Rules and Regulations

§ 601.526

26 CFR Ch. I (4–1–10 Edition)

§ 601.526 Revocation of powers of attorney and tax information authorizations.
The revocation of the authority of a
representative covered by a power of
attorney or tax information authorization filed in an office of the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms shall
in no case be effective prior to the giving of written notice to the proper official that the authority of such representative has been revoked.
[34 FR 6432, Apr. 12, 1969, as amended at 45
FR 7259, Feb. 1, 1980]

§ 601.527 Other provisions applied to
representation in alcohol, tobacco,
and firearms activities.
The provisions of paragraph (b) of
§ 601.505, and of §§ 601.506 through 601.508
of this subpart, as applicable, shall be
followed in offices of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
[34 FR 6433, Apr. 12, 1969, as amended at 34
FR 14604, Sept. 19, 1969; 45 FR 7259, Feb. 1,
1980]

Subpart F—Rules, Regulations, and
Forms

cprice-sewell on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with CFR

§ 601.601

Rules and regulations.

(a) Formulation. (1) Internal revenue
rules take various forms. The most important rules are issued as regulations
and Treasury decisions prescribed by
the Commissioner and approved by the
Secretary or his delegate. Other rules
may be issued over the signature of the
Commissioner or the signature of any
other official to whom authority has
been delegated. Regulations and Treasury decisions are prepared in the Office
of the Chief Counsel. After approval by
the Commissioner, regulations and
Treasury decisions are forwarded to
the Secretary or his delegate for further consideration and final approval.
(2) Where required by 5 U.S.C. 553 and
in such other instances as may be desirable, the Commissioner publishes in
the FEDERAL REGISTER general notice
of proposed rules (unless all persons
subject thereto are named and either
personally served or otherwise have actual notice thereof in accordance with
law). This notice includes:

(i) A statement of the time, place,
and nature of public rulemaking proceedings;
(ii) Reference to the authority under
which the rule is proposed.
(iii) Either the terms or substance of
the proposed rule or a description of
the subjects and issues involved.
(3)(i) This subparagraph shall apply
where the rules of this subparagraph
are incorporated by reference in a notice of hearing with respect to a notice
of proposed rule making.
(ii) A person wishing to make oral
comments at a public hearing to which
this subparagraph applies shall file his
written comments within the time prescribed by the notice of proposed rule
making (including any extensions
thereof) and submit the outline referred to in subdivision (iii) of this subparagraph within the time prescribed
by the notice of hearing. In lieu of the
reading of a prepared statement at the
hearing, such person’s oral comments
shall ordinarily be limited to a discussion of matters relating to such written comments and to questions and answers in connection therewith. However, the oral comments shall not be
merely a restatement of matters the
person has submitted in writing. Persons making oral comments should be
prepared to answer questions not only
on the topics listed in his outline but
also in connection with the matters relating to his written comments. Except
as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, in order to be assured of the
availability of copies of such written
comments or outlines on or before the
beginning of such hearing, any person
who desires such copies should make
such a request within the time prescribed in the notice of hearing and
shall agree to pay reasonable costs for
coping. Persons who make such a request after the time prescribed in the
notice of hearing will be furnished copies as soon as they are available, but it
may not be possible to furnish the copies on or before the beginning of the
hearing. Except as provided in the preceding sentences, copies of written
comments regarding the rules proposed
shall not be made available at the
hearing.
(iii) A person who wishes to be assured of being heard shall submit,

110

VerDate Mar<15>2010

09:34 May 03, 2010

Jkt 220103

PO 00000

Frm 00120

Fmt 8010

Sfmt 8010

Y:\SGML\220103.XXX

220103

cprice-sewell on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with CFR

Internal Revenue Service, Treasury

§ 601.601

within the time prescribed in the notice of hearing, an outline of the topics
he or she wishes to discuss, and the
time he or she wishes to devote to each
topic. An agenda will then be prepared
containing the order of presentation of
oral comments and the time allotted to
such presentation. A period of 10 minutes will be the time allotted to each
person for making his or her oral comments.
(iv) At the conclusion of the presentations of comments of persons listed
in the agenda, to the extent time permits, other persons may be permitted
to present oral comments provided
they have notified, either the Commissioner of Internal Revenue (Attention:
CC:LR:T) before the hearing, or the
representative of the Internal Revenue
Service stationed at the entrance to
the hearing room at or before commencement of the hearing, of their desire to be heard.
(v) In the case of unusual circumstances or for good cause shown,
the application of rules contained in
this subparagraph, including the 10minute rule in subdivision (iii), above,
may be waived.
(vi) To the extent resources permit,
the public hearings to which this subparagraph applies may be transcribed.
(b) Comments on proposed rules—(1) In
general. Interested persons are privileged to submit any data, views, or arguments in response to a notice of proposed rule making published pursuant
to 5 U.S.C. 553. Further, procedures are
provided in paragraph (d)(9) of § 601.702
for members of the public to inspect
and to obtain copies of written comments submitted in response to such
notices. Designations of material as
confidential or not to be disclosed, contained in such comments, will not be
accepted. Thus, a person submitting
written comments in response to a notice of proposed rule making should
not include therein material that he
considers to be confidential or inappropriate for disclosure to the public. It
will be presumed by the Internal Revenue Service that every written comment submitted to it in response to a
notice of proposed rule making is intended by the person submitting it to
be subject in its entirety to public inspection and copying in accordance

with the procedures of paragraph (d)(9)
of § 601.702. The name of any person requesting a public hearing and hearing
outlines
described
in
paragraph
(a)(3)(iii) of this section are not exempt
from disclosure.
(2) Effective date. This paragraph (b)
applies only to comments submitted in
response to notices of proposed rule
making of the Internal Revenue Service published in the FEDERAL REGISTER
after June 5, 1974.
(c) Petition to change rules. Interested
persons are privileged to petition for
the issuance, amendment, or repeal of
a rule. A petition for the issuance of a
rule should identify the section or sections of law involved; and a petition for
the amendment or repeal of a rule
should set forth the section or sections
of the regulations involved. The petition should also set forth the reasons
for the requested action. Such petitions will be given careful consideration and the petitioner will be advised
of the action taken thereon. Petitions
should be addressed to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Attention:
CC:LR:T, Washington, DC 20224. However, in the case of petitions to amend
the regulations pursuant to subsection
(c)(4)(A)(viii) or (5)(A)(i) of section 23 or
former section 44C, follow the procedure outlined in paragraph (a) of § 1.23–
6.
(d) Publication of rules and regulations—(1) General. All Internal Revenue
Regulations and Treasury decisions are
published in the FEDERAL REGISTER
and in the Code of Federal Regulations.
See paragraph (a) of § 601.702. The
Treasury decisions are also published
in the weekly Internal Revenue Bulletin and the semiannual Cumulative
Bulletin. The Internal Revenue Bulletin is the authoritative instrument of
the Commissioner for the announcement of official rulings, decisions,
opinions, and procedures, and for the
publication of Treasury decisions, Executive orders, tax conventions, legislation, court decisions, and other items
pertaining to internal revenue matters.
It is the policy of the Internal Revenue
Service to publish in the Bulletin all
substantive and procedural rulings of
importance or general interest, the

111

VerDate Mar<15>2010

09:34 May 03, 2010

Jkt 220103

PO 00000

Frm 00121

Fmt 8010

Sfmt 8010

Y:\SGML\220103.XXX

220103

cprice-sewell on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with CFR

§ 601.601

26 CFR Ch. I (4–1–10 Edition)

publication of which is considered necessary to promote a uniform application of the laws administered by the
Service. Procedures set forth in Revenue Procedures published in the Bulletin which are of general applicability
and which have continuing force and
effect are incorporated as amendments
to the Statement of Procedural Rules.
It is also the policy to publish in the
Bulletin all rulings which revoke, modify, amend, or affect any published ruling. Rules relating solely to matters of
internal practices and procedures are
not published; however, statements of
internal practices and procedures affecting rights or duties of taxpayers, or
industry regulation, which appear in
internal management documents, are
published in the Bulletin. No unpublished ruling or decision will be relied
on, used, or cited by any officer or employee of the Internal Revenue Service
as a precedent in the disposition of
other cases.
(2) Objectives and standards for publication of Revenue Rulings and Revenue
Procedures in the Internal Revenue Bulletin—(i)(a) A Revenue Ruling is an official interpretation by the Service that
has been published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin. Revenue Rulings are
issued only by the National Office and
are published for the information and
guidance of taxpayers, Internal Revenue Service officials, and others concerned.
(b) A Revenue Procedure is a statement of procedure that affects the
rights or duties of taxpayers or other
members of the public under the Code
and related statutes or information
that, although not necessarily affecting the rights and duties of the public,
should be a matter of public knowledge.
(ii)(a) The Internal Revenue Bulletin
is the authoritative instrument of the
Commissioner of Internal Revenue for
the publication of official rulings and
procedures of the Internal Revenue
Service, including all rulings and
statements of procedure which supersede, revoke, modify, amend, or affect
any previously published ruling or procedure. The Service also announces in
the
Bulletin
the
Commissioner’s
acquiescences and nonacquiescences in
decisions of the U.S. Tax Court (other

than decisions in memorandum opinions), and publishes Treasury decisions,
Executive orders, tax conventions, legislation, court decisions, and other
items considered to be of general interest.
The
Assistant
Commissioner
(Technical) administers the Bulletin
program.
(b) The Bulletin is published weekly.
In order to provide a permanent reference source, the contents of the Bulletin are consolidated semiannually
into an indexed Cumulative Bulletin.
The Bulletin Index-Digest System provides a research and reference guide to
matters appearing in the Cumulative
Bulletins. These materials are sold by
the Superintendent of Documents, U.S.
Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402.
(iii) The purpose of publishing revenue rulings and revenue procedures in
the Internal Revenue Bulletin is to
promote correct and uniform application of the tax laws by Internal Revenue Service employees and to assist
taxpayers in attaining maximum voluntary compliance by informing Service personnel and the public of National Office interpretations of the internal revenue laws, related statutes,
treaties, regulations, and statements of
Service procedures affecting the rights
and duties of taxpayers. Therefore,
issues and answers involving substantive tax law under the jurisdiction
of the Internal Revenue Service will be
published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin, except those involving:
(a) Issues answered by statute, treaty, or regulations;
(b) Issues answered by rulings, opinions, or court decisions previously published in the Bulletin;
(c) Issues that are of insufficient importance or interest to warrant publication;
(d) Determinations of fact rather
than interpretations of law;
(e) Informers and informers’ rewards;
or
(f) Disclosure of secret formulas,
processes, business practices, and similar information.
Procedures affecting taxpayers’ rights
or duties that relate to matters under
the jurisdiction of the Service will be
published in the Bulletin.
(iv) [Reserved]

112

VerDate Mar<15>2010

09:34 May 03, 2010

Jkt 220103

PO 00000

Frm 00122

Fmt 8010

Sfmt 8010

Y:\SGML\220103.XXX

220103

cprice-sewell on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with CFR

Internal Revenue Service, Treasury

§ 601.601

(v) (a) Rulings and other communications involving substantive tax law
published in the Bulletin are published
in the form of Revenue Rulings. The
conclusions expressed in Revenue Rulings will be directly responsive to and
limited in scope by the pivotal facts
stated in the revenue ruling. Revenue
Rulings arise from various sources, including rulings to taxpayers, technical
advice to district offices, studies undertaken by the Office of the Assistant
Commissioner (Technical), court decisions, suggestions from tax practitioner groups, publications, etc.
(b) It will be the practice of the Service to publish as much of the ruling or
communication as is necessary for an
understanding of the position stated.
However, in order to prevent unwarranted invasions of personal privacy
and to comply with statutory provisions, such as 18 U.S.C. 1905 and 26
U.S.C. 7213, dealing with disclosure of
information obtained from members of
the public, identifying details, including the names and addresses of persons
involved, and information of a confidential nature are deleted from the
ruling.
(c) Revenue Rulings, other than those
relating to the qualification of pension,
annuity, profit-sharing, stock bonus,
and bond purchase plans, apply retroactively unless the Revenue Ruling includes a specific statement indicating,
under the authority of section 7805(b)
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954,
the extent to which it is to be applied
without retroactive effect. Where Revenue Rulings revoke or modify rulings
previously published in the Bulletin
the authority of section 7805(b) of the
Code ordinarily is invoked to provide
that the new rulings will not be applied
retroactively to the extent that the
new rulings have adverse tax consequences to taxpayers. Section 7805(b)
of the Code provides that the Secretary
of the Treasury or his delegate may
prescribe the extent to which any ruling is to be applied without retroactive
effect. The exercise of this authority
requires an affirmative action. For the
effect of Revenue Rulings on determination letters and opinion letters
issued with respect to the qualification
of pension, annuity, profit-sharing,

stock bonus, and bond purchase plans,
see paragraph (o) of § 601.201.
(d) Revenue Rulings published in the
Bulletin do not have the force and effect of Treasury Department Regulations (including Treasury decisions),
but are published to provide precedents
to be used in the disposition of other
cases, and may be cited and relied upon
for that purpose. No unpublished ruling
or decision will be relied on, used, or
cited, by any officer or employee of the
Service as a precedent in the disposition of other cases.
(e) Taxpayers generally may rely
upon Revenue Rulings published in the
Bulletin in determining the tax treatment of their own transactions and
need not request specific rulings applying the principles of a published Revenue Ruling to the facts of their particular cases. However, since each Revenue Ruling represents the conclusion
of the Service as to the application of
the law to the entire state of facts involved, taxpayers, Service personnel,
and others concerned are cautioned
against reaching the same conclusion
in other cases unless the facts and circumstances are substantially the same.
They should consider the effect of subsequent legislation, regulations, court
decisions, and revenue rulings.
(f) Comments and suggestions from
taxpayers or taxpayer groups on Revenue Rulings being prepared for publication in the Bulletin may be solicited,
if justified by special circumstances.
Conferences on Revenue Rulings being
prepared for publication will not be
granted except where the Service determines that such action is justified
by special circumstances.
(vi) Statements of procedures which
affect the rights or duties of taxpayers
or other members of the public under
the Code and related statutes will be
published in the Bulletin in the form of
Revenue Procedures. Revenue Procedures usually reflect the contents of internal management documents, but,
where appropriate, they are also published to announce practices and procedures for guidance of the public. It is
Service practice to publish as much of
the internal management document or
communication as is necessary for an
understanding of the procedure. Revenue Procedures may also be based on

113

VerDate Mar<15>2010

09:34 May 03, 2010

Jkt 220103

PO 00000

Frm 00123

Fmt 8010

Sfmt 8010

Y:\SGML\220103.XXX

220103

cprice-sewell on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with CFR

§ 601.602

26 CFR Ch. I (4–1–10 Edition)

internal management documents which
should be a matter of public knowledge
even though not necessarily affecting
the rights or duties of the public. When
publication of the substance of a Revenue Procedure in the FEDERAL REGISTER is required pursuant to 5 U.S.C.
552, it will usually be accomplished by
an amendment of the Statement of procedural Rules (26 CFR Part 601).
(vii)(a) The Assistant Commissioner
(Technical) is responsible for administering the system for the publication
of Revenue Rulings and Revenue Procedures in the Bulletin, including the
standards for style and format.
(b) In accordance with the standards
set forth in subdivision (iv) of this subparagraph, each Assistant Commissioner is responsible for the preparation and appropriate referral for publication of Revenue Rulings reflecting
interpretations of substantive tax law
made by his office and communicated
in writing to taxpayers or field offices.
In this connection, the Chief Counsel is
responsible for the referral to the appropriate Assistant Commissioner, for
consideration for publication as Revenue Rulings, of interpretations of substantive tax law made by his Office.
(c) In accordance with the standards
set forth in subdivision (iv) of this subparagraph, each Assistant Commissioner and the Chief Counsel is responsible for determining whether procedures established by any office under
his jurisdiction should be published as
Revenue Procedures and for the initiation, content, and appropriate referral
for publication of such Revenue Procedures.
(e) Foreign tax law. (1) The Service
will accept the interpretation placed
by a foreign tax convention country on
its revenue laws which do not affect
the tax convention. However, when
such interpretation conflicts with a
provision in the tax convention, reconsideration of that interpretation may
be requested.
(2) Conferences in the National Office
of the Service will be granted to representatives of American firms doing
business abroad and of American citizens residing abroad, in order to discuss with them foreign tax matters

with respect to those countries with
which we have tax treaties in effect.
[32 FR 15990, Nov. 22, 1967, as amended at 33
FR 6826, May 4, 1968; 35 FR 16593, Oct. 24, 1970;
38 FR 4971, Feb. 23, 1973; 39 FR 15755, May 6,
1974; 41 FR 13611, Mar. 31, 1976; 41 FR 20883,
May 21, 1976; 43 FR 17821, Apr. 26, 1978; 47 FR
56333, Dec. 16, 1982; 48 FR 15624, Apr. 12, 1983;
52 FR 26673, July 16, 1987]

§ 601.602

Tax forms and instructions.

(a) Tax return forms and instructions.
The Internal Revenue Service develops
forms and instructions that explain the
requirements of the Internal Revenue
Code and regulations. The Service distributes the forms and instructions to
help taxpayers comply with the law.
The tax system is based on voluntary
compliance, and the taxpayers complete and return the forms with payment of any tax owed.
(b) Other forms and instructions. In addition to tax return forms, the Internal
Revenue Service furnishes the public
copies of other forms and instructions
developed for use in complying with
the laws and regulations. These forms
and instructions lead the taxpayer
step-by-step through data needed to accurately report information required
by law.
(c) Where to get forms and instructions.
The Internal Revenue Service mails
tax return forms to taxpayers who
have previously filed returns. However,
taxpayers can call or write to district
directors or directors of service centers
for copies of any forms they need.
These forms are described in Publication 676, Catalog of Federal Tax Forms,
Form Letters, and Notices, which the
public can buy from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC
20402.
[46 FR 26055, May 11, 1981]

Subpart G—Records (Note)
NOTE: The regulations in Subpart G of 26
CFR Part 601 are superseded in part by 27
CFR Part 71 to the extent that it applied to
alcohol, tobacco, firearms, and explosives
records, formerly administered by the Internal Revenue Service and transferred to the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
(See 37 FR 13691, July 13, 1972.)

114

VerDate Mar<15>2010

09:34 May 03, 2010

Jkt 220103

PO 00000

Frm 00124

Fmt 8010

Sfmt 8010

Y:\SGML\220103.XXX

220103