Internal Revenue Service December 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document contains amendments to the regulations relating to user fees for installment agreements. The amendments update the fees to reflect the actual costs of the services provided and create an exception to the increased fee for entering into installment agreements for low-income taxpayers. The amendments affect taxpayers who wish to pay their liabilities through installment agreements.

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 1139, Corporation Application for Tentative Refund.

This document contains regulations relating to a change in computing depreciation or amortization as well as a change from a nondepreciable or nonamortizable asset to a depreciable or amortizable asset (or vice versa). Specifically, these regulations provide guidance to any taxpayer that makes a change in depreciation or amortization on whether such a change is a change in method of accounting under section 446(e) of the Internal Revenue Code and on the application of section 1016(a)(2) in determining whether the change is a change in method of accounting.

This document contains corrections to a notice of proposed rulemaking that was published in the Federal Register on Thursday, September 7, 2006 (71 FR 52876), regarding the determination of the items of income or loss of a taxpayer with respect to a section 987 qualified business unit as well as the timing, amount, character and source of any section 987 gain or loss.

This document contains corrections to final regulations (TD 9276) that were published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, July 25, 2006 (71 FR 42049), amending the regulations that provide for determining the amount of income tax withholding on supplemental wages. These regulations apply to all employers and others making supplemental wage payments to employees.

This document cancels a public hearing on proposed regulations by cross-reference to temporary regulations relating to the railroad track maintenance credit determined for qualified railroad track maintenance expenditures paid or incurred by a Class II or Class III railroad and other eligible taxpayers during the taxable year.

On September 26, 2006, on page 56072 of the Federal Register (71 FR 56072), a notice of proposed rulemaking and notice of public hearing announced that a public hearing relating to allocation and accounting of tax-exempt bonds proceeds for purposes of the private activity bond restrictions will be held January 11, 2007, in the auditorium of the New Carrollton Federal Building, 5000 Ellin Road, Lanham, MD 20706. The location of the public hearing has changed.

On October 19, 2006, on page 61692 of the Federal Register (71 FR 61692), a notice of proposed rulemaking by cross-reference to temporary regulations and notice of public hearing announced that a public hearing concerning the application of section 199, which provides a deduction for income attributable to domestic production activities will be held February 5, 2007 in the auditorium of the New Carrollton Federal Building, 5000 Ellin Road, Lanham, MD 20706. The location of the public hearing has changed.

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 Tip Reporting Alternative Commitment (TRAC) for Most Industries.

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 regulation, REG-125638-01 (Final), (TD 9107) Guidance Regarding Deduction and Capitalization of Expenditures.

This document contains corrections to a notice of proposed rulemaking by cross-reference to temporary regulations, notice of proposed rulemaking, and notice of public hearing that was published in the Federal Register on Friday, August 4, 2006 (71 FR 44247) relating to the treatment of controlled services transactions under section 482. These regulations also provide guidance regarding the allocation of income from intangibles, in particular with respect to contributions by a controlled party to the value of an intangible owned by another controlled party, as it relates to controlled services transactions, and modify the regulations under section 861 concerning stewardship expenses to be consistent with the changes made to the regulations under section 482.

This document contains corrections to final and temporary regulations (TD 9278) that was published in the Federal Register on Friday, August 4, 2006 (71 FR 44466) regarding the treatment of controlled services transactions under section 482 and the allocation of income from intangibles, in particular with respect to contributions by a controlled party to the value of an intangible owned by another controlled party. This document also contains corrections to final and temporary regulations that modify the regulations under section 861 concerning stewardship expenses to be consistent with the changes made to the regulations under section 482.

In the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal Register, the IRS is issuing temporary regulations that affect component members of controlled groups of corporations and consolidated groups filing life-nonlife Federal income tax returns. They provide guidance regarding the apportionment of tax benefit items and the amount and type of information these members are required to submit with their returns. The text of those regulations also serves as the text of these proposed regulations.

In the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal Register, the IRS is issuing temporary regulations that provide guidance regarding the qualification of certain transactions as reorganizations described in section 368(a)(1)(D) where no stock and/or securities of the acquiring corporation is issued and distributed in the transaction. These regulations affect corporations engaging in such transactions and their shareholders. The text of those regulations also serves as the text of these proposed regulations.

This document contains corrections to final regulations that were published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, November 14, 2006 (71 FR 66232) relating to rules for determining bona fide residency in the following U.S. territories: American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands.

An open meeting of the Area 4 Taxpayer Advocacy Panel will be conducted (via teleconference). The Taxpayer Advocacy Panel is soliciting public comment, ideas, and suggestions on improving customer service at the Internal Revenue Service.

An open meeting of the Area 7 committee of the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel will be conducted (via teleconference). The Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP) is soliciting public comments, ideas, and suggestions on improving customer service at the Internal Revenue Service. The TAP will use citizen input to make recommendations to the Internal Revenue Service.

This document contains final regulations that provide guidance under section 9802(c) of the Internal Revenue Code relating to the exception for certain grandfathered church plans from the nondiscrimination requirements applicable to group health plans under section 9802(a) and (b). Final regulations relating to the nondiscrimination requirements under section 9802(a) and (b) are being published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register. The regulations will generally affect sponsors of and participants in certain self-funded church plans that are group health plans, and the regulations provide plan sponsors and plan administrators with guidance necessary to comply with the law.

This document contains temporary regulations relating to the reduction in taxable income under section 302 of the Katrina Emergency Tax Relief Act of 2005. The regulations affect taxpayers who provide housing in their principal residences to individuals displaced by Hurricane Katrina. 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 a proposal to make changes required by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) to the Form 5500 Annual Return/Report filed for employee benefit plans under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code (Code). The proposed changes supplement proposed revisions to the Form 5500 Annual Return/Report published, prior to the enactment of the PPA, by the Department of Labor, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (Agencies) in the Federal Register on July 21, 2006, at 71 FR 41616 (July 2006 Proposal). This supplemental proposal replaces the Schedule B, ``Actuarial Information,'' with separate actuarial schedules for single-employer plans (Schedule SB) and multiemployer plans (Schedule MB) to reflect PPA changes in funding and annual reporting requirements; adds new questions to the Schedule R, ``Retirement Plan Information,'' to collect additional information regarding single and multiemployer defined benefit pension plans required by the PPA; and proposes having the Form 5500-SF Annual Return/Report (Short Form 5500) included in the July 2006 Proposal serve as the simplified report required by the PPA for plans with fewer than 25 participants. The revisions are being proposed for 2008 plan year filings and would affect employee pension and welfare benefit plans, plan sponsors, administrators, and service providers to plans subject to annual reporting requirements under ERISA and the Code.

This document corrects notice of proposed rulemaking (REG- 121509-00) that was published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, August 29, 2006 (71 FR 51155). The document contains proposed regulations that provide guidance relating to the exclusion from gross income of previously taxed earnings and profits under section 959 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) and related basis adjustments under section 961 of the Code.

This document contains final regulations designed to eliminate regulatory impediments to the electronic filing of certain income tax returns and other forms. These regulations affect business taxpayers who file income tax returns electronically. This document also makes conforming changes to certain current regulations.