80_FR_65844 80 FR 65637 - General Allocation and Accounting Regulations Under Section 141; Remedial Actions for Tax-Exempt Bonds

80 FR 65637 - General Allocation and Accounting Regulations Under Section 141; Remedial Actions for Tax-Exempt Bonds

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Internal Revenue Service

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 207 (October 27, 2015)

Page Range65637-65646
FR Document2015-27328

This document contains final regulations on allocation and accounting, and certain remedial actions, for purposes of the private activity bond restrictions under section 141 of the Internal Revenue Code that apply to tax-exempt bonds issued by State and local governments. The final regulations provide State and local governmental issuers of tax-exempt bonds with guidance for applying the private activity bond restrictions.

Federal Register, Volume 80 Issue 207 (Tuesday, October 27, 2015)
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 207 (Tuesday, October 27, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 65637-65646]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-27328]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Internal Revenue Service

26 CFR Part 1

[TD 9741]
RIN 1545-BB23; 1545-BC07; 1545-BH48


General Allocation and Accounting Regulations Under Section 141; 
Remedial Actions for Tax-Exempt Bonds

AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury.

ACTION: Final regulations.

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SUMMARY: This document contains final regulations on allocation and 
accounting, and certain remedial actions, for purposes of the private 
activity bond restrictions under section 141 of the Internal Revenue 
Code that apply to tax-exempt bonds issued by State and local 
governments. The final regulations provide State and local governmental 
issuers of tax-exempt bonds with guidance for applying the private 
activity bond restrictions.

DATES: Effective Date: These regulations are effective on October 27, 
2015.
    Applicability Date: For dates of applicability, see Sec.  1.141-15.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Johanna Som de Cerff or Zoran 
Stojanovic, (202) 317-6980 (not a toll-free number).

[[Page 65638]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The collection of information contained in these regulations has 
been reviewed and approved by the Office of Management and Budget in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507(d)) 
under control number 1545-1451. The collection of information in these 
final regulations is in Sec.  1.141-12(d)(3), which requires an issuer 
to make a declaration of official intent to remediate bonds. This 
collection of information is necessary for an issuer's redemption or 
defeasance of bonds to be treated as a remedial action under Sec.  
1.141-12 to preserve the tax-exempt status of the bonds. This 
collection of information is an increase in the total annual burden 
under control number 1545-1451. The respondents are State and local 
government issuers of tax-exempt bonds.
    Estimated total annual reporting burden is 30,250 hours.
    Estimated average annual burden per respondent is 3 hours.
    Estimated number of respondents is 10,100.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid 
control number assigned by the Office of Management and Budget. Books 
or records relating to a 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 section 6103.

Background

    In general, interest on State and local governmental bonds is 
excludable from gross income under section 103 upon satisfaction of 
certain requirements. Interest on a private activity bond, other than a 
qualified private activity bond within the meaning of section 141, is 
not excludable under section 103. Section 141 provides certain tests 
that are used to determine whether a State or local bond is a private 
activity bond. These tests include the private business use test and 
the private security or payment test in section 141(b), and the private 
loan financing test in section 141(c). Section 145 provides similar 
tests that apply in modified form to qualified 501(c)(3) bonds.
    Final regulations (TD 8712) under section 141 were published in the 
Federal Register on January 16, 1997 (62 FR 2275) (the 1997 Final 
Regulations), to provide comprehensive guidance on most aspects of the 
private activity bond restrictions. The 1997 Final Regulations, 
however, reserved most of the general allocation and accounting rules 
for purposes of section 141. An advance notice of proposed rulemaking 
(REG-142599-02) was published in the Federal Register on September 23, 
2002 (67 FR 59767), regarding allocation and accounting rules for tax-
exempt bond proceeds used to finance mixed-use output facilities. A 
notice of proposed rulemaking and notice of public hearing (REG-140379-
02; REG-142599-02) was published in the Federal Register on September 
26, 2006 (71 FR 56072), regarding allocation and accounting rules for 
tax-exempt bond proceeds, including special rules for mixed-use 
projects, and rules regarding the treatment of partnerships for 
purposes of section 141 (the Proposed Allocation Regulations). The 
Proposed Allocation Regulations also included amendments to regulations 
under section 145 on related matters that apply to qualified 501(c)(3) 
bonds. A public hearing was held on January 11, 2007. This document 
amends the Income Tax Regulations under sections 141 and 145 by 
adopting final rules on these topics. Certain provisions of the 
Proposed Allocation Regulations are not being finalized and are 
withdrawn. A partial withdrawal of notice of proposed rulemaking is 
published elsewhere in this edition of the Federal Register.
    A notice of proposed rulemaking and notice of public hearing (REG-
132483-03) was published in the Federal Register on July 21, 2003 (68 
FR 43059), regarding the amount and allocation of nonqualified bonds 
for purposes of certain remedial actions under sections 141 and 142 
(the Proposed Remedial Action Regulations). The public hearing was 
cancelled because no requests to speak were received. Final regulations 
(TD 9150) were published in the Federal Register on August 13, 2004 (69 
FR 50065), adopting the portions of the Proposed Remedial Action 
Regulations relating to section 142. Because of the interrelationship 
between the remedial action provisions under section 141 and the 
allocation and accounting rules, the portions relating to section 141 
were not finalized at that time. This document adopts final rules 
regarding the amount and allocation of nonqualified bonds for purposes 
of the remedial action provisions under section 141. We refer to the 
Proposed Remedial Action Regulations and the Proposed Allocation 
Regulations collectively as the Proposed Regulations.

Explanation and Summary of Comments

I. Introduction

    After consideration of the public comments, the Treasury Department 
and the IRS adopt the Proposed Regulations, with revisions, as final 
regulations (the Final Regulations). This section discusses significant 
aspects of the public comments and the revisions made in the Final 
Regulations.

II. General Allocation Rules

    The Proposed Regulations provided several allocation rules. Among 
these were rules regarding the allocation of proceeds of an issue of 
bonds that are obligations of a state or political subdivision under 
section 103(c)(1) (see Sec.  1.150-1(b)) (proceeds) and all other 
sources of funds (other funds) to expenditures, to the project, and to 
the uses of the project (that is, governmental use or private business 
use). The Proposed Regulations provided that proceeds and other funds 
generally may be allocated to expenditures using any reasonable, 
consistently applied accounting method, and that the allocation of 
proceeds and other funds to expenditures must be consistent with the 
allocation of proceeds and other funds for purposes of the arbitrage 
investment restrictions under section 148.
    Commenters expressed concern that the consistency requirement was 
in conflict with the allowance of more than one method for allocating 
proceeds and other funds to projects. Commenters further questioned 
whether allocations of proceeds to expenditures were necessary other 
than for purposes of the arbitrage investment restrictions. The Final 
Regulations clarify that the issuer's allocation of proceeds to 
expenditures for purposes of the arbitrage investment restrictions also 
apply to expenditures for purposes of the private activity bond tests.
    The Proposed Regulations provided generally that proceeds and other 
funds allocated to capital expenditures for a capital project are 
treated as allocated ratably throughout the project in proportion to 
the relative amounts of proceeds and other funds spent on that project. 
The Proposed Regulations further provided that generally proceeds and 
other funds are allocated to both governmental use and private business 
use of the project in proportion to the relative amounts of each source 
of funding spent on the project. The Final Regulations adopt these 
general pro rata allocation rules as proposed.
    The Proposed Regulations defined a project to include functionally 
related or

[[Page 65639]]

integrated facilities located on the same site, or on geographically 
proximate sites, that are reasonably expected to be placed in service 
within the same 12-month period. The Proposed Regulations provided 
certain special rules for the treatment of subsequent improvements to, 
and replacements of, a project. These proposed special rules treated 
subsequent improvements and replacements made more than 12 months after 
the original project was placed in service as part of the same project 
if the improvements and replacements were within the size, function, 
and usable space or the original design of the project.
    Commenters expressed various concerns about the definition of 
project in the Proposed Regulations. Some commenters were concerned 
that the narrow definition of project, which includes only 
geographically proximate facilities placed in service within a short 
period, is inconsistent with the private activity bond tests generally, 
which apply to all facilities financed by the proceeds of a single 
issue of bonds. Commenters also questioned how the definition of 
project would apply in the context of a capital improvement program 
financed by the proceeds of a single issue of bonds that involves 
multiple facilities in different locations (for example, different 
school buildings within a district) placed in service over more than 12 
months. Conversely, other commenters expressed concern that the 
definition of project is so broad that it would allow properties that 
have different owners, types of ownership interests, or types of 
financing (that is, are financed from different sources) to be 
considered a single project.
    Commenters inferred that the treatment of subsequent improvements 
meant that the funds, which could include proceeds and equity, for the 
original project and the subsequent improvements would be allocated 
throughout the original project and the subsequent improvements, 
possibly subjecting assets financed solely with equity to the private 
activity bond restrictions. They expressed concerns that the special 
allocation rules for mixed-use projects (discussed in section III. in 
this preamble) would be unavailable for these improvements due to the 
timing requirement applicable to the election.
    The Final Regulations simplify the definition of project to cover 
all facilities or capital projects financed in whole or in part with 
proceeds of a single issue of bonds. This definition permits an issuer 
in its bond documents to identify as a single project all of the 
properties to be financed by proceeds of a single bond issue. Under 
this rule, issuers may identify specific properties or portions of 
properties regardless of the properties' locations or placed-in-service 
dates. This approach to the definition of project comports with the 
application of the private activity bond tests generally, which apply 
at the issue level. The Final Regulations also clarify through the 
examples that improvements financed with a later issue are a separate 
project.
    Commenters requested clarification that, consistent with 
longstanding practice, each undivided ownership interest in an output 
facility be treated separately for purposes of applying the allocation 
rules. The Final Regulations provide this clarification.
    Commenters also recommended extending the separate facility 
treatment for output facilities under the Proposed Regulations to other 
types of facilities. The Final Regulations do not adopt this 
recommendation because the use of output facilities is measured 
differently from the use of other facilities. The use of an output 
facility generally is measured in the amount of output purchased as a 
percentage of the facility's total available output. The amount of use 
by each user reflects the proportionate benefit of the available output 
to such user. Uses of other types of facilities are measured in various 
ways depending on how that use occurs (for example, in different 
discrete portions, at different times, or simultaneously) and may 
reflect simultaneous use by more than one user on a different, rather 
than proportionate, basis. Even without separate facility treatment, 
however, issuers may use proceeds to finance the governmental use 
portion of an eligible mixed-use project.

III. Special Allocation Rules for Eligible Mixed-Use Projects

A. In General
    The Proposed Regulations provided special elective allocation rules 
for mixed-use projects. In general, these special rules gave effect to 
congressional intent to permit funding of mixed-use projects in part 
with tax-exempt bonds and in part with other funds using reasonable, 
proportionate allocation methods that reflect proportionate benefits to 
the various users. See H.R. Rep. No. 99-426, at 538 (1985). The 
Proposed Regulations defined a mixed-use project as a project that is 
reasonably expected to be used for more than the de minimis amount 
(generally 10 percent) of private business use permitted under the 
private activity bond tests (de minimis permitted private business 
use). The Proposed Regulations provided two alternative elective 
allocation methods for a mixed-use project, the discrete physical 
portion allocation method (discrete portion method) and the undivided 
portion allocation method. The Proposed Regulations required the issuer 
to make a timely, written election, including preliminary and final 
allocations of proceeds and other funds, to use one of these 
alternative methods.
    The discrete portion method allowed for dividing a mixed-use 
project into physically discrete portions and allocating the different 
sources of funds to the various discrete portions using a reasonable, 
consistently applied method that reflects the proportionate benefit to 
be derived by the various users of the project. The discrete portion 
method had a number of limitations, including the physical constraints 
of a discrete portion under the proposed project definition, 
limitations on measurement of a discrete portion, limitations 
associated with the fair market value of a discrete portion, and 
comparability conditions on reallocations of discrete portions within a 
project.
    Under the undivided portion allocation method, projects were 
divided into governmental use and private business use portions on a 
notional, rather than physical, basis with tax-exempt proceeds 
allocated to the governmental use portion and the other funds allocated 
to the private business use portion. The availability of the proposed 
undivided portion allocation method was limited to circumstances in 
which the issuer reasonably expected that governmental use and private 
business use of the project would occur simultaneously on the same 
basis, or at different times.
    Commenters criticized the complexity of the Proposed Regulations' 
two special allocation methods and the administrative burdens 
associated with the election requirement for mixed-use allocations. 
Commenters also criticized the discrete portion method's overly rigid 
treatment of reallocations or ``floating'' allocations. To simplify 
these rules, commenters recommended expanding the availability of the 
undivided portion allocation method to include all measureable use, 
adopting the undivided portion allocation method as the general rule 
for allocating proceeds and other sources to the uses of a mixed-use 
project, and eliminating the discrete portion method.
    The Final Regulations adopt the recommendation to expand the 
availability of the undivided portion allocation method to include all

[[Page 65640]]

measureable use and to make the undivided portion allocation method the 
exclusive allocation method for eligible mixed-use projects. Consistent 
with this change, the Final Regulations eliminate the discrete portion 
method and the election requirement. The Treasury Department and the 
IRS believe that the expanded version of the undivided portion 
allocation method in the Final Regulations generally will be simpler 
and more administrable than the two proposed allocation methods and 
will cover all circumstances otherwise covered by the discrete portion 
method under the Proposed Regulations. For example, unlike the proposed 
discrete portion method, which had significant constraints on 
``floating'' allocations for administrability reasons, the undivided 
portion allocation method in the Final Regulations inherently allows 
floating allocations without further action or special tracking in that 
it involves allocations for an entire mixed-use project. Section III.B. 
in this preamble further discusses the undivided portion allocation 
method under the Final Regulations.
    Under the Final Regulations, the undivided portion allocation 
method is available for ``eligible mixed use projects.'' The Final 
Regulations define an ``eligible mixed-use project'' as a project that 
is financed with proceeds of bonds that purport to be governmental 
bonds when issued and qualified equity (discussed under Definition of 
qualified equity in section III.C. in this preamble) pursuant to the 
same plan of financing (discussed under Same plan of financing in 
section III.D. in this preamble). Further, to qualify, the project must 
be wholly owned by one or more governmental persons or by a partnership 
in which at least one governmental person is a partner. (See discussion 
under Partnerships in section IV. in this preamble.)
B. Allocations to Uses of a Project
    Under the Proposed Regulations, the undivided portion allocation 
method limited the targeting of qualified equity to private business 
use of the project to that percentage of the private business use equal 
to the percentage of capital expenditures of the project financed by 
the qualified equity, and similarly limited the targeting of proceeds 
to government use of the project to that percentage of the government 
use equal to the percentage of capital expenditures of the project 
financed by the proceeds. For projects other than output facilities, 
these limits applied to each one-year period of the measurement period. 
Commenters requested that unused qualified equity be carried over from 
one year to another or, in lieu of a carryover provision, revising the 
limit from an annual limit to one spanning the entire measurement 
period.
    The Final Regulations do not adopt these recommendations. The 
general private business measurement rules, in contrast to those for 
use arising from output contracts, require a determination of the 
private business use of the proceeds on an annual basis as a 
preliminary step to determining the average private business use of the 
proceeds during the measurement period. When the amount of private 
business use of the project in any one-year period is less than the 
percentage of qualified equity, that qualified equity is not unused 
but, as the Final Regulations clarify, is allocated to governmental use 
of the project that is in excess of the percentage of proceeds. To 
allow carryover of private business use of the proceeds or in an amount 
determined solely over the measurement period would require revision of 
the measurement rules plus additional rules to prevent potentially 
abusive situations, thereby increasing complexity. The Final 
Regulations do, however, clarify that the annual limit only applies to 
use measured under the general measurement rules and not to use arising 
from output contracts.
C. Definition of Qualified Equity
    The Proposed Regulations defined qualified equity to mean proceeds 
of taxable bonds and funds not derived from a borrowing that are spent 
on the same project as proceeds of the purported governmental bonds to 
which the private activity bond tests will be applied (the applicable 
bonds). The Proposed Regulations further provided that qualified equity 
does not include equity interests in real property or tangible personal 
property. Commenters suggested expanding the definition of qualified 
equity to include the value of contributed property not purchased with 
proceeds of tax-advantaged bonds, arguing that this contribution should 
be treated as the equivalent of cash. Commenters also suggested that 
qualified equity include funds used to redeem bonds.
    The Final Regulations adopt the proposed definition of qualified 
equity, with modifications. In recognition of the advent of expanded 
types of bonds that provide a Federal tax benefit (a tax-advantaged 
bond), which include, for example, a qualified tax credit bond under 
section 54A on which the interest on the bond is taxable, the Final 
Regulations clarify that ``taxable bonds'' that give rise to qualified 
equity exclude any tax-advantaged bond. The Final Regulations do not 
adopt the suggestion to include contributions of existing property as 
qualified equity for a project because that treatment would raise 
difficult issues of valuation and administrability and would be 
inconsistent with the rules governing allocations of proceeds of 
reimbursement bonds.
    The Final Regulations do not adopt the comment recommending that 
amounts (other than proceeds) used to redeem bonds be treated as 
qualified equity because permitting increased private business use for 
the redemption of bonds in the ordinary course would be inconsistent 
with the private activity bond restrictions on the issue of bonds being 
redeemed. The 1997 Final Regulations already address the use of funds 
to redeem bonds under certain conditions in which bond redemptions 
serve as a remedial action to cure violations of the private business 
use restrictions. Further, as discussed under Anticipatory redemptions 
in section V.A. in this preamble, the Final Regulations add a new 
remedial action provision permitting early redemption in anticipation 
of increased private business use.
D. Same Plan of Financing
    The definition of ``project'' in the Proposed Regulations required 
spending the proceeds and other sources on the properties pursuant to 
the same plan of financing. Commenters requested clarification of the 
meaning of the same plan of financing. The Final Regulations clarify 
that ``same plan of financing'' has the same meaning as in Sec.  1.150-
1(c)(1)(ii) and that qualified equity is spent under the same plan of 
financing as proceeds of the applicable bonds if the qualified equity 
is spent on capital expenditures of the project no earlier than the 
earliest date on which the expenditure would be eligible for 
reimbursement were the bonds from which the proceeds are derived issued 
as reimbursement bonds and no later than the date that is the beginning 
of the measurement period for the project (other than amounts retained 
for reasonable purposes relating to the project as defined under the 
arbitrage investment restrictions).
E. Allocation of Proceeds of Multiple Issues
    The Proposed Regulations provided that if proceeds of more than one 
issue are allocated to capital expenditures of a mixed-use project to 
which the issuer elects to apply the discrete physical portion or 
undivided portion allocation method, then proceeds of those issues

[[Page 65641]]

are allocated ratably to a discrete portion or undivided portion to 
which any proceeds are allocated in proportion to their relative shares 
of the total proceeds of such issues used for the project (the multiple 
issue rule). Commenters suggested eliminating this rule to permit 
issuers to allocate proceeds of the different issues financing a 
project to take maximum advantage of the overall private business use 
permitted, such as disproportionately allocating proceeds of a larger 
issue or a general obligation issue (that is, one paid from generally 
applicable taxes, for which private business use may be 100 percent 
because the private security or payment test will not be met) to 
private business use.
    The Treasury Department and the IRS are concerned that a non-pro 
rata method of allocating proceeds of more than one issue to the uses 
of a project could not only lead to more private business use than when 
proceeds of a single issue are allocated, but would also be difficult 
to administer. Furthermore, this approach also would be inconsistent 
with the general allocation rule that allocates proceeds of two issues 
on a proportionate basis to the uses of a project that is not an 
eligible mixed-use project.
    Commenters also suggested that the proposed multiple issue rule 
would create a barrier to tax-exempt financing of projects, such as 
airports, that traditionally have been financed with a combination of 
tax-exempt governmental bonds and qualified private activity bonds to 
reflect the governmental and qualified private business use occurring, 
respectively, in different discrete portions of a project, as neither 
type of bond would meet the criteria for tax-exempt status if the 
proceeds of both types were allocated to the same portions. The 
Treasury Department and the IRS recognize that certain projects contain 
portions that, if treated as separate facilities, would be eligible for 
financing with different types of tax-exempt bonds. The Final 
Regulations remove this barrier to tax-exempt financing of projects 
through the definition of ``project,'' which allows each issuer to 
identify the different projects financed by its separate issues of 
governmental bonds and qualified private activity bonds.

IV. Partnerships

    The Proposed Regulations generally treated a partnership as an 
entity that is a nongovernmental person for purposes of the private 
activity bond tests. However, if all of the partners in a partnership 
were governmental persons, the Proposed Regulations provided a limited 
exception that would treat the partnership as an aggregate of its 
partners (that is, as governmental persons) for these purposes. The 
preamble to the Proposed Regulations specifically requested comments on 
the usefulness of aggregate treatment for a partnership of governmental 
persons (or 501(c)(3) organizations for qualified 501(c)(3) bonds) and 
private businesses. The preamble to the Proposed Regulations further 
indicated that the Treasury Department and the IRS were considering 
aggregate treatment in at least the limited circumstance of 
partnerships involving a constant percentage (``straight up'') 
allocation of all partnership items. Commenters were in favor of 
aggregate treatment for such partnerships.
    In recognition of the development of various financing and 
management structures for government (or 501(c)(3) organization) 
facilities that involve the participation of private businesses, to 
provide flexibility to accommodate public-private partnerships, and to 
remove barriers to tax-exempt financing of the government's (or 
501(c)(3) organization's) portion of the benefit of property used in 
joint ventures, the Final Regulations provide aggregate treatment for 
all partnerships. The Final Regulations further provide a rule for 
measuring the private business use of financed property resulting from 
the use of the property by a partnership that includes a partner that 
is a nongovernmental person. The amount of such use is the 
nongovernmental partner's share of the amount of the use of the 
property by the partnership, with such share defined as the 
nongovernmental partner's greatest percentage share of any of the 
specified partnership items attributable to the time during the 
measurement period that the partnership uses the property. The Final 
Regulations also provide that an issuer may determine the 
nongovernmental partner's share under guidance published in the 
Internal Revenue Bulletin.
    The definition of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds under section 145(a) 
includes the private activity bond tests (with certain modifications) 
and an ownership test under which the property financed with qualified 
501(c)(3) bonds must be owned by a 501(c)(3) organization or a 
governmental unit. In applying the private activity bond tests for 
purposes of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds, the Proposed Regulations treated 
a partnership as an aggregate if each of the partners was either a 
governmental person or a 501(c)(3) organization. The Proposed 
Regulations, however, did not apply such aggregate treatment for 
purposes of the ownership test. Commenters recommended applying 
aggregate treatment to partnerships for purposes of the ownership test, 
seeing no reason to distinguish between ownership for purposes of the 
ownership test and for purposes of the private activity bond tests, 
which also look to ownership of the financed property. The Final 
Regulations adopt this comment.

V. Remedial Actions

A. Anticipatory Redemptions
    The Proposed Allocation Regulations permitted proceeds of taxable 
bonds and funds not derived from borrowing that are used to retire tax-
exempt governmental bonds to be treated as qualified equity under 
certain circumstances. This allows targeting of funds other than tax-
exempt bond proceeds to finance portions of projects that are expected 
to be used for private business use in the future. The intent of this 
proposed rule is to encourage retirement of tax-exempt bonds before the 
occurrence of nonqualified use. The Proposed Allocation Regulations 
addressed when the bond must be retired, the issuer's reasonable 
expectations regarding use of the project, actual use of the project 
prior to the redemption, and the length of the term of the issue of 
which the bond to be retired is a part. Specifically, the bond to be 
redeemed was required to be retired at least five years before its 
otherwise-scheduled maturity date and within a period that starts one 
year before the deliberate act and ends 91 days before the deliberate 
act. Further, the issuer must not have expected that the project would 
be a mixed-use project. Thus, under the Proposed Allocation 
Regulations, an issuer could not use this anticipatory redemption for a 
project for which it had elected the special mixed-use allocation 
rules.
    Most commenters stated that the proposed provision would be of 
limited use and that the eligibility requirements are contrary to the 
policy of encouraging redemption of tax-exempt bonds earlier rather 
than later. Commenters recommended that the conditions for anticipatory 
redemption not be stricter than those under the existing remedial 
action regime for private business use, which permits a curative 
redemption or defeasance of nonqualified bonds within 90 days of the 
deliberate action causing the private activity bonds tests to be met. 
Commenters further suggested adding a provision to the remedial action 
rules permitting an issuer to redeem or defease bonds at any

[[Page 65642]]

time in advance of a deliberate action that would cause the private 
business tests to be met. The suggested provision would require the 
issuer to declare its intent to redeem or defease the bonds that 
potentially could become the nonqualified bonds and identify the 
financed property. To encourage early redemption of tax-exempt bonds 
without imposing another set of rules for projects with unanticipated 
private business use, the Final Regulations adopt this recommendation 
to expand the remedial action rules to address this point.
B. Nonqualified Bonds
    The Proposed Remedial Action Regulations included amendments 
relating to the amount and allocation of nonqualified bonds to be 
remediated as a result of a deliberate action causing the private 
business tests or the private loan financing test to be met. The 
Proposed Remedial Action Regulations provided that the amount of the 
nonqualified bonds is that portion of the outstanding bonds in an 
amount that, if the remaining bonds were issued on the date on which 
the deliberate action occurs, the remaining bonds would not meet the 
private business use test or private loan financing test, as 
applicable. For this purpose, the amount of private business use is the 
greatest percentage of private business use in any one-year period 
commencing with the one-year period in which the deliberate action 
occurs.
    Commenters requested that the amount of nonqualified bonds be 
determined using the average amount of private business use over the 
entire measurement period rather than the highest private business use 
in any one-year period. The Final Regulations do not adopt this 
recommendation because this request is inconsistent with the 
limitations on annual allocations of proceeds and qualified equity to 
the uses of the project. The Final Regulations adopt the amendment to 
the provision regarding the amount of nonqualified bonds as proposed.
    Commenters generally agreed with the proposed change that allows 
any bonds of any issue to be treated as the nonqualified bonds provided 
that the redemption or defeasance does not have the effect of extending 
the weighted average maturity (WAM) of the issue. Commenters, however, 
stated that some bond indentures require optional redemptions of a 
portion of a term bond to be used first to reduce the earliest 
mandatory sinking fund payments on the bond. In this case, the 
redemption or defeasance of the longest bonds would result in the 
extension of the WAM. Commenters recommended that the regulations 
permit bonds with longer maturities to be treated as the nonqualified 
bonds, as is permitted under the existing regulations. The Final 
Regulations adopt the rule as proposed, but provide a transition rule 
for outstanding bonds similar to that provided with respect to 
outstanding exempt facility bonds.
    The Final Regulations reduce the amount of nonqualified bonds. An 
issuer who chooses to redeem or defease the nonqualified bonds need 
only redeem or defease sufficient bonds such that the remaining bonds 
would not meet the private business use or private loan financing test. 
Thus, unlike under the previous definition of nonqualified bonds, not 
all of the private business use or private loan, as calculated under 
the remedial action rules, necessarily will be remediated. To take into 
account any such remaining unremediated private business use or loan 
should a subsequent deliberate action occur, a conforming change is 
needed pertaining to continuing compliance. The Final Regulations 
include this change.

VII. Effective/Applicability Dates

    The Final Regulations generally apply to bonds sold on or after 
January 25, 2016. The rules regarding remedial actions, however, apply 
to deliberate actions that occur on or after January 25, 2016. The 
Final Regulations allow permissive application of (1) the partnership 
provisions, the allocation and accounting rules, and certain 
corresponding rules for qualified 501(c)(3) bonds in whole, but not in 
part, to bonds to which the 1997 Final Regulations apply; and (2) the 
multipurpose rule to bonds to which the refunding rules apply.

Special Analyses

    Certain IRS regulations, including this one, are exempt from the 
requirements of Executive Order 12866, as supplemented and reaffirmed 
by Executive Order 13563. Therefore, a regulatory impact assessment is 
not required. It has also been determined that section 553(b) of the 
Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. chapter 5) does not apply to 
these regulations. It is hereby certified that the collection of 
information in these regulations will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small governmental jurisdictions. 
This certification is based upon the fact that few small governmental 
issuers are expected to take an anticipatory remedial action and that 
the amount of time required to meet the recordkeeping requirement is 
not significant. Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis under the 
Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. chapter 6) is not required. 
Pursuant to section 7805(f) of the Internal Revenue Code, the notices 
of proposed rulemaking preceding these regulations were submitted to 
the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration for 
comment on their impact on small governmental jurisdictions. No 
comments were received.

Drafting Information

    The principal author of these regulations is Johanna Som de Cerff, 
Office of Associate Chief Counsel (Financial Institutions & Products), 
IRS. However, other personnel from the IRS and the Treasury Department 
participated in their development.

List of Subjects in 26 CFR Part 1

    Income taxes, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Adoption of Amendments to the Regulations

    Accordingly, 26 CFR part 1 is amended as follows:

PART 1--INCOME TAXES

0
Paragraph 1. The authority citation for part 1 continues to read in 
part as follows:

    Authority:  26 U.S.C. 7805 * * *


0
Par. 2. Section 1.141-0 is amended by adding an entry for Sec.  1.141-
1(e), revising entries for Sec.  1.141-6 and Sec.  1.141-12(d)(3) 
through (5), adding an entry for Sec.  1.141-12(d)(6), revising the 
heading for Sec.  1.141-15, and adding entries for Sec.  1.141-
15(b)(4), (e)(1), (e)(2), (l) and (m) to read as follows:

Sec.  1.141-0 Table of contents.
* * * * *
Sec.  1.141-1 Definitions and rules of general application.

* * * * *
    (e) Partnerships.
* * * * *
Sec.  1.141-6 Allocation and accounting rules.

    (a) Allocation of proceeds to expenditures, projects, and uses 
in general.
    (1) Allocations to expenditures.
    (2) Allocations of sources to a project and its uses.
    (3) Definition of project.
    (b) Special allocation rules for eligible mixed-use projects.
    (1) In general.
    (2) Definition of eligible mixed-use project.
    (3) Definition of qualified equity.
    (4) Same plan of financing.
    (c) Allocations of private payments.
    (d) Allocations of proceeds to common costs of an issue.

[[Page 65643]]

    (e) Allocations of proceeds to bonds.
    (f) Examples.
* * * * *
Sec.  1.141-12 Remedial actions.
* * * * *
    (d) * * *
    (3) Anticipatory remedial action.
    (4) Notice of defeasance.
    (5) Special limitation.
    (6) Defeasance escrow defined.
* * * * *
Sec.  1.141-15 Effective/applicability dates.
* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (4) Certain remedial actions.
* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (1) In general.
    (2) Transition rule for pre-effective date bonds.
* * * * *
    (l) Applicability date for certain regulations related to 
allocation and accounting.
    (1) In general.
    (2) Permissive application.
    (m) Permissive retroactive application of certain regulations.
* * * * *


0
Par. 3. Section 1.141-1 is amended by adding paragraph (e) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  1.141-1  Definitions and rules of general application.

* * * * *
    (e) Partnerships. A partnership (as defined in section 7701(a)(2)) 
is treated as an aggregate of its partners, rather than as an entity.


0
Par. 4. Section 1.141-3 is amended by redesignating paragraph (g)(2)(v) 
as paragraph (g)(2)(vi) and adding new paragraph (g)(2)(v) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  1.141-3  Definition of private business use.

* * * * *
    (g) * * *
    (2) * * *
    (v) Special rule for partners that are nongovernmental persons--(A) 
The amount of private business use by a nongovernmental person 
resulting from the use of property by a partnership in which that 
nongovernmental person is a partner is that nongovernmental partner's 
share of the amount of use of the property by the partnership. For this 
purpose, except as otherwise provided in paragraph (g)(2)(v)(B) of this 
section, a nongovernmental partner's share of the partnership's use of 
the property is the nongovernmental partner's greatest percentage share 
under section 704(b) of any partnership item of income, gain, loss, 
deduction, or credit attributable to the period that the partnership 
uses the property during the measurement period. For example, if a 
partnership has a nongovernmental partner and that partner's share of 
partnership items varies, with the greatest share being 25 percent, 
then that nongovernmental partner's share of the partnership's use of 
property is 25 percent.
    (B) An issuer may determine a nongovernmental partner's share of 
the partnership's use of the property under guidance published in the 
Internal Revenue Bulletin (see Sec.  601.601(d)(2)(ii)(b) of this 
chapter).
* * * * *

0
Par. 5. Section 1.141-6 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  1.141-6  Allocation and accounting rules.

    (a) Allocations of proceeds to expenditures, projects, and uses in 
general--(1) Allocations to expenditures. The allocations of proceeds 
and other sources of funds to expenditures under Sec.  1.148-6(d) apply 
for purposes of Sec. Sec.  1.141-1 through 1.141-15.
    (2) Allocations of sources to a project and its uses. Except as 
provided in paragraph (b) of this section (regarding an eligible mixed-
use project), if two or more sources of funding (including two or more 
tax-exempt issues) are allocated to capital expenditures (as defined in 
Sec.  1.150-1(b)) for a project (as defined in paragraph (a)(3) of this 
section), those sources are allocated throughout that project to the 
governmental use and private business use of the project in proportion 
to the relative amounts of those sources of funding spent on the 
project.
    (3) Definition of project--(i) In general. For purposes of this 
section, project means one or more facilities or capital projects, 
including land, buildings, equipment, or other property, financed in 
whole or in part with proceeds of the issue.
    (ii) Output facilities. If an output facility has multiple 
undivided ownership interests (respectively owned by governmental 
persons or by both governmental and nongovernmental persons), each 
owner's interest in the facility is treated as a separate facility for 
purposes of this section, provided that all owners of the undivided 
ownership interests share the ownership and output in proportion to 
their contributions to the capital costs of the output facility.
    (b) Special allocation rules for eligible mixed-use projects--(1) 
In general. The sources of funding allocated to capital expenditures 
for an eligible mixed-use project (as defined in paragraph (b)(2) of 
this section) are allocated to undivided portions of the eligible 
mixed-use project and the governmental use and private business use of 
the eligible mixed-use project in accordance with this paragraph (b). 
Qualified equity (as defined in paragraph (b)(3) of this section) is 
allocated first to the private business use of the eligible mixed-use 
project and then to governmental use, and proceeds are allocated first 
to the governmental use and then to private business use, using the 
percentages of the eligible mixed-use project financed with the 
respective sources and the percentages of the respective uses. Thus, if 
the percentage of the eligible mixed-use project financed with 
qualified equity is less than the percentage of private business use of 
the project, all of the qualified equity is allocated to the private 
business use. Proceeds are allocated to the balance of the private 
business use of the project. Similarly, if the percentage of the 
eligible mixed-use project financed with proceeds is less than the 
percentage of governmental use of the project, all of the proceeds are 
allocated to the governmental use, and qualified equity is allocated to 
the balance of the governmental use of the project. Further, if 
proceeds of more than one issue finance the eligible mixed-use project, 
proceeds of each issue are allocated ratably to the uses to which 
proceeds are allocated in proportion to the relative amounts of the 
proceeds of such issues allocated to the eligible mixed-use project. 
For private business use measured under Sec.  1.141-3(g), qualified 
equity and proceeds are allocated to the uses of the eligible mixed-use 
project in each one-year period under Sec.  1.141-3(g)(4). See Example 
1 of paragraph (f) of this section.
    (2) Definition of eligible mixed-use project. Eligible mixed-use 
project means a project (as defined in paragraph (a)(3) of this 
section) that is financed with proceeds of bonds that, when issued, 
purported to be governmental bonds (as defined in Sec.  1.150-1(b)) 
(the applicable bonds) and with qualified equity pursuant to the same 
plan of financing (within the meaning of Sec.  1.150-1(c)(1)(ii)). An 
eligible mixed-use project must be wholly owned by one or more 
governmental persons or by a partnership in which at least one 
governmental person is a partner.
    (3) Definition of qualified equity. For purposes of this section, 
qualified equity means proceeds of bonds that are not tax-advantaged 
bonds and funds that are not derived from proceeds of a borrowing that 
are spent on the same eligible mixed-use project as the proceeds of the 
applicable bonds. Qualified equity does not include equity interests in 
real property or tangible personal property. Further, qualified equity 
does not include funds used to

[[Page 65644]]

redeem or repay governmental bonds. See Sec. Sec.  1.141-2(d)(2)(ii) 
and 1.141-12(i) (regarding the effects of certain redemptions as 
remedial actions).
    (4) Same plan of financing. Qualified equity finances a project 
under the same plan of financing that includes the applicable bonds if 
the qualified equity pays for capital expenditures of the project on a 
date that is no earlier than a date on which such expenditures would be 
eligible for reimbursement by proceeds of the applicable bonds under 
Sec.  1.150-2(d)(2) (regardless of whether the applicable bonds are 
reimbursement bonds) and, except for a reasonable retainage (within the 
meaning of Sec.  1.148-7(h)), no later than the date on which the 
measurement period begins.
    (c) Allocations of private payments. Except as provided in this 
paragraph (c), private payments for a project are allocated in 
accordance with Sec.  1.141-4. Payments under an output contract that 
result in private business use of an eligible mixed-use project are 
allocated to the same source of funding (notwithstanding Sec.  1.141-
4(c)(3)(v) (regarding certain allocations of private payments to 
equity)) allocated to the private business use from such contract under 
paragraph (b) of this section.
    (d) Allocations of proceeds to common costs of an issue. Proceeds 
used for expenditures for common costs (for example, issuance costs, 
qualified guarantee fees, or reasonably required reserve or replacement 
funds) are allocated in accordance with Sec.  1.141-3(g)(6). Proceeds, 
as allocated under Sec.  1.141-3(g)(6) to an eligible mixed-use 
project, are allocated to the uses of the project in the same 
proportions as the proceeds allocated to the uses under paragraph (b) 
of this section.
    (e) Allocations of proceeds to bonds. In general, proceeds are 
allocated to bonds in accordance with the rules for allocations of 
proceeds to bonds for separate purposes of multipurpose issues in Sec.  
1.141-13(d). For an issue that is not a multipurpose issue (or is a 
multipurpose issue for which the issuer has not made a multipurpose 
allocation), proceeds are allocated to bonds ratably in a manner 
similar to the allocation of proceeds to projects under paragraph 
(a)(2) of this section.
    (f) Examples. The following examples illustrate the application of 
this section:

    Example 1. Mixed-use project. City A issues $70x of bonds (the 
Bonds) and finances the construction of a 10-story office building 
costing $100x (the Project) with proceeds of the Bonds and $30x of 
qualified equity (the Qualified Equity). To the extent that the 
private business use of the Project does not exceed 30 percent in 
any particular year, the Qualified Equity is allocated to the 
private business use. If private business use of the Project were, 
for example, 44 percent in a year, the Qualified Equity would be 
allocated to 30 percent ($30x) private business use and proceeds of 
the Bonds would be allocated to the excess (that is, 14 percent or 
$14x), resulting in private business use of the Bonds in that year 
of 20 percent ($14x/$70x). Conversely, if private business use of 
the Project were 20 percent, Qualified Equity would be allocated to 
that 20 percent. The remaining Qualified Equity (that is, 10 percent 
or $10x) would be allocated to the governmental use in excess of the 
70 percent to which the proceeds of the Bonds would be allocated.
    Example 2. Mixed-use output facility. Authority A is a 
governmental person that owns and operates an electric transmission 
facility. Several years ago, Authority A used its equity to pay 
capital expenditures of $1000x for the facility. Authority A wants 
to make capital improvements to the facility in the amount of $100x 
(the Project). Authority A reasonably expects that, after completion 
of the Project, it will sell 46 percent of the available output of 
the facility, as determined under Sec.  1.141-7, under output 
contracts that result in private business use and it will sell 54 
percent of the available output of the facility for governmental 
use. On January 1, 2017, Authority A issues $60x of bonds (the 
Bonds) and uses the proceeds of the Bonds and $40x of qualified 
equity (the Qualified Equity) to finance the Project. The Qualified 
Equity is allocated to 40 of the 46 percent private business use 
resulting from the output contracts. Proceeds of the Bonds are 
allocated to the 54 percent governmental use and thereafter to the 
remaining 6 percent private business use.
    Example 3. Subsequent improvements and replacements. County A 
owns a hospital, which opened in 2001, that it financed entirely 
with proceeds of bonds it issued in 1998 (the 1998 Bonds). In 2017, 
County A finances the cost of an addition to the hospital with 
proceeds of bonds (the 2017 Bonds) and qualified equity (the 2017 
Qualified Equity). The original hospital is a project (the 1998 
Project) and the addition is a project (the 2017 Project). Proceeds 
of the 2017 Bonds and the 2017 Qualified Equity are allocated to the 
2017 Project. The 2017 Qualified Equity is allocated first to the 
private business use of the 2017 Project and then to the 
governmental use of the 2017 Project. Proceeds of the 2017 Bonds are 
allocated first to the governmental use of the 2017 Project and then 
to the private business use of that project. Neither proceeds of the 
2017 Bonds nor 2017 Qualified Equity is allocated to the uses of the 
1998 Project. Proceeds of the 1998 Bonds are not allocated to uses 
of the 2017 Project.

0
Par 6. Section 1.141-12 is amended by:
0
a. Revising the last sentence of paragraph (d)(1).
0
b. Redesignating paragraphs (d)(3) through (d)(5) as (d)(4) through 
(d)(6).
0
c. Adding new paragraph (d)(3).
0
d. Revising paragraph (i)(1).
0
e. Redesignating paragraph (i)(2) as (i)(3).
0
f. Adding new paragraph (i)(2).
0
g. Revising paragraphs (j), and (k), Example 8.
    The revisions and additions read as follows:


Sec.  1.141-12  Remedial actions.

* * * * *
    (d) * * * (1) * * * Except as provided in paragraph (d)(3) of this 
section, if the bonds are not redeemed within 90 days of the date of 
the deliberate action, a defeasance escrow must be established for 
those bonds within 90 days of the deliberate action.
* * * * *
    (3) Anticipatory remedial action. The requirements of paragraphs 
(d)(1) and (2) of this section for redemption or defeasance of the 
nonqualified bonds within 90 days of the deliberate action are met if 
the issuer declares its official intent to redeem or defease all of the 
bonds that would become nonqualified bonds in the event of a subsequent 
deliberate action that would cause the private business tests or the 
private loan financing test to be met and redeems or defeases such 
bonds prior to that deliberate action. The issuer must declare its 
official intent on or before the date on which it redeems or defeases 
such bonds, and the declaration of intent must identify the financed 
property or loan with respect to which the anticipatory remedial action 
is being taken and describe the deliberate action that potentially may 
result in the private business tests being met (for example, sale of 
financed property that the buyer may then lease to a nongovernmental 
person). Rules similar to those in Sec.  1.150-2(e) (regarding official 
intent for reimbursement bonds) apply to declarations of intent under 
this paragraph (d)(3), including deviations in the descriptions of the 
project or loan and deliberate action and the reasonableness of the 
official intent.
* * * * *
    (i) * * *
    (1) If a remedial action is taken under paragraph (d) of this 
section, the amount of private business use or private loans resulting 
from the deliberate action that is taken into account for purposes of 
determining whether the bonds are private activity bonds is that 
portion of the remaining bonds that is used for private business use or 
private loans (as calculated under paragraph (j) of this section);
    (2) If a remedial action is taken under paragraph (e) or (f) of 
this section, the amount of private business use or private loans 
resulting from the deliberate action is not taken into account for 
purposes of determining

[[Page 65645]]

whether the bonds are private activity bonds; and
* * * * *
    (j) Nonqualified bonds--(1) Amount of nonqualified bonds. The 
nonqualified bonds are a portion of the outstanding bonds in an amount 
that, if the remaining bonds were issued on the date on which the 
deliberate action occurs, the remaining bonds would not meet the 
private business use test or private loan financing test, as 
applicable. For this purpose, the amount of private business use is the 
greatest percentage of private business use in any one-year period 
commencing with the one-year period in which the deliberate action 
occurs.
    (2) Allocation of nonqualified bonds. Allocations of nonqualified 
bonds must be made on a pro rata basis, except that, for purposes of 
paragraph (d) of this section (relating to redemption or defeasance), 
an issuer may treat any bonds of an issue as the nonqualified bonds so 
long as--
    (i) The remaining weighted average maturity of the issue, 
determined as of the date on which the nonqualified bonds are redeemed 
or defeased (determination date), and excluding from the determination 
the nonqualified bonds redeemed or defeased by the issuer in accordance 
with this section, is not greater than
    (ii) The remaining weighted average maturity of the issue, 
determined as of the determination date, but without regard to the 
redemption or defeasance of any bonds (including the nonqualified 
bonds) occurring on the determination date.
    (k) * * *

    Example 8. Compliance after remedial action. In 2007, City G 
issues bonds with proceeds of $10 million to finance a courthouse. 
The bonds have a weighted average maturity that does not exceed 120 
percent of the reasonably expected economic life of the courthouse. 
City G enters into contracts with nongovernmental persons that 
result in private business use of 10 percent of the courthouse per 
year. More than 10 percent of the debt service on the issue is 
secured by private security or payments. In 2019, in a bona fide and 
arm's length arrangement, City G enters into a management contract 
with a nongovernmental person that results in private business use 
of an additional 40 percent of the courthouse per year during the 
remaining term of the bonds. City G immediately redeems the 
nonqualified bonds, or 44.44 percent of the outstanding bonds. This 
is the portion of the outstanding bonds that, if the remaining bonds 
were issued on the date on which the deliberate action occurs, the 
remaining bonds would not meet the private business use test, 
treating the amount of private business use as the greatest 
percentage of private business use in any one-year period commencing 
with the one-year period in which the deliberate action occurs (50 
percent). This percentage is computed by dividing the percentage of 
the facility used for a government use (50 percent) by the minimum 
amount of government use required (90 percent), and subtracting the 
resulting percentage (55.56 percent) from 100 percent (44.44 
percent). For purposes of subsequently applying section 141 to the 
issue, City G may continue to use all of the proceeds of the 
outstanding bonds in the same manner (that is, for the courthouse 
and the private business use) without causing the issue to meet the 
private business use test. The issue continues to meet the private 
security or payment test. The result would be the same if City G, 
instead of redeeming the bonds, established a defeasance escrow for 
those bonds, provided that the requirement of paragraph (d)(5) of 
this section is met. If City G takes a subsequent deliberate action 
that results in further private business use, it must take into 
account 10 percent of private business use in addition to that 
caused by the second deliberate act.


0
Par 7. Section 1.141-13 is amended by revising paragraph (d)(1) and 
paragraph (g), Example 5, to read as follows:


Sec.  1.141-13  Refunding issues.

* * * * *
    (d) Multipurpose issue allocations--(1) In general. For purposes of 
section 141, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, Sec.  
1.148-9(h) applies to allocations of multipurpose issues (as defined in 
Sec.  1.148-1(b)), including allocations involving the refunding 
purposes of the issue. An allocation under this paragraph (d) may be 
made at any time, but once made, may not be changed. An allocation is 
not reasonable under this paragraph (d) if it achieves more favorable 
results under section 141 than could be achieved with actual separate 
issues. Each of the separate issues under the allocation must consist 
of one or more tax-exempt bonds. Allocations made under this paragraph 
(d) and Sec.  1.148-9(h) must be consistent for purposes of sections 
141 and 148.
* * * * *
    (g) * * *

    Example 5. Multipurpose issue. (i) In 2017, State D issues bonds 
to finance the construction of two office buildings, Building 1 and 
Building 2. D expends an equal amount of the proceeds on each 
building. D enters into arrangements that result in private business 
use of 8 percent of Building 1 and 12 percent of Building 2 during 
the measurement period under Sec.  1.141-3(g) and private payments 
of 4 percent of the 2017 bonds in respect of Building 1 and 6 
percent of the 2017 bonds in respect of Building 2. These 
arrangements result in a total of 10 percent of the proceeds of the 
2017 bonds being used for a private business use and total private 
payments of 10 percent. In 2022, D purports to make a multipurpose 
issue allocation under paragraph (d) of this section of the 
outstanding 2017 bonds, allocating the issue into two separate 
issues of equal amounts with one issue allocable to Building 1 and 
the second allocable to Building 2. An allocation is unreasonable 
under paragraph (d) of this section if it achieves more favorable 
results under section 141 than could be achieved with actual 
separate issues. D's allocation is unreasonable because, if 
permitted, it would allow more favorable results under section 141 
for the 2017 bonds (that is, private business use and private 
payments that exceed 10 percent for the 2017 bonds allocable to 
Building 2) than could be achieved with actual separate issues. In 
addition, if D's purported allocation was intended to result in two 
separate issues of tax-exempt governmental bonds (versus tax-exempt 
private activity bonds), the allocation would violate paragraph (d) 
of this section in the first instance because the allocation to the 
separate issue for Building 2 would fail to qualify separately as an 
issue of tax-exempt governmental bonds as a result of its 12 percent 
of private business use and private payments.
    (ii) The facts are the same as in paragraph (i) of this Example 
5, except that D enters into arrangements only for Building 1, and 
it expects no private business use of Building 2. In 2022, D 
allocates an equal amount of the outstanding 2017 bonds to Building 
1 and Building 2. D selects particular bonds for each separate issue 
such that the allocation does not achieve a more favorable result 
than could have been achieved by issuing actual separate issues. D 
uses the same allocation for purposes of both sections 141 and 148. 
D's allocation is reasonable.
    (iii) The facts are the same as in paragraph (ii) of this 
Example 5, except that as part of the same issue, D issues bonds for 
a privately used airport. The airport bonds, if issued as a separate 
issue, would be qualified private activity bonds. The remaining 
bonds, if issued separately from the airport bonds, would be 
governmental bonds. Treated as one issue, however, the bonds are 
taxable private activity bonds. Therefore, D makes its allocation of 
the bonds under paragraph (d) of this section and Sec.  1.150-
1(c)(3) into 3 separate issues on or before the issue date. Assuming 
all other applicable requirements are met, the bonds of the 
respective issues will be tax-exempt qualified private activity 
bonds or governmental bonds.
* * * * *

0
Par. 8. Section 1.141-15 is amended by:
0
a. Revising the heading and paragraph (a).
0
b. Adding paragraph (b)(4),
0
c. Revising paragraphs (e) and (i).
0
d. Adding paragraphs (l) and (m).
    The revisions and additions read as follows:


Sec.  1.141-15  Effective/applicability dates.

    (a) Scope. The effective dates of this section apply for purposes 
of Sec. Sec.  1.141-1 through 1.141-14, 1.145-1 through

[[Page 65646]]

1.145-2, and 1.150-1(a)(3) and the definition of bond documents 
contained in Sec.  1.150-1(b).
    (b) * * *
    (4) Certain remedial actions--(i) General rule. For bonds subject 
to Sec.  1.141-12, the provisions of Sec.  1.141-12(d)(3), (i), (j), 
and (k), Example 8, apply to deliberate actions that occur on or after 
January 25, 2016.
    (ii) Special rule for allocations of nonqualified bonds. For 
purposes of Sec.  1.141-12(j)(2), in addition to the allocation methods 
permitted in Sec.  1.141-12(j)(2), an issuer may treat bonds with the 
longest maturities (determined on a bond-by-bond basis) as the 
nonqualified bonds, but only for bonds sold before January 25, 2016.
* * * * *
    (e) Permissive application of certain sections--(1) In general. The 
following sections may each be applied by issuers to any bonds:
    (i) Section 1.141-3(b)(4);
    (ii) Section 1.141-3(b)(6); and
    (iii) Section 1.141-12.
    (2) Transition rule for pre-effective date bonds. For purposes of 
paragraphs (e)(1) and (h) of this section, issuers may apply Sec.  
1.141-12 to bonds issued before May 16, 1997, without regard to 
paragraph (d)(5) thereof with respect to deliberate actions that occur 
on or after April 21, 2003.
* * * * *
    (i) Permissive application of certain regulations relating to 
output facilities. Issuers may apply each of the following sections to 
any bonds used to finance output facilities:
    (1) Section 1.141-6;
    (2) Section 1.141-7(f)(3); and
    (3) Section 1.141-7(g).
* * * * *
    (l) Applicability date for certain regulations relating to 
allocation and accounting--(1) In general. Except as otherwise provided 
in this section, Sec. Sec.  1.141-1(e), 1.141-3(g)(2)(v), 1.141-6, 
1.141-13(d), and 1.145-2(b)(4), (b)(5), and (c)(2) apply to bonds that 
are sold on or after January 25, 2016 and to which the 1997 regulations 
(as defined in paragraph (b)(1) of this section) apply.
    (2) Permissive application. Issuers may apply Sec. Sec.  1.141-
1(e), 1.141-3(g)(2)(v), 1.141-6, and 1.145-2(b)(4), (b)(5), and (c)(2), 
in whole but not in part, to bonds to which the 1997 regulations apply.
    (m) Permissive retroactive application of certain regulations. 
Issuers may apply Sec.  1.141-13(d) to bonds to which Sec.  1.141-13 
applies.


0
Par. 9. Section 1.145-2 is amended by adding paragraphs (b)(4) and 
(b)(5) and revising the first sentence of paragraph (c)(2) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  1.145-2  Application of private activity bond regulations.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (4) References to governmental bonds in Sec.  1.141-6 mean 
qualified 501(c)(3) bonds.
    (5) References to ownership by governmental persons in Sec.  1.141-
6 mean ownership by governmental persons or 501(c)(3) organizations.
    (c) * * *
    (2) Costs of issuance. Sections 1.141-3(g)(6) and 1.141-6(d) do not 
apply to the extent costs of issuance are allocated among the other 
purposes for which the proceeds are used or to portions of a project. * 
* *
* * * * *

0
Par. 10. Section 1.150-5 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(1) to 
read as follows:


Sec.  1.150-5  Filing notices and elections.

    (a) * * *
    (1) Section 1.141-12(d)(4);
* * * * *

John Dalrymple,
Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement.
    Approved: October 6, 2015.
Mark J. Mazur,
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (Tax Policy).
[FR Doc. 2015-27328 Filed 10-26-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4830-01-P



                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations                                                    65637

                                            litigation, provide a clear legal standard                aggregate, or by the private sector, of                   productivity, innovation, or on the
                                            for affected conduct, and promote                         $100,000,000 or more (adjusted for                        ability of United States-based
                                            simplification and burden reduction.                      inflation) in any one year * * * .’’                      companies to compete with foreign-
                                                                                                      Therefore, neither a Small Government                     based companies in domestic and
                                            Executive Order 13132
                                                                                                      Agency Plan nor any other action is                       export markets. However, pursuant to
                                              This rulemaking does not have                           required under the provisions of the                      the CRA, the DEA has submitted a copy
                                            federalism implications warranting the                    UMRA.                                                     of this interim final rule to both Houses
                                            application of Executive Order 13132.                                                                               of Congress and to the Comptroller
                                            The rule does not have substantial                        Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
                                                                                                                                                                General.
                                            direct effects on the States, on the                        This rule does not impose a new
                                            relationship between the Federal                          collection of information requirement                     List of Subjects in 21 CFR Part 1308
                                            Government and the States, or the                         under the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44                       Administrative practice and
                                            distribution of power and                                 U.S.C. 3501–3521. This action would                       procedure, Drug traffic control,
                                            responsibilities among the various                        not impose recordkeeping or reporting                     Reporting and recordkeeping
                                            levels of government.                                     requirements on State or local                            requirements.
                                                                                                      governments, individuals, businesses, or
                                            Executive Order 13175
                                                                                                      organizations. An agency may not                            For the reasons set out above, 21 CFR
                                              This rule does not have tribal                          conduct or sponsor, and a person is not                   part 1308 is amended as follows:
                                            implications warranting the application                   required to respond to, a collection of
                                            of Executive Order 13175. This rule                       information unless it displays a                          PART 1308—SCHEDULES OF
                                            does not have substantial direct effects                  currently valid OMB control number.                       CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES
                                            on one or more Indian tribes, on the
                                            relationship between the Federal                          Congressional Review Act                                  ■ 1. The authority citation for 21 CFR
                                            Government and Indian tribes, or on the                     This rule is not a major rule as                        part 1308 continues to read as follows:
                                            distribution of power and                                 defined by section 804 of the Small                         Authority: 21 U.S.C. 811, 812, 871(b),
                                            responsibilities between the Federal                      Business Regulatory Enforcement                           unless otherwise noted.
                                            Government and Indian tribes.                             Fairness Act of 1996 (Congressional
                                                                                                      Review Act (CRA)). This rule will not                     ■  2. In § 1308.22, remove the product
                                            Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995                      result in: An annual effect on the                        listed in the table for the company,
                                              The DEA has determined and certifies                    economy of $100,000,000 or more; a                        ‘‘Vicks Chemical Co’’ and Trade name,
                                            pursuant to the Unfunded Mandates                         major increase in costs or prices for                     ‘‘Vicks Inhaler,’’ and add to the table, in
                                            Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), 2 U.S.C.                       consumers, individual industries,                         alphabetical order, the product listed
                                            1501 et seq., that this action would not                  Federal, State, or local government                       below:
                                            result in any Federal mandate that may                    agencies, or geographic regions; or
                                            result ‘‘in the expenditure by State,                     significant adverse effects on                            § 1308.22    Excluded substances.
                                            local, and tribal governments, in the                     competition, employment, investment,                      *        *    *       *   *

                                                                                                       EXCLUDED NONNARCOTIC PRODUCTS
                                                                                                                                                                             Controlled
                                                             Company                              Trade name               NDC code                      Form                                 (mg or mg/ml)
                                                                                                                                                                             substance


                                                     *                    *                             *                     *                            *                      *                 *
                                            Proctor & Gamble Co., The ..................       Vicks VapoInhaler          37000–686–01                              IN   Levmetamfetamine                  50.00
                                                                                                                                                                           (l-Desoxyephed-
                                                                                                                                                                           rine).

                                                      *                       *                         *                          *                       *                      *                 *



                                              Dated: October 20, 2015.                                DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY                                accounting, and certain remedial
                                            Louis J. Milione,                                                                                                   actions, for purposes of the private
                                            Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of                 Internal Revenue Service                                  activity bond restrictions under section
                                            Diversion Control.                                                                                                  141 of the Internal Revenue Code that
                                            [FR Doc. 2015–27266 Filed 10–26–15; 8:45 am]
                                                                                                      26 CFR Part 1                                             apply to tax-exempt bonds issued by
                                                                                                      [TD 9741]                                                 State and local governments. The final
                                            BILLING CODE 4410–09–P
                                                                                                                                                                regulations provide State and local
                                                                                                      RIN 1545–BB23; 1545–BC07; 1545–BH48                       governmental issuers of tax-exempt
                                                                                                                                                                bonds with guidance for applying the
                                                                                                      General Allocation and Accounting                         private activity bond restrictions.
                                                                                                      Regulations Under Section 141;
                                                                                                      Remedial Actions for Tax-Exempt                           DATES:  Effective Date: These regulations
                                                                                                      Bonds                                                     are effective on October 27, 2015.
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                                                                                                                                                                  Applicability Date: For dates of
                                                                                                      AGENCY:  Internal Revenue Service (IRS),                  applicability, see § 1.141–15.
                                                                                                      Treasury.
                                                                                                      ACTION: Final regulations.                                FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
                                                                                                                                                                Johanna Som de Cerff or Zoran
                                                                                                      SUMMARY:  This document contains final                    Stojanovic, (202) 317–6980 (not a toll-
                                                                                                      regulations on allocation and                             free number).


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                                            65638            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations

                                            SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:                              activity bond restrictions. The 1997                  Explanation and Summary of
                                                                                                    Final Regulations, however, reserved                  Comments
                                            Paperwork Reduction Act
                                                                                                    most of the general allocation and                    I. Introduction
                                               The collection of information                        accounting rules for purposes of section
                                            contained in these regulations has been                 141. An advance notice of proposed                       After consideration of the public
                                            reviewed and approved by the Office of                  rulemaking (REG–142599–02) was                        comments, the Treasury Department
                                            Management and Budget in accordance                     published in the Federal Register on                  and the IRS adopt the Proposed
                                            with the Paperwork Reduction Act of                                                                           Regulations, with revisions, as final
                                                                                                    September 23, 2002 (67 FR 59767),
                                            1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507(d)) under control                                                                        regulations (the Final Regulations). This
                                                                                                    regarding allocation and accounting                   section discusses significant aspects of
                                            number 1545–1451. The collection of
                                            information in these final regulations is               rules for tax-exempt bond proceeds used               the public comments and the revisions
                                            in § 1.141–12(d)(3), which requires an                  to finance mixed-use output facilities. A             made in the Final Regulations.
                                            issuer to make a declaration of official                notice of proposed rulemaking and
                                                                                                    notice of public hearing (REG–140379–                 II. General Allocation Rules
                                            intent to remediate bonds. This
                                            collection of information is necessary                  02; REG–142599–02) was published in                      The Proposed Regulations provided
                                            for an issuer’s redemption or defeasance                the Federal Register on September 26,                 several allocation rules. Among these
                                            of bonds to be treated as a remedial                    2006 (71 FR 56072), regarding allocation              were rules regarding the allocation of
                                            action under § 1.141–12 to preserve the                 and accounting rules for tax-exempt                   proceeds of an issue of bonds that are
                                            tax-exempt status of the bonds. This                    bond proceeds, including special rules                obligations of a state or political
                                            collection of information is an increase                for mixed-use projects, and rules                     subdivision under section 103(c)(1) (see
                                            in the total annual burden under control                regarding the treatment of partnerships               § 1.150–1(b)) (proceeds) and all other
                                            number 1545–1451. The respondents                       for purposes of section 141 (the                      sources of funds (other funds) to
                                            are State and local government issuers                  Proposed Allocation Regulations). The                 expenditures, to the project, and to the
                                            of tax-exempt bonds.                                    Proposed Allocation Regulations also                  uses of the project (that is, governmental
                                               Estimated total annual reporting                                                                           use or private business use). The
                                                                                                    included amendments to regulations
                                            burden is 30,250 hours.                                                                                       Proposed Regulations provided that
                                                                                                    under section 145 on related matters
                                               Estimated average annual burden per                                                                        proceeds and other funds generally may
                                                                                                    that apply to qualified 501(c)(3) bonds.
                                            respondent is 3 hours.                                                                                        be allocated to expenditures using any
                                                                                                    A public hearing was held on January                  reasonable, consistently applied
                                               Estimated number of respondents is
                                                                                                    11, 2007. This document amends the                    accounting method, and that the
                                            10,100.
                                               An agency may not conduct or                         Income Tax Regulations under sections                 allocation of proceeds and other funds
                                            sponsor, and a person is not required to                141 and 145 by adopting final rules on                to expenditures must be consistent with
                                            respond to, a collection of information                 these topics. Certain provisions of the               the allocation of proceeds and other
                                            unless it displays a valid control                      Proposed Allocation Regulations are not               funds for purposes of the arbitrage
                                            number assigned by the Office of                        being finalized and are withdrawn. A                  investment restrictions under section
                                            Management and Budget. Books or                         partial withdrawal of notice of proposed              148.
                                            records relating to a collection of                     rulemaking is published elsewhere in                     Commenters expressed concern that
                                            information must be retained as long as                 this edition of the Federal Register.                 the consistency requirement was in
                                            their contents may become material in                      A notice of proposed rulemaking and                conflict with the allowance of more than
                                            the administration of any internal                      notice of public hearing (REG–132483–                 one method for allocating proceeds and
                                            revenue law. Generally tax returns and                  03) was published in the Federal                      other funds to projects. Commenters
                                            tax return information are confidential,                                                                      further questioned whether allocations
                                                                                                    Register on July 21, 2003 (68 FR 43059),
                                            as required by section 6103.                                                                                  of proceeds to expenditures were
                                                                                                    regarding the amount and allocation of
                                                                                                                                                          necessary other than for purposes of the
                                            Background                                              nonqualified bonds for purposes of                    arbitrage investment restrictions. The
                                              In general, interest on State and local               certain remedial actions under sections               Final Regulations clarify that the
                                            governmental bonds is excludable from                   141 and 142 (the Proposed Remedial                    issuer’s allocation of proceeds to
                                            gross income under section 103 upon                     Action Regulations). The public hearing               expenditures for purposes of the
                                            satisfaction of certain requirements.                   was cancelled because no requests to                  arbitrage investment restrictions also
                                            Interest on a private activity bond, other              speak were received. Final regulations                apply to expenditures for purposes of
                                            than a qualified private activity bond                  (TD 9150) were published in the                       the private activity bond tests.
                                            within the meaning of section 141, is                   Federal Register on August 13, 2004 (69                  The Proposed Regulations provided
                                            not excludable under section 103.                       FR 50065), adopting the portions of the               generally that proceeds and other funds
                                            Section 141 provides certain tests that                 Proposed Remedial Action Regulations                  allocated to capital expenditures for a
                                            are used to determine whether a State or                relating to section 142. Because of the               capital project are treated as allocated
                                            local bond is a private activity bond.                  interrelationship between the remedial                ratably throughout the project in
                                            These tests include the private business                action provisions under section 141 and               proportion to the relative amounts of
                                            use test and the private security or                    the allocation and accounting rules, the              proceeds and other funds spent on that
                                            payment test in section 141(b), and the                 portions relating to section 141 were not             project. The Proposed Regulations
                                            private loan financing test in section                  finalized at that time. This document                 further provided that generally proceeds
                                            141(c). Section 145 provides similar                    adopts final rules regarding the amount               and other funds are allocated to both
                                            tests that apply in modified form to                    and allocation of nonqualified bonds for              governmental use and private business
                                            qualified 501(c)(3) bonds.                                                                                    use of the project in proportion to the
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                                                                                                    purposes of the remedial action
                                              Final regulations (TD 8712) under                                                                           relative amounts of each source of
                                                                                                    provisions under section 141. We refer
                                            section 141 were published in the                                                                             funding spent on the project. The Final
                                                                                                    to the Proposed Remedial Action
                                            Federal Register on January 16, 1997                                                                          Regulations adopt these general pro rata
                                            (62 FR 2275) (the 1997 Final                            Regulations and the Proposed
                                                                                                                                                          allocation rules as proposed.
                                            Regulations), to provide comprehensive                  Allocation Regulations collectively as                   The Proposed Regulations defined a
                                            guidance on most aspects of the private                 the Proposed Regulations.                             project to include functionally related or


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                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations                                         65639

                                            integrated facilities located on the same               a single bond issue. Under this rule,                 private business use). The Proposed
                                            site, or on geographically proximate                    issuers may identify specific properties              Regulations provided two alternative
                                            sites, that are reasonably expected to be               or portions of properties regardless of               elective allocation methods for a mixed-
                                            placed in service within the same 12-                   the properties’ locations or placed-in-               use project, the discrete physical
                                            month period. The Proposed                              service dates. This approach to the                   portion allocation method (discrete
                                            Regulations provided certain special                    definition of project comports with the               portion method) and the undivided
                                            rules for the treatment of subsequent                   application of the private activity bond              portion allocation method. The
                                            improvements to, and replacements of,                   tests generally, which apply at the issue             Proposed Regulations required the
                                            a project. These proposed special rules                 level. The Final Regulations also clarify             issuer to make a timely, written
                                            treated subsequent improvements and                     through the examples that                             election, including preliminary and
                                            replacements made more than 12                          improvements financed with a later                    final allocations of proceeds and other
                                            months after the original project was                   issue are a separate project.                         funds, to use one of these alternative
                                            placed in service as part of the same                      Commenters requested clarification                 methods.
                                            project if the improvements and                         that, consistent with longstanding                       The discrete portion method allowed
                                            replacements were within the size,                      practice, each undivided ownership                    for dividing a mixed-use project into
                                            function, and usable space or the                       interest in an output facility be treated             physically discrete portions and
                                            original design of the project.                         separately for purposes of applying the               allocating the different sources of funds
                                               Commenters expressed various                         allocation rules. The Final Regulations               to the various discrete portions using a
                                            concerns about the definition of project                provide this clarification.                           reasonable, consistently applied method
                                            in the Proposed Regulations. Some                          Commenters also recommended                        that reflects the proportionate benefit to
                                            commenters were concerned that the                      extending the separate facility treatment             be derived by the various users of the
                                            narrow definition of project, which                     for output facilities under the Proposed              project. The discrete portion method
                                            includes only geographically proximate                  Regulations to other types of facilities.             had a number of limitations, including
                                            facilities placed in service within a                   The Final Regulations do not adopt this               the physical constraints of a discrete
                                            short period, is inconsistent with the                  recommendation because the use of                     portion under the proposed project
                                            private activity bond tests generally,                  output facilities is measured differently             definition, limitations on measurement
                                            which apply to all facilities financed by               from the use of other facilities. The use             of a discrete portion, limitations
                                            the proceeds of a single issue of bonds.                of an output facility generally is                    associated with the fair market value of
                                            Commenters also questioned how the                      measured in the amount of output                      a discrete portion, and comparability
                                            definition of project would apply in the                purchased as a percentage of the                      conditions on reallocations of discrete
                                            context of a capital improvement                        facility’s total available output. The                portions within a project.
                                            program financed by the proceeds of a                   amount of use by each user reflects the                  Under the undivided portion
                                            single issue of bonds that involves                     proportionate benefit of the available                allocation method, projects were
                                            multiple facilities in different locations              output to such user. Uses of other types              divided into governmental use and
                                            (for example, different school buildings                of facilities are measured in various                 private business use portions on a
                                            within a district) placed in service over               ways depending on how that use occurs                 notional, rather than physical, basis
                                            more than 12 months. Conversely, other                  (for example, in different discrete                   with tax-exempt proceeds allocated to
                                            commenters expressed concern that the                   portions, at different times, or                      the governmental use portion and the
                                            definition of project is so broad that it               simultaneously) and may reflect                       other funds allocated to the private
                                            would allow properties that have                        simultaneous use by more than one user                business use portion. The availability of
                                            different owners, types of ownership                    on a different, rather than proportionate,            the proposed undivided portion
                                            interests, or types of financing (that is,              basis. Even without separate facility                 allocation method was limited to
                                            are financed from different sources) to                 treatment, however, issuers may use                   circumstances in which the issuer
                                            be considered a single project.                         proceeds to finance the governmental                  reasonably expected that governmental
                                               Commenters inferred that the                         use portion of an eligible mixed-use                  use and private business use of the
                                            treatment of subsequent improvements                                                                          project would occur simultaneously on
                                                                                                    project.
                                            meant that the funds, which could                                                                             the same basis, or at different times.
                                            include proceeds and equity, for the                    III. Special Allocation Rules for Eligible               Commenters criticized the complexity
                                            original project and the subsequent                     Mixed-Use Projects                                    of the Proposed Regulations’ two special
                                            improvements would be allocated                                                                               allocation methods and the
                                                                                                    A. In General                                         administrative burdens associated with
                                            throughout the original project and the
                                            subsequent improvements, possibly                         The Proposed Regulations provided                   the election requirement for mixed-use
                                            subjecting assets financed solely with                  special elective allocation rules for                 allocations. Commenters also criticized
                                            equity to the private activity bond                     mixed-use projects. In general, these                 the discrete portion method’s overly
                                            restrictions. They expressed concerns                   special rules gave effect to congressional            rigid treatment of reallocations or
                                            that the special allocation rules for                   intent to permit funding of mixed-use                 ‘‘floating’’ allocations. To simplify these
                                            mixed-use projects (discussed in section                projects in part with tax-exempt bonds                rules, commenters recommended
                                            III. in this preamble) would be                         and in part with other funds using                    expanding the availability of the
                                            unavailable for these improvements due                  reasonable, proportionate allocation                  undivided portion allocation method to
                                            to the timing requirement applicable to                 methods that reflect proportionate                    include all measureable use, adopting
                                            the election.                                           benefits to the various users. See H.R.               the undivided portion allocation
                                               The Final Regulations simplify the                   Rep. No. 99–426, at 538 (1985). The                   method as the general rule for allocating
                                            definition of project to cover all                      Proposed Regulations defined a mixed-                 proceeds and other sources to the uses
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                                            facilities or capital projects financed in              use project as a project that is                      of a mixed-use project, and eliminating
                                            whole or in part with proceeds of a                     reasonably expected to be used for more               the discrete portion method.
                                            single issue of bonds. This definition                  than the de minimis amount (generally                    The Final Regulations adopt the
                                            permits an issuer in its bond documents                 10 percent) of private business use                   recommendation to expand the
                                            to identify as a single project all of the              permitted under the private activity                  availability of the undivided portion
                                            properties to be financed by proceeds of                bond tests (de minimis permitted                      allocation method to include all


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                                            65640            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations

                                            measureable use and to make the                         qualified equity be carried over from                 any tax-advantaged bond. The Final
                                            undivided portion allocation method                     one year to another or, in lieu of a                  Regulations do not adopt the suggestion
                                            the exclusive allocation method for                     carryover provision, revising the limit               to include contributions of existing
                                            eligible mixed-use projects. Consistent                 from an annual limit to one spanning                  property as qualified equity for a project
                                            with this change, the Final Regulations                 the entire measurement period.                        because that treatment would raise
                                            eliminate the discrete portion method                      The Final Regulations do not adopt                 difficult issues of valuation and
                                            and the election requirement. The                       these recommendations. The general                    administrability and would be
                                            Treasury Department and the IRS                         private business measurement rules, in                inconsistent with the rules governing
                                            believe that the expanded version of the                contrast to those for use arising from                allocations of proceeds of
                                            undivided portion allocation method in                  output contracts, require a                           reimbursement bonds.
                                            the Final Regulations generally will be                 determination of the private business                    The Final Regulations do not adopt
                                            simpler and more administrable than                     use of the proceeds on an annual basis                the comment recommending that
                                            the two proposed allocation methods                     as a preliminary step to determining the              amounts (other than proceeds) used to
                                            and will cover all circumstances                        average private business use of the                   redeem bonds be treated as qualified
                                            otherwise covered by the discrete                       proceeds during the measurement                       equity because permitting increased
                                            portion method under the Proposed                       period. When the amount of private                    private business use for the redemption
                                            Regulations. For example, unlike the                    business use of the project in any one-               of bonds in the ordinary course would
                                            proposed discrete portion method,                       year period is less than the percentage               be inconsistent with the private activity
                                            which had significant constraints on                    of qualified equity, that qualified equity            bond restrictions on the issue of bonds
                                            ‘‘floating’’ allocations for                            is not unused but, as the Final                       being redeemed. The 1997 Final
                                            administrability reasons, the undivided                 Regulations clarify, is allocated to                  Regulations already address the use of
                                            portion allocation method in the Final                  governmental use of the project that is               funds to redeem bonds under certain
                                            Regulations inherently allows floating                  in excess of the percentage of proceeds.              conditions in which bond redemptions
                                            allocations without further action or                   To allow carryover of private business                serve as a remedial action to cure
                                            special tracking in that it involves                    use of the proceeds or in an amount                   violations of the private business use
                                            allocations for an entire mixed-use                     determined solely over the                            restrictions. Further, as discussed under
                                            project. Section III.B. in this preamble                measurement period would require                      Anticipatory redemptions in section
                                            further discusses the undivided portion                 revision of the measurement rules plus                V.A. in this preamble, the Final
                                            allocation method under the Final                       additional rules to prevent potentially               Regulations add a new remedial action
                                            Regulations.                                            abusive situations, thereby increasing                provision permitting early redemption
                                               Under the Final Regulations, the                     complexity. The Final Regulations do,                 in anticipation of increased private
                                            undivided portion allocation method is                  however, clarify that the annual limit                business use.
                                            available for ‘‘eligible mixed use                      only applies to use measured under the
                                                                                                                                                          D. Same Plan of Financing
                                            projects.’’ The Final Regulations define                general measurement rules and not to
                                            an ‘‘eligible mixed-use project’’ as a                  use arising from output contracts.                       The definition of ‘‘project’’ in the
                                            project that is financed with proceeds of                                                                     Proposed Regulations required spending
                                                                                                    C. Definition of Qualified Equity                     the proceeds and other sources on the
                                            bonds that purport to be governmental
                                            bonds when issued and qualified equity                     The Proposed Regulations defined                   properties pursuant to the same plan of
                                            (discussed under Definition of qualified                qualified equity to mean proceeds of                  financing. Commenters requested
                                            equity in section III.C. in this preamble)              taxable bonds and funds not derived                   clarification of the meaning of the same
                                            pursuant to the same plan of financing                  from a borrowing that are spent on the                plan of financing. The Final Regulations
                                            (discussed under Same plan of                           same project as proceeds of the                       clarify that ‘‘same plan of financing’’ has
                                            financing in section III.D. in this                     purported governmental bonds to which                 the same meaning as in § 1.150–
                                            preamble). Further, to qualify, the                     the private activity bond tests will be               1(c)(1)(ii) and that qualified equity is
                                            project must be wholly owned by one or                  applied (the applicable bonds). The                   spent under the same plan of financing
                                            more governmental persons or by a                       Proposed Regulations further provided                 as proceeds of the applicable bonds if
                                            partnership in which at least one                       that qualified equity does not include                the qualified equity is spent on capital
                                            governmental person is a partner. (See                  equity interests in real property or                  expenditures of the project no earlier
                                            discussion under Partnerships in                        tangible personal property. Commenters                than the earliest date on which the
                                            section IV. in this preamble.)                          suggested expanding the definition of                 expenditure would be eligible for
                                                                                                    qualified equity to include the value of              reimbursement were the bonds from
                                            B. Allocations to Uses of a Project                     contributed property not purchased                    which the proceeds are derived issued
                                              Under the Proposed Regulations, the                   with proceeds of tax-advantaged bonds,                as reimbursement bonds and no later
                                            undivided portion allocation method                     arguing that this contribution should be              than the date that is the beginning of the
                                            limited the targeting of qualified equity               treated as the equivalent of cash.                    measurement period for the project
                                            to private business use of the project to               Commenters also suggested that                        (other than amounts retained for
                                            that percentage of the private business                 qualified equity include funds used to                reasonable purposes relating to the
                                            use equal to the percentage of capital                  redeem bonds.                                         project as defined under the arbitrage
                                            expenditures of the project financed by                    The Final Regulations adopt the                    investment restrictions).
                                            the qualified equity, and similarly                     proposed definition of qualified equity,
                                            limited the targeting of proceeds to                    with modifications. In recognition of the             E. Allocation of Proceeds of Multiple
                                            government use of the project to that                   advent of expanded types of bonds that                Issues
                                            percentage of the government use equal                  provide a Federal tax benefit (a tax-                    The Proposed Regulations provided
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                                            to the percentage of capital expenditures               advantaged bond), which include, for                  that if proceeds of more than one issue
                                            of the project financed by the proceeds.                example, a qualified tax credit bond                  are allocated to capital expenditures of
                                            For projects other than output facilities,              under section 54A on which the interest               a mixed-use project to which the issuer
                                            these limits applied to each one-year                   on the bond is taxable, the Final                     elects to apply the discrete physical
                                            period of the measurement period.                       Regulations clarify that ‘‘taxable bonds’’            portion or undivided portion allocation
                                            Commenters requested that unused                        that give rise to qualified equity exclude            method, then proceeds of those issues


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                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations                                         65641

                                            are allocated ratably to a discrete                     the Proposed Regulations provided a                   apply such aggregate treatment for
                                            portion or undivided portion to which                   limited exception that would treat the                purposes of the ownership test.
                                            any proceeds are allocated in proportion                partnership as an aggregate of its                    Commenters recommended applying
                                            to their relative shares of the total                   partners (that is, as governmental                    aggregate treatment to partnerships for
                                            proceeds of such issues used for the                    persons) for these purposes. The                      purposes of the ownership test, seeing
                                            project (the multiple issue rule).                      preamble to the Proposed Regulations                  no reason to distinguish between
                                            Commenters suggested eliminating this                   specifically requested comments on the                ownership for purposes of the
                                            rule to permit issuers to allocate                      usefulness of aggregate treatment for a               ownership test and for purposes of the
                                            proceeds of the different issues                        partnership of governmental persons (or               private activity bond tests, which also
                                            financing a project to take maximum                     501(c)(3) organizations for qualified                 look to ownership of the financed
                                            advantage of the overall private business               501(c)(3) bonds) and private businesses.              property. The Final Regulations adopt
                                            use permitted, such as                                  The preamble to the Proposed                          this comment.
                                            disproportionately allocating proceeds                  Regulations further indicated that the
                                            of a larger issue or a general obligation               Treasury Department and the IRS were                  V. Remedial Actions
                                            issue (that is, one paid from generally                 considering aggregate treatment in at                 A. Anticipatory Redemptions
                                            applicable taxes, for which private                     least the limited circumstance of                        The Proposed Allocation Regulations
                                            business use may be 100 percent                         partnerships involving a constant                     permitted proceeds of taxable bonds and
                                            because the private security or payment                 percentage (‘‘straight up’’) allocation of            funds not derived from borrowing that
                                            test will not be met) to private business               all partnership items. Commenters were
                                                                                                                                                          are used to retire tax-exempt
                                            use.                                                    in favor of aggregate treatment for such
                                                                                                                                                          governmental bonds to be treated as
                                               The Treasury Department and the IRS                  partnerships.
                                            are concerned that a non-pro rata                          In recognition of the development of               qualified equity under certain
                                            method of allocating proceeds of more                   various financing and management                      circumstances. This allows targeting of
                                            than one issue to the uses of a project                 structures for government (or 501(c)(3)               funds other than tax-exempt bond
                                            could not only lead to more private                     organization) facilities that involve the             proceeds to finance portions of projects
                                            business use than when proceeds of a                    participation of private businesses, to               that are expected to be used for private
                                            single issue are allocated, but would                   provide flexibility to accommodate                    business use in the future. The intent of
                                            also be difficult to administer.                        public-private partnerships, and to                   this proposed rule is to encourage
                                            Furthermore, this approach also would                   remove barriers to tax-exempt financing               retirement of tax-exempt bonds before
                                            be inconsistent with the general                        of the government’s (or 501(c)(3)                     the occurrence of nonqualified use. The
                                            allocation rule that allocates proceeds of              organization’s) portion of the benefit of             Proposed Allocation Regulations
                                            two issues on a proportionate basis to                  property used in joint ventures, the                  addressed when the bond must be
                                            the uses of a project that is not an                    Final Regulations provide aggregate                   retired, the issuer’s reasonable
                                            eligible mixed-use project.                             treatment for all partnerships. The Final             expectations regarding use of the
                                               Commenters also suggested that the                   Regulations further provide a rule for                project, actual use of the project prior to
                                            proposed multiple issue rule would                      measuring the private business use of                 the redemption, and the length of the
                                            create a barrier to tax-exempt financing                financed property resulting from the use              term of the issue of which the bond to
                                            of projects, such as airports, that                     of the property by a partnership that                 be retired is a part. Specifically, the
                                            traditionally have been financed with a                 includes a partner that is a                          bond to be redeemed was required to be
                                            combination of tax-exempt                               nongovernmental person. The amount                    retired at least five years before its
                                            governmental bonds and qualified                        of such use is the nongovernmental                    otherwise-scheduled maturity date and
                                            private activity bonds to reflect the                   partner’s share of the amount of the use              within a period that starts one year
                                            governmental and qualified private                      of the property by the partnership, with              before the deliberate act and ends 91
                                            business use occurring, respectively, in                such share defined as the                             days before the deliberate act. Further,
                                            different discrete portions of a project,               nongovernmental partner’s greatest                    the issuer must not have expected that
                                            as neither type of bond would meet the                  percentage share of any of the specified              the project would be a mixed-use
                                            criteria for tax-exempt status if the                   partnership items attributable to the                 project. Thus, under the Proposed
                                            proceeds of both types were allocated to                time during the measurement period                    Allocation Regulations, an issuer could
                                            the same portions. The Treasury                         that the partnership uses the property.               not use this anticipatory redemption for
                                            Department and the IRS recognize that                   The Final Regulations also provide that               a project for which it had elected the
                                            certain projects contain portions that, if              an issuer may determine the                           special mixed-use allocation rules.
                                            treated as separate facilities, would be                nongovernmental partner’s share under                    Most commenters stated that the
                                            eligible for financing with different                   guidance published in the Internal                    proposed provision would be of limited
                                            types of tax-exempt bonds. The Final                    Revenue Bulletin.                                     use and that the eligibility requirements
                                            Regulations remove this barrier to tax-                    The definition of qualified 501(c)(3)              are contrary to the policy of encouraging
                                            exempt financing of projects through the                bonds under section 145(a) includes the               redemption of tax-exempt bonds earlier
                                            definition of ‘‘project,’’ which allows                 private activity bond tests (with certain             rather than later. Commenters
                                            each issuer to identify the different                   modifications) and an ownership test                  recommended that the conditions for
                                            projects financed by its separate issues                under which the property financed with                anticipatory redemption not be stricter
                                            of governmental bonds and qualified                     qualified 501(c)(3) bonds must be                     than those under the existing remedial
                                            private activity bonds.                                 owned by a 501(c)(3) organization or a                action regime for private business use,
                                                                                                    governmental unit. In applying the                    which permits a curative redemption or
                                            IV. Partnerships                                        private activity bond tests for purposes              defeasance of nonqualified bonds
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                                               The Proposed Regulations generally                   of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds, the                     within 90 days of the deliberate action
                                            treated a partnership as an entity that is              Proposed Regulations treated a                        causing the private activity bonds tests
                                            a nongovernmental person for purposes                   partnership as an aggregate if each of the            to be met. Commenters further
                                            of the private activity bond tests.                     partners was either a governmental                    suggested adding a provision to the
                                            However, if all of the partners in a                    person or a 501(c)(3) organization. The               remedial action rules permitting an
                                            partnership were governmental persons,                  Proposed Regulations, however, did not                issuer to redeem or defease bonds at any


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                                            65642            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations

                                            time in advance of a deliberate action                  WAM. Commenters recommended that                      Therefore, a regulatory flexibility
                                            that would cause the private business                   the regulations permit bonds with                     analysis under the Regulatory
                                            tests to be met. The suggested provision                longer maturities to be treated as the                Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. chapter 6) is
                                            would require the issuer to declare its                 nonqualified bonds, as is permitted                   not required. Pursuant to section 7805(f)
                                            intent to redeem or defease the bonds                   under the existing regulations. The                   of the Internal Revenue Code, the
                                            that potentially could become the                       Final Regulations adopt the rule as                   notices of proposed rulemaking
                                            nonqualified bonds and identify the                     proposed, but provide a transition rule               preceding these regulations were
                                            financed property. To encourage early                   for outstanding bonds similar to that                 submitted to the Chief Counsel for
                                            redemption of tax-exempt bonds                          provided with respect to outstanding                  Advocacy of the Small Business
                                            without imposing another set of rules                   exempt facility bonds.                                Administration for comment on their
                                            for projects with unanticipated private                    The Final Regulations reduce the                   impact on small governmental
                                            business use, the Final Regulations                     amount of nonqualified bonds. An                      jurisdictions. No comments were
                                            adopt this recommendation to expand                     issuer who chooses to redeem or defease               received.
                                            the remedial action rules to address this               the nonqualified bonds need only
                                            point.                                                  redeem or defease sufficient bonds such               Drafting Information
                                                                                                    that the remaining bonds would not                      The principal author of these
                                            B. Nonqualified Bonds                                   meet the private business use or private              regulations is Johanna Som de Cerff,
                                               The Proposed Remedial Action                         loan financing test. Thus, unlike under               Office of Associate Chief Counsel
                                            Regulations included amendments                         the previous definition of nonqualified               (Financial Institutions & Products), IRS.
                                            relating to the amount and allocation of                bonds, not all of the private business                However, other personnel from the IRS
                                            nonqualified bonds to be remediated as                  use or private loan, as calculated under              and the Treasury Department
                                            a result of a deliberate action causing                 the remedial action rules, necessarily                participated in their development.
                                            the private business tests or the private               will be remediated. To take into account
                                            loan financing test to be met. The                      any such remaining unremediated                       List of Subjects in 26 CFR Part 1
                                            Proposed Remedial Action Regulations                    private business use or loan should a                   Income taxes, Reporting and
                                            provided that the amount of the                         subsequent deliberate action occur, a                 recordkeeping requirements.
                                            nonqualified bonds is that portion of the               conforming change is needed pertaining
                                            outstanding bonds in an amount that, if                                                                       Adoption of Amendments to the
                                                                                                    to continuing compliance. The Final
                                            the remaining bonds were issued on the                                                                        Regulations
                                                                                                    Regulations include this change.
                                            date on which the deliberate action                                                                             Accordingly, 26 CFR part 1 is
                                            occurs, the remaining bonds would not                   VII. Effective/Applicability Dates                    amended as follows:
                                            meet the private business use test or                     The Final Regulations generally apply
                                            private loan financing test, as                         to bonds sold on or after January 25,                 PART 1—INCOME TAXES
                                            applicable. For this purpose, the amount                2016. The rules regarding remedial
                                                                                                    actions, however, apply to deliberate                 ■ Paragraph 1. The authority citation
                                            of private business use is the greatest
                                                                                                    actions that occur on or after January 25,            for part 1 continues to read in part as
                                            percentage of private business use in
                                                                                                    2016. The Final Regulations allow                     follows:
                                            any one-year period commencing with
                                            the one-year period in which the                        permissive application of (1) the                         Authority: 26 U.S.C. 7805 * * *
                                            deliberate action occurs.                               partnership provisions, the allocation                ■  Par. 2. Section 1.141–0 is amended by
                                               Commenters requested that the                        and accounting rules, and certain                     adding an entry for § 1.141–1(e),
                                            amount of nonqualified bonds be                         corresponding rules for qualified                     revising entries for § 1.141–6 and
                                            determined using the average amount of                  501(c)(3) bonds in whole, but not in                  § 1.141–12(d)(3) through (5), adding an
                                            private business use over the entire                    part, to bonds to which the 1997 Final                entry for § 1.141–12(d)(6), revising the
                                            measurement period rather than the                      Regulations apply; and (2) the                        heading for § 1.141–15, and adding
                                            highest private business use in any one-                multipurpose rule to bonds to which the               entries for § 1.141–15(b)(4), (e)(1), (e)(2),
                                            year period. The Final Regulations do                   refunding rules apply.                                (l) and (m) to read as follows:
                                            not adopt this recommendation because
                                            this request is inconsistent with the                   Special Analyses                                      § 1.141–0    Table of contents.
                                            limitations on annual allocations of                       Certain IRS regulations, including this            *        *    *         *   *
                                            proceeds and qualified equity to the                    one, are exempt from the requirements                 § 1.141–1 Definitions and rules of general
                                            uses of the project. The Final                          of Executive Order 12866, as                               application.
                                            Regulations adopt the amendment to the                  supplemented and reaffirmed by                        *        *    *         *   *
                                            provision regarding the amount of                       Executive Order 13563. Therefore, a                       (e) Partnerships.
                                            nonqualified bonds as proposed.                         regulatory impact assessment is not                   *        *    *         *   *
                                               Commenters generally agreed with the                 required. It has also been determined                 § 1.141–6 Allocation and accounting rules.
                                            proposed change that allows any bonds                   that section 553(b) of the Administrative                (a) Allocation of proceeds to expenditures,
                                            of any issue to be treated as the                       Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. chapter 5) does               projects, and uses in general.
                                            nonqualified bonds provided that the                    not apply to these regulations. It is                    (1) Allocations to expenditures.
                                            redemption or defeasance does not have                  hereby certified that the collection of                  (2) Allocations of sources to a project and
                                            the effect of extending the weighted                    information in these regulations will not             its uses.
                                            average maturity (WAM) of the issue.                    have a significant economic impact on                    (3) Definition of project.
                                            Commenters, however, stated that some                   a substantial number of small                            (b) Special allocation rules for eligible
                                            bond indentures require optional                        governmental jurisdictions. This                      mixed-use projects.
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                                            redemptions of a portion of a term bond                 certification is based upon the fact that                (1) In general.
                                                                                                                                                             (2) Definition of eligible mixed-use project.
                                            to be used first to reduce the earliest                 few small governmental issuers are                       (3) Definition of qualified equity.
                                            mandatory sinking fund payments on                      expected to take an anticipatory                         (4) Same plan of financing.
                                            the bond. In this case, the redemption                  remedial action and that the amount of                   (c) Allocations of private payments.
                                            or defeasance of the longest bonds                      time required to meet the recordkeeping                  (d) Allocations of proceeds to common
                                            would result in the extension of the                    requirement is not significant.                       costs of an issue.



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                                                               Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations                                         65643

                                                (e) Allocations of proceeds to bonds.                 partner’s share of partnership items                  mixed-use project in accordance with
                                                (f) Examples.                                         varies, with the greatest share being 25              this paragraph (b). Qualified equity (as
                                            *       *     *        *      *                           percent, then that nongovernmental                    defined in paragraph (b)(3) of this
                                            § 1.141–12       Remedial actions.                        partner’s share of the partnership’s use              section) is allocated first to the private
                                            *       *     *        *      *                           of property is 25 percent.                            business use of the eligible mixed-use
                                                (d) * * *                                               (B) An issuer may determine a                       project and then to governmental use,
                                                (3) Anticipatory remedial action.                     nongovernmental partner’s share of the                and proceeds are allocated first to the
                                                (4) Notice of defeasance.                             partnership’s use of the property under               governmental use and then to private
                                                (5) Special limitation.                               guidance published in the Internal                    business use, using the percentages of
                                                (6) Defeasance escrow defined.                                                                              the eligible mixed-use project financed
                                                                                                      Revenue Bulletin (see
                                            *       *     *        *      *                           § 601.601(d)(2)(ii)(b) of this chapter).              with the respective sources and the
                                            § 1.141–15       Effective/applicability dates.                                                                 percentages of the respective uses. Thus,
                                                                                                      *     *     *    *      *
                                            *       *     *        *      *                                                                                 if the percentage of the eligible mixed-
                                                (b) * * *                                             ■ Par. 5. Section 1.141–6 is revised to
                                                                                                                                                            use project financed with qualified
                                                (4) Certain remedial actions.                         read as follows:
                                                                                                                                                            equity is less than the percentage of
                                            *       *     *        *      *                           § 1.141–6    Allocation and accounting rules.         private business use of the project, all of
                                              (e) * * *                                                                                                     the qualified equity is allocated to the
                                              (1) In general.                                            (a) Allocations of proceeds to
                                                                                                      expenditures, projects, and uses in                   private business use. Proceeds are
                                              (2) Transition rule for pre-effective date                                                                    allocated to the balance of the private
                                            bonds.                                                    general—(1) Allocations to
                                                                                                      expenditures. The allocations of                      business use of the project. Similarly, if
                                            *       *     *        *      *                                                                                 the percentage of the eligible mixed-use
                                              (l) Applicability date for certain regulations          proceeds and other sources of funds to
                                                                                                      expenditures under § 1.148–6(d) apply                 project financed with proceeds is less
                                            related to allocation and accounting.
                                              (1) In general.                                         for purposes of §§ 1.141–1 through                    than the percentage of governmental use
                                              (2) Permissive application.                             1.141–15.                                             of the project, all of the proceeds are
                                              (m) Permissive retroactive application of                  (2) Allocations of sources to a project            allocated to the governmental use, and
                                            certain regulations.                                                                                            qualified equity is allocated to the
                                                                                                      and its uses. Except as provided in
                                            *       *     *        *      *                                                                                 balance of the governmental use of the
                                                                                                      paragraph (b) of this section (regarding
                                                                                                                                                            project. Further, if proceeds of more
                                            ■ Par. 3. Section 1.141–1 is amended by                   an eligible mixed-use project), if two or
                                                                                                                                                            than one issue finance the eligible
                                            adding paragraph (e) to read as follows:                  more sources of funding (including two
                                                                                                                                                            mixed-use project, proceeds of each
                                                                                                      or more tax-exempt issues) are allocated
                                                                                                                                                            issue are allocated ratably to the uses to
                                            § 1.141–1 Definitions and rules of general                to capital expenditures (as defined in
                                            application.
                                                                                                                                                            which proceeds are allocated in
                                                                                                      § 1.150–1(b)) for a project (as defined in
                                                                                                                                                            proportion to the relative amounts of the
                                            *     *    *     *      *                                 paragraph (a)(3) of this section), those
                                                                                                                                                            proceeds of such issues allocated to the
                                              (e) Partnerships. A partnership (as                     sources are allocated throughout that
                                                                                                                                                            eligible mixed-use project. For private
                                            defined in section 7701(a)(2)) is treated                 project to the governmental use and                   business use measured under § 1.141–
                                            as an aggregate of its partners, rather                   private business use of the project in                3(g), qualified equity and proceeds are
                                            than as an entity.                                        proportion to the relative amounts of                 allocated to the uses of the eligible
                                                                                                      those sources of funding spent on the                 mixed-use project in each one-year
                                            ■ Par. 4. Section 1.141–3 is amended by
                                                                                                      project.                                              period under § 1.141–3(g)(4). See
                                            redesignating paragraph (g)(2)(v) as
                                                                                                         (3) Definition of project—(i) In                   Example 1 of paragraph (f) of this
                                            paragraph (g)(2)(vi) and adding new
                                                                                                      general. For purposes of this section,                section.
                                            paragraph (g)(2)(v) to read as follows:
                                                                                                      project means one or more facilities or                  (2) Definition of eligible mixed-use
                                            § 1.141–3    Definition of private business               capital projects, including land,                     project. Eligible mixed-use project
                                            use.                                                      buildings, equipment, or other property,              means a project (as defined in paragraph
                                            *     *     *     *     *                                 financed in whole or in part with                     (a)(3) of this section) that is financed
                                              (g) * * *                                               proceeds of the issue.                                with proceeds of bonds that, when
                                              (2) * * *                                                  (ii) Output facilities. If an output               issued, purported to be governmental
                                              (v) Special rule for partners that are                  facility has multiple undivided                       bonds (as defined in § 1.150–1(b)) (the
                                            nongovernmental persons—(A) The                           ownership interests (respectively owned               applicable bonds) and with qualified
                                            amount of private business use by a                       by governmental persons or by both                    equity pursuant to the same plan of
                                            nongovernmental person resulting from                     governmental and nongovernmental                      financing (within the meaning of
                                            the use of property by a partnership in                   persons), each owner’s interest in the                § 1.150–1(c)(1)(ii)). An eligible mixed-
                                            which that nongovernmental person is a                    facility is treated as a separate facility            use project must be wholly owned by
                                            partner is that nongovernmental                           for purposes of this section, provided                one or more governmental persons or by
                                            partner’s share of the amount of use of                   that all owners of the undivided                      a partnership in which at least one
                                            the property by the partnership. For this                 ownership interests share the ownership               governmental person is a partner.
                                            purpose, except as otherwise provided                     and output in proportion to their                        (3) Definition of qualified equity. For
                                            in paragraph (g)(2)(v)(B) of this section,                contributions to the capital costs of the             purposes of this section, qualified equity
                                            a nongovernmental partner’s share of                      output facility.                                      means proceeds of bonds that are not
                                            the partnership’s use of the property is                     (b) Special allocation rules for eligible          tax-advantaged bonds and funds that are
                                            the nongovernmental partner’s greatest                    mixed-use projects—(1) In general. The                not derived from proceeds of a
                                            percentage share under section 704(b) of                  sources of funding allocated to capital               borrowing that are spent on the same
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                                            any partnership item of income, gain,                     expenditures for an eligible mixed-use                eligible mixed-use project as the
                                            loss, deduction, or credit attributable to                project (as defined in paragraph (b)(2) of            proceeds of the applicable bonds.
                                            the period that the partnership uses the                  this section) are allocated to undivided              Qualified equity does not include equity
                                            property during the measurement                           portions of the eligible mixed-use                    interests in real property or tangible
                                            period. For example, if a partnership                     project and the governmental use and                  personal property. Further, qualified
                                            has a nongovernmental partner and that                    private business use of the eligible                  equity does not include funds used to


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                                            65644            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations

                                            redeem or repay governmental bonds.                     private business use. If private business use         ■ f. Adding new paragraph (i)(2).
                                            See §§ 1.141–2(d)(2)(ii) and 1.141–12(i)                of the Project were, for example, 44 percent          ■ g. Revising paragraphs (j), and (k),
                                            (regarding the effects of certain                       in a year, the Qualified Equity would be              Example 8.
                                                                                                    allocated to 30 percent ($30x) private
                                            redemptions as remedial actions).                                                                               The revisions and additions read as
                                                                                                    business use and proceeds of the Bonds
                                               (4) Same plan of financing. Qualified                would be allocated to the excess (that is, 14         follows:
                                            equity finances a project under the same                percent or $14x), resulting in private
                                            plan of financing that includes the                                                                           § 1.141–12   Remedial actions.
                                                                                                    business use of the Bonds in that year of 20
                                            applicable bonds if the qualified equity                percent ($14x/$70x). Conversely, if private           *      *      *   *      *
                                            pays for capital expenditures of the                    business use of the Project were 20 percent,             (d) * * * (1) * * * Except as
                                            project on a date that is no earlier than               Qualified Equity would be allocated to that           provided in paragraph (d)(3) of this
                                            a date on which such expenditures                       20 percent. The remaining Qualified Equity            section, if the bonds are not redeemed
                                            would be eligible for reimbursement by                  (that is, 10 percent or $10x) would be                within 90 days of the date of the
                                            proceeds of the applicable bonds under                  allocated to the governmental use in excess           deliberate action, a defeasance escrow
                                                                                                    of the 70 percent to which the proceeds of            must be established for those bonds
                                            § 1.150–2(d)(2) (regardless of whether                  the Bonds would be allocated.
                                            the applicable bonds are reimbursement                                                                        within 90 days of the deliberate action.
                                                                                                       Example 2. Mixed-use output facility.
                                            bonds) and, except for a reasonable                     Authority A is a governmental person that             *      *      *   *      *
                                            retainage (within the meaning of                        owns and operates an electric transmission               (3) Anticipatory remedial action. The
                                            § 1.148–7(h)), no later than the date on                facility. Several years ago, Authority A used         requirements of paragraphs (d)(1) and
                                            which the measurement period begins.                    its equity to pay capital expenditures of             (2) of this section for redemption or
                                               (c) Allocations of private payments.                 $1000x for the facility. Authority A wants to         defeasance of the nonqualified bonds
                                            Except as provided in this paragraph (c),               make capital improvements to the facility in          within 90 days of the deliberate action
                                            private payments for a project are                      the amount of $100x (the Project). Authority
                                                                                                                                                          are met if the issuer declares its official
                                            allocated in accordance with § 1.141–4.                 A reasonably expects that, after completion
                                                                                                    of the Project, it will sell 46 percent of the        intent to redeem or defease all of the
                                            Payments under an output contract that                  available output of the facility, as determined       bonds that would become nonqualified
                                            result in private business use of an                    under § 1.141–7, under output contracts that          bonds in the event of a subsequent
                                            eligible mixed-use project are allocated                result in private business use and it will sell       deliberate action that would cause the
                                            to the same source of funding                           54 percent of the available output of the             private business tests or the private loan
                                            (notwithstanding § 1.141–4(c)(3)(v)                     facility for governmental use. On January 1,          financing test to be met and redeems or
                                            (regarding certain allocations of private               2017, Authority A issues $60x of bonds (the           defeases such bonds prior to that
                                            payments to equity)) allocated to the                   Bonds) and uses the proceeds of the Bonds             deliberate action. The issuer must
                                            private business use from such contract                 and $40x of qualified equity (the Qualified
                                                                                                                                                          declare its official intent on or before
                                            under paragraph (b) of this section.                    Equity) to finance the Project. The Qualified
                                                                                                    Equity is allocated to 40 of the 46 percent           the date on which it redeems or defeases
                                               (d) Allocations of proceeds to                                                                             such bonds, and the declaration of
                                                                                                    private business use resulting from the
                                            common costs of an issue. Proceeds                      output contracts. Proceeds of the Bonds are           intent must identify the financed
                                            used for expenditures for common costs                  allocated to the 54 percent governmental use          property or loan with respect to which
                                            (for example, issuance costs, qualified                 and thereafter to the remaining 6 percent             the anticipatory remedial action is being
                                            guarantee fees, or reasonably required                  private business use.                                 taken and describe the deliberate action
                                            reserve or replacement funds) are                          Example 3. Subsequent improvements and             that potentially may result in the private
                                            allocated in accordance with § 1.141–                   replacements. County A owns a hospital,               business tests being met (for example,
                                            3(g)(6). Proceeds, as allocated under                   which opened in 2001, that it financed
                                                                                                                                                          sale of financed property that the buyer
                                            § 1.141–3(g)(6) to an eligible mixed-use                entirely with proceeds of bonds it issued in
                                                                                                    1998 (the 1998 Bonds). In 2017, County A              may then lease to a nongovernmental
                                            project, are allocated to the uses of the                                                                     person). Rules similar to those in
                                                                                                    finances the cost of an addition to the
                                            project in the same proportions as the                  hospital with proceeds of bonds (the 2017             § 1.150–2(e) (regarding official intent for
                                            proceeds allocated to the uses under                    Bonds) and qualified equity (the 2017                 reimbursement bonds) apply to
                                            paragraph (b) of this section.                          Qualified Equity). The original hospital is a         declarations of intent under this
                                               (e) Allocations of proceeds to bonds.                project (the 1998 Project) and the addition is        paragraph (d)(3), including deviations in
                                            In general, proceeds are allocated to                   a project (the 2017 Project). Proceeds of the         the descriptions of the project or loan
                                            bonds in accordance with the rules for                  2017 Bonds and the 2017 Qualified Equity              and deliberate action and the
                                            allocations of proceeds to bonds for                    are allocated to the 2017 Project. The 2017
                                                                                                                                                          reasonableness of the official intent.
                                            separate purposes of multipurpose                       Qualified Equity is allocated first to the
                                                                                                    private business use of the 2017 Project and          *      *      *   *      *
                                            issues in § 1.141–13(d). For an issue that                                                                       (i) * * *
                                                                                                    then to the governmental use of the 2017
                                            is not a multipurpose issue (or is a                    Project. Proceeds of the 2017 Bonds are                  (1) If a remedial action is taken under
                                            multipurpose issue for which the issuer                 allocated first to the governmental use of the        paragraph (d) of this section, the amount
                                            has not made a multipurpose                             2017 Project and then to the private business         of private business use or private loans
                                            allocation), proceeds are allocated to                  use of that project. Neither proceeds of the          resulting from the deliberate action that
                                            bonds ratably in a manner similar to the                2017 Bonds nor 2017 Qualified Equity is
                                                                                                                                                          is taken into account for purposes of
                                            allocation of proceeds to projects under                allocated to the uses of the 1998 Project.
                                                                                                                                                          determining whether the bonds are
                                            paragraph (a)(2) of this section.                       Proceeds of the 1998 Bonds are not allocated
                                                                                                    to uses of the 2017 Project.                          private activity bonds is that portion of
                                               (f) Examples. The following examples
                                                                                                       Par 6. Section 1.141–12 is amended                 the remaining bonds that is used for
                                            illustrate the application of this section:             ■
                                                                                                    by:                                                   private business use or private loans (as
                                               Example 1. Mixed-use project. City A                                                                       calculated under paragraph (j) of this
                                                                                                    ■ a. Revising the last sentence of
                                            issues $70x of bonds (the Bonds) and                                                                          section);
                                                                                                    paragraph (d)(1).
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                                            finances the construction of a 10-story office                                                                   (2) If a remedial action is taken under
                                            building costing $100x (the Project) with               ■ b. Redesignating paragraphs (d)(3)
                                            proceeds of the Bonds and $30x of qualified             through (d)(5) as (d)(4) through (d)(6).              paragraph (e) or (f) of this section, the
                                            equity (the Qualified Equity). To the extent            ■ c. Adding new paragraph (d)(3).                     amount of private business use or
                                            that the private business use of the Project            ■ d. Revising paragraph (i)(1).                       private loans resulting from the
                                            does not exceed 30 percent in any particular            ■ e. Redesignating paragraph (i)(2) as                deliberate action is not taken into
                                            year, the Qualified Equity is allocated to the          (i)(3).                                               account for purposes of determining


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                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations                                             65645

                                            whether the bonds are private activity                  use in any one-year period commencing with             D purports to make a multipurpose issue
                                            bonds; and                                              the one-year period in which the deliberate            allocation under paragraph (d) of this section
                                                                                                    action occurs (50 percent). This percentage is         of the outstanding 2017 bonds, allocating the
                                            *       *    *    *     *                               computed by dividing the percentage of the             issue into two separate issues of equal
                                               (j) Nonqualified bonds—(1) Amount                    facility used for a government use (50                 amounts with one issue allocable to Building
                                            of nonqualified bonds. The nonqualified                 percent) by the minimum amount of                      1 and the second allocable to Building 2. An
                                            bonds are a portion of the outstanding                  government use required (90 percent), and              allocation is unreasonable under paragraph
                                            bonds in an amount that, if the                         subtracting the resulting percentage (55.56            (d) of this section if it achieves more
                                            remaining bonds were issued on the                      percent) from 100 percent (44.44 percent).             favorable results under section 141 than
                                            date on which the deliberate action                     For purposes of subsequently applying                  could be achieved with actual separate
                                            occurs, the remaining bonds would not                   section 141 to the issue, City G may continue          issues. D’s allocation is unreasonable
                                                                                                    to use all of the proceeds of the outstanding          because, if permitted, it would allow more
                                            meet the private business use test or
                                                                                                    bonds in the same manner (that is, for the             favorable results under section 141 for the
                                            private loan financing test, as                         courthouse and the private business use)               2017 bonds (that is, private business use and
                                            applicable. For this purpose, the amount                without causing the issue to meet the private          private payments that exceed 10 percent for
                                            of private business use is the greatest                 business use test. The issue continues to              the 2017 bonds allocable to Building 2) than
                                            percentage of private business use in                   meet the private security or payment test.             could be achieved with actual separate
                                            any one-year period commencing with                     The result would be the same if City G,                issues. In addition, if D’s purported
                                            the one-year period in which the                        instead of redeeming the bonds, established            allocation was intended to result in two
                                            deliberate action occurs.                               a defeasance escrow for those bonds,                   separate issues of tax-exempt governmental
                                               (2) Allocation of nonqualified bonds.                provided that the requirement of paragraph             bonds (versus tax-exempt private activity
                                                                                                    (d)(5) of this section is met. If City G takes         bonds), the allocation would violate
                                            Allocations of nonqualified bonds must                  a subsequent deliberate action that results in
                                            be made on a pro rata basis, except that,                                                                      paragraph (d) of this section in the first
                                                                                                    further private business use, it must take into        instance because the allocation to the
                                            for purposes of paragraph (d) of this                   account 10 percent of private business use in          separate issue for Building 2 would fail to
                                            section (relating to redemption or                      addition to that caused by the second                  qualify separately as an issue of tax-exempt
                                            defeasance), an issuer may treat any                    deliberate act.                                        governmental bonds as a result of its 12
                                            bonds of an issue as the nonqualified                                                                          percent of private business use and private
                                                                                                    ■ Par 7. Section 1.141–13 is amended
                                            bonds so long as—                                                                                              payments.
                                               (i) The remaining weighted average                   by revising paragraph (d)(1) and                          (ii) The facts are the same as in paragraph
                                            maturity of the issue, determined as of                 paragraph (g), Example 5, to read as                   (i) of this Example 5, except that D enters
                                            the date on which the nonqualified                      follows:                                               into arrangements only for Building 1, and it
                                            bonds are redeemed or defeased                                                                                 expects no private business use of Building
                                                                                                    § 1.141–13        Refunding issues.
                                            (determination date), and excluding                                                                            2. In 2022, D allocates an equal amount of the
                                                                                                    *      *    *     *    *                               outstanding 2017 bonds to Building 1 and
                                            from the determination the nonqualified                    (d) Multipurpose issue allocations—                 Building 2. D selects particular bonds for
                                            bonds redeemed or defeased by the                       (1) In general. For purposes of section                each separate issue such that the allocation
                                            issuer in accordance with this section,                 141, unless the context clearly requires               does not achieve a more favorable result than
                                            is not greater than                                     otherwise, § 1.148–9(h) applies to                     could have been achieved by issuing actual
                                               (ii) The remaining weighted average                  allocations of multipurpose issues (as                 separate issues. D uses the same allocation
                                            maturity of the issue, determined as of                 defined in § 1.148–1(b)), including                    for purposes of both sections 141 and 148.
                                            the determination date, but without                     allocations involving the refunding
                                                                                                                                                           D’s allocation is reasonable.
                                            regard to the redemption or defeasance                                                                            (iii) The facts are the same as in paragraph
                                                                                                    purposes of the issue. An allocation                   (ii) of this Example 5, except that as part of
                                            of any bonds (including the                             under this paragraph (d) may be made
                                            nonqualified bonds) occurring on the                                                                           the same issue, D issues bonds for a privately
                                                                                                    at any time, but once made, may not be                 used airport. The airport bonds, if issued as
                                            determination date.                                     changed. An allocation is not reasonable               a separate issue, would be qualified private
                                               (k) * * *                                                                                                   activity bonds. The remaining bonds, if
                                                                                                    under this paragraph (d) if it achieves
                                               Example 8. Compliance after remedial                 more favorable results under section 141               issued separately from the airport bonds,
                                            action. In 2007, City G issues bonds with               than could be achieved with actual                     would be governmental bonds. Treated as
                                            proceeds of $10 million to finance a                                                                           one issue, however, the bonds are taxable
                                                                                                    separate issues. Each of the separate
                                            courthouse. The bonds have a weighted                                                                          private activity bonds. Therefore, D makes its
                                            average maturity that does not exceed 120               issues under the allocation must consist               allocation of the bonds under paragraph (d)
                                            percent of the reasonably expected economic             of one or more tax-exempt bonds.                       of this section and § 1.150–1(c)(3) into 3
                                            life of the courthouse. City G enters into              Allocations made under this paragraph                  separate issues on or before the issue date.
                                            contracts with nongovernmental persons that             (d) and § 1.148–9(h) must be consistent                Assuming all other applicable requirements
                                            result in private business use of 10 percent            for purposes of sections 141 and 148.                  are met, the bonds of the respective issues
                                            of the courthouse per year. More than 10                *      *    *     *    *                               will be tax-exempt qualified private activity
                                            percent of the debt service on the issue is                                                                    bonds or governmental bonds.
                                                                                                       (g) * * *
                                            secured by private security or payments. In
                                                                                                      Example 5. Multipurpose issue. (i) In 2017,          *     *     *    *     *
                                            2019, in a bona fide and arm’s length
                                            arrangement, City G enters into a                       State D issues bonds to finance the                    ■ Par. 8. Section 1.141–15 is amended
                                            management contract with a                              construction of two office buildings, Building         by:
                                            nongovernmental person that results in                  1 and Building 2. D expends an equal amount            ■ a. Revising the heading and paragraph
                                            private business use of an additional 40                of the proceeds on each building. D enters             (a).
                                            percent of the courthouse per year during the           into arrangements that result in private               ■ b. Adding paragraph (b)(4),
                                            remaining term of the bonds. City G                     business use of 8 percent of Building 1 and            ■ c. Revising paragraphs (e) and (i).
                                            immediately redeems the nonqualified                    12 percent of Building 2 during the
                                                                                                                                                           ■ d. Adding paragraphs (l) and (m).
                                            bonds, or 44.44 percent of the outstanding              measurement period under § 1.141–3(g) and
                                                                                                                                                              The revisions and additions read as
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                                            bonds. This is the portion of the outstanding           private payments of 4 percent of the 2017
                                            bonds that, if the remaining bonds were                 bonds in respect of Building 1 and 6 percent           follows:
                                            issued on the date on which the deliberate              of the 2017 bonds in respect of Building 2.
                                                                                                                                                           § 1.141–15   Effective/applicability dates.
                                            action occurs, the remaining bonds would                These arrangements result in a total of 10
                                            not meet the private business use test,                 percent of the proceeds of the 2017 bonds                 (a) Scope. The effective dates of this
                                            treating the amount of private business use             being used for a private business use and              section apply for purposes of §§ 1.141–
                                            as the greatest percentage of private business          total private payments of 10 percent. In 2022,         1 through 1.141–14, 1.145–1 through


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                                            65646            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 207 / Tuesday, October 27, 2015 / Rules and Regulations

                                            1.145–2, and 1.150–1(a)(3) and the                      revising the first sentence of paragraph              changes. The Court issued its mandate
                                            definition of bond documents contained                  (c)(2) to read as follows:                            on October 13, 2015; the Department’s
                                            in § 1.150–1(b).                                                                                              30-day non-enforcement period will
                                               (b) * * *                                            § 1.145–2 Application of private activity             therefore conclude on November 12,
                                               (4) Certain remedial actions—(i)                     bond regulations.
                                                                                                                                                          2015. From November 12, 2015 through
                                            General rule. For bonds subject to                      *     *     *     *     *                             December 31, 2015, the Department will
                                            § 1.141–12, the provisions of § 1.141–                    (b) * * *                                           exercise prosecutorial discretion
                                            12(d)(3), (i), (j), and (k), Example 8,                   (4) References to governmental bonds                pursuant to its previously announced
                                            apply to deliberate actions that occur on               in § 1.141–6 mean qualified 501(c)(3)                 time-limited non-enforcement policy.
                                            or after January 25, 2016.                              bonds.
                                                                                                                                                          DATES: The Department will not bring
                                               (ii) Special rule for allocations of                   (5) References to ownership by
                                                                                                    governmental persons in § 1.141–6                     enforcement actions against any
                                            nonqualified bonds. For purposes of                                                                           employer for FLSA violations resulting
                                            § 1.141–12(j)(2), in addition to the                    mean ownership by governmental
                                                                                                    persons or 501(c)(3) organizations.                   from the revised domestic service
                                            allocation methods permitted in                                                                               regulations before November 12, 2015.
                                            § 1.141–12(j)(2), an issuer may treat                     (c) * * *
                                                                                                      (2) Costs of issuance. Sections 1.141–              FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
                                            bonds with the longest maturities
                                                                                                    3(g)(6) and 1.141–6(d) do not apply to                Mary Ziegler, Assistant Administrator,
                                            (determined on a bond-by-bond basis) as
                                                                                                    the extent costs of issuance are allocated            Office of Policy, U.S. Department of
                                            the nonqualified bonds, but only for
                                                                                                    among the other purposes for which the                Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 200
                                            bonds sold before January 25, 2016.
                                                                                                    proceeds are used or to portions of a                 Constitution Avenue NW., Room S–
                                            *       *     *      *    *                                                                                   3502, FP Building, Washington, DC
                                               (e) Permissive application of certain                project. * * *
                                                                                                    *     *     *     *     *                             20210; telephone: (202) 693–0406 (this
                                            sections—(1) In general. The following                                                                        is not a toll-free number), email:
                                            sections may each be applied by issuers                 ■ Par. 10. Section 1.150–5 is amended
                                                                                                                                                          HomeCare@dol.gov. Copies of this
                                            to any bonds:                                           by revising paragraph (a)(1) to read as               Policy Statement may be obtained in
                                               (i) Section 1.141–3(b)(4);                           follows:                                              alternative formats (Large Print, Braille,
                                               (ii) Section 1.141–3(b)(6); and                                                                            Audio Tape, or Disc), upon request, by
                                               (iii) Section 1.141–12.                              § 1.150–5    Filing notices and elections.
                                               (2) Transition rule for pre-effective                  (a) * * *                                           calling (202) 693–0675 (not a toll-free
                                            date bonds. For purposes of paragraphs                    (1) Section 1.141–12(d)(4);                         number). TTY/TTD callers may dial toll-
                                            (e)(1) and (h) of this section, issuers may                                                                   free (877) 889–5627 to obtain
                                                                                                    *     *     *    *    *
                                            apply § 1.141–12 to bonds issued before                                                                       information or request materials in
                                            May 16, 1997, without regard to                         John Dalrymple,                                       alternative formats.
                                            paragraph (d)(5) thereof with respect to                Deputy Commissioner for Services and                  SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
                                                                                                    Enforcement.
                                            deliberate actions that occur on or after                                                                     I. Non-Enforcement Period Until
                                            April 21, 2003.                                           Approved: October 6, 2015.
                                                                                                                                                          November 12, 2015
                                                                                                    Mark J. Mazur,
                                            *       *     *      *    *                                                                                      The Department’s Final Rule
                                               (i) Permissive application of certain                Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (Tax
                                                                                                    Policy).                                              amending FLSA regulations regarding
                                            regulations relating to output facilities.                                                                    domestic service employment, 78 FR
                                            Issuers may apply each of the following                 [FR Doc. 2015–27328 Filed 10–26–15; 8:45 am]
                                                                                                                                                          60454 (October 1, 2013), which extends
                                            sections to any bonds used to finance                   BILLING CODE 4830–01–P
                                                                                                                                                          minimum wage and overtime
                                            output facilities:                                                                                            protections to most home care workers,
                                               (1) Section 1.141–6;                                                                                       had an effective date of January 1, 2015.
                                               (2) Section 1.141–7(f)(3); and                       DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
                                               (3) Section 1.141–7(g).                                                                                    The Department did not begin
                                                                                                    Wage and Hour Division                                enforcement of the Final Rule on that
                                            *       *     *      *    *                                                                                   date both because of its time-limited
                                               (l) Applicability date for certain                                                                         non-enforcement policy, 79 FR 60974
                                            regulations relating to allocation and                  29 CFR Part 552
                                                                                                                                                          (October 9, 2014), and because it was a
                                            accounting—(1) In general. Except as                    RIN 1235–AA05                                         party to a federal lawsuit regarding the
                                            otherwise provided in this section,                                                                           amended regulations in which the U.S.
                                            §§ 1.141–1(e), 1.141–3(g)(2)(v), 1.141–6,               Application of the Fair Labor                         District Court for the District of
                                            1.141–13(d), and 1.145–2(b)(4), (b)(5),                 Standards Act to Domestic Service;                    Columbia issued opinions and orders
                                            and (c)(2) apply to bonds that are sold                 Dates of Previously Announced 30-Day                  vacating the rule’s major provisions.
                                            on or after January 25, 2016 and to                     Period of Non-Enforcement                             Home Care Ass’n of Am. v. Weil, 76 F.
                                            which the 1997 regulations (as defined                                                                        Supp. 3d 138 (D.D.C. 2014); Home Care
                                            in paragraph (b)(1) of this section)                    AGENCY:  Wage and Hour Division,
                                                                                                    Department of Labor.                                  Ass’n of Am. v. Weil, 78 F. Supp. 3d 123
                                            apply.                                                                                                        (D.D.C. 2015). On August 21, 2015, the
                                               (2) Permissive application. Issuers                  ACTION: Policy statement.
                                                                                                                                                          U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of
                                            may apply §§ 1.141–1(e), 1.141–
                                                                                                    SUMMARY:   The Department of Labor                    Columbia Circuit reversed the district
                                            3(g)(2)(v), 1.141–6, and 1.145–2(b)(4),
                                                                                                    (Department) previously announced that                court’s judgment. Home Care Ass’n of
                                            (b)(5), and (c)(2), in whole but not in
                                                                                                    it would not bring enforcement actions                America v. Weil, 799 F.3d 1084 (D.C.
                                            part, to bonds to which the 1997
                                                                                                    against any employer for violations of                Cir. 2015). On September 14, 2015, the
                                            regulations apply.
                                                                                                    Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)                       Department announced that it would
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                                               (m) Permissive retroactive application
                                                                                                    obligations resulting from amendments                 not bring enforcement actions against
                                            of certain regulations. Issuers may apply
                                                                                                    to its domestic service regulations for 30            any employer for violations of FLSA
                                            § 1.141–13(d) to bonds to which
                                                                                                    days after the U.S. Court of Appeals for              obligations resulting from the amended
                                            § 1.141–13 applies.
                                                                                                    the District of Columbia issued a                     domestic service regulations for 30 days
                                            ■ Par. 9. Section 1.145–2 is amended by                 mandate making effective its opinion                  after the date the Court of Appeals
                                            adding paragraphs (b)(4) and (b)(5) and                 affirming the validity of the regulatory              issued a mandate making its opinion


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Document Created: 2015-12-14 15:35:51
Document Modified: 2015-12-14 15:35:51
CategoryRegulatory Information
CollectionFederal Register
sudoc ClassAE 2.7:
GS 4.107:
AE 2.106:
PublisherOffice of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
SectionRules and Regulations
ActionFinal regulations.
ContactJohanna Som de Cerff or Zoran Stojanovic, (202) 317-6980 (not a toll-free number).
FR Citation80 FR 65637 
RIN Number1545-BB23, 1545-BC07 and 1545-BH48
CFR AssociatedIncome Taxes and Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements

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