Daily Tax Update - March 29, 2010

PRESIDENT ANNOUNCES TWO TREASURY RECESS APPOINTMENTS: On March 27, President Obama announced that he would make 15 executive branch recess appointments, which includes Jeffrey Goldstein for Treasury Under Secretary for Domestic Finance and Michael Mundaca as Treasury Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy. The appointees will be able to serve until the end of 2011, and longer if the Senate confirms their appointments before then.

• The President said, "The United States Senate has the responsibility to approve or disapprove of my nominees. But if, in the interest of scoring political points, Republicans in the Senate refuse to exercise that responsibility, I must act in the interest of the American people and exercise my authority to fill these positions on an interim basis. Most of the men and women whose appointments I am announcing today were approved by Senate committees months ago, yet still await a vote of the Senate. At a time of economic emergency, two top appointees to the Department of Treasury have been held up for nearly six months. I simply cannot allow partisan politics to stand in the way of the basic functioning of government."

PRESIDENT TO SIGN HEALTH RECONCILIATION BILL TOMORROW: President Obama is scheduled to sign "The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010" (H.R. 4872) into law on March 30th.

MISCELLANEOUS GUIDANCE RELEASED TODAY:
Announcement 2010-21 is issued pursuant to § 521(b) of Pub. L. 106-170, the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999, which requires the Secretary of the Treasury to report annually to the public concerning Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) and the APA Program. The first report covered calendar years 1991 through 1999. Subsequent reports covered separately each calendar year 2000 through 2008. This eleventh report describes the experience, structure and activities of the APA Program during calendar year 2009. It does not provide guidance regarding the application of the arm’s length standard.

Announcement 2010-20 provides that the IRS will soon issue opinion and advisory letters for pre-approved defined benefit plans that have been restated for EGTRRA and the guidance on the 2006 Cumulative List. The letters are expected to go out on March 31, 2010 or, in some cases, as soon as possible thereafter. A plan that receives a favorable letter with respect to its restatement for EGTRRA and the 2006 Cumulative List is referred to as an "EGTRRA-approved plan." Employers using these pre-approved plan documents to restate a plan for EGTRRA and the 2006 Cumulative List will be required to adopt the EGTRRA-approved plan document by April 30, 2012. The Service will accept applications for individual determination letters submitted by adopters of these pre-approved plans starting on May 1, 2010.

REG-134235-08 contains proposed regulations under section 6109 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) that provide guidance to tax return preparers on furnishing an identifying number on tax returns and claims for refund of tax that they prepare. These proposed regulations provide guidance on the identifying number of a tax return preparer for tax returns and claims for refund filed before and after the proposed effective date. The proposed regulations describe how the IRS will define the identifying number of tax return preparers. Additional provisions of the proposed regulations provide that tax return preparers must apply for and regularly renew their preparer identifying number as the IRS may prescribe in forms, instructions, or other guidance. 

INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE - CIRCULAR 230 DISCLOSURE:
As provided for in Treasury regulations, advice (if any) relating to federal taxes that is contained in this communication (including attachments) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (1) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (2) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any plan or arrangement addressed herein.

STEPTOE & JOHNSON LLP - TAX PRACTICE
Steptoe & Johnson LLP has one of the largest and most diverse law firm tax practices in the country. The practice covers the entire spectrum of federal taxation, including representation of businesses before the Congress, Treasury and the national office of the IRS; transactional planning for domestic and multinational corporations; complex audit and controversy work for corporations and other business interests contesting IRS adjustments; litigation before the Tax Court, Court of Federal Claims, district courts, courts of appeals and the Supreme Court. The firm's tax practice also encompasses all aspects of employee benefits (ERISA), executive compensation, tax-exempt organizations and charitable giving. Steptoe has an extensive state and local tax practice, representing an array of business clients on complex sales and use tax, corporate income tax and property tax matters, both advising those clients and handling audits, administrative appeals, and litigation for them. Read more information on Steptoe's tax practice.

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