Department of the Treasury July 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of the Treasury proposes regulations for the Resources and Ecosystem Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012 (RESTORE Act). The proposed regulations concern amounts available to eligible Louisiana parishes from the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund, a fund established in the Treasury of the United States by the RESTORE Act. Treasury published other proposed regulations for the RESTORE Act on September 6, 2013.

This document contains final regulations relating to the assessment of penalties against material advisors who fail to timely file a true and complete return. The regulations implement amendments made by the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004. These regulations affect material advisors responsible for disclosing reportable transactions.

In the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal Register, the IRS is issuing temporary regulations that modify the effective date provision of recently published final regulations under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code. The temporary regulations affect corporations whose stock is or was acquired by the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) pursuant to certain programs under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA). The text of those temporary regulations published in this issue of the Federal Register also serves as the text of these proposed regulations.

The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13(44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). Currently, the IRS is soliciting comments concerning the election to expense certain refineries.

The OCC, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on a continuing information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). In accordance with the requirements of the PRA, the OCC may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The OCC is soliciting comment concerning renewal of its information collection titled, ``Subordinated Debt.'' It is also giving notice that it has submitted the collection to OMB for review.

Closed meeting of the Art Advisory Panel will be held in Washington, DC.

This document contains final regulations that provide guidance on the annual fee imposed on covered entities engaged in the business of manufacturing or importing branded prescription drugs. This fee was enacted by section 9008 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by section 1404 of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. This document also withdraws the Branded Prescription Drug Fee temporary regulations and contains new temporary regulations regarding the definition of controlled group that apply beginning on January 1, 2015. The final regulations and the new temporary regulations affect persons engaged in the business of manufacturing or importing certain branded prescription drugs. The text of the temporary regulations in this document also serves as the text of proposed regulations set forth in a notice of proposed rulemaking (REG-123286- 14) on this subject in the Proposed Rules section in this issue of the Federal Register.

This document contains final and temporary regulations relating to the health insurance premium tax credit enacted by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, as amended by the Medicare and Medicaid Extenders Act of 2010, the Comprehensive 1099 Taxpayer Protection and Repayment of Exchange Subsidy Overpayments Act of 2011, and the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act of 2011 and the 3% Withholding Repeal and Job Creation Act. These regulations affect individuals who enroll in qualified health plans through Affordable Insurance Exchanges (Exchanges) and claim the premium tax credit, and Exchanges that make qualified health plans available to individuals. The text of the temporary regulations in this document also serves as the text of proposed regulations set forth in a notice of proposed rulemaking (REG-104579-13) on this subject in the Proposed Rules section in this issue of the Federal Register.

The Department of the Treasury, as part of its effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). The IRS is soliciting comments concerning information collection requirements related to limitations on passive activity losses and credits-treatment of self-charged items of income and expense.

This notice announces that the Department of the Treasury's Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance will convene a meeting on Thursday, August 7, 2014, in the Cash Room, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20220, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The meeting is open to the public, and the site is accessible to individuals with disabilities.

The Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Fiscal Service (Service) is issuing this final rule to amend our regulation governing the use of the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network by Federal agencies. Our regulation adopts, with some exceptions, the NACHA Operating Rules developed by NACHAThe Electronic Payments Association (NACHA) as the rules governing the use of the ACH Network by Federal agencies. We are issuing this rule to address changes that NACHA has made to the NACHA Operating Rules since the publication of NACHA's 2009 ACH Rules book. These changes include amendments set forth in NACHA's 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 Operating Rules books.

This document contains final regulations concerning the deductibility of start-up expenditures and organizational expenses for partnerships. The final regulations provide guidance regarding the deductibility of start-up expenditures and organizational expenses for partnerships following a termination of a partnership under section 708(b)(1)(B). These final regulations affect partnerships that undergo section 708(b)(1)(B) terminations and their partners.

The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). Currently, the IRS is soliciting comments concerning Form 4219, Statement of Liability of Lender, Surety, or Other Person for Withholding Taxes.

This document contains final regulations to amend the definition of research and experimental expenditures under section 174 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). In particular, these final regulations provide guidance on the treatment of amounts paid or incurred in connection with the development of tangible property, including pilot models. The final regulations will affect taxpayers engaged in research activities.

This document contains final regulations relating to section 1092 identified mixed straddles established after August 18, 2014. The final regulations explain how to account for unrealized gain or loss on a position held by a taxpayer prior to the time the taxpayer establishes a mixed straddle using straddle-by-straddle identification.

The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). The IRS is soliciting comments concerning information collection requirements related to deductions and reductions in earnings and profits (or accumulated profits) with respect to certain foreign deferred compensation plans maintained by certain foreign corporations or by foreign branches of domestic corporations.

This document contains final regulations that provide information reporting rules for certain passport applicants. These final regulations apply to certain individuals applying for passports (including renewals) and provide guidance to such individuals about the information that must be included with their passport applications.

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) establishes the approximately 690-square mile ``Upper Hiwassee Highlands'' viticultural area in Cherokee and Clay Counties, North Carolina, and Towns, Union, and Fannin Counties, Georgia. The viticultural area does not lie within or contain any other established viticultural area. TTB designates 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 amends final regulations (TD 9664) that were published in the Federal Register on May 9, 2014. The final regulations provide guidance on which costs incurred by estates or trusts other than grantor trusts (non-grantor trusts) are subject to the 2-percent floor for miscellaneous itemized deductions under section 67(a) of the Internal Revenue Code.

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (``OFAC'') is publishing the names of 5 individuals and 7 entities whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to Executive Order 13224 of September 23, 2001, ``Blocking Property and Prohibiting Transactions With Persons Who Commit, Threaten To Commit, or Support Terrorism.''

This document contains final regulations that provide guidance concerning the allocation and apportionment of interest expense by corporations owning a 10 percent or greater interest in a partnership, as well as the allocation and apportionment of interest expense using the fair market value method. These regulations also update the interest allocation regulations to conform to the statutory changes made by section 216 of the legislation commonly referred to as the Education Jobs and Medicaid Assistance Act (EJMAA), enacted on August 10, 2010, affecting the affiliation of certain foreign corporations for purposes of section 864(e). These regulations affect taxpayers that allocate and apportion interest expense.

FinCEN, a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (``Treasury''), invites all interested parties to comment on the Bank Secrecy Act (``BSA'') regulations implemented pursuant to section 104(e) of the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (``CISADA'') and consistent with its statutory mission under 31 U.S.C. 310. FinCEN is proposing to renew this information collection without change. The rule requires a U.S. bank that maintains a correspondent account for a foreign bank to inquire of the foreign bank, and report to FinCEN, certain information with respect to transactions or other financial services provided by that foreign bank. Under the rule, U.S. banks are required to report this information to FinCEN upon receiving a specific written request from FinCEN.

This document contains temporary regulations that authorize the disclosure of certain items of return information to the Bureau of the Census (Bureau) pursuant to section 6103(j)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). The temporary regulations are made pursuant to a request from the Secretary of Commerce. These regulations require no action by taxpayers and have no effect on their tax liabilities. Thus, no taxpayers are likely to be affected by the disclosures authorized by this guidance. The text of the temporary regulations also serves as the text of the proposed regulations set forth in the Proposed Rules section in this issue of the Federal Register.

The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). Currently, the IRS is soliciting comments concerning statements of liability of lender, surety, or other person for withholding taxes.