[4830-01-u] DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service 26 CFR Part 301 [IA-29-96] RIN 1545-AU42 Extensions of Time to Make Elections AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury. ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking by cross-reference to temporary regulations and notice of public hearing. SUMMARY: In the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal Register, the IRS is issuing temporary regulations relating to extensions of time for making certain elections under the Internal Revenue Code (Code). The regulations provide the standards that the Commissioner will use to grant taxpayers extensions of time for making these elections. The text of those temporary regulations also serves as the text of these proposed regulations. This document also provides notice of a public hearing on these proposed regulations. DATES: Written comments must be received by September 25, 1996. Outlines of oral comments to be presented at the public hearing scheduled for Wednesday, October 30, 1996, at 10 a.m. must be received by October 9, 1996. ADDRESSES: Send submissions to: CC:DOM:CORP:R (IA-29-96), room 5226, Internal Revenue Service, POB 7604, Ben Franklin Station, Washington, DC 20044. In the alternative, submissions may be delivered between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to: CC:DOM:CORP:R (IA-29-96), Courier's Desk, Internal Revenue Service, 1111 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC. The public hearing will be held in the IRS Classroom (room 2617), Internal Revenue Building, 1111 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Concerning the regulations, Robert A. Testoff of the Office of Assistant Chief Counsel (Income Tax & Accounting) at (202) 622-4960; concerning submissions and the hearing, Christina Vasquez of the Regulations Unit, (202) 622-7190 (not toll-free numbers). SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Paperwork Reduction Act The collection of information contained in this notice of proposed rulemaking has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507). Comments on the collection of information should be sent to the Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for the Department of the Treasury, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Washington, DC 20503, with copies to the Internal Revenue Service, Attn: IRS Reports Clearance Officer, T:FP, Washington, DC 20224. Comments on the collection of information should be received by August 26, 1996. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of information displays a valid control number. The collection of information is in 301.9100-2T and 301.9100-3T. This information is required for a taxpayer to obtain an extension of time to make an election. This information will be used by the IRS to determine whether to grant an extension of time to make an election. The likely respondents are businesses or other for-profit institutions, small businesses or organizations, nonprofit institutions, individuals or households, and farms. Books or records relating to the collection of information must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any internal revenue law. Generally, tax returns and tax return information are confidential, as required by 26 U.S.C. 6103. Estimated total annual reporting burden: 5,000 hours Estimated annual burden per respondent: 10 hours. Estimated number of respondents: 500 Estimated annual frequency of responses: Occasional Background Temporary regulations in the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal Register amend 26 CFR part 301. The temporary regulations contain rules relating to extensions of time for making certain elections. The text of those temporary regulations also serves as the text of these proposed regulations. The preamble to the temporary regulations explains the temporary regulations. Special Analyses It has been determined that this notice of proposed rulemaking is not a significant regulatory action as defined in EO 12866. Therefore, a regulatory assessment is not required. It has also been determined that section 553(b) of the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. chapter 5) and the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. chapter 6) do not apply to these regulations, and, therefore, a Regulatory Flexibility Analysis is not required. Pursuant to section 7805(f) of the Internal Revenue Code, this notice of proposed rulemaking will be submitted to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration for comment on its impact on small businesses. Comments and Public Hearing Before these proposed regulations are adopted as final regulations, consideration will be given to any written comments (a signed original and eight (8) copies) that are submitted timely to the IRS. All comments will be available for public inspection and copying. A public hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday, October 30, 1996, at 10 a.m. in the IRS Classroom (room 2617), Internal Revenue Building, 1111 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC. Because of access restrictions, visitors will not be admitted beyond the building lobby more than 15 minutes before the hearing starts. The rules of 601.601(a)(3) apply to the hearing. Persons that have submitted written comments by September 25, 1996, and want to present oral comments at the hearing must submit, by October 9, 1996, an outline of the topics to be discussed and the time to be devoted to each topic (signed original and eight (8) copies). A period of 10 minutes will be allotted to each person for making comments. An agenda showing the scheduling of the speakers will be prepared after the deadline for receiving outlines has passed. Copies of the agenda will be available free of charge at the hearing. Drafting Information The principal author of the temporary regulations is Robert A. Testoff of the Office of Assistant Chief Counsel (Income Tax and Accounting). However, other personnel from the IRS and Treasury Department participated in their development. List of Subjects in 26 CFR Part 301 Employment taxes, Estate taxes, Excise taxes, Gift taxes, Income taxes, Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements. Proposed Amendments to the Regulations Accordingly, 26 CFR part 301 is proposed to be amended as follows: PART 301--PROCEDURE AND ADMINISTRATION Paragraph 1. The authority citation for part 301 is amended by removing the entries for 301.9100-1T through 301.9100-3T and adding entries in numerical order to read as follows: Authority: 26 U.S.C. 7805 * * * Section 301.9100-1 also issued under 26 U.S.C. 6081; Section 301.9100-2 also issued under 26 U.S.C. 6081; Section 301.9100-3 also issued under 26 U.S.C. 6081; * * * Par. 2. Sections 301.9100-1 and 301.9100-1T through 301.9100-3T are removed. Par. 3. Sections 301.9100-1 through 301.9100-3 are added to read as follows: 301.9100-1 Extensions of time to make elections. 301.9100-2 Automatic extensions. 301.9100-3 Other extensions. [The text of these above proposed sections are the same as the text of 301.9100-1T through 301.9100-3T published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.] Commissioner of Internal Revenue