager of the facility; and the location of the facility by street address or, if none, by a general description designed to inform readers of the specific location. The required level of specificity of information for the public approval process under the Existing Regulations PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 45235 has proven to be unduly limiting and burdensome in certain respects. The Proposed Regulations generally retain the requirements that information (public approval information) be provided for the public approval process but refine the required public approval information to reduce burden and enhance flexibility. Initially, the Existing Regulations focus on an individual ‘‘facility’’ as the unit of financed property for which the issuer must provide the relevant information. The definition of ‘‘facility’’ in the Existing Regulations includes facilities on multiple tracts of land only if the facilities are used in an integrated operation. Whether facilities are part of an ‘‘integrated operation’’ has proven difficult to determine. The Proposed Regulations use the term ‘‘project’’ in lieu of the term ‘‘facility’’ because ‘‘project’’ more clearly indicates that financed property may consist of multiple buildings and multiple sites. The Proposed Regulations define the term ‘‘project’’ generally to mean one or more capital projects or facilities, including land, buildings, equipment, and other property, to be financed with an issue, that are located on the same site, or adjacent or proximate sites used for similar purposes. In addition, to address certain special types of loan financings, the definition of a project under the Proposed Regulations also includes mortgage loans financed by mortgage revenue bonds, student loans financed by qualified student loan bonds, and working capital expenditures financed by qualified 501(c)(3) bonds. The Proposed Regulations would continue to require a general functional description of the type and use of the financed project. The Proposed Regulations, however, would mitigate the required level of specificity of that information. Thus, the Proposed Regulations would allow an issuer of exempt facility bonds to satisfy this requirement through a statement that identifies the category of exempt facility bond (for example, bonds financing an airport or a mass commuting facility). Similarly, an issuer of other types of private activity bonds may satisfy this requirement through a statement that identifies the type of bonds and the type and use of the project (for example, qualified small issue bonds for a manufacturing facility). The Proposed Regulations would continue to require that the public approval information include the name of the expected initial owner or the principal user of the project. The Proposed Regulations, however, would permit an issuer to name the true E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 45236 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS beneficial party of interest as an alternative to naming a legal owner or user (for example, the name of a nonprofit hospital organization instead of a limited liability company that serves as the legal owner of a hospital). The Proposed Regulations would continue to require that the public approval information include the location of the project by street address. The Proposed Regulations, however, would clarify that a description by boundary streets or other geographic boundaries suffices to meet this location requirement. The Proposed Regulations would allow a consolidated description of the location of a project on the same site or on adjacent or proximate sites (for example, a college campus). B. Special Rules for Mortgage Revenue Bonds, Qualified Student Loan Bonds, and Certain Qualified 501(c)(3) Bonds The 1986 Tax Act extended the public approval requirement to mortgage revenue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified 501(c)(3) bonds. The Existing Regulations were promulgated before the 1986 Tax Act and thus provide no guidance tailored to the application of the public approval requirement to these types of bonds. In the General Explanation of the 1986 Tax Act, the Staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation stated that, ‘‘[i]n extending this requirement to all private activity bonds, Congress intended that the applicable Treasury regulations will be amended for student loan bonds (where no facilities are financed), mortgage revenue bonds (where the exact residences to be financed may not be identified before issuance of the bonds), and qualified 501(c)(3) bonds that qualify for the special exception to the maturity limitation for pooled financings (where the facilities need not be identified before issuance of the bonds).’’ Joint Committee on Taxation, General Explanation of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (JCS–10–87), at 1219 (May 4, 1987). Accordingly, the Proposed Regulations provide special rules for public approval of mortgage revenue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified 501(c)(3) bonds issued for pooled financings as described in section 147(b)(4). For mortgage revenue bonds, the Proposed Regulations would require the public approval information to state that the bonds will finance residential mortgages, provide the maximum stated principal amount of the bonds, and generally describe the issuer’s geographic jurisdiction in which the residences to be financed with the mortgage loans are expected to be located. Similarly, for qualified student VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 loan bonds, the Proposed Regulations would require the public approval information to state that the bonds will finance student loans and provide the maximum stated principal amount of the bonds. For these two types of bonds, the Proposed Regulations would not require the names of borrowers to be included in the public approval information. For qualified 501(c)(3) bonds that finance loans described in the special provision for pooled loan financings in section 147(b)(4), the Proposed Regulations would permit the issuer to choose to apply a two-stage public approval process if the issuer has insufficient information at the time of the reasonable public notice or public approval to meet the general public approval information requirements. To apply this special rule, the issuer must first obtain public approval within the time specified in the Proposed Regulations for public approval generally. For this first-stage public approval, the public approval information must state that the bonds will be qualified 501(c)(3) bonds used to finance loans described in section 147(b)(4)(B), provide the maximum stated principal amount of the bonds, generally describe the type of project to be financed with such loans (for example, loans for hospital facilities or college facilities), and state that the issuer will obtain an additional public approval with specific project information before origination of any such loans. In addition, before loan origination, the issuer must obtain a supplemental public approval of that loan containing all of the projectspecific information that the public approval information rules generally require. 6. Deviations From the Information in the Reasonable Public Notice and Public Approval Differences or ‘‘deviations’’ between information regarding a proposed project to be financed with a proposed issuance of private activity bonds that serves as the basis for a public approval and the actual project financed with the bonds may affect the validity of the public approval. The Existing Regulations and the Proposed Regulations provide that insubstantial deviations do not invalidate a public approval. The Proposed Regulations provide additional guidance concerning differences that constitute insubstantial deviations and also allow remedial actions to cure certain substantial deviations. The Proposed Regulations provide that whether a deviation is substantial PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 generally depends on all of the facts and circumstances. The Proposed Regulations, however, would always treat a change in the fundamental nature or type of a project as a substantial deviation. The Proposed Regulations would treat certain specified deviations from the public approval information provided as insubstantial deviations. For example, a deviation from the size of a proposed bond issue for a proposed project specified in public approval information is an insubstantial deviation if the stated principal amount of bonds actually issued and used for the project is no more than ten percent (10%) greater than the maximum stated principal amount publicly approved for the project or is any amount less than that maximum stated principal amount. Furthermore, if an issuer applies proceeds of an issue approved for use on one project to pay working capital expenditures directly associated with any project approved in the same public approval, that deviation is an insubstantial deviation. Finally, a deviation between the initial owner or principal user of the project identified in the public approval information and the actual initial owner or principal user of the project is an insubstantial deviation if the parties are related on the issue date. The Proposed Regulations would allow supplemental post-issuance public approvals to cure certain substantial deviations that result from unexpected events or unforeseen changes in circumstances that occur after the issuance of the bonds. This remedial action is similar to a permitted post-issuance public approval under § 1.141–12(e)(2) and (f) used for remedial actions for purposes of the private business restrictions. 7. Applicability Dates and Reliance The Proposed Regulations are proposed to apply to bonds issued pursuant to a public approval that occurs on or after the date that is 90 days after publication of a Treasury decision adopting these rules as final regulations in the Federal Register. Issuers may apply the Proposed Regulations, in whole but not in part, to bonds that are issued pursuant to a public approval that occurs on or after September 28, 2017 and before the applicability date provided in a Treasury decision adopting these rules as final regulations in the Federal Register. In addition, the Treasury Department and the IRS propose to remove the Existing Regulations under § 5f.103–2 from 26 CFR part 5f effective on the E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules general applicability date of the final regulations, which is proposed to be the date that is 90 days after publication of a Treasury decision adopting these rules as final regulations in the Federal Register. jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS Special Analyses Certain IRS regulations, including these, are exempt from the requirements of Executive Order 12866, as supplemented and reaffirmed by Executive Order 13563. Therefore, a regulatory impact assessment is not required. It is hereby certified that these regulations will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The Existing Regulations provide guidance on the minimum informational content, procedures, and timing for the statutorily required public notices, public hearings, and public approvals. Although the Proposed Regulations are expected to affect a significant number of small State or local governmental units that issue tax-exempt private activity bonds, the Proposed Regulations are not expected to have a significant economic effect on those governmental units because the Proposed Regulations generally would streamline and simplify the Existing Regulations in various respects to reduce the administrative burdens of meeting the statutory public approval requirement. For example, the Proposed Regulations would permit publication of public notice by Web site to reduce costs associated with print publication or radio or television broadcast, reduce the information required to be contained in public notice and public approval for certain types of bonds, liberalize the consequences of insubstantial changes in project information, and permit curative actions to address certain circumstances in which finished projects differ from descriptions provided in the public notice or public approval. Accordingly, a regulatory flexibility analysis is not required. Pursuant to section 7805(f) of the Code, this notice of proposed rulemaking will be submitted to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration for comment on its impact on small entities. Comments and Requests for Public Hearing Before the Proposed Regulations are adopted as final regulations, consideration will be given to any comments that are submitted timely to the IRS as prescribed in this preamble under the ADDRESSES heading. The Treasury Department and the IRS request comments on all aspects of the VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 proposed rules. All comments will be available at www.regulations.gov or upon request. A public hearing will be scheduled if requested in writing by any person that timely submits written comments. If a public hearing is scheduled, notice of the date, time, and place for the hearing will be published in the Federal Register. Drafting Information The principal authors of these regulations are Spence Hanemann and Vicky Tsilas, Office of Associate Chief Counsel (Financial Institutions and Products). However, other personnel from the Treasury Department and the IRS participated in their development. List of Subjects 26 CFR Part 1 Income taxes, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements. 26 CFR Part 5f Income taxes, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements. Withdrawal of Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Accordingly, under the authority of 26 U.S.C. 7805, the notice of proposed rulemaking (REG–128841–07) that was published in the Federal Register (73 FR 52220) on September 9, 2008, is withdrawn. Also, under the authority of 26 U.S.C. 7805, § 1.103–17 of the notice of proposed rulemaking (LR–221–82) published in the Federal Register (48 FR 21166) on May 11, 1983, is withdrawn. Proposed Amendments to the Regulations Accordingly, 26 CFR parts 1 and 5f are proposed to be amended as follows: PART 1—INCOME TAXES Paragraph 1. The authority citation for part 1 continues to read in part as follows: ■ Authority: 26 U.S.C. 7805 * * * Par. 2. Section 1.147(f)–1 is added to read as follows: ■ § 1.147(f)–1 Public approval of private activity bonds. (a) In general. Interest on a private activity bond is excludable from gross income under section 103(a) only if the bond meets the requirements for a qualified bond as defined in section 141(e) and other applicable requirements provided in section 103. In order to be a qualified bond as defined in section 141(e), among other requirements, a private activity bond must meet the requirements of section PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 45237 147(f). A private activity bond meets the requirements of section 147(f) only if the bond is publicly approved pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section or the bond qualifies for the exception for refunding bonds in section 147(f)(2)(D). (b) Public approval requirement—(1) In general. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a bond meets the requirements of section 147(f) if, before the issue date, the issue of which the bond is a part receives issuer approval and host approval (each a public approval) as defined in paragraphs (b)(2) and (3) of this section in accordance with the method and process set forth in paragraphs (c) through (f) of this section. (2) Issuer approval. Except as otherwise provided in this section, issuer approval means an approval that meets the requirements of this paragraph (b)(2). Either the governmental unit that issues the issue or the governmental unit on behalf of which the issue is issued must approve the issue. For this purpose, § 1.103–1 applies to the determination of whether an issuer issues bonds on behalf of another governmental unit. If an issuer issues bonds on behalf of more than one governmental unit (for example, in the case of an authority that acts for two counties), any one of those governmental units may provide the issuer approval. (3) Host approval. Except as otherwise provided in this section, host approval means an approval that meets the requirements of this paragraph (b)(3). Each governmental unit the geographic jurisdiction of which contains the site of a project to be financed by the issue must approve the issue. If, however, the entire site of a project to be financed by the issue is within the geographic jurisdiction of more than one governmental unit within a State (counting the State as a governmental unit within such State), then any one of those governmental units may provide host approval for the issue for that project. For purposes of the host approval, if a project to be financed by the issue is located within the geographic jurisdiction of two or more governmental units but not entirely within any one of those governmental units, each portion of the project that is located entirely within the geographic jurisdiction of the respective governmental units may be treated as a separate project. The issuer approval provided pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section may be treated as a host approval if the governmental unit providing the issuer approval is also a governmental unit eligible to provide E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS 45238 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules the host approval pursuant to this paragraph (b)(3). (4) Special rule for host approval of airports or high-speed intercity rail facilities. Pursuant to a special rule in section 147(f)(3), if the proceeds of an issue are to be used to finance a project that consists of either facilities located at an airport (within the meaning of section 142(a)(1)) or high-speed intercity rail facilities (within the meaning of section 142(a)(11)) and the issuer of that issue is the owner or operator of the airport or high-speed intercity rail facilities, the issuer is the only governmental unit that is required to provide the host approval for that project. (5) Special rule for issuer approval of scholarship funding bond issues and volunteer fire department bond issues. In the case of a qualified scholarship funding bond as defined in section 150(d)(2), the governmental unit that made a request described in section 150(d)(2)(B) with respect to the issuer of the bond is the governmental unit on behalf of which the bond was issued for purposes of the issuer approval. If more than one governmental unit within a State made a request described in section 150(d)(2)(B), the State or any such requesting governmental unit may be treated as the governmental unit on behalf of which the bond was issued for purposes of the issuer approval. In the case of a bond of a volunteer fire department treated as a bond of a political subdivision of a State under section 150(e), the political subdivision described in section 150(e)(2)(B) with respect to that volunteer fire department is the governmental unit on behalf of which the bond is issued for purposes of the issuer approval. (6) Host approval not required for issues of mortgage revenue bonds, student loan bonds, and certain qualified 501(c)(3) bonds. In the case of a mortgage revenue bond (as defined in paragraph (g)(5) of this section), a qualified student loan bond as defined in section 144(b), and the portion of an issue of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds as defined in section 145 that finances working capital expenditures, the issue or portion of the issue must receive an issuer approval but no host approval is necessary. (c) Method of public approval. The method of public approval of an issue must satisfy either paragraph (c)(1) or (2) of this section. An approval may satisfy the requirements of this paragraph (c) without regard to the authority under State or local law for the acts constituting that approval. (1) Applicable elected representative. An applicable elected representative of VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 the approving governmental unit approves the issue following a public hearing for which there was reasonable public notice. (2) Voter referendum. A voter referendum of the approving governmental unit approves the issue. (d) Public hearing and reasonable public notice—(1) Public hearing. Public hearing means a forum providing a reasonable opportunity for interested individuals to express their views, orally or in writing, on the proposed issue of bonds and the location and nature of the proposed project to be financed. (2) Location of the public hearing. The public hearing must be held in a location that, based on the facts and circumstances, is convenient for residents of the approving governmental unit. The location of the public hearing is presumed convenient for residents of the unit if the public hearing is located in the approving governmental unit’s capital or seat of government. If more than one governmental unit is required to hold a public hearing, the hearings may be combined as long as the combined hearing affords the residents of all of the participating governmental units a reasonable opportunity to be heard. The location of any combined hearing is presumed convenient for residents of each participating governmental unit if it is no farther than 100 miles from the seat of government of each participating governmental unit beyond whose geographic jurisdiction the hearing is conducted. (3) Procedures for conducting the public hearing. In general, a governmental unit may select its own procedure for a public hearing, provided that interested individuals have a reasonable opportunity to express their views. Thus, a governmental unit may impose reasonable requirements on persons who wish to participate in the hearing, such as a requirement that persons desiring to speak at the hearing make a written request to speak at least 24 hours before the hearing or that they limit their oral remarks to a prescribed time. For this purpose, it is unnecessary, for example, that the applicable elected representative of the approving governmental unit be present at the hearing, that a report on the hearing be submitted to that applicable elected representative, or that State administrative procedural requirements for public hearings be observed. Except to the extent State procedural requirements for public hearings are in conflict with a specific requirement of this section, a public hearing performed in compliance with State procedural requirements satisfies the requirements PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 for a public hearing in this paragraph (d). A public hearing may be conducted by an individual appointed or employed to perform such function by the governmental unit or its agencies, or by the issuer. Thus, for example, for bonds to be issued by an authority that acts on behalf of a county, the hearing may be conducted by the authority, the county, or an appointee of either. (4) Reasonable public notice. Reasonable public notice means notice that is reasonably designed to inform residents of an approving governmental unit, including the issuing governmental unit and the governmental unit in whose geographic jurisdiction a project is to be located, of the proposed issue. The notice must state the time and place for the public hearing and contain the information required by paragraph (f)(2) of this section. Notice is presumed to be reasonably designed to inform residents of an approving governmental unit if it satisfies the requirements of this paragraph (d)(4) and is given no fewer than fourteen (14) calendar days before the public hearing in one or more of the ways set forth in paragraphs (d)(4)(i) through (iv) of this section. (i) Newspaper publication. Public notice may be given by publication in one or more newspapers of general circulation available to the residents of the governmental unit. (ii) Radio or television broadcast. Public notice may be given by radio or television broadcast to the residents of the governmental unit. (iii) Governmental unit Web site posting. Public notice may be given by electronic posting on the approving governmental unit’s public Web site used to inform its residents about events affecting the residents (for example, notice of public meetings of the governmental unit). In the case of public notice provided as described in the first sentence of this paragraph (d)(4)(iii), the governmental unit must offer a reasonable, publicly known alternative method for obtaining the information contained in the public notice for residents without access to the Internet (such as telephone recordings). (iv) Alternative State law public notice procedures. Public notice may be given in a way that is permitted under a general State law for public notices for public hearings for the approving governmental unit. (e) Applicable elected representative—(1) In general—(i) Definition of applicable elected representative. The applicable elected representative of a governmental unit means— E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules (A) The governmental unit’s elected legislative body; (B) The governmental unit’s chief elected executive officer; (C) In the case of a State, the chief elected legal officer of the State’s executive branch of government; or (D) Any official elected by the voters of the governmental unit and designated for purposes of this section by the governmental unit’s chief elected executive officer or by State or local law to approve issues for the governmental unit. (ii) Elected officials. For purposes of paragraphs (e)(1)(i)(B), (C), and (D) of this section, an official is considered elected only if that official is popularly elected at-large by the voters of the governmental unit. If an official popularly elected at-large by the voters of a governmental unit is appointed or selected pursuant to State or local law to be the chief executive officer of the unit, that official is deemed to be an elected chief executive officer for purposes of this section but for no longer than the official’s tenure as an official popularly elected at-large. (iii) Legislative bodies. In the case of a bicameral legislature that is popularly elected, both chambers together constitute an applicable elected representative. Absent designation under paragraph (e)(1)(i)(D) of this section, however, neither such chamber independently constitutes an applicable elected representative. If multiple elected legislative bodies of a governmental unit have independent legislative authority, the body with the more specific authority relating to the issue is the only legislative body that is treated as an elected legislative body under paragraph (e)(1)(i)(A) of this section. (2) Governmental unit with no applicable elected representative—(i) In general. The applicable elected representatives of a governmental unit with no applicable elected representative (but for this paragraph (e)(2) and section 147(f)(2)(E)(ii)) are the applicable elected representatives of the next higher governmental unit (with an applicable elected representative) from which the governmental unit derives its authority. Except as otherwise provided in this section, any governmental unit from which the governmental unit with no applicable elected representative derives its authority may be treated as the next higher governmental unit without regard to the relative status of such higher governmental unit under State law. A governmental unit derives its authority from another governmental unit that— VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 (A) Enacts a specific law (for example, a provision in a State constitution, charter, or statute) by or under which the governmental unit is created; (B) Otherwise empowers or approves the creation of the governmental unit; or (C) Appoints members to the governing body of the governmental unit. (ii) Host approval. For purposes of a host approval, a governmental unit may be treated as the next higher governmental unit only if the project is located within its geographic jurisdiction and eligible residents of the unit are entitled to vote for its applicable elected representatives. (3) On behalf of issuers. In the case of an issuer that issues bonds on behalf of a governmental unit, the applicable elected representative is any applicable elected representative of the governmental unit on behalf of which the bonds are issued. (f) Public approval process—(1) In general. The public approval process for an issue, including scope, content, and timing of the public approval, must meet the requirements of this paragraph (f). A governmental unit must timely approve either each project to be financed with proceeds of the issue or a plan of financing for each project to be financed with proceeds of the issue. (2) General rule on information required for a reasonable public notice and public approval. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a project to be financed with proceeds of an issue is within the scope of a public approval under section 147(f) if the reasonable public notice of the public hearing, if applicable, and the public approval (together the notice and approval) include the information set forth in paragraphs (f)(2)(i) through (iv) of this section. (i) The project. The notice and approval must include a general functional description of the type and use of the project to be financed with the issue. For this purpose, a project description is sufficient if it identifies the project by reference to a particular category of exempt facility bond to be issued (for example, an exempt facility bond for an airport pursuant to section 142(a)(1)) or by reference to another general category of private activity bond together with information on the type and use of the project to be financed with the issue (for example, a qualified small issue bond as defined in section 144(a) for a manufacturing facility or a qualified 501(c)(3) bond as defined in section 145 for a hospital facility and working capital expenditures). (ii) The maximum stated principal amount of bonds. The notice and PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 45239 approval must include the maximum stated principal amount of the issue of private activity bonds to be issued to finance the project. If an issue finances multiple projects (for example, facilities at different locations on non-proximate sites that are not treated as part of the same project), the notice and approval must specify separately the maximum stated principal amount of bonds to be issued to finance each separate project. (iii) The name of the initial owner or principal user of the project. The notice and approval must include the name of the expected initial owner or principal user (within the meaning of section 144(a)) of the project. The name provided may be either the name of the legal owner or principal user of the project or, alternatively, the name of the true beneficial party of interest for such legal owner or user (for example, the name of a 501(c)(3) organization that is the sole member of a limited liability company that is the legal owner). (iv) The location of the project. The notice and approval must include a general description of the prospective location of the project by street address, reference to boundary streets or other geographic boundaries, or other description of the specific geographic location that is reasonably designed to inform readers of the location. For a project involving multiple capital projects or facilities located on the same site, or on adjacent or reasonably proximate sites with similar uses, a consolidated description of the location of those capital projects or facilities provides a sufficient description of the location of the project. For example, a project for a section 501(c)(3) educational entity involving multiple buildings on the entity’s main urban college campus may describe the location of the project by reference to the outside street boundaries of that campus with a reference to any noncontiguous features of that campus. (3) Special rule for mortgage revenue bonds. Mortgage loans financed by mortgage revenue bonds are within the scope of a public approval if the notice and approval state that the bonds are to be issued to finance residential mortgages, provide the maximum stated principal amount of mortgage revenue bonds expected to be issued, and provide a general description of the geographic jurisdiction in which the residences to be financed with the proceeds of the mortgage revenue bonds are expected to be located (for example, residences located throughout a State for an issuer with a statewide jurisdiction or residences within a particular local geographic jurisdiction, such as within a city or county, for a E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS 45240 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules local issuer). For this purpose, in the case of mortgage revenue bonds, no information is required on specific names of mortgage loan borrowers or specific locations of individual residences to be financed. (4) Special rule for qualified student loan bonds. Qualified student loans financed by qualified student loan bonds as defined in section 144(b) are within the scope of a public approval if the notice and approval state that the bonds will be issued to finance student loans and state the maximum stated principal amount of qualified student loan bonds expected to be issued for qualified student loans. For this purpose, in the case of qualified student loan bonds, no information is required with respect to names of specific student loan borrowers. (5) Special rule for certain qualified 501(c)(3) bonds. Loans financed by qualified 501(c)(3) bonds issued pursuant to section 145 and described in section 147(b)(4)(B) (without regard to any election under section 147(b)(4)(A)) are within the scope of a public approval if the requirements of paragraphs (f)(5)(i) and (ii) of this section are met. (i) Pre-issuance general public approval. Within the time period required by paragraph (f)(7) of this section, public approval is obtained after reasonable public notice of a public hearing is provided and a public hearing is held. For this purpose, a project is treated as described in the notice and approval if the notice and approval provide that the bonds will be qualified 501(c)(3) bonds to be used to finance loans described in section 147(b)(4)(B), state the maximum stated principal amount of bonds expected to be issued to finance loans to 501(c)(3) organizations or governmental units as described in section 147(b)(4)(B), provide a general description of the type of project to be financed with such loans (for example, loans for hospital facilities or college facilities), and state that an additional public approval that includes specific project information will be obtained before any such loans are originated. (ii) Post-issuance public approval for specific loans. Except as provided in paragraph (f)(5)(iii) of this section, before a loan described in section 147(b)(4)(B) is originated, a supplemental public approval for the bonds to be used to finance that loan is obtained that meets all the requirements of section 147(f) and the requirements for a public approval in paragraph (b) of this section. This post-issuance supplemental public approval requirement applies by treating the VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 bonds to be used to finance such loan as if they were reissued for purposes of section 147(f) (without regard to paragraph (f)(5) of this section). For this purpose, proceeds to be used to finance such loan do not include the portion of the issue used to finance a common reserve fund or common costs of issuance. (iii) Exception to post-issuance public approval requirement. A post-issuance supplemental public approval pursuant to paragraph (f)(5)(ii) of this section is unnecessary for the initial use of proceeds to finance one or more loans if the pre-issuance notice and approval pursuant to paragraph (f)(5)(i) of this section include the information required by paragraphs (f)(2)(i) through (iv) of this section for the projects to be financed by those loans. (6) Deviations in public approval information—(i) In general. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a substantial deviation between the stated use of proceeds of an issue included in the information required to be provided in the notice and approval (public approval information) and the actual use of proceeds of the issue causes that issue to fail to meet the public approval requirement. Conversely, insubstantial deviations between the stated use of proceeds of an issue included in the public approval information and the actual use of proceeds of the issue do not cause such a failure. In general, the determination of whether a deviation is substantial is based on all the facts and circumstances. In all events, however, a change in the fundamental nature or type of a project is a substantial deviation. (ii) Certain insubstantial deviations in public approval information. The following deviations from the public approval information in the notice and approval are treated as insubstantial deviations: (A) Size of bond issue and use of proceeds. A deviation between the maximum stated principal amount of a proposed issuance of bonds to finance a project that is specified in public approval information and the actual stated principal amount of bonds issued and used to finance that project is an insubstantial deviation if that actual stated principal amount is no more than ten percent (10%) greater than that maximum stated principal amount or is any amount less than that maximum stated principal amount. In addition, the use of proceeds to pay working capital expenditures directly associated with any project specified in the public approval information is an insubstantial deviation. PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 (B) Initial owner or principal user. A deviation between the initial owner or principal user of the project named in the notice and approval and the actual initial owner or principal user of the project is an insubstantial deviation if such parties are related parties on the issue date of the issue. (iii) Supplemental public approval to cure certain substantial deviations in public approval information. A substantial deviation between the stated use of proceeds of an issue included in the public approval information and the actual use of the proceeds of the issue does not cause that issue to fail to meet the public approval requirement if all of the following requirements are met: (A) Original public approval and reasonable expectations. The issue met the requirements for a public approval in paragraph (b) of this section. In addition, on the issue date of the issue, the issuer reasonably expected there would be no substantial deviations between the stated use of proceeds of an issue included in the public approval information and the actual use of the proceeds of the issue. (B) Unexpected events or unforeseen changes in circumstances. As a result of unexpected events or unforeseen changes in circumstances that occur after the issue date of the issue, the issuer determines to use proceeds of the issue in a manner or amount not provided in a public approval. (C) Supplemental public approval. Before using proceeds of the bonds in a manner or amount not provided in a public approval, the issuer obtains a supplemental public approval for those bonds that meets the public approval requirement in paragraph (b) of this section. This supplemental public approval requirement applies by treating those bonds as if they were reissued for purposes of section 147(f). (7) Certain timing requirements. Public approval of an issue is timely only if the issuer obtains the public approval within one year before the issue date of the issue. Public approval of a plan of financing is timely only if the issuer obtains public approval for the plan of financing within one year before the issue date of the first issue issued under the plan of financing and the issuer issues all issues under the plan of financing within three years after the issue date of such first issue. (g) Definitions. The definitions in this paragraph (g) apply for purposes of this section. In addition, the general definitions in § 1.150–1 apply for purposes of this section. (1) Geographic jurisdiction means the area encompassed by the boundaries prescribed by State or local law for a E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1 jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with PROPOSALS Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Proposed Rules governmental unit or, if there are no such boundaries, the area in which a unit may exercise such sovereign powers that make that unit a governmental unit for purposes of § 1.103–1 and this section. (2) Governmental unit has the meaning of ‘‘State or local governmental unit’’ as defined in § 1.103–1. Thus, a governmental unit is a State, territory, a possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any political subdivision thereof. (3) Host approval is defined in paragraph (b)(3) of this section. (4) Issuer approval is defined in paragraph (b)(2) of this section. (5) Mortgage revenue bonds mean qualified mortgage bonds as defined in section 143(a), qualified veterans’ mortgage bonds as defined in section 143(b), or refunding bonds issued to finance mortgages of owner-occupied residences pursuant to applicable law in effect prior to enactment of section 143(a) or section 143(b). (6) Proceeds means ‘‘proceeds’’ as defined in § 1.141–1(b), except that it does not include disposition proceeds. (7) Project generally means one or more capital projects or facilities, including land, buildings, equipment, and other property, to be financed with an issue, that are located on the same site, or adjacent or proximate sites used for similar purposes, and that are subject to the public approval requirement of section 147(f). For an issue of mortgage revenue bonds or an issue of qualified student loan bonds as defined in section 144(b), the term project means the mortgage loans or qualified student loans to be financed with the proceeds of the issue. For an issue of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds as defined in section 145, the term project means a project as defined in the first sentence of this definition, and also is deemed to include working capital expenditures to be financed with proceeds of the issue. (8) Public approval information is defined in paragraph (f)(6)(i) of this section. (9) Public hearing is defined in paragraph (d)(1) of this section. (10) Reasonable public notice is defined in paragraph (d)(4) of this section. (11) Voter referendum means a vote by the voters of the affected governmental unit conducted in the same manner and time as voter referenda on matters relating to governmental spending or bond issuances by the governmental unit under applicable State and local law. (h) Applicability date. This section applies to bonds issued pursuant to a VerDate Sep<11>2014 15:00 Sep 27, 2017 Jkt 241001 public approval occurring on or after the date that is 90 days after publication of the Treasury decision adopting these rules as final regulations in the Federal Register. For bonds issued pursuant to a public approval occurring before that date, see § 5f.103–2 as contained in 26 CFR part 5f, revised as of the date of the most recent annual revision. PART 5f—TEMPORARY INCOME TAX REGULATIONS UNDER THE TAX EQUITY AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY ACT OF 1982 Par. 3. The authority citation for part 5f continues to read in part as follows: ■ Authority: 26 U.S.C. 7805 * * * § 5f.103–2 ■ [Removed] Par. 4. Section 5f.103–2 is removed. Kirsten Wielobob, Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement. [FR Doc. 2017–20661 Filed 9–27–17; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4830–01–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 40 CFR Part 52 [EPA–R03–OAR–2017–0215; FRL–9968–32– Region 3] Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Virginia; Removal of Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) Trading Programs Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Proposed rule. AGENCY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposes to approve the state implementation plan (SIP) revision submitted by the Commonwealth of Virginia for the purpose of removing regulations from the Virginia SIP that established EPA-administered annual NOX, ozone season NOX, and sulfur dioxide (SO2) trading programs under the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR). These EPA-administered trading programs under CAIR were discontinued on December 31, 2014 upon the implementation of the CrossState Air Pollution Rule (CASPR), which was promulgated by EPA to replace CAIR. In the Final Rules section of this Federal Register, EPA is approving the State’s SIP submittal as a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no adverse comments. A detailed rationale for the approval is set forth in the direct final rule. If no SUMMARY: PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 45241 adverse comments are received in response to this action, no further activity is contemplated. If EPA receives adverse comments, the direct final rule will be withdrawn and all public comments received will be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on this proposed rule. EPA will not institute a second comment period. Any parties interested in commenting on this action should do so at this time. Comments must be received in writing by October 30, 2017. DATES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R03– OAR–2017–0215 at https:// www.regulations.gov, or via email to stahl.cynthia@epa.gov. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. For either manner of submission, the EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be confidential business information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. EPA will generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission methods, please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit https://www2.epa.gov/dockets/ commenting-epa-dockets. ADDRESSES: Sara Calcinore, (215) 814 2043, or by email at calcinore.sara@epa.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, please see the information provided in the direct final action, with the same title, that is located in the ‘‘Rules and Regulations’’ section of this Federal Register publication. Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: E:\FR\FM\28SEP1.SGM 28SEP1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 187 (Thursday, September 28, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 45233-45241]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-20661]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Internal Revenue Service

26 CFR Parts 1 and 5f

[REG-128841-07]
RIN 1545-BG91


Public Approval of Tax-Exempt Private Activity Bonds

AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury.

ACTION: Withdrawal of notice of proposed rulemaking and notice of 
proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: This document contains proposed regulations to update and 
streamline the public approval requirement provided in section 147(f) 
of the Internal Revenue Code applicable to tax-exempt private activity 
bonds issued by State and local governments. The proposed regulations 
would update the existing regulations on the public approval 
requirement to reflect statutory changes, to streamline the public 
approval process, and to reduce burden on State and local governments 
that issue tax-exempt private activity bonds. This document also 
withdraws two previous notices of proposed rulemaking on this topic. 
The proposed regulations affect State and local governments that issue 
tax-exempt private activity bonds.

DATES: Comments and requests for a public hearing must be received by 
December 27, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Send submissions to CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG-128841-07), Room 5203, 
Internal Revenue Service, P.O. Box 7604, Ben Franklin Station, 
Washington, DC 20044. Submissions may be hand-delivered Monday through 
Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. to CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG-
128841-07), Courier's Desk, Internal Revenue Service, 1111 Constitution 
Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20224, or sent electronically via the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov (IRS REG-128841-07).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Concerning the proposed regulations, 
Spence Hanemann at (202) 317-6980; concerning submissions of comments 
and requesting a hearing, Regina Johnson at (202) 317-6901 (not toll-
free numbers).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The collection of information contained in this notice of proposed 
rulemaking has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget 
for review under OMB Control Number 1545-2185 in accordance with the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507(d)). The collection of 
information in this proposed regulation is the requirement in Sec.  
1.147(f)-1 that certain information be contained in a public notice or 
public approval and, consequently, disclosed to the public. This 
information is required to meet the statutory public approval 
requirement provided in section 147(f). The likely respondents are the 
governmental units required to approve an issue of private activity 
bonds under section 147(f).
    Estimated total annual burden: 2,600 hours.
    Estimated average annual burden per respondent: 1.3 Hours.
    Estimated number of respondents: 2,000.
    Estimated frequency of responses: Annual.
    Comments on the collection of information should be sent to the 
Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for the Department 
of the Treasury, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 
Washington, DC 20503, with copies to the Internal Revenue Service, 
Attn: IRS Reports Clearance Officer, SE:CAR:MP:T:T:SP, Washington, DC 
20224. Comments on the collection of information should be received by 
November 27, 2017.
    Comments are specifically requested concerning:
    Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the IRS, including whether the 
information will have practical utility;
    The accuracy of the estimated burden associated with the proposed 
collection of information;
    How the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected may be enhanced;
    How the burden of complying with the proposed collection of 
information may be minimized, including through the application of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology; and
    Estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, 
maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid 
control number assigned by the Office of Management and Budget.
    Books or records relating to a collection of information must be 
retained as long as their contents may become material in the 
administration of any internal revenue law. Generally, tax returns and 
tax return information are confidential, as required by 26 U.S.C. 6103.

Background

    This document contains proposed amendments to 26 CFR part 1 under 
section 147(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the Code) and 26 
CFR part 5f under section 103(k) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 
(the 1954 Code). In the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 
1982 (TEFRA), Public Law 97-248, 96 Stat. 324, Congress added section 
103(k) to the 1954 Code to impose a public approval requirement on tax-
exempt industrial development bonds. On May 11, 1983, the Department of 
the Treasury (Treasury Department) and the IRS published in the Federal 
Register (48 FR 21117) temporary regulations under section 103(k) of 
the 1954 Code (TD 7892) (the Existing Regulations). See Sec.  5f.103-2. 
A notice of proposed rulemaking (LR-221-82) by cross-reference to the 
temporary regulations was published in the Federal Register (48 FR 
21166) on the same day.
    In the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (1986 Tax Act), Public Law 99-514, 
100 Stat. 2085, Congress reorganized the tax-exempt bond provisions and 
carried forward the public approval requirement of section 103(k) of 
the 1954 Code in expanded form in section 147(f) of the Code. In 
section 147(f), Congress extended the public approval requirement to 
apply to all types of tax-exempt private activity bonds, as provided in 
section 141(e). The legislative history of the 1986 Tax Act indicates 
that ``[t]he conferees intend that, to the extent not amended, all 
principles of present law continue to apply under the reorganized 
provisions.'' H.R. Rep. No. 99-841, at II-686 (1986) (Conf. Rep.). 
Thus, the Existing Regulations in Sec.  5f.103-2 remain in effect.
    On September 9, 2008, the Treasury Department and the IRS published 
a

[[Page 45234]]

notice of proposed rulemaking (REG-128841-07) in the Federal Register 
(73 FR 52220) that proposed regulations to amend and supplement the 
Existing Regulations (the 2008 Proposed Regulations). The Treasury 
Department and the IRS received public comments on the 2008 Proposed 
Regulations and held a public hearing on January 26, 2009. As discussed 
more fully in the Explanation of Provisions section of this preamble, 
the Treasury Department and the IRS have decided to withdraw the 2008 
Proposed Regulations in full and to propose new regulations. This 
document contains those new proposed regulations (the Proposed 
Regulations).

Explanation of Provisions

1. Introduction

    In general, pursuant to section 103 of the Code, interest received 
by investors on eligible State and local bonds is tax-exempt for 
Federal income tax purposes. Interest on private activity bonds 
qualifies for this tax-exempt treatment only if the bonds meet the 
requirements for ``qualified bonds'' as defined in section 141(e) and 
other applicable requirements provided in section 103. Section 141(e) 
of the Code requires, among other things, that qualified bonds meet the 
public approval requirement of section 147(f).
    The Proposed Regulations would update the Existing Regulations to 
address subsequent statutory changes and to streamline the public 
approval process. The Proposed Regulations provide greater flexibility 
to State and local governments with respect to the public approval 
process to reduce administrative burdens associated with the public 
approval requirement. The Proposed Regulations recognize advances in 
technology and electronic communication that may facilitate more 
streamlined procedures for providing reasonable public notice of a 
public hearing.

2. The 2008 Proposed Regulations

    The 2008 Proposed Regulations proposed to update, clarify, and 
simplify discrete aspects of the Existing Regulations regarding the 
public approval requirement. The 2008 Proposed Regulations focused on 
the scope, information content, methods, and timing for the public 
approval process, and generally did not focus on the governmental 
entities from which public approval is required. Overall, the public 
comments on the 2008 Proposed Regulations were favorable.
    The Proposed Regulations generally incorporate the amendments 
proposed in the 2008 Proposed Regulations with modifications in 
response to the public comments. One comment focused on the structure 
of the 2008 Proposed Regulations. The 2008 Proposed Regulations would 
have revised the Existing Regulations by amending existing rules and 
adding new rules. The 2008 Proposed Regulations further provided that 
the Existing Regulations would remain in effect to the extent not 
inconsistent with the final version of the 2008 Proposed Regulations. 
Commenters expressed concern about potential confusion over two 
distinct and partially inconsistent regulation sections governing the 
public approval requirement. The Treasury Department and the IRS 
understand this concern. Accordingly, the Proposed Regulations 
consolidate the guidance in the Existing Regulations and the 2008 
Proposed Regulations, with modifications in response to the public 
comments and other recent developments, into new proposed guidance and 
provide a further opportunity for public comment.
    The Treasury Department and the IRS also received numerous comments 
regarding the level of specificity of information required to be 
contained in reasonable public notice of a public hearing or a public 
approval. Generally, the 2008 Proposed Regulations proposed to allow 
the issuer to provide streamlined information about projects to be 
financed, and the Existing Regulations require a greater level of 
specificity of information about such projects. The 2008 Proposed 
Regulations also proposed to afford issuers more flexibility regarding 
the effect of post-issuance changes from the reasonably expected facts 
provided in the reasonable public notice or public approval. Commenters 
expressed differing views on whether these proposed amendments in the 
2008 Proposed Regulations should be adopted. Commenters in favor of 
these amendments generally applauded the reduced burden that issuers 
would bear under the 2008 Proposed Regulations and suggested ways in 
which that burden could be reduced further. Commenters opposed to these 
amendments generally argued that reducing the amount of public 
information would limit the public's ability to approve or oppose on an 
informed basis new private activity bonds and proposed projects to be 
financed. The legislative history of the public approval requirement 
emphasizes the importance of ``a reasonable opportunity for persons 
with differing views on both issuance of the bonds and the location and 
nature of the proposed facility to be heard.'' S. Rep. No. 97-494, at 
171 (1982). With respect to these proposed amendments, the Treasury 
Department and the IRS have determined that the information that would 
have been required by the 2008 Proposed Regulations is sufficient to 
permit the public to evaluate the merits of both the issuance of the 
bonds and the location and nature of the financed facility. Thus, the 
burden imposed by the Existing Regulations may be reduced as provided 
in the 2008 Proposed Regulations without significantly impairing the 
public's consideration of new private activity bonds. Accordingly, the 
Proposed Regulations generally retain the streamlined information and 
post-issuance flexibility proposed in the 2008 Proposed Regulations and 
provide for additional post-issuance flexibility. (See section 6 of 
this Explanation of Provisions.)
    Commenters also provided differing views on the amendments in the 
2008 Proposed Regulations that proposed changes to the procedures for 
providing reasonable public notice of a public hearing. The Existing 
Regulations generally permit an issuer to publicize notice by 
newspaper, radio, or television, and presume notice to be reasonable if 
published at least 14 days prior to the date of the public hearing. The 
2008 Proposed Regulations proposed to expand the permitted methods of 
providing public notice to include notice by newspaper, radio, 
television, Web site, or other permitted methods of giving public 
notice under State law, and would have shortened the presumptively 
reasonable notice period to seven days in advance of the hearing. 
Commenters in favor of these amendments generally stated that the 
proposed amendments would ease the burden of providing the public 
notice. Commenters opposed to these amendments generally expressed 
concern that seven days' notice of a public hearing would not provide 
the public sufficient time to make an informed decision and to make 
arrangements to be present at the hearing. The legislative history of 
TEFRA indicates that Congress expected notice to be published no fewer 
than 14 days before the scheduled date of the hearing. See S. Rep. No. 
97-494, at 171 (1982). In response to these comments, the Proposed 
Regulations adopt and expand the permitted methods for giving notice of 
a public hearing that were proposed in the 2008 Proposed Regulations, 
but retain the 14-day notice period presumed reasonable under the 
Existing Regulations consistent with the expectations of Congress.

[[Page 45235]]

3. Host Approval and Issuer Approval

    Section 147(f) generally requires that both the governmental unit 
that issues the bonds (or on behalf of which the bonds are issued) and 
a governmental unit with jurisdiction over the location of the financed 
project approve an issue of private activity bonds (and the approvals 
are referred to as the issuer approval and the host approval, 
respectively). The Proposed Regulations generally carry forward the 
rules on issuer approval and host approval from the Existing 
Regulations, with limited revisions to address statutory changes that 
affect the application of these rules to certain types of private 
activity bonds. Thus, for example, the Proposed Regulations include 
guidance to address subsequent statutory changes in section 147(f)(3) 
and (4) that added special provisions regarding the issuer approval and 
host approval requirements for certain financings involving airports, 
high-speed rail facilities, qualified scholarship funding corporations, 
and volunteer fire departments.
    The 1986 Tax Act extended the public approval requirement beyond 
the traditional, facility-focused industrial development bonds subject 
to the requirement under the 1954 Code to include certain special types 
of financings that are not facility-specific, including ``qualified 
mortgage bonds'' as defined in section 143(a), ``qualified veterans' 
mortgage bonds'' as defined in section 143(b), ``qualified student loan 
bonds'' as defined in section 144(b), and ``qualified 501(c)(3) bonds'' 
as defined in section 145. For these types of bonds, obtaining a host 
approval may be impractical or unworkable. For example, for qualified 
mortgage bonds, the locations of many of the homes to be financed with 
qualified mortgage loans generally are unknown at the time of issuance 
of the bonds and thus it may be difficult to identify appropriate 
governmental units to provide host approval. Moreover, for qualified 
student loan bonds and for qualified 501(c)(3) bonds used to finance 
working capital expenditures, the application of the host approval 
requirement is unworkable because the assets and expenditures financed 
have no physical location. In recognition of the practical difficulties 
faced by issuers of these types of bonds under the Existing 
Regulations, the Proposed Regulations provide that no host approval is 
necessary for mortgage revenue bonds (defined as qualified mortgage 
bonds, qualified veterans' mortgage bonds, and certain refundings of 
bonds issued to finance mortgages of owner-occupied residences under 
the law prior to enactment of section 143), qualified student loan 
bonds, or qualified 501(c)(3) bonds used to finance working capital 
expenditures.

4. Reasonable Public Notice and Public Hearing

    The Existing Regulations generally provide that an applicable 
elected representative of the approving governmental unit may approve 
an issue following a public hearing for which there was reasonable 
public notice. The Existing Regulations provide guidance on permitted 
methods for giving reasonable public notice and holding public 
hearings. The Proposed Regulations would expand these methods to 
provide greater flexibility to State and local governments for 
providing reasonable public notice.
    The Existing Regulations provide generally that reasonable public 
notice must be published in a newspaper of general circulation 
available to residents of the relevant locality or announced by radio 
or television broadcast to those residents. The Proposed Regulations 
would expand the permitted methods of providing reasonable public 
notice to provide greater flexibility and to recognize advances in 
technology and electronic communications. Thus, the Proposed 
Regulations would allow reasonable public notice by newspaper 
publication, radio or television broadcast, postings on a governmental 
unit's public Web site, or alternative methods permitted under a 
general State law for public notices for public hearings of a 
governmental unit. The Treasury Department and the IRS solicit comment 
on other possible methods of providing reasonable public notice to 
foster flexibility and to reduce administrative burdens.

5. Content of Reasonable Public Notice and Public Approval

A. General Rules for Content of Reasonable Public Notice and Public 
Approval
    The Existing Regulations generally require that the reasonable 
public notice and the public approval contain the following 
information: A general, functional description of the type and use of 
the facility to be financed; the maximum aggregate face amount of the 
bonds to be issued for the facility; the initial owner, operator, or 
manager of the facility; and the location of the facility by street 
address or, if none, by a general description designed to inform 
readers of the specific location. The required level of specificity of 
information for the public approval process under the Existing 
Regulations has proven to be unduly limiting and burdensome in certain 
respects. The Proposed Regulations generally retain the requirements 
that information (public approval information) be provided for the 
public approval process but refine the required public approval 
information to reduce burden and enhance flexibility.
    Initially, the Existing Regulations focus on an individual 
``facility'' as the unit of financed property for which the issuer must 
provide the relevant information. The definition of ``facility'' in the 
Existing Regulations includes facilities on multiple tracts of land 
only if the facilities are used in an integrated operation. Whether 
facilities are part of an ``integrated operation'' has proven difficult 
to determine.
    The Proposed Regulations use the term ``project'' in lieu of the 
term ``facility'' because ``project'' more clearly indicates that 
financed property may consist of multiple buildings and multiple sites. 
The Proposed Regulations define the term ``project'' generally to mean 
one or more capital projects or facilities, including land, buildings, 
equipment, and other property, to be financed with an issue, that are 
located on the same site, or adjacent or proximate sites used for 
similar purposes. In addition, to address certain special types of loan 
financings, the definition of a project under the Proposed Regulations 
also includes mortgage loans financed by mortgage revenue bonds, 
student loans financed by qualified student loan bonds, and working 
capital expenditures financed by qualified 501(c)(3) bonds.
    The Proposed Regulations would continue to require a general 
functional description of the type and use of the financed project. The 
Proposed Regulations, however, would mitigate the required level of 
specificity of that information. Thus, the Proposed Regulations would 
allow an issuer of exempt facility bonds to satisfy this requirement 
through a statement that identifies the category of exempt facility 
bond (for example, bonds financing an airport or a mass commuting 
facility). Similarly, an issuer of other types of private activity 
bonds may satisfy this requirement through a statement that identifies 
the type of bonds and the type and use of the project (for example, 
qualified small issue bonds for a manufacturing facility).
    The Proposed Regulations would continue to require that the public 
approval information include the name of the expected initial owner or 
the principal user of the project. The Proposed Regulations, however, 
would permit an issuer to name the true

[[Page 45236]]

beneficial party of interest as an alternative to naming a legal owner 
or user (for example, the name of a nonprofit hospital organization 
instead of a limited liability company that serves as the legal owner 
of a hospital).
    The Proposed Regulations would continue to require that the public 
approval information include the location of the project by street 
address. The Proposed Regulations, however, would clarify that a 
description by boundary streets or other geographic boundaries suffices 
to meet this location requirement. The Proposed Regulations would allow 
a consolidated description of the location of a project on the same 
site or on adjacent or proximate sites (for example, a college campus).
B. Special Rules for Mortgage Revenue Bonds, Qualified Student Loan 
Bonds, and Certain Qualified 501(c)(3) Bonds
    The 1986 Tax Act extended the public approval requirement to 
mortgage revenue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified 
501(c)(3) bonds. The Existing Regulations were promulgated before the 
1986 Tax Act and thus provide no guidance tailored to the application 
of the public approval requirement to these types of bonds. In the 
General Explanation of the 1986 Tax Act, the Staff of the Joint 
Committee on Taxation stated that, ``[i]n extending this requirement to 
all private activity bonds, Congress intended that the applicable 
Treasury regulations will be amended for student loan bonds (where no 
facilities are financed), mortgage revenue bonds (where the exact 
residences to be financed may not be identified before issuance of the 
bonds), and qualified 501(c)(3) bonds that qualify for the special 
exception to the maturity limitation for pooled financings (where the 
facilities need not be identified before issuance of the bonds).'' 
Joint Committee on Taxation, General Explanation of the Tax Reform Act 
of 1986 (JCS-10-87), at 1219 (May 4, 1987). Accordingly, the Proposed 
Regulations provide special rules for public approval of mortgage 
revenue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified 501(c)(3) 
bonds issued for pooled financings as described in section 147(b)(4).
    For mortgage revenue bonds, the Proposed Regulations would require 
the public approval information to state that the bonds will finance 
residential mortgages, provide the maximum stated principal amount of 
the bonds, and generally describe the issuer's geographic jurisdiction 
in which the residences to be financed with the mortgage loans are 
expected to be located. Similarly, for qualified student loan bonds, 
the Proposed Regulations would require the public approval information 
to state that the bonds will finance student loans and provide the 
maximum stated principal amount of the bonds. For these two types of 
bonds, the Proposed Regulations would not require the names of 
borrowers to be included in the public approval information.
    For qualified 501(c)(3) bonds that finance loans described in the 
special provision for pooled loan financings in section 147(b)(4), the 
Proposed Regulations would permit the issuer to choose to apply a two-
stage public approval process if the issuer has insufficient 
information at the time of the reasonable public notice or public 
approval to meet the general public approval information requirements. 
To apply this special rule, the issuer must first obtain public 
approval within the time specified in the Proposed Regulations for 
public approval generally. For this first-stage public approval, the 
public approval information must state that the bonds will be qualified 
501(c)(3) bonds used to finance loans described in section 
147(b)(4)(B), provide the maximum stated principal amount of the bonds, 
generally describe the type of project to be financed with such loans 
(for example, loans for hospital facilities or college facilities), and 
state that the issuer will obtain an additional public approval with 
specific project information before origination of any such loans. In 
addition, before loan origination, the issuer must obtain a 
supplemental public approval of that loan containing all of the 
project-specific information that the public approval information rules 
generally require.

6. Deviations From the Information in the Reasonable Public Notice and 
Public Approval

    Differences or ``deviations'' between information regarding a 
proposed project to be financed with a proposed issuance of private 
activity bonds that serves as the basis for a public approval and the 
actual project financed with the bonds may affect the validity of the 
public approval. The Existing Regulations and the Proposed Regulations 
provide that insubstantial deviations do not invalidate a public 
approval. The Proposed Regulations provide additional guidance 
concerning differences that constitute insubstantial deviations and 
also allow remedial actions to cure certain substantial deviations.
    The Proposed Regulations provide that whether a deviation is 
substantial generally depends on all of the facts and circumstances. 
The Proposed Regulations, however, would always treat a change in the 
fundamental nature or type of a project as a substantial deviation.
    The Proposed Regulations would treat certain specified deviations 
from the public approval information provided as insubstantial 
deviations. For example, a deviation from the size of a proposed bond 
issue for a proposed project specified in public approval information 
is an insubstantial deviation if the stated principal amount of bonds 
actually issued and used for the project is no more than ten percent 
(10%) greater than the maximum stated principal amount publicly 
approved for the project or is any amount less than that maximum stated 
principal amount. Furthermore, if an issuer applies proceeds of an 
issue approved for use on one project to pay working capital 
expenditures directly associated with any project approved in the same 
public approval, that deviation is an insubstantial deviation. Finally, 
a deviation between the initial owner or principal user of the project 
identified in the public approval information and the actual initial 
owner or principal user of the project is an insubstantial deviation if 
the parties are related on the issue date.
    The Proposed Regulations would allow supplemental post-issuance 
public approvals to cure certain substantial deviations that result 
from unexpected events or unforeseen changes in circumstances that 
occur after the issuance of the bonds. This remedial action is similar 
to a permitted post-issuance public approval under Sec.  1.141-12(e)(2) 
and (f) used for remedial actions for purposes of the private business 
restrictions.

7. Applicability Dates and Reliance

    The Proposed Regulations are proposed to apply to bonds issued 
pursuant to a public approval that occurs on or after the date that is 
90 days after publication of a Treasury decision adopting these rules 
as final regulations in the Federal Register. Issuers may apply the 
Proposed Regulations, in whole but not in part, to bonds that are 
issued pursuant to a public approval that occurs on or after September 
28, 2017 and before the applicability date provided in a Treasury 
decision adopting these rules as final regulations in the Federal 
Register.
    In addition, the Treasury Department and the IRS propose to remove 
the Existing Regulations under Sec.  5f.103-2 from 26 CFR part 5f 
effective on the

[[Page 45237]]

general applicability date of the final regulations, which is proposed 
to be the date that is 90 days after publication of a Treasury decision 
adopting these rules as final regulations in the Federal Register.

Special Analyses

    Certain IRS regulations, including these, are exempt from the 
requirements of Executive Order 12866, as supplemented and reaffirmed 
by Executive Order 13563. Therefore, a regulatory impact assessment is 
not required. It is hereby certified that these regulations will not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities. The Existing Regulations provide guidance on the minimum 
informational content, procedures, and timing for the statutorily 
required public notices, public hearings, and public approvals. 
Although the Proposed Regulations are expected to affect a significant 
number of small State or local governmental units that issue tax-exempt 
private activity bonds, the Proposed Regulations are not expected to 
have a significant economic effect on those governmental units because 
the Proposed Regulations generally would streamline and simplify the 
Existing Regulations in various respects to reduce the administrative 
burdens of meeting the statutory public approval requirement. For 
example, the Proposed Regulations would permit publication of public 
notice by Web site to reduce costs associated with print publication or 
radio or television broadcast, reduce the information required to be 
contained in public notice and public approval for certain types of 
bonds, liberalize the consequences of insubstantial changes in project 
information, and permit curative actions to address certain 
circumstances in which finished projects differ from descriptions 
provided in the public notice or public approval. Accordingly, a 
regulatory flexibility analysis is not required. Pursuant to section 
7805(f) of the Code, this notice of proposed rulemaking will be 
submitted to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration for comment on its impact on small entities.

Comments and Requests for Public Hearing

    Before the Proposed Regulations are adopted as final regulations, 
consideration will be given to any comments that are submitted timely 
to the IRS as prescribed in this preamble under the ADDRESSES heading. 
The Treasury Department and the IRS request comments on all aspects of 
the proposed rules. All comments will be available at 
www.regulations.gov or upon request. A public hearing will be scheduled 
if requested in writing by any person that timely submits written 
comments. If a public hearing is scheduled, notice of the date, time, 
and place for the hearing will be published in the Federal Register.

Drafting Information

    The principal authors of these regulations are Spence Hanemann and 
Vicky Tsilas, Office of Associate Chief Counsel (Financial Institutions 
and Products). However, other personnel from the Treasury Department 
and the IRS participated in their development.

List of Subjects

26 CFR Part 1

    Income taxes, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

26 CFR Part 5f

    Income taxes, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Withdrawal of Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

    Accordingly, under the authority of 26 U.S.C. 7805, the notice of 
proposed rulemaking (REG-128841-07) that was published in the Federal 
Register (73 FR 52220) on September 9, 2008, is withdrawn. Also, under 
the authority of 26 U.S.C. 7805, Sec.  1.103-17 of the notice of 
proposed rulemaking (LR-221-82) published in the Federal Register (48 
FR 21166) on May 11, 1983, is withdrawn.

Proposed Amendments to the Regulations

    Accordingly, 26 CFR parts 1 and 5f are proposed to be amended as 
follows:

PART 1--INCOME TAXES

0
Paragraph 1. The authority citation for part 1 continues to read in 
part as follows:

    Authority:  26 U.S.C. 7805 * * *

0
Par. 2. Section 1.147(f)-1 is added to read as follows:


Sec.  1.147(f)-1  Public approval of private activity bonds.

    (a) In general. Interest on a private activity bond is excludable 
from gross income under section 103(a) only if the bond meets the 
requirements for a qualified bond as defined in section 141(e) and 
other applicable requirements provided in section 103. In order to be a 
qualified bond as defined in section 141(e), among other requirements, 
a private activity bond must meet the requirements of section 147(f). A 
private activity bond meets the requirements of section 147(f) only if 
the bond is publicly approved pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section 
or the bond qualifies for the exception for refunding bonds in section 
147(f)(2)(D).
    (b) Public approval requirement--(1) In general. Except as 
otherwise provided in this section, a bond meets the requirements of 
section 147(f) if, before the issue date, the issue of which the bond 
is a part receives issuer approval and host approval (each a public 
approval) as defined in paragraphs (b)(2) and (3) of this section in 
accordance with the method and process set forth in paragraphs (c) 
through (f) of this section.
    (2) Issuer approval. Except as otherwise provided in this section, 
issuer approval means an approval that meets the requirements of this 
paragraph (b)(2). Either the governmental unit that issues the issue or 
the governmental unit on behalf of which the issue is issued must 
approve the issue. For this purpose, Sec.  1.103-1 applies to the 
determination of whether an issuer issues bonds on behalf of another 
governmental unit. If an issuer issues bonds on behalf of more than one 
governmental unit (for example, in the case of an authority that acts 
for two counties), any one of those governmental units may provide the 
issuer approval.
    (3) Host approval. Except as otherwise provided in this section, 
host approval means an approval that meets the requirements of this 
paragraph (b)(3). Each governmental unit the geographic jurisdiction of 
which contains the site of a project to be financed by the issue must 
approve the issue. If, however, the entire site of a project to be 
financed by the issue is within the geographic jurisdiction of more 
than one governmental unit within a State (counting the State as a 
governmental unit within such State), then any one of those 
governmental units may provide host approval for the issue for that 
project. For purposes of the host approval, if a project to be financed 
by the issue is located within the geographic jurisdiction of two or 
more governmental units but not entirely within any one of those 
governmental units, each portion of the project that is located 
entirely within the geographic jurisdiction of the respective 
governmental units may be treated as a separate project. The issuer 
approval provided pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section may be 
treated as a host approval if the governmental unit providing the 
issuer approval is also a governmental unit eligible to provide

[[Page 45238]]

the host approval pursuant to this paragraph (b)(3).
    (4) Special rule for host approval of airports or high-speed 
intercity rail facilities. Pursuant to a special rule in section 
147(f)(3), if the proceeds of an issue are to be used to finance a 
project that consists of either facilities located at an airport 
(within the meaning of section 142(a)(1)) or high-speed intercity rail 
facilities (within the meaning of section 142(a)(11)) and the issuer of 
that issue is the owner or operator of the airport or high-speed 
intercity rail facilities, the issuer is the only governmental unit 
that is required to provide the host approval for that project.
    (5) Special rule for issuer approval of scholarship funding bond 
issues and volunteer fire department bond issues. In the case of a 
qualified scholarship funding bond as defined in section 150(d)(2), the 
governmental unit that made a request described in section 150(d)(2)(B) 
with respect to the issuer of the bond is the governmental unit on 
behalf of which the bond was issued for purposes of the issuer 
approval. If more than one governmental unit within a State made a 
request described in section 150(d)(2)(B), the State or any such 
requesting governmental unit may be treated as the governmental unit on 
behalf of which the bond was issued for purposes of the issuer 
approval. In the case of a bond of a volunteer fire department treated 
as a bond of a political subdivision of a State under section 150(e), 
the political subdivision described in section 150(e)(2)(B) with 
respect to that volunteer fire department is the governmental unit on 
behalf of which the bond is issued for purposes of the issuer approval.
    (6) Host approval not required for issues of mortgage revenue 
bonds, student loan bonds, and certain qualified 501(c)(3) bonds. In 
the case of a mortgage revenue bond (as defined in paragraph (g)(5) of 
this section), a qualified student loan bond as defined in section 
144(b), and the portion of an issue of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds as 
defined in section 145 that finances working capital expenditures, the 
issue or portion of the issue must receive an issuer approval but no 
host approval is necessary.
    (c) Method of public approval. The method of public approval of an 
issue must satisfy either paragraph (c)(1) or (2) of this section. An 
approval may satisfy the requirements of this paragraph (c) without 
regard to the authority under State or local law for the acts 
constituting that approval.
    (1) Applicable elected representative. An applicable elected 
representative of the approving governmental unit approves the issue 
following a public hearing for which there was reasonable public 
notice.
    (2) Voter referendum. A voter referendum of the approving 
governmental unit approves the issue.
    (d) Public hearing and reasonable public notice--(1) Public 
hearing. Public hearing means a forum providing a reasonable 
opportunity for interested individuals to express their views, orally 
or in writing, on the proposed issue of bonds and the location and 
nature of the proposed project to be financed.
    (2) Location of the public hearing. The public hearing must be held 
in a location that, based on the facts and circumstances, is convenient 
for residents of the approving governmental unit. The location of the 
public hearing is presumed convenient for residents of the unit if the 
public hearing is located in the approving governmental unit's capital 
or seat of government. If more than one governmental unit is required 
to hold a public hearing, the hearings may be combined as long as the 
combined hearing affords the residents of all of the participating 
governmental units a reasonable opportunity to be heard. The location 
of any combined hearing is presumed convenient for residents of each 
participating governmental unit if it is no farther than 100 miles from 
the seat of government of each participating governmental unit beyond 
whose geographic jurisdiction the hearing is conducted.
    (3) Procedures for conducting the public hearing. In general, a 
governmental unit may select its own procedure for a public hearing, 
provided that interested individuals have a reasonable opportunity to 
express their views. Thus, a governmental unit may impose reasonable 
requirements on persons who wish to participate in the hearing, such as 
a requirement that persons desiring to speak at the hearing make a 
written request to speak at least 24 hours before the hearing or that 
they limit their oral remarks to a prescribed time. For this purpose, 
it is unnecessary, for example, that the applicable elected 
representative of the approving governmental unit be present at the 
hearing, that a report on the hearing be submitted to that applicable 
elected representative, or that State administrative procedural 
requirements for public hearings be observed. Except to the extent 
State procedural requirements for public hearings are in conflict with 
a specific requirement of this section, a public hearing performed in 
compliance with State procedural requirements satisfies the 
requirements for a public hearing in this paragraph (d). A public 
hearing may be conducted by an individual appointed or employed to 
perform such function by the governmental unit or its agencies, or by 
the issuer. Thus, for example, for bonds to be issued by an authority 
that acts on behalf of a county, the hearing may be conducted by the 
authority, the county, or an appointee of either.
    (4) Reasonable public notice. Reasonable public notice means notice 
that is reasonably designed to inform residents of an approving 
governmental unit, including the issuing governmental unit and the 
governmental unit in whose geographic jurisdiction a project is to be 
located, of the proposed issue. The notice must state the time and 
place for the public hearing and contain the information required by 
paragraph (f)(2) of this section. Notice is presumed to be reasonably 
designed to inform residents of an approving governmental unit if it 
satisfies the requirements of this paragraph (d)(4) and is given no 
fewer than fourteen (14) calendar days before the public hearing in one 
or more of the ways set forth in paragraphs (d)(4)(i) through (iv) of 
this section.
    (i) Newspaper publication. Public notice may be given by 
publication in one or more newspapers of general circulation available 
to the residents of the governmental unit.
    (ii) Radio or television broadcast. Public notice may be given by 
radio or television broadcast to the residents of the governmental 
unit.
    (iii) Governmental unit Web site posting. Public notice may be 
given by electronic posting on the approving governmental unit's public 
Web site used to inform its residents about events affecting the 
residents (for example, notice of public meetings of the governmental 
unit). In the case of public notice provided as described in the first 
sentence of this paragraph (d)(4)(iii), the governmental unit must 
offer a reasonable, publicly known alternative method for obtaining the 
information contained in the public notice for residents without access 
to the Internet (such as telephone recordings).
    (iv) Alternative State law public notice procedures. Public notice 
may be given in a way that is permitted under a general State law for 
public notices for public hearings for the approving governmental unit.
    (e) Applicable elected representative--(1) In general--(i) 
Definition of applicable elected representative. The applicable elected 
representative of a governmental unit means--

[[Page 45239]]

    (A) The governmental unit's elected legislative body;
    (B) The governmental unit's chief elected executive officer;
    (C) In the case of a State, the chief elected legal officer of the 
State's executive branch of government; or
    (D) Any official elected by the voters of the governmental unit and 
designated for purposes of this section by the governmental unit's 
chief elected executive officer or by State or local law to approve 
issues for the governmental unit.
    (ii) Elected officials. For purposes of paragraphs (e)(1)(i)(B), 
(C), and (D) of this section, an official is considered elected only if 
that official is popularly elected at-large by the voters of the 
governmental unit. If an official popularly elected at-large by the 
voters of a governmental unit is appointed or selected pursuant to 
State or local law to be the chief executive officer of the unit, that 
official is deemed to be an elected chief executive officer for 
purposes of this section but for no longer than the official's tenure 
as an official popularly elected at-large.
    (iii) Legislative bodies. In the case of a bicameral legislature 
that is popularly elected, both chambers together constitute an 
applicable elected representative. Absent designation under paragraph 
(e)(1)(i)(D) of this section, however, neither such chamber 
independently constitutes an applicable elected representative. If 
multiple elected legislative bodies of a governmental unit have 
independent legislative authority, the body with the more specific 
authority relating to the issue is the only legislative body that is 
treated as an elected legislative body under paragraph (e)(1)(i)(A) of 
this section.
    (2) Governmental unit with no applicable elected representative--
(i) In general. The applicable elected representatives of a 
governmental unit with no applicable elected representative (but for 
this paragraph (e)(2) and section 147(f)(2)(E)(ii)) are the applicable 
elected representatives of the next higher governmental unit (with an 
applicable elected representative) from which the governmental unit 
derives its authority. Except as otherwise provided in this section, 
any governmental unit from which the governmental unit with no 
applicable elected representative derives its authority may be treated 
as the next higher governmental unit without regard to the relative 
status of such higher governmental unit under State law. A governmental 
unit derives its authority from another governmental unit that--
    (A) Enacts a specific law (for example, a provision in a State 
constitution, charter, or statute) by or under which the governmental 
unit is created;
    (B) Otherwise empowers or approves the creation of the governmental 
unit; or
    (C) Appoints members to the governing body of the governmental 
unit.
    (ii) Host approval. For purposes of a host approval, a governmental 
unit may be treated as the next higher governmental unit only if the 
project is located within its geographic jurisdiction and eligible 
residents of the unit are entitled to vote for its applicable elected 
representatives.
    (3) On behalf of issuers. In the case of an issuer that issues 
bonds on behalf of a governmental unit, the applicable elected 
representative is any applicable elected representative of the 
governmental unit on behalf of which the bonds are issued.
    (f) Public approval process--(1) In general. The public approval 
process for an issue, including scope, content, and timing of the 
public approval, must meet the requirements of this paragraph (f). A 
governmental unit must timely approve either each project to be 
financed with proceeds of the issue or a plan of financing for each 
project to be financed with proceeds of the issue.
    (2) General rule on information required for a reasonable public 
notice and public approval. Except as otherwise provided in this 
section, a project to be financed with proceeds of an issue is within 
the scope of a public approval under section 147(f) if the reasonable 
public notice of the public hearing, if applicable, and the public 
approval (together the notice and approval) include the information set 
forth in paragraphs (f)(2)(i) through (iv) of this section.
    (i) The project. The notice and approval must include a general 
functional description of the type and use of the project to be 
financed with the issue. For this purpose, a project description is 
sufficient if it identifies the project by reference to a particular 
category of exempt facility bond to be issued (for example, an exempt 
facility bond for an airport pursuant to section 142(a)(1)) or by 
reference to another general category of private activity bond together 
with information on the type and use of the project to be financed with 
the issue (for example, a qualified small issue bond as defined in 
section 144(a) for a manufacturing facility or a qualified 501(c)(3) 
bond as defined in section 145 for a hospital facility and working 
capital expenditures).
    (ii) The maximum stated principal amount of bonds. The notice and 
approval must include the maximum stated principal amount of the issue 
of private activity bonds to be issued to finance the project. If an 
issue finances multiple projects (for example, facilities at different 
locations on non-proximate sites that are not treated as part of the 
same project), the notice and approval must specify separately the 
maximum stated principal amount of bonds to be issued to finance each 
separate project.
    (iii) The name of the initial owner or principal user of the 
project. The notice and approval must include the name of the expected 
initial owner or principal user (within the meaning of section 144(a)) 
of the project. The name provided may be either the name of the legal 
owner or principal user of the project or, alternatively, the name of 
the true beneficial party of interest for such legal owner or user (for 
example, the name of a 501(c)(3) organization that is the sole member 
of a limited liability company that is the legal owner).
    (iv) The location of the project. The notice and approval must 
include a general description of the prospective location of the 
project by street address, reference to boundary streets or other 
geographic boundaries, or other description of the specific geographic 
location that is reasonably designed to inform readers of the location. 
For a project involving multiple capital projects or facilities located 
on the same site, or on adjacent or reasonably proximate sites with 
similar uses, a consolidated description of the location of those 
capital projects or facilities provides a sufficient description of the 
location of the project. For example, a project for a section 501(c)(3) 
educational entity involving multiple buildings on the entity's main 
urban college campus may describe the location of the project by 
reference to the outside street boundaries of that campus with a 
reference to any noncontiguous features of that campus.
    (3) Special rule for mortgage revenue bonds. Mortgage loans 
financed by mortgage revenue bonds are within the scope of a public 
approval if the notice and approval state that the bonds are to be 
issued to finance residential mortgages, provide the maximum stated 
principal amount of mortgage revenue bonds expected to be issued, and 
provide a general description of the geographic jurisdiction in which 
the residences to be financed with the proceeds of the mortgage revenue 
bonds are expected to be located (for example, residences located 
throughout a State for an issuer with a statewide jurisdiction or 
residences within a particular local geographic jurisdiction, such as 
within a city or county, for a

[[Page 45240]]

local issuer). For this purpose, in the case of mortgage revenue bonds, 
no information is required on specific names of mortgage loan borrowers 
or specific locations of individual residences to be financed.
    (4) Special rule for qualified student loan bonds. Qualified 
student loans financed by qualified student loan bonds as defined in 
section 144(b) are within the scope of a public approval if the notice 
and approval state that the bonds will be issued to finance student 
loans and state the maximum stated principal amount of qualified 
student loan bonds expected to be issued for qualified student loans. 
For this purpose, in the case of qualified student loan bonds, no 
information is required with respect to names of specific student loan 
borrowers.
    (5) Special rule for certain qualified 501(c)(3) bonds. Loans 
financed by qualified 501(c)(3) bonds issued pursuant to section 145 
and described in section 147(b)(4)(B) (without regard to any election 
under section 147(b)(4)(A)) are within the scope of a public approval 
if the requirements of paragraphs (f)(5)(i) and (ii) of this section 
are met.
    (i) Pre-issuance general public approval. Within the time period 
required by paragraph (f)(7) of this section, public approval is 
obtained after reasonable public notice of a public hearing is provided 
and a public hearing is held. For this purpose, a project is treated as 
described in the notice and approval if the notice and approval provide 
that the bonds will be qualified 501(c)(3) bonds to be used to finance 
loans described in section 147(b)(4)(B), state the maximum stated 
principal amount of bonds expected to be issued to finance loans to 
501(c)(3) organizations or governmental units as described in section 
147(b)(4)(B), provide a general description of the type of project to 
be financed with such loans (for example, loans for hospital facilities 
or college facilities), and state that an additional public approval 
that includes specific project information will be obtained before any 
such loans are originated.
    (ii) Post-issuance public approval for specific loans. Except as 
provided in paragraph (f)(5)(iii) of this section, before a loan 
described in section 147(b)(4)(B) is originated, a supplemental public 
approval for the bonds to be used to finance that loan is obtained that 
meets all the requirements of section 147(f) and the requirements for a 
public approval in paragraph (b) of this section. This post-issuance 
supplemental public approval requirement applies by treating the bonds 
to be used to finance such loan as if they were reissued for purposes 
of section 147(f) (without regard to paragraph (f)(5) of this section). 
For this purpose, proceeds to be used to finance such loan do not 
include the portion of the issue used to finance a common reserve fund 
or common costs of issuance.
    (iii) Exception to post-issuance public approval requirement. A 
post-issuance supplemental public approval pursuant to paragraph 
(f)(5)(ii) of this section is unnecessary for the initial use of 
proceeds to finance one or more loans if the pre-issuance notice and 
approval pursuant to paragraph (f)(5)(i) of this section include the 
information required by paragraphs (f)(2)(i) through (iv) of this 
section for the projects to be financed by those loans.
    (6) Deviations in public approval information--(i) In general. 
Except as otherwise provided in this section, a substantial deviation 
between the stated use of proceeds of an issue included in the 
information required to be provided in the notice and approval (public 
approval information) and the actual use of proceeds of the issue 
causes that issue to fail to meet the public approval requirement. 
Conversely, insubstantial deviations between the stated use of proceeds 
of an issue included in the public approval information and the actual 
use of proceeds of the issue do not cause such a failure. In general, 
the determination of whether a deviation is substantial is based on all 
the facts and circumstances. In all events, however, a change in the 
fundamental nature or type of a project is a substantial deviation.
    (ii) Certain insubstantial deviations in public approval 
information. The following deviations from the public approval 
information in the notice and approval are treated as insubstantial 
deviations:
    (A) Size of bond issue and use of proceeds. A deviation between the 
maximum stated principal amount of a proposed issuance of bonds to 
finance a project that is specified in public approval information and 
the actual stated principal amount of bonds issued and used to finance 
that project is an insubstantial deviation if that actual stated 
principal amount is no more than ten percent (10%) greater than that 
maximum stated principal amount or is any amount less than that maximum 
stated principal amount. In addition, the use of proceeds to pay 
working capital expenditures directly associated with any project 
specified in the public approval information is an insubstantial 
deviation.
    (B) Initial owner or principal user. A deviation between the 
initial owner or principal user of the project named in the notice and 
approval and the actual initial owner or principal user of the project 
is an insubstantial deviation if such parties are related parties on 
the issue date of the issue.
    (iii) Supplemental public approval to cure certain substantial 
deviations in public approval information. A substantial deviation 
between the stated use of proceeds of an issue included in the public 
approval information and the actual use of the proceeds of the issue 
does not cause that issue to fail to meet the public approval 
requirement if all of the following requirements are met:
    (A) Original public approval and reasonable expectations. The issue 
met the requirements for a public approval in paragraph (b) of this 
section. In addition, on the issue date of the issue, the issuer 
reasonably expected there would be no substantial deviations between 
the stated use of proceeds of an issue included in the public approval 
information and the actual use of the proceeds of the issue.
    (B) Unexpected events or unforeseen changes in circumstances. As a 
result of unexpected events or unforeseen changes in circumstances that 
occur after the issue date of the issue, the issuer determines to use 
proceeds of the issue in a manner or amount not provided in a public 
approval.
    (C) Supplemental public approval. Before using proceeds of the 
bonds in a manner or amount not provided in a public approval, the 
issuer obtains a supplemental public approval for those bonds that 
meets the public approval requirement in paragraph (b) of this section. 
This supplemental public approval requirement applies by treating those 
bonds as if they were reissued for purposes of section 147(f).
    (7) Certain timing requirements. Public approval of an issue is 
timely only if the issuer obtains the public approval within one year 
before the issue date of the issue. Public approval of a plan of 
financing is timely only if the issuer obtains public approval for the 
plan of financing within one year before the issue date of the first 
issue issued under the plan of financing and the issuer issues all 
issues under the plan of financing within three years after the issue 
date of such first issue.
    (g) Definitions. The definitions in this paragraph (g) apply for 
purposes of this section. In addition, the general definitions in Sec.  
1.150-1 apply for purposes of this section.
    (1) Geographic jurisdiction means the area encompassed by the 
boundaries prescribed by State or local law for a

[[Page 45241]]

governmental unit or, if there are no such boundaries, the area in 
which a unit may exercise such sovereign powers that make that unit a 
governmental unit for purposes of Sec.  1.103-1 and this section.
    (2) Governmental unit has the meaning of ``State or local 
governmental unit'' as defined in Sec.  1.103-1. Thus, a governmental 
unit is a State, territory, a possession of the United States, the 
District of Columbia, or any political subdivision thereof.
    (3) Host approval is defined in paragraph (b)(3) of this section.
    (4) Issuer approval is defined in paragraph (b)(2) of this section.
    (5) Mortgage revenue bonds mean qualified mortgage bonds as defined 
in section 143(a), qualified veterans' mortgage bonds as defined in 
section 143(b), or refunding bonds issued to finance mortgages of 
owner-occupied residences pursuant to applicable law in effect prior to 
enactment of section 143(a) or section 143(b).
    (6) Proceeds means ``proceeds'' as defined in Sec.  1.141-1(b), 
except that it does not include disposition proceeds.
    (7) Project generally means one or more capital projects or 
facilities, including land, buildings, equipment, and other property, 
to be financed with an issue, that are located on the same site, or 
adjacent or proximate sites used for similar purposes, and that are 
subject to the public approval requirement of section 147(f). For an 
issue of mortgage revenue bonds or an issue of qualified student loan 
bonds as defined in section 144(b), the term project means the mortgage 
loans or qualified student loans to be financed with the proceeds of 
the issue. For an issue of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds as defined in 
section 145, the term project means a project as defined in the first 
sentence of this definition, and also is deemed to include working 
capital expenditures to be financed with proceeds of the issue.
    (8) Public approval information is defined in paragraph (f)(6)(i) 
of this section.
    (9) Public hearing is defined in paragraph (d)(1) of this section.
    (10) Reasonable public notice is defined in paragraph (d)(4) of 
this section.
    (11) Voter referendum means a vote by the voters of the affected 
governmental unit conducted in the same manner and time as voter 
referenda on matters relating to governmental spending or bond 
issuances by the governmental unit under applicable State and local 
law.
    (h) Applicability date. This section applies to bonds issued 
pursuant to a public approval occurring on or after the date that is 90 
days after publication of the Treasury decision adopting these rules as 
final regulations in the Federal Register. For bonds issued pursuant to 
a public approval occurring before that date, see Sec.  5f.103-2 as 
contained in 26 CFR part 5f, revised as of the date of the most recent 
annual revision.

PART 5f--TEMPORARY INCOME TAX REGULATIONS UNDER THE TAX EQUITY AND 
FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY ACT OF 1982

0
Par. 3. The authority citation for part 5f continues to read in part as 
follows:

    Authority:  26 U.S.C. 7805 * * *


Sec.  5f.103-2   [Removed]

0
Par. 4. Section 5f.103-2 is removed.

Kirsten Wielobob,
Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2017-20661 Filed 9-27-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4830-01-P
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