[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 251 (Thursday, December 31, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 86871-86876]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28931]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Internal Revenue Service
26 CFR Part 300
[REG-114615-16]
RIN 1545-BP75
User Fee for Estate Tax Closing Letter
AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
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SUMMARY: This document contains proposed regulations establishing a new
user fee for authorized persons who wish to request the issuance of IRS
Letter 627, also referred to as an estate tax closing letter. The
Independent Offices Appropriations Act of 1952 authorizes charging user
fees in appropriate circumstances. The proposed regulations affect
persons who request an estate tax closing letter.
DATES: Written or electronic comments and requests for a public hearing
must be received by March 1, 2021. Requests for a public hearing must
be submitted as prescribed in the ``Comments and Requests for a Public
Hearing'' section.
ADDRESSES: Commenters are strongly encouraged to submit public comments
electronically. Submit electronic submissions via the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov (indicate IRS and REG-
114615-16) by following the online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted to the Federal eRulemaking Portal, comments
cannot be edited or withdrawn. The IRS expects to have limited
personnel available to process public comments that are submitted on
paper through mail. Until further notice, any comments submitted on
paper will be considered to the extent practicable. The Department of
the Treasury (Treasury Department) and the IRS will publish for public
availability any comment submitted electronically, and to the extent
practicable on paper, to its public docket. Send paper submissions to:
CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG-114615-16), Room 5203, Internal Revenue Service, P.O.
Box 7604, Ben Franklin Station, Washington, DC 20044.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Concerning submissions of comments
and/or requests for a public hearing, Regina Johnson, at (202) 317-
5177; concerning cost methodology, Michael Weber, at (202) 803-9738;
concerning the proposed regulations, Juli Ro Kim, at (202) 317-6859
(not toll-free numbers).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 86872]]
Background and Explanation of Provisions
A. Overview
This document contains proposed amendments to the User Fee
Regulations (26 CFR part 300) to establish a user fee applicable to
requests for estate tax closing letters provided by the IRS to an
authorized person. (The term ``authorized person'' is used herein to
refer to a decedent's estate or other person properly authorized under
section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) to receive, and
therefore, to request, an estate tax closing letter with respect to the
estate.) The IRS issues estate tax closing letters upon request of an
authorized person only after an estate tax return (generally, Form 706,
United States Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return) has
been accepted by the IRS (1) as filed, (2) after an adjustment to which
the estate has agreed, or (3) after an adjustment in the deceased
spousal unused exclusion (DSUE) amount. An estate tax closing letter
informs an authorized person of the acceptance of the estate tax return
and certain other return information, including the amount of the net
estate tax, the State death tax credit or deduction, and any
generation-skipping transfer tax for which the estate is liable.\1\
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\1\ In the context of a Form 706 (a ``return'' as defined in
section 6103(b)(1)), the term ``return information'' is broadly
defined in section 6103(b)(2) to include not only information
appearing on the Form 706, but also whether the estate's return was,
is being, or will be examined or subject to other investigation or
processing, or any other data, received by, recorded by, prepared
by, furnished to, or collected by the Secretary of the Treasury or
his delegate (Secretary) with respect to the Form 706 or with
respect to the determination of the existence, or possible
existence, of liability (or the amount thereof) of any person under
the Code for any tax, penalty, interest, fine, forfeiture, or other
imposition, or offense.
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The IRS understands that knowledge of the acceptance by the IRS of
the estate tax return--including the amount of the gross estate and the
estate tax liability--is important to executors or other persons
administering estates because of the unique nexus between an estate's
Federal estate tax obligations and State and local law obligations to
administer and close a probate estate. This knowledge aids an
executor's ability to make the final division and distribution of
estate assets and to avoid potential personal liability for unpaid
estate tax in making such distribution. Personal liability can be
imposed on an executor when the executor makes preferential payments to
creditors or distributions to beneficiaries, leaving insufficient funds
for the full payment of the tax owed to the government. See 31 U.S.C.
3713(b). On the other hand, an estate tax closing letter does not
indicate whether any of the estate tax has been paid or the amount of
estate tax that has been paid.
The estate tax closing letter also includes relevant procedural and
substantive explanations. Addressing the potential for conflating an
estate tax closing letter with a formal closing agreement, the letter
confirms that it is not a formal closing agreement with the IRS that is
described under section 7121 of the Code. Additionally, the estate tax
closing letter explains that, consistent with Rev. Proc. 2005-32, 2005-
1 C.B. 1206, the IRS will not reopen or examine the estate tax return
to determine the estate tax liability of a decedent's estate unless the
estate notifies the IRS of changes to the estate tax return or if there
is (1) evidence of fraud, malfeasance, collusion, concealment, or
misrepresentation of a material fact, (2) a clearly defined substantial
error based upon an established IRS position, or (3) a serious
administrative omission. However, the estate tax closing letter does
not limit or foreclose future adjustments to the DSUE amount shown on
the estate tax return, so the estate tax closing letter further
explains that the IRS has authority to examine returns of a decedent in
the context of determining the DSUE amount for portability purposes.
(See part C of this section for a discussion of portability of the DSUE
amount.) Finally, the estate tax closing letter includes explanations
related to the potential application of sections 6166 and 6324A
(installment payments and special extended lien), 2204 (discharge of
personal liability), and 6324 (estate tax lien). Currently, the IRS
does not charge for providing an estate tax closing letter to
authorized persons.
B. June 2015 Change to IRS Practice in Issuing Estate Tax Closing
Letters
The practice of issuing estate tax closing letters to authorized
persons is not mandated by any provision of the Code or other statutory
requirement. Instead, the practice is fundamentally a customer service
convenience offered to authorized persons in view of the unique nature
of estate tax return filings and the bearing of an estate's Federal
estate tax obligations on the obligation to administer and close a
probate estate under applicable State and local law. Essentially, the
practice takes into account estates' and stakeholders' need for
information regarding the status of an estate's Federal tax obligations
in administering and closing a probate estate. Prior to June 2015, the
IRS generally issued an estate tax closing letter for every estate tax
return filed. However, for estate tax returns filed on or after June 1,
2015, the IRS changed its practice and now offers an estate tax closing
letter only upon the request of an authorized person.
The IRS changed its practice of issuing estate tax closing letters
for every filed Form 706 for two primary reasons. First, the volume of
estate tax return filings increased at the same time that the IRS
experienced additional budget and resource constraints. In particular,
the number of estate tax filings increased dramatically due to the
enactment in December 2010 of portability of a deceased spouse's unused
applicable exclusion amount (DSUE amount) for the benefit of a
surviving spouse. (See part C for a discussion of the impact of
portability of the DSUE amount on estate tax filings.) Second, the IRS
recognized that an account transcript with a transaction code and
explanation of ``421--Closed examination of tax return'' is an
available alternative to the estate tax closing letter. See Notice
2017-12, I.R.B. 2017-5 (describing the utility of the account
transcript in lieu of the estate tax closing letter and its
availability at no charge). Notwithstanding these considerations, the
IRS was aware that executors, local probate courts, State tax
departments, and others had come to rely on the convenience of estate
tax closing letters and the return information and procedural and
substantive explanations such letters provided for confirmation that
the examination of the estate tax return by the IRS had been completed
and the IRS file had been closed. Accordingly, in 2015 the IRS decided
to continue providing the service of issuing estate tax closing
letters, still at no charge, but only upon the request of an authorized
person.
Until restrictions were added due to the ongoing Coronavirus
Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, an authorized person was able to
request an estate tax closing letter by telephone or fax. Now, due to
the COVID-19 pandemic, an authorized person may request an estate tax
closing letter only by fax (current procedure and details available at
http://www.irs.gov).
C. The Continuing Impact of Portability on Estate Tax Return Filings
Portability of the DSUE amount became effective for estates of
decedents dying after December 31, 2010, upon enactment of the Tax
Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of
2010, Public Law 111-312, 124 Stat.
[[Page 86873]]
3296, 3302 (Dec. 17, 2010), and became permanent upon enactment of the
American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, Public Law 112-240, 126 Stat.
2313 (January 2, 2013). In order to elect portability of the DSUE
amount for the benefit of the surviving spouse, the estate of the
deceased spouse must timely file an estate tax return, even if the sum
of the value of the gross estate and the amount of adjusted taxable
gifts is insufficient to trigger a filing requirement under section
6018(a). In calendar year 2016, the number of estate tax returns filed
solely to elect portability of the DSUE amount was approximately
20,000, compared to approximately 12,000 estate tax returns filed
because of a filing requirement under section 6018(a).
D. Establishment of User Fee for Estate Tax Closing Letters
The IRS continues to experience significant budget and resource
constraints that require the IRS to allocate its existing resources as
efficiently as possible. The volume of estate tax return filings
remains high (approximately 30,500 estate tax returns filed in 2018),
in large part attributable to estate tax returns that are filed for
estates having no tax liability or filing requirement under section
6018 and that are filed solely to elect portability of the DSUE amount
for the benefit of the surviving spouse of a decedent.
While the practice of issuing estate tax closing letters is
intended as a customer service convenience to authorized persons based
on an understanding of the unique nexus between an estate's Federal
estate tax obligations and the estate's obligations under applicable
local law for State and local estate and inheritance taxes and to
administer and close a probate estate, the Treasury Department and the
IRS received feedback from taxpayers and practitioners that the
procedure for requesting an estate tax closing letter can be
inconvenient and burdensome. When requests had been accepted by
telephone, a request could not be made until the IRS's examination of
the estate tax return had been completed. Taxpayer representatives,
therefore, often needed to repeat the telephone request, sometimes
multiple times, before the request could be accepted by the IRS.
Currently, the instructions on http://www.irs.gov advise that, prior to
faxing a request, an account transcript should be requested and
reviewed to ensure the transaction code and explanation of ``421--
Closed examination of tax return'' are present. Account transcripts are
available online to registered tax professionals using the IRS's
Transcript Delivery System (TDS) or to authorized persons making
requests using Form 4506-T.
In view of the resource constraints and purpose of issuing estate
tax closing letters as a convenience to authorized persons, the IRS has
identified the provision of estate tax closing letters as an
appropriate service for which to establish a user fee to recover the
costs that the government incurs in providing such letters.
Accordingly, the Treasury Department and the IRS propose establishing a
user fee for estate tax closing letter requests (see parts E and F for
explanation of the authority to establish the user fee). As currently
determined, the user fee is $67, as detailed in part H.
Guidance on the procedure for requesting an estate tax closing
letter and paying the associated user fee is not provided in these
proposed regulations. The Treasury Department and the IRS expect to
implement a procedure that will improve convenience and reduce burden
for authorized persons requesting estate tax closing letters by
initiating a one-step, web-based procedure to accomplish the request of
the estate tax closing letter as well as the payment of the user fee.
As presently contemplated, a Federal payment website, such as http://www.pay.gov, will be used and multiple requests will not be necessary.
The Treasury Department and the IRS believe implementing such a one-
step procedure will reduce the current administrative burden on
authorized persons in requesting estate tax closing letters and will
limit the burden associated with the establishment of a user fee for
providing such service.
E. User Fee Authority
The Independent Offices Appropriations Act of 1952 (IOAA) (31
U.S.C. 9701) authorizes each agency to promulgate regulations
establishing the charge for services provided by the agency (user
fees). The IOAA provides that these user fee regulations are subject to
policies prescribed by the President and shall be as uniform as
practicable. Those policies are currently set forth in the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-25, 58 FR 38142 (July 15, 1993;
OMB Circular).
The IOAA states that the services provided by an agency should be
self-sustaining to the extent possible. 31 U.S.C. 9701(a). The OMB
Circular states that agencies providing services that confer special
benefits on identifiable recipients beyond those accruing to the
general public must identify those services, determine whether user
fees should be assessed for those services, and, if so, establish user
fees that recover the full cost of providing those services.
As required by the IOAA and the OMB Circular, agencies are to
review user fees biennially and update them as necessary to reflect
changes in the cost of providing the underlying services. During these
biennial reviews, an agency must calculate the full cost of providing
each service, taking into account all direct and indirect costs to any
part of the U.S. Government. The full cost of providing a service
includes, but is not limited to, salaries, retirement benefits, rents,
utilities, travel, and management costs, as well as an appropriate
allocation of overhead and other support costs associated with
providing the service.
An agency should set the user fee at an amount that recovers the
full cost of providing the service unless the agency requests, and the
OMB grants, an exception to the full cost requirement. The OMB may
grant exceptions only where the cost of collecting the fees would
represent an unduly large part of the fee for the activity, or where
any other condition exists that, in the opinion of the agency head,
justifies an exception. When the OMB grants an exception, the agency
does not collect the full cost of providing the service and therefore
must fund the remaining cost of providing the service from other
available funding sources. When the OMB grants an exception, the
agency, and by extension all taxpayers, subsidize the cost of the
service to the recipients who otherwise would be required to pay the
full cost of providing the service, as the IOAA and the OMB Circular
directs.
F. Special Benefits Conferred by Issuance of Estate Tax Closing Letters
The issuance of an estate tax closing letter, and the return
information and procedural and substantive explanations such letters
provide, constitutes the provision of a service and confers special
benefits on identifiable recipients beyond those accruing to the
general public. Upon receipt of an estate tax closing letter,
authorized persons can make use of the return information and
procedural and substantive explanations provided in the letter for non-
Federal tax purposes, for example, to facilitate the executor's ability
to make the final distribution of estate assets and to respond as
needed to non-Federal tax authorities and entities, such as local
probate courts, State tax departments, and private stakeholders.
Further, executors of such estates can make use of the return
information pertaining to the estate's Federal tax
[[Page 86874]]
liability to avoid potential personal liability for payment of the tax
under 31 U.S.C. 3713.
Moreover, letters comparable to estate tax closing letters are not
universally available or provided to taxpayers filing Federal tax
returns other than estate tax returns, upon request by authorized
persons or otherwise. By comparison, account transcripts are
universally provided by the IRS upon request to all taxpayers. After
issuing Notice 2017-12 to publicize the availability and utility of an
account transcript as an alternative in lieu of an estate tax closing
letter, the feedback the IRS received from stakeholders reflects a
definite preference for the return information and procedural and
substantive explanations provided by the IRS in an estate tax closing
letter. While the IRS will continue to offer transcripts as an
alternative in lieu of estate tax closing letters at no charge, an
authorized person may choose which service best supports their needs
based upon the specific circumstances of the decedent's estate. Estate
tax closing letters are uniquely available for authorized persons that
have need of such special benefits.
For these reasons, the issuance of an estate tax closing letter
constitutes the provision of a service and confers special benefits to
authorized persons requesting such letters beyond those accruing to the
general public. Accordingly, the IRS is authorized, pursuant to the
IOAA and the OMB Circular, to charge a user fee for the issuance of an
estate tax closing letter that reflects the full cost of providing this
service. See also section 6103(p)(2)(B) (allowing for a reasonable fee
for furnishing return information to any person).
G. Calculation of User Fees Generally
User fee calculations begin by first determining the full cost for
the service. The IRS follows the guidance provided by the OMB Circular
to compute the full cost of the service, which includes all indirect
and direct costs to any part of the U.S. Government including but not
limited to direct and indirect personnel costs, physical overhead,
rents, utilities, travel, and management costs. The IRS's cost
methodology is described later in this part G.
Once the total amount of direct and indirect costs associated with
a service is determined, the IRS follows the guidance in the OMB
Circular to determine the costs associated with providing the service
to each recipient, which represents the average per unit cost of that
service. This average per unit cost is the amount of the user fee that
will recover the full cost of the service.
The IRS follows generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), as
established by the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB),
in calculating the full cost of providing services. The FASAB Handbook
of Accounting Standards and Other Pronouncements, as amended, which is
available at http://files.fasab.gov/pdffiles/2019_fasab-handbook.pdf,
includes the Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards 4:
Managerial Cost Accounting Standards and Concepts (SFFAS No. 4) for the
Federal Government. SFFAS No. 4 establishes internal costing standards
under GAAP to accurately measure and manage the full cost of Federal
programs. The methodology described in the remainder of this part G is
in accordance with SFFAS No. 4.
1. Cost Center Allocation
The IRS determines the cost of its services and the activities
involved in producing them through a cost accounting system that tracks
costs to organizational units. The lowest organizational unit in the
IRS's cost accounting system is called a cost center. Cost centers are
usually separate offices that are distinguished by subject-matter area
of responsibility or geographic region. All costs of operating a cost
center are recorded in the IRS's cost accounting system and are
allocated to that cost center. The costs allocated to a cost center are
the direct costs for the cost center's activities as well as all
indirect costs, including overhead, associated with that cost center.
Each cost is recorded in only one cost center.
2. Determining the per Unit Cost
To establish the per unit cost, the total cost of providing the
service is divided by the volume of services provided. The volume of
services provided includes both services for which a fee is charged as
well as subsidized services. The subsidized services are those where
OMB has approved an exception to the full cost requirement, for
example, to charge a reduced fee to low-income taxpayers. The volume of
subsidized services is included in the total volume of services
provided to ensure that the IRS, and not those who are paying full
cost, subsidizes the cost of the reduced-cost services.
3. Cost Estimation of Direct Labor and Benefits
Not all cost centers are fully devoted to only one service for
which the IRS charges a user fee. Some cost centers work on a number of
different services. In these cases, the IRS estimates the cost incurred
in those cost centers attributable to the service for which a user fee
is being calculated by measuring the time required to accomplish
activities related to the service, and estimating the average time
required to accomplish these activities. The average time required to
accomplish these activities is multiplied by the relevant
organizational unit's average labor and benefits cost per unit of time
to determine the labor and benefits cost incurred to provide the
service. To determine the full cost, the IRS then adds an appropriate
overhead charge, as discussed in part G.4.
4. Calculating Overhead
Overhead is an indirect cost of operating an organization that
cannot be immediately associated with an activity that the organization
performs. Overhead includes costs of resources that are jointly or
commonly consumed by one or more organizational unit's activities but
are not specifically identifiable to a single activity.
These costs can include:
General management and administrative services of
sustaining and support organizations;
Facilities management and ground maintenance services
(security, rent, utilities, and building maintenance);
Procurement and contracting services;
Financial management and accounting services;
Information technology services;
Services to acquire and operate property, plants, and
equipment;
Publication, reproduction, and graphics and video
services;
Research, analytical, and statistical services;
Human resources/personnel services; and
Library and legal services.
To calculate the overhead allocable to a service, the IRS
multiplies a corporate overhead rate (Corporate Overhead rate) by the
direct labor and benefits costs determined as discussed above in part
G.3. The Corporate Overhead rate is the ratio of the sum of the IRS's
indirect labor and benefits costs from the supporting and sustaining
organizational units--those that do not interact directly with
taxpayers--and all non-labor costs to the IRS's labor and benefits
costs of its organizational units that interact directly with
taxpayers. The IRS calculates the Corporate Overhead rate annually
based on cost elements underlying the Statement of Net Cost included in
the IRS Annual Financial Statements, which are audited
[[Page 86875]]
by the Government Accountability Office.
The Corporate Overhead rate of 74 percent (rounded to the nearest
hundredth) for costs reviewed during fiscal year (FY) 2018 was
calculated based on (FY) 2017 costs, as follows:
Indirect Labor and Benefits Costs: $1,705,152,274
Non-Labor Costs: + $3,213,504,014
Total Indirect Costs: $4,918,656,288
Direct Labor and Benefits Costs: / $6,640,044,003
Corporate Overhead Rate: 74.08%
H. Description and Tables Showing Full Cost Determination for Estate
Tax Closing Letter
The IRS followed the guidance provided by the OMB Circular to
compute the full cost of issuing estate tax closing letters to an
authorized person. The OMB Circular explains that the full cost
includes all indirect and direct costs to any part of the Federal
Government including but not limited to direct and indirect personnel
costs, physical overhead, rents, utilities, travel, and management
costs.
1. Request Processing Costs
Requests for estate tax closing letters are processed by GS Grade 5
and Grade 8 customer service representatives. Grade 5 representatives
perform 80 percent of the work and Grade 8 representatives perform the
remaining 20 percent of the work. The customer service representative
verifies that the request is authorized and that the address
information is correct. Because a separate estate tax closing letter is
prepared for each executor, responding to requests often requires more
than one letter, with an average of three letters per request. It
requires approximately 0.65 staff hours for a customer service
representative to review the return, create the estate tax closing
letters, and prepare the letters for mailing. The IRS received an
average of 17,249 requests for estate tax closing letters in FY 2017
and FY 2018 requiring 11,154 staff hours.
Total hours allocated to the cost must also include indirect hours
for campus employees. Indirect hours are calculated by multiplying the
direct hours by the indirect rate for employees, which is 60 percent.
Using this information, IRS determined the total staff hours to process
requests for estate tax closing letters are 17,846 as follows:
Staff Hours: 11,154
Indirect Hours (60%): 6,692
Total Hours: 17,846
To determine the labor and benefits costs, IRS converted total
hours to full time employees (FTE) by dividing the total hours by
2,080, which is the number of hours worked by a full time employee
during the year, resulting in 8.58 FTE. IRS calculated the cost per FTE
by adding 80 percent of the average salary and benefits for a GS 5 to
20 percent of the average salary and benefits for a GS 8 campus
employee and determined the cost of labor and benefits related to this
program is $ 578,831 (rounded to the nearest whole dollar), as follows:
GS-5 Salary and Benefits ($62,330 x 80%): $49,864
GS-8 Salary and Benefits ($87,993 x 20%): $17,599
Total Cost per FTE: $67,463
Total FTE: 8.58
Total Labor & Benefits for processing requests: $578,831
2. Quality Assurance Review Costs
Outgoing estate tax closing letters are subjected to quality review
performed by GS 8 Grade quality assurance professionals. Specifically,
five of every 100 estate tax closing letters mailed are reviewed for
quality assurance. A quality assurance professional opens the return to
(1) ensure the estate tax closing letter was authorized, (2) verify
that the correct information was included in the letter, and (3) verify
the address information. Quality assurance professionals then document
their review. On average, quality assurance professionals spend .5
staff hours to review one estate tax closing letter. The estimated
labor hours for quality assurance related to estate tax closing letters
are 1,294, determined as follows:
Estimated Volume of Requests: 17,249
Average Number of Letters per Request: x 3
Total Letters Available for Review: 51,747
Estimated Letters Reviewed (5%): 2,587
Hours per Review: x 0.5
Estimated Quality Assurance Hours: 1,294
Indirect Hours (60%): 776
Total Quality Assurance Hours: 2,070
Total FTE: 1.00
Cost Per Grade 8: $87,993
Total Salary and Benefits for Quality Assurance: $87,563
3. Overhead Calculation
The IRS applied the Corporate Overhead rate to the labor and
benefits costs to calculate the full cost for issuing an estate tax
closing letter. The full cost of the program is $ 1,160,058, determined
as follows:
Total Processing Labor & Benefits: $578,831
Total Quality Assurance Labor & Benefits: $87,563
Total Labor and Benefits: $666,394
Corporate Overhead (74.08%): + $493,664
Full Cost: $1,160,058
To calculate the cost per request, IRS divided $ 1,160,058 by the
volume of 17,249 requests. The cost to issue an estate tax closing
letter is $ 67 (rounded to the nearest whole dollar), determined as
follows:
Full Cost: $1,160,058
Estimated Volume: / 17,249
Cost Per Request: $67
Proposed Applicability Date
These regulations are proposed to apply to requests for an estate
tax closing letter received by the IRS after the date that is 30 days
after the date of publication in the Federal Register of a Treasury
decision adopting these rules as final regulations.
Special Analyses
This regulation is not subject to review under section 6(b) of
Executive Order 12866 pursuant to the Memorandum of Agreement (April
11, 2018) between the Treasury Department and the Office of Management
and Budget regarding review of tax regulations. Pursuant to the
Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. chapter 6), it is hereby certified
that these regulations will not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities. The proposed regulations, which
prescribe a fee to obtain a particular service, affect decedents'
estates, which generally are not ``small entities'' as defined under 5
U.S.C. 601(6). Thus, these regulations have no economic impact on small
entities. In addition, the dollar amount of the fee ($67 as currently
determined) is not substantial enough to have a significant economic
impact on any entities that could be affected by establishing such a
fee. Accordingly, the Secretary certifies that the rule will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
Pursuant to section 7805(f) of the Code, this notice of proposed
rulemaking will be submitted to the Chief Counsel for the Office of
Advocacy of the Small Business Administration for comment on its impact
on small business.
Comments and Requests for a Public Hearing
Before these 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 IRS request
[[Page 86876]]
comments on all aspects of the proposed regulations. Any electronic
comments submitted, and to the extent practicable any paper comments
submitted, will be available at http://www.regulations.gov or upon
request.
A public hearing will be scheduled if requested in writing by any
person who timely submits electronic or written comments as prescribed
in this preamble under the DATES heading. Requests for a public hearing
are also encouraged to be made electronically. If a public hearing is
scheduled, notice of the date and time for the public hearing will be
published in the Federal Register. Announcement 2020-4, 2020-17 I.R.B.
1, provides that until further notice, public hearings conducted by the
IRS will be held telephonically. Any telephonic hearing will be made
accessible to people with disabilities.
Drafting Information
The principal author of these regulations is Juli Ro Kim of the
Office of Associate Chief Counsel (Passthroughs and Special
Industries). Other personnel from the Treasury Department and the IRS
participated in the development of the regulations.
Statement of Availability of IRS Documents
IRS Revenue Procedures, Revenue Rulings notices, and other guidance
cited in this document are published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin
(or Cumulative Bulletin) and are available from the Superintendent of
Documents, U.S. Government Publishing Office, Washington, DC 20402, or
by visiting the IRS website at http://www.irs.gov.
List of Subjects in 26 CFR Part 300
Estate taxes, Excise taxes, Gift taxes, Income taxes, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, User fees.
Proposed Amendments to the Regulations
Accordingly, 26 CFR part 300 is proposed to be amended as follows:
PART 300--USER FEES
0
Paragraph 1. The authority citation for part 300 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 31 U.S.C. 9701.
0
Par. 2. Section 300.0 is amended by adding paragraph (b)(13) to read as
follows:
Sec. 300.0 User fees; in general.
* * * * *
(b) * * *
(13) Requesting an estate tax closing letter.
0
Par. 3. Section 300.13 is added to read as follows:
Sec. 300.13 Fee for estate tax closing letter.
(a) Applicability. This section applies to the request by a person
described in paragraph (c) of this section for an estate tax closing
letter from the IRS.
(b) Fee. The fee for issuing an estate tax closing letter is $67.
(c) Person liable for the fee. The person liable for the fee is the
estate of the decedent or other person properly authorized under
section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code to receive and therefore to
request the estate tax closing letter with respect to the estate.
(d) Applicability date. This section applies to requests received
by the IRS after [date that is 30 days after these regulations are
published as final regulations in the Federal Register].
Douglas W. O'Donnell,
Acting Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2020-28931 Filed 12-29-20; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4830-01-P