Department of Treasury 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (``OFAC'') is publishing the names of two newly designated entities whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to Executive Order 13382 of June 28, 2005, ``Blocking Property of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferators and Their Supporters.''

For the period beginning January 1, 2009, and ending on June 30, 2009, the prompt payment interest rate is 5\5/8\ per centum per annum.

This document contains final and temporary regulations that provide guidance relating to foreign base company sales income in cases in which personal property sold by a controlled foreign corporation is manufactured, produced, or constructed pursuant to a contract manufacturing arrangement or by one or more branches of the controlled foreign corporation. These regulations modify the foreign base company sales income regulations to address current business structures and practices, particularly the growing importance of contract manufacturing and other manufacturing arrangements. These regulations, in general, will affect controlled foreign corporations and their United States shareholders. The text of the 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 final regulations relating to disclosures of corporate tax return information to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (Bureau). The final regulations authorize the IRS to disclose certain items of corporate tax return information to the Secretary of Commerce for purposes of structuring United States national economic accounts and conducting related statistical activities authorized by law. The final regulations facilitate the assistance of the IRS to the Bureau in its statistics programs, require no action by taxpayers, and have no effect on their tax liabilities.

This document contains temporary regulations relating to the annual filing of Federal employment tax returns and requirements for employment tax deposits. These temporary regulations relate to sections 6011 and 6302 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) concerning reporting and paying income taxes withheld from wages and reporting and paying taxes under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) (collectively, ``employment taxes''). These temporary regulations generally allow certain employers to file a Form 944, ``Employer's ANNUAL Federal Tax Return,'' rather than Form 941, ``Employer's QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return.'' In addition to rules related to Form 944, the temporary regulations provide an additional method for employers who file Form 941 to determine whether the amount of accumulated employment taxes is considered de minimis. The portions of this document that are final regulations provide necessary cross-references to the temporary regulations. The text of these 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.

This document contains a correction to final regulations (TD 9434) that were published in the Federal Register on Friday, December 12, 2008 (73 FR75566) providing guidance regarding when and to what extent creditors of a corporation will be treated as proprietors of the corporation in determining whether continuity of interest (``COI'') is preserved in a potential reorganization. These final regulations are necessary to provide clarity to parties engaging in reorganizations of insolvent corporations, both inside and outside of bankruptcy. These final regulations affect corporations, their creditors, and their shareholders.

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the OCC, the Board, the FDIC, and the OTS (the ``agencies'') 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 Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), of which the agencies are members, has approved the agencies' publication for public comment of a proposal to extend, with revision, the Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income (Call Report) for banks, the Thrift Financial Report (TFR) for savings associations, the Report of Assets and Liabilities of U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks (FFIEC 002), and the Report of Assets and Liabilities of a Non-U.S. Branch that is Managed or Controlled by a U.S. Branch or Agency of a Foreign (Non-U.S.) Bank (FFIEC 002S), all of which are currently approved collections of information. At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the FFIEC and the agencies should modify the proposed revisions prior to giving final approval. The agencies will then submit the revisions to OMB for review and approval.

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 an existing final regulation, REG-209709-94 (TD 8865), Amortization of Intangible Property (Sec. 1.197-2).

This document contains proposed regulations under section 6707 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code), which provide the rules relating to the assessment of penalties against material advisors who fail to timely file a true and complete return required under section 6111(a). The regulations implement the amendments to section 6707 by the American Jobs Creation Act and promote material advisors' compliance with the regulations under section 6111. These regulations affect material advisors responsible for disclosing reportable transactions under section 6111.

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 Notice 2005-64, Foreign Tax Credit and Other Guidance under Section 965.

The President's Advisory Council on Financial Literacy will convene its seventh meeting on Tuesday, January 6, 2009, beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern Time. The meeting will be open to the public.

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. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OCC is soliciting comment concerning its information collection titled, ``Fiduciary Activities of National Banks12 CFR part 9.'' The OCC is also giving notice that it has submitted the collection to OMB for review.

This document contains final regulations that provide rules relating to the disclosure and use of tax return information by tax return preparers. These regulations affect tax return preparers and provide updated guidance regarding the disclosure of a taxpayer's social security number to a tax return preparer located outside of the United States.

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 Bureau of the Public Debt within the Department of the Treasury is soliciting comments concerning the Application By Voluntary Guardian of Incapacitated Owner of United States Savings Bonds/Notes.

This document contains final and temporary regulations that provide 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 (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 final and temporary regulations (TD 9430) that were published in the Federal Register on Monday, November 10, 2008 (73 FR 66539) relating to information returns for cancellation of indebtedness by certain entities. The temporary regulations will avoid premature information reporting from certain businesses that are currently required to report and will reduce the number of information returns required to be filed. The temporary regulations will impact certain lenders who are currently required to file information returns under the existing regulations.

The Director of the Office of Thrift Supervision has determined that the establishment of the OTS Mutual Savings Association Advisory Committee is necessary and in the public interest in order to study the needs of and challenges facing mutual savings associations. OTS is seeking nominations of individuals to be considered for selection as Committee members and the names of professional and public interest groups that should be represented on the Committee.