User Fees Relating to the Enrolled Agent Special Enrollment Examination and the Enrolled Retirement Plan Agent Special Enrollment Examination
| Published date | 29 September 2021 |
| Record Number | 2021-21242 |
| Section | Proposed rules |
| Court | Internal Revenue Service |
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[FR Doc. 2021–21021 Filed 9–28–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Internal Revenue Service
26 CFR Part 300
[REG–100718–21]
RIN 1545–BQ06
User Fees Relating to the Enrolled
Agent Special Enrollment Examination
and the Enrolled Retirement Plan
Agent Special Enrollment Examination
AGENCY
: Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
Treasury.
ACTION
: Notice of proposed rulemaking
and notice of public hearing.
SUMMARY
: This document contains
proposed amendments to the
regulations relating to the user fees for
the special enrollment examinations for
enrolled agents and enrolled retirement
plan agents. This document also
contains a notice of public hearing on
the proposed regulations. The proposed
regulations increase the amount of the
user fee for each part of the special
enrollment examination for enrolled
agents (EA SEE). The proposed
regulations also remove the user fee for
the special enrollment examination for
enrolled retirement plan agents (ERPA
SEE) because the IRS no longer offers
the ERPA SEE or new enrollment as an
enrolled retirement plan agent. The
proposed regulations affect individuals
taking the EA SEE. The Independent
Offices Appropriation Act of 1952
authorizes charging user fees.
DATES
: Electronic or written comments
must be received by November 15, 2021.
The public hearing is being held by
teleconference on November 23, 2021 at
10 a.m. EST. Requests to speak and
outlines of topics to be discussed at the
public hearing must be received by
November 15, 2021. If no outlines are
received by November 15, 2021, the
public hearing will be cancelled.
Requests to attend the public hearing
must be received by 5:00 p.m. EST on
November 19, 2021. The telephonic
hearing will be made accessible to
people with disabilities. Requests for
special assistance during the telephonic
hearing must be received by November
18, 2021.
ADDRESSES
: Commenters are strongly
encouraged to submit public comments
electronically. Submit electronic
submissions via the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov (indicate IRS and
REG–100718–21) by following the
online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted to the
Federal eRulemaking Portal, comments
cannot be edited or withdrawn. The IRS
expects to have limited personnel
available to process public comments
that are submitted on paper through the
mail. Any comments submitted on
paper will be considered to the extent
practicable. The IRS will publish any
comments submitted electronically, and
to the extent practicable comments
submitted on paper, to the public
docket. Send paper submissions to:
CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG–100718–21), Room
5203, Internal Revenue Service, P.O.
Box 7604, Ben Franklin Station,
Washington, DC 20044.
For those requesting to speak during
the hearing, send an outline of topic
submissions electronically via the
Federal eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov (indicate IRS and
REG–100718–21).
Individuals who want to testify (by
telephone) at the public hearing must
send an email to publichearings@irs.gov
to receive the telephone number and
access code for the hearing. The subject
line of the email must contain the
regulation number REG–100718–21 and
the word TESTIFY. For example, the
subject line may say: Request to
TESTIFY at Hearing for REG–100718–
21. The email should include a copy of
the speaker’s public comments and
outline of topics. Individuals who want
to attend (by telephone) the public
hearing must also send an email to
publichearings@irs.gov to receive the
telephone number and access code for
the hearing. The subject line of the
email must contain the regulation
number REG–100718–21 and the word
ATTEND. For example, the subject line
may say: Request to ATTEND Hearing
for REG–100718–21. To request special
assistance during the telephonic
hearing, contact the Publications and
Regulations Branch of the Office of
Associate Chief Counsel (Procedure and
Administration) by sending an email to
publichearings@irs.gov (preferred) or by
telephone at (202) 317–5177 (not a toll-
free number).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
:
Concerning the proposed regulations,
Karen Wozniak at (202) 317–5129;
concerning cost methodology, Michael
A. Weber at (202) 803–9738; concerning
submission of comments, the hearing,
and the access code to attend the
hearing by telephone, Regina Johnson at
(202) 317–5177 (not toll-free numbers)
or publichearings@irs.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
:
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Background and Explanation of
Provisions
This document contains proposed
amendments to 26 CFR part 300
regarding user fees.
A. Enrolled Agents, Enrolled Retirement
Plan Agents, and the Special Enrollment
Examinations
Section 330 of Title 31 of the United
States Code authorizes the Secretary of
the Treasury to regulate the practice of
representatives before the Department of
the Treasury (Treasury Department) and
require that an individual seeking to
practice demonstrate the necessary
qualifications, competency, and good
character, and reputation. The rules
governing practice before the IRS are
published in 31 CFR, Subtitle A, part
10, and reprinted as Treasury
Department Circular No. 230 (Circular
230).
Section 10.4(a) of Circular 230
authorizes the IRS to grant status as
enrolled agents to individuals who
demonstrate special competence in tax
matters by passing a written
examination, the EA SEE, and who have
not engaged in any conduct that would
justify suspension or disbarment under
Circular 230.
The EA SEE is comprised of three
parts and an applicant generally must
pass all three parts within two years to
be granted enrolled agent status through
written examination. The EA SEE
testing period generally begins on May
1 each year and ends the last day of the
following February. The EA SEE is not
offered during March and April when it
is updated to reflect recent changes in
the relevant law. More information on
the EA SEE, including content, scoring,
and how to register, can be found on the
IRS website at www.irs.gov/tax-
professionals/enrolled-agents. Since
2006, the IRS has engaged the services
of a third-party contractor to develop
and administer the EA SEE. The IRS
Return Preparer Office (RPO) oversees
the development and administration of
the EA SEE. As of August 30, 2021,
there were 62,686 enrolled agents.
Section 10.4(b) of Circular 230
authorizes the IRS to grant status as
enrolled retirement plan agents to
individuals who demonstrate special
competence in qualified retirement plan
matters by passing a written
examination, the ERPA SEE, and who
have not engaged in any conduct that
would justify suspension or disbarment
under Circular 230. The IRS stopped
offering the ERPA SEE as of February
12, 2016, and no longer accepts
applications for new enrollment as an
enrolled retirement plan agent.
Accordingly, the proposed regulations
remove the user fee for the ERPA SEE.
Individuals currently enrolled as
retirement plan agents can maintain
their status as enrolled retirement plan
agents. As of August 30, 2021, there
were 743 enrolled retirement plan
agents.
B. User Fee Authority
The Independent Offices
Appropriation Act of 1952 (IOAA) (31
U.S.C. 9701) authorizes each agency to
promulgate regulations establishing the
charge for services provided by the
agency. The IOAA states that the
services provided by an agency should
be self-sustaining to the extent possible.
31 U.S.C. 9701(a). The IOAA provides
that user fees are subject to policies
prescribed by the President, which are
currently set forth in the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB)
Circular A–25 (OMB Circular A–25), 58
FR 38142 (July 15, 1993).
Section 6a(1) of OMB Circular A–25
states that when a service offered by an
agency provides special benefits to
identifiable recipients beyond those
accruing to the general public, the
agency is to charge a user fee to recover
the full cost of providing the service.
Section 8e of OMB Circular A–25
requires agencies to review user fees
biennially and update the fees as
necessary to reflect changes in the cost
of providing the underlying services.
During the biennial review, an agency
must calculate the full cost of providing
each service, taking into account all
direct and indirect costs to any part of
the U.S. government. Under section
6d(1) of OMB Circular A–25, the full
cost of providing a service includes, but
is not limited to, an appropriate share of
salaries, medical insurance and
retirement benefits, management costs,
and physical overhead and other
indirect costs, including rents, utilities,
and travel, associated with providing
the service.
An agency should set the user fee at
an amount that recovers the full cost of
providing the service unless the agency
requests, and the OMB grants, an
exception to the full-cost requirement.
Under section 6c(2) of OMB Circular A–
25, the OMB may grant exceptions when
the cost of collecting the fees would
represent an unduly large part of the fee
for the activity or when any other
condition exists that, in the opinion of
the agency head, justifies an exception.
When the OMB grants an exception, the
agency does not collect the full cost of
providing the service and must fund the
remaining cost of providing the service
from other available funding sources.
Consequently, the agency subsidizes the
cost of the service to the recipients of
reduced-fee services even though the
service confers a special benefit on
those recipients who would otherwise
be required to pay the full cost of
receiving the benefit as provided for by
the IOAA and OMB Circular A–25.
C. The EA SEE User Fee
Section 10.4(a) of Circular 230
provides that the IRS will grant enrolled
agent status to an applicant who, among
other things, demonstrates special
competence in tax matters by written
examination. The EA SEE is the written
examination by which applicants can
demonstrate special competence in tax
matters, and an applicant must pass all
three parts of the EA SEE to be granted
enrolled agent status through written
examination. The IRS confers a benefit
on individuals who take the EA SEE
beyond those that accrue to the general
public by providing them with an
opportunity to demonstrate special
competence in tax matters by passing a
written examination and thereby satisfy
one of the requirements for becoming an
enrolled agent under section 10.4(a) of
Circular 230. Because the EA SEE is a
service that provides a special benefit to
test takers, the IRS charges a user fee to
take the examination.
Final regulations (TD 9820) published
in the Federal Register (82 FR 33009–
01) on July 19, 2017, established the
current $81 user fee per part of the EA
SEE. At that time the Treasury
Department and the IRS determined that
a $81 user fee per part would recover
the full direct and indirect costs the
government would incur to oversee the
EA SEE. The contractor who
administers the EA SEE also charges
individuals taking the EA SEE an
additional fee for its services. For the
May 2021 to February 2022 testing
period, the contractor’s fee is $104 for
each part of the EA SEE.
As required by OMB Circular A–25, in
2021 the IRS conducted a biennial
review of the EA SEE user fee and
calculated its costs for overseeing the
examination. As a result of the review,
the IRS determined that its full cost for
overseeing the EA SEE is $99 per part,
plus an amount payable directly to a
third-party contractor for its services.
The proposed regulations increase the
amount of the user fee for taking the EA
SEE from $81 per part to $99 per part.
This amount is in addition to an amount
payable directly to the third-party
contractor for each part. The IRS does
not intend to subsidize any of the cost
of making the EA SEE available to
examinees and is not applying for an
exception to the full-cost requirement in
OMB Circular A–25.
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The increase in the user fee is
primarily attributable to increases in
salary and benefits for employees
conducting activities related to the EA
SEE program. The proposed user fee
accounts for the time and personnel
necessary to oversee the development
and administration of the EA SEE and
to ensure the contractor complies with
the terms of its contract. The IRS’s
oversight costs include costs associated
with: (1) Review and approval of
materials used by the contractor in
developing the EA SEE; (2) review of
surveys of existing enrolled agents,
which help to determine the topics to be
covered in the EA SEE; (3) composition
of potential EA SEE questions in
coordination with the contractor’s
external tax law experts; and (4)
analysis of the answers and raw scores
of a testing population to determine a
passing score.
In addition, IRS personnel ensure the
contractor’s compliance with its
contract by reviewing the work of the
contractor using an annual Work
Breakdown Structure—a project
management tool—and reviewing and
verifying that the contractor is in
compliance with a Quality Assurance
Plan measuring customer satisfaction
and accuracy. The IRS incurs additional
costs associated with enforcing
compliance with the Treasury
contractor personnel security and
training policies, Federal Information
Security Modernization Act (FISMA),
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 and other laws, regulations and
policies in the scope of the EA SEE
contract; monitoring the contractor’s
help desk; and the resolution of test-
related issues such as cheating
incidents, appeals regarding test scores,
refund requests, and customer service
complaints that are not resolved by the
contractor.
D. Calculation of User Fees Generally
The IRS follows generally accepted
accounting principles (GAAP) in
calculating the full cost of overseeing
the EA SEE. The Federal Accounting
Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) is
the body that establishes GAAP that
apply for Federal reporting entities,
such as the IRS. FASAB publishes the
FASAB Handbook of Accounting
Standards and Other Pronouncements,
as Amended (Current Handbook), which
is available at https://files.fasab.gov/
pdffiles/2020_fasab_handbook.pdf. The
Current Handbook includes the
Statement of Federal Financial
Accounting Standards (SFFAS) No. 4:
Managerial Cost Accounting Standards
and Concepts. SFFAS No. 4 establishes
internal costing standards under GAAP
to accurately measure and manage the
full cost of Federal programs, and the
methodology below is in accordance
with SFFAS No. 4.
1. Cost Center Allocation
The IRS determines the cost of its
services and the activities involved in
producing them through a cost
accounting system that tracks costs to
organizational units. The lowest
organizational unit in the IRS’s cost
accounting system is called a cost
center. Cost centers are usually separate
offices that are distinguished by subject
matter area of responsibility or
geographic region. All costs of operating
a cost center are recorded in the IRS’s
cost accounting system. The costs
charged to a cost center are the direct
costs for the cost center’s activities in
addition to allocated overhead. Some
cost centers work on different services
across the IRS and are not fully devoted
to the services for which the IRS charges
user fees.
2. Cost Estimation of Direct Costs
The IRS uses various cost
measurement techniques to estimate the
costs attributable to oversight of the EA
SEE. These techniques include using
various timekeeping systems to measure
the time required to accomplish
activities, or using information provided
by subject matter experts on the time
devoted to a service or activity. To
determine the labor and benefits costs
incurred to provide the service of
providing the EA SEE, the IRS estimated
the number of full-time employees
required to conduct activities related to
the costs of overseeing the EA SEE. The
number of full-time employees is based
on both current employment numbers
and future hiring estimates. Other direct
costs associated with overseeing the EA
SEE include travel, training, and
supplies.
3. Overhead
When the indirect cost of a service or
activity is not specifically identified
from the cost accounting system, an
overhead rate is added to the
identifiable direct cost to arrive at full
cost. Overhead is an indirect cost of
operating an organization that is not
specifically identified with an activity.
Overhead includes costs of resources
that are jointly or commonly consumed
by one or more organizational unit’s
activities but are not specifically
identifiable to a single activity.
These costs can include:
•General management and
administrative services of sustaining
and supporting organizations.
•Facilities management and ground
maintenance services (security, rent,
utilities, and building maintenance).
•Procurement and contracting
services.
•Financial management and
accounting services.
•Information technology services.
•Services to acquire and operate
property, plants, and equipment.
•Publication, reproduction, and
graphics and video services.
•Research, analytical, and statistical
services.
•Human resources/personnel
services.
•Library and legal services.
To calculate the overhead allocable to
a service, the IRS multiplies an
overhead rate by the estimated direct
costs. The IRS calculates the overhead
rate annually based on the Statement of
Net Cost included in the IRS annual
financial statements. The financial
statements are audited by the
Government Accountability Office. The
overhead rate is the ratio of the IRS’s
indirect costs divided by the direct costs
of its organizational units. Indirect costs
are labor, benefits, and non-labor costs
(excluding IT related to taxpayer
services, enforcement, and business
system modernization) from the
supporting and sustaining
organizational units. Direct costs are the
labor, benefits, and non-labor costs for
the IRS’s organizational units that
interact directly with taxpayers.
For the EA SEE user fee review, the
Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 overhead rate of
58.83 percent was used. The rate was
calculated based on the FY 2020
Statement of Net Cost as follows:
Total Indirect Costs $4,274,512,375
Total Direct Costs ÷ $7,265,460,800
Overhead Rate 58.83%
E. Calculation of the EA SEE User Fee
1. Cost Estimate
The IRS projected the estimated costs
of direct labor and benefits based on the
actual salary and benefits of employees
who devote time to oversee the
administration of the EA SEE program,
reduced to reflect the percentage of time
each individual spends overseeing the
EA SEE program. RPO’s managers
estimated the percentage of time these
employees devote to overseeing the EA
SEE based on their knowledge of actual
program assignments. Six employees
devote seventy-five percent of their time
to EA SEE-related activities. Two
employees who are contracting officer
representatives devote 90 percent and
80 percent of their time, respectively, to
EA SEE-related activities. Additional
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staffing costs include oversight and
support associated with these functions.
The baseline for the labor and benefits
estimate was the actual salary and
benefits for FY 2021. From this baseline,
the IRS estimated the direct labor and
benefits costs over the next three years
using an inflation factor for FYs 2022,
2023, and 2024. The IRS used a three-
year projection because the increase in
future labor and benefits costs are
reliably predictable representations of
the actual costs that will be incurred by
the RPO. These estimated direct labor
and benefits costs were then reduced to
reflect the percentage of time each
individual devoted to the EA SEE
program and are set out in the following
table:
Year
Estimated direct
labor
and benefit
costs
2022 .................................... $1,346,086.00
2023 .................................... 1,376,656.00
2024 .................................... 1,407,937.00
Total ............................. 4,130,679.00
The IRS estimated $12,000 in
additional direct costs for each year for
travel, training, and supplies.
The total estimated direct costs for the
three years is $4,166,679. After
estimating the total direct costs, the IRS
applied the FY 2021 overhead rate of
58.83 percent to the estimated direct
costs to calculate indirect costs of
$2,451,257, for a total cost for the three-
year period of $6,617,936.
The calculation of the total cost of the
EA SEE program for 2022 through 2024
is below:
Direct Costs $4,166,679
Overhead at 58.83% + $2,451,257
Total EA SEE Cost $6,617,936
2. Volume of Examinations
The number of examination parts
provided during FYs 2018, 2019, and
2020 were 23,286; 23,945; and 19,913,
respectively. The total number of
examination parts provided during the
three years was 67,144. The IRS used
this historical three-year volume to
estimate the number of examination
parts it expects to provide in FYs 2022,
2023, and 2024.
3. Unit Cost Per Exam
To arrive at the total cost per
examination part, the IRS divided the
estimated three-year total of EA SEE
costs by the total volume of examination
parts expected over the same three-year
period to determine a unit cost per
examination part of $99, as shown
below:
Total EA SEE Cost $6,617,936
Volume ÷ 67,144
Unit Cost per exam part $99
As noted in section C, the contractor
who administers the EA SEE also
charges individuals taking the EA SEE
an additional fee for its services. For the
May 2022 to February 2023 and May
2023 to February 2024 testing periods,
the contractor’s fee is $104 and $107,
respectively, for each part of the EA
SEE. The fee charged by the contractor
is fixed by the current contract terms
and therefore cannot be reduced or
renegotiated at this time. The contract
was subject to public procurement
procedures, and there were no tenders
that were more competitive. The
contract will expire on February 28,
2024. The fee charged by the contractor
may change when the contract expires.
Any future contract will be subject to
the public procurement procedures.
Special Analyses
This regulation is not significant and
is not subject to review under section
6(b) of Executive Order 12866 pursuant
to the Memorandum of Agreement
(April 11, 2018) between the Treasury
Department and the Office of
Management and Budget regarding
review of tax regulations. Pursuant to
the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C.
chapter 6), it is hereby certified that
these proposed regulations will not have
a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
The proposed regulations remove the
ERPA SEE user fee as the IRS no longer
offers the examination or new
enrollment as an enrolled retirement
plan agent. The EA SEE user fee
primarily affects individuals who take
the EA SEE. Only individuals, not
businesses, can be enrolled agents.
Thus, the economic impact of these
regulations on any small entity would
be a result of an individual enrolled
agent owning a small entity or a small
entity employing an enrolled agent and
reimbursing the individual for the fee.
The Treasury Department and the IRS
estimate that an average of 22,381 EA
SEE examination parts will be taken by
individuals annually. Therefore, a
substantial number of small entities is
not likely to be affected. Further, the
economic impact on any small entities
affected would be limited to paying the
$18 difference in cost between the $99
user fee and the previous $81 user fee
per part (for each enrolled agent that a
small entity employs and pays for),
which is unlikely to present a
significant economic impact. The total
economic impact of this regulation is
thus approximately $402,858 annually,
which is the product of the
approximately 22,381 examination parts
and the $18 increase in the fee per part.
Accordingly, the rule is not expected to
have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities,
and a regulatory flexibility analysis is
not required.
Pursuant to section 7805(f) of the
Internal Revenue Code, this notice of
proposed rulemaking has been
submitted to the Chief Counsel of the
Office of Advocacy of the Small
Business Administration for comment
on its impact on small business.
Comments and Public Hearing
Before these proposed amendments to
the regulations are adopted as final
regulations, consideration will be given
to comments that are submitted timely
to the IRS as prescribed in the preamble
under the
ADDRESSES
section. The
Treasury Department and the IRS
request comments on all aspects of the
proposed regulations. Any electronic
comments submitted, and to the extent
practicable any paper comments
submitted, will be made available at
www.regulations.gov or upon request.
A public hearing is being held by
teleconference on November 23, 2021
beginning at 10:00 a.m. EST unless no
outlines are received by November 15,
2021. The rules of 26 CFR 601.601(a)(3)
apply to the hearing. Persons who wish
to present oral comments by telephone
at the hearing must submit written or
electronic comments and an outline of
the topics to be addressed and the time
to be devoted to each topic by
November 15, 2021 as prescribed in the
preamble under the
ADDRESSES
section.
A period of 10 minutes will be
allocated to each person for making
comments. After the deadline for
receiving outlines has passed, the IRS
will prepare an agenda containing the
schedule of speakers. Copies of the
agenda will be made available at
www.regulations.gov, search IRS and
REG–100718–21. Copies of the agenda
will also be available by emailing a
request to publichearings@irs.gov.
Please put ‘‘REG–100718–21 Agenda
Request’’ in the subject line of the email.
Drafting Information
The principal author of these
regulations is Karen Wozniak, Office of
the Associate Chief Counsel (Procedure
and Administration). Other personnel
from the Treasury Department and the
IRS participated in the development of
the regulations.
List of Subjects in 26 CFR Part 300
Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, User fees.
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1
Public Law 116–260, sec. 212, 134 Stat. 1182,
2176 (2020).
2
See, e.g., H.R. Rep. No. 116–252, at 18–20
(2019); S. Rep. No. 116–105, at 7–8 (2019). Note, the
CASE Act legislative history cited is for H.R. 2426
and S. 1273, the CASE Act of 2019, a bill nearly
identical to the CASE Act of 2020. See H.R. 2426,
116th Cong. (2019); S. 1273, 116th Cong. (2019). In
developing the CASE Act, Congress drew on model
legislation in the Office’s 2013 policy report,
Copyright Small Claims, https://www.copyright.gov/
docs/smallclaims/usco-smallcopyrightclaims.pdf.
Congress also incorporated the Office’s report and
supporting materials into the statute’s legislative
history. H.R. Rep. No. 116–252, at 19; S. Rep. No.
116–105, at 2.
3
H.R. Rep. No. 116–252, at 17; S. Rep. No. 116–
105, at 2–3, 9.
4
17 U.S.C. 1504(c)(1)–(3). The CCB cannot issue
injunctive relief, but can require that an infringing
party cease or mitigate its infringing activity in the
event such party agrees and the agreement is
reflected in the proceeding’s record. Id. at
1504(e)(2)(A)(i), (e)(2)(B). This provision also
applies to parties making knowing material
misrepresentations under section 512(f). Id. at
1504(e)(2)(A)(ii).
5
See id. at 1504(a); H.R. Rep. No. 116–252, at 17,
21; S. Rep. No. 116–105, at 3, 11.
6
H.R. Rep. No. 116–252, at 21–22, 33; S. Rep. No.
116–105, at 14.
7
86 FR 16156 (Mar. 26, 2021). Comments
received in response to the March 26, 2021 NOI are
available at https://www.regulations.gov/document/
COLC-2021-0001-0001/comment. References to
these comments are by party name (abbreviated
where appropriate), followed by ‘‘Initial NOI
Comments’’ or ‘‘Reply NOI Comments,’’ as
appropriate.
8
Public Law 116–260, sec. 212(d), 134 Stat. at
2199.
9
17 U.S.C. 1506(a)(1).
Proposed Amendments to the
Regulations
Accordingly, 26 CFR part 300 is
proposed to be amended as follows:
PART 300—USER FEES
■Paragraph 1.The authority citation for
part 300 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 31 U.S.C. 9701.
§ 300.0 [Amended]
■Par. 2. Section 300.0 is amended by
removing paragraph (b)(9) and
redesignating paragraphs (b)(10) through
(12) as paragraphs (b)(9) through (11).
■Par. 3. Section 300.4 is amended by
revising paragraphs (b) and (d) to read
as follows:
§ 300.4 Enrolled agent special enrollment
examination fee.
* * * * *
(b) Fee. The fee for taking the enrolled
agent special enrollment examination is
$99 per part, which is the cost to the
government for overseeing the
development and administration of the
examination and is in addition to the
fees charged by the administrator of the
examination.
* * * * *
(d) Applicability date. This section
applies to registrations for the enrolled
agent special enrollment examination
that occur on or after [DATE 30 DAYS
AFTER PUBLICATION OF THE FINAL
RULE IN THE Federal Register].
§ 300.9 [Removed]
■Par. 4. Section 300.9 is removed.
§§ 300.10 through 300.12 [Redesignated as
§§ 300.09 through 300.11]
■Par. 5. Redesignate §§ 300.10 through
300.12 as §§ 300.09 through 300.11.
Douglas W. O’Donnell,
Deputy Commissioner for Services and
Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2021–21242 Filed 9–27–21; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4830–01–P
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Copyright Office
37 CFR Parts 201, 220, 222, 223, and
224
[Docket No. 2021–6]
Copyright Claims Board: Initiation of
Proceedings and Related Procedures
AGENCY
: U.S. Copyright Office, Library
of Congress.
ACTION
: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
SUMMARY
: The U.S. Copyright Office is
issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking
to establish procedures governing the
initial stages of a proceeding before the
Copyright Claims Board. The proposed
rule provides requirements regarding
the filing of a claim, the Board’s
compliance review of the claim, service,
issuance of notice of the claim, the
respondent’s opt-out election,
responses, and counterclaims. The
Office intends to initiate subsequent
rulemakings regarding additional
procedures.
DATES
: Initial written comments must be
received no later than 11:59 p.m.
Eastern Time on October 29, 2021.
Written reply comments must be
received no later than 11:59 p.m.
Eastern Time on November 15, 2021.
ADDRESSES
: For reasons of government
efficiency, the Copyright Office is using
the regulations.gov system for the
submission and posting of public
comments in this proceeding. All
comments are therefore to be submitted
electronically through regulations.gov.
Specific instructions for submitting
comments are available on the
Copyright Office website at http://
copyright.gov/rulemaking/case-act-
implementation/initiating-proceedings/.
If electronic submission of comments is
not feasible due to lack of access to a
computer and/or the internet, please
contact the Office using the contact
information below for special
instructions.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
:
Kevin R. Amer, Acting General Counsel
and Associate Register of Copyrights, by
email at kamer@copyright.gov, or
Whitney Levandusky, Supervisory
Attorney-Advisor, by email at wlev@
copyright.gov. Both can be reached by
telephone at 202–707–8350.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
:
I. Background
On December 27, 2020, the President
signed into law the Copyright
Alternative in Small-Claims
Enforcement (‘‘CASE’’) Act of 2020.
1
The CASE Act directs the Copyright
Office to establish the Copyright Claims
Board (‘‘CCB’’ or ‘‘Board’’), a voluntary,
alternative forum to federal court for
parties to seek resolution of copyright
disputes that have a low economic value
(‘‘small copyright claims’’).
2
The CCB’s
creation does not displace or limit a
party’s ability to bring small copyright
claims in federal court, but rather
provides a more accessible alternative
forum to decide those claims.
3
The CCB
has authority to hear copyright
infringement claims, claims seeking a
declaration of noninfringement, and
misrepresentation claims under section
512(f) of title 17.
4
Participation in the
CCB is voluntary for all parties,
5
and all
determinations are non-precedential.
6
On March 26, 2021, the Copyright Office
published a notification of inquiry
(‘‘NOI’’) inviting public comment on
various aspects of the CCB’s operations,
which the Office noted would be
established through a series of
rulemakings.
7
Congress directed that the
CCB begin operations by December 27,
2021, though the Register may for good
cause extend that deadline by not more
than 180 days.
8
The CASE Act directs the Register of
Copyrights to establish the regulations
by which the CCB will conduct its
proceedings, subject to the provisions of
chapter 15 and relevant principles of
law under title 17.
9
In this notice, the
Office proposes procedures related to
the filing of a claim, the CCB’s
subsequent review of the claim to
ensure that it complies with statutory
requirements and the Office’s
regulations (referred to in this
rulemaking as the CCB’s ‘‘compliance
review’’), service, issuance of notice of
the claim, the respondent’s opt-out
election, responses, and counterclaims.
The Office will issue proposed rules
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lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
