Department of the Treasury January 21, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This Treasury decision establishes the 4,145-acre ``Snipes Mountain'' viticultural area in Yakima County, Washington. We designate viticultural areas to allow vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow consumers to better identify wines they may purchase.

This document contains corrections to final and temporary regulations (TD 9435) that were published in the Federal Register on Monday, December 15, 2008 (73 FR 75946) providing guidance regarding the distribution of stock of a controlled corporation acquired in a transaction described in section 355(a)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code. This action is necessary in light of amendments to section 355(b). These temporary regulations will affect corporations and their shareholders. The text of these temporary regulations also serves as the text of the proposed regulations set forth in the notice of proposed rulemaking on this subject in the Proposed Rules section in this issue of the Federal Register.

This document contains a correction to a notice of proposed rulemaking by cross-reference to temporary regulations (REG-150670-07) that was published in the Federal Register on Monday, December 15, 2008 (73 FR 75979) giving guidance regarding the distribution of stock of a controlled corporation acquired in a transaction described in section 355(a)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code. This action is necessary in light of amendments to section 355(b). The text of those regulations also serves as the text of these proposed regulations. These regulations will affect corporations and their shareholders.

This document contains proposed regulations under sections 301, 302, 304, 351, 354, 356, 358, 368, 861, 1001, and 1016 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). The proposed regulations provide guidance regarding the recovery of stock basis in distributions under section 301 and transactions that are treated as dividends to which section 301 applies, as well as guidance regarding the determination of gain and the basis of stock or securities received in exchange for, or with respect to, stock or securities in certain transactions. The proposed regulations affect shareholders and security holders of corporations. These proposed regulations are necessary to provide such shareholders and security holders with guidance regarding the allocation and recovery of basis on distributions of property.

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (``OFAC'') is publishing the names of 3 additional individuals whose property and interests in property have been blocked pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (``Kingpin Act'') (21 U.S.C. 1901-1908, 8 U.S.C. 1182).

FinCEN invites comment on a renewal without change of an information collection requirement contained in the form ``Suspicious Activity Report by Insurance Companies,'' or the SAR-IC, FinCEN Form 108. In the interim until Bank Secrecy Act database issues are resolved, insurance companies will report suspicious activities using the ``Suspicious Activity Report by the Securities and Futures Industries,'' (SAR-SF, FinCEN Form 101). This request for comments also covers 31 CFR 103.16. This request for comments is being made pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A).